Hawkins, 1905, Automatic stability
Discusses the necessity, for the newly developing airplane as well as for airships, of maintaining a relatively constant pitch in flight near the ground. Hawkins states, "in my humble opinion a fixed wing aëroplane can never be a safe machine, except on a dead calm day, or at a considerable distance from the ground, or any obstruction."
He observes that birds can change their wing surfaces immediately in response to changing wind conditions and suggests that airplanes should be able to do the same.
He refers to a twenty year old patent by a Mr. Waelde for a "feathering fan" design, in which the wing is split up into surfaces at different angles. This is probably Patent GB-1886-1830. He also refers by number to Patent GB-1886-1830 by Waelde, and to Patent GB-1889-19282 by Count D'Avet. These patents are also cited in Patent GB-1904-1543 by Hawkins.
Hawkins goes on to describe his design which is presumably similar to the one laid out in this latter patent. Basically it seems to be a propeller system linked to a pendulum, which is supposed to provide automatic corrections.
| Original title | Automatic stability |
|---|---|
| Simple title | Automatic stability |
| Authors | E. C. Hawkins |
| Date | 1905 |
| Countries | GB |
| Languages | en |
| Keywords | automatic stability, safety, glider, pitch, birds, wind, Patent GB-1904-1543, pendulum |
| Journal | Aër. Journ. |
| Related to aircraft? | |
| Page count | 6 |
| Word count | |
| Wikidata id |
Sources
- Brockett 1910, page 400, entry 5829: Hawkins, E. C. Automatic stability. Aër. Journ., Vol. 9, No. 34, 1905, London, pp. 31-36, figs. 1-5. S (5829
- Scan at HathiTrust
