[JoeF]

5HGcuboid.png (10.42 KiB) Viewed 10441 times

This morning seems decision time for me about first-pack experiment. The decision is 1x1x5. That is: 12 in x 12 in x 60 in. Five cubic feet. Some designers will opt for different dimensions for the HG pack. Abbreviation: 5HG
Soon I will be practicing carrying a container that is that size. I will see how the size goes on Los Angeles city buses. The container will be considered for possible multiple uses. Here is what comes to mind this morning:

1. Eventually I am wanting the very sides of the container to be core parts to a HG. Perhaps harness? Perhaps heart structure for joining port and starboard wings? The upper four corners are to be cushioned, so the corners do not hurt other people on the bus; similarly, perhaps, for the four lower corners. It will be a design challenge to have the 1x1x5 six faces be integral parts to the flight system. Perhaps D-tube parts? The matter is open for creative designers. Leave open alternatives here: telescopic boxing for possible spar or D-tube targets.

2. Alternative uses of the HG 1x1x5 seem to be on a hobby and professional agenda also:
== Grocery shopping: put the purchased goods inside the container.
== Mobile high jump gear and pit: Put all parts inside the container.
== Mobile kite craft: Place tools and parts and wings and line sets etc. in the container for a day at a park or beach for kiting exploration.
== Mobile TT (Trash Technology): Collect valuable trash while cleaning the city; convert the special finds into kite systems.
== Goods delivery: Delivery goods to people. Place the goods and gifts in the container. Bus the items.
...

3. The 1x1x5 could be strapped to the top of a car, placed in the rear seat of a car, placed on passenger side of car with back of seat in the reclining position. The 1x1x5 fits nicely in a room corner or a corner of a home's closet. The 1x1x5 will be of less volume than the complex canopy bags seen around some sites; the 1x1x5 will handy.

4. The 1x1x5 could have a built in hole. Use the hole to place a through axle. Put two wheels on the axle (not while on bus) for trekking over hill and dale. The trek wheels would be HG landing wheels also. When wheels are not used for carting, then the wheels could be stored inside the container. The two-wheel version permits hand-truck style. Alternatively, a four-wheel arrangement could be; two holes and apply two axles when wanted; then the four-wheel 1x1x5 could be rope pulled across country or city or park. Coast downhill while riding the four-wheeler? Kite buggy travel? Water-tight option for floater, river crossing, rafting (wheels could be out-rigged); sail mast the 1x1x5; kite-sail travel while floating? Harry Martin is welcome at any moment. Eddie Paul design also! Others?

5. Have chest strap-shoulder strap and two side strap handles that permit backpacking or chest-strapping for alternative movement arrangements.

6. Decoration. The outside decoration of the 1x1x5 could invite less suspicion. Pleasant clean colors? Messages? Pleasant photographs? Clean artwork? Music? Golf? Art? HG art? Ads for Dockweiler. Map and photos? Handy URL business card on side (quick hand one to inquisitive persons). Pseudo tourist luggage appearance?

7. The container 1x1x5 might be sturdy enough to form a sitting bench. There might be firm holes for the placing of legs to form a display table; display HG URL cards, HG history, Otto books, AWE matters (kite energy matters), kite things, ...

8. Inside 1x1x5 will be the remaining parts of a HG. We leave the option to have the toting pilot-to-be wear kite-HG sails sections; that is, one might wrap one's legs and/or torso with glider sail sections, if the 1x1x5 volume was not adequate to hold the wing's sail parts. Some designer might choose to have sail wrapping the basic box, thereby giving some public cushion to the container.

9. A whole new industry for 1x1x5 hang gliders might develop. No rights are held for any of the tech that I text and illustrate; all novelty, if any, is placed in the public domain for any use; attribution is not required. Explore pica HG. Self-soar. Fly like a bird. The 1x1x5 is a kind of Joy Box. Best of lift to you and yours! Open up the parts and form a Dockweiler Dandy Handy HG Or design a Presto Change-Oh! HG that expands in one minute to ready-to-fly HG fit for mountain high altitude hang gliding. The 1x1x5 is there; what will be placed in it Part of HG's future ...

