FanWing Demonstration Flight at ParcAberporth International UAV/S Event June 2008

[FuLLeFFekT1]

Lets not forget; Alexander Chessin & Serge Trey!

[FuLLeFFekT1]

A.M. Lippisch & Dr. F.K. Kirsten would be proud!!

[leqo12]

I wonder, what would be the glide ratio of that aircraft once the engine stops...

[1206549]

@leqo12 about 1:3 but it is fully capable of an auto-rotational landing

[fast86gti]

i want to see a life size one + birdstrike on camera LOL

[JacobANielsen]

wow! what an amazing concept! I know it doesn't look good, but a machine that isn't sensitive to the weather and produce a high lift at low speed, that is worth looking into!

[lunageologist]

Ok, this is a very new spin on a very old idea. The old idea was very poorly executed and didn't fly at all. This on the other hand appears to be a break through on the scale of the Saturn V rocket. I wonder how well it would work in very low pressure environments (high altitudes or even the surface/atmosphere of Mars). Great job! I am truly impressed. 5 of 5 stars!.

[fubleduck]

Can it glide?

[1206549]

@fubleduck no but it can do an autor-otational landing

[beer94]

now planes can harvest crops as well as spray pesticides and fertilizer

[Hungrystudent101]

wow that is increadible!!!

[nagrom355]

Keep it away from the GRASS!!!! 

[JohnLeePedimore]

This makes the barstool go cart look rather pedestrian.

[Ibringthetruth1]

There is videos of this type fanwing from the 1950's and earlier.

who invented it?

[twonulator]

It gets a remarkable amount of lift for how slow it's going. Looks more efficient than a helicopter. Good design. Looks like someone mounted my column house fan on a fuselage.

[McFuckNuggets]

Few questions:

- Does the fanwing create a gyroscopic effect?

- Can it travel at high speed as well? Or is it strictly low-speed?

- How is the efficiency of this aircraft when compared to helicopters or other airplanes?

[gwgn02]

Would be a good design for crop dusting, low stall speed and less likely to be suceptible to wind shear.

[TheAbelinkin]

The right to keep and bear arms because people always want to patrol and monitor when removing freedoms one by one. someday we will all be gov. employees monitoring one another. I think the Soviet Union proved this to be a bad idea.

[rahulras]

Doesn't she look so excited xD And she said her name so fast :/

[KittyaaRudyaa582]

Hey_ãNýõNÈ_wáNÑÁ_chat_with_më_­Í_fèêl_sÒ_loNËlý_tÖdÅy♬

[santinasiford05]

njoyed this great movie in web movie tube

[leafyP]

It's cool, but do we really need to try and reinvent the mouse trap?

Looks like you just put an enormous gyro in the pitch axis.

[Teabahgeue]

I wanna see a FanWing Helicopter type contraption.

[edcoondog]

@Teabahgeue lookup "cyclo-gyro"

[justdfactsmaam]

Patrol city streets? Ummmm no thank you. Hello 4th Amendment!

[jonzflicks]

Would a Flettner wing work? Rather like those Flettner ships but with the tubes horizontal like the fan wings here.

[Tailwindsurfer]

Very clever design,will make a brilliant aerial UAV. More companies are using UAV to see how projects are doing. A stable platform and slow flying ideal for filming and video, without the huge expense of a helicopter.

Wondering though if it could glide, in the event it lost power ???

Again its nice to see something new with a little imagination applied.

Mike

[Jpwnage216]

not used to the grass? the grass is its natural habitat

[RCvehicleGuy]

well your screwed if the motor stops cause that is half of your lift in this design. It would be way cool to build on of those.

[1206549]

@RCvehicleGuy it can do auto-rotation like a helicopter

[DarthSchwartz]

cool

[demmylowther]

Yeah,another way for Government to pry into are private lifes.I can picture local townships checking up on us with one of these with an onboard camera to make sure we are not putting additions on the back of our homes without permits,or checking up on what we are doing period ! If I saw this thing flying over my home knowing it was the local township,out comes my 410 shot gun to shot the fucka down.If it's too high for a 410,I'd use something else,whatever I can use.America is no longer FREE.

[seven7arrows]

@demmylowther SCARY. They make no secret of the fact that it's intent is "urban surveillance." Spying on citizens. Not enemies, but citizens in their homes and on the streets. I'd shoot it down like goose and stomp on the pieces.

