GB2203712A

GB2203712A - Combined fire-emergency escape and closure means for aircraft and method of preserving or prolonging survivability in an aircraft interior in a fire emergency

Info

Publication number: GB2203712A
Application number: GB08709511A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Neville Hamilton Birch
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1987-04-22
Filing date: 1987-04-22
Publication date: 1988-10-26
Anticipated expiration: 2007-04-22
Also published as: GB2203712B; GB8709511D0

Abstract

To prolong the air supply in the interior of an aircraft in a fire emergency in which a door or hatch of the aircraft has been opened to enable people to escape a flexible tubular passageway is fastened at one of its ends around the periphery of the doorway or hatchway, which passageway is deployed when the door or hatch is opened in a fire emergency so that the passageway normally lies flattened at its other end 4 so as substantially to prevent or reduce ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes into the aircraft interior, but which is temporarily opened by passage therethrough of people escaping from the aircraft. The passageway may have transparent panels 5 and may surround or be integral with an inflated escape chute 2. <IMAGE>

Description

COMBINED FIRE-EMERGENCY ESCAPE AND CLOSURE MEANS FOR AIRCRAFT AND METHOD OF PRESERVING OR PROLONGING SURVIVABILITY IN AN AIRCRAFT INTERIOR IN A FIRE EMERGENCY This invention relates to a combined fire-emergency escape and closure means for aircraft, and also a method of preserving or prolonging the survivability of an atmosphere in the interior of an aircraft in a fire emergency.

Considerable attention and public concern has been directed recently to the problem of rendering aircraft accidents more survivable, particularly those accidents which involve fire on the ground following an accident in which most, if not all, of the passengers and crew are uninjured as a result of the accident itself. In such emergencies the amount of time which'can be provided in which the passengers and crew can escape from within the aircraft is critical. Much work has been carried out in making interior furnishings of aircraft more fire-resistant in order to increase the amount of time available before a cabin or cockpit atmosphere becomes unsurvivable due to fire, smoke or noxious fumes and gases.

A more radical approach, but one which potentially can very much increase the escape time available, is described and claimed in my co-pending Patent Application No. 8526240 which provides a method of preventing or reducing injury to, and loss of life of passengers and crew in an aircraft and plevenl!!gy reducing or delaying damage to the aircraft, in an emergency in which there is a risk of damage, injury and death resulting from a fuel fire, which method comprises operably connecting to the aircraft a means of supplying air under pressure to the aircraft, which aircraft is adapted to receive air supply from said supply means and to conduct said air to the interior of the aircraft's cabin so as to improve the ventilation of the cabin, and supplying air under pressure to the interior of the aircraft's cabin from said supply means to ventilate said cabin. The method described is particularly effective when the air supply to the interior of the aircraft is in the form of a mixture with water as fine droplets.

However, all of such measures can easily be jeopardized due to the circumstances of such fire emergencies. It is natural for all doors and hatches of the stricken aircraft to be opened and for all escape chutes to be deployed as soon as possible, since conventional wisdom teaches that the prime consideration is that all occupants of the aircraft should leave the aircraft in the shortest possible time. However, it is not always possible for those inside the aircraft to see where the source of the fire is located or predict its development, and hence some doors and hatches which, in the light of better knowledge, might be kept closed are opened and once opened cannot be closed from within or without if fire is present, thus allowing heat, smoke and/or fumes to enter the aircraft.Moreover, some doorways or hatchways may initially be clear of hazard, but may subsequently allow smoke, fire and fumes to enter the aircraft due to spread of the fire.

Additionally, a combination of open doors and/or hatches may further exacerbate these hazards.

It is part of the concept of my present invention that it is of paramount importance that in an aircraft fire emergency the escape time is prolonged by ensuring that the atmosphere and environment within the aircraft remains capable of sustaining human life for as long a period of time as possible, but that this is done without inhibiting the ability of those within the aircraft to escape from the aircraft.

According to the present invention there is provided a method of preserving or prdlonging the survivability of the atmosphere in the interior of an aircraft in a fire emergency in which one or more of the doors or hatches of the aircraft have been open to enable passengers and/or aircrew to escape from the aircraft, which method comprises providing a flexible tubular passageway fastened at one of its ends around the periphery of the doorway or hatchway so as to prevent ingress of fire, smoke and fumes to the aircraft interior, which passageway is deployed when the door or hatch is opened in an emergency so that the passageway normally lies flattened at its other extremity so as substantially to prevent or reduce ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes or gases into the aircraft interior through the doorway or hatchway, but which is temporarily opened by passage therethrough of passengers and crew escaping from the aircraft.

Also provided by the present invention is a combined fire emergency escape and closure means which comprises a flexible tubular passageway adapted to be fastened at one of its ends around the periphery of an aircraft doorway or hatchway so as to prevent ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes into the aircraft interior and to be deployed when the door or hatch is opened in a fire emergency so that its other end lies flattened so as substantially to prevent or reduce ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes into the aircraft interior through the doorway or hatchway, but which can be temporarily opened by passage therethrough of passengers and crew escaping from the aircraft.

It will be understood that the present invention includes within its scope aircraft whenever equipped with a combined fire emergency escape and closure means as described above.

Preferably the flexible tubular passageway of this invention, when in use, surrounds, and is preferably integral or integrated with, a conventional inflated escape chute so that the escaping passenger or aircrew member is surrounded by, and is protected b, the walls of the passageway at the time he or she mounts the escape chute. It will be appreciated that when the tubular passageway is integral with the escape chute the floor of the chute may form the floor of the passageway. The tubular passageway may extend the whole length of the escape chute but this will usually not be necessary, and for the purposes of this invention it is envisaged that the passageway will usually not need to extend for more than about 3 metres from the doorway or hatchway, and possibly less than this.

