PAPER AIRCRAFT / FLIGHT SIMULATOR

FLIGHT RESEARCH — 01 / 05

Make paper
take flight.

Design it. Trim it. Let it fly. Explore a hands-on aircraft simulator with real-time flight physics, an A4 folding page, and a light-controlled craft.

↵ Type “open simulation” to start flying. Say hi, too.
PAPER AIRCRAFT SIMULATORBUILT FOR THE CURIOUS ✳
FPVREADY—s
SPEED0.0m/sTOP 0.0 m/s
ALTITUDE0.00mCLIMB +0.0 m/s
G-FORCE—g
ANGLE ATK—°
FORCE—mN
L MOTOR ↺ CCW50%
R MOTOR ↻ CW50%
MOTORS READY · TOUCH L / R
Velocity0.0 m/s
Altitude0.0 m
Angle of attack0.0°
Distance0.0 m
Light aircraft

Controlled by light, not Wi-Fi.

A paper aircraft fitted with phototransistors and small motors. Move the light source — the aircraft responds through pure analog sensing. No radio, no code running on a chip, just signal flowing through components.

Light-controlled flight
Idle· waiting
Sensor differential
0%

Light source

Drag the slider to move the light. The aircraft turns toward it.

Center
70%
Level

Paired yellow focus lights

Aim either warm spotlight independently; their true cones drive the six analog sensors.

LEFT FOCUS
70%
0°
0°
2.8 m
24°
RIGHT FOCUS
70%
0°
0°
2.8 m
24°

Analog response · 3 axes

Yaw rate (nose sensors)0.0°/s
Pitch rate (wing sensors)0.0°/s
Roll rate (tail sensor)0.0°/s
Altitude0.90 m
±
±
±
Light source
↓
Nose · wing · tail phototransistors
↓
Analog difference (3 axes)
↓
Differential motor drive
↓
Propeller thrust L/R · T/B
↓
Yaw · pitch · roll → movement
Real-world experiment

Build it in real life.

The simulator gives you an estimate. Reality has paper grain, folding accuracy, gusts, and launch speed. Compare your real flight with the prediction.

Simulation prediction
Predicted distance14.2 m
Predicted turn0°
Predicted flight time4.8 s
Max altitude1.4 m
Your real test
Actual distance m
Actual turn °
Actual flight time s
Max altitude m
Measured vs tunnel prediction
Measured flight distance—
Tunnel-calibrated prediction—
Absolute error—
AgreementEnter real distance
15% tolerance
Why they differ. Paper weight, grain direction, fold precision, humidity, launch angle, and launch speed all affect flight. The simulator uses a simplified aerodynamic model — it is educational, not a substitute for real flight testing.
FLIGHT LAB / 6-DOF / SI UNITS

Real-World Paper Aircraft Physics

A second, separate rigid-body model. It includes gravity, wind, atmosphere, low-speed aerodynamics, stall, angular dynamics, and impact; generic aerodynamic coefficients remain estimates until you calibrate them.

Real-World Physics
Model status: physics-based and inspectable, but not experimentally validated for an individual folded aircraft. No powered flight is modeled. Aerodynamic inputs are explicitly labeled measured, estimated, or assumed; replace estimates with repeat-flight or tunnel data before relying on predictions.
READY · 6-DOFDRAG IS DISSIPATIVE · FLIGHT IS UNPOWERED
CGAERODYNAMIC CENTERAIRFLOWPATH
FLIGHT TIME0.00 s
FLIGHT PATH0.00 m
STATUSGrounded
Airspeed0.00 m/s
Ground speed0.00 m/s
Altitude AGL0.00 m
Angle of attack0.0 °
Lift / drag0.000 / 0.000 N
p / q / r rates0 / 0 / 0 °/s
Mechanical energy0.000 J
Reynolds number0 —
ρ 1.225 kg/m³p 101.3 kPaT 15.0 °Cβ 0.0°Static margin —
01 / REPEATED FLIGHT TESTS

Compare predictions with flights

Enter measured outcomes from repeated throws. Prediction error is shown against the measured mean. The sensitivity envelope perturbs CL by ±18% and CD by ±22% (an assumed input-uncertainty allowance, not a statistical confidence interval), including user tables.

