Patent Application
20090206201
The present invention relates to crew rest compartments on freighter airplanes, and more particularly to crew rest compartments with added accommodations and increased space in the crew rest area.
Other than military airplanes, the principal types of airplanes sold and in use today are either passenger airplanes or freighter airplanes. Also, some airplanes have the ability to be converted back and forth from passenger-type airplanes to freighter airplanes as desired. For this reason, the components of much of the interior architecture and structures of many airplanes are modular or removable. Of course, some airplanes are made strictly for the transportation of freight or cargo, or for passengers. An airplane that has had extensive use as a freighter or cargo airplane is the Boeing 747.
With freighter airplanes, the portions of the airplane and the space allowed for the pilots and the crew is limited. A crew rest compartment is typically positioned aft of the cockpit and can include a number of seats, as well as bunks or beds where the pilots and crew can rest during long overseas flights. Typically, a large area aft of the crew rest compartment is left unoccupied in the event that the cargo or other freight shifts forward during a minor crash, such as can occur during taxi, takeoff and landing. Typically, a cargo net is positioned immediately forward of the freight or cargo and the net will typically expand into the unoccupied area in the event of such crash. It is important in freighter airplanes to provide as much cargo space as possible for revenue purposes, while at the same time maximizing comfort and rest accommodations.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved crew rest area for freighter airplanes. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a crew rest area with increased comfort and additional sleeping accommodations without losing any of the conventional seating capacity. It is a still further object of the present invention to use the empty volume behind the crew rest compartment and forward of the cargo net to provide additional crew rest area.
In accordance with the present invention, one or more “crushable” or “collapsible” structures are provided immediately behind the existing crew rest compartment and forward of the cargo net to provide additional crew rest area, particularly bed or bunk capacity. These areas, commonly called “stay-out areas”, cannot be occupied during taxi, takeoff and landing.
At least one additional room or structure is provided in the stay-out area which has panels or walls which are easily moveable or displaceable upon application of a force, such as by a load of cargo being pushed against it. Preferably, one or two crew bunks are maintained in this additional room or structure. There are a number of ways in which the walls or panels of the additional structure can be allowed to be displaced upon application of a force against them. The walls or panels can be positioned in such a manner that they slide over one another creating a smaller volume, the walls can be hinged or made in an accordion-type manner to allow collapsibility, or the panels can be telescopic relative to one another. It is also possible that the walls or panels can be made of a material that is easily destructible or broken apart by application of a large force, such as shift in a load of cargo against it.
A typical crew rest compartment for a conventional freighter airplane is shown in
The cargo net area 22 is typically positioned in the zone 20 and is connected firmly around its perimeter to the structure of the airplane. The cargo net prevents the cargo or freight from sliding forward and impacting on the crew rest compartment in the event of a crash of the airplane during one of these conditions, namely taxi, takeoff, or landing. For this reason, the stay out zone 20 encompasses an additional area 24 which is provided to allow the cargo net 22 to expand and stretch in the event of a crash condition.
The cargo or freight is typically positioned in modular containers or on pallets, such as those shown in
The partition 25 at the aft end of the seating area in the crew rest area 16 is a solid wall or panel. The crew and any passengers are positioned in front of partition 25 during taxi, takeoff, and landing.
As indicated, the present invention can be utilized in any type of airplane, whether it is being used in a cargo or freighter airplane condition Although the present invention has particular applicability for the upper deck of Boeing 747 Freighters or on the main deck for Boeing 777 Freighter airplanes, it is to be understood that the present invention can be used in any airplane.
In conventional freighter airplanes, the crew rest area can consist of a number of different areas. For example, the crew rest area can have a number of passenger seats 40 which are either used by the crew itself or any supernumeraries, who may be traveling along with the cargo. Typically, it is the pilots, copilots and navigators who use the crew rest compartment.
The crew rest area can have a shower 42, one or more bathrooms 44, one or more galleys 46, 48, and a number of sleeping areas such as 50 and 52. The sleeping areas typically have one or more beds, or bunk beds positioned one above the other.
An embodiment in accordance with the present invention is illustrated schematically in
It is also possible in accordance with the present invention to simply provide the same crew rest area as 16 as in
In
Finally, in
As shown in
As indicated, there are various ways in which the panels or wall members of the crew rest structures can be made in a manner which allows them to be collapsed or be crushed in the event of an accident or crash and movement of the cargo and cargo net toward the front of the airplane. Other systems include the use of accordion-type wall members which allow at least the sidewall and central wall members of the crew bunk areas to easily collapse in a longitudinal manner along the length of the airplane. The wall members can also be made of a non-structural material which allows them to be easily broken apart in the event of being subjected to a considerable force.
When passengers or crew are positioned immediately forward of cargo, the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) currently requires that the seated occupants are protected from the cargo during a minor crash. The effect is that cargo barriers, such as cargo nets, be designed to withstand the total weight of the aircraft's cargo multiplied by nine times the force of gravity (9 g's). Thus, the attachments between the net and the aircraft floor and fuselage must be capable of distributing that large load area into the aircraft's basic structure without impinging upon the crew rest areas forward of the partition 25.
While particular embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, numerous variations and alternative embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended that the invention be limited only in terms of the appended claims.