The tubular passageway may be made wholly or in part from transparent material, and is desirably made of a fire retardant material. It may, for example, be made with transparent panels. This may be desirable to alleviate the possible adverse psychological effect of entering the doorway without being able to see the far end of the escape chute due to the flattened portion of the tubular passageway extremity.

It will be understood, however, that the present invention may be used on its own and without an inflated escape chute, for example where a doorway or hatchway is positioned over a wing, or where other means of readily reaching the ground are available, for example where an airport pier, mobile jetty or fire appliance escape ladder, are to hand.

In one embodiment of the invention the combined escape and closure means of the present invention is used in conjunction with the invention described and claimed in my co-pending Patent Application No.

8526240. Specifically, when air, preferably a mixture of air with water in the form of fine droplets, is supplied to the aircraft interior it is supplied also to the flexible tubular passageway.

This serves several purposes. Firstly,-the ingress of fire, smoke and fumes is resisted by the outward flow of the air or water mist. Secondly, the air and preferably water mist, serves to cool the passageway thereby protecting passengers and crew who are passing therethrough and also improving the resistance of the passageway, and the enclosed inflated escape chute when present, to fire and heat, and prolonging the integrity of the chute.

The combined escape and closure means of this invention may be deployed in several ways. For example it may be stowed in a compact state adjacent the doorway or hatchway, or within the periphery thereof, with which it is to co-operate, for example in the form of a concertina-like folds and may be automatically ejected through the doorway in a fire emergency. Another possible arrangement lies in providing an inflatable frame which fits the doorway or hatchway and which inflates in a fire emergency when the door or hatch is opened concurrently with the chute deployment.

It is one of the drawbacks of conventional inflatable aircraft escape chutes that, of necessity, they are light in weight and yet large in volume, and hence tend to be relatively unstable in strong and gusting winds. However, the tubular passageway of the present invention serves to give such escape chutes greater stability, due to attachment at the whole of the periphery of the doorway, thus reducing risk of accident and personal injury to those using the chute.

Additionally when the integrity of the chute has failed either by damage or as a result of the fire, the tubular passageway no longer supported by the chute will collapse back across the entrance continuing to afford protection against the hazards described and adopts the role of a fire curtain which may be cooled by the air flow or water mist previously referred to.

A specific example of a combined fire emergency escape and closure means in accord with the invention will now be described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a flexible tubular passageway deployed from the doorway of an aircraft cabin integrally with an inflated escape chute; and Figure 2 is a similar perspective view showing the position of the deployed passageway after collapse of the chute.

Referring to Figure 1, in a fire emergency the door or hatchway in the aircraft body 1 is opened and the escape chute 2 is deployed, and inflated, along with the canopy 3, the two forming the tubular escape passageway of the invention. The open door is not shown in drawings since different door opening designs would require the specific design and arrangement of the canopy to be varied. It will be seen that the canopy lies slack and flattened at its extremity 4 so that ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes or gases to the aircraft cabin is prevented.

However, passengers and crew may escape down the chute and under the flattened slack part of the canopy. The possible adverse psychological effects of sliding blind is alleviated by the transparent panels 5 in the roof of the canopy which permit passengers and crew to see outside of the aircraft and to see the bottom end of the escape chute as they enter the passageway and descend the chute.

In Figure 2 is shown the position of the chute 2 and canopy 3 if the chute should collapse, for example as a result of fire heat. It will be seen that the doorway is effectively closed off and thus prevents smoke, fumes and gases from entering the aircraft.

It will be understood that the present invention is not limited to the above specific embodiment. Thus, for example, the flexible passageway need not necessarily be used in combination with an inflatable escape chute.

Claims

1. A method of preserving or prolonging the survivability of the atmosphere in the interior of an aircraft in a fire emergency in which one or more of the doors or hatches of the aircraft have been opened to enable passengers and/or aircrew to escape from the aircraft, which method comprises providing a flexible tubular passageway fastened at one of its ends around the periphery of the doorway or hatchway so as to prevent ingress of fire, smoke and fumes, which passageway is deployed when the door or hatch is opened in an emergency so that the passageway normally lies flattened at its outer extremity so as substantially to prevent or reduce ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes or gasses into the aircraft interior through the doorway or hatchway, but which is temporarily opened by passage therethrough of passengers and crew escaping from the aircraft.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the said flexible tubular passageway surrounds or is integral with an inflated escape chute.

3. A method as claimed in claim 2 wherein the said flexible tubular passageway covers only part of the length of the escape chute.

4. A method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the tubular passageway is made in whole or in part from transparent material.

5. A method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the tubular passageway is made in whole or in part from a fire retardant material.

6. A method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims when used in conjunction with the method or apparatus as claimed in my co-pending Patent Application No. 8526240.

7. A method as claimed in claim 6 wherein water mist is pumped into the tubular passageway.

8. A method as claimed in claim 1 substantially as hereinbefore described.

9. A combined fire emergency escape and closure means for use in the method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims which comprises a flexible tubular passageway adapted to be fastened at one of its ends around the periphery of an aircraft doorway or hatchway so as to prevent ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes into the aircraft interior and to be deployed when the door or hatch is opened in a fire emergency so that its other end lies flattened so as substantially to prevent or reduce ingress of fire, smoke or noxious fumes into the aircraft interior through the doorway or hatchway, but which can be temporarily opened by passage therethrough of passengers and crew escaping from the aircraft.

10. Aircraft whenever equipped with combined fire emergency escape and closure means as claimed in claim 9.