WorksheetA:Investigation:
FactorsAffectingRangeofaProjectile
Hypothesis
Inthissection,Iwillbedoinganinvestigationoffactorsthatwillaffecttherangeofaprojectile.ThisknowledgewillhelpmeunderstandwhatIhavetodoinordertocreateasuccessfulflightwithmygliderinthefinalpresentation.
Hypotheses:IwillbehypothesizingvariablesofprojectilemotionfrompreviousknowledgethatI’vegainedinclass.
WorksheetB:WingShapesandFunctions
Inthissection,Iwillbedoingaresearch-basedinvestigationofwingshapesandhowtheycontributetotheobject’smovementintheair.[WorksheetB]
Sinceitsinvention,thewingsofanairplanehavegonethroughmanydifferentdesignsinordertohaveagreatliftefficiency.Thewingsofanairplanemustbefunctionaltoitsuses,inwhichoneoftheusesistoallowtheaircraftitselftobelifterupwards.Therearemanydifferentaspectstothemodelthatcanbevariedtochangetheefficiencyofitslift.
1. Howangleofattackhaveaneffectontheliftofaplane:
ThefirstvariablethatIwillinvestigate/researchthroughishowangleofattackofthewingswouldaffecttheairplane’slift.Angleofattackreferstohowsteepthewingsareinrelationtothewindgoingtheoppositedirectiontotheplane’smovement.Startingfrom0˚,theairplanecanbeliftedupwardsastheangleofattackisincreased.Thisistrueuntilitreachesitslimit.Ataround10˚andup,theairinfrontofthewingswillcirculateinamotionthatwillnothelptheplanetobeliftedup;thewingsactasbarrierthatwillhindertheplane’smovementasopposedtothehelpfulliftthatcanbeachievediftheangleofthewingsaresetfrom0˚-10˚.
2. Howthicknessofwingshaveaneffectontheliftofaplane:
Oneoftheotherfactorsofthewingsthatwouldaltertheliftofanairplaneisthethicknessofthewingsthemselves.FromtheresearchthatIhaveperformed,Ithenunderstoodthatasthethicknessofthewingsdecrease,itwouldalsocreateadecreasedamountofliftfortheairplane;however,onemustalsoknowthatthefronttipsofthewingswouldalsogiveaneffecttotheairplane’slift.Inordertoincreaselift,itwouldbehelpfultothinoutthetip.Thiswouldworkbestbecausewhenthewingsarethickenedupforagreaterlift,thetipshouldn’tbethicktooorelsetheywouldactasabarrierthatwon’tlettheairthey’rehittingtopasseasily,whichwouldhindertheairplaneback.
3. Howcurvinessofwingshaveaneffectontheliftofaplane:
Anothervariablethatwouldaffectanairplane’sliftisthecurvatureofthewings.Thiscanalsobecalled:alterationofthecamber(measureofhowlongthedistancebetweenminimumpointtomaximumpointofthewings).Researchhasprovedthatanairplaneisabletogainmoreliftasthecamberisincreased,evenwhenothervariablesstayconstantattheirminimum.
4. Howspeedhaveaneffectontheliftofaplane:
Theliftthatanairplanecouldgetduringitsflightdoesn’tcomeonlyfromthedesign/structureofthewings;naturealsoplaysabigpartofthegain/lossoflift.Oneaspectoftheenvironmentthatoneshouldconsideristheairspeed,whichreferstohowfastthewingmovesthroughtheairsurroundingthem.Itisafactthatinthecasewheretheairspeedisincreasedtoahighervalue,itwillresultintheincreaseoftheairplane’slift.
5. Howaltitudehaveaneffectontheliftofaplane:
Thealtitudeoftheplane’sflightisanothervariablethatoccursnaturallythatwouldalsoaffecttheamountofliftgeneratedbytheplane.Asaplaneincreasesthealtitudeofitsflightfromtheground,theefficiencyofliftwillbedecreased.Thiswouldmeanthattheamountofliftgeneratedbytheplanewouldbelessthanwhenitisinapositionclosertotheground.Ibelievethiswouldhappensincetheamountofpotentialgravitationalenergy(Eg)increasesastheplanereachesagreateraltitude,andwouldrequirealargeramountofenergyoflifttogoagainstEgandbeliftedup.
