BUG WIPING DURING FLIGHT - How does it work?

Laminar Aerotec: laminar-aerotec.com/
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[@Johan-ex5yj]

Nice gadget and well explained, Stefan. 👍 Left-Bug-Wiper said to Right-Bug-Wiper; “It’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it.” Right-Bug-Wiper replied; “True, but you can’t beat the View!” 😁

[@laminaraerotec6606]

Nice one, Johan! May we quote your joke and give you a credit for it?

[@Johan-ex5yj]

@@laminaraerotec6606 I’m glad you like it. You’re welcome to use the joke.

[@SteFly]

Fantastic one, Johan!

[@laminaraerotec6606]

@@Johan-ex5yj great, thanks!

[@user-bt2lx4gy7h]

Is there a pun I'm missing? I dont get it

[@mr.e6033]

I have no idea why I'm watching this at 4:35 a.m. LOL I don't have a glider or anything but I enjoy watching your videos! ✌️😊👍

[@SteFly]

That´s so cool. Thanks for watching!

[@nomorefences]

It's hard to imagine those things sliding back and forth across the leading edge of the wings don't interrupt airflow more than a itty bitty mosquito.

[@oczhaal]

Exactly I'm not sure it even is useful

[@bonesshed.]

I was just about to post similar. The weight of the wiper and the mechanical device to wind it in and out combined with the airflow disruption of the device. Surely takes out more that it puts in ? Id be interested in weighing a flight load of dead bugs and see what it is compared to the device and its associated switches and pulleys.

[@chuckcampbell3927]

@@bonesshed. hey just to let you know; I'm running a special on bugs right now, it's that time of year again. FREE (BUT YOU PAY THE SHIPPING)

[@Spartan9567]

I think its a total waste.

[@randomnickify]

It moves for less than minute every few hours, it's irrelevant.

[@philc.6051]

I know that a laminar flow airfoil can be quite critical of small disruptions of airflow caused by the small bump of a bug. Forty years ago we were doing glide tests by using small pieces of tape to represent a smashed bug. Our question then was how do we clean it in flight. Nice to see a system that works.

[@neovo903]

How much of a reduction did the "bugs" make to the Glide Ratio?

[@shakranandi8542]

​Many commentators are critical of the benefits from bug wipers. I'd like to argue why the device is beneficial. Firstly, the reason for removing bugs is not because of their weight but because of the aerodynamic impact they have. Glider aircraft are highly optimized vehicles. Often high-performance gliders have laminar flow wings. These wings are optimized for performance however more susceptible to flow separation even due to small amounts of surface contamination. Finding numbers on this was really hard. Unfortunately Laminar Aerotec (the manufacturers of the device) aren't very transparent with the numbers. I asked a glider pilot from my local club on the benefit and he claimed up to 10% if the wing is very sensitive and the bugs are numerous but couldn't give me a source. Upon longer research I found one source with the following data: The disturbance of the laminar airflow i.e. turbulent airflow caused by a single bug expands in a conical shape in an angle of 10 - 30 degrees behind said bug [1]. Therefore especially the leading edge is vulnerable to impurities. This leads to a performance reduction of 10% - 30% with a "bug density" of 20 bugs per meter [2]. Depending on the weather, season and location, this bug density can be 5 - 10 times as much [1]. The surface-contamination-susceptibility due to bugs of laminar flow wings has even concerned NASA who developed complex fluid discharge systems on wings to combat insect contamination [2]. Even the glider manufacturers have been building special "garages" for storing the bugwiper snugly outside of the airflow (little cavities in the fuselage) [3]. I see many other commentators regard this device as a mere gimmick. That was my first impression as well but I'd encourage you to take a closer look at the history, development and (aerodynamic) reasons for it being so widespread in high-performance gliding since the 1980s. I'd also encourage Laminar Aerotec to publish some data on the performance delta of their device with different aircraft and bug densities. [1] see the website bugwiper . virtualave . net/ using the WayBack machine (second menu item "entwicklung") The original research was published in the soaring magazine by Dick Johnsson. [2] NASA Document ID 19850067951 [3] search "bugwiper asw24" on youtube I'd post direct links but yt hides my comments if I do.

