KR-102964411-B1 - AIR MOBILITY

KR102964411B1KR 102964411 B1KR102964411 B1KR 102964411B1KR-102964411-B1

Abstract

An air mobility is introduced comprising: an engine; a battery; a main rotor driven by the electrical energy of the battery to perform takeoff, landing, and cruising; an auxiliary rotor positioned on the side of the center of gravity of the airframe, mechanically connected to the engine through a clutch, and receiving mechanical driving force from the engine when the clutch is engaged to perform takeoff, landing, or cruising; and a control unit that monitors the status of the battery and the main rotor and controls the operation of the engine and the clutch.

Inventors

정우석
이희광
홍현석
전현우

Assignees

현대자동차주식회사
기아 주식회사

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20201016

Claims (15)

An engine that provides mechanical driving force or electrical energy; A battery charged through the engine's electrical energy; A main rotor driven by electrical energy from a battery to perform takeoff, landing, and cruising; An auxiliary rotor positioned on the side of the center of gravity of the aircraft, mechanically connected to the engine through a clutch, and receiving mechanical driving force from the engine when the clutch is engaged to perform takeoff, landing, or cruising; and A control unit that monitors the condition of the battery and main rotor and controls the operation of the engine and clutch; is included. An air mobility system characterized by an auxiliary rotor being positioned to coincide with the center of gravity of the aircraft in the transverse direction and located within 0.002 times the length of the aircraft from the center of gravity in the longitudinal direction, so as to be configured to offset the total moment applied to the aircraft in the event of an emergency during a vertical take-off and landing maneuver.
In claim 1, Air mobility characterized by the engine being an internal combustion engine.
In claim 1, Air mobility characterized by having a battery located at the rear of the passenger cabin and an equal number of main rotors located to the left and right of the battery.
In claim 1, Air mobility characterized by auxiliary rotors being provided on the left and right sides of the passenger cabin, respectively.
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In claim 1, Air mobility characterized in that the engine is located at a point between the auxiliary rotor and the battery, the engine is provided with a drive shaft forward, split shafts extending to the left and right each receive driving force through the drive shaft, and the auxiliary rotor is rotated by each split shaft.
In claim 1, Air mobility characterized by an auxiliary rotor provided in a vertical direction to assist in lifting the airframe by providing downward auxiliary thrust when in operation.
In claim 1, Air mobility characterized in that the auxiliary rotor is covered by a cover, and when the auxiliary rotor is driven, the cover slides to expose the auxiliary rotor, thereby allowing the auxiliary rotor to draw in air from above and discharge it downward.
In claim 1, Air mobility characterized by a control unit that operates an engine to charge the battery when the battery power is insufficient, and engages a clutch to drive an auxiliary rotor when the driving force of the main rotor is insufficient or when an abnormality occurs in the main rotor.
In claim 8, Air mobility characterized by a control unit that, when the driving force of the main rotor is insufficient, opens both the covers of the left and right auxiliary rotors to generate equal auxiliary thrust from the left and right sides.
In claim 8, Air mobility characterized by a control unit that, when an abnormality occurs in one of the left or right main rotors, generates auxiliary thrust in the direction of the abnormality by opening the cover in the direction of the abnormality.
In claim 1, An air mobility system characterized by an auxiliary rotor having an inlet and an outlet for airflow, the auxiliary rotor being rotatably coupled to the airframe, and the direction of the outlet changing when the auxiliary rotor rotates.
In claim 12, An air mobility characterized by an auxiliary rotor being a centrifugal compressor type that draws in air in the direction of the rotation axis and discharges air in the radial direction, wherein the rotation axis is positioned to face the center of gravity of the gas, and the inlet is formed at the point where the rotation axis is formed, so that the direction in which the inlet faces remains the same even when the auxiliary rotor rotates.
In claim 13, Air mobility characterized by an outlet formed in the radial direction of the auxiliary rotor, wherein the auxiliary rotor assists lifting thrust or cruising thrust depending on the rotation of the auxiliary rotor.
In claim 13, Air mobility characterized by having an air inlet formed at the front of the air intake, and the air inlet providing air to the inlets of auxiliary rotors located on both sides through an internal duct.

Description

Air Mobility The present invention relates to an air mobility capable of vertical take-off and landing and cruising, which enhances flight safety by reliably providing auxiliary thrust in the event of insufficient thrust of the main rotor or failure of the main rotor, and in particular, is capable of maintaining the balance of the aircraft by flexibly responding to the uneven failure of one main rotor or failure in either lifting or cruising. The method of applying existing fans and impellers as lift devices was designed for fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing aircraft capable of high-speed maneuverability compared to helicopters, as well as small personal air vehicles (PAVs). However, when applying fan-based lift devices designed for these purposes to UAMs, the following problems arise. 1) Flight efficiency is reduced because it involves high power consumption to generate lift, 2) Since a fan is used as the main propulsion device, the fan area required to generate thrust is large, which may infringe on the passenger space in the case of a passenger aircraft, and 3) when applied as the main propulsion device, due to the characteristics of the fan, significant performance degradation and reduced flight stability occur during forward maneuvers due to flow separation at the intake. Therefore, there are limitations to applying conventional fan-based propulsion systems for urban air mobility, so a layout and mounting plan that considers passenger space and power consumption is required when applying the propulsion system. For urban air mobility, rotor vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) maneuvers have a high accident rate, making them the top priority for ensuring stability. Auxiliary thrusters are designed to guarantee the aircraft's safety in the event of emergencies during these maneuvers, such as rotor failure or malfunction of the distributed electric propulsion system. In the case of urban air mobility vehicles with relatively small passenger capacities, the center of gravity is often located in the cabin area. However, if auxiliary thrusters are mounted in the cabin, there is a problem in that the usable cabin space is reduced and the drag applied to the fuselage may increase. The matters described above as background technology are intended only to enhance understanding of the background of the present invention and should not be construed as an acknowledgment that they constitute prior art already known to those skilled in the art. FIGS. 1 and 2 are conceptual diagrams of air mobility according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a drawing showing an auxiliary rotor of air mobility according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of air mobility according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 1 and 2 are conceptual diagrams of air mobility according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an auxiliary rotor of air mobility according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of air mobility according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 1 and 2 are conceptual diagrams of air mobility according to an embodiment of the present invention. The air mobility according to the present invention comprises: an engine (100) that is driven to provide mechanical driving force or electrical energy when necessary; a battery (500) that is charged through the electrical energy of the engine (100); a main rotor (700) that is driven through the electrical energy of the battery (500) to perform takeoff, landing, and cruising; an auxiliary rotor (300) that is positioned on the side of the center of gravity of the aircraft, is mechanically connected to the engine (100) through a clutch (140), and receives mechanical driving force from the engine (100) when the clutch (140) is engaged to perform takeoff, landing, or cruising; and a control unit that monitors the state of the battery (500) and the main rotor (700) and controls the operation of the engine (100) and the clutch (140). The present invention is intended to provide additional thrust or to safely respond in the event of a malfunction in the main rotor by applying an auxiliary rotor separately from the main rotor. In particular, it aims to provide a design that maintains good balance of the aircraft even while using the auxiliary rotor, and is advantageous for securing interior space by minimizing encroachment on the passenger cabin. Fixed-wing air mobility is a concept developed to realize fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft capable of high-speed maneuvering compared to conventional helicopters. Helicopter-style rotors, with their externally exposed rotating parts, pose a risk of human casualties in the event of a crash. Furthermore, ducted fans, where the rotor is enclosed within a duct, not only pose a risk of external damage but also have the disadvantage of significantly increasing drag