6. Howmucheffectthicknessofairfoilhasonanairplane’slift:
AsIhavementionedbefore,thicknessisoneofthevariablesthatwouldgiveaneffecttotheamountofliftanairplanewouldgenerate.Whentheairfoilofanaircraftismentioned,theyarereferringtothegeneralshapeofthewings.Whenitisthickened,itisalsoknownasincreasingtheairfoilcamber.Onehastokeepinmindthatthecamberiscalculatedbyreferringthethicknesstothewinginrelationtothelongeststraightlineofthewing.Itistruethatasthewings’thicknessdecreasessowilltheamountofliftgenerated;furthermore,themainfunctionoftheseairfoilcambersistoincreasetheamountofliftgeneratedbytheplane.Thisshowsthatalteringtheairfoilcamberwouldcauseagreatamountofchangetoaplane’slift.
7. Howanegativeairfoilcambervaluehasaneffecttotheliftoftheplane:
Notonlycanitbeincreased,thewings’airfoilcambercanalsobedecreased.Thiswillresultinaconcaveshapeonthewing,creatingafeaturethatiscallednegativeairfoilcamber.Whenthisvariableissettoanegativevalue,itwillstillaffecttheliftofanairplanebycreatinganegativelifttotheplane.Anegativeliftindicatesthatitgoesdownwardsinsteadofupwards(aswewantitforthisparticularproject’spurpose)whichcouldbehelpfulifitwasusedastheplaneislanding.
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WorksheetC:FreeBodyDiagram
Practice
1.Abookisatrestonatabletop.Diagramtheforcesactingonthebook.
2.Agirlissuspendedmotionlessfromtheceilingbytworopes.Diagramtheforcesactingonthecombinationofgirlandbar.
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3.Aneggisfree-fallingfromanestinatree.Neglectairresistance.
4.Aflyingsquirrelisgliding(nowingflaps)fromatreetothegroundatconstantvelocity.Considerairresistance.Diagramtheforcesactingonthesquirrel.
5.Arightwardforceisappliedtoabookinordertomoveitacrossadeskwitharightwardacceleration.Considerfrictionalforces.Neglectairresistance.Diagramtheforcesactingonthebook.
6.Arightwardforceisappliedtoabookinordertomoveitacrossadeskatconstantvelocity.Considerfrictionalforces.Neglectairresistance.Diagramtheforcesactingonthebook.
7.Acollegestudentrestsabackpackuponhisshoulder.Thepackissuspendedmotionlessbyonestrapfromoneshoulder.Diagramtheverticalforcesactingonthebackpack.
8.Askydiverisdescendingwithaconstantvelocity.Considerairresistance.Diagramtheforcesactingupontheskydiver.
9.Aforceisappliedtotherighttodragasledacrosslooselypackedsnowwitharightwardacceleration.Diagramtheforcesactinguponthesled.
10.Afootballismovingupwardstowardsitspeakafterhavingbeenbootedbythepunter.Diagramtheforcesactinguponthefootballasitrisesupwardtowardsitspeak.
11.Acariscoastingtotherightandslowingdown.Diagramtheforcesactinguponthecar.
Visuals
FBDoftheglider
Pre-Buildplans
Knowledge/Understanding
Howwillinitialvelocityaffecttherangeofaprojectile?
Therangeofaprojectilewillbevarieddependingonmanydifferentaspectsoftheexperimentaldiversityofeachtrial.Idobelievethatinitialvelocity(Vi)isoneoftheaspectsthatwillaffecttherangeofaprojectile.Frommypriorknowledgeofobjects’motioninair,Ihaveseveralhypothesesofwhyinitialvelocitymaygreatlyaffecttherangeofaparticularobject’smotion.IfΔtiskeptconstant,therangeoftheprojectilemotionwillbelargerifoneincreasesVioftheobject,assumingthattheinitialvelocityaffectsthehorizontalvelocity.
