Emergency Exit Window With Segmented Breakable Zone
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing emergency exit windows in public transport vehicles primarily serve as exits and offer limited functionality, failing to enhance user comfort while ensuring safety.
Innovation Solution
An emergency exit window with a pane comprising a first zone of variable opaqueness, a second breakable zone for evacuation, and a third transparent or translucent zone that withstands breaking, featuring an electro-controlled suspended particle device film and laminated glass for adjustable opacity and structural integrity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If the window is made fully transparent to allow viewing, then visibility is improved, but safety is worsened because the window becomes vulnerable to breaking
Solution Approach 1:
The window is divided into multiple functional zones: a first transparent zone for viewing, a second breakable zone for emergency exit, and a third transparent zone for viewing. This segmentation allows each zone to fulfill its specific function without compromising the others.
Solution Approach 2:
Different zones of the window have different optical and mechanical properties. The first and third zones maintain transparency for viewing while the second zone is designed to break easily for emergency evacuation. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction by providing transparency where needed while maintaining safety through localized breakability.
2Ease of operation
If the window is made fully breakable to allow easy evacuation, then ease of operation is improved, but safety is worsened because the window loses structural integrity
Solution Approach 1:
The window is segmented into a breakable second zone surrounded by unbreakable first and third zones. This allows the breakable portion to be accessed and broken for evacuation while the surrounding zones maintain structural integrity and continue to provide viewing functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The second zone is specifically designed with different material properties to be breakable, while the first and third zones maintain full structural strength. This local quality differentiation enables easy evacuation through the designated zone while preserving overall window strength.
3Reliability
If the window is made fully opaque to ensure safety, then protection is improved, but user comfort is worsened because users cannot see through it
Solution Approach 1:
The window is divided into transparent first and third zones that provide viewing functionality and a breakable second zone that provides safety through controlled breakability. This segmentation allows the window to provide both protection and visibility simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
Different zones have different optical properties: the first and third zones are transparent for viewing while the second zone is designed to break for safety. This local quality approach resolves the contradiction by providing transparency where viewing is needed while maintaining safety through the breakable zone design.
4Device complexity
If the window provides only emergency exit function, then simplicity is improved, but adaptability is worsened because it cannot provide additional user comfort functions
Solution Approach 1:
The window structure simultaneously provides multiple functions: the first and third zones provide viewing functionality, the second zone provides emergency exit functionality, and the overall structure maintains safety. This multi-functionality is achieved within a relatively simple segmented structure.
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
The window provides enhanced user comfort through adjustable brightness and safety by allowing evacuation while maintaining structural integrity during emergencies, combining emergency exit functionality with variable opaqueness for improved passenger experience.
Implementation Method 1
the first zone of the pane includes a film of electro-controlled variable opaqueness, in particular of the suspended particle device (SPD) type, the opaqueness of the first zone of the pane being able to be switched from the opaque state to the transparent state by application of a first electric voltage between two opposite faces of said film
Implementation Method 2
the third zone of the pane comprises a laminated glass formed by at least two superimposed sheets of glass and an intermediate film arranged between two successive superimposed sheets of the laminated glass
Data Source
AI summary
An emergency exit window for a public transport vehicle, comprising a pane, characterized in that the pane comprises at least one first zone with variable opaqueness, at least one second breakable zone, which may be broken in order to allow the passage of people through the window, and at least one third transparent or translucent zone with fixed opaqueness and withstanding breaking of the pane.