High efficiency long range drone

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11220334-B2
Application number	US-201816197112-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 20, 2018
Priority date	Nov 23, 2017
Publication date	Jan 11, 2022
Grant date	Jan 11, 2022

Abstract

Provided is a high efficiency long range drone, and more particularly, a high efficiency long range drone capable of increasing flight time and efficiently using power during long range cruising flight by selectively using the power among an engine generator and a battery and applying an auxiliary wing.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A drone comprising:
a body;
a thrust generating part including a support connected to the body in a horizontal direction and a thrust means provided at an end of the support to generate a thrust;
a power supplying part including an engine generator and a battery, and supplying power to the thrust generating part; and
a controlling part controlling operations of the thrust generating part and the power supplying part, wherein the controlling part performs a control so that the power is supplied to the thrust generating part by using the engine generator and the battery, or the power is supplied to the thrust generating part by using only the engine generator,
wherein the thrust generating part includes:
first thrust generating parts that include two thrust generating parts among four thrust generating parts that are formed to be positioned on a line along one direction, and
second thrust generating parts that include the other two thrust generating parts among the four thrust generating parts that are each perpendicular to the two thrust generating parts of the first thrust generating parts and formed to be positioned on a line along the other direction,
wherein the second thrust generating parts are moved in a selected direction in the horizontal direction and are positioned on the same line as the first thrust generating parts, and selected supports of the second thrust generating parts and the first thrust generating parts are positioned on the same line to form a single wing shape.

2. The drone of claim 1 , wherein the body includes: an upper body, a lower body formed below the upper body and having a landing platform provided on a lower surface thereof, and a central shaft connecting the upper body and the lower body to each other in a vertical direction and formed so that the support is coupled to and detachable from the central shaft in a horizontal direction.

3. The drone of claim 2 , wherein the thrust means includes: a rotating part including a propeller generating the thrust by rotation, and a motor performing an operation of the rotating part through the power supplied from the power supplying part.

4. The drone of claim 3 , wherein the drone is a quadcopter in which the four thrust generating parts are formed to be spaced apart from each other at the same intervals in the horizontal direction.

5. The drone of claim 3 , wherein the first thrust generating parts are formed to generate a thrust larger than the second thrust generating parts.

6. The drone of claim 5 , wherein the rotating parts of the first thrust generating parts are formed to have a propeller size in order to generate a thrust larger than that of the rotating parts of the second thrust generating parts, and the motors of the first thrust generating parts are provided to generate an output larger than that of the motors of the second thrust generating parts.

7. The drone of claim 6 , wherein the thrust means of the first thrust generating parts is formed on an upper surface of the support, and the thrust means of the second thrust generating parts is formed on a lower surface of the support.

8. The drone of claim 7 , wherein the central shaft includes a first spring formed on the upper body and formed to apply force to the second thrust generating parts in the directions of the first thrust generating parts.

9. The drone of claim 8 , wherein the spring is formed to apply the force to the second thrust generating parts with the force smaller than the moment of inertia of the first thrust generating parts.

10. The drone of claim 9 , wherein the upper body includes guide holes corresponding to movement paths of the supports of the second thrust generating parts and formed to penetrate through the upper body, the supports of the second thrust generating parts include guide protrusions moved to penetrate through the guide holes in a vertical direction below thereof, and the lower body includes lower guide protrusions that are formed to protrude on an upper surface thereof and are in surface contact with the guide protrusions to move the lower body.

11. The drone of claim 10 , wherein the central shaft further includes a second spring formed on the lower body and applying force to the lower body in the directions of the first thrust generating parts.

12. The drone of claim 11 , wherein the second spring applies the force to the lower body with a smaller force than the first pressurizing means.

Assignees

• Korea Aerospace Res Inst

Inventors

• Kim Keun Bae
• Lee Bo Hwa

Classifications

• B64U50/11 Primary

  using internal combustion piston engines · CPC title

• B64U50/19

  using electrically powered motors · CPC title

• B64U50/33

  generated by combustion engines · CPC title

• B64U30/20

  Rotors; Rotor supports · CPC title

• B64U50/34

  In-flight charging (photovoltaics B64U50/31) · CPC title