W&B for gyroplanes

P

PeterFromLA

Member
Joined
Nov 11, 2024
Messages
9
Reaction score
1
It will be fantastic if at some point we can have W&B simplified for use in a gyroplane - front seat weight, rear seat weight, fuel.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You can do that right now. Just add or delete stations as desired to create whatever W&B profile you like.
 
Cobra said:
You can do that right now. Just add or delete stations as desired to create whatever W&B profile you like.
Click to expand...
Does not work as I expect it... The overall diagram is too complex and cannot be over simplified...
 
PeterFromLA said:
Does not work as I expect it... The overall diagram is too complex and cannot be over simplified...
Click to expand...
I'm ignorant regarding how gyroscopes are different from airplanes in W&B. Maybe you could be more explicit about what's needed to satisfy your wishes?

For instance, how would it be different from, say, a Piper Cub with a front seat, and rear seat, and a fuel tank?
 
Cobra said:
I'm ignorant regarding how gyroscopes are different from airplanes in W&B. Maybe you could be more explicit about what's needed to satisfy your wishes?

For instance, how would it be different from, say, a Piper Cub with a front seat, and rear seat, and a fuel tank?
Click to expand...
W&B for gyroplanes is fairly simple... Front seat has MIN & MAX allowed weight, back seat is very close to CG so all it needs it to fit within the useful load, same with fuel.

So, if you have you gyro's useful load in the setting, then you fill in the weight of the pilot, the weigh of the passenger, the amount of fuel in US Gallons (then internally being converted to weight), you can expect the app to check if the pilot's weight fits within the MIN-MAX, and if the overal weight fits in the useful load number... That's it... at least this is how tandem gyros work...

One may say this is too much engineering for such a simple task, but would be a neat feature especially for newer gyro pilots...
 
PeterFromLA said:
W&B for gyroplanes is fairly simple... Front seat has MIN & MAX allowed weight, back seat is very close to CG so all it needs it to fit within the useful load, same with fuel.

So, if you have you gyro's useful load in the setting, then you fill in the weight of the pilot, the weigh of the passenger, the amount of fuel in US Gallons (then internally being converted to weight), you can expect the app to check if the pilot's weight fits within the MIN-MAX, and if the overal weight fits in the useful load number... That's it... at least this is how tandem gyros work...

One may say this is too much engineering for such a simple task, but would be a neat feature especially for newer gyro pilots...
Click to expand...
This sounds exactly like a tandem-seat aircraft like a Piper Cub. iFly EFB handles that just fine. What part of that do you think it doesn't do?

The only piece that it doesn't explicitly handle is the "min weight", but the only reason I can think there needs to be a "min weight" is to satisfy the CG constraints...so if you define the CG constraints properly, then you should see a CG violation if the weight is too low. If that's not correct, what am I missing?

So again: What, specifically, does iFly not do that you need it to do?
 
Simplicity is missing... not a big deal, but since you asked...

Here is a task for you:
1. You get a new gyro (built from a kit by you or the previous owner)
2. After a hang test, it has been identified that the front seat has MIN/MAX wight capacity
3. Empty weight has been determined
4. Fuel capacity is known
5. Useful load has been determined...

Get me a W&B setup that I, as a gyro pilot, can use without the need to overcomplicate the issue.

I am attaching a picture of my W&B sheet that I use in my gyro, and it works fine, but since we are trying to join the 21 century, why not add the feature...
screenshot_2016.png
 
Complication is in the eye of the beholder. Adding even something "simple" like this isn't trivial--there are hours/days of coding required, then testing, then release to beta testing so others can test it, then release to the public and provide support if users have problems with it, etc., etc. And it means those resources aren't spent on other features and improvements.

I understand you may not want to spend the one-time 30 min or an hour to set up iFly so it will do your W&B for you (though you probably could have done it by now using the time you've spent on this forum post). But I question whether AP spending the resources required to save you that 30-60 min will benefit enough other users to make it an overall net win.

AP uses upvotes on this forum to gauge interest in feature suggestions. Get enough gyro users to buy in and this may bubble up high enough to get attention.
 
Last edited:
Cobra, I am a software developer in my day job, so I know the effort it takes to program something even "small" and to justify the expense in developing it... so, please, you are preaching to the choir...

I suggested the feature, and if I get it fine, if I don't get it... fine... I will still enjoy my flying, and I really like your product overall... on my 740B which I am not replacing with the new tablet anytime soon, and I like it even better on my TRIPLTEK tablet...
 
Cobra said:
Complication is in the eye of the beholder. Adding even something "simple" like this isn't trivial--there are hours/days of coding required, then testing, then release to beta testing so others can test it, then release to the public and provide support if users have problems with it, etc., etc. And it means those resources aren't spent on other features and improvements.

I understand you may not want to spend the one-time 30 min or an hour to set up iFly so it will do your W&B for you (though you probably could have done it by now using the time you've spent on this forum post). But I question whether AP spending the resources required to save you that 30-60 min will benefit enough other users to make it an overall net win.

AP uses upvotes on this forum to gauge interest in feature suggestions. Get enough gyro users to buy in and this may bubble up high enough to get attention.
Click to expand...
By the way... can you give me a step-by-step tutorial on fitting the gyro W&B in the current system... by using the data I gave you earlier?
 
PeterFromLA said:
... I really like your product overall...
Click to expand...
Note my signature: iFly's not "my product"--I'm just a user like you.

PeterFromLA said:
By the way... can you give me a step-by-step tutorial on fitting the gyro W&B in the current system... by using the data I gave you earlier?
Click to expand...
No, because the data you've given hides some of the data that iFly needs to have. Do you have a "typical" W&B chart--maybe from your POH or equivalent--that shows the actual W&B envelope? Something like this? (Your graph may look different, but that doesn't matter.)

1000002100.jpg
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top