Messages in AirborneWindEnergy group.                          AWES 19571 to 19620 Page 285 of 440.
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19571 From: dave santos Date: 1/12/2016
Subject: KiteSledging Icecaps in Style

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19572 From: dave santos Date: 1/12/2016
Subject: Re: KiteSledging Icecaps in Style

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19573 From: dave santos Date: 1/12/2016
Subject: Elegant Rig for a large traction NPW

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19574 From: dave santos Date: 1/13/2016
Subject: Re: KiteSledging Icecaps in Style

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19575 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/13/2016
Subject: Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind By Prachi Patel Posted 13

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19576 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/13/2016
Subject: Re: Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19577 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: Energy-kite systems Messaging

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19578 From: dave santos Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: Re: Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind By Prachi Patel Poste

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19579 From: dave santos Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: Hybrid Cars as COTS AWES Ground Stations

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19580 From: dave santos Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: more Minesto paravane farm details

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19581 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Stefan Björklund

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19582 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: M600 SERVO TEST STAND Makani Power

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19583 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19584 From: dave santos Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Re: M600 SERVO TEST STAND Makani Power

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19585 From: dave santos Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Ampyx Twin-boom Kite-plane Concept

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19586 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Re: Ping-pong balls

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19587 From: dave santos Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Re: Ping-pong balls

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19588 From: Hardensoft International Limited Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: Re: Damon Vander Lind exit?

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19589 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: Parsing Makani's latest job listings

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19590 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: Makani's Aviation Rules Compliance Challenge (minimum flight altitud

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19591 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: DIY Polymer and/or Metal Rack and Pinion AWE WECS

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19592 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: New ETH-Zurich AWE study

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19593 From: dave santos Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: AWE article in Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19594 From: dave santos Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: Simplified model of offshore Airborne Wind Energy Converters

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19595 From: dave santos Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: US Govt still futzing over AWE (Scientific American)

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19596 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: Re: Simplified model of offshore Airborne Wind Energy Converters

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19597 From: dave santos Date: 1/19/2016
Subject: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (Lowe

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19598 From: Rod Read Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19599 From: dave santos Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19600 From: Rod Read Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19601 From: Rod Read Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19602 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19603 From: dave santos Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19604 From: Joe Faust Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Remotely Piloted Energy Kite Systems (RPEKS)

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19605 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19606 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Powered-Anchor Ski Kiting for Recreation

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19607 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Kiteboarding

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19608 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Re: Kiteboarding

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19609 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Mayfly Emergence (Another Biomimetic Kite Case)

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19610 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: KiteShips OL Power Kite as the Ultimate WECS Wing?

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19611 From: Hardensoft International Limited Date: 1/22/2016
Subject: Re: US Govt still futzing over AWE (Scientific American)

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19612 From: dave santos Date: 1/22/2016
Subject: Re: US Govt still futzing over AWE (Scientific American)

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19613 From: dave santos Date: 1/22/2016
Subject: Kite Kayaking Lessons

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19614 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Re: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19615 From: dave santos Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Joby Aviation Concepts under NASA third-party evaluation

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19616 From: dave santos Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Re: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19617 From: dave santos Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Re: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19618 From: dave santos Date: 1/24/2016
Subject: Re: Joby Aviation Concepts under NASA third-party evaluation

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19619 From: dave santos Date: 1/24/2016
Subject: Harnessing the Wind (Draft-Horse and Traction-Kite Parallels)

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19620 From: dave santos Date: 1/24/2016
Subject: Kite-Rescue Trope in Commercial



Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19571 From: dave santos Date: 1/12/2016
Subject: KiteSledging Icecaps in Style
A sledge is a primitive vehicle of potentially huge scale, if pulled by kites. No info yet on who when where this awesome sledge operated, except "This kite sled has crossed Greenland and Antarctica"-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19572 From: dave santos Date: 1/12/2016
Subject: Re: KiteSledging Icecaps in Style
Here's a recent link to even bigger kite sledges crisscrossing Greenland like science-fiction, towed by large NPWs. Behold AWE in its wildest form yet-





On Tuesday, January 12, 2016 4:45 PM, "dave santos santos137@yahoo.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
A sledge is a primitive vehicle of potentially huge scale, if pulled by kites. No info yet on who when where this awesome sledge operated, except "This kite sled has crossed Greenland and Antarctica"-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19573 From: dave santos Date: 1/12/2016
Subject: Elegant Rig for a large traction NPW
Nice heavy-duty traction rig with carabiner load distribution (tensile whippletree) and reins to safely steer the load pulley lines-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19574 From: dave santos Date: 1/13/2016
Subject: Re: KiteSledging Icecaps in Style
Here is the technical overview of the kite sledge AWES-



On Tuesday, January 12, 2016 8:51 PM, "dave santos santos137@yahoo.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
Here's a recent link to even bigger kite sledges crisscrossing Greenland like science-fiction, towed by large NPWs. Behold AWE in its wildest form yet-





On Tuesday, January 12, 2016 4:45 PM, "dave santos santos137@yahoo.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
A sledge is a primitive vehicle of potentially huge scale, if pulled by kites. No info yet on who when where this awesome sledge operated, except "This kite sled has crossed Greenland and Antarctica"-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19575 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/13/2016
Subject: Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind By Prachi Patel Posted 13

Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind

Article authored by Prachi Patel
Posted 
==========================================

Georgia Tech researchers

===========================
Triboelectric effect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19576 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/13/2016
Subject: Re: Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind
Article in 2009

Feb 13, 2009

==================

Re: George Tech

Notes on the early flag work and other means, 

some amenable to AWE. 
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19577 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: Energy-kite systems Messaging

This topic thread is dedicated to the many ways that kite systems may perform messaging (visual, digital, relay radio frequency, pulse, conspicuity, motion, color, etc.).  Purposes may be noted; involved technology too. Combination of messaging with other good works may be explored.   Say, while generating electricity, have the system message joyous music via sound radiating from above.  Or, say while pumping caught rain water to higher-placed reservoirs, have part of the system be a relay station for cellular phone messaging.  Education, advertising, scheduling, managing, radio-frequency data-stream relaying, ...

========================================================

Start:

http://www.mrsite.co.uk/usersitesv28/Thekiteden.co.uk/wwwroot/page18.htm   Large letters strung on main tether of single-wing lifter.  How to get the most effect from least mass in this direction?
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19578 From: dave santos Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: Re: Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind By Prachi Patel Poste
Yet another third-party validation that flapping (tacking) fabric wings are a workable AWES basis, although they must eventually test against all other concepts. The fundamental advantages sought by the 'rag-flappers" are simplicity and lowest cost at highest power-to-weight. Thus within the flapping fabric concept space, we now have three distinct WECS principles in play- KLG's varied pumping loads, misc piezo-flag experiments, and now this triboelectric version, complete with LTA lift to make it an explicit AWES. Of course it could also be lofted by kite.

The early efficiency of this triboelectric option will be very low by the same low-frequency input challenge that has kept piezo at the margins, as well as reduced structural durability and power-to-weight, and higher energy-unit cost, compared to the baseline model of flapping wings of pure structural polymer driving ground-gens. A partial solution is to only tap high-frequency edge excitations (anyons) of the wing with piezo or tribo, rather than embed the transducer medium uniformly. The crackling sound of a flapping flag are the energetic whiplash of its TE, as tiny sonic-booms.

All this flapping is a nice start, with much future work to look forward to. The final contest will be large self-tacking sails tested against all other AWES WECS principles.