[@MikeHalsall]

Nice findings - thanks for taking the time to post this!

[@Johan-ex5yj]

Good stuff! Also see : NASA's Bug Team >> kzbin.info/www/bejne/lX7baqV6YtGgrK8

[@ponetastic]

i wish every youtube comment posted its sources like this |

[@timzero]

I like to learn something new every day. Today, this was it.

[@AzimuthAviation]

As an engineer and airline pilot looking to take up soaring in retirement this was very interesting seeing this for the first time. My guess is that weeping lemon Pledge and turning on the bleeds for the leading edges during the launch isn't a good option ;)

[@UrMomGoes2College]

This is the coolest thing I've seen in a while! And simple! I thought it would have been driven by some sophisticated magnets on a track inside the wing or something!

[@mramerica1085]

I'm German but live in USA, love hearing the accent!!! 😉

[@TheSoaringChannel]

Awesome Stefan. Thanks for sharing this. It took some serious time and brain power to understand how those things were going out and back on the wing with nothing touching them. It always confused the heck out of me lol

[@SteFly]

It´s really a fantastic invention!

[@TheSoaringChannel]

@@SteFly yes fancy stuff! Just yesterday I did only a 37 minute flight with my son onboard to get him used to the DG505MB operation and in 37 minutes of hanging out on the last of the day lift: we had probably 5-10% coverage already. Some really big ones too! They must've flown in from Texas. 😜 That's what we call a BUG strike. 😂

[@portnuefflyer]

Yes indeed, keeping the leading edge clean and bug free is very important, and why I clean mine on my bush plane once a year, whether it needs it or not. Ha ha, if you saw the drag producing things on my plane, you'd hurl, nonetheless, I still have had 3 hours plus dead stick ridge soaring flights with it!

[@mitchellminer9597]

Thank you for the video and the explanation. That is a very clever device, and an elegant design.

[@michaeljohn8905]

This is my second post on this subject and I want to ask. How much parasitic drag is being cleaned off and how much parasitic drag is increased by having such a device on your wing does it not equal out or does it save? Thanks again this is a good channel great content

[@ryanlemons3255]

Im sure if you're a glider pilot you'll want the most coefficient lift available while conserving momentum energy and anything on the edges stuck like that could cause microscopic eddies forming to the point if more and more bugs splatter on just the edge it could induce stalling at slower speeds ya kno?

[@dtnel]

I just asked the same question as this post essentially. HA ha... read it after the fact.

[@akulkis]

@@ryanlemons3255 There is no lift at the leading edge. It's pure drag there.

[@jamesmaddison4546]

@@akulkis True but the leading edge is responsible for how smooth and effective the flow over the wing is.

[@talkinghat88]

Just watching the movement is already very soothing. Great video cheers

[@CharlieGolfAviation]

Never knew there was such a thing! Amazing!

[@mmicoski]

Amazing! I did not know that wings had problems with bugs, and just now that I learned it, there is already a solution to that problem. 😄

[@darlingtonmachona2010]

You are living a dream Stefan, enjoy every moment

[@colinjacobs176]

An ingenious invention. I had no idea! Next you'll need something to spray alcohol on the wiper to get the extra bits of guts that the threat misses!

[@PureGlide]

That's very cool! Most gliders in NZ don't have them, so great to see them up close. Will you convert your manual wind up wipers to electric sometime?

[@SteFly]

I definitely prefer the electric ones because they don´t distract me from flying the glider. However there is a huge difference in the price, so I will keep the manual ones for a while.

[@anjetabreymann7179]

Wow! New Zealand? I thought your "Leader" would ban anything remotely fun.

[@Sugarsail1]

@@anjetabreymann7179 I know right? I thought NZ's fascist prime minister wouldn't even let him in the country.

[@monkemonke9048]

@@SteFly pretty easy to do some diy and stick it on yourself

[@asimsherzai]

Simply put GENIUS! Very important for laminar flow

[@jackallread]

Great looking design!! Good luck with it!

[@gilnemesis3547]

Hi Stefan, Never thought it was really useful system. Thanks for your explanations because I didn't understand how it works before.🤔🤔👍👍👍

[@SteFly]

Thank you! It is very useful at some days here in Germany.

