UAV Propulsion System Power Management using AI

Method for controlling an aircraft propulsion system that improves safety by preventing unintended thrust during landing. The method detects operating parameters and blade positions to determine the current operating state, and automatically adjusts thrust to prevent overthrust conditions. The system can be applied to electric propulsion units, particularly in vertical takeoff and landing aircraft.

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Aircraft flight control system that dynamically compensates for propeller speed changes in tilt-rotor aircraft. The system employs a unique control strategy that incorporates real-time propeller speed monitoring, propeller blade pitch control, and gear ratio optimization. By predicting and adapting to the propeller speed changes, the system enables precise control of the aircraft's dynamics, particularly during low-speed operations where traditional control methods may fail. This enables the aircraft to maintain stable flight characteristics and respond effectively to external disturbances, even with varying propeller RPM.

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A control system for a co-axial rotorcraft with a pusher-propeller that simultaneously controls airspeed and climb rate by inverting the aircraft's dynamic equations. The system uses a multiple-input, multiple-output algorithm to generate commanded thrusts for both the main rotor and pusher-propeller based on reference velocity and flight path angle, enabling tight response control for high-speed maneuvers like terrain-following flight.

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Estimating available power for an aircraft battery to accurately predict landing capabilities and prevent failed landings. The system estimates the remaining power and power density of the battery during landing based on inputs like flight profile, battery data, and aircraft configuration. It compares the estimated peak landing power to the required peak demand. If the estimated power cannot meet the demand, it provides an error notification. This allows mission planning and in-flight adjustments to ensure the aircraft can land safely.

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A hybrid electric propulsion (HEP) system for aircraft that optimizes power distribution between electric motors and gas turbines using a soft actor-critic (SAC) reinforcement learning algorithm and control barrier functions (CBFs). The system determines optimal power splitting profiles based on a predefined fuel consumption objective and battery state of charge, while ensuring safety constraints are met through CBF filtering. The SAC algorithm iteratively generates and evaluates power splitting profiles, with the CBF filter enforcing system constraints and ensuring safe operation.

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A hybrid-electric propulsion system for aircraft that dynamically balances engine performance margins by transferring power between electric machines coupled to each engine. The system continuously monitors engine operating parameters, determines performance margins, and adjusts power distribution between the electric machines to maintain optimal engine balance and prevent performance degradation.

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Controlling the attitude of a multicopter by dynamically adjusting the thrust output from its internal combustion engine versus its electric motors. The control system modifies the engine's thrust ratio to match the motor's performance characteristics, enabling precise attitude control while maintaining efficient energy consumption. This approach enables the multicopter to achieve high responsiveness in attitude control while maintaining optimal efficiency.

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A voltage-controlled aircraft electric propulsion system that dynamically adjusts power bus voltage in response to changing altitude. The system maintains a constant current output from the power bus while reducing voltage as altitude increases, using a controller to adjust generator and stored energy power sources in real-time. The voltage reduction is coordinated with the electric propulsor's power demand, ensuring consistent performance across varying altitudes.

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Controlling multirotor aircraft like drones to mitigate issues caused by air density variations. The method involves using measured thrust instead of commanded rotor speeds for control. The thrust is measured inside the drive units. A cascaded control loop is used, with an outer thrust control loop and inner speed control loop. The thrust controller adjusts the rotor speed command to match the measured thrust. This eliminates the air density dependency of thrust vs speed.

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A vehicle electric power system for aircraft propulsion featuring multiple DC channels and redundant electric machines. The system includes at least two electric machines, each with magnetically decoupled multi-phase windings, that supply power to a common DC bus through separate channels. The system also employs passive and active rectification to provide reliable power during normal operation and fault conditions.

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A parallel hybrid propulsion system for aircraft that harvests waste heat from the engine's exhaust to generate electrical power, eliminating the need for engine shaft energy to recharge the battery. The system includes a turbine driven by the engine's exhaust, a generator that extracts rotational power from the turbine, and an electric energy storage unit that stores the generated electrical power. The stored energy is then used to drive an electric motor in the hybrid propulsion system, enabling reduced battery size and weight while maintaining aircraft range and safety.

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A hybrid powerplant for aircraft that combines a heat engine and an electric machine to drive a propulsor, with the electric machine controlling propeller speed through variable power output. The system can also operate multiple propulsors in coordinated motion, with the control system adjusting power to each based on differential speed and phase parameters.

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A redundant system for electric distributed propulsion in aircraft, particularly helicopters, that provides dual power and control channels for multiple motors. The system features two independent power buses, dual controllers, and redundant communication channels between pilot input sensors and the controllers. In the event of a component failure, the system automatically switches to the backup channel to maintain safe operation. The system also enables autorotation in the event of engine failure by using stored energy from an electric storage device to power the motors.

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System and method for controlling engine speed and pitch of propulsion members in aerial vehicles, enabling efficient operation of mechanical power sources while maintaining optimal performance of electric power generation and propulsion components. The system includes a powertrain control system that receives operational, status, and component parameter signals to generate speed and pitch control signals, allowing the mechanical power source to operate within a desired range while the propulsion members maintain optimal pitch angles for thrust generation.

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Aircraft power consumption control method to enable longer flight times by dynamically adjusting power usage based on flight conditions. The method involves limiting power consumption when the propeller is not spinning, like during takeoff and landing, to reduce chip heating. It also lowers camera and transmission power when the propeller is spinning. This helps manage power demand as intelligent functions need more power during flight. By dynamically adjusting power usage based on flight conditions, the method extends flight time by reducing heating and power consumption during certain phases.

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A control methodology for managing interactions between engine thrust control and electrical machine control in multi-engine, multi-spool aircraft engines. The approach optimizes engine cycle performance while meeting electrical power demands by determining power splits between multiple electrical machines attached to independent engine shafts. The control methodology is agnostic to electric architectures and provides direct feedback for thrust control integration and local supervisor level optimization.

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Electric aircraft propulsion system with dual-mode converters for efficient power management. The system features a DC-AC converter for each motor, which can operate in a first mode to drive both motors simultaneously or a second mode where one converter drives a propulsor while the other converter provides braking torque to the other propulsor. This dual-mode operation enables efficient power management during both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and cruise phases, particularly when battery voltage is reduced.

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A hybrid propulsion system for electrically driven distributed propulsion systems that enables the use of high speed, high power density AC electrical motors and generators powered and operated with an AC power distribution system. The system includes a starter generator, a first inverter, a second inverter, and a controller that configures the system to start generators and motors in sequence using a fractionally sized configurable converter. The converter injects reactive power into the AC power to the AC electric motors so that they operate at their full power and torque capability.

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Power distribution for electric aircraft with fault tolerance and weight savings. The aircraft has multiple battery packs, each powering a different subset of electric propulsion units (EPUs). The EPUs include lift rotors and tiltable proprotors. If a battery fails, only the lost EPU subset is affected since the remaining EPUs continue operating. This reduces destabilization compared to interconnected batteries. The EPU subset selection balances roll, pitch, yaw moments. Isolated buses between batteries avoid diodes.

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An integral hybrid electric aircraft that combines a fuel-powered generator with batteries to enable vertical takeoff and landing while maintaining fixed-wing flight efficiency. The aircraft has batteries, fuel tanks, a generator, and propellers. The generator uses fuel from the tanks to generate electricity during fixed-wing flight. The batteries supplement power for vertical takeoff/landing. The propellers can be powered by either the generator or batteries. This allows vertical takeoff/landing using batteries and then switching to generator power for efficient fixed-wing flight.

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