Roo said..Nothing new there, here's the same idea back in 1987 testing on the ADTR at El Mirage dry lake bed. During the day we would plug it onto the landsailor and chase dust devils and thermals around.
Anders Bringdal also tried a similar idea at Luderitz back in 2011. Bjorn also had a go around 2007.
Yes , Ive seen that . Idea similar , execution ....not. Here is one of some emails we get from sail designers. We are very greatful for. :
Very interesting and great looking work. I'm impressed by both the CFD
work and the execution - in particular the use of inflatable bladders to
control camber and the welded seams.
I spent some time in the 90s working on double surface sails (I was head
designer at NP from 1990-2000) but we never achieved anything even close
to what you've done despite our empirical knowledge of camber
distribution etc - we didn't have the CFD capability obviously, but more
importantly we were too focused on moving towards 3 dimensional shapes
developed from existing proven designs rather than starting with a clean
sheet of paper as you have done. It's interesting that we did have some
similar engineering solutions - our downhaul pulley across the the two
sail surfaces was almost identical to yours - but in the end our system
was too heavy and cumbersome (and DID fill up with water) because it
relied on articulated links between the upper and lower surface battens
to define the 3D shape. This was before the existence of inflatable LE
kites, so we didn't even consider a bladder system (although my
colleague Dan Kaselor did experiment later on when he was designing for
Naish).
In another interesting coincidence, I grew up sailing and windsurfing in
NJ and the OBX - mostly north of where you are - and I even had a
Freeskate, so reading your website was a little bit like a trip back in
time for me. In any case, it looks like you've done a fantastic job and accomplished
something really innovative in a sport that has been 'stuck' for a long
time. It's great to see fresh thinking, and serious engineering in a
sport that really needs it. I hope to hear from you, and I hope you are
successful in your venture!
Best regards
Nils Rosenblad