On Wednesday, January 13, 2016 8:18 PM, "joefaust333@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  

Fluttering Flag Generates Power From Wind

Article authored by Prachi Patel
Posted 
==========================================

Georgia Tech researchers

===========================
Triboelectric effect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19579 From: dave santos Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: Hybrid Cars as COTS AWES Ground Stations
Updating an old Forum topic here; that a hybrid car, via its regen braking capability, is a ready basis for a 50kW class AWES, combining wind, electrical storage, mobility, and fuel-backup, for remote challenging duty (like disasters, or Arctic First Nations in Winter). Some new facts and thinking-

-Hybrid is fairly mature COTS these days. Advanced regen braking, better batteries, and lower prices are driving the growing practicality of the AWES concept. Almost every major auto-maker has a hybrid product, with a large resale market developing. Plug-in capability is here and now.

-AWES hybrid car conversion is possible by simple means. Years ago, as a starting WECS assumption, we imagined the car's wheels acted on by large rollers, like the static speed-test stands auto developers use, but run backward. The latest idea is to simply jack the car up on a fixed stand, or add retractable jack-stands to the car. A small capstan would be bolted to each gen wheel, by existing wheel bolts, offering higher rpm when kite-driven by a pumping belt rather than a massive roller stand. 

-The entire AWES "kit" should fit in a trunk space, leaving the car usable for passengers and cargo. The AWES car should be able to do "kite buggy mode"; to travel by kite while also recharging.

-In the last ten years, we power-kite freaks have worked out how to use COTS kites to make shaft power at the hybrid car's level. KiteNRG's 100kW current record and Enerkite's closely comparable ratings, flying fairly ordinary parafoils (from adapted road vehicles), are more than enough. We can choose from many rigging options, from reeling to short-stroke to cable loops, etc.. Let the best options shine over time.

-Solar power has become dirt-cheap, with tough lightweight variants; therefore an AWES car should also carry a solar array, for the ultimate clean capacity.

-More new hybrid car advances are coming, like motor-in-wheel tech, where each wheel can support its own kite-cell. The modern car is merging with smart-phone evolution, as a wifi smart car. A small village could be served by one solar/AWES hybrid car as its power station, communications hub, and utility transport.

Open-AWE_IP-Cloud
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19580 From: dave santos Date: 1/14/2016
Subject: more Minesto paravane farm details
Minesto's world-first 10MW paravane (undersea kite) farm is under development, to be completed by 2018. The engineering team is weighing a gearbox trade-off, and must choose soon (I would compare multiple gearless pancake generators stacked along the turbine shaft). In rushed trade-offs, the key is to just make work whatever component initially down-selected and upgrade as needed in the next iteration. Ideally, the 20 500kW units needed for the farm will constitute a developmental series, with each successive unit better than the previous, and the final design well-optimized for mass-production-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19581 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Stefan Björklund

Stefan Björklund

KTH | Stefan Björklund

 

and his
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19582 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: M600 SERVO TEST STAND Makani Power

====================================

M600 SERVO TEST STAND   Makani Power

http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1160&context=mesp

Jen Tibble (Lead Contact), Jeremy Dong, Arianna Lasche, and Alex Serventi

Mechanical Engineering Department
California Polytechnic State University
San Luis Obispo
June 2013

Paper's Disclaimer:

Statement of Disclaimer Since this project is a result of a class assignment it has been graded and accepted as fulfillment of the course requirements. Acceptance does not imply technical accuracy or reliability. Any use of information in this report is done at the risk of the user. These risks may include catastrophic failure of the device or infringement of patent or copyright laws. California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo and its staff cannot be held liable for any use or misuse of the project

=============================
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19583 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators

Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators


Electrical engineers are invited to address the challenges involved in ganging generators.

=====================================

Makani Power is featuring eight separate generators on one kite flygen kited wing complex; how are those generators ganged? What is the wave form of each distinct generator's electricity? What is the frequency?  Voltage?  Phase?  What treatments, rectifications, etc.  are involved?  What happens when one of the eight generators malfunctions or starkly has its output changed by something?   Is it better to have mechanical loops from eight driven impellers ganged to drive one electric generator?  Others are invited to sharpen my naïve question set; consider asking better questions close to the topic suggested; thanks. And my questions are open for simple correction.

 

https://www.google.com/makani/images/figures/blueprint.png 


Beyond Makani's challenges are other instances in AWE where one may be teased to gang generators in the air or on the ground.

Generators in parallel? There are challenges ...

Generators in series?  There are challenges ...

Treat the electricity? How?

Treating outputs that feed extant grids?  Challenges


Notice how the questions might differ when pumping gases or water occurs rather than generating electricity; ganging the output from fluid pumps to form potential-energy reservoirs may differ from ganging electricity.



Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19584 From: dave santos Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Re: M600 SERVO TEST STAND Makani Power
This M600 servo stand is fairly standard test engineering work that does not give much of a view inside Makani 2013. A strategic fact that seems disclosed (if no mistaken) is that Makani was not able or intending to do full HALT, to really see if any servo will last five years reliably, as its economic model requires. Otherwise, read this collection of texts, data sheets, sketches, and budgets as normal aerospace practice of how to build a component test stand and environmental chamber.

Who else in AWE has ready access to such capabilities? KiteLab Austin and kPower have long had access to the same standard of test-engineering; a full lab for the the data-logging of controlled vibration, temp, pressure-altitude, and humidity, including salt-fog; via John Borsheim, a certified test engineer in industrial East Austin, who has mentored many of us over decades and made the mechanical core of the AWES ground-gen test unit that went to Italy for two years, but now is back in the US NW. He has never charged us a penny, since his communications satellite work is well paid. John considers community-based alternative energy R&D important, drives a Tesla and has his own DIY solar-farm of tracking panels selling electrons to the Texas Grid.

So how do Austin AWE developers see Makani's servo-testing challenge? We have passively bet-big on eliminating servos aloft, and are content not to have to validate them. Our utility-scale AWES servos will be fully HALT-validated ground-based industrial units specified to a far higher safety factor, but at lower capital and operating cost. Makani's high-complexity flygen's eventual outcome, compared with its many groundgen AWES competitors, will settle any doubts.


On Friday, January 15, 2016 12:39 PM, "joefaust333@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
====================================
M600 SERVO TEST STAND   Makani Power
Jen Tibble (Lead Contact), Jeremy Dong, Arianna Lasche, and Alex Serventi
Mechanical Engineering Department
California Polytechnic State University
San Luis Obispo
June 2013
Paper's Disclaimer:
Statement of Disclaimer Since this project is a result of a class assignment it has been graded and accepted as fulfillment of the course requirements. Acceptance does not imply technical accuracy or reliability. Any use of information in this report is done at the risk of the user. These risks may include catastrophic failure of the device or infringement of patent or copyright laws. California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo and its staff cannot be held liable for any use or misuse of the project
=============================
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19585 From: dave santos Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Ampyx Twin-boom Kite-plane Concept
As shared on someawe.org by Jaap Bosch, a twin fuselage power-plane with folding props and landing gear. Ampyx may be falling back on tried-and-true methods to launch and land, since the catapult idea has lots of challenges. The landing gear disclosed now suggests a runway requirement. Unexplained is how the tether would be managed (with many possible options)-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19586 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Re: Ping-pong balls
PPB :: ping-pong ball(s)
========================================

Are you, AWE Community Member, 
close to sharing a PPB-AWE note in this party/adventure?

