Kite Strings

This topic addresses the "kite" strings of kite hang gliders and its history.

A kite may be seen as consisting of three parts: wing set, tether set between wingset and resistive part, and the resistive part.

A kite hang glider is a kite system with its wing set, tether set between wing and resistive part (set of hang lines), and the resistive part (the pilot and harness and items held by pilot and harness... all of which are payload drawn down by gravity to provide the function of the resistive part of the kite hang glider system). The kite hang glider may have a wing set of one or more wings. The kite hang glider may have one or more kite strings in its tether set. The kite hang glider's resistive set may consist of one or more masses. A kite hang glider may be habited or uninhabited (manned, womaned, or not; that is, a non-human payload may provide the resistive function in a kite hang glider). A very common kite hang glider is the sort that has one wing, a simple tether hang-line set, and a harnessed pilot as resistive part. A very simple habited hang glider of wing of left and right parts with some battens and a simple hung pilot behind a cable-stayed A-frame was demonstrated in a 1908 gliding-club's flight meet in Breslau; such was evidence enough that such system could not be later mechanically "invented" as texted erroneously by many orgs today.

Note added: The resistive set of a free-flight kite hang glider can also be seen as a wing with its L/D; e.g., a harnessed pilot in a kite hang glider deflects the apparent wind as a wing.

Invited are notes about the "kite" string in kite hang gliders from way back to the present. Welcome is the view of seeing "kite strings" as a set of one or more lines.
This topic is not about the "kite" string of systems that are not gliding yet; that is, not about the tow lines that launch some wings into gliding modes; such tow lines are kite lines, but of a non-gliding arrangement; tow lines are a hot topic in other threads of this forum. To stay on topic, consider facing just the tether set of kite hang gliders (gliding mode). The kite hang gliders are gliding kite systems as the three parts are effectively doing their job whilst the resistive part is freely falling ... i.e., a free-flight gliding kite system whose anchor is in free air.

Hopefully we may bring forward the kite strings of some early swing seats of Chanute and others. When do we see kite hang glider strings that are straps? One strap? Two straps? When we we first see three or more lines in a tether set of a kite hang glider? High-count-membered tether sets in the kite string set of kite hang gliders? Maybe an array of stings in a net arrangement? Stiffened strings for the tether set? The terminals of the elements of the tether set? Terminals at the wing? Terminals at the harness or seat? Materials? Testing? Inspections? Damage recognition? Log of use?Sources of damage? Age? UV damage? Storage damage? Incidents regarding the kite strings of kite hang gliders? Etc.

Over time, have fun on this. Yet explore lessons and what might be learned for the future. Consider how the history might bring on some future about the kite strings for kite hang gliders? Disconnects, elasticity, streamlining, double-duty, etc.? Integrity of the members of the tether set? Self-recording and self-status-reporting kite strings of kite hang gliders?

Ask questions that others might explore. How might the tether set play in injuries? Connecting the tether set challenges? Log of the tension in a tether set during the full course of flight? How to record such history? Colors? Sounds? Cushioning? How might the tether set be involved in various Safe-Splat arrangements?

No rush. Visit this thread from time to time and further the matter as you like.

Joe

Matter in the following thread is joined to this present "HG kite-strings' history notes" topic thread:

Suspension http://www.kitestrings.org/topic5.html

The world of Gustav Weißkopf had a non-empty interface with HG kite strings. Gustav Whitehead. Find both spellings: Gustav and Gustave .
Part of the subject space is addressed at the post:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kitepatents/message/686
where one sees the pilot as resistive payload connected with the wing of the free-flight hang glider kite-gliding system by a pair of kite strings or hang tethers to the seat-harness arrangement. The drawing shows a battened flexible wing hang glider with pilot-payload suspended by a tether set behind a control frame. The pilot is shown grasping in part one of the control frame downtubes. Those skilled in the arts at that time thus had the control frame and hung-pilot behind the control frame. Elsewhere in 1908 in Breslau in gliding club the exact triangular A-frame as control frame as we see so common today in hang gliding was in a hang glider at a gliding meet. Despite such prior art that precluded invention of such, wrongly and with injury, the FAI and two or so other orgs support a false story of invention about such mechanical arrangements because of the deep yelling of GH-JD; yelling does not remove the facts of history.

For more about the pioneer himself: http://www.weisskopf.de/english-version.html

AND: http://www.flyingmachines.org/gwhtd.html
AND: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Whitehead
AND robust: http://www.flyingmachines.org/WhiteheadWW1AERO183CFGray.pdf Worth the download!

Whitehead not only concerned himself with the battened flexible-wing bi-lobe hang glider with its hung pilot, but he explored a triplane kite hang glider where the pilot is apparently using a kite string set of one or two lines to a between-the-legs small seat or again the tether-set of two lines to a swing-seat, not sure:

Pilot's tendons and/or ligaments are the HG's "kite strings" in some versions of kite hang gliders. Chanute insisted that the pilot not be tied into the wing; he wanted easy exit. Times have changed. But hanging from armpits or from ligaments of shoulder, the "kite strings" are inside the skin of the pilot. Such kite strings are still occasionally used today by some HG pilots deliberately and some accidentally.
Some HG pilots beginning with harnesses and hang lines fail to hook in (FTHI) and find themselves using the tendons and ligaments of their arms as the kite strings, too often to great bad results of injury or death. Study of FTHI incidents in recent decades tell its own special story.

Here a launch with two kite strings has a HG pilot using body tendons and ligaments as HG kite strings:


Here the Wills brothers use body ligaments and tendons as their kite strings in early 1970s:


Here is a HG with two kinds of kite strings operating:
1. The tethers to the seat that hold the two main pilots.
2. The arm ligaments and tendons for the three passengers.


Here below is a wing with pilot: launch with a towing kite string while pilot is hanging from kite strings connected to a body harness. Upon release from tow, the kite hang glider has just the hang lines to the pilot as the kite strings to allow kite gliding: Gyro Hang Glider Tow
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JrT8bKQB0A

A kite system's "resistive set" or anchor may be seen as a "wing" itself. Whether the resistive set has members on the ground or in the air or in the soil, the objects or members of the resistive set have their own L/D characteristics as they "move" or "fly" in the media involved. Such view simplifies "kite" to "tethered-couple wing sets placed in media". The lines or strings that couple the separated wings of the wing sets are members of the tether set that do the coupling.

In kite hang gliding we then may see the hang glider pilot's body, harness, and gear in that space as a complex "wing" with a net L/D at any moment. THEN couple that wing with "kite strings" to another wing set (often consisting of one integrated wing, but sometimes with two or more wings; the count could be, say 100 wings).