JP2008510554A - Aircraft seat - Google Patents

Abstract

【Task】
An aircraft seat that can be converted into a bed is divided by a partition (2) so that a movable seat portion (11), a movable legrest (12), a fixed footrest (14), and a headrest (17) can turn. A movable backrest (15) to be connected is provided. A control panel (21) is provided in the partition (2) to control the position of the seat. The seat has a front leg portion (29) and a rear leg portion (28) that are pivotally attached to the cabin floor (27) of the aircraft, and the slider actuator (29) and (the rear leg portion (28) extend and contract). It is driven by the recliner actuator (30). In a normal seating position, the cushion back is held toward the cabin wall (48) by the extension of the slider actuator (29) and the recline actuator (30). When the seat is partially reclined, the headrest (17) pivots forward to an obtuse angle with respect to the front surface of the backrest (15) to prevent the headrest (17) from contacting the cabin wall (48). At the position of the fully reclining seat, the headrest (17) descends into the recess (51) of the shelf (52) along the cabin wall (48) at the rear of the seat unit.
[Selection] Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to aircraft seats, and more particularly to aircraft seats that can be converted into beds.

  Convertible (convertible) sheets are well known. However, it is difficult to place the maximum number of such seats in an aircraft cabin because the seats are not easy to configure in a horizontal row. A twisted arrangement or a herringbone arrangement is preferred for privacy and efficient arrangement of the seats in the cabin.

  The disadvantage of the herringbone pattern arrangement in which a substantially triangular sheet is arranged along the edge of the cabin is that at one end, in fact, at the head end, a triangular area exists beyond the seat against the cabin wall.

  International Patent Application No. WO 03/013903 in the name of Virgin Atlantic Airline Corporation has a proposal to use a triangular area to extend the length of the bed surface (page 29, lines 13-15). The seat has a seat backrest folded forward for conversion into a bed and the bed surface is formed by the back and other surfaces of the seat backrest (FIG. 5).

An object of the present invention is to utilize the triangular area by accommodating the reclined seat portion forming the bed surface within the triangular area.
The difficulty with the concept taught by Virgin is that the seat backrest and headrest must be of a certain length to accommodate tall passengers and the headrest terminates on the side of the triangular space away from the cabin wall Since there is a need, the use of a triangular surface as part of the bed surface itself is to move the entire reclining seat further away from the cabin wall.

  Another option applied in the present invention is to lower the headrest to a triangular area. This allows for more efficient use of the space, but creates the other problem that the cabin wall is not vertical but curves inward over the triangular area. In order to make the most efficient use of the space, lowering the total length of the seat backrest and the headrest to the triangular area creates a risk that the top end of the headrest hits the cabin wall.

  To overcome this problem, we propose an improvement that shortens the combination of seat backrest and headrest while lowering to the triangular area.

According to the present invention, we propose an aircraft seat that can be converted into a bed as follows. This aircraft seat
-A cushion and a backrest that are both movable;
-A mechanism for moving the movable cushion part and the backrest between the respective positions of the sitting position in which the seat stands upright and the lying bed form;
A headrest having a front face, generally aligned with the front face of the backrest, and an end at the top when the seat is in a sitting position;
A sheet comprising

  Here, the convertible seat is a driving means for moving the headrest, and the backrest and the headrest have a combined length for movement of the backrest between the position of the sitting position and the shape of the bed. Improved by including the drive means to shorten and extend the shortened length when the backrest is moved to any position in these configurations.

  The seat in the form of a bed allows the top of the headrest to be at the head end of the bed and adjacent to the cabin wall, i.e. within the area described above as a triangular area, with respect to the length of the bed. Even at an acute angle, the cabin wall is at the bed head position. This is possible even if the cabin wall covers the headrest. This is because when the backrest is lowered, the top of the headrest moves toward the cushion so as to be separated from the cabin wall.