Howwilllaunchangleaffecttherangeofaprojectile? AsIhavepreviouslymentioned,therearemorethan
oneaspecttochangeinordertohavevaryingtherangeofaprojectile.Frommypriorknowledgeofprojectilemotion,itisclearthatchangingthelaunchangleofanobjectabouttogothroughprojectilemotionwillaffectitshorizontalrange.Alteringtheinitialanglewillalsoaltertheinitialvelocitiesforbothvertical(Viy)andhorizontal(Vix)displacement.IfVixiskeptconstant,increasingtheΔtthattheobjectisintheaircanincreasetherangeoftheprojectilemotion.OneofthewaystoincreaseΔtofwhentheobjectinintheairistochangetheViywhichistieduptochangingtheobject’sinitiallaunchangle.TherewouldbealimittohowmuchViyshouldbebeforeitdecreesestheprojectile’srangeinsteadofincreasingit.
Howwillmassaffecttherangeofaprojectile?
Massisalsooneoftheaspectsthatcouldchangetheobject’srangeofaprojectile.Ihaveenoughpriorknowledgetomakethishypothesisabouthowalteringtheobject’smasswillalsoaffectitsprojectilemotionsandexplainhowmypredictionsmakesenseintermsofthelawsofphysics.Sincethetimeduration(Δt)forverticalandhorizontaldisplacementarealwaysthesame,evenifonlyoneisalteredthentheotherwillalsobeaffected.Whenthemassofanobjectisincreased,itwilldirectlyaffecttheobject’sinitialEg,whichinturnwillalsoincreasethepositiveaccelerationtowardstheground.ThiswillcreateshorterΔtfortheverticaldisplacement,andwillalsoshortentheΔtofhorizontaldisplacement.TherangeofthehorizontalmovementwillbereducedwhenthehorizontaldisplacementpossessesalowerΔtandaconstantvelocityasbefore,.
Howwillairresistanceaffecttherangeofaprojectile? Knowingtheeffectsthatairresistancehaveonfree-
fallingobjects,thiswillhelpmeunderstandhowairresistancecouldalsoaffecttherangeofaprojectilemotion.Airresistanceisatypeofforcethatwilloccurnaturallywhenanobjectisunderatypeofmotioninair;onecandescribeitas‘frictioninair’becausethedirectionofairresistanceisoppositetothatofthemovingobject.Whentheforceofairresistancetakesaneffectonanobject,itcancelsoutasmuchFgaspossiblesoΔtoftheobject’sverticaldisplacementwillbelengthened.I’vestatedabovethatΔtoftheverticalandhorizontaldisplacementwillalwaysbethesame,soiftheΔtoftheverticaldisplacementislengthenedandcausetheΔtofhorizontaldisplacementtoalsobeexpanded,itwillgiveachancefortheobjecttocoveradditionalhorizontalΔd.
Measurements:Followingthoroughresearchofhandmadegliderdesigns,Idecidedtoaddsomeelementsofagliderthatcouldhavealargehorizontalrange.Forthis,Idecidedtomakethewingsthelargestcomponentofthe3partsIproposed:Thebody,thewings,andthetailairfoil.Imadesurethesizewasn'ttoosmallthatitwouldn'tbeabletoglide5mortoobigthatthelongerpartswouldbepronetodamage.ItriedtokeepithandheldsoIdecidedthatthebodyshouldbeabitshorterthana30cmrulerandthewingsshouldbelongerthana30cmrulersinceIhavealreadydecidedthatthewingswouldbethelongestcomponent.Asforthetailairfoil,Ididn'twantittobelongerthanhalfofthebodybecauseIdidn'twantittoacttoomuchlikethewing.
