US-12623797-B2 - Cooling systems for unmanned aerial vehicles

Abstract

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that includes: a front chassis defining an intake port; a rear chassis defining an exhaust port and providing a heatsink for the UAV; and a blower that is located immediately rearward of the intake port so as to facilitate unobstructed airflow through the intake port and into the blower. The blower is configured to direct air through the UAV along an airflow path that extends from the intake port to the exhaust port to thereby cool the UAV.

Inventors

• Yevgeniy Andreyevich Kozlenko
• Asher Mendel Robbins-Rothman
• Kellen James Waterman O'Rourke
• Benjamin Scott Thompson
• Brett Nicholas Randolph
• Enyu Luo
• Jack Zi Qi Ye

Assignees

• Skydio, Inc.

Dates

Publication Date

20260512

Application Date

20240717

Claims (17)

1. 1 . An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) comprising: front arms; front propellers supported by the front arms; rear arms; rear propellers supported by the rear arms; a chassis including: a front chassis defining an intake port and supporting the front arms; and a rear chassis defining an exhaust port, wherein the rear chassis includes a heatsink for the UAV and supports the rear arms such that the front arms and the rear arms extend outwardly from the chassis; and a blower located immediately rearward of and positioned adjacent to the intake port so as to facilitate unobstructed airflow through the intake port and into the blower, wherein the blower is configured to direct air through the UAV along an airflow path that extends from the intake port to the exhaust port to cool the UAV, wherein the blower is configured to draw air into the intake port along a first axis and redirect the air along a second axis oriented in substantially orthogonal relation to the first axis, wherein the intake port and the exhaust port are spaced axially along an overall length of the UAV and define transverse cross-sectional dimensions extending in substantially perpendicular relation to the overall length of the UAV, wherein the first axis is oriented in substantially parallel relation to the overall length of the UAV.
2. 2 . The UAV of claim 1 , wherein the heatsink is configured to redirect the air along a third axis oriented in substantially parallel relation to the first axis and in substantially orthogonal relation to the second axis.
3. 3 . The UAV of claim 1 , further comprising: at least one processor supported by the heatsink such that the heatsink distributes heat away from the at least one processor.
4. 4 . The UAV of claim 3 , wherein the heatsink defines an internal chamber configured to receive the at least one processor such that the at least one processor is nested within the heatsink.
5. 5 . The UAV of claim 3 , wherein the heatsink includes at least one cooling array with a plurality of fins extending outwardly from the heatsink, wherein the at least one processor is substantially aligned with the at least one cooling array.
6. 6 . The UAV of claim 1 , further comprising: a filter positioned about the intake port and configured to inhibit debris from entering the UAV.
7. 7 . The UAV of claim 6 , wherein the filter includes a mesh material.
8. 8 . An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) comprising: a chassis defining an intake port located at a front end of the UAV and an exhaust port located at a rear end of the UAV such that the intake port and the exhaust port are spaced along an overall length of the UAV, wherein the chassis provides a heatsink for the UAV, wherein the intake port and the exhaust port define transverse cross-sectional dimensions extending in substantially perpendicular relation to the overall length of the UAV; at least one processor supported by the heatsink such that the heatsink distributes heat away from the at least one processor; and a blower located rearwardly of the intake port and configured to draw air into the intake port along a first axis extending in substantially parallel relation to the overall length of the UAV and redirect the air along a second axis oriented in substantially orthogonal relation to the first axis so as to direct the air across the heatsink and remove heat from the UAV through the exhaust port.
9. 9 . The UAV of claim 8 , wherein the blower is positioned adjacent to the intake port.
10. 10 . The UAV of claim 8 , wherein the heatsink includes a plurality of fins extending in substantially parallel relation to the second axis.
11. 11 . The UAV of claim 10 , wherein the heatsink includes: a first cooling array including a first plurality of fins; and a second cooling array including a second plurality of fins.
12. 12 . The UAV of claim 11 , wherein the first plurality of fins include a first material, and the second plurality of fins include a second material different than the first material.
13. 13 . The UAV of claim 11 , wherein the at least one processor includes: a first processor substantially aligned with the first cooling array; and a second processor substantially aligned with the second cooling array.
14. 14 . A method of cooling an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method comprising: drawing air into the UAV through an intake port using a blower located adjacent to the intake port so as to facilitate unobstructed airflow through the intake port and into the blower; redirecting airflow by approximately 90 degrees such that the air is directed across a heatsink in the UAV to distribute heat away from at least one processor secured to the heatsink; and directing the air through an exhaust port to remove heat from the UAV, wherein the intake port and the exhaust port are spaced along an overall length of the UAV and define transverse cross-sectional dimensions extending in substantially perpendicular relation to the overall length of the UAV, wherein the air is drawn into the UAV along an axis extending in substantially parallel relation to the overall length of the UAV.