The drive means may be operated manually, but it would be preferable to operate with power.
The cushion part moving mechanism is a link mechanism, and can be under the control of a single actuator that moves all parts of the seat including the driving means of the headrest in synchronism with each other between different forms of the seat. . In a preferred embodiment, the mechanism includes a plurality of actuators that are under the control of a control system programmed to tune the plurality of actuators.

  The headrest may be configured to move in parallel toward the seat cushion portion in parallel with the backrest and to achieve shortening of the backrest and the headrest. However, in a preferred embodiment, the headrest is pivotably arranged on the backrest for shortened movement by angling the headrest and the front surface of the backrest so that the front surface forms an obtuse angle, and the driving means Is programmed to achieve this obtuse angle during the descent from the sitting configuration to the bed configuration.

  In a preferred embodiment, the headrest is pivotally connected to the backrest with a pivot shaft disposed between the backrest and in the vicinity of the headrest and the front surface of the backrest. Alternatively, the headrest is connected to the backrest by a telescoping leg that can be retracted (eg, in a tube in the frame of the backrest), bringing the headrest closer to the backrest, thereby coupling the headrest and backrest The length may be shortened.

  The cushion part moving mechanism and control system shall be a mechanism in which a single actuator that lowers the seat backrest and tilts the headrest forward during the lowering and a control system including simple up / down control are integrated. Seems to be possible. However, in a preferred embodiment, separate actuators are provided for the backrest and headrest, and the actuator is typically a lead screw device driven by an electric motor and gearbox, and the control system is an electric controller. is there. Alternatively, a hydraulic pump and ram device can be used. The backrest actuator (and cushion portion) actuator may be similar to that described in Applicant's earlier EP application number 1,074,468 ("Applicant's earlier EP application").

  Preferably, the controller raises the headrest to watch TV when the seat is fully reclined to the bed configuration, and the angle at which the seat hits the cabin wall when the seat stops between the sitting and bed configurations It is programmed to adjust to an appropriate angle under the condition that it does not return to.

  In the seat unit incorporating the seat of the present invention, the unit includes a shelf that surrounds the headrest in the lowered bed position, except that it is recessed at least around the portion of the interface between the headrest and the shelf adjacent to the headrest. The shelves are the same height as the headrest surface.

  Further, the headrest may be configured to descend to the surface of the recess, and an anti-entrapment folding mechanism is usually provided between the headrest and the surface of the recess. This device may be a bellows device. It is also possible to open the surface of the recess and provide access to the space below it, but this is not preferable because it is difficult to reach.

  In order to assist the understanding of the present invention, specific embodiments are described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  Referring now to the drawings, the illustrated sheet unit includes a sheet 1 that is divided by a partition 2 from adjacent sheets (not shown), and in one row of sheet units, the end sheets are special partitions. There are the same number of sheets and partitions. Therefore, a row of n sheets includes n-1 partitions and two special partitions. This detail is not important to the present invention and will not be further described.

  The seat includes a movable cushion portion 11, a movable leg rest 12, and a fixed leg rest 14, all of which are the same as conventional ones. The movable backrest 15 of the seat has a headrest 17 connected to the backrest 15 so as to be able to turn around a turning axis disposed between the backrest 15 and near the front surface of the backrest and the headrest. Is the same as in the prior art. The control panel 21 is provided on the partition 2 in order to control the position of the sheet.

This sheet
The runner 22 of the frame 23 provided in the partition via the slider 24 attached to the lower side of the rear part of the cushion part, directly below the pivot coupling part 25 of the backrest and seat cushion part;
A front leg 26 pivotably attached to the floor 27 of the aircraft and the lower front part of the cushion; and a pivotably attached to the floor 27 and the rear of the backrest, raising its height by about 20%. Rear leg 28;
It is supported by.

  The seat is driven by a slide actuator 29 that operates between the frame 23 and the front leg portion 26 and a recliner actuator 30 that operates to extend and contract the rear leg portion. Another actuator (not shown) extends and retracts the footrest. The arrangement of runners, legs and actuators is the same as in the applicant's earlier EP patent.