========================================

One more from my depths: 

Split PPB to be used at ends of stick. At center of stick connect shaft of electric generator. Install the said turbine in a flying kite system. Let the generated electricity power lofted devices (myriad options), but perhaps as an anemometer. 
============================= cousin project:
Hila Digital Anemometer

 


--------------------------------------------------
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19587 From: dave santos Date: 1/15/2016
Subject: Re: Ping-pong balls
Ping pong balls are nice model particles to bring alive many physics concepts.

An extended string network of floating balls (representing kite units) on waves (representing mixed kite-gust harmonics) would generate interesting pumping statistics on dropline PTOS (for kite array developers).


On Friday, January 15, 2016 5:00 PM, "joefaust333@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
PPB :: ping-pong ball(s)
========================================

Are you, AWE Community Member, 
close to sharing a PPB-AWE note in this party/adventure?

========================================

One more from my depths: 

Split PPB to be used at ends of stick. At center of stick connect shaft of electric generator. Install the said turbine in a flying kite system. Let the generated electricity power lofted devices (myriad options), but perhaps as an anemometer. 
============================= cousin project:
Hila Digital Anemometer
 

--------------------------------------------------
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19588 From: Hardensoft International Limited Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: Re: Damon Vander Lind exit?
Fortunately. DaveS; @Google handle on Twitter still stands true for Google.
Lifts.
JohnO
 
John Adeoye  Oyebanji   B.Sc. MCPN
Managing Consultant & CEO
Hardensoft International Limited
<Technologies  
Damon Vander Lind has in recent years been the lead engineer at Makani Power, noted for his keynote and other major presentations at AWEC conferences, and in the Springer AWE book. A curious anecdote of his was being hired at Makani in less than minute, by fellow grad school alums. He was never a candid accessible figure to the Open AWE community, clearly preferring elite "stealth venture" insider circles, while cultivating popular press soft-coverage of marketing claims.

Not much of Damon has lately been seen in public, but his email address suddenly seems suspended. This may not signal anything dramatic, but its also possible that Damon has somehow moved on, right on the eve of M600 trials, which would be dramatic. The GoogleX/Makani social firewall is so absolute, the public seems not to have any point of contact anymore. Such isolation may driven by GoogleX legal counsel improperly imposing "willful ignorance" of "guilty knowledge" (like how GoogleX/Makani dominates Google Search on AWE, but not other search-engine results).

Does anyone have a working Makani email address? Could JoeF please try forwarding today's notice regarding asymmetric AWES wings via his email account(s)? Maybe Damon took the step of blocking my address, based on my infrequent messages posing awkward questions to GoogleX/Makani's program (ie. open aviation safety-knowledge sharing v. design secrecy).

Its time GoogleX/Makani fully opened up its knowledge culture. It is not operating in "philanthropic" fashion, as NatGeo incorrectly has reported, but as an unfair competitor, as convicted by EU prosecutors. Good luck to Damon, personally, whatever is going on...

----- the bounce ------

Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently:

    dvl@google.com

Technical details of permanent failure: 
Google tried to deliver your message, but it was rejected by the server for the recipient domain google.com by aspmx.l.google.com. [2607:f8b0:4001:c1d::1a].
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19589 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: Parsing Makani's latest job listings
It's reasonably conjectured that secretive GoogleX-Makani is in deep internal engineering crisis, with lots of finger-pointing but poor accountability, on the eve of remarkably marginal and dangerous M600 AWES testing. Virtually all the original team cashed out and moved on, leaving a huge sudden hiring backlog for critical positions that should have been stably staffed years ago. 

Some things remain the same. As with Makani's past go-go venture recruitment, many of the new job descriptions stress a "positive attitude and sense of humor". Even the Safety Manager needs a "positive attitude", while in real-world engineering, the professional-pessimism ethos still rules.

Even with very little informed technical hope for Makani's high-complexity poorly scalable AWES architecture, the well-oiled Google hype machine may go into overdrive. The new Marketing Manager's job description includes "...storytelling for Makani to win hearts and minds of potential partners, consumers, and governments...". Caveat Emptor.
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19590 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: Makani's Aviation Rules Compliance Challenge (minimum flight altitud
Like all aviation sectors, the AWE user community is responsible for defining and maintaining reasonable safety standards in our sector, in partnership with the FAA. In return, the FAA allows us remarkable latitude to do pioneering R&D, but we also look far ahead to safe AWE airspace integration, to keep on track..

14 CFR 91.119 is a key aviation rule in US airspace that Makani's M600, in particular, seems inherently unable to comply with. Its not valid to argue that the M600 is a helicopter since this is only true during launching, landing, and hover, but not in nominal operation as a high-speed high-mass aircraft operating so low (at the bottom of its loop). Nor does it count that AWES might interface airspace under obstructions regs. Flight safety standards will still apply. 

Even if the M600 cannot meet applicable US airspace FARs as a mass-market product, limited testing may still be approved by the FAA Honolulu FSDO, or blocked. It will be a fascinating review process, with clear public requirements. As ChrisC noted, Edward's AFB's restricted airspace and wildfire-proof playas is a far more practical choice for maiden flight testing on a dangerous scale (within easy driving distance to Makani HQ).


14 CFR 91.119 - Minimum safe altitudes: General.

§ 91.119 Minimum safe altitudes: General.
Except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no person may operate an aircraft below the following altitudes:
(a) Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.
(b) Over congested areas. Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.
(c) Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure.
(d) Helicopters, powered parachutes, and weight-shift-control aircraft. If the operation is conducted without hazard to persons or property on the surface—
(1) A helicopter may be operated at less than the minimums prescribed in paragraph (b) or (c) of this section, provided each person operating the helicopter complies with any routes or altitudes specifically prescribed for helicopters by the FAA; and
(2) A powered parachute or weight-shift-control aircraft may be operated at less than the minimums prescribed in paragraph (c) of this section.
[Doc. No. 18334, 54 FR 34294, Aug. 18, 1989, as amended by Amdt. 91-311, 75 FR 5223, Feb. 1, 2010]
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19591 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: DIY Polymer and/or Metal Rack and Pinion AWE WECS
Two recent topics on AWE WECS use of rubber tires and rack-and-pinions suggest combined methods for high output shaft rpms with reduced potential for damage and wear.

In one variant, instead of a fixed metal pinion gear, a small urethane wheel* would be used, and the new moving rack would consist of a flat strap or slat for the pumping kite input part. This method would allow reduced mass and cost at equivalent or higher performance. In particular, there would be no gear teeth to damage, with transient overloads resulting in less-damaging slippage.

Another DIY variant would combine a metal pinion gear with a stretched out polymer tooth-belt as the pumping rack. An old-school-inspired trick to make a metal rack for a homebrew rack-and-pinion is simply to screw down a section of bike chain on a board as the rack, and use a bike sprocket as the pinion gear. Bike freewheels and flip-hubs enable effective AWE WECS to be made. Elastic-return or double-drive cycles are easy to create with bike parts, once you know the basics.

