B304

OTHER: Miscellaneous - Flight Testing

Overview: Miscellaneous postings

Postings:

Date: 13-Apr-01 01:27
Author: Tom Sartorius (greywing@swbell.net)

Why would you consider having the setbacks and unnecessary expense of any proof-of-concept full scale design before trying it out as a R/C (and much less expensive) model first. I suppose it's been done, but I can't think of any aeronautical concept that wasn't fleshed out in reduced scale first. All of the opinions of this conference, right or wrong are irrelevant till put to the test and the scale model is still one of the best methodologies available.

Even current day aeronautical engineers with the best CADsoftware will still take the concept from paper to model for testing. Seems prudent. Also, who will fly your full-scale prototype? Seems pretty risky, even for a qualified test pilot who has some aeronautical engineering background.

You must have some basis I'm not aware of for going from design to full-scale?

Date: 13-Apr-01 04:42
Author: Dave Jackson (jackson.dave@shaw.ca)

Tom;

Thank you for the heavy duty questioning and remarks.

You said "You must have some basis I'm not aware of for going from design to full-scale?". I had (past tense ) reasons for skipping the model phase, but your recommendations for inclusion of the intermediate step is definitely going to cause a reassessment.

The earlier thinking on this subject was related to the SynchroLite, whose configuration is not exceptionally radical. The (possibly unsound) reasons for bypassing the model were;

    1. the final craft is already quite small, at 254 pounds.
    2. structural problems may be more critical than aerodynamic ones.
    3. because of the need for female molds and the like, it might be cheaper and faster to skip the middle step.
    4. initial testing was to be done in autorotation on a flat bed truck.
    5. advanced piloted testing could be done in conjunction with remote control flights of the full-scale craft and/or a few hours of full-scale wind tunnel tests.

The radical concept of the very rigid rotor, on the UniCopter, may very well necessitate a model, of a higher level then the one that is presently being built.

Related Outside Web Sites:

Autopilot-devel -- Development and design discussion on the UAV; https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/autopilot-devel

U.S. Department of Transportation; Federal Aviation Administration; AMATEUR-BUILT AIRCRAFT AND ULTRALIGHT FLIGHT TESTING HANDBOOK; http://www.faa.gov/library/manuals/aircraft/media/ac90-89a.pdf

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Last Revised: September 5, 2006