Reconfiguring vertical takeoff and landing aircraft
View Patent ↗The present disclosure relates to an autonomous, electric, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft that is low-noise, safe, and efficient to operate for cargo transportation over relatively long ranges. A VTOL aircraft includes a fuselage, a plurality of arms, a tail, and a plurality of propulsion systems mounted on the arms and the tail. The plurality of arms have parts that are rotatable and the tail has a part that is rotatable for transitioning the VTOL aircraft between a forward-flight configuration and a hover configuration.
1. A vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft comprising:
a fuselage;
a plurality of arms coupled to the fuselage, each of the plurality of arms including:
a fixed part;
a rotating part; and
a joint connecting the rotating part to the fixed part, the joint comprising an actuator configured to rotate the rotating part relative to the fixed part,
wherein the fixed part, the joint, and the rotating part are configured such that the rotating part moves in a horizontal plane that does not consist of the fixed part;
a plurality of propulsion systems mounted on the fixed part and on the rotating part of each one of the plurality of arms, wherein each propulsion system includes a propeller and a motor,
a tail configured to tilt, comprising:
a fixed part;
a tilting part;
a joint connecting the tilting part to the fixed part, the joint comprising an actuator configured to rotate the tilting part relative to the fixed part;
a wing coupled to the tilting part;
one or more propulsion systems mounted on the tilting part, wherein each propulsion system includes a propeller and a motor.
2. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , wherein the joint of each of the plurality of arms is configured to rotate the arm's rotating part relative to the arm's fixed part between an extended state for forward flight and a compacted state for hover flight.
3. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , wherein one or more of the plurality of propulsion systems are mounted on the fixed part of each of the plurality of arms, and a same number of propulsion systems are mounted on the rotating part of each of the plurality of arms, and wherein one of the one or more propulsion systems mounted on the rotating part of each of the plurality of arms is mounted on an end of the rotating part that is not connected to the arm's joint.
4. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , wherein the propulsion systems mounted on each of the plurality of arms are positioned such that for each propulsion system mounted on the rotating part of an arm there is a corresponding propulsion system mounted on that arm's fixed part such that the two propulsion systems are distanced equally from the arm's joint.
5. The VTOL aircraft of claim 4 , wherein each two equidistant propulsion systems form a coaxial propulsion system when their corresponding arm's rotating part is in a compacted state for hover flight.
6. The VTOL aircraft of claim 5 , wherein motor casings of any two of the propulsion systems forming a coaxial propulsion system include a mating feature.
7. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , wherein the arms' fixed parts inclined towards a front of the aircraft are in a horizontal plane that is parallel to another horizontal plane consisting the arms' fixed parts inclined towards a rear of the aircraft such that the two horizontal planes do not intersect and are vertically spaced.
8. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , wherein the joint of the tail is configured to rotate the tail's tilting part relative to the tail's fixed part between an extended state for forward flight wherein the tail's tilting part is horizontal and a compacted state for hover flight wherein the tail's tilting part is vertical.
9. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , further comprising a controller configured to provide the required control inputs to the actuators of the plurality of arms, and the actuator of the tail, and the motors of the propulsion systems so that (1) the arms rotate simultaneously, (2) the tail tilts in coordination with the arms, and (3) the blade rotation speeds of the propulsion systems are adjusted accordingly; in transition between an extended state for forward flight and a compacted state for hover flight.
10. The VTOL aircraft of claim 9 , wherein the controller is capable of rotating the arms' rotating parts selectively to any state other than the extended or compacted states, and wherein the controller is capable of rotating the tail's rotating part to any state other than the extended or compacted states.
11. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , wherein the aircraft is autonomous.
12. The VTOL aircraft of claim 1 , wherein the motors of the propulsion systems are electrically-powered.