10. Verify how airlines and Greyhound Bus sees a 1x1x5. And explore UPS and USPS for the 1x1x5.

11. Note that long battens or ribs may be in two parts that are coupled. And consider coilable HG parts. Inflated parts. Trussing. Etc.

12. Notice how the 5HG units stack in stores, closets, club storage containers, car top racks, pickup-truck beds,.
13. Notice how rafting may occur with some designs of 5HG


tags: rectangular parallelpiped 5pack 5HG 5box 5HGtote cuboid 5cuboid square prism HG5 #5HG #5hangglider #5glider #5wing #5otto #5ottowing

[JoeF]

Furthering the above session:
1. Notice that some designers may choose for 5HG two or three cuboids that add up to the 1x1x5; that is, say two of 6"x12"x60", or say three of 4"x12"x60", or say two with one at 4"x12"x60" and the other at 8"x12"x60". There are an uncountable infinity of ways to part the 5HG foundation cuboid; some ways will be interesting to some designers for various reasons. Include in the possibilities diagonalizations of the 5HG space.

2. For space efficiency, consider stacked angle beams. The angles nest inside one another.

3. For space efficiency, consider telescopic tubing of square or rectangle cross section. As well, circular cross sectioned beams. And note that circular cross section may fit inside a square cross section beam.

4. Consider cables of various materials. Plan for no-kinking packing.

5. Consider wrapping a reduced cuboid with cable; the net dimensions would stay within the 5HG cuboid space. One meets the sharp-bend challenge and so consider interior meta-form that ends up circle cross section and then wrap that circle.

6. Consider straight sections of cable that couple with other sections.

7. Consider coupling airbeam splints in order to have a set of 60" long parts of a longer compression beam for possible use in splinted-airbeam tech.

8. Be open to have 5HG be less than 12"x12" cross section; some designers may succeed to have a Dandy Handy Dockweiler Hang Glider pack into less than 1'x1'x5' as part of the "5HG" movement. Cheers to their success! All power to them!

9. Why maximum length of 5 feet? Target focus! But more: In city-bus culture there seems to be a crowding-intimidation response to packages. People want to know what the other person is carrying. A package takes up space that might otherwise be used by a person. Too tall of a package and people seem to wonder if the package is going to fall on them. Hugging the 5HG could express closeness to person and perhaps less threatening. Having the appearance clean and seemingly soft and perhaps pleasantly interesting may be important for success and cooperation of other passengers and the bus captain driver. The bus driver is allowed to nix suspect packages on his or her bus. A photographic explanation might solve some challenges. What is THAT? If the decoration could immediately put queries to low tension or full rest, even if the decoration said "just-purchased home-furniture table" then entry to the bus might be eased. Be sure not to bump people with the package; if a rub occurs, then the package is to be smooth, clean, and non-snaggy. See over the top, if eyes are about 5 ft or higher off the floor? Car-space fitting? Closet fitting?

10. Just got the idea: Perhaps the macro package could be decorated to mimic the image of a human person or a cuddly bear or a friendly penguin or a cloud set, etc. Umbrella product? Tent product? Gift-wrapped appearance? Swing-set for family? School art supplies? Camera gear? Glider?

11. A business card showing a photograph of the unpacked glider along with a URL for more information might solve some queries. Promote HG? "See it fly at Dockweiler State Beach Hang Gliding Training Center." Or other local site in the world.

12. Consider the straps that permit backpacking the 5HG. Those very straps might become a means to hang the cuboid from an upper handhold beam.

