Using the back pages of the Foam Cutter User Guide, students choose an airfoil design template. Students then begin modifying their chosen wing design, eventually completing five similar wing designs based on the original design. Students should avoid making large changes to the design. Instead, each phase of the design should be slightly different in some respect from the one that preceded it.
Using the process shown in the Dr. Zoon Foam Wing Gliders Video, students use the wing designs as templates on Pitsco’s Foam Wing Cutter. The Foam Wing Cutter uses a hot wire to cut the airfoil shapes out of Styrofoam. After completion, the airfoils are sanded smooth.
Students use the Pitsco Wing Tester to measure the lifting force that each airfoil provides. Results are recorded in a data table, and students use the data to further refine their airfoil to gain maximum performance.
After the airfoil shape is determined, students construct a foam wing glider using balsa wood for the fuselage and stabilizers. The glider wings are cut from Styrofoam using the final wing design.