Good Research Paper About Glider

Goal

The purpose of the paper is to research on gliding in general. The Gliders that will be focused on mostly are the balsa wood gliders. Balsa is a type of tree that has been used for ages in the assembling of planes. It has been used as the standard material because of its lightness. A glider on the other hand is a “heavier-than-air” aircrafts. Its flight does not require an engine as it is supported by a reaction between the air and the surfaces used for lifting. Therefore, a balsa wood glider is one of the lightest toys that can be made in the glider family. Other similar example of such light planes is a toy paper plane. Balsa wood gliders are commonly used for sports like hand gliding, paragliding and hand gliding. They do not have any engines. However, some are fitted with small engines so that they can extend their flight or even take off. Gliders were used for sports until of late when they were militarized too. They are fitted with small engines and then used for warfare.

Requirements and Restrictions

The first main requirement is the balsa wood. They vary in their weight and durability. One can feel this as they choose on the balsa that they use. One should always ensure that they pick the correct wood to use in the glider. The glider should be heavier than air and therefore choosing a heavy wood will be appropriate. The perfect balsa wood to choose should be medium/straight grain balsa wood. The first restriction for choosing the medium is because a soft wood will break while a hard wood will make it difficult to make proper cuttings. The other requirements are cutting objects and glue (Kurtz, Miller & Acquaye, 2014).
The plan of the glider is also mandatory. There should be drawings on the estimated length of wings to guide in cutting the parts of the glider. The glue will be used in fixing small details that are necessary. This is after the cutting has been done. It should be done accurately ith the wings the body and the tail. A small engine can also be used for takeoff or extending the flight of the glider.

Glider Information

Stability
The stability of the glider is the most important as it will keep it floating in the air. The aim is to keep the glider in a straight path. If it takes off, then it will go on a straight path to the landing if it is stable. To get stability the trailing edge of the glider was made to face upward. This can be achieved by using a sand paper to tapper with the bottom side of the trailing edge. That will help the glider in maintaining a straight flight path. The wings are also an important part of ensuring that gliders stay in the air. They need to be stable if long range and stability have to be achieved. This can be through the shape, weight and its strength. They all play important roles. The area to be covered by the wings is 60 square inches, with an inch span of about 17.5 and an aspect ratio of 5.6 (Adnan, 2014).
The stability of the glider will be the determinant of; the distance that will be covered, the time that the glider will stay in the air and how it will balance in the air. The wings are the main source of the stability. The shape and the length should be favorable for them to be able to balance in the air. It will not be able to balance on the ground if the stability is missing. Stability is the main factor that should be considered while making the glider. However, how the whole body is set and the weight of the material that is used in other parts will also help in determining the stability of the glider.

Range

The target height that the glider should be able to fly is about ten feet up. This will be a good distance considering that it has no engine and just fully depends on its shape. The distance that it will cover once in the air depends on many natural factors. This includes the wind and rain. On a clear day it should be able to fly a good distance. This can also be achieved if the glider is moving in the direction that the wind is moving to. As it has been discussed in the stability of the glider, it needs to be stable so that it can fly. The range can also increase its range to favor the pilot’s distance that they might intend to cover. They can go for fairly a long range than what a glider without an engine will cover. Its shape, especially the wings, will also be a big determinant in this. If the glider is not streamlined or the wings have not been cut and filed appropriately, there are many chances that the glider will not be able to fly even for a few minutes. It needs a body that is sharp and resembles those of the modern airplanes (Sharma, 2014).

Balsa Glider construction

The wood selected should be able to have a lot of strength and be light in weight to the overall glider. Aluminum and nylon will be used in the binding of the glider. They help in making the flight lighter as they do not exhibit a lot of weight. These are the best materials that can be found in the market for assembling a glider. The binding polymer chosen also adds the strength to the glider. The glue that was mentioned in the requirements can only be used for decoration and fitting small parts that do not translate to the overall stability of the glider. The glue can also be used in adding decorations how the Pilot like it. Paper is the most suitable kind of decoration that can be incorporated in a glider. The design will be a single pilot. Therefore, its carrying capacity is one and the pilot will be able to stretch their legs.
The sits in the glider will be mad in a way that they remain lightweight and do not affect the weight of the glider when in the air. A plastic canopy will be used as a cockpit so that the pilot will be able to view his direction carefully. It will also minimize the effect of air on the face of the pilot and help keep the glider in the air.

References

Adnan, N. H., & Alam, M. T. T. (2014). Designing a radio frequency controlled biomimetic flying bird (Doctoral dissertation, BRAC University).
Kurtz Jr, M. J., Miller, E. L., & Acquaye, F. K. (2014). MEMS 411 Morphing Wing RC Glider Senior Design Project.
Sharma, R. (2014). LASER (Light Aircraft Solar Extended Range).