How I will conduct the experiment?

My experiment will answer the question:
'How does size of paper used to make paper airplanes affect their flight.'
 
Following the research about the aerodynamics of paper airplanes/planes in general and brief plane launcher design, here is a rough summary of how I will conduct the experiment.

Equipment:

Independent Variables:

- model of airplane

- size of paper

Dependent Variables:

- length of flight

- nature of flight (not sure if I should do this one)

ie, pattern of flight of the plane, how quickly it descends.

Controlled Variables:

- type of paper used

- wind speed in surrounding environment (that will be 0km/h as I will conduct at home)

- length elastic band is pulled back (is there a name of that?)

- height of release

Method 1:

Using the three models of airplanes I had previously decided on, I will launch each model from the plane launcher.

I will vary the size of paper used, starting from an A4 size followed by paper of smaller sizes.

I will then measure the distance travelled by each airplane of each model. Record the results, repeat the experiment, and of course, analysise.

Method 2:

A method similar to the first, with the difference of recording the 'nature of the flight'.
ie, recording the actual flight of the airplane and perhaps graphing it.

designing the plane launcher.

I found this video on youtube by user: MattB667 , uploaded on November 17, 2009. I wanted to adopt the 'plastic hook & rubber band' part of the method, and will be adding to the design myself.

'cut a hook out of plastic as shown in the next picture.'

'push the point of the hook throught the base of the plane so it pokes out underneath it,
and the rest of the hook resides in the middle of the plane.'

My plane launcher will have a base, probably made out of a plank of wood. Then, it will have two nails, nailed down a reasonable distance apart. And attached to each nail will be one end of the elastic band (or any elastic material) that the airplane will be hooked onto. The elastic band will then be pulled back and effectively 'launch' the plane.

So, it will hopefully look something like this:

Why do paper airplanes fly?

The four main factors which affect the aerodynamics of an airplane are:-

1/ Thrust - the forward motion or speed of the aircraft.

For paper airplanes this is provided by your throwing the plane forward. Also if you throw your airplane with differing strength this will also change the airflow as the wings move through the air.

2/ Drag - the resistance of the aircraft against the wind.

As paper airplanes do not have any form of continuous motion ie an engine and a propeller; your airplane needs to be built sleek. This will keep the drag to a minimum.

3/ Gravity - the force that keeps all things on the earth. To alleviate this force an object needs to become light in weight;

4/ Lift- where the push of the wind under the wing is greater than the push on the top of the wing. This upward pushing makes the aircraft lighter.

This is where we have a lot to thank Lawrence Hargraves for as this was his discovery which by the way the Wright brothers used to further their passion for powered flight.

source: http://www.airplane-and-aircraft.com/aerodynamics-of-paper-airplanes.html

So out of the four factors that influence the flight of a airplane. And out of the four, the only one that I will be changing is the 'thrust', which is measured in newtons (N), and not just in any random fashion. I will need to build some sort of plane launcher, so that my experiment will be a fair test.
The 'drag' will be controlled as the experiment will be conducted at home.

ToDo List, due 11th March

1. send url to ms zhang.
2. post on blog regularly & put effort in.
3. do some research about the topic.
4. think of different project designs - listing independent & dependent variables
5. make sure the experiment is:

• reliable
• conducted fairly
• can be completed within the time frame
• conducted at home using normal household equipment
• can give a VALID and conclusive result

And finally.. print off the blog for submission.