Aircraft Door Pressure Seal Coupling for Fast Seal Replacement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pressure seals for aircraft doors are difficult and time-consuming to replace, requiring disconnection of mechanical and electrical components, and involve significant downtime and risk of damage during replacement.
Innovation Solution
A pressure seal coupling device that engages first and second seal body end regions with coupling device portions, allowing for easy and reliable installation and replacement without disconnection of mechanical or electrical components, using resiliently deformable materials and positive engagement mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the pressure seal is installed as a continuous closed loop passing between the piano hinge and actuator, then sealing reliability is improved, but replacement complexity and time consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The pressure seal is divided into a first seal portion and a second seal portion that can be independently installed and coupled. The first seal portion is attached to the door and the second seal portion is attached to the actuator, allowing them to be separately removed and replaced without disconnecting the actuator from the door, thus maintaining sealing reliability while simplifying replacement procedures
Solution Approach 2:
A coupling device with coupling elements is introduced as an intermediary mechanism to connect the first and second seal portions. This coupling device allows the seal portions to be easily connected and disconnected without requiring disconnection of the actuator from the door, resolving the contradiction between maintaining a continuous seal and enabling simple replacement
2Ease of repair
If the pressure seal is replaced by disconnecting the actuator from the door, then seal replacement becomes possible, but work effort and ground time increase considerably
Solution Approach 1:
The seal system is segmented into door-mounted and actuator-mounted portions with independent attachment mechanisms. This allows the seal portions to be replaced by simply removing the old seal portions and installing new ones without disconnecting the actuator, significantly reducing ground time while maintaining ease of repair
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling elements are pre-configured on the seal portions to enable quick connection and disconnection. The first and second coupling elements are designed to engage with each other in a straightforward manner, allowing rapid seal replacement without time-consuming disconnection and reconnection of the actuator
3Reliability
If the pressure seal is trapped between the piano hinge and actuator, then sealing effectiveness is maintained, but risk of damage during replacement increases
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the seal into separate portions that can be independently handled, the risk of damage to the actuator and surrounding components is reduced. The first seal portion can be removed from the door and the second seal portion from the actuator without applying stress to the actuator connection, eliminating the damage risk while maintaining sealing effectiveness through the coupling device
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
Facilitates quick and efficient replacement of pressure seals with minimal disruption to aircraft operations, reducing downtime and risk of damage to surrounding components.
Implementation Method 1
an elongate and at least partially resiliently deformable pressure seal
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
The invention relates to a pressure seal coupling device (20) for coupling first and second seal body end regions (30, 50) of an elongate and at least partially resiliently deformable pressure seal (10; 10'; 10"), the pressure seal being adapted to seal an opening (90) providing access to a pressurizable space, in particular a pressurizable interior space of an aircraft or spacecraft (100), when the opening is closed by a closure component (107; 107a, 107b). The coupling device comprises a first coupling device portion (40) at the first seal body end region (30) and a second coupling device portion (60) at the second seal body end region (50). The first and second coupling device portions are configured to engage with each other for coupling the first and second seal body end regions. The invention further relates to a pressure seal comprising such a coupling device, to a door of an aircraft comprising such a seal arranged on the door, and to a method for installing a pressure seal.