Module assembly type aircraft seat back cover

Abstract

The present invention relates to a back cover for a modular assembly aircraft seat, and more specifically, to a back cover for a modular assembly aircraft seat configured to be assembled and separated by dividing it into three modules according to function and role, wherein a video panel, a meal tray, and a storage rack are installed sequentially in the vertical direction. The back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to the present invention is characterized by comprising: a first back cover module having a panel installation hole formed through the front and rear to enable the installation of a video panel; a second back cover module having a tray installation hole formed to enable the installation of a meal tray; a third back cover module having a storage groove formed to enable the installation of a storage rack; and a module coupling member provided at the upper or lower portions of the first, second, and third back cover modules to enable mutual assembly and separation when the first, second, and third back cover modules are arranged sequentially along the vertical direction, so as to enable mutual coupling between adjacent back cover modules.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a back cover for a modular assembly aircraft seat, and more specifically, to a back cover for a modular assembly aircraft seat configured to be assembled and separated by dividing it into three modules according to function and role, wherein a video panel, a meal tray, and a storage rack are installed sequentially in the vertical direction. Background Technology

[0002] Although the demand for aircraft interiors in Korea is increasing, the country relies entirely on overseas sources due to the lack of a domestic interior industry. Furthermore, while the number of passenger aircraft is growing due to the 활성화 (revitalization) of low-cost airlines and the increase in overseas travel, the need for interior renovations is increasing due to the aging of these aircraft.

[0003] Aircraft seats are directly related to passenger safety and are closely linked to passenger comfort, fuel costs, and airline revenue. Aircraft seats released since 2009 are designed to withstand up to 16 times the force of gravity, focusing on minimizing injuries to passengers in the event of a crash.

[0004] All aircraft seats released since 2009 must be manufactured to withstand 16 times (16g) of gravity and must be certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)’s Technical Standard Order (TSO).

[0005] Seats are the space where passengers spend most of their time on board, and they are one of the factors that customers carefully consider when choosing a flight.

[0006] Currently, aircraft seat back covers are being manufactured to provide passenger convenience by installing video panels, meal trays, and storage racks sequentially in an up-and-down direction.

[0007] As prior art for such aircraft seat back covers, U.S. Patent Publication US 8,702,163 (registered April 22, 2014) proposed a seat back assembly comprising a seat back having a recess and a tray table assembly.

[0008] However, the back cover of an aircraft seat according to the prior art was manufactured as a single piece, which had the disadvantage of high defect rates and low productivity, such as wrinkles occurring in the product during the molding and demolding process, and increased maintenance costs because the entire unit had to be replaced when parts were replaced due to repair. The problem to be solved

[0009] The present invention has been devised to solve the problems of the prior art as described above. The objective of the present invention is to provide a modular back cover for an aircraft seat that is easy to maintain and can reduce the defect rate, such as the occurrence of wrinkles, during the product manufacturing process by configuring the back cover of the aircraft seat in a modular assembly manner and improving productivity. means of solving the problem

[0010] To achieve the above objectives, the back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to the present invention is characterized by comprising: a first back cover module having a panel installation hole formed through the front and rear to enable the installation of a video panel; a second back cover module having a tray installation hole formed to enable the installation of a meal tray; a third back cover module having a storage groove formed to enable the installation of a storage rack; and a module coupling member provided at the upper or lower portions of the first, second, and third back cover modules to enable mutual assembly and separation when the first, second, and third back cover modules are arranged sequentially along the vertical direction, thereby enabling mutual coupling between adjacent back cover modules.

[0011] Here, the first, second, and third back cover modules are each manufactured independently and are characterized by comprising: a vacuum forming process in which a flame-retardant thermoplastic polymer sheet, which is the material of the product, is vacuum formed in a vacuum forming mold under certain temperature and pressure conditions; and a trimming process for trimming and finishing the edges of the vacuum-formed product.

[0012] Here, the module coupling member comprises a projection and a groove having a shape capable of mutual interlocking, wherein the projection and the groove are integrally molded with the first, second, and third back cover modules in the vacuum forming mold.

[0013] Here, the module coupling member is characterized in that the projection is formed laterally with a certain height along the upper or lower edge of the first, second, and third back cover modules to form a front contact surface on the front surface, and the groove is formed with a back contact surface on the back surface of the upper or lower part of the first, second, and third back cover modules corresponding to the projection, such that the front contact surface of the projection can be supported by surface contact.

[0014] Herein, the module coupling member further comprises an attachment means interposed between the front contact surface of the projection and the rear contact surface of the groove, wherein the attachment means is characterized as being a pair of Velcro fasteners that are mutually detachable by an external force of a certain amount or more.

