Synopsis: Our goal is to equip a sailplane with an array of sensors on the wings, and feed that information back to the pilot as a tactile array. That is, our goal is to let the pilot (or passenger) feel on their skin the airflow over the wings (or other aircraft surfaces). This may enhance the experience of flight for the pilot. For example, we expect that a bird experiences the flow of air over its wings, and (we hope) our system will provide an analogous experience of airflow to the pilot or passenger. Additionally, this system may improve the pilots ability to detect lift and sink (updrafts and downdrafts), and may improve safety by helping the pilot more easily anticipate stall conditions, which could lead to spins. It may also be useful in simulations to improve the quality of simulations, and may also help improve the experience of flight for people who are visually impaired.
Current parts
of the project
Air Flow Measuring Sensor Array for a Sailplane Wing (In progress; Software: Sonja Foss PDF; Hardware: Usama Nasir PDF)
Fly by Feel: Air Actuator System (In progress; Nabil Cheikh PDF; additional requirements for the project MS Word)
Development of a virtual sensor data
source and graphic display
system(Prasad Kulkarni, proposal PDF; completed thesis below).
Color mapped images of virtual sensors
from the top
and bottom of a simulated wing
(zero degrees angle of attack).
Tactile feedback hardware prototypes (images)
Evaluation of a commercial tactile feedback feeback vest (David Sebesta PDF)
Video clipsProgramming Interface for TN Games Vest
Affiliated researchers
Related work
