Aerial vehicles, cooperative flying systems, and methods of operating the same

A method for controlling an aerial vehicle comprising a wing body comprising a wing first section and a wing second section, opposite the wing first section along a first vehicle axis, having an airfoil shape, a pair of coaxial rotors coupled to the wing body, and a drive assembly positioned between the wing first section and the wing second section and configured to rotate the pair of coaxial rotors, the method comprising:

• selectively controlling an angle of attack of the wing body by selectively rotating the wing first section and the wing second section about the first vehicle axis relative to the drive assembly;
• selectively controlling at least one of thrust and torque produced by the pair of coaxial rotors to induce at least one of a pitch motion, a yaw motion, and a rolling motion of the aerial vehicle;
• and
• in response to the pitch motion, transitioning the aerial vehicle between a horizontal flight state in which the wing body is oriented horizontally and a collective thrust from the pair of coaxial rotors is directed forward, and a vertical flight state in which the wing body is oriented vertically and the collective thrust from the pair of coaxial rotors is directed upward.

A cooperative flying system comprising:

• a plurality of aerial vehicles configured to be coupled together in flight, wherein each one of the plurality of aerial vehicles comprises:
• a wing body comprising a first wingtip and a second wingtip, located opposite to the first wingtip along a first vehicle axis;
• a first coaxial rotor configured to rotate in a first rotational direction about a second vehicle axis, perpendicular to the first vehicle axis;
• a second coaxial rotor configured to rotate in a second rotational direction, opposite to the first rotational direction, about the second vehicle axis;
• and
• a drive assembly configured to rotate the first coaxial rotor and the second coaxial rotor;
• an alignment guide configured to align the first wingtip of each one of the plurality of aerial vehicles with the second wingtip of a directly adjacent one of the plurality of aerial vehicles;
• a coupler configured to couple the first wingtip of each one of the plurality of aerial vehicles to the second wingtip of the directly adjacent one of the plurality of aerial vehicles;
• and
• a set of vehicle controllers configured to coordinate thrust produced by the first coaxial rotor and the second coaxial rotor of each one of the plurality of aerial vehicles to alter at least one of a pitch angle, a yaw angle, and a roll angle of the cooperative flying system and a velocity of the cooperative flying system.