Techniques involve releasing and/or capturing a fixed-wing aircraft using an aerial vehicle with VTOL capabilities while the fixed-wing aircraft is in flight. For example, the VTOL aerial vehicle may take off vertically while carrying the fixed-wing aircraft and then fly horizontally before releasing the fixed-wing aircraft. Upon release, the fixed-wing aircraft flies independently to perform a mission (e.g., surveillance, payload delivery, combinations thereof, etc.). After the fixed-wing aircraft has completed its mission, the VTOL aerial vehicle may capture the fixed-wing aircraft while both are in flight, and then land together vertically. Such operation enables the fixed-wing aircraft to vertically take off and/or land while avoiding certain drawbacks associated with a conventional VTOL kit such as being burdened by weight and drag from the VTOL kit's rotors/propellers, mounting hardware, etc. during a mission which otherwise would limit the fixed-wing aircraft's maximum airspeed, ceiling, payload capacity, endurance, and so on.

Herein is disclosed a power and data storage module comprising a mechanical interface, configured to mechanically connect the power and data storage module to an robot or a charging device; an electrical interface, configured to electrically connect the power and data storage module to the robot or the charging device; a battery, configured to supply an electrical charge to the robot or to store an electrical charge received from the charging device; a memory, configured to store data received via the electrical interface from the robot or the charging device, and to provide stored data via the electrical interface to the robot or the charging device; and one or more processors, configured to perform one or more battery management functions on the battery and one or more memory management functions on the memory.

An aerial vehicle landing method includes controlling to decelerate, with aid of one or more processors and in response to at least two of a plurality of conditions being satisfied, the aerial vehicle to cause the aerial vehicle to land autonomously. The plurality of conditions includes determining that an external signal related to a human is detected via one or more sensors; determining that a location/orientation change of the aerial vehicle is detected while the aerial vehicle is airborne; and determining that an external contact from an external object is exerted upon the aerial vehicle, the external object being an object that is not part of the aerial vehicle.

A technique for varying buoyancy of an apparatus includes providing a substrate configured to produce gas on demand when exposed to a liquid, exposing the substrate to such liquid, and capturing the gas produced by the substrate to increase the buoyancy of the apparatus within a fluid. In some examples, the liquid and the fluid contain the same material, such that gas may be produced using fluid already in the environment.

Multi-rotor aerial vehicle (1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1) comprising, at least a first, second and third rotor 10, 20, 30, each rotatable by a dedicated first second and third hydraulic motor 11, 21, 31, a power unit 2, at least a first, second and third hydraulic pump 12, 22, 32 dedicated to the respective first, second and third hydraulic motor 11, 21, 31, wherein each hydraulic pump 12, 22, 32 is arranged to provide pressurized fluid to each hydraulic motor 11, 21, 31 for powering the hydraulic motor 11, 21, 31 and thereby rotating the respective rotor 10, 20, 30, a control unit 6 for controlling the operation of the multi-rotor aerial vehicle (1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1), wherein the control of the multi-rotor aerial vehicle (1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1) is arranged to be performed by altering the flow of pressurized fluid distributed to each respective hydraulic motor 11, 21, 31, wherein, wherein the flow of pressurized fluid provided to each hydraulic motor 11, 21, 31 is individually controllable by means of at least one control valve 13, 23, 33 configured to control the flow of pressurized fluid from each hydraulic pump 12, 22, 32 to its dedicated hydraulic motor 11, 21, 31.

A system comprising an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) having wing elements and tail elements configured to roll to angularly orient the UAV by rolling so as to align a longitudinal plane of the UAV, in its late terminal phase, with a target. A method of UAV body re-orientation comprising: (a) determining by a processor a boresight angle error correction value bases on distance between a target point and a boresight point of a body-fixed frame; and (b) effecting a UAV maneuver comprising an angular role rate component translating the target point to a reoriented target point in the body-fixed frame, to maintain the offset angle via the offset angle correction value.

The present invention discloses a fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle which relates to the field of unmanned aerial vehicles. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle includes an unmanned aerial vehicle frame, a lifting rotor, a posture adjusting rotor, a fuel engine, a motor, a fuel tank and a power supply device; the fuel engine, the motor, the fuel tank and the power supply device are mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle frame; the fuel tank supplies fuel to the fuel engine; the fuel engine is configured to drive the lifting rotor; and the motor is powered by the power supply device and configured to drive the posture adjusting rotor. A main purpose is to enable the multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle having a large-load and long-duration flight function to quickly and precisely adjust the flight direction and flight speed.

A remotely controlled multirotor aircraft for acquiring images and an interface device for controlling the aircraft, wherein the aircraft includes a receiving component adapted to receive a direction and/or orientation signal which can be transmitted by an interface device, wherein the direction and/or orientation signal defines a direction in which the aircraft must move and/or be oriented, and a flight control component adapted to control the attitude of the aircraft and configured for reading the direction and/or orientation signal, determining, on the basis of the direction and/or orientation signal, the direction in which the aircraft must move and/or be oriented, and generating a control signal adapted to make the aircraft take an attitude such as to make it move and/or be oriented in the predetermined direction.

A system includes at least one unmanned aerial vehicle and at least one unmanned vehicle communicatively coupled to the unmanned aerial vehicle. The unmanned aerial vehicle includes a propulsion system and an onboard pilot system configured to determine a flight path for the unmanned aerial vehicle. The unmanned vehicle includes a propulsion system and a localization system configured to determine a location of the unmanned aerial vehicle relative to the unmanned vehicle. The unmanned vehicle further includes a communication component configured to transmit location information to the unmanned aerial vehicle. The onboard pilot system is configured to determine the flight path based on the location information provided by the unmanned vehicle.

A motor mounted on a drone includes a rotor including a propeller mounting portion with a propeller detachably attached, the rotor being rotatable about a central axis, a stator radially facing the rotor with a gap therebetween, and an auto-balancer capable of automatically correcting dynamic balance of the rotor.