As above.
Have we seen the majority of significant kite design and now the designs will be tweaked for slightly different riding style.
It used to be that year on year each kite was better and better.
Now i'm not so sure. I haven't seen much significant advancement in the last 2 years.
I don't think so. Although some of the refinements are more subtle, I think the sum of the parts keeps getting better and better. This year for me is especially good as I have found something that is amazing in the surf, but any jumper would love flying it. There are also the strutless concepts that are rolling out, all great ideas for varying conditions. Part of me is glad I didn't start in the late 90's or early 2000's.
;)
Yes and no. you see by making the struts .0002 cm thicker in 2013 we have increased turning speeds and created a reason for you to want to buy the kite, of course in 2012 we didn't think of that, or did we?
Therefore, IMHO, the design has stagnated, but marketing skills haven't.
Dear me where's Paul1 when you need him as I'm sure we'd all be fascinated and intrigued by his marvellous display of intellect and insight...
Good question. How much have cars changed in the past 30 years? Some would argue a lot and they have but the basic principles have not.
Eventually a conceptual idea/ design is like a caterpillar, that is trying its best to crawl faster and faster. Then one day it metamorphosis into something completely different and can now fly.
Another analogy could be when Einstein proved the only constant in the Universe was the speed of light, Copernicus the sun center stage etc etc...revolutionary game changing ideas.
Until this occurs in our little world of kite design then I say no to your question. We will not see the same exponential increase in performance, safety etc we have seen in the years mentioned. Just tweaks...but don't underestimate the power of tweaks.
What I see ( and some company did try it and they were horrible!), is a compilation of a double skin kite with the LEI, and of course bridal and material changes, to produce a highly efficient yet manageable foil.
But hey just an impossible probable, let the De bono free in your heads, cause there are much smarter people out there than me that would indeed one day do something very awesome with what is a very awesome experience.
Ps a which farqwit red thumbed this thread. Honestly, are you just too stupid to actually contribute. Can't say some flippant pathetic remark. No hum getting tired of stupidity...might sign out for while...see ya.
Ps on a side note and unrelated, I hope all the crew have an awesome time at kite stock..let us know how it went. Would have been there but instead I was getting spewed all over including in the mouth by my very sick 6 yr old daughter for the last two days. Nothing like spew in your mouth...mmmmm
So Paul1, anything to add to this post or is it lame?
really? I would never give back the last 10 years of kiting. Only wished I had started earlier(pre 2003) Plus only those of us who were kiting back then no what it was like to be connected to a kite charging downwind with speed way out of control at the complete mercy of the wind. It really was very different back then, mostly in a good way.
While I wish I had the time 10 years ago to start, the advancement in technology has meant less injuries for me. Of that I can be sure. I tend to push things pretty hard, and no doubt without the depower we have now I would have teabagged myself into oblivion at some stage. Even when things go pearshaped now, the situation is control. It's not just kites, but bar designs that help make the evolution safer and more fun.
Thanks for the mention Eppo, it makes me feel all warm inside being stalked by a dude on the internet.
In my opinion, I believe that kites are due another big leap forward in design, it has been a little stagnated the last few years, there has been improvement in wave dedicated kites, mainly due to lighter materials and 3 strut design, but as others have said only small refinements. Maybe there will be a new stiffer fabric that will make the strutless kites more viable? Boards are another area that could do with a change up, apart from materials and slight refinements in rocker, length, channels, width and flex patterns there is not an awful lot they can tamper with.
In the early days you'g upgrade get a huge wow factor because the kite was hugely better than 2 years ago.
Now I think that we still notice improvements but it is jaded somewhat because the bridles shrink and stretch. If you had a kite for 2 years then upgraded to the same kite (without knowing it was the same), you'd be still saying how much better it performs because it would have the non-stretched bridal.
When winter hits Perth, I will be thankful that kite design has stagnated...I don't want to go any higher than you already can on a 7m core GT in 40 knots. BOOOOOOOOOOOST
Yeh but outside the exception paragliding is a pretty slow lame sport.
Oh hang on, isn't this thread about kite design?
The Inflatable kite may well be close to its best design in current non-specialised format.. Stagnated - heavy word - but applied to anything which changes less than say 2% in 12-18 months - then yes...