[loveskullz411]

Id hate to get my fingers stuck in that thing....

[trainguy3]

If they want to make it into a full sizd aircraft (and keep the land gear config) they'll have to move thefront ones forward, and lower the rear, because realistically it wont be able to take the stress of that hard a lanxding

[1971SuperLead]

Wild!

[SuperCrashpilot]

ok we got a wing under that rotating motor, so that thing must hover very good. think its a coanda effect why this plane will fly so stable, isnt it?

[SuperCrashpilot]

i think its autorotaded like an helicopter, when motor is dead? is that right?

[gootch420]

i feel bad for the birds

[TheCHRISintheMIX]

lol, if that became a REAL airplane i would NEVER EVER fly with it.

its just a plane with a huge lawn-mover on top of it. its suicide

[NelielTuOderswank]

@TheCHRISintheMIX No its not, it flies on entirely different principals, and is far more stable and responsive at low speeds than any conventional aircraft. Aircraft like these do not have a stall speed, because so long as the fan is rotating, it will create a low pressure zone above the channel and produce lift.

[KamikazeElvis]

The comments on here are almost as interesting as the aircraft itself. It's fascinating how many people choose to look at the limitations, rather than the possibilities of this design. I guess it takes a special kind of person to think 'what if' rather than 'what's the point'.

[MrAataghi]

wondeful Idea

[cadude145]

wow, would not have believed it if I had not seen it, that is really something

[allaboutgliders]

Really awesome...

[GRATZIANI2002]

i cannot imagine what it means for a real plane to have a mass of few hundreds kgs atop of you rotating , also gyro effect, balancing for snow and ice.....and so on..

[RoboTekno]

I'm sure when you loose power, gliding is not an option?

[NelielTuOderswank]

@RoboTekno Gliding is absolutely an option, and it can be at a much lower speed than a conventional aircraft. Its almost more similar to autorotation, because as the aircraft glides forward, the fan is freewheeling, which produces lift.

[ZoranM001]

Какве наказе...? Јел их није срамота да се јавно појаве?

[KDEngineering]

Large scale protective intake screens a must

Imagine a 90 thousand RPM bird vac

Pieces would fly

How does it favor in rain or snow ?

Nice concept though

[airlinerdude12]

I saw the amateur video of the simulated fanwing. But my god. I CAN'T BELIEVE IT FLIES!!!!!!. That is so amazing.

[domisollafa]

looks like a lawn mover upside down.

[NVanWendy]

You know, there are a dozen weird concepts for new aircraft types that are supposedly full of advantages but which never get anywhere. Can you imagine this thing at full scale, the huge "mower reel" screaming around at high RPM, requiring perfect balance and tuning lest the bearings fail, a weld break, or a slight oscillation start? It could turn into a ball of scrap metal in seconds. You can't scale up the rigidity and speed you'd need.

[vealicle1]

@NVanWendy it supposedly flies at very low rpm's about 1000rpm, i believe. It's also supposed to be far more quiet than a helicopter. That's why it's first proposed use is surveillance.

[ppeerrssoonnnn]

i've always wanted a flying lawnmower

[Boosteroid]

You wouldn't want to get your fingers caught in it. :-)

[Scwirul]

@Boosteroid neither would you want to get your head stuck in a jet engine.

[thepaperlantern]

In power-out situation, does the fan auto-rotate due to forward momentum to provide a gradual descent?

[airlinerdude12]

@thepaperlantern i think this is why they should stick to small scale.

[masterfulninja]

A zeppelin would provide a steady lift and the fanwings could run down its sides to provide stable maneuvering with (what i think would be) IMMENSE energy savings in large scale freight transport.

I think most new technologies fall under the curse of "In a vaccumn" thinking. When i see a fanwing i see more than a new way to build a plane i see it being integrated into current systems to improve them.

[masterfulninja]

I think this propulsion type would partner exceptionally well with a zeppelin type lift mechanism for ultra-heavy loads and large scale construction. A wind-proof Zeppelin is the pinnacle of efficiency.

[Atomintercom]

Impossible to land safely if fuel runs out because planes have wings to keep them afloat if u lose power to the fan uh oh no more lift and it comes down, down, down til it goes SPLAT!!

Think about that would u

[teanor2]

This design could potentially allow to regulate lift generated by each wing without using ailerons - just by changin rotation speed.