Open-AWE_IP-Cloud
------------------
* This is Nicotine Lights (TM) skateboard wheel is reputed the smallest available-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19592 From: dave santos Date: 1/17/2016
Subject: New ETH-Zurich AWE study
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19593 From: dave santos Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: AWE article in Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Featuring mainly Swiss progress, with an interesting disclosure to follow up on- " the multinational electro-generating giant Alstom—manufacturer of France’s TGV high-speed trains—signed on as industrial partner"
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19594 From: dave santos Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: Simplified model of offshore Airborne Wind Energy Converters
Looks like a nice paper, but trapped behind a pay-wall :(

Simplified model of offshore Airborne Wind Energy Converters

  • a Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Piazza dei Martiri 33, 56127, Pisa, Italy
  • b University of Bologna, Viale Risorgimento 2, 40136, Bologna, Italy
Received 28 November 2014, Revised 16 November 2015, Accepted 25 November 2015, Available online 12 December 2015
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19595 From: dave santos Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: US Govt still futzing over AWE (Scientific American)

The US government has long lagged in AWE understanding, as further documented by Scientific American (reading-between-the-lines). US Secretary of the DOE, Moniz, on AWE-

"We also have qualitatively new directions to go in. One is the Makani flying wind turbines. Or now the Google X flying wind turbine; it’s so novel that we don't understand exactly how it could have a big, major transformative impact."

Too-novel-to-understand is the same official incomprehension that drove US oil and atomic power over-dependence and over-subsidy, and the flip-side of such monumental folly is the sad neglect of diversified AWE R&D. A rash of M600 crashes would create peak-confusion about AWE in US gov energy circles.
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19596 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/18/2016
Subject: Re: Simplified model of offshore Airborne Wind Energy Converters
About Antonello Cherubini, download CV

 


vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
We have had:

Airborne Wind Energy Systems: A review of the technologies


vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

I invited Antonello to place his offshore notes in the forum.

On his site he has an AWE Blog.   Explore each corner of such.
============================================================
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19597 From: dave santos Date: 1/19/2016
Subject: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (Lowe
The local paper did not quite make sense of last night's details (linked below), but the quick technical kite lesson is to have a quick-release on a kayak SLK, like the kayakite. For such missing particulars, the AWES Forum is, as usual, the best source. The authoritative AWE report is as follows:

I was kayaking three miles out, scouting notorious Sand Island, where the Army Corps of Engineers employs snipers to reduce them. Having turned back to port, I launched a sled kite, just as I have for ten years, without incident. The wind began to build suddenly (to 38knts, where only ten or so was forecast), and then I could only madly surf the growing steep chop, bracing as best I could, but unable to fish out a knife to cutaway the kite. My sea kayak does not (yet) have an upturned "sea bow", and so surfing at high speed, it inevitably buried its bow deep in the wave in front, and was rolled by the wave behind.

Upside down, the kite line had fouled me, so I could not manage an "Eskimo-roll", but did a "wet exit". In such waves it was impossible to bail the water out, and the kite was still pulling like mad. I finally got the kite pulled in, and was able to lash to an old fish-trap piling, but I was really wrapped in kite line, and had to cut-cut-cut. After about 45min. I decided to call for help. The cell phone maddenly does not dial properly with wet fingers, but after ten minutes of punching, I barely reached my wife, who could only make out her name yelled over the roar of wind and wave..

It was a brutal fight to hold onto the kayak and rotted piling in the waves. The piling was anyhow rapidly sinking fast under a rising tide, so I had to abandon it in hope of drifting to the distant lee shore. It was a matter of balancing a now upended kayak in the waves, which was ideal hard work required to forestall hypothermia.  It grew dark  After about an hour, I could see rescue boats in the distance, but could not let my hands free even to fire a flare.

I barely drifted with the wind, as the wallowing kayak and gear acted as a sea anchor. This turned out to be the key to the rescue, as the delay clinging to the piling canceled out the speedier drifting that the Coast Guard calculated. After four-and half hours in the water a copter headed my way, but turned around and moved on. I was resolved to pass the night slowing drifting to shore, but survival would be iffy. On the second pass, the copter searchlight picked up the truck reflector sticker on the upended stern, which was the last line of defense that saved my life. 

A lifesaving factor was my neoprene paddle-wear, but only rated for brief immersion in 40 deree water.. A crucial factor was my extra layer of fat and life-long endurance athletics background. The Coast Guard dispatcher opined it was a "miracle" for anyone to have spent so much time in the water (and only require left-over Christmas cookies to recover, after the EMS cleared me). They expected to find a corpse.

The rescue itself was like viewing, out-of-body, on Imax, The Guardian (the big Coast Guard movie starring Kevin Costner, whom the "Coasties" all agree aquited himself well enough, the role not being, like, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof). The rescue swimmer plopped down next to me, cut away more kite line, and helped me into the rescue basket. I was lifted up in blinding glory and noise only to find a cameraman in the copter shooting the whole thing. He instantly agreed to be a producer of the AWE documentary, which has been lacking a well-connected producer. 

Dan Tracy caught the newswire and emailed me, the one person not having to guess who the only probable kite kayaker was. He himself has been rescued by Coasties. I found the kayak washed ashore today on a remote marsh, but was socially prevented from paddling it back to port. 

It will take a while to reason out the full survival lessons, and modify my gear to prevent any repeat (kite-killer, EPIRB, Marine Radio, watertight bulheads, ocean prow, etc.),. The AWE experience was as surreal as flying out of a tumbling trailer in the tornado that hit KiteFarm. Power Kites are incredibly dangerous, as we push the limits. I was even nearly killed last night by a ~1m sled...

Correction: I am 58 yrs old, not "55" (below)
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19598 From: Rod Read Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (
There are plenty of courses on how to kite surf safely.
We no doubt now need an AWE one.
You better write more before taking to the modern Charvolant.

Rod Read

Windswept and Interesting Limited
15a Aiginis
Isle of Lewis
UK
HS2 0PB

07899057227
01851 870878
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19599 From: dave santos Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (
Rod,

Its not so simple as you imagine. I am glad you are safe too, having endured imperfect training and work safety in the North Sea.

Kite surfing and kite sailing is inherently dangerous because both gear and training is still primitive, and Nature is all powerful. The most fearless water pros push the envelope, and the Coast Guard treats us with due respect. My job was simply to survive in very tough conditions, so the Coasties did not have a mere corpse to recover. We all did our jobs that night, even the embedded media, also superbly prepared.

I lost one of my top teachers ("AJ", who got me onto NPWs) who was crazy kite surfing off of Cape Hatteras. No kite freak who knew him, and why we do these things, blames him. He died expanding the human spirit. Dan Tracy has also been rescued, and many of my fisherman friends here have been saved. I even knew my rescue swimmer, and would have done the same for him.

A sure result of this kite-kayaking survival case is that the kite course content you invoke will improve,

daveS




On Wednesday, January 20, 2016 3:37 PM, "Rod Read rod.read@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
There are plenty of courses on how to kite surf safely.
We no doubt now need an AWE one.
You better write more before taking to the modern Charvolant.

Rod Read

Windswept and Interesting Limited
15a Aiginis
Isle of Lewis
UK
HS2 0PB

07899057227
01851 870878
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19600 From: Rod Read Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (
Kite surfing and kite sailing is inherently dangerous because both gear and training is still primitive
Is that Really your opinion?

