JP7175781B2 - portable drone port - Google Patents

Description

Application of Article 30, Paragraph 2 of the Patent Law Exhibition name OITA Drone Festa 2018 Exhibition date September 23, 2018 to September 24, 2018 Posting address https://www. youtube. com/watch? v=5bS7c2Ns82Q Publication date September 23, 2018 Exhibition name Robot and Aerospace Festa Fukushima 2018 Exhibition date November 22, 2018 to November 23, 2018

The present invention relates to a drone port for takeoff and landing of a logistics drone.

"Drone" means a type of small unmanned helicopter, a rotorcraft with three or more rotors.
In recent years, there have been plans to unmannedly transport small parcels using drones. Such drones are called “logistics drones”.

In order to realize the safe takeoff and landing of logistics drones, a drone port is essential. Such a drone port is disclosed, for example, in Non-Patent Document 1.

Blue Innovation Co., Ltd., “Logistics Drone Port System” [online], [Searched on October 26, 2018], Internet <URL: https://www. blue-i. co. jp/service/logistic/dps/>

In the logistics drone port system of Non-Patent Document 1, highly accurate landing is possible by recognizing the image on the drone port.
However, in order to achieve high-precision landing, large and small AR markers are arranged in combination, making the top surface of the drone port large. For example, even if the plane size of the drone for distribution is within 1 m×1 m, the upper surface size of the drone port needs to be, for example, about 3 m×3 m.
Therefore, conventional drone ports are large and difficult to transport.

Also, if the drone port were omitted, it would be difficult for the logistics drone to take off and land in rough terrain.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been devised to solve the above problems. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a transportable drone port that allows for precise landing of a logistics drone when in use, can be used on rough terrain, and is easy to disassemble, assemble, and transport. It is in.

According to the present invention, a take-off and landing port capable of holding a horizontal plane on which a logistics drone can take off and land in an undulating place;
a height-adjustable outer fence surrounding the outside of said spaced apart landing port;
a marker sheet that can be extended horizontally by fixing the outer edge to the outer fence;
The outer fence is foldable to a length shorter than the takeoff and landing port,
A transportable drone port is provided in which the marker sheet has a plurality of AR markers recognizable by the drone for distribution on its upper surface and is configured to allow a person to access the take-off/landing port.

According to the configuration of the present invention, the take-off/landing port can maintain a horizontal plane on which the drone for distribution can take off and land on an uneven place, so that the drone for distribution can land with high precision when in use.
In addition, since the outer fence surrounds the outside of the take-off/landing port at intervals and is adjustable in height, the marker sheet can be extended horizontally by fixing the outer edge to the outer fence.
Furthermore, since the marker sheet has a plurality of AR markers on its upper surface that can be recognized by the drone for distribution, it is possible to land the drone for distribution with high accuracy.

In addition, since the marker sheet is configured so that a person can access to the takeoff/landing port, a person can access the logistics drone and cargo located above the takeoff/landing port.
Furthermore, since the outer fence can be folded to a size whose longest part is shorter than the takeoff and landing port, by folding the outer fence, the entire drone port can be folded to the size of the takeoff and landing port or less and can be easily transported.

1 is a plan view of a portable drone port according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the portable drone port from FIG. 1 with the flexible sheet removed; FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 2; FIG. 2 is a side view of the portable drone port, (A) is a side view of the take-off and landing port, and (B) is a side view of the outer fence. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the portable drone port of the second embodiment of the present invention, showing a state in which the flexible sheet is removed as in FIG. 2; It is the top view (A) and side view (B) in the retracted position of an outer fence.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same code|symbol is attached|subjected to the part which is common in each figure, and the overlapping description is abbreviate|omitted.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the portable drone port 100 of the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the portable drone port 100 with the marker sheet 30 removed from FIG.

1 and 2, the portable drone port 100 comprises a take-off/landing port 10, an outer fence 20, and a marker sheet 30. As shown in FIG.

In FIG. 2, the takeoff/landing port 10 is located in the central portion of the portable drone port 100, and has a horizontal plane on which the logistics drone can take off and land.
The takeoff/landing port 10 has a fixed top board 12 on which the drone can take off and land. The fixed top plate 12 is preferably a single plate with a flat upper surface, but may be a plurality of divisible plates.
The fixed top plate 12 has a horizontal slope of 3 degrees or less, a planar dimension of, for example, 1.2 m×1.2 m, and a load capacity greater than or equal to the weight of the drone and cargo, for example, set to 50 kg or more.
In this case, it is possible to take off and land on the upper surface of the takeoff/landing port 10 for a logistics drone having a planar dimension of, for example, 1 m×1 m or less and a payload of 2 to 10 kg.
Hereinafter, a logistics drone is simply referred to as a “drone”.

