Re: Soul V2?
Posted: Mon May 03, 2021 6:52 am
Yup done by F2 back in the early 2000s lei center section, ram air wing tipsGestalt wrote: ↑Mon May 03, 2021 12:17 amI wonder if anyone has experimented around with a hybrid foil/lei design. Where you could use something like Aluula to provide a strong rigid frame (with or without bladder) and use the light foil fabric with ram air intakes (still using a closed cell design) to create the rest of the wing/canopy so it maintains it's high aspect ratio and boosting properties. If it was creatively engineered in the right way, I wonder if Aluula could be used to replace for example the fiberglass rods (as in the VMG) to create more structural rigidity. You could possibly dramatically reduce bridles with this kind of construction, increase rigidity, increase responsiveness, etc.andylc wrote: ↑Sun May 02, 2021 10:41 pmForgive me for being thick - it would be great if someone could work out how to get a foil kite like the Soul to turn faster. I’m not sure I quite get why this is not possible. The Soul in particular once inflated is a really solid kite in the sky, so why is there not a way to make a bridle system that will make it turn a bit less like the Titanic especially in the larger sizes?
Aluula at 82 g/m2 may still not be light enough however. We may need to wait for a new material that has similar properties to Aluula and is closer in weight to the fabric being used in the foils now which is in the low ~30's g/m2. My hope is that new materials will give rise to new designs that are just not possible with current technology.