Early eighties - Hang-gliding was in a rut - with High drag profile slow speed fun machines with a lot of limits...
Then
- 30% double skin came in (the Atlas - French design!!) then 60% up to 85+%
- Better fabrics - less stretch - tighter wing profiles
- floating keel pockets
- Floating cross bars - + variable wing geometry
- much more profiled battens... etc
- body bag harnesses
Result - top speed 3+ times greater whilst keeping bottom end speed and control (well most of it) - the envelope of the possible really expanded - at the time (in my 20's - jumped at the changes - loved the evolution).
For the next 10+ years it retained the generic top end shape as the must buy model.. bringing most of a shrinking market with it. Then a range of simpler return to the slower fun flying machines concept re-evolved. The market models split to appeal to an audience. The front runner designs pushed the club flier to their limits physically and skill wise (+ good bang 4 buck but expensive)....
The same changes in aerodynamics will start to be applied to the Inflatable kites - the aim to expand the wind range the speed and the lower the effort needed for endurance. I wonder what shapes could evolve if the C of G was moved back - with a possible bridal support on the center strut - so hybrid between foil and Inflatable kites.
The key to the current designs is the retained simplicity of fitting it all into a small rut sack to go home with. From 7-77+ yo can use it - it offers sophistication and is really crude (Think self-launch on a beach - think beach ball valve (some are better now) - multi-purpose fabric (tents etc). The main unique feature of a kite and 'IP' is its control bar - now how much more can you do with this???.
I think evolution is likely to create the specialist fit - for racing - for enduro - etc.
Look at how close (not) the sailing speed record boat is to a dinghy....
The market is till expanding, whilst it is the generic multi-purpose kite will dominate.
Off the shelf parts are cheap(er) - Given the choice of this against say adding some semi-rigid parts into the kite??? so I am ok with stagnant.
FWIW - I still have a lot of catching up to do to maximise the current design..
Cheers
AP
I agree with the poster, I think there is stagnation in terms of development of the inflatable leading edge kites with designs having been perfected to such an extent that it would be hard to come up with geometrical improvements worth the investment but I think there are fundamental new ways to make kites that will change the industry:
There is a lot of room for foil kites to be made more user friendly and cheaper especially when it comes to low wind kites (a huge potential market that everyone wants to tap in right now) and most of these improvements will come from paragliding companies...
Another area of improvement: lines, it's in the works but will take time, lines that can roll/unroll themselves (a bit like a fishing rod), allowing you to self launch and land, magnetic fields to get rid of lines altogether...
Also and this is the big next step for kiting: Origami kites, no inflation, kites that can deploy and fold themselves using origami style folding coupled with textiles with shape memory that harden with electrical input (as seen in the batman movies or used on a BMW concept car without panels)
What about bi-plan kites that can change size? I've seen photos of a guy that decided to have 2 kites linked together to kite in low wind... I'm not an engineer but I bet whatever was developed for planes can find its way into kiting...
These technology exist but the cost is so far too great to make it worth while. you could have a kite that could deploy from a size 6 up to 16 and yet keep it light it would also deploy itself so you could start it as a kiddies kite and deploy/fold to the required size as the wind changes...
At this stage it is safe to assume that most of these improvements are not too be expected too soon, but there are ways to reinvent what we consider to be a kite. At the moment kiting is seen as a leisure but it starting to be considered for other usage such as used as a sail for tankers, possible military use (Norway use it on snow, I believe as it is a silent and fast way to travel) or other uses and this will help improvement on the leisure side...
Anyhow dream on, there is still so much that can be done...
some interesting comments. I want to see a kite fly loop now! imagine that madness.
i also want to see a solid skin fold up origami kite.
north rebel a few years ago had origami built in
folded up in a neat ball in mid air
had to be seen to be believed but certainly happened, not by design thou
safety has improved out of sight, kite design not much changed in last 15 years i have been kiting
sure more refined shapes, dont over fly etc, but still basic LEI tweeking of various degrees
a few have tried different materials, Best famous Hellfish and Cuben cloth
there will be progress but its cost is the sting, as the hang glider above noted
Hey dafrog that was really interesting ideas man...I also to feel the development in the near future may come from foils.
...magnetic fields with no lines...origami kites...man was that LSD induced cause it's way out there and very very cool.
