Modular Aircraft Seating With Displaceable Partition
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for converting aircraft seating configurations from business class to first class or vice versa are time-consuming, requiring extensive ground time of around five days due to the need to remove and reinstall seats and accessories.
Innovation Solution
A modular seating system with two convertible seats that can be arranged to accommodate either two business-class passengers or one first-class passenger, featuring a movable partition and adjustable foamed plastic elements to create various configurations, allowing for quick transformation between seating types without displacing structural elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If seats and accessory units are removed and reinstalled to convert between business class and first class, then the seating configuration can be changed, but the ground time increases to five days
Solution Approach 1:
The aircraft cabin is divided into modular sections with standardized side walls and seat units that can be independently reconfigured. The side wall includes standardized openings and mounting structures that allow quick attachment and detachment of seat modules, enabling rapid conversion between business class and first class configurations without affecting the entire cabin structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The partition between seats is designed to be displaceable, transitioning from a first position where it achieves separation between seats to a second stored position where it does not form a barrier. This dynamic element allows the same physical space to serve different functional purposes, enabling quick reconfiguration of seating arrangements without permanent structural modifications.
2Ease of operation
If the partition is positioned to separate the two seats, then privacy is provided for each passenger, but the module cannot accommodate passengers who wish to be together
Solution Approach 1:
The partition is designed as a displaceable element that can move between a first position providing separation for privacy and a second stored position allowing open access. This dynamic mechanism enables the same module to adapt to different passenger preferences and flight types, providing both private and social configurations without requiring separate physical spaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The module is designed to serve multiple functions: it can accommodate two business-class passengers who may want privacy, or one first-class passenger who may want open space, or configurations with berths and banquettes. The displaceable partition and reconfigurable interior elements allow a single module design to fulfill diverse operational requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
A module for aircraft passenger(s) is provided with two seats disposed beside one another and oriented in the same direction, each of these seats being a seat that can be converted to a berth. The module also includes a side wall surrounding the two seats, at least partly, an opening provided in the side wall to permit access to the module, and a partition intended to achieve separation between the two seats. The partition is displaceable from a first position, in which it achieves separation of the two seats, to a second stored position, in which it does not form a barrier between the two seats.