Aircraft Door Display Device for Emergency Slide Deployment Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for controlling the extension length of emergency slides on aircraft are inflexible and require extensive installation and maintenance, particularly when the aircraft is not in its normal horizontal attitude, leading to potential safety issues and increased costs.
Innovation Solution
A compact display device integrated into aircraft doors that includes an optical and acoustic signaling system, a status signal input, and an inclination angle measuring device, allowing for reliable control of emergency slide deployment based on the aircraft's pitch angle and providing warnings when the slide is unusable due to inclination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If central pitch angle sensors are installed to control emergency slide extension, then the extension length can be accurately controlled according to aircraft attitude, but the device complexity and installation effort increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the pitch angle measurement function from a centralized sensor system and relocates it to individual door units. Each door is equipped with its own inclination angle measuring device, eliminating the need for complex central sensor installations and cable connections while maintaining accurate pitch angle detection for emergency slide control.
Solution Approach 2:
The centralized pitch angle sensing system is segmented into distributed modular units at each door. This segmentation allows independent measurement and control at each door location, reducing overall system complexity and installation requirements while improving reliability through distributed architecture.
2Loss of information
If extensive cable connections are used to link pitch angle sensors to door control systems, then pitch angle data can be transmitted to control mechanisms, but the installation and maintenance effort increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the information processing capability from the central control system and places it directly at the door units. Each door unit independently processes pitch angle data from its own sensor, eliminating the need for extensive cable connections to transmit this information centrally, thereby simplifying installation and maintenance.
3Ease of manufacture
If emergency slides are designed for normal horizontal position only, then the design is simpler, but the slides cannot reach the ground or are too steep when the aircraft is tilted
Solution Approach 1:
The emergency slide system is made dynamic by enabling automatic adjustment of extension length based on real-time pitch angle measurements. The slide can extend to different lengths (normal length for horizontal position, extended length for tilted position) according to aircraft attitude, ensuring safe ground contact and appropriate angle in all conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operational parameter of slide extension length based on the measured pitch angle. When the aircraft is in a tilted position, the system increases the slide extension length to compensate for the increased door-to-ground distance and maintain safe evacuation conditions.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the extension length of emergency slides is manually adjusted, then the slide can adapt to different aircraft positions, but the response time and operational complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements automatic feedback control where pitch angle sensors continuously measure aircraft attitude and this information is fed to the door control units. The control units automatically adjust the emergency slide extension length in real-time based on the measured pitch angle, eliminating manual adjustment delays and ensuring immediate adaptability to changing aircraft positions.
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
This solution reduces installation effort, eliminates the need for central pitch angle sensors, and allows for flexible and cost-effective implementation, ensuring safe and efficient emergency slide deployment across various aircraft attitudes while minimizing weight and maintenance requirements.
Implementation Method 1
with a tilt angle measuring device for determining the tilt angle of the display unit about a predetermined axis
Data Source
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Figure 3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The invention relates to a display device for indicating the activation status of an emergency slide in an aircraft. It comprises an optical signaling device (10) and/or an acoustic signaling device (12) for emitting an optical signal (62) or an acoustic signal, a status signal input (74) for receiving a predetermined status signal, with a first signal state associated with an activated state of the emergency slide and a second signal state associated with a deactivated state of the emergency slide, and a control device (16) connected to the optical signaling device (10) or the acoustic signaling device (12) and the status signal input (74), and configured to operate the optical signaling device (10) or the acoustic signaling device (12) depending on the received status signal in order to indicate the signal state of the status signal.The display unit is designed as a single, compact, integrated unit and further comprises an inclination angle measuring device (48) connected to the control unit (16) for determining the inclination angle of the display unit about a predetermined axis and an inclination angle signal output (80). The control unit (16) is further configured to determine, based on the determined inclination angle, whether a predetermined inclination angle about the predetermined axis has been exceeded for a predetermined period of time, and to output a predetermined signal via the inclination angle signal output only if the predetermined inclination angle has been exceeded for the predetermined period of time.