JP6393887B2 - Transport device and transport method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a transport device, and more particularly to a transport device capable of transporting cargo using an unmanned aerial vehicle including a plurality of rotor blades.

  As one method of transporting cargo using a flying device such as a helicopter, a winch is attached to the outside of the flying device, a hook is attached to the lower end of the cable wound around the winch, and the cargo is suspended from the hook and transported. The method of doing is known. Such a form is described in Patent Document 1, for example, and is assumed to be used for disaster relief activities and the like.

  On the other hand, in recent years, a small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) represented by an industrial unmanned helicopter, in particular, a small multi-copter, has been rapidly spread and has been tried to be introduced into a wide range of fields. A multicopter is a type of helicopter equipped with multiple rotors, and flies while balancing the fuselage by adjusting the rotational speed of each rotor.

JP 2009-73223 A

  As described in Patent Document 1, if a method of attaching a flexible member such as a wire to the outside of a flying device and suspending and transporting materials is applied to an unmanned aircraft, a conventional flight such as a helicopter There is a possibility that the goods can be transported with higher convenience than when the apparatus is used. In particular, in a multicopter, control (hovering) that keeps the aircraft levitated at a fixed point can be performed with high accuracy, so it is easy to install and remove cargo from the ground while the multicopter is hovered. Can do.

  However, when an operator pulls a wire when attaching or detaching cargo from the ground to the unmanned aircraft, the unmanned aircraft tends to lose its posture in the air. In particular, when a small multicopter called a drone is used, since the airframe is lightweight, the influence of wire tension tends to increase. If an unmanned aerial vehicle loses its posture by pulling a wire, it may interfere with maintaining a stable hovering posture and may also cause damage to the aircraft. In particular, when a worker lowers a wire with no cargo suspended toward the ground in order to attach the cargo, the operator pulls the wire from a state in which no load is applied to the wire and suddenly loads it. Therefore, such a problem is likely to occur (see FIG. 5).

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is an operation of attaching cargo to a flexible member suspended from a floating unmanned aerial vehicle in a transport device that hangs and transports cargo to an unmanned aircraft via a flexible member. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a transport device in which the attitude of an unmanned aerial vehicle is not easily destabilized.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the transport device of the present invention includes an unmanned aerial vehicle having a plurality of rotor blades and a long flexible member, and a fixed end that is one end is fixed to the unmanned aircraft, and the other end Is composed of a main wire having a free end and a long member having at least one of flexibility and stretchability, and is coupled to the main wire at a position entering the fixed end side from the free end of the main wire. And an auxiliary wire extending outside the free end of the main wire along the main wire.

  Here, the auxiliary wire may have at least one of flexibility higher than the main wire and stretchability higher than the main wire.

  The transport device may further include a hoisting device that is fixed to the unmanned aircraft and that winds and feeds the main wire.

  The auxiliary wire may be provided with a support that can support the cargo to be transported.

  The conveying device may further include a locking tool that can fold the auxiliary wire in the longitudinal direction and lock the auxiliary wire to the main wire.

  The transportation device may further include a resistance member that receives wind generated downward from the unmanned aircraft in flight between the fixed end and the free end of the main wire and applies tension to the main wire.

  In the transport device according to the above invention, the auxiliary wire is branched at a position that enters the fixed end side from the free end of the main wire fixed to the unmanned aircraft at the fixed end. If an auxiliary wire is not provided and cargo is attached to the free end of the main wire suspended from the unmanned aerial vehicle that is suspended toward the ground, the force applied to the main wire by the operator performing the installation work is directly unmanned. There is a possibility that the attitude of the unmanned aerial vehicle is destabilized. However, by providing the auxiliary wire, the cargo can be attached to the auxiliary wire instead of the main wire. In addition, since the auxiliary wire extends to the outside of the free end of the main wire, it is easy to carry out the operation of attaching the cargo using the length of the auxiliary wire without greatly pulling the auxiliary wire. As a result, compared to the case where the cargo is directly attached to the main wire, the force derived from the cargo installation work is less likely to be transmitted to the unmanned aircraft, which reduces the unstable attitude of the unmanned aircraft associated with the installation work. The

  Here, when the auxiliary wire has at least one of flexibility higher than that of the main wire and elasticity higher than that of the main wire, it is not necessary to pull the auxiliary wire particularly when attaching cargo to the auxiliary wire. In addition, the attachment work is easy to perform, and the force applied to the auxiliary wire during the attachment operation is hardly transmitted to the main wire. Therefore, the attitude of the unmanned aerial vehicle is more stably maintained.