The outer fence 20 in FIG. 2 shows the state of use (deployed position B described later).
In this figure, the outer fence 20 surrounds the outer side of the takeoff/landing port 10 at a distance from the outer peripheral surface of the takeoff/landing port 10 . This interval is set to a distance that can prevent a person from coming into contact with the drone from the outside of the outer fence 20. - 特許庁This interval is, for example, 1 m.
Therefore, the plane dimension of the outer fence 20 in use is, for example, 3 m x 3 m or more (3.2 m x 3.2 m in this example). Can be arranged in combination.
The upper end height of the outer fence 20 is set to be the same as the upper surface of the takeoff/landing port 10 in order to avoid interference with the drone during flight. The height of the upper end of the outer fence 20 is set to a height that a person can easily climb over when accessing the takeoff/landing port 10. - 特許庁This height is, for example, 30-50 cm.

In FIG. 1, the marker sheet 30 is a sheet-like member that can be stretched horizontally with its outer edge fixed to the outer fence 20 . Preferably, the marker sheet 30 has little elasticity, is foldable, and is lightweight. The marker sheet 30 is made of cloth such as canvas or nylon, for example.

The marker sheet 30 has a plurality of AR markers 38 recognizable by the drone on its upper surface.
The AR marker 38 is a marker for designating a position for displaying additional information in the image recognition type AR system, and is, for example, a simple and clear black and white figure.
In this example, a plurality of AR markers 38 are arranged by combining large and small AR markers 38 in order to achieve highly accurate landing.
With this configuration, the image recognition device built into the drone can recognize the small AR marker 38 as it approaches from a distance, and land accurately at the center position of the takeoff/landing port 10 .

In FIG. 1A, the marker sheet 30 has a rectangular center sheet 32 positioned at the takeoff/landing port 10 and a rectangular ring-shaped outer sheet 34 positioned between the takeoff/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20 .
AR markers 38 of different sizes are displayed on the upper surfaces of the central sheet 32 and the outer sheet 34, respectively.

In FIG. 1A, the central seat 32 is horizontally positioned in close contact with the upper surface of the fixed top plate 12, and the fixed top plate 12 supports a drone and cargo taking off and landing thereon.
The rectangular ring-shaped outer sheet 34 is horizontally positioned in close contact with the lower surface (floor surface) of the intermediate portion between the take-off/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20 so that a person can enter thereon. .
With this configuration, a person can climb over the outer fence 20 and stand on the outer seat 34 to access the logistics drone on the take-off/landing port from the position of the outer seat 34.例文帳に追加

In FIG. 1(B), the marker sheet 30 is an integrated sheet that extends horizontally from the top surface of the takeoff/landing port 10 to the outer fence 20 with the outer edge fixed. The integral marker sheet 30 is horizontally extended from the upper surface of the takeoff/landing port 10 to the outer fence 20 with the outer edge fixed.
The center portion of the marker sheet 30 (the portion corresponding to the center sheet 32 in FIG. 1A) is horizontally positioned in close contact with the upper surface of the fixed top plate 12, and the drone and cargo that take off and land on it are placed on the fixed top plate. 12 to support.

The outer portion of the marker sheet 30 (the portion corresponding to the outer sheet 34 in FIG. 1A) is horizontally deployed between the takeoff/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20, but the intermediate portion is not supported. As such, the outer portions of the marker sheet 30 are unable to support the drone and cargo.
However, this example has a slit 35 on the outside of the takeoff/landing port 10 . The slit 35 is configured to be openable and closable with a hook-and-loop fastener (for example, Velcro (registered trademark)), a chuck, or the like.
With this configuration, a person can access the drone at the take-off/landing port 10 by opening the slit 35, opening a part of the integrated sheet, climbing over the outer fence 20, and standing on the floor surface located under the integrated sheet. becomes.

3 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 2. FIG.
In FIG. 3 , the takeoff/landing port 10 has a rectangular frame 14 that supports a fixed top plate 12 .
The rectangular frame 14 is a hollow rectangular integral member in this example, but may be constructed of a combination of lightweight pipes or thin plates.

