A drone landing apparatus may include: a trunk door configured to open or close a trunk of a vehicle; a drone housing contained in the trunk, and configured to provide a space in which a drone is housed; a rotator mounted on the trunk door, and configured to rotate the drone housing according to an opening angle of the trunk door; and a moving platform appearing from the drone housing or disappearing into the drone housing, and having the drone seated thereon.

An authentication between a wireless charger and a device configured to receive wireless energy from the wireless charger includes establishing a wireless data channel between the wireless charger and the device. An authentication challenge signal is driven onto a transmit charging coil of the wireless charger and a receive charging coil of the device is configured to receive the authentication challenge signal. The device sends an authentication response signal to the wireless charger based at least in part on the authentication challenge signal.

A shared wireless charging docking station for an unmanned aerial vehicle, including an adjacent docking station communication module, a communication function module, a control center communication module, an unmanned aerial vehicle communication module, a central processing unit, a connection actuator, a wireless power transmitter, and a power management and load unit. According to the shared wireless charging docking station and a priority-based wireless charging method applied to the wireless shared docking station, a wireless charging shared service for an unmanned aerial vehicle is provided to satisfy the requirements for charging and endurance of unmanned aerial vehicles used in different industries, such as power line patrol unmanned aerial vehicles, oil pipeline patrol unmanned aerial vehicles, border line patrol unmanned aerial vehicles and mobile phone base station patrol unmanned aerial vehicles.

A smart battery includes a battery and a measurement module coupled to measure electrical characteristics of the battery. The smart battery also includes processing logic and a communication interface configured to receive the electrical characteristics and transmit the electrical characteristics to a receiver.

Disclosed is a drone station which allows the center of resonance of a drone to be always accurately aligned regardless of the initial landing position of the drone. The disclosed drone station includes a landing guidance instrument and a wireless charging instrument which is formed on the landing guidance instrument and wirelessly transmits the power to a drone positioned thereon, the landing guidance instrument having an inclined surface which moves the landed drone onto the top of the wireless charging instrument.

An automated drone security system for surveilling a location includes one or more drones with onboard sensors and an imaging device for measuring surveillance data. The surveillance data may include images, telemetry data, infrared data, or other detectable information of the location. Drones may be capable of executing one or multiple flight operations as well as storing and transmitting the surveillance data to a server assembly operable for coordinating the drone and receiving the surveillance data. A drone dock may be included for drone launching, landing, and/or storing the drones. A user computing device may be in communication with the server assembly and the drone(s), the user computing device being capable of receiving user input and displaying surveillance data from the drone. Flight operations associated with surveilling the location may be automatically and/or manually controlled by the user computing device and/or or the server assembly in connection with the location.

An apparatus may include (i) a support structure, (ii) at least one shaft coupled to the support structure via at least one swing arm, wherein the swing arm allows upward movement, and restricts downward movement, of the at least one shaft from a resting position, (iii) a spool, wherein in the spool is shaped so as to rest on the at least one shaft when the at least one shaft is in the resting position, and wherein the spool is operable to unwind a tether coupled to a payload, and (iv) at least one fan coupled to the at least one shaft, wherein rotation of the spool when unwinding the tether also causes rotation of the at least one fan coupled to the at least one shaft, thereby controlling a descent rate of the payload.

An autonomous inspection solution includes: a UAV having a navigation component and a first inspection sensor suite. The navigation component is configured to: autonomously deploy the UAV from a support vehicle; fly a first route at an inspection site, based at least upon a sensor type of the first inspection sensor suite; and autonomously return to the support vehicle upon completion of assigned inspections. In some examples, the first inspection sensor suite includes an optical camera, a thermal imaging sensor, an RF sensor, or an inventory management sensor, and a second inspection sensor suite has at least one different sensor than the first inspection sensor suite. The navigation component is further configured navigate the UAV to fly a second route, based at least upon a sensor type of the second inspection sensor suite. A data component stores or wirelessly transmits data received from the affixed inspection sensor suites.

A UAV package delivery system includes a cabinet for deployment inside a merchant facility. The cabinet is configured for storing and charging UAVs on-site at the merchant facility remote from a command and control of the UAVs. The cabinet includes a plurality of cubbies, power circuitry, communication circuitry, and a controller. The cubbies are each sized and shaped to receive one of the UAVs. The power circuitry is configured for charging the UAVs when the UAVs are stowed within the cubbies. The communication circuitry is configured for communicating with the UAVs when the UAVs are proximate to the cabinet or stowed within the cubbies and for communicating with the command and control. The controller causes the UAV package delivery system to retrieve status information from the UAVs, relay the status information to the command and control, and relay mission data between the command and control and the UAVs.

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a system and a method for determining a landing status of the UAV are provided. The UAV system includes a UAV, a landing surface and a processing unit. The UAV has a landing gear furnished with a plurality of sensors. The landing surface is provided for the UAV to land thereon. The processing unit, coupled electrically with the plurality of sensors, is to determine, while the UAV is landing towards the landing surface, either whether or not a number of the plurality of sensors that have touched the landing surface at least once within a touch-judging time is not less than a predetermined touch-judging number, or whether or not a number of the plurality of sensors that contact the landing surface synchronously within a land-judging time is not less than a predetermined land-judging number.