FR2980924A1 - Electrical rack for mounting electronic components onboard civil aircraft, has functional case closed by sidewalls, where one of sidewalls is movably mounted to allow access to interior of case when case occupies intermediate position - Google Patents

Abstract

The rack (1) has a functional case closed by sidewalls (9, 10A, 10B) and received in a housing (4). Telescopic rails (17A, 17B) guide the case in translation so that the case occupies a retracted position in which the case is housed inside the housing such that electrical connectors (6) of the rack cooperate with complementary electrical connectors (7) of the case, and an intermediate position in which the case is maintained partially outside the housing. One of the sidewalls is movably mounted to allow access to the interior of the case when the case occupies the intermediate position.

Description

The present invention relates to an electric furniture, in particular mounted on board an aircraft, comprising one or more functional housings, as well as such a functional housing.

Although the present invention is particularly suitable for aircraft electrical appliances, it is not limited to this application. Electrical furniture is usually located in the forward tip of aircraft, including civil aircraft. They comprise, in known manner, a frame formed of vertical uprights connected to each other by horizontal transverse shelves, so as to form a plurality of housings. In these housings can be introduced, removably, functional boxes associated, for example, with a particular function of a system on board the aircraft. Moving means in translation - for example simply formed by a portion of a transverse shelf - allow the introduction of said housings in the corresponding housing, so that they reach an extreme retracted position. In known manner, these functional housings - closed laterally by two parallel transverse side walls connected to two orthogonal lower and upper side walls - comprise an internal connection support on which electronic components are assembled on either side thereof. They further comprise, on their rear face, electrical connectors to which the internal support is connected and which are intended to cooperate, in the retracted extreme position, with additional electrical connectors mounted on the electric cabinet, once the housings introduced into the corresponding accommodations. In this way, it ensures a connection of said boxes with each other and / or complementary embedded systems.

However, it happens that such a functional box fails, which requires repair or replacement of it.

Currently, to perform such a repair, an operator completely removes the housing housing in which it is inserted, and then laying flat on a bench or on the floor. It then dismounts the upper side wall attached to the other transverse side walls by screws disposed in the corners of the housing, so as to access the components mounted on the internal connection support and allow the replacement of the one or those that are defective. However, the high weight of the functional boxes (which can sometimes reach 30kg) makes handling difficult, especially in the case of a small front tip where space is limited. The present invention aims to overcome this disadvantage and, in particular, to allow access to at least some of the components of a functional housing, effortlessly and without transporting said housing. To this end, according to the invention, an electrical cabinet comprising: at least one functional housing closed by side walls; at least one housing in which said functional housing can be introduced; and electrical connectors adapted to cooperate with complementary electrical connectors mounted on said functional housing, which is remarkable: in that it comprises means for guiding said housing in translation, so that the latter can occupy at least one of the two positions; following: an extreme retracted position in which said housing is housed inside the receiving housing, so that the electrical connectors of said cabinet cooperate with the complementary electrical connectors of said housing; and an intermediate position in which said housing is partially maintained outside said housing, and in that at least one of said sidewalls is at least partially movably mounted to allow access to said interior; housing, especially when the latter occupies said intermediate position. Thus, thanks to the invention, when one or more side walls of the functional housing comprise a movable part, the latter can be disengaged and accessible from the outside of the cabinet (for example in an intermediate position), so that an operator can very easily remove or move it, to access the inside of the housing and in particular the electronic components facing said moving part. Such an intervention does not require long and tedious manipulations, which reduces the time required for repair. It should be noted that, in the case where only part of a lateral wall of the housing is movable, the electronic components that can be replaced or repaired are advantageously arranged under the said moving part in the vicinity of the front face of the housing, while the non-replaceable electronic components are kept hidden by the fixed part of the side wall considered. In addition, said guide means may be arranged to allow the housing to occupy an extended deployed position, wherein said housing is integrally held suspended outside said housing parallel to the ground on which said furniture. Thus, in the deployed extreme position, the side walls of the functional housing are fully open and accessible from the outside, so that an operator can easily remove or move them when mounted mobile (in part or in whole), to have access to all electronic components of said housing (even the farthest from the front of it), and without recourse to long and tedious manipulations. The displacement of the housing from one extreme position to the other is facilitated for the operator by the guide means. In addition, the maintenance of the box parallel to the ground on which the electric furniture rests facilitates the repair work of the operator (in particular the correct positioning of the replacement components), in comparison with the case where the extracted case has a more inclined or less important. Preferably, said guide means are mounted (for example removably) on said housing and on at least one of the side walls of said housing. In addition, according to one embodiment of the invention: said guide means comprise at least two sets of rails; and each set of rails comprises at least two rails sliding one inside the other, one of said rails being integral with said housing and the other rail being connected, fixedly or movably, to one of the side walls of said housing. Furthermore, said casing, of parallelepipedal shape, is advantageously closed laterally by: two transversely parallel lateral walls; and two upper and lower side walls adjoining the two transverse lateral walls, among which at least one lateral wall (transverse, upper and / or lower) of said casing is mounted partially or entirely mobile on the latter, by a hinge-type joint, so as to form a lid adapted to occupy a closed position and an open position. Advantageously: each of the upper and lower side walls is mounted movably on said housing, by a hinge type hinge, so as to form a lid; and said guide means are attached, at least in part, to the transverse lateral walls. Thus, one has access to the heart of the housing from above or from below, facilitating the replacement of certain components.

Of course, alternatively, the transverse side walls could be movable and the guide means could be attached to the upper and lower side walls. In another embodiment according to the invention: said housing comprises an internal connection support on which electronic components are assembled; and said movable sidewall has means for blocking said components, when in a closed position, and preventing their movement.

Advantageously: said locking means comprise a plurality of hollow parts in the form of a socket; and each hollow piece is adapted, when said movable side wall is in the closed position, to receive the top of complementary shape of one of said electronic components. Thus, the movable side wall can exert a mechanical holding of the electronic components that it covers, through the hollow parts, when it occupies the closed position. This can, for example, facilitate the mounting (respectively disassembling) of the components by applying (respectively loosening) this mechanical support, once the side wall in the closed position (respectively in the open position), by simplifying the method of attachment. components, the latter now being less stressed once held by the movable side wall. In addition, said hollow parts may advantageously be mounted in reinforcing rails of the movable side wall to stiffen it. The present invention further relates to a functional box of parallelepipedal shape for mounting in an electrical cabinet of the type described above. According to the invention, the housing is closed laterally by: two transversely parallel lateral walls; and two upper and lower side walls adjoining the two transverse lateral walls, among which at least one lateral wall (transverse, upper and / or lower) is mounted partially or entirely movably on the housing, by a hinge-type hinge, so as to forming a lid adapted to occupy a closed position and an open position. Of course, alternatively, the hinge-type joint could be replaced by any other suitable means to make partially or completely removable said side wall.

Preferably, each of the upper and lower side walls is movably mounted on said housing, by a hinge type hinge, so as to form a lid. In addition, in an embodiment according to the present invention: said housing comprises an internal connection support on which electronic components are assembled; and said hinged side wall comprises means for blocking said components, when in the closed position, and preventing their movement. Advantageously: said locking means comprise a plurality of hollow parts in the form of a socket; and each hollow part is adapted, when said hinged side wall is in the closed position, to receive the complementary shaped upper part of one of said electronic components.

Preferably, said hollow pieces are mounted in reinforcement rails of the articulated lateral wall. Furthermore, the present invention also relates to an aircraft which comprises an electric furniture of the type of that described above.

The figures of the appended drawing will make it clear how the invention can be realized. In these figures, identical references designate similar elements. Figure 1 is a schematic front view of an example of an electric cabinet according to the present invention. Figure 2 is a schematic cross section of the electric cabinet of Figure 1, along the section line II-II. FIG. 3 shows, in a partial perspective view, an example of a functional box according to the invention, mounted on the electric cabinet of FIG. 1, when it occupies an extreme retracted position. Figures 4 and 5 are similar to Figure 3, the functional housing occupying an extended position in which the upper and lower side walls of the housing are respectively closed (Figure 4) and open (Figure 5).

FIG. 6 is a cross-section of the functional box of FIG. 5 along the section plane P. In FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown an example of an electric cabinet 1 according to the invention which is intended to to be mounted on board an aircraft and, more specifically, in its front tip (not shown in the figures).

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the electric furniture 1, which rests on the ground 2 of the front nose, comprises a frame 3 formed of vertical uprights 3A connected to each other by transverse horizontal shelves 3B, so to form a plurality of housings 4. According to the invention, the electric furniture 1 also comprises: functional boxes 5 of parallelepiped shape, which are associated, individually or collectively, with a particular function of a system on board the aircraft plane. The housings 5 are intended to be introduced into corresponding housings 4 of the furniture 1; electrical connectors 6 adapted to cooperate with complementary electrical connectors 7 mounted on the functional housings 5 (see Figure 2); and means 8 for guiding the housings 5 in translation so that they can occupy at least one of the following positions: an extreme retracted position (FIG. 3) in which the housings 5 are housed inside the associated housings 4, such that the electrical connectors 6 of the cabinet 1 cooperate with the complementary electrical connectors 7 of the housings 5; - An intermediate position (not shown in the figures) in which the housings 5 are partially held outside the corresponding housing 4; and an extreme deployed position (FIGS. 4 and 5), in which the boxes 5 are integrally held suspended outside the corresponding housings 4 parallel to the floor 2 on which the furniture 1 rests. Furthermore, according to the invention each functional housing 5 comprises: two transverse lateral walls 9 substantially parallel to which are fixed, for example removably, the guide means 8 in translation; two upper and lower side walls 10A adjoining the two transverse lateral walls 9, which are each mounted integrally movable, by a hinge-type hinge 11, to one of the transverse side walls 9. In this way, the side walls 10A and 10B form lids that can occupy a closed position (Figure 4) or an open position (Figure 5). Note that each wall 10A and 10B could be formed of at least two portions movable relative to each other, as well as relative to the rest of the housing 5. In addition, it goes without saying that the upper side walls 10A and lower 10B can be opened independently of one another. In the closed position (FIG. 4), the side walls 10A and 10B define, with the transverse lateral walls 9, a peripheral lateral envelope of the casing 5; - A front face 12 on which is mounted a handle 13 allowing an operator to move the housing 5 and, optionally, to transport it; an internal connection support 14 on which electronic components 15 of elongate shape are assembled (for example using screws 16) along parallel lines. The components 15 extend in an orthogonal direction to the substantially plane support 14; and the electrical connectors 7 adapted to cooperate with corresponding electrical connectors 6 of the electrical cabinet 1, so as to provide a connection of the housing 5 with other functional boxes 5 and / or auxiliary embedded systems (not shown). In the example of Figures 1 to 6, the guide means 8 of a functional housing 5 are mounted both on it and on horizontal transverse shelves 3B, some portions of which form the upper side walls 4A and 4B lower. corresponding housing 4.

In particular, in this example, as shown in Figures 1 to 3, the guide means 8 associated with the housing 5 comprise four sets of rails 17. Each set of rails 17 comprises two telescopic rails 17A and 17B which slide one in the other. One of these two rails 17A is integral with a transverse side wall 9 of the housing 5, while the other associated rail 17B is fixedly mounted on one of the upper side walls 4A or lower 4B of the corresponding housing 4, the rail 17A of the housing 5 sliding in the corresponding rail 17B integral furniture 1. Alternatively, the rail 17B could be movable and connected to the upper side wall 4A or lower 4B of the housing 4 by wheels or ball bearings. Thus, on the same transverse side wall 9 of a housing 5 are mounted two rails 17A, respectively in the vicinity of the upper and lower edges of said transverse side wall 9 considered. In the example, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, the rails 17A of the housing 5 extend beyond the rear face 18 thereof (while remaining inside the furniture in the retracted position). ), to enable it to reach the extreme deployed position (FIGS. 4 and 5), in which it is integrally extracted from the associated housing 4. They are further equipped with wheels 19 to facilitate the translational movement of the housing 5 within the housing 4.

The deployed position can be defined by means of blocking means - for example in the form of one or more stoppers of the wheels 19 arranged on the rails 17A and / or 17B. Of course, the guide means 17 are in no way limited to the aforementioned example, but could, for example, be in the form of sets with three telescopic rails, equipped or not with wheels or ball bearings . Thus, thanks to the invention, in the deployed extreme position (FIGS. 4 and 5), the upper and lower side walls 10A and 10B of the functional housing 5 completely withdrawn from its housing - are accessible, so that an operator can very easily easily tilt to discover the inside of the housing 5 and thus have access to all electronic components 15. The movement of the housing from one extreme position to another is effortless for the operator using of the handle 13 and the wheels 19 of the guide means 8.

Note that the various functional housings 5 are of course movable independently of each other. In addition, quick fastening means may be provided on the rails 17A, so as to allow the complete replacement of the functional housing 5 to which they are attached.

Furthermore, according to the invention, as shown in Figures 2, 5 and 6, the upper side walls 10A and lower articulated 10B - substantially parallel to the support 14 in the closed position - further comprise hollow parts 20 in the form of a socket for block the electronic components, when they each occupy the closed position, and to prevent their movement.

The hollow parts 20 are distributed along parallel lines corresponding to the arrangement lines of the components 15. Each hollow part 20 is adapted, when the articulated side wall 10A or 10B on which it is mounted occupies the closed position, to receive a pin 21 of complementary shape arranged on the upper part of the electronic component 15 to be blocked. Thus, the articulated side walls 10A and 10B can exert a mechanical holding of the electronic components 15, through the hollow parts 20, when they are held in the closed position. This can facilitate the assembly (respectively disassembly) of the components by application (resp. Release) of this mechanical support, once the articulated lateral walls 10A and 10B in the closed position (respectively in the open position), simplifying the method of attachment. said components 15 since they are less stressed once held by the walls 10A and 10B.

