Image Title: Terrafugia Transition Proof of Concept at AirVenture Oshkosh
Date Taken: July 27, 2008
Date Posted: July 28, 2008

Description:

Terrafugia is pleased to announce that the Transition® Proof of Concept is on display this week at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, WI. Visit us on AeroShell Square on Monday, or at our exhibit near Theater in the Woods the rest of the week (shown here). This is the actual functional vehicle that will begin its drive and flight testing program early this Fall.

We hope you enjoyed the Picture of the Week. This will conclude the series for the time being. Stay tuned for event and testing reports this Fall.

The Picture of the Week is designed to give a glimpse into the hardware development that is ongoing at Terrafugia. Limited tour opportunities are available. Please contact info@terrafugia.com for more information.

Previous Pictures of the Week:
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**All photos are the property of Terrafugia and were taken by members of the Prototype Development Team.

Image	Description
July 27, 2008 posted: 7/28/08	Terrafugia is pleased to announce that the Transition® Proof of Concept is on display this week at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, WI. Visit us on AeroShell Square on Monday, or at our exhibit near Theater in the Woods the rest of the week (shown here). This is the actual functional vehicle that will begin its drive and flight testing program early this Fall. We hope you enjoyed the Picture of the Week. This will conclude the series for the time being. Stay tuned for event and testing reports this Fall.
June 20 , 2008 posted: 7/21/08	Work on the Transition® Proof of Concept is captured from a vantage point that will soon be unobtainable after installation of the propeller. The rear suspension can be glimpsed at the lower left and right of the image above the bottom of the empennage.
June 9 , 2008 posted: 7/14/08	Taking a moment to appreciate the completion of a milestone, from left to right, Terrafugia's Ben Zelnick, Samuel Schweighart and Richard Gersh pose with the Transition® Proof of Concept as it rests on its own wheels and suspension for the first time. Passenger car tires and a suspension designed to take abuse on the roads will give the Transition® some of the most robust landing gear in the Light Sport fleet.
June 3 , 2008 posted: 7/7/08	Terrafugia Engineer Ben Zelnick (left) and VP of Engineering Samuel Schweighart work in control installation with the dash assembly inserted into the Proof of Concept Transition®. As installation continues, all of the placeholders on the dash will be replaced with flight instruments. Rough-cut mounts for the center console which will house the drive shaft are visible at the lower right of the image.
May 28, 2008 posted: 6/30/08	The dash assembly is passed through the windshield opening for installation into the Transition® Proof of Concept. The Proof of Concept will feature avionics components from top-shelf manufacturers. With design updates based on feedback from the Engineering Cockpit Mockup that was shown at the US Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, FL, the Proof of Concept dash design should capture the dual functionality while maintaining an automotive level of convenience.
May 7, 2008 posted: 6/23/08	Terrafugia's John Telfeyan, Andrew Heafitz and Samuel Schweighart (from left to right) inspect the windshield alignment on its flange in the Transition® Proof of Concept. The flange will be given it's final trim based on this alignment check. The windshield is custom-made from automotive safety glass. The cutouts for the cooling duct, headlight, license plate cover, and canard are visible on the front of the fuselage.
April 29, 2008 posted: 6/16/08	Terrafugia Senior Engineering Technician John Telfeyan and Engineer Marc Stiller begin a preliminary mounting of the Rotax 912 engine into the Transition® Proof of Concept. This preliminary engine mounting will allow for exhaust, cooling and fuel system components to be finalized while the actual engine mounting hardware is being fabricated. The vehicle has been moved from the composite shop to the main assembly area of Terrafugia's Prototype Development Facility.
April 23, 2008 posted: 6/9/08	Terrafugia CEO and CTO Carl Dietrich inspects the machined components of the wing hinge pieces as they will fit into the main spar of the Transition® Proof of Concept. These aluminum components will be sent out for surface treatment and priming then bonded into the main spar during vehicle assembly.
