Automated multi-plane propulsion system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9969504-B1
Application number	US-201615082255-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Mar 28, 2016
Priority date	Sep 8, 2015
Publication date	May 15, 2018
Grant date	May 15, 2018

Abstract

Provided here is a UAV launcher generally comprising a launcher frame, first rail guide, second rail guide, and a conveyor system comprising a conveyor, where the first rail guide, second rail guide, and some portion of the conveyor are typically substantially parallel, and where the first and second rail guide typically extend beyond the driver wheel of the conveyor system in a launching direction. The driver wheel and driven wheel of the conveyor system rotate on axes generally perpendicular to the first and second rail guide. A DC motor is coupled to the driver wheel and generates rotation of the driver wheel, and correspondingly governs the linear velocity of the conveyor. A motor controller is configured to control the RPM of the DC motor using a motor speed profile and a wedge interface coupled to the transmission drive motivates a loaded UAV to a launching velocity such that the UAV achieves airborne operation.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A UAV launcher comprising:
a launcher frame;
a first rail guide and a second rail guide coupled to the launcher frame;
a conveyor system comprising a driver wheel, a driven wheel, and a conveyor engaging the driver wheel and the driven wheel, where the conveyor system is between the first rail guide and the second rail guide, and where an axis of the driver wheel is displaced from an axis of the driven wheel by a center distance;
a wedge interface coupled to the conveyor;
a DC motor having a motor shaft and the motor shaft coupled to the driver wheel where an RPM of the motor shaft generates a proportional RPM of the driver wheel and generates a linear velocity of the conveyor engaging the driver wheel and generates the linear velocity of the wedge interface coupled to the conveyor;
a motor controller electrically coupled to the DC motor and configured to increase the RPM of the motor shaft using a motor speed profile, where the motor speed profile begins at zero RPM and subsequently increases the RPM of the motor shaft to generate the linear velocity of the wedge interface equal to a launching velocity as the wedge interface displaces a distance equal to a launching length, where the launching length is less than or equal to the center distance.

2. The UAV launcher of claim 1 where the first rail guide comprises a first rail surface and the second rail guide comprises a second rail surface, and where the first rail surface and the second rail surface are substantially coplanar with a reference plane over the launching length, where the reference plane is parallel to the center distance, and where a portion of the conveyor between the driven wheel and the driver wheel is substantially parallel to the center distance, and where the wedge interface is coupled to the portion of the conveyor between the driven wheel and the driver wheel and the wedge interface is between the reference plane and the portion of the conveyor between the driven wheel and the driver wheel.

3. The UAV launcher of claim 2 where the first rail guide and the second rail guide extend beyond the driver wheel in a launching direction, where the launching direction is a direction from the driven wheel to the driver wheel and parallel to the center distance.

4. The UAV launcher of claim 3 where a first axis extends through the first rail guide over the launching length and where a second axis extends through the second rail guide over the launching length, and where the first axis and the second axis are substantially parallel to the center distance.

5. The UAV launcher of claim 3 where the portion of the conveyor between the driven wheel and the driver wheel is between the center distance and the reference plane.

6. The UAV launcher of claim 5 where the wedge interface comprises a pivoting plate coupled to the conveyor at a first conveyor section and comprising a first pivot point, a support member coupled to a section conveyor section and comprising at a second pivot point, and the support member coupled to the pivoting plate at a third pivot point.

7. The UAV launcher of claim 1 where the motor speed profile proscribes a plurality of speeds of the DC motor where the plurality of speeds is a stepped increase of DC motor speeds over a time interval Δt, where the time interval Δt is an elapsed time required for the wedge interface to displace the distance equal to the launching length and achieve the linear velocity equal to the launching velocity.

8. The UAV launcher of claim 7 where the motor controller is an intelligent motor controller comprising a processor where the processor is programmed to proscribe the plurality of speeds.

9. The UAV launcher of claim 1 where the motor controller is an intelligent motor controller comprising a processor where the processor is programmed to communicate the motor speed profile to the DC motor, where the motor speed profile defines the RPM of the motor shaft as a function of time over a time interval Δt and from an initial RPM to a final RPM, where the initial RPM is zero and the final RPM is the RPM of the motor shaft to generate the linear velocity of the wedge interface equal to the launching velocity.

10. The UAV launcher of claim 9 where the motor speed profile is an increasing function.

11. The UAV launcher of claim 10 where a derivative of the motor speed profile with respect to time over the time interval Δt is greater than or equal to zero.

12. The UAV launcher of claim 11 where the time interval Δt is less than one second and where the final RPM displaces the wedge interface at a rate of at least 30 MPH and where the derivative of the motor speed profile with respect to time over the time interval Δt is less than or equal to an acceleration limit G x , where G x is an acceleration of the RPM of the motor shaft which generates an acceleration of the wedge interface equal to 4g's.

13. A UAV launcher comprising:
a launcher frame;
a conveyor system comprising a driver wheel, a driven wheel, and a conveyor engaging the driver wheel and the driven wheel, where the conveyor system is between the first rail guide and the second rail guide, and where an axis of the driver wheel is displaced from an axis of the driven wheel by a center distance and where a portion of the conveyor between the driver wheel and the driven wheel is substantially parallel to the center distance;
a first rail guide and a second rail guide coupled to the launcher frame, where the first rail guide comprises a first rail surface and the second rail guide comprises a second rail surface, and where the first rail surface and the second rail surface are substantially coplanar with a reference plane over the launching length, where the reference plane is parallel to the center distance and where the portion of the conveyor between the driver wheel and the driven wheel is between the center distance and the reference plane, and where the first rail guide and the second rail guide extend beyond the driver wheel in a launching direction, where the launching direction is a direction from the driven wheel to the driver wheel and parallel to the center distance;
a wedge interface coupled to the conveyor; where the wedge interface is coupled to the portion of the conveyor between the driven wheel and the driver wheel and the wedge interface is between the reference plane and the portion of the conveyor between the driven wheel and the driver wheel;
a DC motor having a motor shaft and the motor shaft coupled to the driver wheel where an RPM of the motor shaft generates a proportional RPM of the driver wheel and generates a linear velocity of the conveyor engaging the driver wheel and generates a linear velocity of the wedge interface coupled to the chain link comprising the conveyor;
an intelligent motor controller comprising a processor and electrically coupled to the DC motor, where the intelligent motor controller is configured to increase the RPM of the motor shaft using a motor speed profile, where the motor speed profile defines the RPM of the motor shaft as a function of time over a time interval Δt and from an initial RPM to a final RPM, where the initial RPM is zero and the final RPM is the RPM of the motor shaft that the linear velocity of the wedge interface equal to a launching velocity when the wedge interface displaces a distance equal to a launching length, where the launching length is less than or equal to the center distance.

14. The UAV launcher of claim 13 where the motor speed profile is an increasing function.

15. The UAV launcher of claim 14 where the wedge interface comprises a pivoting plate

Assignees

• Us Navy

Inventors

• Davis Raymond Lawson
• Livesay Patrick Alan

Classifications

• B64C2201/021

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B64F1/04 Primary

  for launching aircraft · CPC title

• B64C39/024

  of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV · CPC title

• B64C2201/08

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B64U10/25 Primary

  Fixed-wing aircraft (VTOL aircraft B64U10/20) · CPC title