  When the transport device is fixed to the unmanned aerial vehicle and further includes a hoisting device that winds and unwinds the main wire, the amount of drooping of the main wire from the unmanned aerial vehicle can be freely controlled. Even if the shape and dimensions change, the amount of droop that can be used to attach cargo to the auxiliary wire without pulling the auxiliary wire is adjusted to contribute to reducing the instability of the attitude of unmanned aircraft it can.

  If the auxiliary wire is equipped with a support that can support the cargo to be transported, it can be easily attached to the auxiliary wire, so installation work can be completed without greatly pulling the auxiliary wire. can do. Thereby, the attitude | position of an unmanned aerial vehicle is hold | maintained more stably.

  If the transport device further includes a locking tool that can fold the auxiliary wire in the longitudinal direction and lock it to the main wire, the auxiliary wire is provided long for the purpose of stabilizing the attitude of the unmanned aircraft However, it is difficult for the auxiliary wire to be entangled with the constituent members of the transport device including the main wire and the external object to prevent smooth cargo transport.

  In the case where the transport device further includes a resistance member between the fixed end and the free end of the main wire to receive a wind generated downward from the unmanned aircraft in flight and tension the main wire, the unmanned aircraft When the main wire is suspended, it is difficult to cause a situation in which the main wire shakes and the suspended state becomes unstable.

It is an external appearance perspective view which shows the outline of the conveying apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows the state which attached the cargo to the auxiliary wire of the said conveying apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the outline of the control system of the said conveying apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the resistance member which can be attached to the said conveying apparatus. It is an external appearance perspective view explaining the force applied during the attachment operation | work of a cargo in the conveying apparatus which does not have an auxiliary wire.

  Hereinafter, a transport device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. A transportation device according to an embodiment of the present invention moves the sky in a state where a cargo as a transportation object is suspended, and transports the cargo.

[Configuration of the transport device]
1 and 2 are perspective views showing an appearance of a transport device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a state where the cargo B is not attached, and FIG. 2 shows a state where the cargo B is attached. The transport device 1 mainly includes a multicopter 91 that is an unmanned aerial vehicle including a plurality (six in this case) of rotor blades 911, and a winch (winding-up) fixed to the lower side of the multicopter 91 via an adapter plate 21. Device) 20. And it has the main wire 30 wound around the winch 20, and is drawn out and wound up by the winch 20, and the auxiliary wire 40 branched from the main wire 30 and attached.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the transport device 1. The multicopter 91 is mainly composed of a flight controller 83 that controls the attitude and flight operation of the multicopter 91 in the air, a plurality of rotor blades 911 that generate lift by rotating the multicopter 91, and a pilot (transceiver 81). Are configured by a transmitter / receiver 82 that performs wireless communication with the battery, and a battery 84 that supplies electric power thereto.

  The flight controller 83 includes a control unit 831 that is a microcontroller. The control unit 831 includes a CPU that is a central processing unit, a RAM / ROM that is a storage device, and a PWM controller that controls the rotation of the DC motor 86. The DC motor 86 is coupled to each rotor blade 911, and the rotation speed (rotation speed) of each DC motor 86 is controlled via an ESC (Electric Speed Controller) 85 according to an instruction from the PWM controller. The attitude and position of the multicopter 91 are controlled by the balance of the rotational speeds of the four rotor blades 911.

  The flight controller 83 includes a sensor group 832 and a GPS receiver 833, which are connected to the control unit 831. The sensor group 832 of the multicopter 91 includes an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor (angular velocity sensor), an atmospheric pressure sensor, a geomagnetic sensor (electronic compass), and the like.

  The RAM / ROM of the control unit 831 stores a flight control program in which a flight control algorithm during the flight of the multicopter 91 is implemented. The control unit 831 can control the attitude and position of the multicopter 91 by the flight control program using information acquired from the sensor group 832. In the present embodiment, the flight operation of the multicopter 91 can be manually performed by the operator via the transceiver 81. Alternatively, an autonomous flight program in which a flight plan such as GPS coordinates, altitude, and flight route is parameterized may be separately installed and configured to fly autonomously.

