Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Shape Changing Plane In Development

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the making-toys-a-career dept.

Eh-Wire writes "The University of Florida has a short article on the "morphing wing" drone they are developing for a small aircraft that can swoop through parking garages, dive into alleys and land on balconies. Close-up video of seagulls in flight was the inspiration for the design of the drone. A still image of the drone shows an aircraft that looks surprisingly gull-like. A video shows the "wing morphing" in action on a static mounted drone. There is also a link to quite a few more videos in the article but it's not real obvious. Some guys get all the phun jobs!"

15 of 212 comments (clear)

  1. The wing shape isn't new... by Assmasher · · Score: 4, Informative

    MAW (Mission Adaptive Wing) designs have been tested since the sixties at least (probably earlier.) Still cool though.

    --
    Loading...
    1. Re:The wing shape isn't new... by Assmasher · · Score: 2, Informative

      Nope, the actual wing itself can flatten, bend, warp according to the current flight profile (high angle of attack, high speed, low speed, a need for excessive lift, et cetera...)

      Can go from being flat like:

      ------

      To a heavy lift example:
        ____
      / \

      --
      Loading...
    2. Re:The wing shape isn't new... by LWATCDR · · Score: 4, Informative

      Actually all modern wings change shape in flight. Between flap and movable leading edges all change the airfoil of the wing to a degree. The Mission Adaptive Wing was a more extreme version of this.

      --
      See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
    3. Re:The wing shape isn't new... by Assmasher · · Score: 2, Informative

      Well, to get technical, all wings change shape in flight. The point of the MAW, of course, is that it was designed as a single contiguous surface and as you stated and extreme example of surface contortion.

      --
      Loading...
    4. Re:The wing shape isn't new... by Analogy+Man · · Score: 3, Informative
      The 90 degree projection you reference can also be seen on a Boeing 747-400 or an Airbus A320. The principle is to increase the effective span of the wing. The higher pressure air on the lower surface of the wing wants to get to the lower pressure area on top of the wing. If you are clever about it the increased lift (or decreased lift induced drag depending on how you want to do your bookkeeping) is more than the increased skin friction and weight of additional structure.

      By changing shape you may be talking about the mechanisms that change the angle of attack of the rotors as they spin, as the blade travels back, it experiences lower relative airspeed if the helicopter is moving forward. In some instances this is accomlished at the hub, but it could also be done by generating a twist in the blade.

      --
      When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty.
    5. Re:The wing shape isn't new... by ceoyoyo · · Score: 2, Informative

      High performance hang gliders have wings that change shape (they call it variable geometry). The wing tightens for speed and efficiency when flying, loosens to make it possible to take off and land without eating dirt.

    6. Re:The wing shape isn't new... by TinyManCan · · Score: 3, Informative
      This too is an old idea. Basically when dealing with any sort of foil (such as a wing or rotor) you can't really use the last two or three feet effectively, as the low pressure air from the top slips around the end of the wing instead of over it. Putting some sort of vertical or 90 degree winglet on the end traps the air so that is must flow over the wing surface as designed.

      By placing the end pieces on the wing you are effectively adding two or three feet to the length of the wind, and only taking a small increase in friction. Good times all around.

  2. TA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Reminds me of the VTOL aircraft in the RTS Total Annihilation. These could even "tuck in" their wings as they landed, and as they tookoff, they would hover upwards while opening their wings.

    Seemed like a pretty cool-looking idea anyway :)

  3. Coralized link to Mpeg by Guano_Jim · · Score: 5, Informative

    Here's the video

    Coralized, so hopefully people will be able to view it.

    I'm not sure if the file goes over Coral's size limit.

    --
    3D Printing Tips and Tricks at Zheng3.com
  4. full mirrors available of videos by winkydink · · Score: 3, Informative

    Here.

    A plane that flaps its wings. Hunh.

    --

    "I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey

  5. Materials are the problem, by CyberLord+Seven · · Score: 3, Informative

    not lack of access to a designer. Where do you find a material with the compressive strength of bone and low density? How do you replace the tensional strength and flexiblity of muscle?
    If I had any of that $h17 I could build some HELLACIOUS ROBOTS and conquer...ummm, spread democracy throughout the world.

    --
    We have always been at war with Eurasia!
  6. Torrent of Video by jmazzi · · Score: 1, Informative

    Here is a torrent of the video. http://mirror.hrnoc.net/pub/torrents/labmorphing.m pg.torrent

  7. The wing warping patent battles by PapayaSF · · Score: 5, Informative

    As old as powered flight. The Wright Brothers patented a wing warping system that was used on the Wright Flier, which was of course, the first powered heavier than air craft to successfuly fly.

    Very true, and Slashdot readers might be interested to know that wing warping was the subject of a huge patent battle between the Wrights and Glenn Curtiss. See here and here. The consensus is that the patent fight significantly inhibited US aircraft development at the time.

    --
    Q: What does the "B." in Benoit B. Mandelbrot stand for? A: Benoit B. Mandelbrot
  8. Re:Wait a minute! by slashdot.org · · Score: 2, Informative

    I want a plane where the wings are made of a single peice of some kind of high-tech polymer that changes shape when electricity is applied to it.

    Like Muscle Wires, or another form of shape memory alloys.

    Don't know why you got modded funny, because it doesn't seem like a crazy concept to me at all.

  9. Re:First Powered Flight by cecil_turtle · · Score: 2, Informative

    The reason Richard Pearse's "flights" weren't considered the first powered flight is because he basically "powered" his contraptions off the edge of a cliff and glided to a land. The Wright brothers actually lifted off the ground under their own power, as opposed to having the ground drop away (not to mention there was never any proof of his flights actually taking place). Nice conspiracy theory though, keep it up.

    Check out this page: http://www.idsia.ch/~juergen/planetruth.html to see even more information on powered flight and others' accomplishments before and after the Wrights. First powered flight was a dirigible 50 years before Pearse and the Wrights, the first "heavier than air" powered flight took place in 1890, over a decade before Pearse and the Wrights... etc. etc. etc.