UAV launching from moving platform

• US 9,211,959 B2
• Filed: 03/05/2014
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Igor Teller, Pavel Soifer
• Original Assignee: Igor Teller, Pavel Soifer
• Inventors: Teller, Igor, Soifer, Pavel
• Primary Examiner(s): Sanderson, Joseph W
• Application Number:
  US14/197,389
• Publication Number:
  US 20140252162A1
• Time in Patent Office: 650 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/10 using self-propelled vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 70/00 Launching, take-off or landing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 70/93 for use on a land or nautical vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 70/99 Means for retaining the UAV on the platform, e.g. dogs or magnets
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 80/84 Waterborne vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 80/86 Land vehicles

Abstract

A system for launching an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from a moving platform, the system including: a platform configured to carry the UAV; one or more sensors configured to measure forces acting between the platform and the UAV in one or more directions; a mooring mechanism configured to moor the UAV to the platform; and a controller configured to: transmit at least one trimming command to the UAV based on measurements of the one or more sensors, and cause the mooring mechanism to release the UAV from the platform following the transmitting of the at least one trimming command, when the measurements of the one or more sensors indicate that a lift force is sufficiently close to a weight of the UAV.

Claims

1. A system for launching an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the system comprising:

a platform configured to carry the UAV;

one or more sensors configured to measure forces acting between said platform and said UAV in one or more directions;

a mooring mechanism configured to moor said UAV to said platform; and

a controller configured to;

(a) transmit at least one trimming command to said UAV based on measurements of said one or more sensors, and

(b) cause said mooring mechanism to release said UAV from said platform (i) following the transmitting of the at least one trimming command, and (ii) based on the measurements of said one or more sensors that are indicative of a lift force acting on the UAV.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said UAV comprises an autogyro-type UAV.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein said UAV comprises a fixed-wing UAV.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one trimming command is configured to cause movement of aerodynamic surfaces of said UAV, so as to affect aerodynamic forces acting at least on a pitch axis of the UAV and a roll axis of the UAV.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein said one or more sensors comprise one or more load sensors configured to provide a reading of an amount of force applied on said one or more load sensors.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein said one or more sensors are comprised in said platform.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein said one or more sensor are comprised in said UAV.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein said controller is configured to yield a roll trimming command to counter an acting roll moment, by performing subtraction between readings of right and left landing gear sensors of said one or more sensors.

9. The system according to claim 8, wherein said controller is further configured to accept a manual definition of one or more coefficients and to multiply the sensors readings by the one or more coefficients.

10. The system according to claim 8, wherein said controller is further configured to apply signal filtering to the sensor readings, to reduce short term effects.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein said controller is configured to yield a pitch trimming command to counter an acting pitch moment, by performing subtraction between readings of a front landing gear sensor of said one or more sensors and combined readings of right and left landing gear sensors of said one or more sensors.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein said controller is configured to cause said mooring mechanism to release said UAV from said platform by comparing combined readings of front, right and left landing gear sensors of said one or more sensors to zero.

13. A method for launching an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method comprising:

continuously measuring forces acting between a moving platform and a UAV carried by the moving platform in one or more directions;

based on said measuring of forces, computing at least one trimming command and transmitting the at least one trimming command to said UAV; and

launching the UAV (i) following the transmitting of the at least one trimming command, and (ii) based on said measuring that is indicative of a lift force acting on the UAV.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein said UAV comprises an autogyro-type UAV.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein said UAV comprises a fixed-wing UAV.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein the at least one trimming command is configured to cause movement of aerodynamic surfaces of said UAV, so as to affect aerodynamic forces acting at least on a pitch axis of the UAV and a roll axis of the UAV.

17. The method according to claim 13, wherein said measuring is performed using one or more load sensors configured to provide a reading of an amount of force applied on said one or more load sensors.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein said one or more sensors are comprised in said platform.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein said one or more sensor are comprised in said UAV.

20. The method according to claim 17, further comprising releasing said UAV from said platform when combined readings of front, right and left landing gear sensors of said one or more sensors are zero.

21. The method according to claim 13, wherein the transmitting of the at least one trimming command comprises transmitting a roll trimming command to counter an acting roll moment, by performing subtraction between readings of right and left landing gear sensors of said one or more sensors.

22. The method according to claim 21, further comprising receiving a manual definition of one or more coefficients and multiplying the sensor readings by the one or more coefficients.

23. The method according to claim 21, further comprising applying signal filtering to the sensor readings, to reduce short term effects.

24. The method according to claim 13, wherein the transmitting of the at least one trimming command comprises transmitting a pitch trimming command to counter an acting pitch moment, by performing subtraction between readings of a front landing gear sensor of said one or more sensors and combined readings of right and left landing gear sensors of said one or more sensors.