Kyle Gluesenkamp from the School's mechanical engineering department, hand-cranking and pedaling like his life depended on it, managed to keep the huge quad-rotor craft aloft for 50 seconds, an impressive new world record that's currently awaiting validation by the National Aeronautic Association (NAA).
Comments
The goal is to win the Sikorsky Prize. The requirements are hard. A 60 second human powered flight at a 3 meter altitude while staying within a 10 meter square! These light-weight quadrotors hover at amazingly low power levels, but there's still a long way to go. I wonder what would be possible if carbon nanotubes were cost-effective to produce and available in long strands...
http://www.vtol.org/awards-and-contests/human-powered-helicopter/hp...
They should add a small motor to it. I wonder how long they can make it hover under power.
I really like to see how slow the RPM's are! It's impressive. It makes me want to give it a ride.. I wonder if those blades art filled up with some lighter-than-air gas. I also wonder what kind of control do you get from the machine.
Too bad the heroine pilot had to go to make that time. Their biggest problem is finding enough space to fly in. They have to set up & test during the periods when the gym isn't in use. They can't do spontaneous experiments, but have to plan ahead.