[0015] Here, the vacuum forming process is characterized in that the first, second, and third back cover modules are manufactured in a manufacturing environment in which the temperature condition of the vacuum forming mold is 65 to 75°C, the temperature condition of the thermoplastic polymer sheet is 175 to 185°C, and the pressure condition of the vacuum forming mold is vacuum pressure. Effects of the invention

[0016] With the above configuration, the back cover of the modular assembly aircraft seat according to the present invention is configured by separating and assembling the back cover into multiple modules according to function and role, thereby allowing the size of the modules molded in the mold to be relatively small, which can reduce the defect rate during manufacturing and improve productivity, and has the advantage of easy maintenance as only the corresponding module can be replaced when parts need to be replaced due to repair. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0017] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of a back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a first back cover module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a second back cover module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a third back cover module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a side view and an enlarged view of a main part of a back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a back cover module manufacturing process flowchart according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a graph of temperature and pressure conditions of a vacuum forming process according to an embodiment of the present invention. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0018] Hereinafter, a back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the embodiment illustrated in the drawings.

[0019] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view of a back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a first back cover module according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a second back cover module according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a third back cover module according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a side view and an enlarged view of a main part of a back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 6, the back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to one embodiment of the present invention is a back cover of an aircraft seat in which a video panel, a meal tray, and a storage rack can be sequentially installed in the vertical direction, and includes a first back cover module (10), a second back cover module (20), a third back cover module (30), and a module coupling member (40).

[0021] In particular, the back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to one embodiment of the present invention is divided into a plurality of back cover modules (10, 20, 30) according to function and role, wherein the divided first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) are each manufactured independently in a vacuum forming mold, and the module coupling member (40) is integrally formed with the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) in the vacuum forming mold.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 3, the first back cover module (10) has a panel installation hole (11) formed through the front and rear so that a video panel can be installed, a first sheet coupling part (12) for coupling to a sheet protrudes rearward along the upper and side edges, and a groove (42) as a module coupling member (40) is formed along the lower edge.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 4, the second back cover module (20) has a tray installation hole (21) formed to enable the installation of a mill tray, a second sheet coupling part (22) for coupling to a sheet protrudes rearward along the edges of both ends, a projection (41) as a module coupling member (40) protrudes upward along the upper edge, and a groove (42) is formed along the lower edge.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 5, the third back cover module (30) has a storage groove (31) formed therein to enable the installation of a storage rack, a third sheet coupling part (32) for coupling to a sheet protrudes backward along the edges of both ends, and a projection (41) as a module coupling member (40) protrudes upward along the edge of the upper end.

[0025] Meanwhile, the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) are each manufactured independently as described above, and are manufactured by including a vacuum forming process (S10) and a trimming process (S20).

[0026] The above vacuum forming process (S10) is a process of vacuum forming a flame-retardant thermoplastic polymer sheet, which is the material of the product, in a vacuum forming mold under constant temperature and constant pressure conditions.

[0027] The requirements for aviation interior materials regarding the flame retardancy of the above-mentioned product materials are clearly described in the regulations of the CFR (Federal Regulations), BSS (Boeing Safety Standards), and AITM (Airbus Industry Test Methods) issued by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).

[0028] Flame retardancy tests are usually divided into four types: flammability, heat release, smoke density, and toxic combustion.

[0029] The vacuum forming mold mentioned above is a type of mold used to shape thermoplastic polymer sheets, and vacuum forming refers to a process in which a thermoplastic polymer sheet is heated and then shaped using a vacuum while the sheet is placed on a mold.

[0030] In addition, in one embodiment of the present invention, the vacuum forming process (S10) is performed in a manufacturing environment in which the temperature condition of the vacuum forming mold is 65 to 75°C, the temperature condition of the thermoplastic polymer sheet is 175 to 185°C, and the pressure condition of the vacuum forming mold is vacuum pressure, as shown in FIG. 8, and the first, second, and third back cover (10, 20, 30) modules are manufactured.

[0031] As described above, the present invention allows the back cover of an aircraft seat to be divided into a plurality of back cover modules (10, 20, 30) and manufactured independently, thereby making the size of the module molded in the mold relatively small, which reduces the defect rate during manufacturing and improves productivity.

[0032] Example: Vacuum forming process (S10)

[0033] The vacuum forming mold is heated to 70°C, a thermoplastic polymer sheet, which is the material of the product, is placed on the vacuum forming mold and heated to 180°C to soften it, and then shaped into a predetermined back cover module (10, 20, 30) using vacuum pressure, and then cooled for a certain period of time to separate the manufactured back cover module (10, 20, 30) from the mold.

[0034] The production time for each back cover module (10, 20, 30) typically takes about 8 to 10 minutes. However, when the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) are molded simultaneously in their respective dedicated vacuum molding molds, the production time can be shortened compared to when the entire back cover is molded as a single unit as in the prior art, thereby improving productivity.

[0035] The above trimming process (S20) is a process of trimming and finishing the edges of a vacuum-formed product.

[0036] The above trimming process (S20) can be configured to trim and finish the edges of a vacuum-formed product using a 5-axis router.

[0037] The above module coupling member (40) is configured to be coupled to each other between adjacent back cover modules (10, 20 or 20, 30) at the upper or lower portions of the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30).

