Radio Control Aircraft !!LINK!!
A radio-controlled aircraft (often called RC aircraft or RC plane) is a small flying machine that is controlled remotely by an operator on the ground using a hand-held radio transmitter. The transmitter continuously communicates with a receiver within the craft that sends signals to servomechanisms (servos) which move the control surfaces based on the position of joysticks on the transmitter. The control surfaces, in turn, directly affect the orientation of the plane.
radio control aircraft
Flying RC aircraft as a hobby grew substantially from the 2000s with improvements in the cost, weight, performance, and capabilities of motors, batteries and electronics. Scientific, government, and military organizations are also using RC aircraft for experiments, gathering weather readings, aerodynamic modeling, and testing. A wide variety of models, parts, and styles is available for the DIY market.
The earliest examples of electronically guided model aircraft were hydrogen-filled model airships of the late 19th century. They were flown as a music hall act around theater auditoriums using a basic form of spark-emitted radio signal.[4]
The National Model Aviation Museum located in Muncie, Indiana hosts the world's largest collection of RC aviation history. They display models from every era of RC donated by the RC community around the world. They also have kit plans (aircraft blueprints) that RC pilots can purchase to build models from every era. The museum is located on the same grounds that the Academy of Model Aeronautics main office is located.[5]
There are many types of radio-controlled aircraft. For beginning hobbyists, there are park flyers and trainers. For more experienced pilots there are glow plug engine, electric powered and sailplane aircraft. For expert flyers, jets, pylon racers, helicopters, autogyros, 3D aircraft, and other high-end competition aircraft provide adequate challenge. Some models are made to look and operate like a bird instead. Replicating historic and little known types and makes of full-size aircraft as "flying scale" models, which are also possible with control line and free flight types of model aircraft, actually reach their maximum realism and behavior when built for radio-control flying.
Perhaps the most realistic form of aeromodeling, in its main purpose to replicate full-scale aircraft designs from aviation history, for testing of future aviation designs, or even to realize never-built "proposed" aircraft, is that of radio-control scale aeromodeling, as the most practical way to re-create "vintage" full-scale aircraft designs for flight once more, from long ago. RC Scale model aircraft can be of any type of steerable airship lighter-than-air (LTA) aviation craft, or more normally, of the heavier-than-air fixed wing glider/sailplane, fixed-wing single or multi-engine aircraft, or rotary-wing aircraft such as autogyros or helicopters.
Full-scale aircraft designs from every era of aviation, from the "Pioneer Era" and World War I's start, through to the 21st century, have been modeled as radio-control scale model aircraft. Builders of RC Scale aircraft can enjoy the challenge of creating a controllable, miniature aircraft that merely "looks" like the full scale original in the air with no "fine details", such as a detailed cockpit, or seriously replicate many operable features of a selected full scale aircraft design, even down to having operable cable-connected flight control surfaces, illuminated navigation lighting on the aircraft's exterior, realistically retracting landing gear, etc. if the full-sized aircraft possessed such features as part of its design.
Various scale sizes of RC scale aircraft have been built in the decades since modern digital-proportional, miniaturized RC gear came on the market in the 1960s, and everything from indoor-flyable electric powered RC Scale models, to "giant scale" RC Scale models, in scale size ranges that usually run from 20% to 25%, and upwards to 30 to 50% size of some smaller full scale aircraft designs, that can replicate some of the actual flight characteristics of the full scale aircraft they are based on, have been enjoyed, and continue to be built and flown, in sanctioned competition and for personal pleasure, as part of the RC scale aeromodeling hobby.
Gliders are planes that do not typically have any type of propulsion. Unpowered glider flight must be sustained through exploitation of the natural lift produced from thermals or wind hitting a slope. Dynamic soaring is another popular way of providing energy to gliders that is becoming more and more common. However, even conventional slope soaring gliders are capable of achieving speeds comparable with similar sized powered craft.Gliders are typically partial to slow flying and have high aspect ratio, as well as very low wing loading (weight to wing area ratio). Two and three-channel gliders which use only rudder control for steering and dihedral or polyhedral wing shape to automatically counteract rolling are popular as training craft, due to their ability to fly very slowly and high tolerance to error.
