An aerial vehicle includes a hull containing the main processor, energy storage, support components such as sensors, wireless communication, and landing gear. Attached to the hull are at least three thrust or propulsion units each with two degrees of freedom from the hull allowing them to orient independently in any direction and apply thrust independently from the hull or any other thrust or propulsion unit. In some embodiments, a mount for auxiliary attachments is included or the auxiliary system is built into the hull. Components like the energy storage, auxiliary attachments, and/or propulsion units may also be replaceable as required.

A tank configured to store a pressurized gas therein and carry a structural load between components of a vehicle.

A ducted-fan unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capable of low-energy high-rate maneuvers for both vertical roll control and horizontal pitch control. The maneuverability of the UAV is enhanced by equipping the ducted fans with respective piezoelectric-actuated thrust vectoring flaps. Thrust vector control is achieved by controlling the angular positions of a plurality of thrust vector flaps pivotably coupled at respective outlets of a plurality of ducts having fan rotors at the inlets. Each thrust vectoring flap has only one degree of freedom in the frame of reference of the UAV, namely, rotation about a single axis that is perpendicular to the axis of the duct. The angular position of the flap is controlled by sending electrical signals to a piezoelectric actuator (e.g., a piezoelectric bimorph actuator) having a voltage sufficient to cause the piezoelectric actuator to bend.

Provided is a vertical take-off/landing aircraft controlling a tilt angle of a main rotor, based on a vertical posture control signal during low-speed flight, wherein, when an aircraft steering signal including a vertical posture control signal for changing the pitch posture angle of the vertical take-off/landing aircraft by a first pitch posture angle is obtained, a flight controller determines a tilt angle of the main rotor with reference to the first pitch posture angle and generates a tilt angle control signal for the main rotor based on the determined tilt angle.

A thruster controller is used in a flying device that has at least two thrusters and a main controller that outputs an instruction value to the thruster for controlling a thrust of the thruster. The thruster controller includes an instruction value obtainer and an instruction value generator. The instruction value obtainer obtains an instruction value that is output from the main controller to the thruster based on an assumption that a propeller pitch is fixed. The instruction value generator outputs, to a pitch changing mechanism of the thruster, a propeller pitch instruction value generated from the obtained instruction value for setting the propeller pitch, and outputs, to a motor, a corrected rotation number instruction value for setting a rotation number of the motor by correcting the instruction value based on the propeller pitch instruction value.

A line-replaceable thrust module includes a nacelle configured to be mechanically connected to an anchoring location of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), an electric motor coupled to the nacelle, an electric speed controller configured to control the speed of the electric motor and configured to be electrically connected to a communication network of the UAV, and a fuel cell system configured to produce electrical energy from an electrochemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. The fuel cell system includes a fuel cell, a hydrogen tank, a pressure regulator coupled to the hydrogen tank, and a supply line coupled between the pressure regulator and the fuel cell.

An aerial vehicle includes a hull containing the main processor, energy storage, support components such as sensors, wireless communication, and landing gear. Attached to the hull are at least three thrust or propulsion units each with two degrees of freedom from the hull allowing them to orient independently in any direction and apply thrust independently from the hull or any other thrust or propulsion unit. In some embodiments, a mount for auxiliary attachments is included or the auxiliary system is built into the hull. Components like the energy storage, auxiliary attachments, and/or propulsion units may also be replaceable as required.

A method for unmanned delivery of an item to a desired delivery location includes receiving, at an unmanned vehicle, first data representative of an approximate geographic location of the desired delivery location, receiving, at the unmanned vehicle, second data representative of a fiducial expected to be detectable at the desired delivery location, using the first data to operate the unmanned vehicle to travel to the approximate geographic location of the desired delivery location, upon arriving at the approximate geographic location of the desired delivery location, using the second data to operate the unmanned vehicle to detect the fiducial; and upon detecting the fiducial, using the fiducial to operate the unmanned vehicle to deliver the item.

A multi-modal vehicle includes a frame, a rotor pivotally mounted to the frame, the rotor including a first position and a second position circumferentially spaced from the first position, and a motor coupled to the rotor and configured to rotate the rotor, wherein, when the rotor is disposed in the first position, the rotor is configured to generate lift when actuated by the motor, wherein, when the rotor is disposed in the second position, the rotor is configured to engage a surface to transport the vehicle when actuated by the motor.

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with omnidirectional thrust vectoring includes a central unit, a connective structure, and a plurality of propulsion units with omnidirectional thrust vectoring allowing a full six degrees of freedom. A vectored propulsion unit comprises thruster vectored by an omnidirectional mechanism and may include an autonomous sub-vehicle housed within a rotational frame, or an actuator-thruster assembly with directional control. A UAV with omnidirectional thrust vectoring includes a control system with a ground station unit, a central flight control unit, and a propulsion control unit. A plurality of vectored propulsion units working in coordination allows an unmanned aerial vehicle to maneuver with any stance or body orientation.