Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-12-11
FLYING MACHINE POSSIBLE
The Possibility Of the Achievement
Proved in Theory by Some
Curious Figures.
Mr.. EdisOn's Attention Invited to
Further Investigation of It's Feas-
Utility and Success.
Conditions to be Observed by Those
Who Address Themselves to
This Problem.

In his interesting talk on flying ma
chimes, in a recent number of the n Y.
Herald Mr.. Edison reasons thus:-Because
a bee cannot carry weight equal to its
own on It's back, therefore d flying ma
chine made On its model cannot possibly
support any more than its own weight,
no matter how much the power be increas-
ed
Now it is quite reasonable to argue that
if the bee can carry the weight in any
other way-wlth its legs-for instance, the
conclusion is not correct.
The ordinary working bee can carry the
body of a dead drone out of the hive, hold
ing the weight with its legs, and fly with
it to a considerable distance. To perform
this feat it exerts double its ordinary
power the speed of vibration of the wings
being increased from $50 to 100 per second.
The rate is ascertained by the musical note
produced by the vibrations
1t is not necessary to take either the bee
or bird for model, and the problem is
very far, indeed, from being puzzle, the
the real puzzle being how to find some
one with enterprise enough to make the
test.
If Mr.. Edison will only turn his atten-
ton to this interesting subject for little
while his great genius will surely hasten
the day OF success, not necessarily by I'M
Kidding hitherto insolvable problem,
but simply by providing in a practical man
ner what has already been demonstrated
in sections.
ELEMENTS OF THE FLYING PROBLEM.
A very little study will show him.
Flrst-Ihat mechanical fight has been
proved. many years ago, to be attainable
Second-Ihat the things essential to
success have already been done without
difficulty.
Third-That all that is necessary to do
is to combine things already tried and
proved by other experimenters. but on a
large scale and with improved appliances
Forth-That the remaining difficulties,
so far as foreseen by the experimenters,
have been overcome.
Fifth-That the improvement in motive
machinery and in the employment of liquid
fuel made within a very few years have
rendered the solution of the problem a
very simple matter
SiXth-That as the means at hand can
be provedto be good enough for begin
ming it would be folly to wait for the COM
ing great discoveries.
WANTED-A MOTOR.
Observation of nature teaches that the
main essential for successful flight is a
suitable motor. This is confirmed by the
experiments of the London Aeronautical
society and others, whose conclusions may
be thus stated:
Flight will be attained when a machine
is built that is light enough and powerful
enough to lift lis own weight by the aid of
wings or their equivalent, and to hold it
suspended against the force of gravity.
They have also fully demonstrated that
one horse power applied to a screw propel-
Ter On vertical axis will cause it to lift
and hold suspended weight of thirty-six
pounds, and that for every horse power 50
applied an additional thirty-six pounds
will be lifted.
TESTS FOR LIFTING POWER.
DR.. Freninges, of Copenhagen, made
tests of the thrust or lifting power of a
propeller wheel and found. that it utilized
So per cent. of the energy impaired to it.
1t was foot in diameter, foot pitch, II
square foot lea of blades and 7-2O pound
weight. 1t was held on q pulley by pins
that could be detached instantly. the axis
being vertical. The pulieys carrying the
propeller wheel was caused to revolve
rapidly and when good speed was OBJ
tanned and the wheel was liberated it
arose in the air by means of the energy
stored in it.
At 13 revolutions per second it lowered
that is. it had just lifted its own weight.
At SO revolutions per second the upward
thrust was 6 pounds, and sthe energy re
quired to maintain this thrust was about
100 foot pounds. This is equal to about SO
pounds lifted per horse power.
,lWhen released, the speed being 20 rev.
olutions per second, it arose to a
height Of over 200 feet in less than one
second. When the wheel was prevented
from rising and made to revolve 50 times
per second the thrust was six pounds, but
the efficiency was not so high as when it
was free to ascend. Efficiency is much
higher when the propeller moves itself
through the air than when its power is
spent in moving the air, producing an air
current of a far or blower. Carl Vogt,
from whose paper on air propellors-read
before The royal socleUy-the particulars of
this experiment have been taken. says that
the efficiency when moving itself was 70 per
cent and when acting as a blower, NOV
ing air, it was only IS per cent. In the
latter Jase the thrust was IS pounds per
horse power; when moving itself the
thrust must therefore have been greatly in
creased
WEIGHTS PER HORSE POWER.
If propeller, with engine and boiler to
operate it and apparatus to connect them,
can be built, the whole weighing less than
thirty three pounds per horse power, it
should be able to ascend in the air like Dr.
Freninges' propeller wheel.
Motive power machinery is seldom
made so light, not because that is diff
cult matter, but because it would be too
costly in the cases where it might be EN-
ployed. The ightest machinery in pro-
portion to its power of which there are ex-