On the Minimum Induced Drag

of Wings
Albion H. Bowers
NASA Dryden Flight Research Center
Soaring Society of America
Antelope Valley Soaring Club
Victorville, CA
January 21, 2006

Introduction
The History of Spanload
Development of the optimum spanload
Winglets and their implications
Horten Sailplanes
Flight Mechanics & Adverse yaw
Concluding Remarks

History
Bird Flight as the Model for Flight
Vortex Model of Lifting Surfaces
Optimization of Spanload
Prandtl
Prandtl/Horten/Jones
Klein/Viswanathan
Winglets - Whitcomb

Bird Flight as a Model

Propulsion
Flapping motion to produce thrust
Wings also provide lift
Dynamic lift - birds use this all the time (easy for them, hard for
us)
Stability and Control
Still not understood in literature
Lack of vertical surfaces
Birds as an Integrated System
Structure
Propulsion
Lift (performance)
Stability and control

Spanload Development
Ludwig Prandtl
Development of the boundary layer concept (1903)
Developed the lifting line theory
Developed the concept of induced drag
Calculated the spanload for minimum induced drag (1908?)
Published in open literature (1920)
Albert Betz
Published calculation of induced drag
Published optimum spanload for minimum induced drag (1914)
Credited all to Prandtl (circa 1908)
Max Munk
General solution to multiple airfoils
Referred to as the stagger biplane theorem (1920)
Munk worked for NACA Langley from 1920 through 1926
Prandtl (again!)
The Minimum Induced Drag of Wings (1932)
Introduction of new constraint to spanload
Considers the bending moment as well as the lift and induced
drag

Practical Spanload Developments

Reimar Horten (1945)
Use of Prandtls latest spanload work in sailplanes & aircraft
Discovery of induced thrust at wingtips
Discovery of flight mechanics implications
Use of the term bell shaped spanload
Robert T Jones
Spanload for minimum induced drag and wing root bending
moment
Application of wing root bending moment is less general than
Prandtls
No prior knowledge of Prandtls work, entirely independent
(1950)

Armin Klein & Sathy Viswanathan

Minimum induced drag for given structural weight (1975)
Includes bending moment
Includes shear

Prandtl Lifting Line Theory

Prandtls vortex ribbons

Elliptical spanload (1914)

the downwash produced by the longitudinal

vortices must be uniform at all points on the
aerofoils in order that there may be a minimum of
drag for a given total lift. y = c

Minimum Induced Drag & Bending

Moment

Prandtl (1932)
Constrain minimum induced drag
Constrain bending moment
22% increase in span with 11% decrease in induced
drag

Horten Applies Prandtls Theory

Horten Spanload (1940-1955)

induced thrust at tips
wing root bending moment

Flight Mechanics Implications

Proverse/Adverse induced yawing moments
Force vectors on tips (twist & upwash)

Jones Spanload

Minimize induced drag (1950)

Constrain wing root bending moment
30% increase in span with 17% decrease in induced
drag

Hence, for a minimum induced drag with a given total

lift and a given bending moment the downwash must
show a linear variation along the span. y = bx + c

Klein and Viswanathan

Minimize induced drag (1975)

Constrain bending moment
Constrain shear stress
16% increase in span with 7% decrease in induced drag
Hence the required downwash-distribution is parabolic. y = ax
+ bx + c

Spanload Summary
Prandtl/Munk (1914)
Elliptical
Constrained only by span and lift
Downwash: y = c
Prandtl/Horten/Jones (1932)
Bell shaped
Constrained by lift and bending moment
Downwash: y = bx + c
Klein/Viswanathan (1975)
Modified bell shape
Constrained by lift, moment and shear (minimum structure)
Downwash: y = ax + bx + c

Summarized by Jones (1979)

Early Horten Sailplanes (Germany)

Horten I - 12m span

Horten II - 16m span

Horten III - 20m span

Horten Sailplanes (Germany)

H IV - 20m span
H VI - 24m span

Horten Sailplanes (Argentina)

H I b/c - 12m span
H XV a/b/c - 18m span

Later Horten Sailplanes (Argentina)

H Xa/b/c
7.5m,
10m, &
15m

Bird Flight Model

Minimum Structure
Flight Mechanics Implications
Empirical evidence

How do birds fly?

