Aircraft Suite Table Control With Obstacle-Sensing Stowage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Stowing and deploying tables in aircraft passenger suites can be cumbersome and complicated for passengers, often resulting in incorrect stowage during critical phases like landing.
Innovation Solution
An aircraft passenger suite equipped with a console and a table that can move electro-mechanically between stowed and deployed positions, featuring a controller that initiates movement based on passenger input and prevents movement if obstacles are detected on the table path.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual table movement is used, then device complexity is reduced, but ease of operation deteriorates due to cumbersome and complicated stowing and deploying processes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical table movement with an electro-mechanical actuation system. A motor-driven mechanism automatically moves the table along a defined path between stowed and deployed positions, eliminating the need for passengers to manually manipulate complex mechanical linkages and reducing operational difficulty.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables automatic table stowing and deploying through sensor detection and automated actuation. When the system detects that table stowing is required (e.g., during landing), it automatically initiates the movement without requiring passenger intervention, making the system serve itself.
2Productivity
If automated electro-mechanical movement is implemented, then productivity is improved through faster table deployment, but device complexity increases due to addition of motors and control systems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical table movement with an electro-mechanical actuation system. A motor-driven mechanism automatically moves the table along a defined path between stowed and deployed positions, eliminating the need for passengers to manually manipulate complex mechanical linkages and reducing operational difficulty.
Solution Approach 2:
The electro-mechanical actuation system serves multiple functions: it deploys the table, stows the table, detects obstacles through integrated sensors, and responds to automated triggers from the aircraft's flight management system. This multi-functionality consolidates what would otherwise require separate systems into a single integrated unit.
3Reliability
If electro-mechanical movement is used, then reliability is improved through consistent automated operation, but object-generated harmful factors increase due to potential collisions with obstacles
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies preliminary anti-action by detecting obstacles on the table's movement path before the electro-mechanical actuation begins. Sensors positioned along the table path detect obstacles such as passenger limbs or objects, and the control system prevents actuation until the path is clear, thereby preventing collisions before they can occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback through sensors that continuously monitor the table's movement path for obstacles. The sensor output feeds back to the control system, which adjusts the actuation command in real-time based on obstacle detection, ensuring safe operation by preventing movement when obstacles are present.
Data Source
AI summary
An aircraft passenger suite (200) and method are provided. The aircraft passenger suite comprises a console (150) and a table (130) movably mounted to the console, the table being moveable along a table path between a first position and a second position. A controller (210) controls electro-mechanical movement of the table along the table path. The controller comprises an initiation input for receiving an instruction to initiate electro-mechanical movement of the table. The suite comprises sensing equipment for sensing if any obstacle is present on the table path and providing, to the controller, an indication of whether or not any obstacle is present on the table path. The controller is configured to prevent electro-mechanical movement of the table along the table path if the controller receives an indication that an obstacle is present on the table path.