Materials:GivenwhatIknowaboutprojectilemotionfromclassandpersonalresearch,Itriedtousematerialsthatwouldhelpincreaseitslift.Sincemasshasagreateffectonlift,IdecidedthatIshouldusealightmaterialthatIwouldbeabletocutintoshapeandisreadilyavailablesuchasfoamcore.Ifeltlikefoam-corewasagreatoptionsinceit'sabletobecutandholditsshapewhilebeinglight-weightenoughtonotcreatealargeamountofFg.Iwillalsotrytouseleftoverclumpsofthefoamcoretouseasweightonthefrontsothegliderwouldstillbelightenoughtonotcausetoomuchairresistance.
Construction:Astepthatshouldbedoneprecedenttotheactualbuildingisaninvestigationofhowonemustgoaroundtobuildingit;therefore,Ivisualizedmethodsforbuildingthefinalglider.ImadesurethatIwasabletosmoothlycutfoamcoreandflattenthetipsoftheairfoilsthatwouldbeattackingtheairdirectlyinfrontofthem.OnceImadesurethesewerepossibletobedone,IthoughtthatIwassuretocontinueontothenextstep.
Pre-buildPlanning:BeforeevenstartingtophysicallybuildthegliderthatIwassupposedtopresenttotheclasswithaBANG!,Imadesuretohavethebasicsplannedoutintheformofadrawingalongwiththesize,materials,andconsiderthestepsuponconstructingtheglider.Ihavetomakesuretoincludemyknowledgeofphysicslawsandhowaerodynamicsapplytogliders(WorksheetB)tomakeagliderthat'ssupposedlyglidewellasthenameimplies.
Reflection:Afterinvestingusingtheonlineappletandseehowprojectilemotionworksincalculationmethod(asopposedtoexperimental),Ireflectedonthefactsandseehowthatmayhelpmebuildagliderthatworkswell.
Followingathoroughinvestigationusingtheonlineappletgiven,Iwasthenabletoconfirmwhethermyhypothesesregardingthecausesofaprojectilemotion’srangewerecorrectornot.Icheckedusingthesamesettingswithonlyonedifferentvariableeachtest.
Istartedoutbytestingwiththeappletusinginitialvelocityasthevariableandkeptthevalueofotheraspectsconstantforeverytest.Itappearedthatasyoualtertheinitialvelocity,therangeoftheprojectilemotionwouldalsoincrease.Thefactthattherangemayincreaseasyoualterthevelocitytohaveahighervalueprovesthatmyhypotheseswascorrect.ThisalsotellsmethatVicangiveaneffecttoaprojectilemotionbyincreasingtherangeasitsownvalueincreased.ThisissobecausealargervalueofViallowsanobjecttogothroughlargerdistanceinthesameamountoftimewithanobjectwiththesamemassandΔtbutalowerVi.
Followingupthisstep,Ireturnedtheinitialvelocitytotheoriginalvalueandmakeitbecomeaconstantvalueliketheothers.Thiswillallowmetomakeanothervaluebethevariable,IchoselaunchangleandcompareandcontrastittothehypothesisImadebeforehand.AsIfinishedtestingitout,IrememberedthatI’veobservedmotionsthatweresimilartowhatIpredicted.Thechangeoflaunchangledoesdeterminetherangeofaprojectilemotion,butithasboundaries.Asthelaunchangleisincreasedfrom0˚,theobjectisabletobeinairforalongerperiodoftimeandcausesalargerhorizontaldisplacementtobemade.Inmytestsusingtheonlineapplet,thiswasthecaseuntiltheanglehits43º.Following43˚+until90˚,therangedecreasesuntilitreaches0magainlikewhat0˚did.Thisiscausebecauseifthevelocityisconstantbuttheangleisincreased,astheViyincreasestheVixwillbedecreasedinstead,makingtheobjecthavelesspossiblehorizontaldisplacementinagiventimeperiod.Thefactthataprojectilemotion’srangecanbeincreasedbyincreasingthelaunchangleandhasalimitprovesthatthehypothesisImadebeforehandwascorrect.