13. Consider standing while hugging the 5HG and strapping the cuboid to a vertical post in a bus.

14. If the macro cuboid is in two parts, say the 6"x6"x60", then such fits beneath seats of some buses.

15. If traveling with a companion, then there are ways to garner space for 5HG that are effective. Leading the walk? Front and back of 5HG with friendly persons? Two pilots sharing the same 5HG at a training site. Buddy system? Assistant? Trainee? Two-by-two with staff only (rod: 5HG)

16. Recall that "wearing" glider sail or skin may be part of a tote solution. One may wrap sail sections around lower legs. And thighs. And forearms. And upper arms. And torso. Perhaps in a specialized hat. Also, in a buddy system, the second person might also wear some sail or carry neat package of sail while first person totes the main 5HG. But in solo operations, neat body wrap or neat wrap of the foundation cuboid comes to mind; wrinkles take up space fast. Sail sectioning might become part of some solution tech for 5HG.

17. Recall that perimeter of 5HG cuboid in the 12"x12" cross section is about 4 ft. Seven wraps of flat glider skin gives 28 ft of skin. Eight wraps gives 32 ft. of skin. And such wrap might provide the public "cushion" of the cuboid. The skin could be 5 ft wide material or 10 ft (folded once), etc. If seven wraps at 5 ft wide: 140 sq ft of sail. If eight wraps of 5 ft: 5x4x8=160. Etc.

18. Recall that some designers may choose to have the "cuboid" container simply be a harness; then stuff the harness with the glider parts. Or wear the harness during travel. When hiking off the bus or out of the car, then wheels may be mounted on the cuboid; also, then a harness could be taken off the body and strapped to the wheeled cuboid.

19. Wills Wing has made a quality effort, yet the 5HG target is further, shorter, and more varied. However, the WW matter is certainly part of the study: https://www.willswing.com/accessories/f3-short-pack-bag/
Some of the 5HG vision points limit to 60 in length, wheels when wanted and absent protruding wheels when so wanted, mystery quick-assembled HGs, varied glider designs yet, all-parts of pack remaining actual parts of in-flight system (leaving no parts of tote on ground during flight session), and perhaps more. Study the WW offer and struggle. Yet go further.

20.


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Glider inside?? Perhaps wrap that with glider skin.

[Frank Colver]

I wonder how many hang gliding sites in the US are accessible by bus? Probably not many. Maybe it's just Dockweiler.

However, the small container hang glider would be very good for people who are driving small, fuel efficient, cars that couldn't carry a full length HG on top. But 5 feet length may even be too long for them.

I like your effort here Joe. Such an accomplishment could help reduce the allure that paragliders have in portability, especially for small cars.

Here's my idea contribution: Shock corded tubing like tent poles, for fast joining of the tubing sections. That invention for tent poles made a huge difference in the setup time of modern tents.

FC

[ARP]

Its not so much for the take off but for an out landing when a short pack would allow use of public transport to get back.

[KaiMartin]

Its not so much for the take off but for an out landing when a short pack would allow use of public transport to get back.

And it is for the long haul. Getting a current flex wing on a plane draws significantly from the vacation budget. Some airlines plain out refuse to transport 4m length luggage at all.

High speed trains get me conveniently to Munich or Vienna in a few hours where I might rent a car for the last kilometers. But there is no way to get a 4m package in there. And the rented car won't be fitted with a glider rider either.

---<)kaimartin(>---

[JoeF]

Good points ARP and Kai. Collecting robustly the "public transportation dimension" of the 5-ft-packed-HG seems very appropriate.

1. Self-retrieve during some XC outlandings. (ARP)
2. Long-haul reduction of expensive (Kai)
3. Long-haul possibility when otherwise not regarding some vacation routes (Kai)
4. One has no car or truck, yet has sites for niche HG activity reachable by bus or train and some walking.
5. One chooses not to have a car or truck, and finds sites to fit one's HG choices that are reachable by some combination of walking, bus or train.
6. One has no satisfactory storage for more than the 5-ft packed HG.
7. One wants to stay under certain radars by having a less large item during the transportation in or out of an area.
8. Pack more HGs on one transport car or truck.
9. Have less expensive storage units at club site.
10. Retail exchange of HGs made easier.
????

