Comparison of Two Kite Force Models with Experiment

Kite propulsion has emerged as an attractive means to harness wind power in a way that yields environmental and finanical benefits. This paper compares results from two line tension models with experimentall recorded time histories for dynamic kite flight. New methodologies for investigating kite performance are established. The first zero mass model assumes that the kite and lines are weightless. The second lumped mass model considers the kite's mass and thus makes use of the equations of motion. It is found that the two different models converge to the same result in the limit where the kite mass tends to zero. Kite mass is shown to affect performance only to a relatively small extent. The zero mass model has shown to compare favorably with experimental results for the prediction of performance during three-dimensional kite trajectories