Passenger Seat Leg Crushable Insert for Crash Energy Absorption
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing passenger seat designs fail to effectively absorb and manage large energy transfers during dynamic events, leading to potential detachment from the floor and subsequent damage or injury.
Innovation Solution
A passenger seat assembly with a leg incorporating a crushable insert and connector assembly that allows the leg to deform, absorbing energy through the deformation of a crushable insert, thereby maintaining attachment to the floor during dynamic events.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the passenger seat uses a rigid mounting to the cabin floor, then the seat maintains stable attachment during normal usage, but the seat cannot absorb energy during dynamic events and may detach causing damage or injury
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates energy-absorbing elements (such as crushable inserts or deformable components) within the leg assembly that are pre-configured to deform and absorb energy during dynamic events. These elements remain inactive during normal usage, maintaining rigid attachment stability, but activate when excessive forces are applied, cushioning the impact before it can cause detachment or damage.
2Strength
If the passenger seat leg is designed to be rigid and strong, then the seat can support passenger weight and secure luggage, but the leg cannot deform to absorb energy during crashes or sudden deceleration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs the leg assembly with components that exhibit different mechanical properties under different load conditions. The leg structure includes elements that maintain high strength and rigidity under normal operational loads (supporting passengers and luggage), but are configured to undergo controlled deformation when subjected to excessive forces during dynamic events, thereby absorbing energy through the deformation process.
Solution Approach 2:
The leg assembly incorporates composite structures combining materials with different properties - such as rigid outer shells for strength and deformable inner cores or crushable inserts for energy absorption. This composite approach allows the leg to simultaneously achieve the strength needed for normal support and the deformability required for energy absorption during crashes.
3Loss of energy
If the passenger seat uses a deformable leg structure to absorb energy, then the seat can manage energy during dynamic events, but the leg may become too weak to support normal passenger weight and secure luggage
Solution Approach 1:
The leg assembly is divided into distinct functional segments: rigid support sections that handle normal operational loads (passenger weight and luggage securing) and separate deformable energy-absorbing sections that activate only during dynamic events. This segmentation allows each portion to be optimized for its specific function without compromising the other - the rigid portions maintain strength while the deformable portions provide energy absorption capability.
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 solution effectively absorbs energy, preventing the seat from detaching and minimizing damage by deforming the crushable insert, ensuring the seat remains attached to the floor and reducing potential harm.
Implementation Method 1
the first connector is configured to deform the crushable insert during a dynamic event
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A
AI summary
A passenger seat assembly includes a leg, a crushable insert, and a connector assembly. The leg includes an end and a slot extending through the leg proximate to the end, and the slot has a first slot end a second slot end. The crushable insert is retained within the slot, and the connector assembly may connect the leg with a track fitting assembly. The connector assembly includes at least one connector that is at least partially positioned within the slot between the second slot end and the crushable insert such that the connector deforms the crushable insert during a dynamic event.