No measured flights logged yet.
Simulated range—
Measured mean range—
Range error—
Simulated duration—
Measured mean duration—
Duration error—
Run a prediction to calculate its estimated coefficient-sensitivity envelope.
MODEL SCOPE / TRANSPARENCY

What is measured, estimated, and assumed

NOT A CERTIFIED FLIGHT PREDICTOR
MEASURED

Only values you enter as measurements and a coefficient table you supply. Repeated flight outcomes are kept separate and compared against the simulated mean.

CALCULATED

Planform aspect ratio, mean aerodynamic chord, center of gravity/static margin, approximate mass moments of inertia, air density, pressure, temperature, dynamic pressure, and Reynolds number.

ESTIMATED

Generic low-Re lift slope, stall softening, separated-flow drag, induced drag, tail/fin derivatives, and rotational damping. Flow-transition hysteresis, creases and paper roughness are not resolved.

ASSUMED

Rigid-body 6-DOF motion with small elastic wingtip deflection, flat local ground, uniform ambient wind plus reproducible synthetic turbulence, and a standard-atmosphere profile with a temperature offset.

Technical references: Ng et al., paper-airplane flight and water-tunnel study (AIAA 2009-3958) · Selig, low-Re airfoil transition and separation notes · NASA Glenn, metric atmosphere model · Stengel, nonlinear 6-DOF aircraft simulation notes · NASA standard 6-DOF simulation check cases.
IMAGE GEOMETRY / CALIBRATED FROM YOUR PIXELS

Measure with Priyaair length.

Set a known reference, then mark image points to measure dimensions and curvature. All calculations run locally in this browser.

1 ℘L = 200 mmEvery length result is shown in both units. Accuracy depends on a clear reference in the same image plane as the object.
ReferenceLengthBreadthDiameterHeightCurve
01 / IMAGE INPUT

Upload or capture

LOCAL · PRIVATE
Upload an image or open the camera to begin.
ReadyMove over the image to see a live measuring line.

Your image and measurement marks will appear here.

For a reliable scale, place the reference and the measured feature on the same flat plane and keep the camera square to it. Image perspective and hidden depth cannot be recovered from one photograph.

PRIYAAIR / IMAGE-BASED FLIGHT PLAN

Flight planner

LOCAL · OFFLINE

Pick one icon. Everything below is still here for fine control.

How the planner works (tap to read)

Mark a real image scale, then click as many dots as you like to draw the route (straight or curved). Press Analyze & Simulate and Priyaair measures the route in cm, searches aircraft designs and throws, and flies the best one by itself. 1 ℘L = 200 mm. No image is uploaded anywhere.

IMAGE SCALETap dots A, B, C, D … in the order you want the aircraft to fly. The line from the first to the last dot becomes forward distance; sideways offsets become left/right turns. Then set the scale (type the real distance in cm) and press Analyze & Simulate.
MEASURE A REAL DISTANCE LIVE CAMERA RULER · ±5%
Press Start camera to see the real world here,
then drag the two handles to measure.

Point the camera at something you know the size of, drag the handles to match it, then type its real length above and press Enter. (Default 0.297 m = long edge of an A4 sheet.)

Status: camera off · press Start camera

Or measure a photo instead ↓

No measured target yet. Photo + reference is the least accurate method and works on flat surfaces only.
01 / IMAGE

Upload, capture, calibrate

PRIVATE · IN THIS BROWSER
Upload a JPG, PNG, or WebP image, or open the camera.

Image preview and route marks appear here.

Tap anywhere on the picture to drop dots in order: A (launch), B, C, D … as many as you like, no limit.

PHOTO + REFERENCE · least accurate method · flat surfaces only · kept as the fallback when AR and camera measurement are unavailable.