15. 15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein drawing air into the UAV includes drawing the air through a filter positioned about the intake port and configured to inhibit debris from entering the UAV.
16. 16 . The method of claim 14 , wherein redirecting airflow includes directing the air across the heatsink to distribute heat away from a first processor and a second processor.
17. 17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein directing air across the heatsink includes: directing the air across a first cooling array substantially aligned with the first processor; and directing the air across a second cooling array substantially aligned with the second processor.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/527,259, filed on Jul. 17, 2023, U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/527,261, filed on Jul. 17, 2023, U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/527,262, filed on Jul. 17, 2023, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/527,263, filed on Jul. 17, 2023, the entire contents of each of the above-identified applications being hereby incorporated by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to vision systems and thermal management (e.g., cooling) systems for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) (e.g., drones). BACKGROUND Known UAVs often include a vision system with at least one (one or more) image and/or video capture assemblies (e.g., cameras), which are typically mounted to a body of the UAV, and a thermal management (cooling) system that regulates and dissipates heat generated during use of the UAV by driving air through the UAV via a blower (e.g., a fan or the like). During flight, however, elevated stresses can cause the body of the UAV to flex and/or bend, which results in unintended movement of the image capture device(s) and, thus, image distortion. Additionally, due to spatial constraints and complex internal architecture, airflow into the blower is often obstructed by a variety of components, which can undermine the efficiency and/or the efficacy of the thermal management system. Additionally, certain UAVs include one or more optical components (e.g., lenses, cameras, etc.,) that are configured to capture (visual) content during operation of the UAVs. In order to increase the field-of-view and support more robust content capture, the optical component(s) are often mounted to a gimbal assembly. However, the gimbal assembly is typically located beneath the UAV and is fixedly (e.g., non-removably) connected thereto, which not only limits the field-of-view, but inhibits the overall utility of the optical component(s). For example, positioning the gimbal assembly beneath the UAV substantially inhibits (if not entirely prevents) the capture of any content that is located vertically above the UAV, and fixedly connecting the gimbal assembly to the UAV restricts the UAV to the image capture capabilities of the particular optical component(s) that are included. The present disclosure addresses these deficiencies by providing a UAV that offers improved vision and thermal management systems, as well as a gimbal module that is positioned at a front end of the UAV and which is removably connected thereto in order to facilitate interchangeability amongst a plurality of gimbal modules and increase the image capture capabilities of the UAV. SUMMARY In one aspect of the present disclosure, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is disclosed that includes: a chassis; a plurality of arms that extend outwardly from the chassis; a plurality of propeller assemblies that are supported by the plurality of arms; a canopy that is connected to the chassis so as to provide an outer cover for the UAV that is configured to protect internal components thereof; a frame that is supported by the canopy such that the frame is isolated from the chassis; and a plurality of image capture assemblies that are supported by the frame such that the frame separates the plurality of image capture assemblies from the chassis and the canopy so as to inhibit relative movement between the plurality of image capture assemblies during operation of the UAV. In certain embodiments, the frame may be indirectly connected to the canopy such that the frame is suspended within the UAV. In certain embodiments, the UAV may further include a plurality of dampers that are positioned between the canopy and the frame in order to inhibit force transmission to the plurality of image capture assemblies during operation of the UAV. In certain embodiments, the frame may include a plurality of receptacles that are configured to receive the plurality of dampers. In certain embodiments, the canopy may include a plurality of bosses that extend inwardly therefrom. In certain embodiments, the plurality of dampers may be supported by the plurality of bosses. In certain embodiments, the plurality of image capture assemblies may include: a first image capture assembly; a second image capture assembly; and a third image capture assembly. In certain embodiments, the frame may define: a first apex; a second apex; and a third apex. In certain embodiments, the first image capture assembly may be supported by the frame adjacent to the first apex, the second image capture assembly may be supported by the frame adjacent to the second apex, and the third image capture assembly may be supported by the frame adjacent to the third apex. In certain embodiments, the frame may be formed from cast magnesium. In certain embodiments, the frame may include at least one reinforced section such that the frame defines a non-uniform thickness. In certain embodiments, the UAV may further include