Overhead Aircraft Luggage Compartment Pivot Door for Confined Spaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing overhead luggage compartments for aircraft with limited space are either complex, non-intuitive, or require significant space when opened, posing operational challenges and noise issues.
Innovation Solution
A luggage compartment design featuring a door part with a recess at the upper corner region, allowing the door to pivot into the storage space when opened, reducing protrusion and noise, and utilizing a simple pivoting mechanism with a spring and damper for intuitive operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the door part is pivoted into the interior of the storage space when opened, then the protrusion into the aisle area is reduced, but the door part requires a recess at the upper corner region which complicates the door structure
Solution Approach 1:
The door part is segmented by introducing a recess at the upper corner region, dividing the door into functional zones: the main body that pivots into the storage space and the recessed corner that accommodates the pivoting mechanism. This segmentation allows the door to achieve compact retraction while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The pivoting mechanism is nested within the recess at the upper corner region of the door part. This nesting approach allows the pivoting components to be housed within the door structure itself, minimizing external protrusion while enabling the door to pivot into the storage space when opened.
2Volume of moving object
If a complex pivoting mechanism with coupling gear is used to pivot the flap into the interior, then the door can be retracted, but the mechanism becomes vulnerable and space-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The complex coupling gear mechanism is extracted and replaced with a simpler pivoting mechanism housed within the recess. This extraction eliminates the vulnerable coupling gear while maintaining the retraction capability, resulting in a more reliable and space-efficient design.
Solution Approach 2:
The design favors a simpler, more robust pivoting mechanism over a complex, vulnerable coupling gear system. The simpler mechanism, while potentially having shorter service life, provides better reliability and easier maintenance, aligning with the principle of using simpler components when complexity introduces vulnerability.
3Volume of moving object
If split flaps are used to reduce protrusion, then the aisle area occupation is reduced, but the operation becomes non-intuitive and the structure becomes stiff
Solution Approach 1:
The single door part with recess serves multiple functions: it maintains a flush appearance when closed, pivots smoothly into the storage space when opened, and provides an intuitive operating interface. This universal design eliminates the need for complex split flap mechanisms while achieving the same space-saving goal with improved operability.
4Volume of moving object
If the door part protrudes less when opened, then space in the aisle area is saved, but noise from outside the aircraft increases
Solution Approach 1:
The recess is strategically positioned at the upper corner region of the door part, creating local structural variations that serve dual purposes: enabling compact pivoting to reduce aisle occupation and providing acoustic sealing to minimize noise transmission from the aisle into the storage space.
Data Source
AI summary
A luggage compartment for an aircraft, comprising: a luggage compartment housing enclosing a storage space for a piece of hand luggage, a door part, a pivoting device, by means of which the door part can be pivoted between a closed position closing a loading opening of the luggage compartment housing and an open position releasing the loading opening of the luggage compartment housing, wherein the door part comprises a recess at an upper corner region, so that an adjoining section of the door part at the side of the recess is guided into the interior of the storage space during transfer from the closed position to the open position.