Form of the Ornithopter.
The ornithopter has hinged planes which work like the wings of a
bird. At first thought this would seem to be the correct principle, and
most of the early experimenters conducted their operations on this line.
It
is now generally understood, however, that the bird in soaring is in
reality an aeroplane, its extended wings serving to sustain, as well as
propel, the body. At any rate the ornithoper has not been successful in
aviation, and has been interesting mainly as an ingenious toy. Attempts
to construct it on a scale that would permit of its use by man in actual
aerial flights have been far from encouraging.