  The winch 20 is controlled via the PWM controller of the control unit 831 and performs the feeding and winding operation of the main wire 30. A command for causing the winch 20 to feed out and wind up the main wire 30 can be given by the operator via the transceiver 81. Alternatively, as one function of the autonomous flight program, it may be automatically performed according to the program based on the position coordinates of the multicopter 91 and the like. Electric power for driving the main wire 30 to be unwound and wound by the winch 20 is supplied from the battery 84 of the multicopter 91.

[Configuration of main wire and auxiliary wire]
The transport device 1 includes two kinds of long flexible members, that is, a string-like member, that is, a main wire 30 and an auxiliary wire 40. As described above, the main wire 30 is wound around the winch 20, and the operation of feeding and winding is performed by the winch 20. The main wire 30 is fixed to the multicopter 91 at a fixed end at a point that leaves the circumference of the winch 20 as a fixed end. In a state in which the multicopter 91 is flying away from the ground G (including levitation), a portion of the front end side of the fixed end of the main wire 30 is suspended below the multicopter 91.

  At the coupling point 31 set at a position that enters the fixed end side from the free end of the main wire 30, that is, a position inside the free end along the longitudinal direction (upward in a state where the multicopter 91 is flying), One end of the auxiliary wire 40 is fixed, and the auxiliary wire 40 is branched from the main wire 30 at the coupling point 31. The other end of the auxiliary wire 40 is a free end. As shown in FIG. 2, in the state where the auxiliary wire 40 is suspended along the longitudinal direction of the main wire 30, the auxiliary wire 40 is outside (below the free end of the main wire 30. Side). To support the cargo B, a hook-shaped support 41 that can open and close the opening / closing part 41a by manual operation is coupled to the free end of the auxiliary wire 40. In addition to the support tool 41 provided at the free end of the auxiliary wire 40, a similar support tool may be provided as the preliminary support tool 32 at the free end of the main wire 30.

  A locking member 33 is provided at a portion between the fixed end and the free end of the main wire 30. In the illustrated form, the locking tool 33 is provided adjacent to the coupling point 31 at a position closer to the free end of the main wire 30 than the coupling point 31. By using the locking tool 33, as shown in FIG. 1, the auxiliary wire 40 folded in a loop shape can be locked to the main wire 30 on the free end side. Here, after the main wire 30 is sandwiched by the support tool 41 provided at the free end of the auxiliary wire 40, the support tool 41 is held by the locking tool 33 so as not to be displaced on the main wire 30. As a specific configuration of the locking tool 33, a form of a pin or a pinch can be exemplified. In a state where the auxiliary wire 40 shown in FIG. 2 is not folded and held, the locking tool 33 is fixed to the main wire 30. Alternatively, the locking tool 33 may be fixed to the auxiliary wire 40, independent of the main wire 30 and the auxiliary wire 40, and stored by an operator when not in use.

  The main wire 30 and the auxiliary wire 40 can be configured as a flexible member made of any material such as a metal material, a fiber material, or a polymer material. Moreover, even if it consists of a single wire structure, it may consist of a twisted wire structure like a rope, or a structure where a plurality of small members are connected like a chain. The auxiliary wire 40 and the main wire 30 may be made of the same flexible member, but the auxiliary wire 40 has higher flexibility than the main wire 30 and is flexibly deformed when the same force is applied. It is preferable to do. Such a difference in flexibility is realized, for example, by forming the auxiliary wire 40 to be thinner than the main wire 30 and / or by forming the auxiliary wire 40 from a material having rigidity lower than that of the main wire 30. . In the illustrated form, the auxiliary wire 40 is formed thinner than the main wire 30.

  In the present embodiment, the hook-shaped support 41 provided at the tip of the auxiliary wire 40 is manually opened and closed, but may be electrically controlled by the control unit 831. In that case, what is necessary is just to make the main wire 30 and the auxiliary wire 40 superimpose the electric power feeding line and communication line which connect between the support tool 41 and the control part 831. FIG.

[Method of carrying cargo]
As described above, a method for carrying the cargo B using the carrying device 1 including the winch 20, the main wire 30, and the auxiliary wire 40 will be described. Here, the process of attaching the cargo B from the ground and suspending the cargo B and transporting it to another position while the multicopter 91 floats in the sky is handled. The cargo B is attached by an operator who is on the ground. The operator who performs the attaching operation may be the same as or different from the operator who performs the flight control of the multicopter 91 using the transceiver 81.

