Deployable Aircraft Data Recorder With Water-Activated Flotation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing deployable flight recorders face issues such as damage during deployment, difficulty in maintaining operational condition, and visibility in water, making them hard to locate and recover after an aircraft incident.

Innovation Solution

A deployable data recorder system with an electronics chamber and inflation chamber, equipped with inflatable bags and a pressure sensor, automatically deploys and inflates upon submersion, ensuring flotation, visibility, and data transmission.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the flight recorder is designed to deploy automatically from the aircraft, then recovery facilitation is improved, but the device may be subject to damage during deployment causing it to sink or be difficult to locate

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedeployment reliabilityVSAvoidwater damage and visibility issues

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies buoyancy as a counteracting force to weight by incorporating inflatable bags that fill with air or gas upon deployment. This buoyant force counteracts the gravitational pull on the flight recorder, ensuring it floats on water surface rather than sinking, directly resolving the harmful effect of water submersion

Inventive Principle:

Principle #8Anti-weight (Counterweight)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent incorporates highly visible colors or reflective materials on the exterior of the flight recorder housing and inflatable bags. This visual modification enhances detectability from aerial or surface perspectives, directly addressing the visibility issue when the device is deployed in water

Inventive Principle:

Principle #32Color changes

2Extent of automation

If the flight recorder uses traditional deployment mechanisms, then automatic deployment is achieved, but the device becomes difficult to maintain in operational condition

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveautomatic deploymentVSAvoidmaintenance difficulty

Core Design Contradiction:

Extent of automationVSEase of repair

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the flight recorder system into modular components including the main housing, inflatable bags, battery pack, and electronic systems. This segmentation allows individual components to be independently maintained, replaced, or repaired without affecting the entire system, directly improving ease of repair while preserving automatic deployment capability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent incorporates a pre-armed deployment mechanism where the release system is prepared in advance but remains dormant until triggered by water immersion or impact sensors. This preliminary preparation enables automatic deployment when needed while allowing the device to be stored in a compact, maintainable state during normal operation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Difficulty of detecting and measuring

If the flight recorder is made visible from a distance, then location ease is improved, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovedetectabilityVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Difficulty of detecting and measuringVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent integrates the visibility enhancement features (reflective materials, colored surfaces) directly into the flight recorder housing and inflatable bag structures. This merging of detection features with structural components achieves enhanced detectability without adding separate complex subsystems, thereby avoiding excessive device complexity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The system maintains afloat condition even with bag failure, protects electronics from water, and is easily detectable, enhancing recovery chances.

Implementation Method 1

a pressure sensor coupled to the body... The processor is configured to detect submersion of the body in water

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectPressure sensor detection:

Implementation Method 2

send a signal to cause initiation of a reaction in the inflation chamber to generate gas to cause inflation of the inflatable bags

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectGas generation through reaction:

Implementation Method 3

Each inflatable bag is coupled to an individual connector assembly of the plurality of connector assemblies... generate gas to cause inflation of the inflatable bags

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectBuoyancy: Archimedes' Principle (Buoyancy)

Data Source

PatentUS20250304268A1Deployable data recorder systems for aircraft

Publication Date: 2025.10.02 THE BOEING CO

AI summary

An apparatus includes a body. The body includes an electronics chamber and an inflation chamber. The apparatus further includes a pressure sensor coupled to the body. The apparatus further includes a plurality of connector assemblies coupled to the inflation chamber. The apparatus further includes inflatable bags, where each inflatable bag is coupled to an individual connector assembly of the plurality of connector assemblies. The apparatus further includes a transmitter located within the electronics chamber. The apparatus further includes a processor located within the electronics chamber and coupled to a memory device. The processor is configured to detect submersion of the body in water, send a signal to cause initiation of a reaction in the inflation chamber, and cause the transmitter to send a data transmission.