Extended Duration Regenerative Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Platform

Abstract

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) cluster includes a plurality of mission UAVs and a plurality of core UAVs arranged in a cluster. One or more of the mission UAVs is configured for controlled independent flight. The plurality of core UAVs are distributed throughout the cluster according to a selected distribution pattern that distributes the core UAVs according to a predefined mission characteristic of the UAV cluster.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) cluster comprising:
 a plurality of mission UAVs arranged in a cluster, with a set of one or more mission UAVs being configured for controlled independent flight; and   a plurality of core UAVs distributed throughout the cluster according to a selected distribution pattern that distributes the core UAVs according to a predefined mission characteristic of the UAV cluster.   
     
     
         2 . The UAV cluster of  claim 1  wherein each core UAV and each mission UAV in the UAV cluster is a same size and is congruent. 
     
     
         3 . The UAV cluster of  claim 1  wherein one or both of a number and type of core UAVs to be distributed throughout the UAV cluster is selected based on the predefined mission characteristic. 
     
     
         4 . The UAV cluster of  claim 3  wherein the predefined mission characteristic comprises one or more of:
 a distance of a destination location from a launch location of the UAV cluster; 
 a type of mission the set of one or more mission UAVs are configured to perform; 
 a number of predetermined intermediate waypoints for the UAV cluster between the launch location of the UAV cluster and the destination location; and 
 a load characteristic of a load carried by the UAV cluster and delivered by the set of one or more mission UAVs. 
 
     
     
         5 . The UAV cluster of  claim 3  wherein one of the plurality of core UAVs to be distributed throughout the cluster comprises one of:
 a propulsion UAV configured to augment a propulsion provided by each individual mission UAV in the cluster; 
 a fuel storage UAV comprising a fuel reservoir storing a fuel, and configured to augment the fuel consumed by each individual mission UAV in the cluster; 
 a power UAV configured to augment electrical power consumed by each individual mission UAV in the cluster; and 
 a sensor UAV comprising a sensor. 
 
     
     
         6 . The UAV cluster of  claim 5  wherein the sensor comprises a camera configured to capture an image of a destination location. 
     
     
         7 . The UAV cluster of  claim 5  wherein the sensor comprises a radar. 
     
     
         8 . The UAV cluster of  claim 1  wherein a first core UAV is configured to control an operation of each of the other core UAVs. 
     
     
         9 . The UAV cluster of  claim 8  wherein a second core UAV is configured to control an operation of one or more of the plurality of mission UAVs, the second core UAV being different from and controlled by the first core UAV. 
     
     
         10 . An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system comprising:
 a plurality of individual UAVs arranged in a cluster, the plurality of individual UAVs comprising:
 a plurality of mission UAVs, with a set of one or more mission UAVs being configured for controlled independent flight; and 
 a plurality of core UAVs distributed throughout the cluster according to a selected distribution pattern that distributes the core UAVs within the cluster according to a predefined mission characteristic of the UAV cluster. 
   
     
     
         11 . The UAV system of  claim 10  wherein the selected distribution pattern defines a corresponding position for each core UAV within the UAV cluster. 
     
     
         12 . The UAV system of  claim 10  wherein individual UAV in the UAV cluster comprises a same size and is congruent. 
     
     
         13 . The UAV system of  claim 10  wherein one or both of a number and type of core UAVs to be distributed throughout the UAV cluster is selected based on the predefined mission characteristic. 
     
     
         14 . The UAV system of  claim 10  wherein the predefined mission characteristic comprises one or more of:
 a distance of a destination location from a launch location of the UAV cluster; 
 a type of mission the set of one or more mission UAVs are configured to perform; 
 a number of predetermined intermediate waypoints for the UAV cluster between the launch location of the UAV cluster and the destination location; and 
 a load characteristic of a load carried by the UAV cluster, and delivered by the set of one or more mission UAVs. 
 
     
     
         15 . The UAV system of  claim 10  wherein the plurality of core UAVs comprises:
 a first core UAV configured to control an operation of each of the other core UAVs in the cluster; and 
 a second core UAV, different from the first core UAV, and configured to control operations of the plurality of mission UAVs. 
 
     
     
         16 . A method of operating an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) cluster, the method comprising:
 determining a mission characteristic of a mission assigned to a UAV cluster; and   based on the mission characteristic:
 arranging a plurality of mission UAVs to form the UAV cluster, wherein one or more of the mission UAVs is configured for controlled independent flight; 
 selecting a distribution pattern for a plurality of core UAVs, wherein the distribution pattern identifies corresponding positions in the UAV cluster for each of the plurality of core UAVs; and 
 distributing the plurality of core UAVs throughout the UAV cluster according to the distribution pattern. 
   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16  further comprising selecting one or both of a number and type of core UAVs to be distributed throughout the UAV cluster based on the mission characteristic. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16  wherein each of the mission UAVs and the core UAVs that form the UAV cluster comprises a same size and is congruent, and wherein selecting the distribution pattern for the plurality of core UAVs based on the mission characteristic comprises selecting the distribution pattern based on one or more of:
 a distance of a destination location from a launch location of the UAV cluster; 
 a type of mission the set of one or more mission UAVs are configured to perform; 
 a number of intermediate waypoints between the launch location of the UAV cluster and the destination location for the UAV cluster; and 
 a characteristic of a load carried by the UAV cluster and delivered by the one or more mission UAVs. 
 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16  wherein the plurality of mission UAVs and the plurality of core UAVs are releasably coupled to each other in the UAV cluster, and wherein the method further comprises communicatively connecting each of the core UAVs to one or more of the plurality of mission UAVs. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 16  further comprising:
 designating a first core UAV as a master core UAV; 
 controlling one or more second core UAVs using the master core UAV; and 
 controlling one or more of the mission UAVs using at least one of the second core UAVs. 
 
