Trolley lift and aircraft area, and aircraft with trolley lift

Abstract

A trolley lift for connecting a lower aircraft deck to an upper aircraft deck. The trolley lift comprises a platform configured to accommodate at least one trolley, wherein the platform delimits a lift compartment at the bottom, and a cover which delimits the lift compartment at the top. In particular, on a side facing away from the lift compartment, the cover at least partly forms a floor of the upper aircraft deck. Furthermore, an aircraft area having a trolley lift and an aircraft having a trolley lift and/or an aircraft area are described.

Claims

1. A trolley lift for connecting a lower aircraft deck to an upper aircraft deck, wherein the trolley lift comprises: a platform, which is configured to accommodate at least one trolley, wherein the platform delimits a lift compartment at the bottom, and a cover, which delimits the lift compartment at the top, wherein, on a side facing away from the lift compartment, the cover at least partly forms a floor of the upper aircraft deck.

2. The trolley lift as claimed in claim 1, wherein, on a side facing away from the lift compartment, the cover at least partly forms a stair which leads from the upper aircraft deck to the lower aircraft deck.

3. The trolley lift as claimed in claim 2, wherein the cover forms at least one step of the stair.

4. The trolley lift as claimed in claim 1, wherein, on its side facing away from the lift compartment, the cover at least partly forms a gangway between two rows of passenger seats.

5. The trolley lift as claimed in claim 1, wherein, on its side facing away from the lift compartment, the cover is configured to accommodate a fixing of a passenger seat thereto.

6. The trolley lift as claimed in claim 5, wherein the cover of the trolley lift has at least one seat rail for fixing the passenger seat.

7. The trolley lift as claimed in claim 1, wherein the trolley lift is configured to be moved between a lower position, in which a side of the platform that faces the lift compartment is arranged flush with an upper side of a floor of the lower aircraft deck and at least one section of the side of the cover that faces away from the lift compartment is arranged flush with an upper side of the floor of the upper aircraft deck, and an upper position, in which the side of the platform that faces the lift compartment is arranged flush with the upper side of the floor of the upper aircraft deck.

8. An aircraft area, comprising: at least one section of a floor of a lower aircraft deck; at least one section of a floor of an upper aircraft deck; at least one trolley lift for connecting a lower aircraft deck to an upper aircraft deck, wherein the at least one trolley lift comprises; a platform, which is configured to accommodate at least on trolley, wherein the platform delimits a lift compartment at the bottom, and a cover, which delimits the lift compartment at the top, wherein, on a side facing away from the lift compartment, the cover at least partly forms a floor of the upper aircraft deck; and, a lower stair segment, which is arranged on the floor of the lower aircraft deck, wherein the trolley lift is arranged such that a rear wall of the trolley lift adjoins the lower stair segment when the trolley lift is in a lower position.

9. The aircraft area as claimed in claim 8, further comprising: at least one locking element, which is configured to fix the trolley lift in a predefined position.

10. The aircraft area as claimed in claim 8, further comprising at least one blocking element which is configured to block access to the floor of the upper aircraft deck which is at least partly formed by the cover of the trolley lift.

11. The aircraft area as claimed in claim 8, further comprising at least one blocking element, which is configured to block access to an area of the floor of the lower aircraft deck beside the trolley lift.

12. The aircraft area as claimed in claim 8, further comprising at least one passenger seat which is fixed to the cover of the trolley lift.

13. The aircraft area as claimed in claim 8, further comprising: at least one passenger seat, which is fixed in the section of the floor of the upper aircraft deck beside the cover of the trolley lift.

14. An aircraft with a trolley lift as claimed in claim 1.

15. An aircraft with an aircraft area as claimed in claim 8.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be explained in more detail by using the appended schematic drawing, wherein

(2) FIGS. 1 to 4 show, schematically, a side view of an aircraft area having a trolley lift and a lower stair segment in various states of the trolley lift;

(3) FIGS. 5 and 6 show, schematically, a cross-sectional view of an aircraft having an aircraft area with a trolley lift and a passenger seat arranged thereon in various states of the trolley lift;

(4) FIGS. 7 and 8 show, schematically, a cross-sectional view of an aircraft having an aircraft area with a trolley lift arranged in a gangway beside passenger seats in various states of the trolley lift; and

(5) FIG. 9 shows, schematically, an aircraft having an aircraft area with a trolley lift.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(6) In the present disclosure, terms such as “upper” and “lower” are used with regard to the arrangement of two aircraft decks and the movement of a trolley lift between the two aircraft decks. Here, in particular, they are based on the vertical direction of movement of the trolley lift and the aircraft decks arranged in the vertical direction relative to each other. Terms such as “lateral” and “right” and “left,” on the other hand, relate to a horizontal direction, which is perpendicular to the vertical direction. For example, the floors of the two aircraft decks extend substantially horizontally. A longitudinal direction of the aircraft is a horizontal direction which extends from the nose to the rear of the aircraft (therefore corresponds to the direction of flight).