Anothervalueofvariablewastobechosenforthenextstep.ThistimeIkepteverythingconstantexceptforthemassoftheobjectthat’sundergoingtheprojectilemotion.Ialsomadesurethtairresistanceisataconstantvalueofzero,meaningthatitisabsentfortheseparticularexperiments.Irealizedthatnomatterwhatthemassis,therangeoftheprojectilewouldbeconstantaslongastheotheraspectsofvariablesarekeptthesame.Thiscontradictsmyhypothesis,sonowIknowthatmassitself(notcountingairresistance)wouldnotaffecttherangeoftheprojectilesincetheforceofgravityiskeptataconstantof~9.8m/sbynature.
Iconcludedthetestingperiodbyusingairresistanceasthevariableforthissetoftests.LikethetestsI’vementionedabove,Ikepttherestoftheaspectsoftheprojectilemotionconstant.Airresistanceisconnectedtomass,soIhadtokeepthatinmindtounderstandmoreaboutprojectilemotion.FirstIcomparedtheprojectilemotionwiththeabsenceofairresistancetoonethatincludedairresistanceinit.Iknowthatairresistancewillnaturallyoccurinreallife,soIkeptaneyefortheonethatincludedtheairresistancefactor.AsIhavehypothesizedinthefirstsectionofthisworksheet,thepresenceofairresistancereducedtherangeoftheprojectilemotion.Airresistanceisatypeofforceandsinceitactsinanoppositedirectionoftheobjectundergoingprojectilemotion,theobjectwillhaveashorterrangeastheforceofairresistancegetsstronger.ThisalltiesbacktomassduetothefactthatFairresistancegetsstrongerastheobjectpossessmoremassasIhavetestedinthesimulator.Masswillonlyaffectthelengthofaprojectilemotion’srangeifairresistanceispresent,tdoesnotaffectitdirectlybyitself.
Describehowyouwillusetheresultsofthisinvestigationtohelpdesignyourglider.
Theresultsfromthisinvestigationfromtheprevioussectionhaveaidedmetogivemeaclearerunderstandingtowardsprojectilemotion,whichwillthenhelpmedesignthegliderIwasrequiredtobuildforthefinaltestattheendofthesemester.NowthatIknowwhatfactorsaffectaprojectilemotion’srangeandhowitworks,Iwillknowhowtomakemydesignwithfactorsthatmakeitsprojectilemotionhaveagreatvalueofrange.FromwhatI’vewrittenonthetestswiththesimulator,thevariablesthatcouldbechangedinordertohavethelargestvalueofhorizontaldisplacementincludealargeenoughinitialvelocity,amediumlaunchangleofaround43˚,andaminimumamountofairresistancewhichcanbereceivedbydecreasingthemass.
ThefirsttwothingsthatI’vementionedwere:alargeenoughinitialvelocityandamoderate(~43˚)launchangle.Thesecan’tbedecipheredintoadesignoftheglider,soIwillhavetomakesureIdothiswhilepracticingfortheglider’sflights.
Thelasttwothingsonthelistwerethemassandamountofairresistancepresent.FromwhatI’vejustlearnedpreviously,Iknowthatthesetwoareinterlinkedtoeachotherandcannotbecalculatedseparatelysincetheamountofairresistancepresentisdependentonthemassoftheobject(inthiscasemyglider).Tomakesuremyglidercangothroughalargerange,Ishoulddesignitsothatthegliderisn’ttooheavyandcausealargeamountofairresistancetoactuponthegliderwhileitisintheair.Iwillbedesigningusingfoamcoreasthemainmaterialandhaveeachoftheglider’spartonlyhaveonelayerofthematerialinordertohavealightgliderthatcangothroughalargerange.
Post-buildReflection
Thesizesarequitedifferentfromthepreliminarydesignduetomateriallimitationsandhumanerror.
