Leonardo’s helicopter – model much improved
Another quick update on my model of Leonardo’s helicopter – I have made a larger diameter rotor and achieved a couple of flights across the room. The rotor diameter is now about 18cms (about 7.5 inches) and made from cereal box card. The helix winds one and a half times around (one circle plus a half, with the lower circle split along the radius to the centre and the extra half attached with masking tape. There was some sag, which I rectified with a masking tape brace – you will notice that Leonardo’s helicopter design had string braces to support the rotor structure – I guess he had problems with sag too 😉 Anyhow here is a picture of my model (current configuration as flown). The drive is the same spinning-top launcher that I was using before.
And Leonardo’s one for comparison:
Image as displayed on the Leonardo Museum in Vinci – they also have a model based on Leonardo’s helicopter, but using fabric rotors the way Leonard’s original envisaged.
Cheers
Jerry