[08I80]

That's open minded design for sure,congrats, but in a larger scale you should take some measures to avoid bird sucking, or else with so large active surface it would be a true flying mincer!

[cerveza55]

This is really neat, but the last thing we need is more surveillance propagated by politicians fear-mongering.

[SalsaTiger83]

@cerveza55 depends on the type of state, doesn't it? Some states managed pretty nasty surveillance with no technological means to speak of, on the other hand politicians nowadays get ripped a new one for any potential data leak.

[folypers]

they should make a helicopter version with machine guns on both axes!

[PotatoeFreak]

I like it, might make future flights cheaper and safer?

But when up-scaling it, have you thought about the birds? Looks like birds can get caught up in it easier since its bigger (when it is at a larger scale).

[mae951]

When it took ok it really seemed to create near-instantaneous lift. It is more stable in wind, light weight variants will be safer and more stable.

[RocketBurn11]

You better have a reliable powerplant, and an accurate fuel gauge. Would make a good platform for a complete aircraft parachute.

[mowgli2071]

Move the front landing wheels a bit forward, possibly.

[datzfast]

proof of moore alien technology from crashed UFO

[jonathanmarvin]

@datzfast lol wtf how would alien spacecraft even get to earth with this 'alien technology'?

there is no air in space for the fans to slice through and get thrust, to move in space you need rockets...

[1320crusier]

surely you jest...lol

an alien craft coming from light years away wont fly like a horizontal tower fan..

[burnrider2001]

you guys really think that this thing will get off the ground with 2 lbs of payload? thats alot for such a slow moving plane.

[heatherrose2006]

2 kilos=4.4 lb.

[burnrider2001]

even better for my argument.... not 2lbs but instead its 4.4

[lighteningflash7]

@burnrider2001 the point is that is will have higher lift at lower speed because the fan provides both thrust and lift. pulling air over the wing provides the same lift that you get with a normal wing moving at high speed

[UBERGRIMKVLT]

Seems worthless to me.

Maybe it could be a cheap quiet drone, but probably nothing more.

[NuguSmedley]

I'm sure people said the same to Frank Whittle

[teanor2]

@burnrider2001

it's lift doesn't depend so much on horizontal speed,

that's the whole point of this design.

[RogerPriceDesigns]

Very cool concept......but what happens with the engine dies. Both helicopters and planes can land dead stick. Unless this thing can change the pitch of it's blades............SPLAT!

[Skydive4ever]

I've heard of the flying lawnmower, but not the flying harvester, lol, this is awesome :-)

[cippergut]

nice stuff.

[yesiamanalien]

Best use (once developed further) would be to scale it up, use gas turbine engines to power the rotors and use it to ship huge amounts of cargo. If it has "an unusually high lift" then what needs a lot of lift? Cargo carrying planes.

[youlilkitty]

agreed

[rb5235]

Electric power airplanes, cars boats etc is worthless until there is something 100x better than the battery. Batteries as we know them now is a joke for a power source.

[mattman1515]

good rc pilot

[liambaron]

the idea is that its going to go slow - idiot. who said its designed to be as fast as a jet?

[RCexperimental]

@waheguru12345 You don't seem to understand what the pilot says at the beginning, the fanwing theoretically has very a very slow stall speed and good slow flight capabilities making it good for certain applications. Also, I imagine the fanwing would be much more efficient than the A380 due to the large wingtip vortexes created by faster jets wings.

[biggiginthesky]

Would like to ask the designer.

In a power-out situation, does it still glides?

Please answer.

Thanks,

[kjr23]

@biggiginthesky The engine autorotates like a helicopter and it provides enough lift for a more or less controlled landing.

[kjr23]

@biggiginthesky The engine autorotates like a helicopter and it provides enough lift for a more or less controlled landing.

[fraidknot]

@biggiginthesky Fifteen seconds on their website led me to this: "R&D is now establishing the ideal angle of attack to achieve maximum rpm. If the motor stops it will be disconnected from the rotor as it is in a helicopter. Wind-tunnel tests have shown a steady improvement in glide-autorotation. ...The glide angle will be steep (1:3 )but the actual descent speed will be low and rotor speed will be high enough to allow a good landing."