Materials:Untiltheend,Istuckwithmyoriginalplanofusingfoamcore,itwasdurableenoughtoholditsshapedespitebeingalightenoughmaterial.Fortheweightthatwasaddedtothefrontoftheglider,Idecidedtousetwowatchbatteriesforthefinalcopyaftertestingthegliderwithmultipledifferentweights.SinceIhadtwoofthemIwasabletostickthemusingcellotape,oneoneithersideoftheglidertokeepitsbalance.Ichangeditfrommyoriginalplanofusingclumpsoffoamcorebecausethebatterieswereworkingbetterasweight,thefoamcoreclumpsweretoolight.WhenIusedthefoamcoreclumpsthegliderflippedandthenosewasupintheairbecauseitwasthelightestpartoftheglider,indicatingtheneedofmaterialchangefortheweight.
Procedure:SinceIknewtheshape,parts,andsizeofthegliderIwasmakingIwentonanddrewthetemplateonthefoamcoredirectlyandcutouttheshapesandholesusingaprecisioncuttingtool.OnceIhadallthreepartscuteoutIflattenthefrontpartsofeachairfoiltoincreaseliftliketheinformationIwasabletogetonairfoils.BeforeputtingallthepartstogetherItapedonewatchbatteryoneithersideofthegliderbody'snoseastheweight.Oncethatwasdone,allIhadtodowastomarkthemid-waypointofeachairfoilandstickthewings/tailairfoilintotheholesIhadcutoutonthebody.Onceit'sallset,IfoldedthewingsupwardsfromthebodybecauseIrealizedthiswasabletogivetheglidermorerangeasitglides.
ChallengeDayAnalysisJanuary12,2016
Asaclass,wehaveagreedtoamass-testingonTuesday,January12th2016.Therewereatotal
of
12groups.
Observations/ResultsIherebyapologizeforanymistakes ofthegroupmembers' namesandclassification.
Emily,Shirley,Jun
Yara
Jiaxin,Fanny,Rui,Guanyi
Mashaal
Samira
Anson,Tahmina
Saadia
Natasya(Self-Evaluation)
Arbab,Sharukh
Khalid,Rafay
Khusanbek,Tasin,Kevin
Tim,Krishna,Fatari,Omid
Thefirsttwoflightswereabletoshowhowthegliderwasabletoglidesmoothlythroughtheairfor>7mwithoutslantingtothesides.Thethirdflightwereoffby>30cmtotheside,showingthatthelaunchofthegliderisaveryimportantaspectofitsrange.Thefirsttwoflightswerealreadyenoughtoshowhowwell-constructedandthoughtupitwas.
Atfirstsight,thegliderseemedverysmall,light,anddelicatebutitwasabletoglidepastthe5mmarksandmakeitswaytogointothe6mrange.Iwaslatertoldbythecreatorherselfthatitwasmadeoutofstyrofoamandastraw.Masswouldincreaseairresistancewhichinturnwillcreatedragandshortentherange,soitwaswellthought-outthattheglider'sfinaldesignwaslightenough.
Thegliderthatthisgroupmanagedtomakewasclearlylargerthanmost,italsolookedprettythick.Wingthicknesscouldbeagoodthingsinceitcanincreaselift.Thegliderwasabletosucceeditstwotestsandfor-funflightcompetitionattheend.Itwasasuccessfulglider,IwastoldbyoneofthemembersthatitwasmadebyfoamcoresoIknowitwasstilllighteventhoughitwashuge.Thiswasabletoletthemmakeagliderthatcouldglideover10m.
Iwasabletotalktothecreatorofthisglider,shewasabletousebalsawoodandsupergluetoconstructherglider.Itwasverylightandfeltdelicate,butitwasabletogoasfaras~8m.Itslightnesswasabletoglidesmoothlywithoutalotofairresistance.
Thisgroup'sgliderlookedbulkyandheavy,butitwasabletoglide5m.Ithinkthatinsideallthatvoluminousbodyitwasactuallyair,soitwasn'tthatheavy.Thenoseofitkepthittingthegroundfirst,soitmightbethatthefrontweightisabittoomuchandcouldbetakenabit.Ithadaninterestingdesignforaglider,thewingswereapparentlybigenoughtosupportitsalreadylargebody.
