Adjustable Headrest Assembly With Stowable Lower Neck Support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional passenger seats lack adjustable head support, leading to discomfort for passengers of varying lengths, and the fixed lower head support often intrudes into a longer passenger's shoulders or upper back, making it difficult to stow during taxi, take-off, and landing.
Innovation Solution
A headrest assembly with a slidingly coupled lower head support that can be adjusted via a rest bar and extensions, allowing for deployment and stowage, and featuring pivotally coupled side supports and deployment arms to accommodate different passenger heights, enabling customizable head and neck support.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a lower head support is integrated into the head rest through shaping, then head support is provided, but it intrudes into a longer passenger's shoulders and upper back
Solution Approach 1:
The lower head support is designed to be movable rather than fixed. It can be adjusted forward and backward along a track, allowing it to adapt to different passenger lengths. When retracted, it does not intrude into the passenger's shoulders; when extended, it provides necessary support.
Solution Approach 2:
The head rest assembly is divided into separate functional components: the main head support and the lower head support. This segmentation allows independent adjustment of each component, enabling the lower support to be positioned optimally without affecting the main support structure.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed lower head support is provided, then head support is available, but it prevents the head rest from being capable of stowing flat
Solution Approach 1:
The lower head support incorporates a movable design with adjustment mechanisms that enable it to be repositioned or retracted. This dynamic capability allows the head rest assembly to be stowed flat when needed while maintaining head support functionality when required.
Solution Approach 2:
The lower head support can be retracted into or nested within the main head support structure. This nesting capability allows the assembly to achieve a compact, flat stowage position while preserving the lower support functionality when deployed.
3Device complexity
If traditional fixed orientation positions are used, then head rest structure is simple, but it cannot be adequately adjusted to provide each passenger with required head support
Solution Approach 1:
The head rest assembly incorporates movable and adjustable components, including the lower head support that can be repositioned along a track. This dynamic design provides adaptability for different passenger lengths while maintaining reasonable structural complexity through the use of straightforward adjustment mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
Described are passenger seats having a seat back support and a head rest assembly coupled to the seat back support. The head rest assembly includes a head support and a lower head support with a rest bar and a pair of extensions, wherein a first end of each extension is slidingly coupled to the rest bar and a second end of each extension is pivotally coupled to the head support. The rest bar is positioned adjacent the head support when the lower head support is in a stowed position and is positioned a distance forward of the head support when the lower head support is in a deployed position.