0
BravestDog

General Wingsuit design questions.

Recommended Posts

2 questions please.

1. Do current wingsuit designs have hard flexible cambers and battens similar to the system used on modern sailboard sails to give the wing more shape or is it being tested/designed now?

2. How about braces used to keep the arms out lessening arm fatigue. Has this been tested or designed?

Please add anything relative.

Thankyou:P

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I've only seen one in person once, but my understanding is they are not stiffened in the manner you described, and the wing areas are engineered similar to ram-air canopies.

I believe I read that various types of stiffeners had been tried historically and contributed significantly to the near-100% fatality rate of wingsuit experimenters before the "modern" style came about in, I believe, the mid-90's.

Plus if you get too much bracing, it's called a hang-glider or a SkyRay, not a WingSuit. ;)

-=-=-=-=-
Pull.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Some prototype suits have been built with stiffeners of various kinds to try keeping the airfoil in the optimum shape. Production costs were too high for the gains in flight performance, as far as I know.
-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I saw a guy at one of our local DZ's who was working on a BASE-specific wingsuit. He was jumping a prototype with batons on the ends of the wings. He would hold these in his hands to increase the surface area of the wing.

Whether it helped increase flight time or not i have no idea...

safe skies
PJ

Advertisio Rodriguez / Sky

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quote

He was jumping a prototype with batons on the ends of the wings



I think you saw a Skyflyer 3 and what you saw on the end of the wings are standard on all Skyflyer 3s. As for the the next suit released, it will not have any of the things mentioned for just the reasons mentioned.
"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quote

Quote

He was jumping a prototype with batons on the ends of the wings



I think you saw a Skyflyer 3 and what you saw on the end of the wings are standard on all Skyflyer 3s. As for the the next suit released, it will not have any of the things mentioned for just the reasons mentioned.



I'd guess that, given his location (SA), he saw Shaun testing his Sugar Glider. He had an early prototype with "paddles" (his term) to increase surface area and try to eliminate wingtip vortices.

When last I spoke with him about it (August) he had abandoned that train of research. I think he was having too much trouble holding the paddles in position and staying stable.

Is this pic of Shaun flying yet another of his prototypes something like the suit you saw?
-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
----------------------------------------------------------
.....to increase surface area and try to eliminate wingtip vortices.
----------------------------------------------------------
Vortex can't be eliminated, can be reduced :)

Regards
Robibird
Robert Pecnik
robert@phoenix-fly.com
www.phoenix-fly.com

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

0