The most fearless water pros push the envelope, and the Coast Guard treats us with due respect.
I'd be careful to tightrope the term fearless (being so close to *******) , or pro (UHF?/chicken loop?Wave Ski?) , as for pushing the envelope... That's the wind's job, With all due respect.
This is a pretty shoddy responsibility level you set yourself.... My job was simply to survive in very tough conditions, Well done, You Lucked it, Employee of the month badge in the post.
I'm sorry about your friend. Keep his lessons and yours. With reference to AWE course you can now write these lessons as at least must and must not guidance on instructional preparation, since it's so fresh in mind.
I expect we all reading this would ask ourselves to hold to our responsibilities, let's hope we all would.


Rod Read

Windswept and Interesting Limited
15a Aiginis
Isle of Lewis
UK
HS2 0PB

07899057227
01851 870878
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19601 From: Rod Read Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (
I'm furious!
Graveyard of the Pacific
We don't need a glamorised, embellished story.
Remove the waffle in favour of technical detail.
DIAGRAMS
Pictures
links
graphs
data
detail
Get your producer and the make-up department to help you with photoshop
Thanks for sharing what you have.
****!

Rod Read

Windswept and Interesting Limited
15a Aiginis
Isle of Lewis
UK
HS2 0PB

07899057227
01851 870878
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19602 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19603 From: dave santos Date: 1/20/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (
You really would have to visit and judge from the gear, the amazing conditions, and informed opinions of the locals (mostly commercial fishermen), to fully understand. Let me add notes to try to explain. I have been a decade preparing to be able to survive such a kite-kayaking ordeal on this river, at better than normal odds, based on the finest local traditions of this extraordinary place (Lower Columbia River). 

For example, when Astoria's first colonial ship arrived here after rounding the Horn, equipped with every precaution money could then buy, in short order eight men died small boats, just to pilot the ship across the Bar, the very waters in my kayak's reach. The first to die was a specialist Hawaiian swimmer valiantly trying to rescue his fellow sailors. The rescue swimmer who fished me out was Hawaiian; I was his fifth save. 

This is the famous singularity called "the graveyard of the Pacific. The first rower to cross the Pacific ended being rescued here, and glad of it. Hundreds of ships have been lost, and its still a serious challenge to even the largest ships.


Do not inadvertently suggest our local US CG only practice with life-like training-dolls rather than attain the highest readiness, by actually saving lives. Let the whole story come out before you decide what should have happened, and give some due regard for the kite mission. For example, the Coast Guard needs to be aware of kitelines in the water, to save your friends, and maybe even your kids, even more safely. 

A new super-copter had just arrived at the station when my call went out. Its a modern miracle, a glass-cockpit beyond science-fiction, a space-ship immune to almost anything. I am honored to be the first rescued in the new super-copter, which was in fact a due training shake-down. They would risk all to save a dog. Is not the Isle of Lewis the same?

All the Coast Guard station here know my wife's thrift store, and we treat them like our kids, giving away anything they want, like a potlatch of old. The Coast Guard is the largest employer here, and this is their most elite station. There is a shared sense of fantastic luck to be part of such an wonderful operation in such a beautiful dangerous place.

In fact, I was just going to recommend you as my top pick to the World Kite Museum, as an invited international guest-flyer to the big festival (WSIKF2016) in August. This year's theme may be advanced kite technology, with AWE central. So let me know if you want to visit, and also go just up-river to the legendary Columbia Gorge: Cradle of Modern Kite Sports.


On Wednesday, January 20, 2016 5:46 PM, "Rod Read rod.read@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
I'm furious!
Graveyard of the Pacific
We don't need a glamorised, embellished story.
Remove the waffle in favour of technical detail.
DIAGRAMS
Pictures
links
graphs
data
detail
Get your producer and the make-up department to help you with photoshop
Thanks for sharing what you have.
****!

Rod Read

Windswept and Interesting Limited
15a Aiginis
Isle of Lewis
UK
HS2 0PB

07899057227
01851 870878




On 21 January 2016 at 01:35, Rod Read <rod.read@gmail.com


Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19604 From: Joe Faust Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Remotely Piloted Energy Kite Systems (RPEKS)
Remotely Piloted Energy-Kite Systems (RPEKS)
are members of a subset of the mother set Remotely Piloted Kite Systems (RPKS). 
Recall: KS consists of its anchor set, tether set, wing set, and the media (air, water, or else, or both), usually in a gravity field (though other fields are possible). 

Robots and humans will have opportunity to remotely pilot energy-kite systems. 
Onboard smart robotic kite control units (KCU) are part of the AWES world. 
However, remote control of energy kite systems (including forms of working kite systems performing tasks) remains an optional way of controlling.   

This topic thread invites discussions of RPEKS or/and its mother set RPKS with an AWE eye. When and where will RPEKS be the way to serve?
Remote control may be achieved by using known arts (sound pulses, laser pulses, light pulses, radio-frequency means, mechanical disturbance of upwind flow, packets of cannoned air, bullets, anchor disturbance from remote area, directed suns, lofted masses, moisture treatment of unwind air, sending auxiliary aircraft to the system, ..., (?))

====================================
Start: 
Consider a bunkered human or human team equipped with helper smart programs and a means to remotely control an AWES.  The human may be protected from weather, vandals, enemies, moving parts, vehicles, etc.  Have the human responsible for piloting a distant kite system. The pilot has view of the RPKS or RPEKS, has data from various sensors in the system, has triggers to bypass servos that may be in the kite system.  The remote-controlling pilot team may have full historical information view concerning the active AWES.  The control team activates controlling actions to achieve missions. 

Note: RPKS or RPEKS may or may not have humans onboard the system physically; but those onboard may not be the humans doing the control of the RPEKS or RPKS.  Humans onboard the kite system might be on the anchor set, tether set, or wing set; the onboard human might move from one part of the system to another; the humans might be passengers performing works or fulfilling purpose. 
====================================
tags: RPAS (remotely piloted aircraft systems), RPKS, RPEKS, AWE, AWES, working kites, RCK, radio-controlled kites, UAS,
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19605 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Re: Gnarly Kite-Sailing & Rescue at "the graveyard of the Pacific" (
What exactly was the cause of the freaky little squall that almost killed me?* If we answer this, we may have solved a common micro-meteorological challenge to kite farm operations.

The day of my ordeal, a moderate Atmospheric River (aka Pineapple Express) was setting up, with tropical warmth promoting large embedded convection cells. The sun above helps these cells grow, but when the cell is suddenly shadowed, it can contract with lowered pressure into denser air that falls back down in bulk. Rainfall in the cell can take the form of Virga, which supercools the falling air column into even denser air, promoting even stronger free-fall. 

As such a falling air-mass hits the surface, it spreads out into a Downburst event, with Derecho winds. From my position, first I paddled in a relative calm, which I conjecture was caused by air being drawn-up upwind of me, into the growing cell. Then, as the late sun set ever lower over the clouds, my cell became shadowed, and began to fall. That was my squall.

How can such an event be predicted? In the first place, this shaded cell downburst mechanism is most probable late in the day or at high latitudes, when and where sun angles are lower. A satellite can look down on the sunlit cloud tops, to detect when the sunshine on cells is shadowed. With fast processing of the data, and modern communications, a real-time local warning of at least a few minutes can be given a kite farm or kayaker.