  Prior to the transportation of the cargo B, it is necessary to form a supported structure that can be supported by the support tool 41 on the cargo B. For example, when the support 41 is in a hook shape as in the present embodiment, a string-like member such as a belt sling B1 is hung on the cargo B and is suspended (single-point suspension or multipoint suspension, preferably multipoint suspension). A loop structure that can be hung on the hook of the support tool 41 in the form of is formed.

  In the initial state before starting the transportation, the transportation device 1 is flying over the multicopter 91. At this time, no cargo B is suspended from the auxiliary wire 40, and the main wire 30 is wound around the winch 20 in almost all the longitudinal direction and is not suspended. The auxiliary wire 40 is folded and locked to the main wire 30 via the locking tool 33, and is wound around the winch 20 together with the main wire 30.

  When the transport device 1 reaches above the position where the cargo B should be received, such as a place where an operator who delivers the cargo B is waiting, the multicopter 91 takes a state where it floats at a fixed position in the sky (hovering). . Here, the fixed position includes an error that does not hinder the receipt of the cargo B. And the winch 20 is driven by the control part 831 and the main wire 30 is let out. As shown in FIG. 1, when the main wire 30 is suspended to a predetermined height position (working height) with respect to the ground G, the feeding by the winch 20 is stopped. Here, the working height at which the drooping of the main wire 30 should be stopped is such that the auxiliary support 32 provided at the free end of the main wire 30 does not contact the ground G, and the locking by the locking tool 33 is released. In the state where the tip of the auxiliary wire 40 is suspended, the cargo B placed on the ground G is determined as a height position that can be supported by the support tool 41 at the tip of the auxiliary wire 40 without tensioning the auxiliary wire 40. It is done.

  When the delivery of the main wire 30 by the winch 20 stops at the height during the operation, the operator performs an operation for attaching the cargo B. During the work, the cargo B is kept in a state of being placed on the ground G. The operator first releases the locking of the auxiliary wire 40 to the main wire 30 by the locking tool 33 and causes the free end of the auxiliary wire 40 to hang down. Then, the cargo B that has formed the supported structure is supported by the support tool 41. When the support tool 41 is a hook, the opening / closing part 41a is opened, the supported structure is hung on the support tool 41 in the manner of slinging, and then the opening / closing part 41a is closed. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 2, the cargo B placed on the ground G is connected to the tip of the auxiliary wire 40. At this time, since the feed amount of the main wire 30 from the winch 20 is determined so as to realize the above-described height during operation, the auxiliary wire 40 is not tensed and is in a state in which the bending is maintained. The main wire 30 is in a state where it hangs down substantially without bending.

  During this attachment operation, it is preferable that the operator always keep the auxiliary wire 40 in a bent state without tensioning the auxiliary wire 40. Further, in order to assist the work, the preliminary support 32 at the tip of the main wire 30 may be lightly gripped to such an extent that an excessive force is not applied to the multicopter 91.

  When the worker completes the work for attaching the cargo B, the control unit 831 drives the winch 20 to wind up the main wire 30. Thereby, the cargo B supported by the auxiliary wire 40 is pulled up to the sky. The main wire 30 is wound until the drooping amount of the main wire 30 and the auxiliary wire 40 is almost eliminated. In this way, when the cargo B is suspended just below the winch 20, the multicopter 91 stops hovering and moves to the destination for transporting the cargo B.

  When the transport device 1 reaches the destination, the multicopter 91 performs hovering again. And the winch 20 is driven by the control part 831 and the main wire 30 is drawn out below. The main wire 30 is fed until the cargo B reaches the ground G. When the cargo B lands, the operator releases the support of the cargo B by the support tool 41 and separates the cargo B from the transport device 1. When the opening / closing part 41a of the support tool 41 can be opened / closed by electric control, the support of the cargo B by the support tool 41 is released by a command from the control part 831, and the cargo B is removed regardless of the manual operation by the operator. It can also be separated.