2 and 3, the outer fence 20 has four sets of four corner members 22 and a pair of side frames 24 fixed to the four corner members 22 respectively.
The side frame 24 consists of a plurality (three in this example) of side segments 24a connected in series.
The plurality of side segments 24a have two holding positions, a retracted position A folded on top of each other and an unfolded position B linearly connected.
At the stowed position A, the pair of side frames 24 are positioned perpendicular to each other and stowed in close contact with the four corners of the takeoff/landing port 10 .

In this example, a plurality of side segments 24a are connected by hinges 25 at their end surfaces. The hinge 25 preferably has the function of holding (locking) the retracted position A and the deployed position B. As shown in FIG.
Further, one of the side segments 24a of the pair of side frames 24 is fixed to the four corner members 22 perpendicular to each other.
With this configuration, the outer fence 20 can be changed from the retracted position A shown in FIG. Also, in the retracted position A, the outer fence 20 can be folded so that the longest part thereof is shorter than the takeoff/landing port 10 .

Although FIG. 3 shows the outer fence 20 located on the upper right in the figure, the other parts are the same.
Moreover, the four sets of outer fences 20 shown in FIG. 3 are connected to each other at their ends by connectors to form the outer fences 20 shown in FIG. 2 which are square in plan view as a whole.

2 and 3, the portable drone port 100 also has four pairs of diagonal frames 28. In FIGS.
The four sets of diagonal frames 28 are fixed to the four corners of the takeoff/landing port 10 (rectangular frame 14), respectively, and are constructed so as to be able to be pulled out in the diagonal direction of the takeoff/landing port 10 from a housed position inside the takeoff/landing port 10.
Further, the outer ends of the diagonal frame 28 are fixed to the four corner members 22 so as to be rotatable about the vertical axis.
The diagonal frame 28 preferably has a function of holding (locking) its position between its stowed position and its drawn-out deployed position.
With this configuration, the takeoff/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20 can be integrated, and the position of the outer fence 20 relative to the takeoff/landing port 10 can be accurately positioned when the outer fence 20 is deployed.

4 is a side view of the portable drone port 100, (A) is a side view of the takeoff/landing port 10, and (B) is a side view of the outer fence 20. FIG.

4A, the take-off/landing port 10 has a port support leg 40A capable of adjusting the height of its upper surface, a spirit level 42 capable of detecting the horizontality of its upper surface, and casters 44. As shown in FIG.

The port support leg 40A has a height adjustment range to enable the top surface of the take-off/landing port 10 to remain horizontal on uneven terrain. For example, it has a height adjustment range for adjusting the slope of the horizontal plane of the fixed top plate 12 within 3 degrees.

The level gauges 42 are installed at the centers of the four sides of the rectangular frame 14, respectively, and can detect the levelness of the upper surface of the outer fence 20 both in the folded state (FIG. 3A) and the unfolded state (FIG. 3B). It's like
The casters 44 are used to horizontally move the take-off/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20 in the folded state (A in FIG. 3).

In FIG. 4B, the outer fence 20 has a fence support leg 40B whose upper surface height is adjustable, a detection sensor 46 that detects an object going over it, and an alarm device 48 that notifies an abnormality. .
The fence support leg 40B has a height adjustment range for aligning the upper end of the outer fence 20 with the fixed top plate 12 on uneven terrain.

The detection sensors 46 are, in this example, four photoelectric sensors fixed to the upper portions of the four corner members 22, and horizontally emit and receive laser light 47, respectively. Laser light 47 extends horizontally along and above outer fence 20 .
With this configuration, it is possible to detect a foreign object (person or animal) entering beyond the outer fence 20 .

The alarm device 48 is a patrol lamp with a buzzer fixed above the detection sensor 46 in this example, and notifies an abnormality with light and sound according to the detection signal of the detection sensor 46 .

The portable drone port 100 of the first embodiment described above is an integrated type in which the takeoff/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20 are connected by a diagonal frame 28 .

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the portable drone port 100 according to the second embodiment of the present invention, showing a state in which the marker sheet 30 is removed as in FIG.
In this example, the take-off/landing port 10 and the marker sheet 30 are the same as in the first embodiment.
The outer fence 20 is located outside the take-off and landing port 10 in this example.
That is, the portable drone port 100 of the second embodiment is a separate type in which the takeoff/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20 are separated.

6A and 6B are a plan view (A) and a side view (B) of the outer fence 20 in the retracted position.
In this example, the outer fence 20 has four sets of four corner members 22 and a pair of side frames 24 respectively fixed to the four corner members 22 .
The side frame 24 consists of a plurality of side segments 24a connected in series.
The plurality of side segments 24a have retention positions that are folded over one another (FIG. 6) and a linearly connected deployed position (FIG. 5).
The above configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment.