Thisgroup'sgliderhadaverydistinctwingformfromtherestofourclass,sinceitwastheonlyonewhohaddeltawings.Itlookedlightatfirstsight,sincethewingsweremadeoftissuepaper.Ireallylikedtheirideaofusingplaydohasweightbecausetheycaneasilyadjustthem.Itlookedlightandquitedifferentfromtherestoftheclass,butitwasabletoglide~7mduringtestandover10mintheirprevioustests(Iwastoldbythemembers)andinthelittleclasscontestthatmanypeopleparticipatedinforfun.Itseemedthatsomegroupsmentionedhowtheywereabletogetbetterresultsinthecompetitionduetothelackofpressure,itwasfuntowatchandseeothers'reactions.
Thiswasanothergroupthathadaprettylarge-in-volumeglider.Theywereabletousebalsawoodastheirmainmaterialandstillkeepthemintactforalargeglider.Theywereabletogopast5mbutabitoffinaccuracy,whichIthinkwasthecauseofconstruction.Itwaslargeenoughbutitwaswell-thoughtthattheystillmanagedtomakeitlightenoughfortheglidertobeabletoglide.Itmightbeabittoolightasitkeptliftinguptotheceiling.
Thisgliderwasmadeoutofallcardboard,whichIfindinterestingbecausetheyusedextracardbordbitsasweight.SinceItrieddoingthesamewithfoamcore,Iwasinterestedhowitwouldworkinthisglider.Thegliderwasabletoglidefartherthan5m,sotheweightworkedwellandwasn'ttoolightthatwouldflipthegliderupside-down.TherewerealsotwostringsattachedtothewingsthatIthinkaresupposedtorepresenttheoutlineofadeltawingsuchasAnson&Tahmina'sglider.
Self-Reflection:Lookingbackatmyglider'sdesignandperformance,IwasabletoreflectitssuccessesandfailuresIshouldconsiderinordertounderstandmoreaboutaerodynamicsandhowIcould'vemadeitbetter.Mygliderwasn'tabletogopast5minthefinaltestingforbothtries,soIknowtherewereflawsthatshould'vebeenfixed.Thebalanceofthegliderwasoffbecauseitwasn'tabletogoinastraightline,soIshould'vekeptitinplaceinsteadofmakingdetachablepartsthatIquicklyputtogetherrightbeforethetesting.Ialsohaveafeelingthatthewatchbatteriesweretoolight,theorientationofthegliderwhileitwasglidingwasnotstable.AnothersourceoferrorIthinkIdidhorriblywasmyshakylaunching.IwasawareofhowinconsistentmylaunchescanbeasexplainedinmyFlightTestLogfollow-up.Despiteallthesefailures,IdothinkthatitwasactuallyquitesuccessfulbecauseIactuallybuiltsomethingthatcouldglideinaway.
Iwasimpressedbythisteam'ssuccessfulglider,thevisualswerealsogreatbutthereweresomeunbalancesthatmadetheflightpathnotsostraight,Ithinkthatitwasthecauseofhumanerrorinbuilding.Ifeellikechangesshouldbemadeaftereachtestuntilflightsareconsistent.
Thisgroup'swasalsooneofthelargerglidersinmyopinion.Theirflightswerestraightatsometimes,soweknowthattheglider'sdesignitselfisabletomaintainastraightpath-itmightbethelaunchingthatmadeitslanttotheside.Itwasabletogostraightbutnottoofarawayfromthe5mline,itmightbetooheavybutitwaswell-constructedoverall.
FlightTestLog
Thisgroupwassuccessfullyabletomakeagliderthatglides>5mwithoutitslantingtoomuch,thoughIfIrecallcorrectly,thereweresomeimbalancesthatmight'vebeentohumanerrorwhilephysicallybuildingit.Theglideritselflookedprettysturdyinmyownopinion.
Observations/ResultsPriortothefinaltesting,IhadtomakesurethatthegliderthatIhavedesignedandconstructedwas
functional.
