Aircraft Cabin Oxygen Mask Rail Layout for Seat Reconfiguration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Emergency oxygen assemblies in aircraft cabins occupy space within passenger service units (PSUs), precluding other components and require adjustment when seats are reconfigured, leading to inefficiencies and increased labor.
Innovation Solution
An emergency oxygen system is implemented separately from PSUs, with oxygen assemblies arranged along a rail or array of rails within the cabin, allowing for flexible seat configurations and easy access to masks regardless of seat pitch, using coiled tubing and alert devices for oxygen flow indication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If emergency oxygen assemblies are housed within PSUs, then oxygen masks are readily accessible during emergencies, but space within PSUs is occupied precluding other components
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates the emergency oxygen assembly from the PSU by introducing an intermediate door structure. The door acts as an independent segment that houses the oxygen mask and conduit, allowing the PSU to remain free of oxygen equipment while ensuring rapid access during emergencies through the door-mounted assembly.
2Manufacturing precision
If emergency oxygen assemblies are integrated into PSUs above seats, then oxygen delivery is optimized for seat positions, but additional time and labor are required to adjust assemblies when seats are reconfigured
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs a flexible conduit that can dynamically adapt to different seat configurations. The conduit's flexibility allows it to reach various seat positions without requiring rigid repositioning of the entire oxygen assembly, enabling the system to maintain alignment precision while accommodating seat reconfiguration with minimal adjustment.
Solution Approach 2:
The door-mounted oxygen assembly serves multiple seat rows simultaneously through the use of a flexible conduit that can extend to different positions. This universal design allows a single oxygen assembly location to serve multiple seating arrangements, eliminating the need for precise one-to-one alignment with each seat while maintaining ease of access.
3Reliability
If oxygen conduits are routed through PSUs, then oxygen supply is directly connected to seat locations, but PSUs become more complex and space-constrained
Solution Approach 1:
The oxygen conduit routing is extracted from the PSU and relocated to the door structure. This separation removes the conduit routing complexity from the PSU, allowing the PSU to maintain its original simple structure while the door-mounted assembly handles the oxygen supply connection to seat locations through flexible conduit routing.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
An emergency oxygen system for an internal cabin of a vehicle includes a housing including one or more compartments. One or more oxygen assemblies include a mask and a fluid conduit. The mask is configured to be stowed within and deployed from the one or more compartments. A door is moveably secured to the housing. The door is configured to pivot in an outboard direction from a closed position to an open position during a deployment event. One or more pouches can be secured to an interior surface of the door. Coiled tubing of the fluid conduit is retained by the one or more pouches when the mask is stowed within the one or more compartments. An alert device can be operatively coupled to the one or more oxygen assemblies. The alert device is configured to emit a response indicating that oxygen is flowing to the mask.