Passive sustained power-kite looping with no pilot-kite?

Topic

Passive sustained power-kite looping
with no pilot-kite?
"a possible new class of SLK." ?

Send AWE notes and topic replies to editor@upperwindpower.com

April 14, 2020, post by Dave Santos
Further video confirmation of passive SLPK (Single-Line Power-Kite class) function

Further video confirmation of passive SLPK (Single-Line Power-Kite class) function, in fluky low wind. Opening shot shows anchor, no human pilot, then pans to kite launch and some loops.

The kite wandered toward the window edge in lowest wind, and came down in lulls, but also sustained flight for considerable time. Normal issues caused and reversed fooling with tunings. Thankfully, the kite flies fairly well in both high wind and low wind, not much retuning needed. It should be possible to find the largest "most probable wind-range" tuning, with just-right elastic response in that range. There is also a crick in the kite to smooth out by correcting a subtle bridle detune in strong turn-state.
Video:
https://youtu.be/NSp45kgOAvU for 1/8 playback speed. For real-life speed: https://youtu.be/eIj85YnFcCE

April 13, 2020, post by Dave Santos
Rigging made clearer for "First P:assive-Looping Power-Parafoil"
"Sustained Looping Flight with no pilot-lifter or avionics"

Hope this makes the rigging clear.

In 2006 Culp could only tell me that Makani circle was thinking of a looping power kite as the primary solution to AWE, but they did not hit on a workable COTS-based rig. I knew it possible from the start, but it took years to ripen. The final trick was to feel roughly how much elastic and turn-input tuning was needed. The DS* whistle took two small final tunings tied into the lines.

Open-AWE_IP-Cloud
*

"DS" > Dynamic Soaring across a steep wind gradient is like bullets whistling close by, makes it hard to think. DS whine as well. You can hear it on the video, that Banshee sound. Aztec Death Whistle similarity case.

April 10, 2020, post by Dave Santos
Passive sustained power-kite looping with no pilot-kite?

kPower current experiment explores passive sustained power-kite looping with no pilot-kite. The two-line kite is set in a modest clockwise turn, then elastic in the outside line stretches for a tighter push-turn phase as the kite passes 7o’clock (maximum pull). This rig is expected to sustain looping flight, or at least delay sinking down. If flight is sustained, it is a possible new class of SLK.

Ready to test when wind allows. Place your bets, ladies and gentlemen.

=================
Maiden-flight Report-
Good session, light wind. Launching required a bit of pumping. Normal launch with turn fixed into lines would result in a half-loop. In the light wind, this is what the kite did when it did not extend elastic bungee. Bungee mantle tends to lock in some pre-stretch. Asymmetric weight of the bungee in lowest wind showed a counter-turn effect, correctable by balance mass added to the inelastic line side.

Best of all, the kite looped as wanted, if just once, in a brief puff. Otherwise passive elastic push turn was verified by pumping, which caused strong push-turn input. A fine wing might fly overhead in calm by this pump-rig method, opposite control logic to Asian Fighter, which passively spins until pumped to track. So new kite art learned, encouraging baby-steps toward a passive crosswind-looping SLK

Session- Founders Memorial Park in Dripping Springs, Texas, 15 min, around 4:30 pm local time. *

Kite: ~2006 Prism Stylus 1.8 m2 two-line [[Ed: Then see special rigging where single-line (SL) from aloft two-line spreader and swivel.]]

Rig: fishing swivel, ~20-cm two-line spreader-stick, 50-cm elastic section in one ~4-m leader line.

Flown short-line: ~12-m SL to swivel (long-line testing next)
=============================
* It has two large grass sports fields end-to-end, and it is even used for paramotoring, but is an ideal hobby-kite field with fairly clean wind in all directions. Clean wind is highly coherent, laser-like long-range order.
====================
April 12, 2020 :

Editor: "Did you single-line the two-line Stylus for the video shot?"
Dave: "Yes, it was ~40 m single-line from a single swivel and two-line spreader 4 m from the kite. Completely passive looping between launch and the freakish landing dead in-hand. Turn was tuned-in, then progressive as bungee stretched in phase."
===============================

It was the second line break; shown is broken 100-lb line and 500-lb replacement line.

I'll photo-closeup the rig tomorrow to complete the documentation. It took several tunings to dial in the loop.
======================== More description wanted ...?

[[Ed: still photo. More caption may be coming.]]

??post??