Patent Application
20180170191
This application is filed based upon and claims priority to Chinese Patent Application of International Application No. CN201611187863.X, filed on Dec. 20, 2016, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure generally relates to the technical field of unmanned aerial vehicles, and more particularly, to an onboard charging device for an unmanned aerial vehicle and a vehicle.
When an unmanned aerial vehicle executes a photographing task in a remote area such as a suburb, the unmanned aerial vehicle is often required to be charged because of its limited flight duration. In a related technology, there is no reliable landing place for an unmanned aerial vehicle, which brings inconvenience to charging.
According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, an onboard charging device for an unmanned aerial vehicle is provided, which may include a platform configured to be mounted on top of a vehicle, where a charging structure for charging the unmanned aerial vehicle may be arranged on the platform.
According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a vehicle is provided, on top of which the onboard charging device for the unmanned aerial vehicle in the abovementioned embodiment is mounted.
The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure may achieve the following beneficial effects: the platform configured for the unmanned aerial vehicle to land is arranged on top of the vehicle, so that influence of a factor such as a rugged terrain may be eliminated when the unmanned aerial vehicle lands. Moreover, after landing on the platform, the unmanned aerial vehicle may be directly charged by simple steps through the charging structure on the platform.
It should be understood that the above general descriptions and detailed descriptions below are only exemplary and explanatory and not intended to limit the present disclosure.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.
Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The following description refers to the accompanying drawings in which the same numbers in different drawings represent the same or similar elements unless otherwise represented. The implementations set forth in the following description of exemplary embodiments do not represent all implementations consistent with the present disclosure. Instead, they are merely examples of apparatuses and methods consistent with aspects related to the present disclosure as recited in the appended claims.
As shown in
In addition, as shown in
Furthermore, as shown in
As shown in
For example, in an implementation of the present disclosure, the charging structure 30 may be a wireless charging structure. When the unmanned aerial vehicle 20 is charged, the wireless charging structure may perform electric signal interaction with the power storage module 40 firstly and then wirelessly output electric power to a battery of the unmanned aerial vehicle 20. The form for wireless charging is well known by those skilled in the art, and will not be elaborated herein. For example, the wireless charging structure may adopt a form such as an electromagnetic sensing form, a magnetic resonance form or a radio wave form. Under such a condition, when the unmanned aerial vehicle 20 is charged, it is only necessary to make the unmanned aerial vehicle 20 land on the platform 10 and position it within an operation range of the wireless charging structure. Such a charging process may complete charging without manual intervention, and is convenient to operate.
Furthermore, as illustrated in
In an implementation of the present disclosure, the platform 10 may be a solar panel, and the solar panel is electrically connected with the power storage module 40 to store solar energy in the power storage module 40, thereby timely supplying electric power to the power storage module 40 by virtue of a sufficient solar energy resource. Such a power supply manner is energy-saving and environmentally-friendly.
In addition, the platform 10 may include a bottom plate 11 and side plates 12 pivoted to edges of the bottom plate 11. For example, as shown in
Alternatively, the bottom plate 11 may also be another polygon, irregular pattern and the like, and the side plates 12 may be other corresponding shapes. In the unfolded state, the platform 10 may provide a relatively large landing space for the unmanned aerial vehicle 20, and moreover, when the bottom plate 11 and the side plates 12 are solar panels respectively, the solar energy may be maximally collected in such a state. In the storage state, the platform 10 accommodates the unmanned aerial vehicle 20 in an enclosing manner, which is convenient and rapid. This may eliminate influence of wind power and the like caused by running of a vehicle on the unmanned aerial vehicle 20 and may also prevent a limited space in the vehicle from being occupied. In addition, since the unmanned aerial vehicle 20 usually lands above the charging structure 30 for charging, in the implementation, the charging structure 30 may be arranged in the center of the bottom plate 11. In such a manner, the unmanned aerial vehicle 20 may be not damaged by overturning of the side plates 12 when landing on the bottom plate 11. The bottom plate 11 may further include locking mechanism to lock the UAV in a fixed position while charging.
The charging device further includes a driving mechanism configured to drive the side plates 12 to pivot relative to the bottom plate 11 to endow the platform with the unfolded state and the storage state. For example, in an implementation, the bottom plate 11 is connected with the side plates 12 through rotating shafts, and the driving mechanism may include a motor capable of driving the rotating shafts and a controller for controlling the motor, a wireless signal receiver being arranged in the controller. An operator may control rotation of the rotating shafts to unfold or overturn upwards the side plates 12 by means of operating the controller through a mobile terminal. The mobile terminal may be, for example, a remote controller or a smart phone. An operating signal is sent to the controller through the remote controller or the smart phone, and after the wireless signal receiver receives the operating signal, the motor may be controlled to be started, thereby implementing movements of the side plates 12.
In order to enable the side plates 12 in the storage state to form the closed annular structure, splicing structures may be arranged between every two adjacent side plates 12. For example, as shown in
In addition, as shown in
As mentioned above, the present disclosure further provides a vehicle 50 including a vehicle top. Here, the onboard charging device for the unmanned aerial vehicle may be mounted on the vehicle top. The vehicle 50 may serve as a mobile charging device for the unmanned aerial vehicle 20, and may provide a rising and landing platform for the unmanned aerial vehicle 20.
Furthermore, as shown in
Other embodiments of the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the present disclosure. This application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the present disclosure following the general principles thereof and including such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the present disclosure being indicated by the following claims.
It will be appreciated that the present disclosure is not limited to the exact construction that has been described above and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope thereof. It is intended that the scope of the present disclosure only be limited by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 201611187863.X | Dec 2016 | CN | national |