April 16, 2008 posted: 6/2/08	Terrafugia Senior Engineering Technician John Telfeyan and composites expert and advisor Jeff Myjak of Stillwater Design inspect the ribs and aft spar structure being attached to the lower empennage skin. The flanges and fillets for this attachment were done with wet lay-up composite techniques and are beginning the curing process under a vacuum bag in this image. The flanges on the top of the structure will allow for easy attachment of the top empennage skin later in the vehicle assembly process.
May 15, 2008 posted: 5/26/08	Terrafugia leadership traveled to Washington D.C. to continue to build relationships with the company's elected representatives and the appropriate regulatory agencies, including the DOT and EPA. From left to right: Terrafugia's Carl Dietrich and Anna Mracek Dietrich, Congressman Ed Markey, and Terrafugia's Richard Gersh.
Mar. 31, 2008 posted: 5/19/08	After the final trim and fit checking, the empennage and fuselage are successfully mated together. The hood is resting in place in the front of the fuselage. From left to right, Terrafugia Spring Term Intern Andrew Sand, Engineer Marc Stiller and VP of Engineering Samuel Schweighart.
Mar. 31, 2008 posted: 5/12/08	Terrafugia Spring Term Intern Andrew Sand works on the alignment of the empennage ribs while the empennage halves are stood off from each other and the fuselage hangs on its assembly and alignment rigging from the rafters in Terrafugia's composites shop. The hood has been trimmed from the fuselage. The rigging allows for trimming and fit checking to be iterated quickly.
Mar. 12 , 2008 posted: 5/05/08	Terrafugia CEO and CTO Carl Dietrich is checking the fit after the first rough trim of the two completed fuselage halves in the composites shop at Terrafugia's Proof of Concept Development Facility. After a few additional minor adjustments, the two halves will be permanently bonded together.
Mar. 11 , 2008 posted: 4/28/08	This shot shows the top half of the empennage sitting on top of its bottom half mate. The ribs are in place in between the parts. Final trimming and assembly follows this initial fit check. The fuselage will sit in the triangular gap at the front of the empennage (closest to the camera).
Mar. 11 , 2008 posted: 4/21/08	The Terrafugia team is lifting the completed top half of the empennage out of its mold as a documentary crew records the event. The aft edge of the part is closest to the camera in this picture. This is the third of four large composite parts for the Transition®.
Mar. 5 , 2008 posted: 4/14/08	Terrafugia VP of Engineering Samuel Schweighart and engineer Marc Stiller are preparing the core in the skin of the top empennage half for the interior layer of carbon fiber cloth. The closed-cell foam core provides additional strength and durability to the structure of the Transition®.
Feb. 22, 2008 posted: 4/7/08	Terrafugia VP of Engineering Samuel Schweighart is checking ribs for fit inside the completed bottom half of the empennage. The rib he is holding extends from the empennage into the starboard vertical stabilizer.
Feb. 5, 2008 posted: 3/31/08	The second of the large carbon fiber composite parts to be completed for the Proof of Concept Transition®, the port half of the fuselage came out under its weight target. Terrafugia CEO/CTO Carl Dietrich is shown here holding the part with one hand to demonstrate just how light weight the part is despite its strength.
Feb. 5, 2008 posted: 3/24/08	The reddish template used as a placeholder for the windshield and door throughout the construction of the port fuselage half is being removed from the cured composite part. It will leave behind flanges in the part onto which the windshield and door can later be installed. A documentary crew was present to capture the work in progress.
Feb. 5, 2008 posted: 3/17/08	The port half of the fuselage is being lifted out of the mold following its final cure cycle. The reddish shapes are templates used throughout the lay up process as placeholders for the license plate cover, headlight lenses, windshield, doors and windows.
Feb. 5, 2008 posted: 3/10/08	The port half of the fuselage is under vacuum here inside the purpose-built oven at Terrafugia's Prototype Development Facility awaiting its second (and final) high temperature curing cycle. The camera is at the nose of the part; the fuselage floor is at image left.
Jan. 31, 2008 posted: 3/3/08	Terrafugia Spring-term co-op Matthew Deschambeault is smoothing film adhesive onto the port headlight flange after the first curing cycle of this fuselage half. The flange will be trimmed after final curing to accept the poly carbonate headlight cover.
