Aircraft, controller and control method of aircraft, and recording medium storing computer software program for controlling aircraft

A control method for controlling an aircraft configured to take-off and land vertically, the aircraft comprising a main-body in which a gravity center for first to fourth quadrants is defined in a planar pattern, a frame-structure for supporting the main-body, four sets of main and auxiliary rotors allocated in the first to fourth quadrants, and a rotation direction of the set of the main and auxiliary rotors in the second and fourth quadrants is opposite to a rotation direction of the main rotor in the first quadrant, the control method comprising:

• rotating the main rotors arranged with first rotation shafts allocated to the frame-structure, in each of the first to fourth quadrants for lifting the main-body in a same direction, independently in each of the first to fourth quadrants;
• rotating the auxiliary rotors arranged with second rotation shafts allocated to the frame-structure in each of the first to fourth quadrants and are rotated in a same rotation direction as the main rotor, respectively, by power-drive systems independent from power-drive systems of the main rotors;
• and
• controlling rotations of the main and auxiliary rotors with first and second modes, such that in the first mode, by delivering a same control signal for rotating the set of the main and auxiliary rotors in each of the first to fourth quadrants at a same rotation frequency, and in response to one of the main and auxiliary rotors in any one of the first to fourth quadrants becoming abnormal and a value of lift in an abnormal quadrant becoming insufficient, delivering the same control signal for increasing a rotation of a normal rotor other than the abnormal rotor for compensating a decrease of the lift by the abnormal rotor, and in the second mode, delivering a control signal only to the normal rotor for increasing the rotation of the normal rotor,
• wherein values of lifts in each of the two quadrants having the rotation directions counter to each other are equalized for balancing an orientation of the aircraft about a yaw axis, and values of lifts in each of the first to fourth quadrants are equalized for balancing the orientation about a roll axis and a pitch axis.

A controller for controlling an aircraft configured to take-off and land vertically, the aircraft comprising a main-body in which a gravity center for first to fourth quadrants is defined in a planar pattern, a frame-structure for supporting the main-body, four sets of main rotors and auxiliary rotors allocated in the first to fourth quadrants to the frame-structure, the controller comprising:

• a flight controller configured to rotate the main and auxiliary rotors, the auxiliary rotor being rotated by a power-drive system independent from a power-drive system of the main rotor, to generate lifts in a same direction independently in the first to fourth quadrants;
• and
• a line-control unit configured to rotate the sets of the main and auxiliary rotors in each of the first to fourth quadrants, operating with first and second modes, such that in the first mode, by delivering a same control signal for rotating the set of the main and auxiliary rotors at a same rotation frequency, and in response to one of the main and auxiliary rotors in any one of the first to fourth quadrants becoming abnormal and a value of lift in an abnormal quadrant becoming insufficient, the line-control unit delivers the same control signal for increasing a rotation of a normal rotor other than the abnormal rotor for compensating a decrease of the lift by the abnormal rotor, and that in the second mode, the line-control unit delivers a control signal only to the normal rotor for increasing the rotation of the normal rotor,
• wherein a rotation direction of the set of the main and auxiliary rotors in the second and fourth quadrants is opposite to a rotation direction of the main rotor in the first quadrant, and a rotation direction of the set of the main and auxiliary rotors in the second and fourth quadrants is a same as the rotation direction of the main rotor in the first quadrant, and
• wherein, values of the lifts in each of the two quadrants having the rotation directions counter to each other are equalized for balancing an orientation of the aircraft about a yaw axis, and values of the lifts in the first to fourth quadrants are equalized for balancing the orientation about a roll axis and a pitch axis.

A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a control program of an aircraft configured to take-off and land vertically, the aircraft comprising a main-body in which a gravity center for first to fourth quadrants is defined in a planar pattern, a frame-structure for supporting the main-body, four sets of main and auxiliary rotors allocated in the first to fourth quadrants, and a rotation direction of the set of the main and auxiliary rotors in the second and fourth quadrants is opposite to a rotation direction of the main rotor in the first quadrant, the control program causing a computer to execute processing for controlling the aircraft by a series of instructions for performing operations comprising:

• rotating the main rotors arranged with first rotation shafts allocated to the frame-structure, in each of the first to fourth quadrants for lifting the main-body in a same direction, independently in each of the first to fourth quadrants;
• rotating the auxiliary rotors arranged with second rotation shafts allocated to the frame-structure in each of the first to fourth quadrants and are rotated in a same rotation direction as the main rotor, respectively, by power-drive systems independent from power-drive systems of the main rotors;
• and
• controlling rotations of the main and auxiliary rotors with first and second modes, such that in the first mode, by delivering a same control signal for rotating the set of the main and auxiliary rotors in the first to fourth quadrants at a same rotation frequency, and in response one of the main and auxiliary rotors in any one of the first to fourth quadrants becomng abnormal and a value of lift in an abnormal quadrant becoming insufficient, delivering the same control signal for increasing a rotation of a normal rotor other than the abnormal rotor for compensating a decrease of the lift by the abnormal rotor, and that in the second mode, delivering a control signal only to the normal rotor for increasing the rotation of the normal rotor,
• wherein by the control program, the computer executes processing to perform operations further comprising equalizing values of lifts in each of the two quadrants having the rotation directions counter to each other so that an orientation of the aircraft about a yaw axis are balanced, and for equalizing values of lifts in each of the first to fourth quadrants so that the orientation about a roll axis and a pitch axis are balanced.

An aircraft having a plurality of dense rotors, each of the dense rotors comprising a main rotor rotating around a first rotation shaft and an auxiliary rotor rotating around a second rotation shaft, the second rotation shaft being parallelly away from the first rotation shaft in a cross sectional plane vertical to a rotation plane of the main rotor, the second rotation shaft being rotated by a power-drive system independent from the first rotation shaft, the auxiliary rotor rotating in a same direction as the main rotor, the rotation planes of the main and auxiliary rotors being away from each other in the cross sectional plane, and the rotation planes of the main and auxiliary rotors partially overlapping with each other, the aircraft comprising:

• an airframe in which a gravity center for first to fourth quadrants is defined in a planar pattern;
• a main wing configured to generate lifts by advancement of the airframe, the main wing being fixed to a center of the airframe;
• the dense rotors arranged in the first to fourth quadrants to generate lifts in a same direction independently in the first to fourth quadrants;
• and
• a controller configured to control rotations of the dense rotors with first and second modes, such that in the first mode, the controller delivers a same control signal for rotating the dense rotors in each of the first to fourth quadrants at a same rotation frequency, and in response to one of the main and auxiliary rotors in any one of the first to fourth quadrants becoming abnormal and a value of lift in an abnormal quadrant becoming insufficient, the controller delivers the same control signal for increasing a rotation of a normal rotor other than the abnormal rotor for compensating a decrease of the lift by the abnormal rotor, and in the second mode, the controller delivers a control signal only to the normal rotor for increasing the rotation of the normal rotor,
• wherein the dense rotors in another quadrant adjacent to the first quadrant are rotated in a direction counter to a rotation direction of the dense rotor in the first quadrant, and
• wherein, values of the lifts in each of the two quadrants having the rotation directions counter to each other are equalized for balancing an orientation of the aircraft about a yaw axis, and the values of the lifts in the first to fourth quadrants are equalized for balancing the orientation about a roll axis and a pitch axis.