Deployable Seat Step Assembly for Overhead Compartment Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Passenger vehicles, such as aircraft, lack a mechanism to facilitate reaching high areas like overhead storage compartments, which is necessary for passengers or crew members to access these regions safely and efficiently.
Innovation Solution
A deployable step assembly integrated within a structural element, such as a passenger seat or armrest, that can move between a stowed and deployed position, providing a step surface for standing, is slidably or rotatably connected to the structural element, allowing access to high areas without altering the horizontal plane of the step's position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a step mechanism is added to facilitate reaching high areas, then accessibility to overhead compartments is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The step is integrated within the existing structural element (armrest or seat) by incorporating it into the bumper component. This merging approach allows the step function to be added without introducing a separate, complex mechanism, thereby improving accessibility while minimizing the increase in device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The step is designed to be movable between a stowed position (flush with the structural element) and a deployed position (protruding to provide standing surface). This dynamic configuration allows the step to be available when needed while maintaining a clean, integrated appearance when not in use, resolving the contradiction between functionality and complexity.
2Ease of operation
If the step protrudes from the structural element to provide a standing surface, then accessibility is improved, but the structural integrity may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The step is integrated within the bumper, which is an existing structural component designed to withstand forces. By merging the step function into the bumper rather than adding a separate attachment, the structural integrity is maintained while achieving the desired step functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The step is designed as a movable portion that can be separated from the fixed structural element when needed. This segmentation allows the step to protrude for use without permanently altering or compromising the main structural element, as the step can be retracted when not in use.
3Device complexity
If the step is integrated within the structural element, then device complexity is minimized, but the step surface area is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The step is positioned at a specific location (within the bumper of the structural element) where it provides localized support for stepping. This local quality approach allows the step to be integrated into the existing structure while providing sufficient surface area at the critical location where it is needed for accessibility.
Data Source
Figure 1~2a
Figure 2b~2c
Figure 2d~3a
AI summary
The invention relates to a step assembly for a furniture (10) comprising a structural element (18) and a step (21) movable relative to the structural element (18) between - a stowed position, in which the step (21) is flush with regard to the structural element (10), and - a deployed position, in which the step (21) protrudes with regard to the structural element (10) to provide a step surface on which one can stand on.