  In the transport device 1 according to the present embodiment, in addition to the main wire 30, the auxiliary wire 40 provided so as to branch from the main wire 30 is provided, so that the hovering can be performed while the worker performs the mounting operation of the cargo B. The posture of the multicopter 91 that is being operated can be maintained stably. That is, if the supporting device 41 is directly coupled to the main wire 30 wound around the winch 20 without the auxiliary wire 40 as in the carrying device 1 ′ shown in FIG. In this case, there is a possibility that an operator who holds the support tool 41 and performs the attachment work directly applies a force having a downward component such as the forces F1 to F3 to the main wire 30 in the work process. . Forces F <b> 1 to F <b> 3 applied to the main wire 30 are transmitted to the multicopter 91 via the main wire 30 and the winch 20. Then, the multicopter 91 is pulled downward, and the balance of the airframe is lost as indicated by arrows M1 and M2 in the drawing. In particular, when the force applied to the main wire 30 has a horizontal component such as F1 and F3, the multicopter 91 shakes significantly. As described above, when the balance of the multicopter 91 is lost, hovering cannot be stably maintained. As a result, not only the mounting of the cargo B will be hindered, but an excessive load may be applied to the components of the multicopter 91 to cause damage.

  On the other hand, the auxiliary wire 40 extending downward from the main wire 30 is provided, and the auxiliary wire 40 is provided with a support 41 for supporting the cargo B. Then, as shown in FIG. By performing the operation of attaching the cargo B without tensing the wire 40, the bending of the auxiliary wire 40 provides a margin for the attachment operation, and the operator can easily perform the operation of attaching the cargo B without pulling the auxiliary wire 40. . Furthermore, even if some force is applied near the free end of the auxiliary wire 40, the force is absorbed by the bending of the auxiliary wire 40 and is not easily transmitted to the main wire 30. Therefore, the force applied to the auxiliary wire 40 is not easily transmitted to the multicopter 91 via the auxiliary wire 30 and the winch 20. As a result, the posture of the hovering multicopter 91 is stably maintained even during the attachment work, the attachment work can be smoothly advanced, and an excessive load on the multicopter 91 is avoided. In particular, since the auxiliary wire 40 has higher flexibility than the main wire 30, the effect of facilitating the attachment of the cargo B by the operator and the force applied to the auxiliary wire 40 are hardly transmitted to the main wire 30. The effect to do is further enhanced.

  Here, the auxiliary wire 40 may be formed of a long member having stretchability instead of or in addition to flexibility. Further, the auxiliary wire 40 may have higher stretchability than the main wire 30 instead of, or in addition to, higher flexibility than the main wire 30. The elasticity of the auxiliary wire 40 also absorbs the effect of facilitating the attachment of the cargo B by the operator and the force applied to the auxiliary wire 40 and transmits it to the main wire 30 as in the case of the flexibility. The effect of making it difficult is obtained.

  Note that the winch 20 is not necessarily provided. If the main wire 30 is relatively short, the winch 20 may be omitted, and the fixed end of the main wire 30 may be directly fixed to the multicopter 91. However, by providing the winch 20, it is possible to freely control the length of the main wire 30 to hang down, and the convenience of each process such as attachment and conveyance of the cargo B is enhanced. In particular, by adjusting the amount of drooping of the main wire 30 when performing the attachment work according to the individual cargo B, the auxiliary wire 40 can be used during the attachment work even if the size or shape of the cargo B changes. The bent state can be maintained, and the transmission of force to the main wire 30 can be suppressed. In addition, when the cargo B is suspended or not suspended from the auxiliary wire 40 except when the cargo B is being attached and detached, the main wire 30 can be wound up shortly so that the main wire 30 is not suspended. 30 can be prevented to stabilize the flight state of the multicopter 91, and the main wire 30 and the auxiliary wire 40 and the suspended cargo B can be prevented from coming into contact with surrounding objects. .

  Although the support tool 41 is not necessarily provided, it is easy to perform the work of attaching the cargo B to the free end of the auxiliary wire 40 by providing the support tool 41. It is easy to prevent a large force from being applied. Moreover, even if the auxiliary wire 40 is provided long for the purpose of minimizing the transmission of force to the multicopter 91 by providing the locking device 33, the convenience of handling the auxiliary wire 40 is maintained. can do. In particular, the auxiliary wire 40 can be prevented from being entangled with the constituent members of the transport device 1 such as the main wire 30 and external members.

