Final Kite Design

Prototype 4 is finished

Prototype 4 has finally been completed and has been flying very well indoors. The best so far out of all of our designs. The only thing that needs to be done to the kite is to hot glue a weight to the front and make it look more like a fish.

The final version of our kite was assembled Thursday. The bamboo frame measures 23.5 inches vertically and 12.25 inches horizontally. The bamboo skewers were hot glued together. We also attached the plastic table cloth material to the frame with hot glue to be taught. Once we tried gliding the kite, we found that it was too heavy in the back and stalled almost immediately. This means that the center of gravity and center of pressure are not aligned, but we are adding weight to the front quarter of the kite to try to balance these points. So far, we have added circular washers to the front, which has seemed to even the weight better. We will continue to adjust the front and back weights for optimal flight.

Prototype 4 Frame Finished

The frame was finished today in lab. The completely bamboo frame was shaped, cut, and hot glued in order to reach this point.

Simulations

Using Autodesk Inventor we were able to simulate indoor and outdoor flight on a model of our fourth prototype.

Prototype 4 continued

Prototype 4 is halfway through the construction phase. The bamboo frame is finished and just needs to be connected to the plastic tablecloth. It will be finished before next week.

Final Prototype Taking Shape

Our final prototype is in the building phase. We are using bamboo as the frame of the kite because of it flexibility and since it's stronger than straws. In this photo one of our group members is using a belt sander to even up and shape the bamboo.