In an air vehicle intended for gliding there are provided two wing members and a tail member connected to a fuselage member and controllable respectively by the arms and legs of the pilot. The wing members are provided with spring arrangements constituted by respective cantilever arm members and an interconnecting tensile cord connected at its ends to the wing members and passing through swiveling eyelets at the ends of the arms. As the wing members are moved from a central position in either the upstroke or the downstroke the cord tension increases from a minimum value that steadies the wing members in the neutral position and provides a restoring force assisting in producing smooth stroking of the wing members.
A wind driven craft comprising a body and a pair of wings extending therefrom. The wings are pivotally connected to the body of the craft. The wings provide lift and thrust to the craft such that it is able to move under influence of the wind.
A lift system is described for free-falling persons including a lift body with a belt system which can be detachably attached to a person. The lift body is designed so that it defines a direction of flight in the longitudinal axis of the person, and a device for detaching the lift system in a free-fall phase, a flight phase or a landing phase from the person. The lift body has an overall delta-wing shaped design.
A human body attached wing device (20) for use during downhill alpine activities such as skiing and snowboarding. Wing device (20) includes independently operable, mirror image, left and right wings (24) and (26), which may be joined to a user (22) on or about the shoulders via a harness (28) that is worn by user (22). Each of wings (24) and (26) generally include ram-air canopies, (30) and (32), respectively, that inflate during use to form lift-providing airfoils. The surface area of canopy (30) is defined by first and second ends (34) and (36), a leading edge (38), and a trailing edge (40). Canopy (30) may include additional stiffening members to help maintain the shape of wings (24) and (26) when it is either deflated or only partially inflated, or when it is used as an air brake. Canopy (30) may also include flexible triangular struts (110) that stabilize trailing edge (40).