Jets commonly use a micro turbine or ducted fan to power them. Most airframes are constructed from fiber glass and carbon fiber. For electric powered flight which are usually powered by electric ducted fans, may be made of styrofoam. Inside the aircraft, wooden spars reinforce the body to make a rigid airframe. They also have kevlar fuel tanks for the Jet A fuel that they run on. Most micro turbines start with propane, burn for a few seconds before introducing the jet fuel by solenoid. These aircraft can often reach speeds in excess of 320 km/h (200 mph). The high speed requires greater skill to operate.
In the U.S.A. the FAA restricts flying of such aircraft to approved AMA Academy of Model Aeronautics sites, where only certified turbine pilots may fly. Also, the AMA requires model aviation enthusiasts who wish to operate miniature gas turbine powered RC model aircraft, to be certified in the operation of the type of gas turbine engine, and all aspects of safety in operating such a turbine-powered model aircraft, that they need to know in flying their model. Some military bases allow such high tech aircraft to fly within limited airspace such as Kaneohe Marine base in Hawaii, and Whidbey Island NAS in Washington State.
Of much less complexity are the types of RC jet aircraft that actually use an electric motor-driven ducted fan instead to power the aircraft. So called "EDF" models can be of much smaller size, and only need the same electronic speed controller and rechargeable battery technology as propeller-driven RC electric powered aircraft use.
Radio-controlled jet aircraft are produced in the colors of various airlines. Among the most popular airline liveries used by modelers are those of American, Singapore, Pan Am, Etihad and Delta Airlines.[citation needed]
Sports planes are planes capable of performing aerobatic maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in normal flight. Typical aerobatic maneuvers include inside loop, outside loop, Immelmann turn, inverted flight, stall turn, slow roll and Cuban 8.
3D flight is a type of flying in which model aircraft have a thrust-to-weight ratio of more than 1:1 (typically 1.5:1 or more), large control surfaces with extreme throws, low weight compared to other models of same size and relatively low wing loadings. Simply put, 3D flight is the art of flying a plane below its stall speed (the speed at which the wings of the plane can no longer generate enough lift to keep the plane in the air).
Racers are small propeller-driven aircraft that race around a 2, 3, or 4 pylon track. They tend to be hard to see and can often go over 240 km/h (150 mph), though some people do pylon races with much slower aircraft. Several different types of aircraft are raced across the world, those flown primarily in the US are; Q500 (424 or ARPRA, and 428), and Q40.
428 aircraft are similar to 424 in appearance. The difference is in engine performance and construction. The planes are primarily made of fiberglass with composites used at high load points. Wings are often hollow to save weight. (All aircraft must meet a minimum weight. A lighter wing moves more of the weight closer to the center of gravity. This requires less control deflection and its resulting drag to change the planes attitude.) They also use .40 cu in size engines but unlike 424 they are much more expensive. They have been designed to put out the maximum amount of power at a specific RPM using a specific fuel. Nelson manufactures the most predominantly used engine. Speeds are very fast in this class with planes capable of reaching 265 km/h (165 mph).
Q40 is the highpoint of pylon racing, as their aircraft resemble full-size race planes. They are not limited to the simple shapes that Q500 planes are, which have much cleaner aerodynamics and less wing area. They use the same basic Nelson engine used in 428, but the engine is tuned to turn a much smaller prop at a much higher rpm. These planes can fly in excess of 320 km/h (200 mph) on the course. Because of their limited wing area however, Q40 planes must fly a larger arc around the pylons to conserve energy. Although faster, they ultimately fly a larger course. The best times for a 10 lap 3 pylon Q40 race are very close to the same in 428.
Because of their size and relative ease of setup, ready-to-fly park flyers are among the most popular class of RC aircraft for beginners and advanced pilots alike. Advanced electronic and material technologies have even brought forth high-performance, park flyer sized "3D-flyers", or fully aerobatic aircraft capable of extreme high g maneuvers and even nose-up hovering. Once the exclusive realm of giant scale, 3D flight is now possible both indoors and out with certain park flyer aircraft.
Park flyers have created an inexpensive and convenient way for beginners to get involved in the hobby of RC flight. The modern materials used in the simple construction of these aircraft make field repairs possible even after significant crash damage. Their small size and quiet operation make it possible to fly them in residential areas. 041b061a72