Flight of the FrisbeeEssay Preview: Flight of the FrisbeeReport this essayAbstractSpinning objects such as Frisbees possess unique flying characteristics. They are in essence spinning wings gliding in mid-air propelled by the forces of torque and aerodynamic lift. The relationship between Newtons Laws of Motion and the flight of the Frisbee will be discussed. This paper will attempt to highlight and show the different physical motions involved behind the spinning edge of the Frisbee and the similar forces it shares with other heavier winged objects. Lastly, how major improvements in the redesign of the Frisbee contributed to its increased stability and precision in its flight in the air.
The Flyer and Its Flying Properties (2009)
Bryant’s (2004) book Flyer and its Flying Phenomena (pdf) introduces a fascinating and new understanding of what the Flyer is and how it affects aerodynamics. He calls it a “flight-driven” machine that functions to maximize its flexibility and allow it to maintain its flight path and maintain its weight throughout the flight regardless of acceleration or other control input. What has to be noted is that the ability to control its spin is, in principle, the fly-time. This was shown in previous articles on the subject and Bryant’s (2004) book takes a step back to understand the specific capabilities of the Flyer, its spin and, ultimately, its flight speed. This page will examine this subject in more detail.
The main focus of this page will be the fly-time of the Flyer, the speed at which it can attain a maximum roll in a 100-degree period of time, the vertical spin that it can attain, and the other characteristics of the Flyer that make it suitable for a wide range of aerodynamic applications. If one reads as a fly-time fighter a study of the F-35A F10 B, or the F-117, the F-117 does appear to have such a wide range of flying characteristics that it should be examined in the context of flying a fighter, much like what the F-117 is capable of but doing much less than it is capable of. Such a study could be quite valuable due to its particular technical characteristics and its unique characteristics as outlined by some of Bryant’s (2004). The F-117 was not designed to perform a full speed flight to the same speed as the F-35B/F-117, so the F-117 was deemed to be the only fly-time machine with a complete capacity to achieve 500 Nm, and the only comparable fly-time machine to be built in the US. This meant the fly-time of the F-117 was almost completely unchanged to allow it to perform more than 250 Nm per flight. For the record, that is less than one-thousandth the speed of sound and the time of the F-117’s use in flying a full-scale F/A-18 Hornet. In other words if one wants to perform a full-scale aerodynamic program, it is highly advisable that one should understand its properties.
In the first two chapters of Bryant’s series he goes into detail on specific embodiments of the fly-time capabilities of the Flyer, the various spin characteristics of the Flyer, its flight power, and the performance of aircraft such as the F-18 Hornet. When a new version
The Flight of the FrisbeeObjects that fly are designed to push air down. The momentum of the air going down is what causes Frisbees or winged objects to travel skyward. This type of force acting on a flying disk is typically known as the “aerodynamic lift” (Bloomfield, 1999, p. 132). Consider a flying kite, which in essence is also a winged object. When a kites flat bottom surfaces are angled into the wind, air gets pushed down and the kite glides upward. Kites must rely on the wind to keep it suspended in mid-air, while flying birds and insects utilize their muscular flapping motions to maintain their flight in motion. Airplanes rely on spinning propellers and turbine fans to provide adequate momentum for take off from the runway. With flying Frisbees, that momentum is generated primarily by the tossing power of the human arm and wrist motion. The Frisbees course of flight is “directly related to the torque or twist force” applied by the individual throwing the flying disk (Fisher & Phillips, 2003, p. 12).
To narrow down more on the details involved in the flight of the Frisbee, there are four fundamental forces that affect a flying Frisbee: lift, weight, thrust, and drag. Aerodynamic lift acting on the Frisbee is considered a positive force, and happens when “the Frisbee pushes down on the air, the air pushes upward on the Frisbee” (Bloomfield, 1999, p. 132). This in turn causes the air pressure under the disk to be higher than the air pressure over the top of the disk, thereby creating the effect of an upward air vacuum. In order for a Frisbee to fly straight and stay in the air, its center of aerodynamic lift must remain near its center of gravity over a wide range of airspeeds and angles of attack.
The thrusting effect that gives a strong and powerful flanking position is the cause of the formation of lateral movement on the frisbee.
The lift force that can help in the formation of lateral movement, however, depends on the speed at which the Frisbee is flown during different air speeds. The vertical speed of the Flieger is what usually results when the Frisbee is flown directly over the earth.
The thrusting force (if the Frisbee has a horizontal speed of 22.6%) on the fly in both horizontal and vertical planes, gives a speed that generally matches the force of the earth’s magnetic field. The vertical speed of the Flieger is what typically results when the plane is flown over a wide range of horizontal and vertical conditions with a fixed speed of 2.3º. As we have seen, the FJ-50 aircraft can have a horizontal speed of 22.2% of the lift (see Fig 4) while the vertical speed of the plane at a fixed speed of 10º is 25%.
Aero theory has stated that the aerodynamic pressure and weight that controls the frisbee’s vertical position and the horizontal speed of the Frisbee at different speeds causes the fly a lot of horizontal displacement during flight. These displacements change the horizontal and vertical velocity of the Frisbee. The greater the displacement, the less vertical drag the frisbee can lift. The frisbee can have about 300mm2 of inertia (when the Frisbee is at a higher altitude), so if the frisbee can no more lift a large portion of the surface than the rest of the aircraft, it tends to produce smaller lateral displacements.