     
     
         21 . A self-aligning docking mechanism for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the self-aligning docking mechanism comprising:
 an alignment circuit configured to generate an alignment signal representing a current alignment of the UAV with a proximate UAV responsive to detecting an indicator signal emitted by the proximate UAV;   a docking jaw configured to grip a corresponding docking jaw disposed on the proximate UAV; and   a docking control circuit configured to:
 align the docking jaw with the corresponding docking jaw on the proximate UAV based on the alignment signal; and 
 control the docking jaw to grip the corresponding docking jaw to dock the UAV to the proximate UAV. 
   
     
     
         22 . The self-aligning docking mechanism of  claim 21  further comprising an extendable arm configured to releasably attach to a corresponding extendable arm on the proximate UAV. 
     
     
         23 . The self-aligning docking mechanism of  claim 22  wherein the extendable arm comprises a magnetic component configured to releasably connect to a corresponding magnetic component disposed on the corresponding extendable arm of the proximate UAV. 
     
     
         24 . The self-aligning docking mechanism of  claim 21  further comprising a servo drive operatively connected to both the docking jaw and the docking control circuit, and wherein to align the docking jaw with the corresponding docking jaw, the docking control circuit is configured to:
 determine whether the docking jaw is aligned with the corresponding docking jaw responsive to an analysis of the alignment signal; and 
 send an alignment message to the servo drive responsive to determining that the docking jaw and the corresponding docking jaw are not aligned. 
 
     
     
         25 . The self-aligning docking mechanism of  claim 24  wherein to align the docking jaw with the corresponding docking jaw, the servo drive is configured to:
 generate one or more alignment commands responsive to receiving the alignment message from the docking control circuit; and 
 rotate the docking jaw about a longitudinal axis using the one or more alignment commands. 
 
     
     
         26 . The self-aligning docking mechanism of  claim 21  wherein the docking jaw is configured to move between an open state to undock from the corresponding docking jaw, and a closed state to dock with the corresponding docking jaw. 
     
     
         27 . The self-aligning docking mechanism of  claim 26  wherein the docking jaw comprises opposing first and second grippers constructed from a shape memory alloy, and wherein the docking control circuit is further configured to:
 apply a first voltage to each of the first and second grippers to move the docking jaw to the open state, wherein the first voltage meets or exceeds a threshold value; and 
 reduce the first voltage being applied to the first and second grippers to a second voltage to move the docking jaw to the closed state, wherein the second voltage is less than the threshold value. 
 
     
     
         28 . The self-aligning docking mechanism of  claim 27  wherein to reduce the first voltage to the second voltage, the docking control circuit is configured to cease applying the first voltage to the first and second grippers. 
     
     
         29 . A method of docking a first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a second UAV, the method implemented by the first UAV and comprising:
 during a first docking stage:
 generating an alignment signal indicating a current state of alignment between the first and second UAVs responsive to detecting an indicator signal emitted by the second UAV; and 
   during a second docking stage:
 aligning a docking jaw of the first UAV to a corresponding docking jaw of the second UAV based on the alignment signal; and 
 docking the first and second UAVs, wherein the docking comprises controlling the docking jaw of the first UAV to grip the corresponding docking jaw of the second UAV. 
   
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 29  further comprising, during the first docking stage, releasably coupling an arm extending from the first UAV to a corresponding arm extending from the second UAV. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 30  wherein releasably coupling an arm extending from the first UAV to a corresponding arm extending from the second UAV comprises magnetically coupling the arm extending from the first UAV to the corresponding arm extending from the second UAV. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 29  wherein aligning a docking jaw of the first UAV to a corresponding docking jaw of the second UAV based on the alignment signal comprises rotating the docking jaw of the first UAV about a longitudinal axis responsive to determining that the first and second UAVs are misaligned. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 29  wherein the docking jaw of the first UAV comprises opposing first and second grippers constructed from a shape memory alloy, and wherein the method further comprises:
 applying a first voltage to each of the first and second grippers to open the docking jaw, wherein the first voltage meets or exceeds a threshold value; and 
 reducing the first voltage being applied to the first and second grippers to a second voltage to close the docking jaw, wherein the second voltage is less than the threshold value. 
 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 33  wherein reducing the first voltage to the second voltage comprises ceasing to apply the first voltage to the first and second grippers. 
     
     
         35 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing software instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry on a first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), causes the processing circuitry to:
 during a first docking stage:
 generate an alignment signal indicating a current state of alignment between a docking jaw of the first UAV and a corresponding docking jaw of a second UAV responsive to detecting an indicator signal emitted by the second UAV; and 
   during a second docking stage:
 align the docking jaw of the first UAV with the corresponding docking jaw of the second UAV based on the alignment signal; and 
 dock the first and second UAVs by controlling the docking jaw of the first UAV to grip the corresponding docking jaw of the second UAV.