Uop Lcc

Ptc Aerospace Inc.

William A Long

Rene J Brunelle

Ward E Fischer

Edward J Brennan

Improved, lightweight multi-passenger aircraft seating unit utilizes an elongated, generally S-shaped, composite panel to provide the sole support for the seat cushions, the seat back and seat back tray table, the seat belt anchors and the armrests. Front legs and rear legs made of thin sheet metal can be attached directly to the panel by bolts passing through the panel. A downwardly projecting front portion of the panel and an upwardly projecting rear portion, in cooperation with channel-shaped members bonded to the panel's peripheral edges, enhance the rigidity of the panel. The unit provides cantilever support without the necessity for the front and rear tubular stretcher members and the fore and aft support members used in conventional seats. The composite panel has a honeycomb core and its top and bottom skin surfaces are formed of continuous layers of resin-impregnated fibrous material such as graphite fibers, with additional swatches of such material overlying and integrally bonded into the skin. The additional reinforcement material is laminated into regions of additional stress such as those where the legs, back, seat belt anchors and armrests are to be attached. The seat back is doubly curved to provide lumbar and shoulder support and good comfort with a thin constant thickness rear pad. The seat allows spacing between seat rows to be determined virtually solely by the dimensions of the occupants.

Multi-passenger aircraft seat having composite panel frame

An improved track fitting for anchoring an aircraft seat to a seat track has a threaded 'anti-rattle' fastener for forcing a flanged top portion of a movement restricting shear pin against the top of the seat track to prevent rattle and wear due to aircraft vibrations. A pivoted lever which also functions as a cover for the fitting is mounted on the body of the fitting for lifting the shear pin against the force of a shear pin spring which normally urges the pin into locking engagement with one of the slots in a seat track. To prevent tampering by a passenger, the lever is rendered inoperable when the anti-rattle fastener is actuated. A leaf spring carried by the lever engages the body and prevents the lever from rattling due to vibration. The lever can lock the shear pin in its upper disengaged position as the seat fitting is lowered into the seat track and can then be released so that the shear pin will drop into one of the slots in the seat track automatically as the fitting is moved fore or aft.

Track fitting

Improved framing system for a multi-passenger seat incorporates a generally inverted L-shaped rear leg whose shorter leg portion is joined to the rear stretcher tube at its free end and to a compression member at its point of intersection with its longer leg portion. The compression member and short leg portion form one side of a triangle which includes the front leg and a support member connecting the front and rear stretcher tubes. The longer leg portion forms one leg of a triangle which includes the compression member and a seat track covering member. The design provides greatly improved passenger leg room for close pitch seating arrangements.

Growing community of inventors

Harwinton, CT, United States of America

William A Long