Intelligent parachute rescue system for manned and unmanned aerial vehicles

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and a device for an intelligent parachute rescue system for manned and unmanned aerial vehicles (14), wherein no pyrotechnic propellants are used, but compressed air (4a) extracted from a pressure bottle (4).

Claims

1. A method for an intelligent parachute rescue system for manned and unmanned aerial vehicles, comprising: sensing flight and engine data of an aerial vehicle; evaluating the flight and engine data with a data logger; and causing activation of a parachute container based on the evaluated flight and engine data by controlling a flow of compressed air from a pressure cylinder into the parachute container, thereby deploying an emergency parachute disposed within the parachute container in a controlled manner, wherein deploying the emergency parachute includes releasing an auxiliary parachute arranged on top of the emergency parachute and using a pulling force generated by the auxiliary parachute to tighten the emergency parachute.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the activation of the parachute container is triggered by a wireless remote transmission.

3. An intelligent parachute rescue system for manned and unmanned aerial vehicles, comprising a parachute container comprising a rescue capsule having an emergency parachute and an auxiliary parachute, the rescue capsule being provided in a compressed air container of the parachute container with the auxiliary parachute being arranged on top of the emergency parachute; a pressure cylinder filled with compressed air, the pressure cylinder being connected to the parachute container; and a control valve arranged between the pressure cylinder and the compressed air container of the parachute container through which the compressed air can selectively flow from the pressure cylinder into the compressed air container.

4. The system according to claim 3, wherein the system is activated by opening the control valve, causing compressed air to flow from the pressure cylinder into the parachute container.

5. The system according to claim 3, wherein the rescue capsule is a multi-part, non-tightly closed capsule, with a plurality of sliding rings, and wherein the parachute container is adapted to deploy the rescue capsule by compressed air.

6. The system according to claim 3, wherein the emergency parachute is integrated into the parachute container by an adjoining flexible, slidable packaging system which comprises predetermined break points.

7. The system according to claim 3, wherein the auxiliary parachute includes a tensioned internal expansion spring.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) An exemplary embodiment is described in the following with reference to the figures.

(2) The figures show:

(3) FIG. 1 the functioning of the parachute container 77

(4) FIG. 2 the parachute container 77

(5) FIG. 3 the arrangement of the parachutes in the rescue capsule 20

(6) FIG. 4 the arrangement of the parachutes in the rescue capsule 20

(7) FIG. 5 the connection data logger 15 with parachute container 77 and aerial vehicle 14.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(8) A method for operating an intelligent parachute rescue system is based on the use of compressed air to deploy an emergency parachute 3 for an aerial vehicle 14.

(9) A possible, additional data logger (FIG. 5) 15 for the capture of GPS data, such as ground speed (GS) and altitude, forwards these detected data via switching outputs to a control valve which is switched between the compressed air bottle and the compressed air container into which the parachute container 77 is integrated. The data logger (FIG. 5) 15 may also include acceleration sensors and/or attitude sensors.

(10) In the case of danger, the system (FIG. 5) can be activated manually 16 and/or automatically via the control valve 5a. Furthermore, a certain air volume is maintained in the control valve 5a in order to enable an optimal and rapid activation. At the same time, negative temperature behavior is counteracted by air expansion. In the case of automatic activation, this can also be remotely controlled in the aerial vehicle in the case of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) by means of radio contact to the data logger (FIG. 5) 15. The data logger (FIG. 5) 15 is in this case equipped with a GSM/Sat or radio receiver. The data logger (FIG. 5) 15 additionally provides all relevant information for the decision on air rescue.

(11) The control valve 5a can therefore advantageously also be referred to in the embodiment as an electronic control valve, which is directly connected electrically to the manual release 16 or the switching outputs of the data logger 15. The compacted compressed air in the pressure cylinder (FIG. 1) 4; (FIG. 2) 4, including the pressure indicator on the compressed air container 1a, which is coordinated with the parachute container 77, presses after activation via the direct compressed air bottle outlet opening (FIG. 1) 5; (FIG. 2) 5; (FIG. 5) 5 into the compressed-air container 1a via the control valve 5a. In this case, the connection between the pressure cylinder 4 and the compressed air container 1a must be adapted to the rapidly expanding air mass and the icing resulting therefrom. An auxiliary parachute (FIG. 1) 2b advantageously having an internal expansion spring is tensioned in the resting state (FIG. 1) a) on the system and is fixedly connected to the cap top of the emergency parachute 3.

(12) A container hood 1, which is not fixedly connected to the parachute container 77, advantageously made of light plastic material, closes the parachute container 77 with an internal rescue capsule 20.

(13) When the system is activated, (FIG. 1) b), the penetrating compressed air 4a presses on the rescue capsule 20 with an internal emergency parachute 3 and ejects it from the compressed air container 1a. The container hood 1 is pushed away, and the auxiliary parachute 2b can expand or be released. With an additional pulling force 8 using given inflows e) and the given flight direction d), the auxiliary parachute simultaneously helps to tightening the opening emergency parachute (FIG. 1) c) 3, so that air 9 rapidly streaming in can fill the emergency parachute.

(14) The parachute container 77, which houses the emergency parachute 3, can be designed in several variants: Multi-capsule system (FIG. 3) 7c having offset sliding rings (FIG. 1) 6; (FIG. 3) 6 Complete polyethylene adapted packaging system (FIG. 4) 70 having predetermined break points (FIG. 4) 13.

(15) A safe and compact transport away from the damaged aerial vehicle is provided in both cases. This precludes jamming when deploying the rescue capsules.

(16) The central cord 2a, which is fastened to the emergency parachute 3 and the wire ropes of the aerial vehicle, is freely positioned on the system under the container section (FIG. 3) 11 adapted for this purpose so that this central cord 2a is automatically released immediately with the ejection or deployment of the parachute rescue system.

REFERENCE NUMBERS

(17) 1 Container hood 1a Compressed air container 2a Central cord 2b Auxiliary parachute 3 Emergency parachute 4 Pressure cylinder 4a Compressed air 5 Compressed air bottle outlet opening 5a Control valve 6 Offset sliding rings 7c Multi-capsule system 8 Pulling force 9 Air streaming in 11 Container section 13 Predetermined break point 14 Aerial vehicle 15 Data logger 16 Manual release 20 Rescue capsule 70 Packing system 77 Parachute container a) Resting state b) Activating the system c) Opening emergency parachute d) Flight direction e) Inflow