Propulsion system for a buoyant aerial vehicle
AssigneeX Development LLC
InventorSiegfried H. Zerweckh
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A buoyant aerial vehicle includes: a balloon configured to store a gas; a payload coupled to the balloon; and a propulsion unit coupled to the payload by a tether. The propulsion unit includes: a fuselage having a substantially longitudinal shape, a first end, and a second end; a primary airfoil coupled to the fuselage; a secondary airfoil coupled to the fuselage at one of the first end or the second end; and a thrust generating device disposed at one of the first end or the second end and configured to move the propulsion unit relative to the payload along a propulsion flight path. The movement of the propulsion unit imparts movement of the buoyant aerial vehicle along a vehicle flight path.
Claims20
A buoyant aerial vehicle comprising:
- a balloon configured to store a gas;
- a payload coupled to the balloon;
- and
- a propulsion unit coupled to the payload by a tether, the propulsion unit including:
- a fuselage having a substantially longitudinal shape, a first end, and a second end;
- a primary airfoil coupled to the fuselage;
- a secondary airfoil coupled to the fuselage at one of the first end or the second end;
- and
- a thrust generating device disposed at one of the first end or the second end and configured to move the propulsion unit relative to the payload along a propulsion flight path, such that movement of the propulsion unit imparts movement of the buoyant aerial vehicle along a vehicle flight path.
A method for controlling an aerial vehicle, the method comprising:
- transmitting a movement command to a buoyant aerial vehicle having a propulsion unit attached thereto by a tether;
- determining, based on the movement command, a propulsion flight path for the propulsion unit to achieve a vehicle flight path corresponding to the movement command;
- and
- controlling at least one of a primary airfoil, a secondary airfoil, or a thrust generating device of the propulsion unit to move the propulsion unit along the propulsion flight path.
A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause a computing device to:
- transmit a movement command to a buoyant aerial vehicle having a propulsion unit attached thereto by a tether;
- determine, based on the movement command, a propulsion flight path for the propulsion unit to achieve a vehicle flight path corresponding to the movement command;
- and
- control at least one of a primary airfoil, a secondary airfoil, or a thrust generating device of the propulsion unit to move the propulsion unit along the propulsion flight path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.