  In the above-described embodiment, the preliminary support 32 is provided at the free end of the main wire 30. For example, the preliminary support 32 is formed by hanging the main wire 30 and the auxiliary wire 40 from the hovered multicopter 91. Instead of attaching the cargo B, it can be used to attach the cargo B when the multicopter 91 is landed and the cargo B having a large mass is attached and then taken off. The free end extends longer than the main wire 30 and holds the cargo B stably at take-off rather than attaching the cargo B to the support 41 provided at the free end of the auxiliary wire 40 having high flexibility and stretchability. Because it can. When such an application is not assumed, the preliminary support 32 may not be provided.

[Other configurations]
(1) Addition of resistance member In the carrying device 1 according to the above embodiment, when the cargo B is not suspended from the auxiliary wire 40 in order to perform the work of attaching the cargo B, the main wire 30 is extended downward. In addition, the main wire 30 may swing due to air resistance, natural wind, wind generated by the rotating blade 911 of the hovering multicopter 91, and the main wire 30 may not be stably fed out. is there. If a weight is attached to the tip of the main wire 30, such swinging can be prevented. However, from the viewpoint of reducing the load on the multicopter 91, weight reduction is important for the multicopter 91 and the attached member. Therefore, it is not realistic to attach such a weight.

  Therefore, it is conceivable to provide a resistance member 50 as shown in FIG. 4 between the fixed end and the free end of the main wire 30. The resistance member 50 is made of a material that is hard enough not to be deformed by the wind generated by the rotor blades 911 of the multicopter 91, and includes a fixed portion 52 fixed to the main wire 30 and a plurality of blade members 51. ing. The vane member 51 has one surface fixed to the fixing portion 52 and has a surface shape that widens away from the axis of the main wire 30 toward the free end side (lower side) of the main wire 30. Further, the surface of the blade member 51 does not spread radially with respect to the axis of the main wire 30 but extends from the upper end fixed to the fixing portion 52 toward the lower end of the main wire 30 with respect to the axis of the main wire 30. It has an inclined surface structure in which the angle is gradually changed.

  In the area below the hovering multicopter 91, the rotor blade 911 generates a downward wind. When the resistance member 50 receives the downward wind, air resistance is generated and tension is applied to the main wire 30 from the fixed end side to the free end side. This tension prevents the main wire 30 from swinging, and the winch 20 can stably feed the main wire 30 downward.

  Although the wind generated downward from the multicopter 91 is swirled, the resistance member 50 is not configured in a continuous shape like an umbrella, but a plurality of blade members having gaps therebetween. 51. In particular, by providing the blade member 51 with the inclined surface structure as described above, even if the wind swirl state becomes complicated, the main part can be stably stabilized without increasing the mass of the wire portion. A downward tension can be applied to the wire 30. From the viewpoint of stabilizing the drooping state of the entire area in the longitudinal direction of the hung main wire 30 as much as possible, the resistance member 50 is preferably provided at a position close to the free end. However, even if the position where the resistance member 50 is provided is too far from the multicopter 91, the amount of wind flowing downward from the rotary blade 911 decreases, and the effect of generating air resistance is reduced. As a mounting position of the resistance member 50 capable of stabilizing the drooping state of the main wire 30 as long as possible while sufficiently receiving wind from the rotor blade 911, for example, a configuration provided at a position immediately above the coupling point 31 is provided. Conceivable.

  In the embodiment described here, the fixing portion 52 of the resistance member 50 is fixed to the main wire 30. However, the resistance member 50 is attached to the main wire 30 so as to be rotatable about the shaft, and the entire resistance member 50 has a certain amount of inertial force. May rotate around the main wire 30. Thereby, stabilization of the main wire 30 in the condition where the wind is swirling can be realized to a higher degree. Furthermore, the shape of the resistance member 50 is not limited to the one having the blade member 51 spreading downward, and receives downward wind from the multicopter 91 to apply downward tension to the main wire 30. Any shape can be used as long as it can be used.

(2) Detection of cargo landing As described above, when the cargo B is attached to the transport device 1, there is a problem that the posture of the multicopter 91 is destabilized by the force applied by the operator, and the auxiliary wire By providing 40, this problem can be reduced. On the other hand, when removing the conveyed cargo B from the support tool 41, there are few work processes which an operator performs and the destabilization of the attitude | position of the multicopter 91 resulting from work does not become so much a problem. In particular, when the support 41 is opened and closed by electric control and the cargo B is automatically separated, there is almost no such problem. However, the main wire 30 is suspended by the winch 20 until the cargo B is reliably landed from the viewpoint of stably performing the entire transportation process from the installation to the removal of the cargo B without damaging the cargo B at the time of removal. It is important to perform the removal work in the state.

