Aircraft Boarding Bridge Coupling Floor With Extendable Pivot Range

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing coupling modules between passenger boarding bridges and aircraft fuselages struggle to adapt to varying door opening heights and widths, particularly with new larger aircraft models, while maintaining a minimal total depth and adhering to safety distances.

Innovation Solution

A swivel floor with an extendable front floor segment that can be telescoped, pivoted, or fanned out to accommodate different aircraft models, equipped with pressure elements and pulling means for controlled extension and retraction, and a folding canopy for seamless integration with the fuselage.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the swivel floor depth is increased to accommodate larger aircraft models, then adaptability to diverse aircraft models is improved, but the total depth in resting position exceeds the specified minimum depth

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveadaptability to diverse aircraft modelsVSAvoidtotal depth of swivel floor in resting position

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLength of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The swivel floor is divided into a base body and an extendable front floor segment. The front floor segment can be extended when needed to accommodate larger aircraft models requiring pivot ranges exceeding 1000 mm, while retracted into the base body when not in use to maintain a compact total depth of approximately 800 mm in the resting position.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The front floor segment is designed to be dynamically extendable and retractable along the pivot axis direction. This dynamic configuration allows the swivel floor to adapt its depth according to the specific aircraft model being serviced, providing flexibility to handle both smaller aircraft with standard door openings and larger aircraft with deeper door openings requiring extended pivot range.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

2Adaptability or versatility

If the swivel floor is made extendable to handle larger aircraft, then the pivot range is increased, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepivot rangeVSAvoidstructural complexity of extendable mechanism

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The front floor segment is nested within the base body of the swivel floor when retracted. This nesting arrangement allows the extendable segment to be stored compactly within the existing structure, minimizing additional space requirements and reducing overall structural complexity while still providing the necessary extended pivot range when deployment is required.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

Solution Approach 2:

The extendable front floor segment serves multiple functions: it extends the pivot range for larger aircraft, maintains the compact resting depth, and integrates with the existing swivel floor structure. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate systems and minimizes overall device complexity despite the added capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS12522374B2Coupling module as an interface between a passenger boarding bridge or staircase and the fuselage of an aircraft

Publication Date: 2026.01.13 HUBNER GMBH

AI summary

A coupling module as an interface between an air passenger bridge or staircase and the aircraft fuselage has a cabin and a walkable swivel floor. At least the swivel floor is pivotably arranged about a pivot axis at the cabin to align the swivel floor at a door opening in an aircraft fuselage. The swivel floor has at least one front floor segment travelable with respect to a base body of the swivel floor in the direction of the aircraft fuselage.