[@xyzaero9656]

Sehr genial. Sowas hab ich noch nie gesehen 🤩

[@awaisalics1st724]

The way you shoot is amazing

[@browing1974]

It's my frist time to know about this system. Thank you!

[@tobuslieven]

That is awesome. A system like this might work for deicing as well.

[@mohammadalqadri5013]

I have a request for you, my friend, to take a trip over Switzerland or Italy or any natural place Oh my gosh how I wish I had such a plane. This type of aircraft is not allowed by my country, but I find pleasure in your videos, God willing. We will continue to support you. God bless you and bless your planes...May God guide you and guide you, keep loving you Stephen Greetings from the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan 🇯🇴🇯🇴 ❤

[@blaster-zy7xx]

You can't have gliders in Jordan? Why not?

[@blaster-zy7xx]

Thanks for the explanation. I had never heard that story before. I could not understand the reasoning other than the government just being dickish. I'm from the States and have a private pilot's license. I have flown gliders as a student. I now fly small planes up and down the beaches on the west coast of Florida.

[@mohammadalqadri5013]

@@blaster-zy7xx Very cool. I wish you success and success in your life. I hope you always feel happy while you are driving the plane. God willing, I will go to the United States of America in the month of 9 next year to study I am trying to get my private pilot license and experience flying over America. I will not miss this opportunity. Greetings to you💚

[@odthegreatest]

As an aeronautical engineer, this is the firdt time i hear about the bug wiper. Intresting.

[@airacatacutan6663]

Nice 💗thanks for sharing this!

[@K3Flyguy]

I always go through a car wash just before long milage trips. I calculate I am roughly adding .054 mpg to my overall gas milage, or adding .864 miles in range to my tank. Speed and acceleration has increased by same factor, but de-acceleration and braking distance have likely increased by same factor. Wife won't climb out on hood to clean the front of truck hole I drive down interstate so I am stuck with an unknown factor of deminishing return.

[@Joshtheshua]

It's amazing how much better it flies after being wiped...

[@Joshtheshua]

@@beanshark992 Before it goes down, but then after being wiped I goes up. It's obvious....

[@MatematicaTel]

You´ve talked about distraction (2:09). I once heard that the cause of fatal collision that killed former world champion Helmut Reichmann was probably due his attention deviation because he was trying a bugwiper and failed to see the other glider. Anyway it was very sad.

[@unclegrandpah8400]

I had no idea bugs could fly that high

[@trkoo]

Amazing design, who ever made this well done.. wow

[@CLdriver1960]

What a great system!

[@ricoe3288]

Didn't know that was a thing...knowledge is king 🙂

[@burtisaac1000]

Awesome 🤩!

[@meh11235]

Very nice invention

[@crezzlin]

That's cool; I had no idea.. Would a ceramic coating like used on cars not help so the bugs couldn't stick. Just a random thought, but I'm sure the engineers have an answer lol thanks for sharing :)

[@justinbunn6714]

The boundary layer closest to the airfoil skin is stationary. A small bug won't do jack sh*t to the airflow. The same as when a 737 lands with a wing covered in fine dust. The air is stationary that close.

[@cesarquintana9034]

Cool gadget , it will add weight including the motor etc. Maybe a good wax will take care of any bugs sticking to the leading edge. That's my 2 cents.

[@SenRa07]

a little bit of weight won't really have an inpact at all, you also should know that gliders usually fly with balast water.

[@sablatnic8030]

It is a glider, so weight doesn't matter much, but the reduced drag by removal of the bugs matters a lot.

[@ekulda]

Good innovation 👍

[@csnocke5]

I never would have thought that was a problem

[@robertphillips3078]

Very cool idea , lateral thinking. Ur glider, do u manufacturer them ? And do u have a hidden electric motor 2 get them sky ward.

[@MrJohncobbjr]

Great video .Does ceramic coating help?

[@FFE-js2zp]

It doesn't add much drag. How much drag does a mosquito add?