Jan. 23, 2008 posted: 2/25/08	Looking down into the part (still in the mold) after the first cure cycle, this image shows the nose of the port fuselage half. The skin and outer layer of unidirectional carbon fiber that makes up part of the beam structure is visible. The red templates are placeholders for the door, headlight, license plate cover and windshield. The green and yellow around the edge of the mold are vacuum bag and the tape used to seal it onto the mold during curing. Before this part is complete, the rest of the beam structure will be constructed and the it will undergo a second high temperature cure cycle.
Jan. 20, 2008 posted: 2/18/08	This collection of images from the US Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, FL shows some of the activity in Terrafugia's tent that was centered around the Transition® Engineering Cockpit Mockup. Existing and future customers enjoyed the chance to get a preview of what operating a Transition® will be like, and offered valuable opinions and insights into the cockpit ergonomics. Also on display at the show was the Transition® wind tunnel model and proof-of-concept folding wing. More information on the 2008 Expo can be found in the event report.
Jan. 9, 2008 posted: 2/11/08	The Transition® Engineering Cockpit Mockup set up in the Terrafugia Prototype Development Facility before being packed up for the US Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, FL. The dash has been completed and mounted to the mockup half fuselage and placeholder firewall. In the rear of the mockup, storage space for carry-on luggage, a flight bag, skis and ski boots is shown. A golf bag and clubs can be carried instead of ski equipment. This mockup is a useful tool for investigating ergonomics and firewall forward layout.
Jan. 3, 2008 posted: 2/4/08	Terrafugia's Sam Schweighart (left) and John Telfeyan use a hot-wire bow to trim foam that will be used under a layer of fiber glass composite as the dash board in the Engineering Cockpit Mockup of the Transition®. This rough construction method, while dissimilar from the construction techniques used on the actual Proof-of-Concept, allows for rapid creation of mockup components. The resulting Engineering Cockpit Mockup is used for test fitting avionics and controls as well as getting feedback on ergonomic factors from pilots and customers. The Transition® wind tunnel model can be seen hanging from the shop ceiling in the background.
Dec. 19, 2007 posted: 1/28/08	Andrew Heafitz (left) and John Telfeyan, members of the senior engineering and technical staff at Terrafugia verify the continuity of the pre-impregnated carbon fiber cloth (pre-preg) around the "wing wells" in the empennage pan lay-up. These areas house the hinge and actuation mechanism in the root of each wing. The aft edge of the empennage mold is in the foreground. The green film on the part is a protective layer on the pre-preg that is removed before oven-curing under vacuum.
Nov. 30, 2007 posted: 1/21/08	While the fuselage is constructed in two halves -- left and right -- the empennage is constructed with lower and upper components. The upper (background) and lower (foreground) empennage molds are shown here ready for lay-up work to begin in the composites shop at Terrafugia's Prototype Development Facility.
Sept. 28, 2007 posted: 1/14/08	This picture was taken shortly after the mold for the right-hand half of the fuselage (left) was removed from the plug (right). The colored boards on the plug are parting boards, placed at the center line to give the flange on the mold that will be used to secure the vacuum bag during manufacturing.
Aug. 31, 2007 posted: 1/7/08	Terrafugia VP of Engineering, Dr. Samuel Schweighart, is priming the surface of the fuselage plug in the composites shop at Terrafugia. The surface of the plug will transfer to the molds made off of it, and then eventually to the finished Proof-of-Concept vehicle skin. Multiple coats of priming and wet sanding create a smooth finish. The fuselage and empennage plugs together represent the majority of the outer mold line of the Transition® Proof-of-Concept.
Aug. 30, 2007 posted: 12/31/07	This view of the empennage plug for the Proof-of-Concept Transition® was taken in the composites shop at the Terrafugia prototype development facility. The plug has been sanded and primed, and is awaiting additional sanding and primer before being used to make the molds used in vehicle construction.
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