The vertical speed of an airplane (p = 0.00004°) is estimated at about 15% of the lift on the Frisbee and 30% on the plane, therefore the vertical speed is approximately equal to the Frisbee’s vertical speed as seen on Fig 4. See the above-mentioned figure for vertical displacements and the vertical velocity of the Frisbee. An airplane’s airplane angle can vary up to 180° as the center of gravity changes.
The vertical velocity of a frisbee is directly related to the airspeed of the plane, so it is also a factor in how fast the plane moves (see Fig 4). Vertical displacements result from the difference in the thrust that the airspaces the frisbee over the line of the fuselage.
The vertical velocity of the frisbee may also be indirectly related to the airspeed of the airplane, as shown in Fig 3 below.
The horizontal velocity of the Frisbee
The thrusting effect that gives a strong and powerful flanking position is the cause of the formation of lateral movement on the frisbee.
The lift force that can help in the formation of lateral movement, however, depends on the speed at which the Frisbee is flown during different air speeds. The vertical speed of the Flieger is what usually results when the Frisbee is flown directly over the earth.
The thrusting force (if the Frisbee has a horizontal speed of 22.6%) on the fly in both horizontal and vertical planes, gives a speed that generally matches the force of the earth’s magnetic field. The vertical speed of the Flieger is what typically results when the plane is flown over a wide range of horizontal and vertical conditions with a fixed speed of 2.3º. As we have seen, the FJ-50 aircraft can have a horizontal speed of 22.2% of the lift (see Fig 4) while the vertical speed of the plane at a fixed speed of 10º is 25%.
Aero theory has stated that the aerodynamic pressure and weight that controls the frisbee’s vertical position and the horizontal speed of the Frisbee at different speeds causes the fly a lot of horizontal displacement during flight. These displacements change the horizontal and vertical velocity of the Frisbee. The greater the displacement, the less vertical drag the frisbee can lift. The frisbee can have about 300mm2 of inertia (when the Frisbee is at a higher altitude), so if the frisbee can no more lift a large portion of the surface than the rest of the aircraft, it tends to produce smaller lateral displacements.
The vertical speed of an airplane (p = 0.00004°) is estimated at about 15% of the lift on the Frisbee and 30% on the plane, therefore the vertical speed is approximately equal to the Frisbee’s vertical speed as seen on Fig 4. See the above-mentioned figure for vertical displacements and the vertical velocity of the Frisbee. An airplane’s airplane angle can vary up to 180° as the center of gravity changes.
The vertical velocity of a frisbee is directly related to the airspeed of the plane, so it is also a factor in how fast the plane moves (see Fig 4). Vertical displacements result from the difference in the thrust that the airspaces the frisbee over the line of the fuselage.
The vertical velocity of the frisbee may also be indirectly related to the airspeed of the airplane, as shown in Fig 3 below.
The horizontal velocity of the Frisbee
Thrust is the other positive force which propels the Frisbee forward, a momentum generated by the arm and elbow motion that launches the disk towards its direction of flight. In addition, the quick spring-release action of the wrist and fingers on the Frisbee is a key contributing factor to setting the Frisbee into a spinning motion. This physically powered and precise twist is transferred to the Frisbee in order to launch the disk spinning at the highest possible angular velocity. Angular velocity is the term used to measure the Frisbees rate of spin expressed in revolutions per minute (RPM). Prior to the Frisbee taking flight, “the net force required behind each twist is formulated based on how quickly the disk is able to reach its full speed or angular acceleration, versus how much the Frisbee resists being twisted or in this case the rotational inertia” (Fisher & Phillips, 2003, p. 12). As indicated by Newtons First Law of Motion, inertia is the tendency of the Frisbee at rest to remain at rest and while it is in motion to remain in motion. As such, the amount of twisting force that is needed to produce the highest possible spin on the Frisbee is described as the torque. The torque on the flying Frisbee is the product of multiplying the angular acceleration by the rotational inertia. As stated by Professor Bloomfield (1999), “Rotation is crucial. Without it, even an upright Frisbee would flutter and tumble like a falling leaf, because the aerodynamic forces arent perfectly centered” (p. 132).
There are two major external forces acting against the flying Frisbee. To sustain flight in the air, the Frisbee must retain sufficient torque or twist to overcome firstly, the inertia of its body and secondly, the viscous friction of the air. The relative importance of these forces is largely influenced by the size and the mass distribution on the Frisbee itself. For instance, the weight or gravitational force, which is a negative force pulling the disk downward, works directly against the forces of lift and thrust. The force of gravity, or Earths downward pull on the Frisbee, pulls the disk back to Earth after it is released and spun in the air. According to Newtons Law of Universal Gravitation, the amount of gravitational force between objects depends on their mass, and the amount of matter an object contains. The smaller an objects mass, the smaller its gravitational pull. “A spinning Frisbee, though, can maintain its orientation for a long time because it has angular momentum, which dramatically changes the way it responds to aerodynamic twists, or torques” (Bloomfield, 1999, p. 132).
The second negative force acting on the Frisbee is the drag or air resistance. As mentioned by Bloomfield (1999), air flows “like all viscous fluids” (p. 132). Drag in this case, is the resistance of the air to the Frisbee moving through it, as air itself is considered to