[@oczhaal]

This thing must at least add the drag of 1000 bugs on the attack edge of the wing lol

[@jipacek]

@@oczhaal Exactly what I was thinking :)

[@lennardrau3133]

Great Video! Still waiting for SteFly Merch to come up! ;-)

[@edwardkelly5625]

Very interesting video....I love science class....

[@jaysonmendoza-lh3hy]

fly safely❤❤

[@nestortafah3311]

Nice one

[@chrisbewrx]

Ok no idea how I came across a video about bug wipers... But I have a question.. Wouldn't the drag of this contraption out weight the benefits of removing some dead bugs off the wing? I mean the wiper literally uses wind speed to move? Surly bugs won't effect the airfoil that much?

[@saifulbare]

So cool.

[@russreadsbooks]

Wow! I didn’t know this was a thing

[@Trey4x4]

Does the bug wiper cause more drag than the amount of drag caused by a single flight of bug collections on the wings? I feel that it does, looks like it's more harm than beneficial. People just need to wipe their wings down.

[@avi8r66]

Seems like 100 feet of fishing line would create more drag than the bug splats. A nice wipe down with wax or teflon would reduce the bug good stickage during a flight.

[@sablatnic8030]

The problem is to get out and wipe them off during the flight. And the string is stoved on reels between uses.

[@avi8r66]

@@sablatnic8030 So during flight no string is exposed to the airflow other than when it's wiping?

[@sablatnic8030]

@@avi8r66 That is correct, the string is used to pull the gizmo back to the fuselage.

[@omaninman9961]

NICE VIEW

[@naseefaamindato4670]

im so amaze

[@cjsmith6964]

The drag from the bug wiper ? Hahaha.

[@FoxADV]

How do you clean the bugs off of your bug wiper?

[@A-Milkdromeda-Laniakea-Hominid]

Someone got rich(er) off this idea. But now I'm wondering why a similar system doesn't exist for removing ice. Could you send a hardened version down a wing to break off any ice from the leading edge, and could it be extended to crack ice off from the upper and lower wing surfaces?

[@ZenMountain]

Great!!

[@FLG8r]

not even a pilot; aspired to be a pilot, but, I chose engineering instead... nonetheless never knew that the accumulation of impacted bugs on the leading edge of an airfoil degraded the laminar flow ... intrigued by this system and watched the video until the end ...

[@homienat3374]

Great idea , but seriously is it really it worth it ??? I fly rc gliders will i fit this to get better lift, and was a hang glider pilot in the 90,s a few bugs is not going to slow ya down

[@jawadulhaq8492]

Amazing

[@jackmesserine]

C'est pas pire la traînée de se bout de plastique et tout le matériel que sa implique comparé à 3-4 moustiques ?

[@oooSoundOfLifeooo]

Es ist schwer zu glauben dass der von diesem Gerät erzeugter Luftwiderstand kleiner/lohnender ist als der Widerstand von Insekten an der Flügelkante. Ist das eine empirische Erfahrung, oder ist es errechnet worden?

[@aswaniasokan9156]

Beautiful....

[@naseefaamindato4670]

im very impresive

[@capone_rd_809]

i need this for my car grille when driving down the highway

[@niceguy100000]

To get a more complete picture, I searched for glider bug wiper retrieval winch.

[@JaysonSaludo-mb3ks]

Nice gadget and amasing

[@pixobit5882]

This guy is so German, and i like it. I'm a german as well!

[@mmicoski]

It would be interesting to see a typical wing with bugs to better understand the problem

[@happygilmore2100]

Could this be applied to wind mills.

[@abhisheksoni2980]

This is so bizzare it almost looks like an April fools prank 😀

[@padamgiri4424]

amazing

[@andyandy6739]

Can you feel or measure the improvement of L/D after a round trip of the pair of bug wipers?

[@laminaraerotec6606]

There were measurements done by Pirker&Storka, which show a decrease of L/D up to 15%.

[@SteFly]

Last year at one flight I flew the ASG29 without bug wipers and there were so many bugs on the wing, that I landed early in the afternoon. The glide performance can decreasy drastically, especially at higher speeds. Of course there are also other days with only a few bugs in the air.

[@shakranandi8542]

@@laminaraerotec6606 would you mind posting a source? Id be curious to read more on this.