Proverse/adverse yaw only solves constant turn rate problem
Roll/yaw acceleration needed to initiate turns
Need for a tail arises for maneuvering (agility)
First the tail is tilted downward on the side away from the
direction of the turnPerhaps the tail functions as a rudder in
starting the turn (Koford, 1950)
the tail was loaded upward and the same clockwise tail
rotation produced a right force, thus a left turn (Hoey, 1992)

Horten Spanload Equivalent to Birds

Horten spanload is equivalent to bird span load (shear not
considered in Horten designs)
Flight mechanics are the same - turn components are the
same
Both attempt to use minimum structure
Solve minimum drag, turn performance, and optimal structure
with one solution

Horten H Xc Example
Horten H Xc
footlaunched
ultralight sailplane
1950

Calculation Method
Taper
Twist
Control
Surface
Deflections
Central
Difference
Angle

Dr Edward Udens Results

Spanload and Induced Drag
Elevon Configurations
Induced Yawing Moments

Elevon Config Cna Spanload

I
-.002070 bell
II
.001556 bell
III
.002788 bell
IV
-.019060 elliptical
V
-.015730 elliptical
VI
.001942 bell
VII
.002823 bell
VIII
.004529 bell
IX
.005408 bell
X
.004132 bell

Mitteleffekt
Artifact of spanload approximations
Effect on spanloads
increased load at tips
decreased load near centerline
Upwash due to sweep unaccounted for

Horten H Xc Wing Analysis

Vortex Lattice Analysis
Spanloads (longitudinal & lateral-directional) - trim &
asymmetrical roll
Proverse/Adverse Induced Yawing Moments
handling qualities
Force Vectors on Tips - twist, elevon deflections, & upwash
320 Panels: 40 spanwise & 8 chordwise

Symmetrical Spanloads
Elevon Trim
CG Location

Asymmetrical Spanloads
Cla (roll due to aileron)
Cna (yaw due to aileron)
induced component
profile component
change with lift
Cna/Cla

CL(Lift Coefficient)
Increased lift:
increased Cl
increased Cn*
Decreased lift:
decreased Cl
decreased Cn*

Airfoil and Wing Analysis

Profile code (Dr Richard Eppler)

Flap Option (elevon deflections)
Matched Local Lift Coefficients
Profile Drag
Integrated Lift Coefficients
match Profile results to Vortex Lattice
separation differences in lift

Performance Comparison
Max L/D: 31.9
Min sink: 89.1 fpm
Does not include pilot
drag
Prediicted L/D: 30
Predicted sink: 90 fpm

Concluding Remarks
Birds as the first model for flight
Theoretical developments independent of applications
Applied approach gave immediate solutions, departure from
bird flight
Eventual meeting of theory and applications (applied theory)
Spanload evolution (Prandtl/Munk, Prandtl/Horten/Jones, Klein
& Viswanathan)
Flight mechanics implications
Hortens are equivalent to birds
Thanks: Walter Horten, Georgy Dez-Falvy, Bruce Carmichael,
R.T. Jones, Russ Lee, Dan & Jan Armstrong, Dr Phil Burgers,
Ed Lockhart, Andy Kecskes, Dr Paul MacCready, Reinhold
Stadler, Edward Udens, & Jack Lambie

References
Anderson, John Jr: A History of Aerodynamics: and Its Impact on Flying
Machines; Cambridge University Press; Cambridge, United Kingdom.
Prandtl, Ludwig: Applications of Modern Hydrodynamics to Aeronautics; NACA
Report No. 116; 1921.
Munk, Max M.: The Minimum Induced Drag of Aerofoils; NACA Report No. 121,
1923.
Prandtl, Ludwig: Uber Tragflugel kleinsten induzierten Widerstandes; Zeitschrift
fur Flugtecknik und Motorluftschiffahrt, 28 XII 1932; Munchen, Deustchland.
Horten, Reimar; and Selinger, Peter; with Scott, Jan (translator): Nurflugel: the
Story of Horten Flying Wings 1933 - 1960; Weishapt Verlag; Graz, Austria;
1985.
Horten, Reimar; unpublished personal notes.
Udens, Edward; unpublished personal notes.
Jones, Robert T.; The Spanwise Distribution of Lift for Minimum Induced Drag of
Wings Having a Given Lift and a Given Bending Moment; NACA Technical Note
2249, Dec 1950.
Klein, Armin and Viswanathan, Sathy; Approximate Solution for Minimum
induced Drag of Wings with a Given Structural Weight; Journal of Aircraft, Feb
1975, Vol 12 No 2, AIAA.
Whitcomb, R.T.; A Design Approach and Selected Wind Tunnel Results at high
Subsonic Speeds for Wing-Tip Mounted Winglets, NASA TN D-8260, July 1976.
Jones, Robert T; Minimizing induced Drag.; Soaring, October 1979, Soaring
Society of America.
Koford, Carl; California Condor; Audobon Special Report No 4, 1950, Dover,
NY.
Hoey, Robert; Research on the Stability and Control of Soaring Birds; AIAA
Report 92-4122-CP, AIAA, 1992.