Deutsche Aerospace Airbus Gmbh

Messerschmitt-Boelkow-Blohm Gmbh

Daimler-Benz Aerospace Airbus Gmbh

Wolfgang Lessat-Kaupat

Guenter Kallies

Guenther Kallies

Thomas Luebbe

An apparatus for locking an aircraft door provided in the outer wall of an aircraft includes at least one locking shaft pin that locks the aircraft door in a fixed, closed position relative to the outer wall of the aircraft when the locking shaft pin is positioned or rotated into a locking position. The locking shaft pin is connected to a mechanical linkage forming a positioning arrangement. The positioning arrangement is coupled to a control element, which essentially includes a membrane connected to a control rod. The membrane is arranged within a housing so as to form an interior air chamber on one side of the membrane and an exterior air chamber on the other side of the membrane. The air pressure of the cabin interior is applied to the interior air chamber through an interior air pressure port, and the exterior ambient air pressure is applied to the exterior air chamber through an exterior air pressure port. A pressure differential on the two opposite sides of the membrane causes the membrane to deflect and move the control rod, which is coupled to the positioning arrangement.

Apparatus for locking an aircraft door

An overload clutch limits the transmittable torque moment by permitting an override when a certain compression force is exceeded. For this purpose a drive shaft meshes with a disk provided with a number of holes in which balls are received. The disk has an axial thickness smaller than the diameter of the balls so that the balls can be uniformly exposed to a compression force exerted by a compression spring through a disk or bushing bearing on the balls. The balls cooperate with an entraining cam disk. As long as the torque to be transmitted is smaller than the compression force, the balls engage cam ribs on the entraining disk and transmit the torque. When the input torque exceeds the compression force, the balls override the cam ribs.

Overload clutch for limiting a torque moment

An aircraft door is supported by at least two support rods. Each rod rests with one of its ends in a door hinge that is rotatable with the support rod through an angle of, for example 90.degree., while the door can be shifted up or down along the support rods. For this purpose a torque shaft which is rotatably mounted to the door frame is connected through toggle devices to the other end of the respective support rod, whereby rotation of the torque shaft lifts or lowers the door relative to the support rods. The same torque shaft is connected to the support rods through a linkage device, including a bellcrank lever for rotating the support rods simultaneously with the lifting or lowering of the door relative to the support rods, whereby the hinges can be moved from a recessed position inside the door structure when the door is closed into an extended position outside the door structure for opening the door.

Aircraft door lifting and door hinge swivelling mechanism

The locking mechanism of an aircraft door is linked with a testing device in such a manner that the inoperability of the testing device indicates a failure in the proper locking or latching of the door in its closed position. The testing device may, for example, be a lever which is actuated last in a sequence of door closing and locking or latching steps. Such a lever could, for instance, be the lever for bringing an emergency chute into a ready or stand-by condition. The linkage assures that the testing lever for operating the emergency chute can be activated only if the door is properly closed and latched. As a result, a door that is incompletely closed and/or incompletely latched will provide an immediate indication of that situation.

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Hamburg, Germany

Wolfgang Lessat-Kaupat