[@toddprifogle7381]

What are the numbers ? How beneficial is this device ultimately?

[@panoscharos983]

Regards from Athens Greece..

[@bahardin3992]

cool gadget Stefan. But you still haven't explained how this bug wiper moves from the start of wing to the wing tip ie how it traverses along the wing leading edge. You only show a (noisy) ratchet or electric motor. Does it work on a pulley system like, you know raising and lowering the flag. So is there a pulley near the wing tip and some nylon chord along the wing leading edge to traverse this gadget along? That part you haven't explained I believe. Thank you.

[@johannesgaida3137]

It gets pushed out by the air flowing over it.

[@paisteformula6021]

That device is way larger than any bug catchment and the device itself looks large enough to really interrupt the laminar flow!

[@kenrobba5831]

No sense of adventure, Mate ?

[@mmicoski]

As you use the device during flight I am assuming the bugs sit on the wings while the plane is flying. That's a very scary tought

[@rammstein1903]

thats neat

[@dtnel]

But wouldn't the bug wipers create enough drag that negates any gain diminished by gains of removing bugs?

[@birdiessimracing]

Hab mich immer gefragt wie die Dinger funktionieren. Danke. eine Frage noch was passiert wenn man sie nicht rechtzeitig wieder zurückholt?

[@laminaraerotec6606]

Die Rückholseile werden so abgelängt, dass die Putzer nicht zu weit ausfahren können.

[@johnrutledge3892]

The leading edge of feathered flights.

[@sixty2jeff]

Can a 300lb man fly a glider or is there a weight limit? I really do not know. Looks like fun if I can fit.

[@r.p.3192]

Na endlich erklärt mir das mal einer mit simplen Worten. Danke Stefan! Der Leistungsunterschied Mückenbefall - kein Mückenbefall muss markant sein, um diese Apparatur zu rechtfertigen. Woran erkennst Du, ob Du eine verschmutzte Eintrittskannte hast?

[@ackerflieger6703]

Rausschauen, das sieht man :-). Und wo bekommt man >2 Gleitzahlpunkte für 2000€??

[@SteFly]

@@ackerflieger6703 Korrekt, danke für die Antwort!

[@muneeburrehman7132]

Nice

[@toast2610]

I wonder if this could be useful for deicing ?

[@tilmaen]

I would love to see this on an airliner 🤣

[@johnp9890]

How does the electric one get back to the fuselage? A wire attached zo the fuselage and retrieval engine? Also, what prevents it falling off from the wing?

[@kaihorstmann2783]

Both manual and electric wipers retract them to the fuselage with a thin nylon thread, like a fishing line. They are held to the wing´s leading edge by nothing but the air flow. On the ground they would just fall off the wing.

[@eglide73]

@@kaihorstmann2783 ok, if they can just fall off the wing on the ground do they?? What holds them on when sitting on the ground??

[@kaihorstmann2783]

@@eglide73 in parked position the wipers are completely wound in, and they are tightly pulled against the fuselage by the nylon line. Thus the wiper lines up with the exit hole of the line in the fuselage and stays there

[@SteFly]

@@kaihorstmann2783 Thanks for the perfect explanation!

[@warpartyattheoutpost4987]

Interesting... a similar device could be designed to clean the canopy.

[@markthompson8656]

I am a bug wiper for my airlines fleet of CRJ 200's. I wipe the leading edge of the wings during there over night stay at our field.

[@SteFly]

I hate this job on the ground but it needs to be done 🙈

[@Lobatschewsky]

How high up do insects fly?

[@cswammock]

What is the car? Very nice.

[@dyanelec]

How come it's not use for cleaning ice formation on regular airplanes ?...with a slight modification of course...

[@safetyinstructor]

@@randomguyinanglider he was talking about icing and that does matter even if you got an engine

[@jayjay4313]

It looks bigger than the mosquito itself. 😷Thought no small insects could hang on that angel due to the high wind acelleration. Mosquito's power.😄

[@vishalkayne]

I never knew that mosquitoes can fly this much high

[@ravikakhandki7594]

They get accumulated during takeoff.

[@saqibahamd1290]

Good