[tempelritter007]

@biggiginthesky

Fanwing FAQ says: "R&D is now establishing the ideal angle of attack to achieve maximum rpm. If the motor stops it will be disconnected from the rotor as it is in a helicopter. Wind-tunnel tests have shown a steady improvement in glide-autorotation. Practical proof was provided by engine failure during a test flight in 2004. The glide angle will be steep (1:3 )but the actual descent speed will be low and rotor speed will be high enough to allow a good landing."

[NelielTuOderswank]

@biggiginthesky Will just glide, with the fan freewheeling.

[leereturn2006]

@biggiginthesky parachute at the head 2 ends of the wings and the tail.

[BlackPsychoNonick]

@biggiginthesky it glides totaly fine in a power out situation , like every normal brick .

[mkifyousayso]

@biggiginthesky

If I had to guess, I'd say no (or at least not as much as a traditional winged craft) just because the difference in air pressure, from what I can tell ( I could be totally wrong) is exclusively dependent on the fan, not the shape of the wing. Maybe if the fan could have very, very small friction and they would continue to spin then it might displace enough air to keep it aloft for a small while.

[Sealy57]

@biggiginthesky I'm not the designer, but if you notice, the wing presents a more or less standard airfoil. Therefore the plane should glide power off. Glide ratio would be contingent on wing load.

[ioan21121221]

HAHA WELSH!

[rommelfcc]

still awesome for a model aircraft training.

would be good for like a air cargo or air ambulance perhaps like a piper cub can take off across the airstrip :)

and cheaper than a helicopter :)

[fambothexterminator]

...really, urban surveilance, huh?...if that "thing" falls into my backyard, it's MINE; and it would cost them 'bout $500 (U.S. dollars) to get it back...depending on what they're surveying on---I'm DEAD SERIOUS!

[edik1952]

Да все ништяк, пацаны!

[L0nelyDrag0n]

ага, не парьтесь, пацаны %)

[lectrick]

Won't ever be used to carry humans due to it falling like a rock if there is any engine trouble.

[Forshbr04]

You mean like a helicopter?  Because they carry humans.

[lectrick]

Touché!

[PedroLoyola]

Helicopters don't fall like rocks at engine failures.. search for "auto-rotation"

much like when u cut a plastic cup's side in many sheets and let it fall from a building; it spins down at a slower descent rate

[Forshbr04]

That's true, but the survival rate of helicopters with engine failures is much lower than that of fixed wing aircraft.

[PedroLoyola]

true..

[TirianB]

This is not a helicopter. It is going to fall like a brick if the engine stalls.

[FCbisleybob]

err no its not. it has a fixed wing. the fan is for propulsion not lift. if the engine stopped airspeed is created by a nose down angle of attack letting gravity do the work. air over the wing creates lift. exactly what the polar curve would be like is unknown. but it looked pretty level in normal flight i.e not nose high engine dependant so i'd guess not too bad.

[TirianB]

But the profile of the wing is generated by the rotating fan. If that stops, then there is no profile to hold the plane in the air. The fan will act as a giant wind brake instead and cause the plane to drop.

[pelagic6]

TirianB,  yes sir.

[BuffaloWarrior7]

they said its designed for UAVs

[LTF85199]

Definitely innovative, well done!

[RCSuperPowers]

Well that works good!

[catfcatf]

where i can see the especificatios of engine ? is brushless? abaout of the batery what type of batery? please......tanks

[Whiskeytango26]

Is it quiet? I see great potential for this craft as a Military UAV, but only if it can be silent, and the previous comment on wether it can hover...

[Craig9080]

silence isnt really That important in a UAV as they are far enough away that almost any electric propulsion system cannot be heard.

[vanepico]

i like it!

[Odziz]

That was an extremely short take off!

[Ogsonofgroo]

Interesting stuff! I wonder how are these systems affected by rain?

[mekkler]

Can the fans be configured so as to provide hovering ability. A Fancopter, perhaps?

[theoriginaldanidor]

Congratulations, an awesome idea with a huge potential. Keep at it and it sure will become a great success in many different applications!

[theoriginaldanidor]

traffic surveillance, military reconnaissance, aerial photography, science e.g. animal tracking & counting, advertising e.g. pulling banners behind, meteorology and the list goes on

[rrreger]

I see :)

[rrreger]

Looks awesome! I wonder how good can it fly-land if the engine stops, is it safer than usual planes?

[stereoroid]

I'd hope that a production version would include a clutch (or Bendix drive?) so that the rotors could spin freely if the engine stops - allowing its version of autorotation.