  The turnable headrest 17 is provided with a rear crank 41 that is turnably attached to a lead screw 43 from an actuator 44 for rotating a screw nut (not shown). The arrangement allows the headrest to pivot about an axis 45 until it is obtuse α (see FIG. 5) or generally parallel to the backrest relative to the front surface of the backrest. A foldable bellows 46 and a movable back plate 47 are provided at the rear of the headrest, and are usually biased away from the headrest by internal pressure or repulsive force. These elements are only shown in FIGS. Is shown in FIG.

  FIG. 3 shows a seat in a normally raised posture. The slide actuator 29 holds the cushion back toward the cabin wall 48, and the recliner actuator 30 is extended. FIG. 4 shows a seat that is reclined slightly without adjusting the slide actuator 29 and with the rear leg 28 shortened by the recline actuator. As can be seen in FIG. 4, further reclining (tilting) of the resting seat is possible only by sliding the cushion away from the cabin wall or by tilting the headrest forward. In practice, both are necessary. A controller incorporated behind the control panel 29 coordinates the actuator so that the headrest avoids the cabin wall when the seat reclines through the position shown in FIG. The fully reclined position is shown in FIG.

  When fully reclining, the headrest descends into the recess 51 in the shelf 52 at the rear of the seat unit along the cabin wall. This shelf includes the accessory tray 53 and is provided at the height of the upper surface 54 when the headrest and the backrest are reclined. The recess has a surface 55 just below the height of the back surface of the headrest when it is lowered most. In this position, the bellows 46 and the back plate 47 are pressed between the headrest and the recessed surface 55.

  If a passenger lying on a reclining seat (here a bed) wants to watch a movie, he pulls the screen 56 out of the partition 2 and controls the headrest to go up to the position of FIG. The bellows fills the space between the headrest and the shelf, and prevents the fingers from being pinched at the rear of the headrest when the bellows is closed when the headrest is lowered again to sleep.

Raising the seat again is the reverse of reclining.
As can be seen from the above, it is possible to maximize the width of the adjacent passage by placing the headrest close to the cabin wall so that there is no shelf 52 between the reclining headrest and the cabin wall The seat unit can be installed as close as possible to the cabin wall. Similarly, it can provide a longer bed for a given extension of the seat from the cabin wall and a given width of the passage.

  Referring to FIG. 9, as an alternative, a headrest 117 is shown nested on a backrest 115 similar to the backrest 15. The headrest has a pair of legs 151 that are telescopically received in a tube 152 incorporated in a frame (not shown) of the backrest. A motor and reduction gear device 153 is attached to the backrest along with a lead screw 154 that extends into a nut 155 fixed to one base of the leg 151. This arrangement allows the controller to retract the headrest into the backrest to a position equivalent to that in FIG. 5 and move the backrest between sitting and bed configurations without hitting the cabin wall. .

  The present invention is not intended to be limited to the details of the above-described embodiments. For example, the headrest can be operated manually, and in particular in the embodiment of FIG. 9, it can be operated by providing a manual lever instead of the motor driver 153.

  Furthermore, in the embodiment of FIG. 1, the headrest has a rounded top, but for a more conventional appearance, the top is folded for use and swiveled forward for use. Is possible. This is originally recognized as an appearance problem, unlike a function problem.

The perspective view of the seat unit incorporating the convertible bed concerning the present invention. The top view of the sheet | seat unit of FIG. FIG. 2 is a side view of the seat of FIG. 1 in a normal sitting position. The side view of the sheet | seat in the position reclined partially. Furthermore, the side view of the sheet | seat in the reclined position. The side view of the sheet | seat in the fully reclined position. The side view of the sheet | seat in which the headrest was raised in the bed position. The side view in the enlarged scale which extracted the headrest in the position of FIG. A similar side view excerpting another telescopic headrest.