[KaiMartin]

The first models by Finsterwalder were very light-weight, short-packaged. They openly advertized low weight and size as their main selling point. and they were quite successful at that. Still, the later models gravitated toward heavier, more traditional layouts. IMHO, the reason is performance.

A wing which is supposed to glide better than a PG requires a flat sail which keeps a favorable shape under load. Unfortunately, the basic construction of a flex wing distorts in an unfavorable way under load. To deal with this, the frame needs to be sturdy enough to not bend significantly in the envelope of decent flight conditions. This pretty much prevents joints which are more sophisticated than tubes and sleeve.

Maybe, 2m hang glider packages at decent performance can only be achieved if we switch to a fundamentally different kind of frame -- a frame which is allowed to bend under load. But the bend does not deteriorate performance. This sounds like a pipe dream. There are role models, though. High end sailplanes allow their wings to bend under load:


The wings of the eta unbend after the plane has landed.

Watch, how the wings of the eta bend when the pilot pulls up after a spectacular low pass:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2s14v_passage-du-planeur-eta_news

Sailplanes achieve this feat by placing the spar carefully at the center of lift. The wing bends but does not twist. That way, they can deal with an incredibly large aspect ratio with no struts or side wires. Maybe, we can copy the core of this technique to built lightweight and fold-able hang gliders with flex wing performance.

Unfortunately, the sailplane trick does not work with swept wings. Bend without twist pretty much requires a straight wing. Now, the sweep of flex wings is not just for good looks. It provides pitch stability. Sailplanes use their tailplane, of course. But a tail on a long boom would interfere with the ability to foot launch from a mountain. It also adds complexity and weight. In daydreams I breed some ideas how a straight wing hang glider might get away without a tail plane on a long boom. This is stuff for another post...

---<)kaimartin(>---

[ARP]

You are on the right track with a straight wing but use a V tail to avoid ground damage on hill take offs. The design is done just have to find the time to build it. 2m short pack.....

[KaiMartin]

You are on the right track with a straight wing but use a V tail to avoid ground damage on hill take offs.

Hmm. The V tail still has to be mounted significantly aft of the wing to be efficient. A straight, down wind boom like the sail planes would collide with the hill. Ground damage could be prevented with a wheel. But the wheel would also prevent the pilot from assuming the necessary angle of attack.
An obvious solution would be to make the boom point up by 45° or more. A drawback is also obvious: more drag.

The hang glider specific one-step-landing with the wing in deep stall is even more problematic than take-off from a ramp. Even our current tailless glider sometimes hit the ground hard with the keel if stalled rather aggressively. Any boom, even a 45° angled one would make matters worse.

But how about this: Connect the boom with a joint so it can move up if it needs to. During launch and for the whole flight the boom is locked into 45° position. But at the final push-out for landing, the boom joint gets unlocked. It now floats behind the wing with the tail plane parallel to the ground no matter what the AoA of the wing is. There is an additional benefit: Normally, the tail plane provides a rather strong pitching moment stabilize the glider at a reasonable glide angle. This is of course the very reason we want to use a tail plane. But during flare we want the wing to deviate toward large angle of attack as fast as possible. In other words, during these last seconds of flight the glider should be unstable in pitch.

I believe, this is what makes a flare landing of a flex possible. When we move our weight way back, the marginally stable glider becomes unstable and deviates beyond stall for a one step landing. A tail plane on an unlocked boom leaves the pilot with a pure straight wing. This is known to be unstable and should deviate immediately. So an unlockable boom does both, prevent collisions of the tail plane with the ground on landing and facilitate the flare.

The design is done just have to find the time to build it. 2m short pack.....

Do you have sketches available online? Just curious.

---<)kaimartin(>---

[Frank Colver]

Ah, remember Bob Lovejoy's Hightailer? I think he was achieving the necessary ground clearance for a Quicksilver type HG. However, it never went into production and the Quicksilver did, so maybe it didn't provide enough pitch stability. Personally, I don't know the reason but Dave Cronk might.

FC