Fly High Lab Boeing is looking for new airplane designs that will successfully fly and have a balance of velocity and duration. This was an opportunity for me to create a mock design and test my engineering skills. Before building, I began to think of ideas of possible design options. The plane that I had decided on, was one I thought would work best with the guidelines. The constrains for my modeling were that I could only use 2 pieces of paper per plane. The planes had to be built in one class period and only the items provided could be used.
While brainstorming for airplane ideas, a few factors were in mind. These factors are thrust, drag, lift, and weight. Research showed that the most successful airplanes have less drag and less weight. Therefore, our first thought was to create a small airplane. The initial plane designs were all similar, yet had different ratios. For example, the first plane had larger wings, the second plane had a larger tail, and the last plane was much longer than the others. After conducting tests for each of the planes, my partner and I decided that the longest plane would last the longest in the air and fly to the farthest distance. Once the final design was completed, my partner and I began to test the final airplane and collect data. We began to throw the airplane from a set distance, and recorded data for time and distance traveled. Our data was of what we expected. However, it was possible to collect greater data, and make adjustments to our model. By the end of modifications, the plane had a shorter wing span and much more precise folds. Making the creases in the plane helped us restore balance. Making the wings shorter allowed the plane to be more aerodynamic and fly at a higher speed with an increase of thrust. These small adjustments allowed our plane to go further than it had before. |
"Forces on an Airplane." Forces on an Airplane. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
"Soaring Science: Test Paper Planes with Different Drag." Scientific American Global RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
"Soaring Science: Test Paper Planes with Different Drag." Scientific American Global RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.