In addition, in order to reinforce their structure, the upper and lower side walls 10A advantageously comprise U-shaped cross-section reinforcing rails 22, arranged parallel to each other and in which the hollow parts 20 are mounted. Of course alternatively, it will be appreciated that: the upper and lower side walls of the housing could be fixed and the transverse side walls thereof could be movable; that only the front part of the side walls of the housing, devoid of guiding means, could be movable.

Claims (14)

REVENDICATIONS1. Electrical cabinet comprising: - at least one functional housing (5) closed by side walls (9, 10A, 10B); at least one housing (4) in which said functional housing (5) can be introduced; and electrical connectors (6) adapted to cooperate with complementary electrical connectors (7) mounted on said functional housing (5), characterized in that it comprises means (8, 17, 17A, 17B) for guiding translating said housing (5), so that the latter can occupy at least one of the following two positions: an extreme retracted position in which said housing (5) is housed inside the receiving housing (4), such way that the electrical connectors (6) of said furniture (1) cooperate with the complementary electrical connectors (7) of said housing (5); and an intermediate position in which said housing (5) is partially maintained outside said housing (4), and in that at least one of said sidewalls (10A, 10B) is at least partially movably mounted, in order to allow access to the interior of said housing, in particular when the latter occupies said intermediate position. 2. Electrical cabinet according to claim 1, characterized in that said guiding means (8, 17, 17A, 17B) are arranged to allow the housing (5) to occupy an extended extended position, in which said housing ( 5) is integrally held suspended outside said housing (4) parallel to the ground (2) on which said furniture (1). 3. Electrical cabinet according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said guide means (8, 17, 17A, 17B) are mounted on said housing (5) and on at least one of the side walls (4A, 4B) of said housing (4). 4. Electrical cabinet according to claim 3, characterized in that: said guide means comprise at least two sets of rails (17); and each set of rails (17) has at least two rails (17A, 17B) sliding one inside the other, one of said rails (17A) being integral with said housing (5) and the other rail (17B). being connected to one of the side walls (4A, 4B) of said housing (4). 5. Electric furniture according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said housing (5) of parallelepiped shape, is closed laterally by: - two transverse side walls (9) substantially parallel; and - two upper (10A) and lower (10B) side walls adjoining the two transverse lateral walls (9), among which at least one side wall (10A, 10B) is mounted partially or completely mobile on said housing by a hinge (11); ) of hinge type, so as to form a lid adapted to occupy a closed position and an open position. 6. Electrical cabinet according to claim 5, characterized in that: each of the upper (10A) and lower (10B) side walls of said casing (5) is mounted movably on the latter, by a hinge-type hinge (11). , so as to form a lid; and said guide means (17A) are attached, at least in part, to the transverse side walls (9). 7. Electrical cabinet according to one of claims 1 or 6, characterized in that: said housing (5) comprises an internal connection support (14) on which electronic components (15) are assembled; and said movable side wall (10A, 10B) has means (20) for locking said components (15), when in a closed position, and preventing their movement. Electrical cabinet according to claim 7, characterized in that: said locking means comprise a plurality of socket-shaped hollow parts (20); and each hollow piece (20) is adapted, when said movable side wall (10A, 10B) occupies the closed position, to receive the upper portion (21) of complementary shape of one of said electronic components (15). 9. Electrical cabinet according to claim 8, characterized in that said hollow parts (20) are mounted in rails (22) for reinforcing the movable side wall (10A, 10B). 10. Functional box of parallelepipedal shape intended to be mounted in an electric cabinet (1) of the type specified in one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that it is closed laterally by: - two transverse lateral walls ( 9) substantially parallel; and - two upper (10A) and lower (10B) side walls adjoining the two transverse lateral walls (9), among which at least one side wall (10A, 10B) is mounted partially or completely movably on said housing, by a hinge ( 11) of the hinge type, so as to form a lid adapted to occupy a closed position and an open position. Functional housing according to claim 10, characterized in that: said housing (5) comprises an internal connection support (14) on which electronic components (15) are assembled; and said articulated side wall (10A, 10B) has means (20) for locking said components (15), when in the closed position, and preventing their movement. 12. The functional housing according to claim 11, characterized in that: said locking means comprise a plurality of hollow parts (20) in the form of a socket; and each hollow piece (20) is adapted, when said hinged side wall (10A, 10B) occupies the closed position, to receive the upper portion (21) of complementary shape of one of said electronic components (15). 13. A functional housing according to claim 12, characterized in that said hollow parts (20) are mounted in rails (22) for reinforcing the articulated side wall (10A, 10B). 14. Aircraft, characterized in that it comprises an electric furniture of the type specified in one of claims 1 to 9.