Base stations for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)
AssigneeSkydio, Inc.
InventorsPatrick Allen Lowe, Yevgeniy Kozlenko, Christopher C. Berthelet, Christopher Brian Grasberger, Roderick Donald Bacon
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of using a base station to charge an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is disclosed. The method includes: docking the UAV with a cradle of the base station; retracting the cradle into an enclosure of the base station via a slide mechanism; and electrically connecting a power source of the UAV to a charging hub connected to the slide mechanism to thereby charge the power source.
Claims20
A method of using a base station to charge an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method comprising:
- docking the UAV with the base station;
- retracting the UAV into an enclosure and towards a charging hub of the base station;
- inserting an alignment member carried by an alignment bracket on the charging hub into a receptacle on a power source of the UAV;
- inserting a charging member on the charging hub into an opening on the power source;
- increasing a preloaded force applied to the alignment bracket by a biasing member positioned within a base of the charging hub, wherein the biasing member is vertically offset from the alignment member;
- and
- inhibiting rotation of the alignment bracket in relation to the base via a cap overlying the charging member.
A method of using a base station to charge an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method comprising:
- docking the UAV with the base station;
- retracting the UAV into an enclosure and towards a charging hub of the base station so as to insert an alignment bracket on the charging hub into a receptacle defined by a power source of the UAV and thereby align a first electrical connector on the charging hub with a second electrical connector on the power source;
- and
- engaging the first electrical connector and the second electrical connector to thereby establish an electrical connection between the base station and the UAV and charge the power source.
A method of using a base station to charge an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method comprising:
- docking the UAV with a cradle of the base station, wherein the cradle is repositionable between an extended position, in which the cradle is positioned externally of an enclosure of the base station, and a retracted position, in which the cradle is positioned within the enclosure;
- retracting the cradle into the enclosure via a slide mechanism;
- and
- electrically connecting a power source of the UAV to a charging hub connected to the slide mechanism to thereby charge the power source.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.