travel ranges of central stick

[wantobe]

For a central stick (connected to the floor, between two legs) design, what is its longitudinal (forward-rearward) travel range? What is its lateral (left-right) total travel range? Is the center of a palm considered the grip point? What is a typical distance between its grip point and the longitudinal rotation center? What is a typical distance between its grip point and the lateral rotation center (which may be different from longitudinal rotation center) ?

[WLIU]

There is no standard. It depends of the seating position. Compare a Lancair with and RV with a Pitts with a T-6. There is a Mil Spec for stick force and control "harmony". But you can choose a stick length and then set up your control linkages, or the computer, so that the forces at the stick are what you want.

Clear as mud?

Best of luck,

Wes
N78PS

[wantobe]

There is no standard. It depends of the seating position. Compare a Lancair with and RV with a Pitts with a T-6.


I understand there is no standard. Since I do not have access to central stick airplanes, I would like to see some typical values as references.


There is a Mil Spec for stick force and control "harmony". But you can choose a stick length and then set up your control linkages, or the computer, so that the forces at the stick are what you want.


The pilot forces are in Part23.143(c) General and 23.397 Limit control forces and torques. Here my focus is on geometry instead of forces.

[cluttonfred]

As has been said, there is no standard reference and there many possible solutions. Some sticks are actually pivoted under the pilot's seat and emerge in a gooseneck shape to allow more fore and aft movement without interferences. I have also seen what used to be called a "broken stick" in which the fore and aft pivot is on the floor but the lateral pivot is above the pilot's thighs to allow a greater degree of lateral movement. You might want to try a source like David Thurston's books DESIGN FOR FLYING and DESIGN FOR SAFETY for some general cockpit ergonomic guidelines, but in the end, a mock-up is the best way to check that everything works.