Educational Airfoil

• 

  Finished Airfoil

Inspiration

As an Aerospace Engineering student, I'm always looking for new ways to share my love for all things flying. I thought Horizons would be another location where I could maybe teach something new.

What it does

The airfoil demonstrates how actual airfoil testing is performed, with the airfoil being balanced on a load stand with an internal strut holding it in the correct location. There's no actual functionality, but it does also double as a cool looking sculpture.

How we built it

I built this entirely out of laser cut wood and hot glue. I first CADed the parts using Solidworks, and then laser cut everything out of 1/4" plywood. A lot of hot glue later, and the final product was created.

Challenges we ran into

The main challenge was that 1/4" plywood is thicker than some laser cutters, especially the ones I had access to, are designed to cut. This led to some "slightly" charcoaled edges on the parts.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

I'm proud that this airfoil actually came together. The laser cutting process took so long that I really only had one chance for all the parts to fit, but they actually did fit together on the first attempt and form a definite airfoil looking object.

What we learned

I learned that I have to think more about not just what a machine's capabilities are, but more what is easy for it to do. The laser cutter theoretically can cut 1/4" plywood, but it is most definitely not the preferred material and I have to adapt my design to more closely match the ideal scenario.

What's next for Educational Airfoil

This airfoil is very similar to a project I have to complete later in the semester, so I will be using this as a learning experience to refine the design and find better methods of manufacturing these sections.

Built With

• solidworks