UAV for continuous ultrasound testing (UT) scans

US11885769B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignees

• SAUDI ARABIAN OIL COMPANY · SA
• King Abdullah University of Science and Technology · SA

Inventors

• Fadl Abdellatif · Thuwal, SA
• Jeff S. Shamma · Thuwal, SA
• Sultan A. Shaqaq · Hofuf, SA
• Abdullah Arab · Thuwal, SA
• Abdullah A. Alkhder · Ank, SA
• Sahejad Patel · Thuwal, SA

Key dates

• Filing date: Aug 18, 2021
• Grant date: Jan 30, 2024
• Expiry date: May 3, 2042

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01N2291/023
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has a flight-only mode with a motor only rotating propellers and not rotating on-board wheels to configure the UAV to fly away from a surface of a structure, and a crawling-only mode in which the UAV is configured to crawl on the surface due to the motor only rotating the wheels while not rotating the propellers. In the flight-only mode, a clutch disengages a motor from the wheels so that the motor only engages the propellers to fly to lift from the surface. In the crawling-only mode, the clutch disengages the motor from the propellers so that the motor only engages the wheels to move the UAV on the surface.