* Avg. winds quickly went from 10 to 25 kts, with gusts somewhat higher. The sudden waves and wind were also focused between the two Sand Islands, just upwind of me.
-------------
Another note about the "Graveyard of the Pacific", where I live and work at its Columbia Bar epicenter, where 2000 large ships have been lost, compared to the wider regional "graveyard", where shipwreck concentrations are far less. Chief Gordon Planes' T'sou-ke first-nation is at the singularity at the other end of the graveyard, in the Juan de Fuca Strait. There really is no doubt that this so-called graveyard a prime cradle to develop AWE, given the incredible natural conditions, and the kite people formed by these conditions (Top AWE developers and theorists like Corwin Hardham, Corey and Billy Roesler, Wayne German, and Dan Tracy all figure in the graveyard region, just up-river in the Columbia Gorge).





On Wednesday, January 20, 2016 7:09 PM, "dave santos santos137@yahoo.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
You really would have to visit and judge from the gear, the amazing conditions, and informed opinions of the locals (mostly commercial fishermen), to fully understand. Let me add notes to try to explain. I have been a decade preparing to be able to survive such a kite-kayaking ordeal on this river, at better than normal odds, based on the finest local traditions of this extraordinary place (Lower Columbia River). 

For example, when Astoria's first colonial ship arrived here after rounding the Horn, equipped with every precaution money could then buy, in short order eight men died small boats, just to pilot the ship across the Bar, the very waters in my kayak's reach. The first to die was a specialist Hawaiian swimmer valiantly trying to rescue his fellow sailors. The rescue swimmer who fished me out was Hawaiian; I was his fifth save. 

This is the famous singularity called "the graveyard of the Pacific. The first rower to cross the Pacific ended being rescued here, and glad of it. Hundreds of ships have been lost, and its still a serious challenge to even the largest ships.


Do not inadvertently suggest our local US CG only practice with life-like training-dolls rather than attain the highest readiness, by actually saving lives. Let the whole story come out before you decide what should have happened, and give some due regard for the kite mission. For example, the Coast Guard needs to be aware of kitelines in the water, to save your friends, and maybe even your kids, even more safely. 

A new super-copter had just arrived at the station when my call went out. Its a modern miracle, a glass-cockpit beyond science-fiction, a space-ship immune to almost anything. I am honored to be the first rescued in the new super-copter, which was in fact a due training shake-down. They would risk all to save a dog. Is not the Isle of Lewis the same?

All the Coast Guard station here know my wife's thrift store, and we treat them like our kids, giving away anything they want, like a potlatch of old. The Coast Guard is the largest employer here, and this is their most elite station. There is a shared sense of fantastic luck to be part of such an wonderful operation in such a beautiful dangerous place.

In fact, I was just going to recommend you as my top pick to the World Kite Museum, as an invited international guest-flyer to the big festival (WSIKF2016) in August. This year's theme may be advanced kite technology, with AWE central. So let me know if you want to visit, and also go just up-river to the legendary Columbia Gorge: Cradle of Modern Kite Sports.


On Wednesday, January 20, 2016 5:46 PM, "Rod Read rod.read@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
I'm furious!
Graveyard of the Pacific
We don't need a glamorised, embellished story.
Remove the waffle in favour of technical detail.
DIAGRAMS
Pictures
links
graphs
data
detail
Get your producer and the make-up department to help you with photoshop
Thanks for sharing what you have.
****!

Rod Read

Windswept and Interesting Limited
15a Aiginis
Isle of Lewis
UK
HS2 0PB

07899057227
01851 870878




On 21 January 2016 at 01:35, Rod Read <rod.read@gmail.com




Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19606 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Powered-Anchor Ski Kiting for Recreation

Purpose: recreation

Kitesurfing - A true beginning of the sport in 1958

 

The anchor stays powered to give apparent wind for the kite system's wing set (wing-pilot combination).

The adrenaline in pilot and spectators energized lives.

Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19607 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Kiteboarding

Short kiteboarding history by Suzi Mai and Robby Naish

 

Class of working kite systems: kiteboarding.


Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19608 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Re: Kiteboarding


Somehow Red Bull called Suzi and Robby's video a "history" of kitesurfing, but its really just a snapshot of 2010, with nice insights into the youth culture. 

I'm recopying the Roeseler link below, since the rare vintage footage documents the true birth of modern wind-powered kitesurfing per se, on the Columbia River, the power-towed-kite-glider antecedent having been born elsewhere (bottom link). Cory's father, Billy, was a brilliant Boeing engineer who conceived of an ambitious AWES in the seventies, and came up with kitesurfing soon after, with his son Cory, also now a mature AE who might yet make a further dramatic contribution to AWE-

On Thursday, January 21, 2016 3:35 PM, "joefaust333@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
 
Class of working kite systems: kiteboarding.



Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19609 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: Mayfly Emergence (Another Biomimetic Kite Case)
We've covered quite a few biological kites, as defined by a wing-and-tether basis: Leaves, Spiders, Petrels, Flying Fish, Rotifers, Barnacles, etc.

Here is a newly emerged mayfly starting by dragging its quasi-travois-tether in a kite-like mode. The travois design is of particular interest due to its stability factors. Perhaps the Plains Indians' travois was inspired by watching mayflies-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19610 From: dave santos Date: 1/21/2016
Subject: KiteShips OL Power Kite as the Ultimate WECS Wing?
Dave Culp's brilliant OL kite is the ultimate simplification of the power kite; a single-skin with only three lines. This is enough to steer or kill the kite at will far better than its spinnaker ancestor. No other more complex design can out-scale an OL with the same mass of polymer. The OL's winning design strategy is to go bigger, cheaper, than anything else flying. We seem to be seeing definite scaling limits being reached by more complex and expensive kite wings, while the largest OL has yet to be approached (
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19611 From: Hardensoft International Limited Date: 1/22/2016
Subject: Re: US Govt still futzing over AWE (Scientific American)
Sadly, any lack of understanding of #AWE by US government agencies today is but a deliberate willful ignorance given the opportunities that had always been on offer and remains on offer to all interested in AWE by this #OpenAWE forum.
If Google's (Makani) eventual failure in #AWE is later used as an excuse to stay away from AWE altogether, it is only a plausible cover for willful misadventure in a field of so much potential for human benefits.
Google can and should diversify from her single-basket #AWE investment in Makani to embrace #OpenAWE now rather continuing down a blind alley simply because of an appetite for unwise risk.
Hopefully, expected new entrants into AirborneWindEnergy like Bill Gates will not simply tag along with Google in Makani but will hopefully take a keen interest in #OpenAWE.
Lifts,
JohnO
AWEIA
 
John Adeoye  Oyebanji   B.Sc. MCPN
Managing Consultant & CEO
Hardensoft International Limited
<Technologies  

The US government has long lagged in AWE understanding, as further documented by Scientific American (reading-between-the-lines). US Secretary of the DOE, Moniz, on AWE-

"We also have qualitatively new directions to go in. One is the Makani flying wind turbines. Or now the Google X flying wind turbine; it’s so novel that we don't understand exactly how it could have a big, major transformative impact."

Too-novel-to-understand is the same official incomprehension that drove US oil and atomic power over-dependence and over-subsidy, and the flip-side of such monumental folly is the sad neglect of diversified AWE R&D. A rash of M600 crashes would create peak-confusion about AWE in US gov energy circles.
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19612 From: dave santos Date: 1/22/2016
Subject: Re: US Govt still futzing over AWE (Scientific American)
JohnO,

As ever, the deliverance of US AWE is nigh. Our job is to be ready, and so we will.

kPower and eWind have been in discussion on how to handle the Gates opening, which will be approached from multiple angles. We will include the international players without regard to borders.

The US will not abandon AWE if GoogleX fails, but will finally wake up. The worst plausible outcome is that GoogleX spins a uselessly marginal demo into a media triumph.