  Therefore, it is conceivable to provide the transport device 1 with a landing detection mechanism that detects the landing of the cargo B. As a landing detection mechanism, it is conceivable to equip the winch 20 with a load detector and monitor the load applied to the main wire 30. When the main wire 30 is fed toward the ground G in a state where the cargo B is suspended from the auxiliary wire 40, the load applied to the auxiliary wire 40 and the main wire 30 is reduced when the cargo B is landed. The landing of the cargo B can be detected by detecting the decrease in the load of the main wire 30.

  Or the structure which provides the distance measuring sensor which can measure the distance to the ground G in the bottom face of the support tool 41 or the cargo B is considered. When the distance measured by the distance measuring sensor is reduced to a predetermined value, it can be determined that the cargo B has landed. When a distance measuring sensor is provided on the bottom surface of the cargo B, the predetermined distance is ideally zero. Communication between the distance measuring sensor and the control unit 831 may be performed by superimposing a signal line and a power supply line on the main wire 30 and the auxiliary wire 40, or power supply by a battery and wireless communication with the control unit 831 are possible. This may be done by using a simple distance measuring sensor.

  Another method is to monitor the rotational speed of the rotor blade 911 of the multicopter 91 or the load current flowing through the DC motor 86. In a state where the cargo B is not in contact with the ground G and is hung on the hovering multicopter 91, it is necessary to support the load of the cargo B by the lift of the multicopter 91. On the other hand, when the cargo B is in contact with the ground G, the cargo B is supported by the ground G, so that it is not necessary for the multicopter 91 to support the load of the cargo B. Since the multicopter 91 being hovered is controlled by the control unit 831 so as to maintain a constant altitude, the cargo B is brought to the ground by feeding the main wire 30 while the multicopter 91 is hovered at the same height. When landing on G, the rotational speed of the rotor blade 911 of the multicopter 91 becomes smaller and the load current of the DC motor 86 becomes smaller than before landing. The landing of the cargo B can be detected by detecting these changes. A measuring instrument that monitors the rotational speed of the rotor 911 and the load current of the DC motor 86 can be mounted on the multicopter 91 in a relatively simple manner, and can also be used for flight control itself of the multicopter 91. Therefore, the landing detection mechanism can be realized with a simple configuration as compared with the case where a load detector or a distance measuring sensor is used as described above. Moreover, the weight of the whole conveying apparatus 1 can also be suppressed small.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

1 Carrying device 20 winch (winding device)
30 Main wire 31 Connection point 33 Locking tool 40 Auxiliary wire 41 Support tool 91 Multicopter (unmanned aerial vehicle)
B Cargo G Ground

Claims (9)

An unmanned aerial vehicle having a plurality of rotor blades;
A main wire comprising a long flexible member, a fixed end being one end fixed to the unmanned aerial vehicle, and the other end being a free end;
A long member having at least one of flexibility and stretchability, coupled to the main wire at a position entering the fixed end side from the free end of the main wire, and extending along the main wire have a, and auxiliary wire extending to the outside than the free end of the wire,
The unmanned aircraft is characterized in that when an operator who attaches cargo to the tip of the main wire in a hovered state directly applies a force having a downward component to the main wire, the balance of the fuselage is lost. Carrying device.   The transport device according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary wire has at least one of flexibility higher than the main wire and stretchability higher than the main wire.   The transport device according to claim 1, further comprising a hoisting device that is fixed to the unmanned aircraft and that winds and unwinds the main wire.   The transport device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the auxiliary wire includes a support that can support the cargo to be transported. The transport device according to claim 4, wherein the main wire is not provided with a support that can support the cargo to be transported. The conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , further comprising a locking tool that can be folded on the auxiliary wire in the longitudinal direction and locked to the main wire. 2. A resistance member that receives a wind generated downward from the unmanned aircraft in flight and applies tension to the main wire between the fixed end and the free end of the main wire. The conveying apparatus of any one of from 6 . The transportation method for transporting cargo by the transport device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the cargo to be transported is not directly supported by the main wire but supported by the auxiliary wire, and the entire cargo is transported. A carrying method comprising supporting a load via the auxiliary wire. The transport method according to claim 8, wherein the cargo is attached to the auxiliary wire without directly applying a force having a downward component to the main wire in a state where the unmanned aircraft is hovered.

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