Duringmypersonalglidetests,Iknewthatmygliderwasquiteinconsistentinaway,withthefactthatmyflightskeptturningtotheleftsidewhilemysisterkeptmakingthegliderflytotherightside.Ikeptadjustingthewingsandtriedtokeepitconsistent,butIwasabletogetfrom4m-6mrange.Itneverwentpastthe6mmarkbutIwasabletogopastthegoal,5m,andsincethatgoalwasachievedItriedtomakemyglider'sflightsgostraight.Ihavetried3differentwingsofsimilarshapebutmyflightskeptgoingtotheleft.Itriedtobalanceitsincethewingsandtailairfoilwereadjustable,butIdidn'tknowexactlywhatwasmakingittotheleft.Whenmysistertried,shekeptmakingthegliderglidetothelefteventhoughshedidn'tadjustthewingsandkeptitthesameasmine.ThistoldmethattherewassomethingwrongwiththewayIthrewit,andIknewmygliderwasfarfromperfect.Beforethiserrortest,Itriedtomakeitgopastthe5mrangeandwasabletowhenIbentthewingssothatitgoesupwardfromthewingmidpoint.
Thefinalflighttests(2tries)atschoolwasquitedifferentfromathome,butitwasjustasinconsistent.Mythrowmadeitgoslantedandlessthan5m.Itwasabout3.2mandthesecondonewasabout3.1m,withitbeingslantedover6cmfromthemiddleflightline.
Asafollow-upofourunderstandingofgrade11Physicsfromtheknowledgewe’veacquiredfromtherestofthesemester,weweretoconcludeitwithagliderresearch/buildingprojectbeforewrappingitallupwithourfinalexam.Itwasaspot-onchoiceofaculminatingprojectduetothefactthatithadtomakeusthinkinawiderrangefrommanydifferentlessonsthatwe’vehadthroughoutthesemester.Wewerethentoapplyallthatintoaprojecttoshowhowwewould’vethink,inquire,andapplyourknowledgeandunderstandingofPhysicsinourlevel.
Asanintroductiontograde11UPhysicscourse,wewerefirstfacedwiththeconceptofscalarandvectormeasurements.Ourstudiesrepeatedandstressedononeparticularvectormeasurement,whichhappenedtobevelocity.Velocityisavectormeasurementthatisusedtodeterminethemagnitudeanddirectionoftherateinwhichanobjectcouldtravelacertaindistancetoaspecificdirection.Weappliedthisknowledgeintoourgliderssincewenowknowhowvelocityplaysabigroleinanymovingobjects.ConsideringthefactthatI’vementionedvelocitywould’veaffectedaprojectilemotioninWorksheetA,weshouldconsiderandthinkthroughthatajust-rightlaunchingvelocitywasimportanttoourprojectsinceitwouldaffectthefinalresults.
Expandingourknowledgeofvelocity,wewerethenintroducedtothemoredetailedconceptofanothervectormeasure,acceleration.Withitbeingavectormeasurementoftherateofchangeofspeedinacertaindirection,itisconsideredrelatedtovelocity.Aswewentontolearnmoreaboutthisconceptmoreintheclass,weunderstoodmoresuchasgravitationalacceleration.Gravityisaone-wayforcefulpulltowardstheearth’scentreandcannotbeavoidedaslongasyou’reinitsfield,soweunderstoodthefactthatitwouldaffectourgliders.Usingourknowledgeofaccelerationwasconsideredquiteimportantinorculminatingactivity.
Wewereabletoextendourunderstandingbyapplyingourknowledgeindifferentproblem-solvingexercisesstartingwithlinearmotionsituationsandmovedonto2Dpathsandexpandedintoprojectilemotionsituations.Beingabletosolvetheseproblemswouldhelpusunderstandhowthegliderwouldbeabletoglide.
Understandingtheconceptsofphysicswouldhelpusnotonlybuild,butthepurposeandhowagliderwouldwork.