Claims (18)

An aircraft seat that can be converted into a bed,
A cushion part and a backrest that are both movable,
A mechanism for moving the movable cushion portion and the backrest between the respective positions of the sitting position in which the seat stands upright and the lying bed shape;
Typically a headrest having a front surface substantially aligned with the front surface of the backrest and an end at the top when the seat is in a sitting position;
Comprising a sheet comprising
The convertible sheet is
A driving means for moving the headrest, wherein the backrest and the headrest are coupled to each other in order to reduce the coupling length of the backrest and the headrest in order to move the backrest between the sitting position and the bed shape. Improved by including said drive means to extend a shortened length when moved to any position,
Aircraft seat. The aircraft seat according to claim 1,
An aircraft seat, wherein the drive means is manually operated. The aircraft seat according to claim 1,
Both the drive means and the cushion moving mechanism are powered aircraft seats. The aircraft seat according to claim 3,
An aircraft seat, wherein the mechanism is a linkage mechanism and is under the control of a single actuator that moves all parts of the seat including the drive means of the headrest in synchronism with each other between different forms of the seat. The aircraft seat according to claim 3,
An aircraft seat, wherein the powered mechanism includes at least one actuator including an actuator for the headrest drive means and is under the control of a control system programmed to tune a plurality of actuators. The aircraft seat according to claim 5,
The mechanism and control system are:
A single actuator that lowers the seat backrest and shortens the headrest while lowering,
A control system including simple up / down control;
Aircraft seats, including an integrated mechanism. The aircraft seat according to claim 5,
The mechanism and the control system include an integrated mechanism provided with individual actuators for the backrest and the headrest,
An aircraft seat, wherein the control system includes an electrical controller. The aircraft seat according to any one of claims 4 to 7,
The one or each actuator is an aircraft seat, which is a lead screw device driven by an electric motor and a gear box. The aircraft seat according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
The seat of an aircraft, wherein the driving means is arranged to move a top portion of the headrest with respect to the cushion portion to shorten a coupling length of the backrest and the headrest. The aircraft seat according to claim 9,
The seat of an aircraft, wherein the headrest is arranged so as to translate in parallel to the backrest toward the seat cushion portion and to achieve shortening of the backrest and the headrest. The aircraft seat according to claim 10.
An aircraft seat comprising a leg connecting the headrest to the backrest, wherein the leg is retracted to reduce the combined length of the headrest and the backrest. The aircraft seat according to claim 9,
The headrest is pivotably disposed on the backrest so that the headrest can be shortened by tilting the headrest so that the front surface of the headrest and the backrest form an obtuse angle,
The seat of an aircraft, wherein the drive means is configured to achieve the obtuse angle during descent from the seated configuration to the bed configuration and back again. The aircraft seat according to claim 12,
The seat of an aircraft, wherein the headrest is pivotally connected to the backrest at a pivot axis disposed between the headrest and the front surface of the headrest and the backrest. The aircraft seat according to claim 12 or 13,
The control system raises the headrest to watch television when the seat is fully reclined into a bed configuration, and when the seat stops between a sitting position and a bed configuration, the headrest is An aircraft seat that has been programmed to adjust to an appropriate angle away from any aircraft cabin wall. An aircraft seat unit incorporating the seat according to any one of claims 1 to 14,
The unit includes a shelf that surrounds the headrest in the lowered bed position;
An aircraft seat unit, wherein the shelf is at the same height as the surface of the headrest, except that there is a recess adjacent to the headrest around at least a portion of the interface between the headrest and the shelf.   16. The aircraft seat unit according to claim 15, wherein an anti-pinch folding mechanism is provided between the headrest and the surface of the recess. The aircraft seat according to any one of claims 1 to 14,
When placed on an aircraft, in the form of a bed, the top of the headrest is the head of the bed proximate to the cabin wall of the aircraft and forms the bed head.   17. Aircraft seat according to claim 15 or 16, arranged in an aircraft cabin.

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