solor rc plane?

solor rc plane?
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solor rc plane? - 11/19/2008 2:19:44 AM

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From: lAkE gEnEVA, WI, USA
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I was wondering if anyone has experimented with solor rc planes? I found a website that has solor cells that are as thin as 1/1000th of an inch, and similar to covering, and gave me the idea of maybe covering the wings and top of the fuse of an airplane that has light wingloading, like a large glider with a small electric motor in the front and have the radio run off of a reciever pack. Any thoughts?

RE: solor rc plane? - 11/19/2008 2:34:19 AM

3Dn It

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Sounds cool to me. How much do the cells cost???? Do you have a link to that site?

(in reply to skater_719)

RE: solor rc plane? - 11/19/2008 3:12:23 AM

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http://www.solar-world.com/PowerFilm.htm

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RE: solor rc plane? - 11/19/2008 4:31:47 AM

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Here's a solar powered R/C plane:
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1874206

There are lots of threads about them on RC Groups.

- Jeff

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My other hobby: www.AstronomyBoy.com

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RE: solor rc plane? - 11/20/2008 2:28:08 PM

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Alright, i found this small solar cells and the only confusion im having is, lets say i have a lot of watts, but not many amps, will it still run a motor good? Ive figured out that Mah specs on solar panels arent that great, but they can put out a lot of volts.

(in reply to jdetray)

RE: solor rc plane? - 11/20/2008 4:16:01 PM

-pkh-

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quote:

ORIGINAL: skater_719

Alright, i found this small solar cells and the only confusion im having is, lets say i have a lot of watts, but not many amps, will it still run a motor good? Ive figured out that Mah specs on solar panels arent that great, but they can put out a lot of volts.

First let's clear a few things up:

mAh is a measure of total charge stored (milliamps*hours). Solar cells don't store charge, so they won't have any specs in units of mAh, they supply a voltage and current, and they should have an output voltage spec in Volts (V) and an output current spec in Amps or milliamps (A or mA). Solar cells can also have an output power spec in Watts or milliwatts (W or mW), and this is just the output voltage multiplied by the output current.

As long as the solar cells can put out enough power to fly your plane, you should be able to configure them to provide the proper voltage and current for your setup. A certain number of cells will provide a specified power in Watts, and you can configure them such that the voltage & current is what you need for your setup by combining them in parallel and series combinations.

Keep in mind that most solar cells spec their output with full sun, so if you have some cloud cover, or the cells are not aimed directly at the sun, you will get less power out of them.

I'd use the solar cells as an auxilary power source and charger, and have a small battery to power the plane (or at least the receiver), so if you get some cloud cover you won't lose control of the plane.

< Message edited by -pkh- -- 11/20/2008 4:19:39 PM >

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(in reply to skater_719)

RE: solor rc plane? - 11/21/2008 12:57:24 AM

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To be successful, it will require some veeeeeeeeeery meticulous and precise calculation and design.

Harbor Freight sells a 45 Watt panel that is about 36" x 36". Even if you consider that these are low-end solar cells and that top of the line cells will provide double the power, you're only looking at about 100 Watts per square yard, or about 100 Watts for every 1300 square inches. In full sunlight, of course.

So, you're looking at a plane with 1300 square inches of wing area, completely covered on top with solar cells, with an all-up weight of 2 pounds maximum. I say 2 pounds because 50 Watts per pound is a good starting point especially considering that you'll rarely be in true full sunlight, and will always be working with a bit of a disadvantage. Careful aerodynamic design of a low-drag, high-lift airframe will allow lower Watts-per-pound ratios.

(in reply to -pkh-)

RE: solor rc plane? - 11/23/2008 3:49:52 AM

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From: Tucson, AZ, USA
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Check this out: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/earth/4253464.html?series=15 Just wait a few years and the real plane will be flying with this. Copy and paste. Gary

(in reply to Matt Kirsch)

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