Bulkhead Recess Layout for Higher-Density Front Row Seating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing passenger seating designs face challenges in maximizing seat density while ensuring passenger safety and comfort, particularly in aircraft seating, where head clearance and seat spacing requirements complicate the arrangement of seats near bulkheads.
Innovation Solution
The integration of a recess in the bulkhead aligned with the predicted head path of a passenger, allowing the front seat to be positioned closer to the bulkhead without compromising safety, and the inclusion of a foot well and deployable monitor, which enhances seat density and comfort.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the front seat is positioned closer to the bulkhead to increase seat density, then the number of seats per area increases, but the passenger's head may hit the bulkhead in an accident
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the problematic portion of the bulkhead that intrudes into the passenger's head space by creating a recess in the bulkhead surface. This recess removes the obstructing volume from the bulkhead structure, allowing the seat to be positioned closer without compromising head clearance safety
Solution Approach 2:
The invention resolves the spatial conflict by transitioning from a two-dimensional flat bulkhead surface to a three-dimensional recessed configuration. The recess creates additional head clearance volume in the vertical and depth dimensions, enabling closer seat positioning while maintaining safety margins
2Ease of operation
If enough space is provided for each seat to recline into a bed with console, monitor, tray, and foot well, then passenger comfort is improved, but the number of seats that can be fitted in the seating area decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the bulkhead structure with the seat assembly by integrating the foot well directly into the bulkhead design. This consolidation eliminates wasted space between separate components and allows the seat to be positioned closer to the bulkhead, increasing seat density while preserving full recline functionality
Solution Approach 2:
The foot well is positioned in a laterally spaced location perpendicular to the direction of travel, utilizing three-dimensional space more efficiently. This lateral positioning allows the foot well to occupy space that would otherwise be unused, accommodating full seat recline without reducing longitudinal seat density
Data Source
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AI summary
A passenger seating installation for a vehicle comprises a front seat located adjacent a bulkhead and facing in a direction that is oblique to the direction of travel of the vehicle. The bulkhead includes a recess for receiving the head of a passenger in the front seat in the event of an accident. The recess is spaced apart from the front seat in the direction of travel and in a direction that is obliquely disposed with respect to the direction in which the seated passenger faces. The recess allows the front seat to be located closer to the bulkhead than would be the case in the absence of the recess, which can increase seat density in a seating area.