UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE BATTERY REPLACEMENT ARM
First Claim
1. A system comprising:
- an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) comprising;
a main body; and
a battery assembly locked within the main body of the UAV via at least one latch; and
an unmanned aerial vehicle ground station (UAVGS) comprising;
a landing housing that receives the UAV when the UAV lands within the UAVGS; and
a battery arm that selectively engages the battery assembly, the battery arm comprising;
a latch engagement assembly that unlocks the battery assembly by engaging the at least one latch; and
a battery gripping assembly that grips a portion of the battery assembly and allows the battery arm to retract the battery assembly from the UAV.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present disclosure is directed toward systems and methods for removing and replacing a battery from within an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). In particular, systems and methods described herein enable a battery arm within a UAV ground station (UAVGS) to engage the UAV and a battery assembly within the UAV to unlock the battery assembly and remove the battery assembly from within the UAV. For example, the battery arm can include a latch engagement assembly that engages one or more latches on the UAV to unlock the battery assembly. Additionally, the battery arm can include a battery gripping assembly that grips an outer end of the battery assembly while retracting and removing the battery assembly from within the UAV.
13 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A system comprising:
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an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) comprising; a main body; and a battery assembly locked within the main body of the UAV via at least one latch; and an unmanned aerial vehicle ground station (UAVGS) comprising; a landing housing that receives the UAV when the UAV lands within the UAVGS; and a battery arm that selectively engages the battery assembly, the battery arm comprising; a latch engagement assembly that unlocks the battery assembly by engaging the at least one latch; and a battery gripping assembly that grips a portion of the battery assembly and allows the battery arm to retract the battery assembly from the UAV. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A battery arm, comprising:
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a latch engagement assembly, comprising; a plurality of latch engagers sized to engage one or more latches on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that retains a battery assembly to the UAV; and a first actuator that causes the plurality of latch engagers to pivot inward about a first end of the battery arm and engage the one or more latches; and a battery gripping assembly comprising; a plurality of battery grippers positioned inward from the plurality of latch engagers; and a second actuator that causes the plurality of battery grippers to grip a portion of the battery assembly to allow for retraction of the battery assembly from the UAV. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method comprising:
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aligning, by at least one processor, a first end of a battery arm with a battery assembly within an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV); causing, by the at least one processor, a plurality of latch engagers on the battery arm to engage with one or more latches to unlock the battery assembly from the UAV; causing, by the at least one processor, a plurality of grippers on the battery arm to grip a first end of the battery assembly; and causing, by the at least one processor, a portion of the battery arm to retract from the UAV while gripping the first end of the battery assembly. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification