Vehicle Seat Backrest Weakened Linear Zone Impact Absorption
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vehicle seat designs, particularly in aircraft, face challenges in reducing weight and volume while maintaining passenger safety during frontal impacts, as existing energy absorption methods can lead to material rupture and compromised comfort due to the use of deformable fabrics.
Innovation Solution
Aircraft seat backrest design featuring a textile assembly with strategically placed weakened linear zones that tear under high impact forces, redirecting energy away from the seat structure, thereby absorbing impact without compromising the seat's integrity or passenger comfort.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If deformable fabrics are used for energy absorption in the backrest, then impact energy is absorbed by fabric deformation, but the seat structure may rupture and passenger comfort is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The backrest is divided into a rigid outer frame and a removable central insert made of deformable fabric. This segmentation allows the fabric to absorb impact energy through controlled deformation while the rigid frame maintains overall structural integrity and prevents catastrophic failure
Solution Approach 2:
The deformable fabric insert is strategically placed only in the central region of the backrest where impact forces are most concentrated. This localized application of deformability allows energy absorption where needed while maintaining structural strength in the surrounding areas
2Strength
If the backrest structure is made rigid to maintain structural integrity, then material rupture is prevented, but impact energy is not effectively absorbed and passenger safety is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The backrest is segmented into a rigid frame structure and a separate removable fabric insert. The rigid frame provides structural integrity and prevents material rupture, while the fabric insert provides controlled energy absorption through deformation
Solution Approach 2:
The removable fabric insert acts as an intermediary element between the rigid frame and the passenger. It mediates the impact forces by deforming in a controlled manner, absorbing energy that would otherwise be transmitted directly to the rigid frame and passenger
3Weight of moving object
If lightweight materials are used to reduce seat weight, then energy consumption is reduced, but impact resistance may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The backrest uses a hybrid construction with lightweight rigid frame materials (such as aluminum or composite) combined with a fabric insert. This allows the use of lightweight materials while maintaining impact resistance through the controlled deformation of the fabric component
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 design effectively absorbs impact forces, preventing material rupture and ensuring passenger safety by distributing forces differently, allowing the seat to maintain structural integrity and comfort during normal use and crash conditions.
Implementation Method 1
the said at least one weakened linear zone tears, during an impact on the textile assembly in accident conditions, caused by the head of a passenger placed behind the back of the seat, to absorb at least in part the energy of shock impact
Implementation Method 2
the textile constituting the central part of the backrest 3 deforms elastically and transmits forces at the level of the structure 1 of the seat
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3A~3B
Figure 4~5B
AI summary
The vehicle seat backrest according to the invention comprises a textile assembly (30) having at least one weakened linear area (32, 32A) that is able to be torn during the impact of the head of a passenger located on the seat behind the backrest in question, so as to allow the rocking of the head of this passenger to continue and, at the same time, to slow it. Said at least one weakened linear area (32) is formed by at least two weakened linear areas (32) that intersect at a crossing point (34) in the central part of the textile assembly (30).