Meanwhile we sing the song below :)

daveS

SONGS + LYRICS
RICHARD CORY
They say that Richard Cory Owns one-half of this whole town
With political connections to spread his wealth around
Born into society, a banker’s only child
He had everything a man could want
Power, grace and style
But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I’m living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Richard Cory
The papers print his picture almost everywhere he goes
Richard Cory at the opera, Richard Cory at a show
And the rumor of his party and the orgies on his yacht!
Oh, he surely must be happy with everything he’s got
But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I’m living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Richard Cory
He freely gave to charity, he had the common touch
And they were grateful for his patronage and they thanked him very
much
So my mind was filled with wonder when the evening headlines read
“Richard Cory went home last night and put a bullet through his
head”
But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I’m living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Richard Cory



On Friday, January 22, 2016 4:02 AM, "Hardensoft International Limited hardensoftintl@yahoo.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
Sadly, any lack of understanding of #AWE by US government agencies today is but a deliberate willful ignorance given the opportunities that had always been on offer and remains on offer to all interested in AWE by this #OpenAWE forum.
If Google's (Makani) eventual failure in #AWE is later used as an excuse to stay away from AWE altogether, it is only a plausible cover for willful misadventure in a field of so much potential for human benefits.
Google can and should diversify from her single-basket #AWE investment in Makani to embrace #OpenAWE now rather continuing down a blind alley simply because of an appetite for unwise risk.
Hopefully, expected new entrants into AirborneWindEnergy like Bill Gates will not simply tag along with Google in Makani but will hopefully take a keen interest in #OpenAWE.
Lifts,
JohnO
AWEIA
 
John Adeoye  Oyebanji   B.Sc. MCPN
Managing Consultant & CEO
Hardensoft International Limited
<Technologies  

The US government has long lagged in AWE understanding, as further documented by Scientific American (reading-between-the-lines). US Secretary of the DOE, Moniz, on AWE-

"We also have qualitatively new directions to go in. One is the Makani flying wind turbines. Or now the Google X flying wind turbine; it’s so novel that we don't understand exactly how it could have a big, major transformative impact."

Too-novel-to-understand is the same official incomprehension that drove US oil and atomic power over-dependence and over-subsidy, and the flip-side of such monumental folly is the sad neglect of diversified AWE R&D. A rash of M600 crashes would create peak-confusion about AWE in US gov energy circles.
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19613 From: dave santos Date: 1/22/2016
Subject: Kite Kayaking Lessons
There is no developed curriculum for kite kayaking yet. You buy your kite and become a test pilot. My challenge was to master kite-kayaking in rough winter conditions. I prepared as best I could over years of learning, but no one is fully prepared for the violent alien world out there. A Coastie told my wife they had not picked up anyone who had ever spent so long in January water here; who not only lived but did not even need hospitalization. This reflects considerable preparations and training, without denying the experience revealed large gaps in my system. Here is a start at developing a mature set of best kite-seakayak practices; notes based on Monday's experience, and known best practice.

- Kite Killer: A sailor's quick-release shackle with a large pull strap will make the kite instantly ditchable, even with both hands on the paddle, thick gloves, etc..
- Line Cutter: Its a serious risk just using a locking blade knife or diver's knife while also struggling with a boat in waves. Use a cutter for kitelines, and save the knife for ropes.
- Reflectors: Large self-adhesive-film truck reflectors I added to my kayak were what the CC spotted. I could not let go my precarious balance on the upended kayak to operate flares.
- Lanyards on almost everything: One balances the risk of fouling against the risk of losing essential gear. Critical items, like your paddle, must have a leash (also carry a spare paddle).
- Communications Upgrade- As the CC now recommends, carry a an EPIRB and/or VHF Marine Radio. Since the cell phone is suddenly a universal accessory, also carry a water-resistant water-operable cell phone as back-up beyond CC minimum standard. The radio should reside on the chest, for instant mayday call.
- Strobe Light: Mine went unused due to having my hands full the whole time with more urgent tasks. A strobe strapped to the upper body that can be activated by a simple motion would have helped. Everything needed for rescue ideally needs to be quick and simple to employ.
- Deck Bag: Mine was hard to unzip one-handed, so I left it open after the capsize and righting, and loose objects flushed out. Spares in the kayak were out of reach in my tied-up condition in waves.
- Ocean Prow: Most kayaks are not designed to go fast by kite and not dig into waves. I will fiberglass a prow cap with internal foam flotation to retrofit.
- Watertight internal bulkheads: Ordinary float-bags are hard to secure and tend to lose air. I will add foam flotation behind fiberglass, at each end; to ensure level floating in the flooded state. Further, watertight compartments will be added to reduce the amount of water required to pump out after capsize.
- Personal Flotation Device with Wetsuit may require ankle weights: It is hard just floating vertical with a bouyant  wetsuit trying to float one's legs up.
- Drysuit or Wetsuit?: I am convinced a drysuit would likely have failed in the pounding I took clinging to an old fish trap piling during the initial phase. Its said the suits must not leak, but used ones are commonly sold patched. A wetsuit is inferior to a drysuit, unless the drysuit leaks. My "Farmer John" wetsuit is armless for paddling, so I had to fight the whole time to keep too much water sloshing in. A neoprene overshirt would have prevented excess sloshing, while maintaining arm freedom. Neoprene hood and gloves were essential, and spare gloves or glove leashes would have added security.
- Skills: When my wildly surfing kayak finally rolled, it seemed there was nothing I could do. In retrospect, I might have dug the paddle upwind into the wave to counter the rolling water acting on my rudder.

Sample links documenting the primitive state of kite-kayak advice-
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19614 From: joe_f_90032 Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Re: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19615 From: dave santos Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Joby Aviation Concepts under NASA third-party evaluation
Separating JoeF's rich link to a new topic; Joby Aviation, and its ongoing R&D in e-flight, with NASA now providing a public evaluation of the concepts.

Longtime readers of the Forum will recall Joeben Bevirt's high-profile entry into AWE, from a successful camera tripod product (Joby Gorillapod) to a misguided effort to lobby the US Congress and FAA to privatize airspace, but also for an AWES flygen concept that folded into Makani, and how this close partnership attracted US DOE and GoogleX support in the tens-of-millions total. The AWES Forum all along made specific critiques of Joby's political, corporate, and technical  assumptions, but there has been scant third-party validation or invalidation of these critiques, except perhaps as corporate secrets. NASA is spending the millions that will finally prove who was right or wrong on many questions, and public results are beginning to pile up.

The main old Forum critique is that the Joby/Makani/GoogleX's AWES cannot scale well enough to be safe and economic, at least for many decades. The new NASA timeline for eflight rated-power progress (which correlates to flygen eflight AWES by inherent Motor <=
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19616 From: dave santos Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Re: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators
Quick review-

This is mainly a EE COTS topic for AWE ground-multigen requirements, which are not too unique. However, fly-multigen power-to-weight challenges is AE territory, but common basics apply to both fields-

For a small unitary application, one tries to specify the best single generator to match load(s). To add the flexibility of matching smaller loads efficiently, and/or to boost total output somewhat, one adds a "pony" generator (or motor). Such a two gen system has three power levels; by combining both generators, or choosing one or the other. Sometimes the small units are motored* to spin-up a larger gen unit to match grid AC frequency. For large scale applications, where the loads far exceed the optimal gen unit scale, one merely specifies the number of gens to match peak-load and engage a subset of generators to best match non-peak-loads. Clutches are common to engage generators at will to a shared shaft or power-train.

