The Wright System.
Another variant of the wheel control is instanced by the Wright system, this consisting of a general lay out similar to that shown by [Fig. 101], but no rudder-bar is fitted. The rudder control is provided by a small lever, mounted concentric with the wheel, the latter carrying a rigidly attached sprocket. The hand-lever is also connected to a sprocket, this running free on the wheel shaft, so that by gripping both hand-lever and wheel it is possible to operate the ailerons and rudder simultaneously, this action being a characteristic feature of all the Wright productions. Although there are many types of control in use, those described in the foregoing chapter are illustrative of general practice.
CHAPTER XIII.
WIRES AND CONNECTIONS.
In all aeroplanes the question of wires and the terminal connections associated therewith is a matter of some importance, and while this may vary in degree, there is little doubt that the efficiency of modern wiring systems is largely responsible for the structural efficiency of the aeroplane as a whole.
Aeroplane construction consists almost exclusively of a framework of wood braced by wires, a condition of things which has obtained since the inception of flight; as may be judged by the various engravings of Henson’s projected monoplane of 1842. This machine incorporated an arrangement of king-posts and wires approximating very closely to modern practice, and the natural sequence of improvements have tended towards the gradual elimination of exposed wiring.