Analysis of the Aerodynamic Characteristics of Glider Lift-to-Drag Ratio and Its Wing Shape

Abstract

: In the fields of aviation engineering and fluid dynamics, optimizing the aerodynamic performance of gliders is crucial for improving flight efficiency. Wind tunnels are a crucial component of aerodynamics research. Nowadays, there have been significant advancements in control systems, control technologies, and instrumentation for wind tunnels. The development of aerodynamics intersects with multiple disciplines — for example, researching the ablation of aircraft surface materials and mass injection under high-temperature conditions involves disciplines such as high-temperature gas dynamics and multiphase flow. However, measurement technologies still have limitations: certain parameters are difficult to measure, such as shock wave structures in high-speed flows, the instantaneous characteristics of turbulence, and pressure and velocity distributions in complex flow fields. This experiment takes a paper airplane as a model and uses the control variable method to design three sets of gliders with different aspect ratios (AR) and wing areas. The flight trajectory data is obtained using Tracker video analysis software to quantitatively analyze the relationship between lift-to-drag ratio and wing geometry parameters. When the aspect ratio increases, the gliding angle decreases, and the lift-to-drag ratio significantly increases. The study provides a low-cost experimental paradigm for the aerodynamic design of micro air vehicles, revealing the influence of key geometric parameters of unpowered gliding bodies on lift-to-drag ratio. This study establishes a low-cost experimental paradigm and fills the gap in the study of aerodynamic characteristics of micro unpowered gliders. Its method can be extended to analyze other low-speed aerodynamic systems.