Getting a stiff back

No I'm not getting old. Turns out when you chop a glider in half it looses some of its strength. Who knew?

Anyway, I have stiffened up the rear with a bit of lovely shiny tubing! This will also be the support for the seat back, allowing it to be adjusted.

I think it looks rather nice.

Also, the rudder pedal work continues. Finally have all the bits so should get them done tomorrow.

Rudder pedals

I now have some rudder pedals from a twin astir. Huge thanks to Waikerie GC and David Conway.

The rudder pedals include the adjusting slide and catch and, incredibly, they fit straight on to the mounting points from the LS7. Of course there is quite a bit to do, but not nearly as much as I thought, which is a huge relief.

Elevator pot

2nd potentiometer is now done. I'm happy with them both. Very little slop and plenty of space around them. I'm looking foward to getting the controller hardware so I can actually get some control of a glider on a pc.

The 2 pots left are the rudder and airbrakes. I'm waiting to see what the rudder looks like since its not from an LS7 and will need to be fitted. I'm also not sure how I will do the airbrakes just yet since they have a very big travel. Possibly a rack and pinion mechanism

By the way, comments are welcome! And tips or ideas, post them up.

Aileron pot

Control mechanism for the aileron is now pretty much finished. Origionally had it in a different position but the seat pan was hitting it, and the whole thing looked a bit messy. I had to put another linkage in to get down to the space below the stick, but the design is a much neater solution. I will do the same for the elevator.

Pics show aileron centered and far right.

Trailer

Well I have aquired a trailer to use as a base for the project. The more design work I did the more it became apparent that I wanted just a frame of a trailer to build from. A boat trailer is an obvious choise. The trailer in question is a jetski trailer. It is in excellent condition which is great as it saves me the time spent cleaning it up. Please excuse the crappy photos. I'll take some more during the day when it isnt wedged in by cars


I have done some _very_ basic CAD work just to show people who I talk with what it is I'm talking about! I'll put it up, but I expect the design will change quite a bit.





Next stage on the fuse is putting in the potentiometers. Have the gizmo that feeds all that information to the pc coming in the mail. More soon

Elevator trim done

The elevator trim is now done. It uses basically the same kind of mechanism as can be found in the standard glider. It works fine but needs a bit more spring pressure holding the grip (that grips the threaded rod). I had hoped to use the springiness of the handle but it isnt enough, so will put a light spring in to help.

Now I have a stick that centers as would be expected, I will be looking at getting the potentiometers and necessary electronics to send signals to the pc. Also have some rudder pedals to put in when they arrive next week. Onwards and upwards!

Aileron spring and trim done

Just a quick one. Aileron spring is done. A pretty simple fix, has the ability to be adjusted by moving the nuts along the rod as can be seen in the picture. The rubber bands are in place of proper springs. I wanted to get a correct spring constant before I go and buy them.

The elevator needs the same thing but the whole lot has to be movable with the trim lever. I have some ideas and it should be done soon.

Also got some donated rudder pedals heading my way. Should be able to fabricate them into the nose. Certainly easier than building them myself.

Trim and stick center

Next problem is the stick center and trim. Aeleron center is relitvely simple but the trim is a little more tricky. A shifting center spring trim removes the need for trim within the game which saves a whole lot of fuss, so want to get it working.

Fuselage finish

A quick post to show the final finish on the fuselage. I will hold off on the painting since there is other work to be done and I dont want to risk ruining a nice paint job. I am now moving on to the seat pan and seat back. They are nearly done anyway, just need to sort the fitting and attachment.

Welcome and update

Welcome to the Glider Simulator project. This blog is a way for me to keep everyone up to speed with how the project is going. There are a number of insterested parties, so I hope to keep everyone informed.

To start from the beginning, I am building a portable trailer-based gliding simulator for my 4th year Uni project. This comprises of a real glider fuselage cut down to fit, coupled with a software simulator running on a pc and projected onto a screen in front of the pilot. Currently the only (portable) example of this is shown below. This is the British Gliding Association's sim.

Fuselage

The fuse is from an LS7 which was involved in an accident. It was kindly donated and I have been undergoing repairs. It was very scrappy, but after a lot of work is coming together nicely

Importantly, the fuse included critical control linkages, seat pan, seat back and trim. These are all controls that will be hooked up to give input to the pc.

The fuse has been internally re-enforced with glass fibre, and filled and sanded externally to give a smooth finish. It is close to a painting stage. The seatpan was also heavily damaged and needed work. This is fixed and so the internals are nearing the end of the repair stage as well.