[0038] By the configuration of the above module coupling member (40), the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) can be assembled or separated from each other as shown in FIG. 2, in a state where they are arranged sequentially along the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 1.

[0039] In one embodiment of the present invention, the module coupling member (40) includes a projection (41), a groove (42), and an attachment means (43).

[0040] The above-mentioned protrusions (41) and grooves (42) are configured to have a shape that allows for mutual interlocking. In one embodiment of the present invention, the protrusions (41) and grooves (42) are characterized by being integrally molded into the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) in the vacuum molding die as described above.

[0041] The above-mentioned protrusion (41) is formed laterally with a certain height along the upper or lower edge of the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) so that a front contact surface (411) is formed on the front surface.

[0042] In one embodiment of the present invention, the projection (41) is configured to be provided on the upper part of the second back cover module (20) and the upper part of the third back cover module (30).

[0043] The above groove (42) has a back contact surface (421) formed on the upper or lower back surface of the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) corresponding to the above projection (41), so that the front contact surface (411) of the above projection (41) can be in surface contact and supported.

[0044] In one embodiment of the present invention, the groove (42) is configured to be provided at the lower end of the first back cover module (10) and the lower end of the second back cover module (20).

[0045] As shown in FIG. 6, the attachment means (43) is configured to be interposed between the front contact surface (411) of the projection (41) and the back contact surface (421) of the groove (42). In one embodiment of the present invention, the attachment means (43) may be composed of a pair of Velcro fasteners that are mutually detachable by an external force greater than a certain amount.

[0046] Although the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) can be configured to be detachably coupled to each other using only the above-mentioned protrusions (41) and grooves (42), by providing a detachable attachment means (43) such as a Velcro fastener, the first, second, and third back cover modules (10, 20, 30) can be securely coupled to each other in an easy manner, and also easily separated.

[0047] As described above, the present invention is configured such that the back cover of an aircraft seat is separated and assembled into a plurality of back cover modules (10, 20, 30) according to function and role, thereby enabling easy maintenance by allowing only the corresponding module to be replaced when parts are replaced due to repair.

[0048] The back cover of the modular assembly aircraft seat described above and illustrated in the drawings is merely one embodiment for carrying out the present invention and should not be interpreted as limiting the technical scope of the present invention. The scope of protection of the present invention is determined solely by the matters described in the following claims, and embodiments that are improved and modified without departing from the gist of the present invention shall be deemed to fall within the scope of protection of the present invention insofar as they are obvious to those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs. Explanation of the symbols

[0049] 10 1st back cover module 11 panel installation holes 20 2nd back cover module 21 Tray Installation Tool 30 3rd back cover module 31 Item Storage Home 40 module coupling member 41 protrusions 42 home 43 Attachment means S10 vacuum forming process S20 trim process

Claims

Claim 1 A back cover for an aircraft seat, comprising: a first back cover module having a panel installation hole formed through the front and rear to enable the installation of a video panel; a second back cover module having a tray installation hole formed to enable the installation of a meal tray; and a third back cover module having a storage groove formed to enable the installation of a storage rack. A back cover for a modular assembly aircraft seat, comprising: a module coupling member provided at the upper or lower portion of the first, second, and third back cover modules so as to enable mutual assembly and separation of the first, second, and third back cover modules while they are arranged sequentially along the vertical direction, wherein the module coupling member comprises a projection and a groove having a shape capable of mutual interlocking, wherein the projection is formed laterally with a certain height along the edge of the upper or lower portion of the first, second, and third back cover modules to form a front contact surface on the front surface, and the groove has a rear contact surface formed on the rear surface of the upper or lower portion of the first, second, and third back cover modules corresponding to the projection, such that the front contact surface of the projection can be supported by surface contact, and an attachment means is disposed between the front contact surface of the projection and the rear contact surface of the groove. Claim 2 The back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat according to claim 1, wherein the first, second, and third back cover modules are each manufactured independently, and are characterized by comprising: a vacuum forming process in which a flame-retardant thermoplastic polymer sheet, which serves as the material for the product, is vacuum formed in a vacuum forming mold under certain temperature and pressure conditions; and a trimming process for trimming and finishing the edges of the vacuum-formed product. Claim 3 A back cover of a modular assembly aircraft seat, characterized in that, in paragraph 2, the protrusions and grooves are integrally molded into the first, second, and third back cover modules in the vacuum forming mold. Claim 4 delete Claim 5 A back cover for a modular assembly aircraft seat, characterized in that, in claim 1, the attachment means is a pair of Velcro fasteners that are mutually detachable by an external force greater than a certain amount. Claim 6 A back cover for a modular assembly aircraft seat according to claim 2, wherein the vacuum forming process is characterized in that the first, second, and third back cover modules are manufactured in a manufacturing environment in which the temperature condition of the vacuum forming mold is 65 to 75°C, the temperature condition of the thermoplastic polymer sheet is 175 to 185°C, and the pressure condition of the vacuum forming mold is vacuum pressure.

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