CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2020-0141271, filed on Oct. 28, 2020, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to a propeller folding apparatus of an air mobility vehicle and, more particularly, to a propeller folding apparatus of an air mobility vehicle, the propeller folding apparatus being able to deploy or fold a propeller depending on the flying state of the air mobility vehicle.

BACKGROUND

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

Recently, the development of air mobility vehicles usable for a variety of purposes, such as freight transportation or medical transportation, has been underway. Flying mobility vehicles are entering the stage of practical use, due to increased energy efficiencies and reliabilities thereof.

Such air mobility vehicles may fly by operating propellers, which also enable takeoff and landing. The takeoff and landing requires a greater amount of thrust and a greater number of revolutions of the propellers than when during flight. In contrast, when an air mobility vehicle is in a flying state, the operation of some of the propellers used in vertical takeoff is no longer required. We have discovered that when the air mobility vehicle is in a high-speed flying state, the propellers generate air drag, thereby causing energy loss during the flight.

The foregoing is intended merely to aid in the understanding of the background of the present disclosure, and is not intended to mean that the present disclosure falls within the purview of the related art that is already known to those skilled in the art.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure proposes a propeller folding apparatus of an air mobility vehicle. In particular, the propeller folding apparatus is able to deploy or fold propeller blades depending on the flying state of the air mobility vehicle, so that the propeller blades may be efficiently used depending on the flying state of the air mobility vehicle, thereby increasing the energy efficiency and the ferry range of the air mobility vehicle.

In one aspect of the present disclosure, a propeller folding apparatus of an air mobility vehicle includes: a lower plate connected to a drive shaft of a drive motor generating rotational force, the lower plate including a pivot unit on which a propeller blade is mounted, the pivot unit being configured to be pivotable such that the propeller blade is deployed or folded depending on positions of the pivot unit; an upper plate disposed on the lower plate to be movable in upward and downward directions such that the upper plate allows the pivot unit to pivot or causes the positions of the pivot unit to be fixed; and a guide coupled to the upper plate and connected to the pivot unit so as to change the pivot position of the pivot unit in response to the upper plate moving in the upward and downward directions so that the propeller blade is deployed or folded.

The propeller folding apparatus may further include a sub-motor including a sub-shaft coupled to the upper plate, wherein the sub-motor moves the sub-shaft in the upward and downward directions so as to adjust a position of the upper plate in the upward and downward directions.

A drive shaft may be coupled to a bottom portion of the lower plate, a connecting shaft extending downward from the upper plate may be connected to a top portion of the lower plate, and the drive shaft and the connecting shaft may be coaxially arranged to each other.

The drive shaft may have a cylindrical shape having a hollow interior. The connecting shaft may be inserted into the hollow interior of the drive shaft through the lower plate.

The lower plate may have a polygonal through-hole through which the connecting shaft extends. The connecting shaft may include: a top end portion having a polygonal shape to match to the polygonal through-hole, and a bottom end portion famed to match to the hollow interior of the drive shaft.

The sub-motor may be provided below the drive motor, and the sub-shaft may be inserted into the drive shaft so as to be connected to the connecting shaft.

The sub-shaft and the connecting shaft may be connected to each other via a bearing, such that the sub-shaft is non-rotatable and the connecting shaft is rotatable.

The pivot unit may include a mounting end portion on which the propeller blade is mounted and a pivot end portion pivotably disposed on the lower plate, with a guide pin protruding from a peripheral portion of the pivot end portion. The guide may be configured to surround the pivot end portion, and has a guide hole into which the guide pin is inserted, the guide hole extending along a path in upward and downward directions.

The guide hole may include a linear section extending in the upward and downward directions and an inclined section extending downward from the linear section.

The linear section may extend to a length to which the pivot unit is allowed to pivot when the upper plate moves upwards. An angle of inclination and a length of the inclined section may be determined such that the pivot unit pivots in response to an upward movement of the upper plate so that the propeller blade is folded.

The lower plate may include a lower stopper provided around the pivot unit, such that, when the propeller blade is moved to a deployed position or a folded position in response to pivoting of the pivot unit, the lower stopper restricts the pivoting of the pivot unit.

The lower stopper may extend to surround a portion of the pivot unit, and may be configured to be in contact with the mounting end portion of the pivot unit when the propeller blade is moved to the deployed position or the folded position.

The upper plate may include an upper stopper extending downward and allowing the pivot unit to be seated therein. The upper stopper may be configured to fix the positions of the pivot unit when the upper plate is moved downwards

The propeller folding apparatus of an air mobility vehicle having the above described structure may deploy or fold the propeller blades depending on the flying state of the air mobility vehicle. The propeller blades may be efficiently used depending on the flying state of the air mobility vehicle, thereby increasing the energy efficiency and the ferry range of the air mobility vehicle.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. It should be understood that the description and specific examples are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

