First (?) human powered helicopter flight

In summary: I found a video of the first human powered helicopter flight which was made in 1994. It was a Yuri I helicopter and it still holds the record for the longest hover time.
  • #1
AerospaceEng
28
0
Small accomplishment but hopefully it'll lead to greater things, here's the video:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/video/tech-22186835/calif-students-build-musical-robots-then-jam-25217074.html
 
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  • #2


The video of helicopter has to be selected from the images below the main video.
 
  • #3


Oh I didn't realize, thanks borek.
 
  • #4


You should change the title because it is misleading - not true!

This one (Gamera) was the 3d official flight in May 13 2011 and "achieved unofficial lift-off of 3-5 inches and hover time of approximately 4 to 6 seconds."

("The Clark School expects to receive word on certification early next week (this week) and will issue a complete release at that time.")The 1st successful flight was from Da Vinci III which reached 8 inches for 7.1 sec in 1989.

The 2nd successful flight was from Yuri-I which reached 0.2m (7.9 inches) for 19.46 sec in 1994.Here is a video of Yuri-1 (1994) which still holds the record:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNMTryyvY1Q&feature=player_embedded"

You can find more details here:http://www.humanpoweredhelicopters.org/"
 
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  • #5
thanks so much the yuri was really interesting to watch. I found a more detailed video for those who are interested,

I thought this was the first human powered flight because in this video there were saying this has never been done before and then at the end they said they set a record? do they not know of the yuri and such?
 
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  • #6
AerospaceEng said:
thanks so much the yuri was really interesting to watch. I found a more detailed video for those who are interested,

I thought this was the first human powered flight because in this video there were saying this has never been done before and then at the end they said they set a record? do they not know of the yuri and such?


The following is a comment from a team member (genuine or not):
"Our team certainly doesn't believe that we're the first. We're in contact with team members from the Da Vinci project, and if you watch our other "promo" video you'll see that we give a lot of credit to Yuri and other such efforts. One of the big confusions is that neither Yuri nor Da Vinci were "certified" flight attempts, and so since our flight may be the first "official" record, media (as media tends to do) may have hyped up that fact to be the first ever human powered heli. "

(From the link:http://www.flyafrica.info/forums/showthread.php?38580-Human-powered-helicopter-flies")

Their promo video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uT4y4xb2UYI&playnext=1&list=PL342EC9DE5332F42F



BTW, wheel rolling has not been "officially certified" yet -anybody wants to be famous?
 
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  • #7
AerospaceEng said:
thanks so much the yuri was really interesting to watch. I found a more detailed video for those who are interested,

I thought this was the first human powered flight because in this video there were saying this has never been done before and then at the end they said they set a record? do they not know of the yuri and such?


They took into consideration the Yuri very carefully. The media did a poor job calling this the first HPH, when it was in fact the first flight of the UMD HPH. The youtube comment quoted is legit. Hopefully they can do some optimization of the drive train and fly again longer later in the year. Incidentally, the guys at Cal Poly have made a VERY nice pilot station as their senior design project. I'll track down a link to that report later if you want it. It's quite a good job.
 
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  • #8
The AHS Sikorsky Prize has been awarded for the AeroVelo Atlas. The June 13 flight met all of the requirements for the prize, and after review, the prize was awarded on July 11, 2013.

 
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  • #9
Very cool D H! Thanks for the link. :smile:
 
  • #10
That's the best effort I've seen so far. Still so far, I'm not aware of any attempt that gets a human powerd helicopter out of ground effect mode for the rotor(s).
 
  • #11
Love the way he was leaning over - instinctively trying to prevent it drifting sideways.
 

Related to First (?) human powered helicopter flight

1. What is the first human powered helicopter flight?

The first human powered helicopter flight refers to the first successful flight achieved by a helicopter solely powered by human effort. This means that the helicopter's rotors were turned and sustained by the physical power of the pilot, without the use of any external engines or motors.

2. When did the first human powered helicopter flight take place?

The first human powered helicopter flight took place on June 13, 1989, by a team led by aeronautical engineer Dr. Paul MacCready. The flight lasted for 7.1 seconds and reached a height of 20 inches, covering a distance of 64 feet.

3. How did the first human powered helicopter flight work?

The first human powered helicopter, called the "Gossamer Condor II", had four rotors with a total wingspan of 96 feet. The pilot pedaled a bicycle-like mechanism, which turned the rotors and lifted the helicopter off the ground. The helicopter was also equipped with a tail rotor for stability and control.

4. What was the significance of the first human powered helicopter flight?

The first human powered helicopter flight was a significant achievement in the field of aviation. It proved that human-powered flight was possible and opened up new possibilities for energy-efficient aircraft. It also demonstrated the potential of lightweight materials and innovative design in creating efficient flying machines.

5. Has the record for the longest human powered helicopter flight been broken?

Yes, the record for the longest human powered helicopter flight has been broken multiple times since the first flight in 1989. The current record is held by the "Atlas" helicopter, which flew for 64.11 seconds in 2013. This shows the continuous advancements and improvements in human-powered flight technology.

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