In FIG. 6A, the outer fence 20 has a pair of side frames 24 positioned parallel to each other at the storage position A, so that four sets of outer fences 20 can be stacked and transported.
In FIG. 6B, the outer fence 20 has fence support legs 40B whose upper surface height can be adjusted.
Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

In addition, in FIG. 5, a right angle holding member may be added in order to firmly hold the right angles of the four corners of the outer fence 20 .
In order to accurately position the outer fence 20 relative to the takeoff/landing port 10 when the outer fence 20 is deployed, a connecting member may be added to connect the takeoff/landing port 10 and the outer fence 20 .

According to the above-described embodiment of the present invention, the take-off/landing port 10 can hold a horizontal plane on which the logistics drone can take off and land in an uneven place, so that the logistics drone can land with high precision when in use.
Further, since the outer fence 20 surrounds the outside of the take-off/landing port 10 with a space therebetween and the height is adjustable, the outer edge of the marker sheet 30 is fixed to the outer fence 20 and can be extended horizontally.
Furthermore, since the marker sheet 30 has a plurality of AR markers 38 recognizable by the drone for distribution on its upper surface, the drone for distribution can land with high accuracy.

In addition, since the marker sheet 30 is configured so that a person can access up to the takeoff/landing port 10, a person can access the logistics drone and cargo located above the takeoff/landing port 10. - 特許庁
Furthermore, since the outer fence 20 can be folded to a size shorter than the takeoff/landing port 10 at the longest part, by folding the outer fence 20, the entire drone port can be folded to a size smaller than the takeoff/landing port 10 and easily transported. can be done.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

10 take-off and landing port, 12 fixed top plate, 14 rectangular frame,
20 outer fence, 22 four corner members, 24 side frame, 24a side segment,
28 diagonal frame, 30 marker sheet, 32 central sheet,
34 outer sheet, 35 slit, 38 AR marker,
40A port support leg, 40B fence support leg, 42 spirit level, 44 caster,
46 detection sensor, 48 alarm device, 100 portable drone port

Claims (7)

An take-off and landing port that can hold a horizontal surface where a logistics drone can take off and land in an uneven place,
a height-adjustable outer fence surrounding the outside of said spaced apart landing port;
a marker sheet that can be extended horizontally by fixing the outer edge to the outer fence,
The outer fence is foldable to a length shorter than the takeoff and landing port,
A transportable drone port, wherein the marker sheet has a plurality of AR markers on its upper surface that can be recognized by the drone for distribution, and is configured to allow a person to access the take-off and landing port. The take-off/landing port has a port support leg capable of adjusting the height of its upper surface, and a spirit level capable of detecting the levelness of the upper surface,
2. The portable drone according to claim 1, wherein the outer fence has fence support legs whose upper surface height is adjustable, a detection sensor that detects an object exceeding the fence, and an alarm device that notifies an abnormality. port. 2. The portable drone port according to claim 1, wherein said takeoff/landing port has a fixed top plate on which said logistics drone can take off and land, and a rectangular frame supporting said fixed top plate. The outer fence has four sets of four corner members and a pair of side frames respectively fixed to the four corner members,
the side frame is composed of a plurality of side segments connected in sequence;
2. The transportable drone port of claim 1, wherein the plurality of side segments have retaining positions of a stowed position folded over one another and a linearly coupled deployed position. four sets of diagonal frames that are fixed to the four corners of the takeoff/landing port and can be pulled out in a diagonal direction of the takeoff/landing port from a storage position stored inside the takeoff/landing port;
5. The portable drone port of claim 4, wherein outer ends of said diagonal frame are rotatably fixed to said four corner members. The marker sheet has a rectangular center sheet positioned above the takeoff/landing port, and a rectangular ring-shaped outer sheet positioned on the lower surface of an intermediate portion between the takeoff/landing port and the outer fence,
2. The transportable drone port of claim 1, wherein access to the logistics drone on the take-off/landing port is achieved by climbing over the outer fence and standing on the outer sheet. The marker sheet is an integral sheet that extends horizontally from the top surface of the takeoff/landing port to the outer fence with an outer edge fixed, and has a slit outside the takeoff/landing port,
The logistics drone on the take-off and landing port is accessed by opening the slit to open a part of the integrated sheet and standing on the floor below the integrated sheet by climbing over the outer fence. The portable drone port of claim 1.

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