Many specialized cases exist. A recent example is the Open-AWE idea for Minesto of a stack of "pancake" generators on a common turbine shaft, to maximize output voltage without gearing, while keeping nacelle width narrow. There are also electrical phasing control issues and other complications when performance or other specializations dictate (like motor-gen dual modes).

------
* A system "starter-motor" can in principle be tapped as a gen, although this option is rarely needed or too impractical.


On Saturday, January 23, 2016 10:38 AM, "joefaust333@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  


Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19617 From: dave santos Date: 1/23/2016
Subject: Re: Electrical Challenges on Ganging Generators
Another common multigen practice is tandem generators, with two identical units installed. This allows a simplified supply chain compared to varied gen units, and for one unit to be kept in reserve for when the the other unit requires maintenance or repair, including interchangeable part-swapping, and also two levels of load/supply power levels.


On Saturday, January 23, 2016 7:02 PM, "dave santos santos137@yahoo.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
Quick review-

This is mainly a EE COTS topic for AWE ground-multigen requirements, which are not too unique. However, fly-multigen power-to-weight challenges is AE territory, but common basics apply to both fields-

For a small unitary application, one tries to specify the best single generator to match load(s). To add the flexibility of matching smaller loads efficiently, and/or to boost total output somewhat, one adds a "pony" generator (or motor). Such a two gen system has three power levels; by combining both generators, or choosing one or the other. Sometimes the small units are motored* to spin-up a larger gen unit to match grid AC frequency. For large scale applications, where the loads far exceed the optimal gen unit scale, one merely specifies the number of gens to match peak-load and engage a subset of generators to best match non-peak-loads. Clutches are common to engage generators at will to a shared shaft or power-train.

Many specialized cases exist. A recent example is the Open-AWE idea for Minesto of a stack of "pancake" generators on a common turbine shaft, to maximize output voltage without gearing, while keeping nacelle width narrow. There are also electrical phasing control issues and other complications when performance or other specializations dictate (like motor-gen dual modes).

------
* A system "starter-motor" can in principle be tapped as a gen, although this option is rarely needed or too impractical.


On Saturday, January 23, 2016 10:38 AM, "joefaust333@gmail.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  




Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19618 From: dave santos Date: 1/24/2016
Subject: Re: Joby Aviation Concepts under NASA third-party evaluation
A few more observations of the Joby/NASA work-

The closest to "whale bumps" on a wing are the wing motor pods of Joby's concept, but with no comparable advantage. Its obvious that this is a very high drag aircraft design, with a lot of frontal bluff-body drag (unless prop-spinners are added), skin-drag, and internal aero-mechanical drag (the current propellers do not fold, but windmill to idle).

The CAN embedded controls Joby/NASA are using are from National Instruments, in Austin; again underscoring the dominant position of NI across elite AWE R&D worldwide (Ironically for kPower, NI's capabilities are still too extravagant for our down-and-dirty low-complexity test style across many AWES architectures, and would only slow us down. As we eventually make definite down-selects for productization, then we'll adopt the NI tools, which we have a 30+ year home-field head-start advantage, with NI's huge design bureau in Austin).

Joeben himself is in the NASA group shot, in his standard black suit, white shirt, and no tie. The NASA team, however, from PI on down, clearly now "owns" the concept  Joby is being relegated to only being an experimental motor supplier, which is a small shaky foothold, given how competitive the high-tech mass-motor market is getting. Based on the NASA timeline (and standing Forum predictions), we clearly are not about to see Joby offer the personal playboy e-VTOL aircraft, now several years in "preorder" stage.

The NASA investigators cite "low TRL components" under the "Challenges", which is further evidence of the long timeline of the high-complexity path. We are several years past Joby/Makani's market-entry claims, as scrubbed from the old web pages. A growing circle of experts beyond just the AWES Forum should be becoming aware that the Makani M600 may not be able to fly at all, much less net any watts, which would be a major AE scandal. Like NASA in this case, the Honolulu FAA FSDO is in the cat seat for this engineering drama, and may be the only reliable source of public info.

One thing this research is doing right is operating from Edwards AFB in CA (just as ChrisC recommended here) rather than Hawaii.


On Saturday, January 23, 2016 5:53 PM, "dave santos santos137@yahoo.com [AirborneWindEnergy]" <AirborneWindEnergy@yahoogroups.com  
Separating JoeF's rich link to a new topic; Joby Aviation, and its ongoing R&D in e-flight, with NASA now providing a public evaluation of the concepts.

Longtime readers of the Forum will recall Joeben Bevirt's high-profile entry into AWE, from a successful camera tripod product (Joby Gorillapod) to a misguided effort to lobby the US Congress and FAA to privatize airspace, but also for an AWES flygen concept that folded into Makani, and how this close partnership attracted US DOE and GoogleX support in the tens-of-millions total. The AWES Forum all along made specific critiques of Joby's political, corporate, and technical  assumptions, but there has been scant third-party validation or invalidation of these critiques, except perhaps as corporate secrets. NASA is spending the millions that will finally prove who was right or wrong on many questions, and public results are beginning to pile up.

The main old Forum critique is that the Joby/Makani/GoogleX's AWES cannot scale well enough to be safe and economic, at least for many decades. The new NASA timeline for eflight rated-power progress (which correlates to flygen eflight AWES by inherent Motor <=


Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19619 From: dave santos Date: 1/24/2016
Subject: Harnessing the Wind (Draft-Horse and Traction-Kite Parallels)
By similar statistics and dynamics, horse and kite both pull loads, thus the ancient art of harnessing horses has been readily applicable to kite-harnessing. This has been known in the West, at least since Pocock simply replaced the carriage horse with a kite. Then came Cody, a Wild West drover, who was the natural king of kites in the "Kite Golden Age" over a century ago, and even used his show horse to handle kites. We have often made the comparisons, in recent years, on topics like whipple-trees (lazy-jacks) and reins (control lines). The recent Arctic Kite Sledge topic certainly shows progress over Capt. Scott's tragic ponies.

Legendary multi-kite ballet formation flyer Ray Bethel's sideman, Chuck Blevins, himself one of the last Old West harness-makers informed a lot of Forum ponderings. I was sitting with old Chuck at the WKM Indoor Kite Festival today, and we both expressed wonky redneck excitement at watching driving competition videos. Its a very complex form of low-tech that classically looks like the image, but the video link at bottom* shows modern gear. 



Kites have a more to learn from horse traditions, to replace the oil that replaced the horse as the engine of civilization. A new detail to note is the operational presence of grooms to handle problems, as the driver must stay at the reins. The PIC of an AWES will similarly rely on his VOs.

There is also an apt linguistic similarity between pulling drachen (kite) and pulling dragen (horse). Wikipedia-

A draft horse (US), draught horse (UK and Commonwealth) or dray horse (from the Old English dragan meaning "to draw or haul"; compare Dutch dragen and German tragen meaning "to carry")

An apt pop connection-
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*
Group: AirborneWindEnergy Message: 19620 From: dave santos Date: 1/24/2016
Subject: Kite-Rescue Trope in Commercial
There has been an acceleration in kite themed media in recent years. This trend suggests AWE will have a smoothed path to "go big" in the public mind.

Here's the latest-