(7) In FIGS. 1 to 4, a cross section in a side view of an aircraft area 5 which comprises two aircraft decks located above one another is illustrated. The lower aircraft deck has a floor 4, and the upper aircraft deck has a floor 6, on each of which persons can walk, objects can be rolled or pushed, etc. For example, each of the two aircraft decks can be a passenger cabin and/or a cargo bay. In many passenger aircraft, a passenger cabin is arranged in the upper flight deck, while a toilet and/or further rows of seats and a cargo bay for luggage and other items of cargo are provided in the lower aircraft deck. Of course, aircraft having two passenger decks (and a further cargo deck) also fall under the present disclosure.

(8) In the aircraft area 5, a trolley lift 10 for connecting the lower aircraft deck to the upper aircraft deck is installed. The trolley lift 10 comprises a platform 12, on which at least one trolley 30 or other objects can be accommodated. The platform delimits a lift compartment (the compartment provided for the transport of trolley(s) 30 and/or objects) at the bottom. A cover 11 delimits the lift compartment at the top.

(9) On a side facing away from the lift compartment (directed upward in FIGS. 1 to 8), the cover 11 of the trolley lift 10 at least partly forms a floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck. In the variant illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, the cover 11 at least partly forms a stair 20 which leads from the upper aircraft deck to the lower aircraft deck, that is to say, from the floor 6 to the floor 4. A further section of the stair 20 is formed by a lower stair segment 21 which is arranged on the floor 4 of the lower aircraft deck. The number of steps arranged on the cover 11 of the trolley lift 10 can be chosen freely, depending on the angle of inclination of the stair and the depth of the trolley lift (horizontal extent in the drawing plane of FIGS. 1 to 4). For example, only a single step or a plurality of steps can be provided on the cover 11.

(10) The trolley lift has an opening 13, through which one or more trolleys 30 can be pushed into the lift compartment or removed from the lift compartment (see the double arrow in FIGS. 1 and 2). The opening 13 can be closed by a door (not explicitly shown). Opposite the opening 13, a rear wall 14 of the trolley lift is provided which adjoins the lower stair segment 21 when the trolley lift 10 is in a lower position, as illustrated in FIG. 1.

(11) In FIGS. 1 and 2, the trolley lift 10 is illustrated in a lower position in which a side of the platform 12 that faces the lift compartment is arranged flush with an upper side of the floor 4 of the lower aircraft deck. Furthermore, at least one section of the side of the cover 11 that faces away from the lift compartment is arranged flush with an upper side of the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck. In other words, the upper side (viewed from the lift compartment: the outer side) of the cover 11 forms part of the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck.

(12) As opposed to the variant with a stair illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, the uppermost step of the stair section arranged on the cover 11 does not have to have a horizontal section which is arranged flush with the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck. Instead, the uppermost section of the cover 11 can form the upper side of the last step of the stair in front of the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck, so that the length of the step (horizontal extent to the right and left in FIGS. 1 to 4) can be shortened. In addition, the overall height of the trolley lift 10 is lower, so that the latter, as it is moved into an upper position (see FIGS. 3 and 4), runs less risk of colliding with a component or object arranged in the upper aircraft deck (for example, of colliding with a ceiling of the upper aircraft deck).

(13) In order to prevent movement of the trolley lift 10 in the lower position, at least one locking element 25 can produce a mechanical connection between the trolley lift 10 and a component surrounding the trolley lift 10, in order to fix the trolley lift 10 in the predefined position. For example, the locking element 25 can couple the trolley lift 10 mechanically with the lower stair segment 21. The locking element 25 can be installed in the lower stair segment 21, as emerges from FIGS. 1 and 2. Alternatively, the locking element 25 can also be installed in the trolley lift 10 and interact with the lower stair segment 21 or another component arranged at a height of the locking element 25.

(14) Furthermore, the aircraft area 5 can comprise at least one blocking element 26, which blocks access to the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck, which is at least partly formed by the cover 11 of the trolley lift 10, and/or access to an area of the floor 4 of the lower aircraft deck beside the trolley lift 10. In FIGS. 2 and 3, blocking elements 26 are illustrated in the upper aircraft deck in front of the staircase and in the lower aircraft deck at the height of the lower stair segment 21. Of course, the position and the number of blocking elements 26 can vary. For example, a blocking element 26 (illustrated only in FIG. 4) can be provided in front of the opening 13 of the trolley lift 10 in the lower aircraft deck, in order to block the area beside the trolley lift 10. Blocking is necessary, in particular, when the latter is located in an upper position (FIG. 4) or is to be moved to the lower position again.

(15) The at least one blocking element 26 can be coupled to a mechanism and/or controller (not explicitly illustrated) of the locking element 25, so that the locking element 25 releases the trolley lift 10 only when the at least one blocking element 26 blocks the access to the area of the trolley lift 10 in the upper aircraft deck and/or in the lower aircraft deck.

(16) In FIG. 4, the trolley lift 10 is illustrated in an upper position. Here, the side of the platform 12 that faces the lift compartment is arranged flush with the upper side of the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck, so that the at least one trolley 30 can easily be moved into and out of the trolley lift 10 on the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck (see the double arrow in FIG. 4). The trolley lift 10 must be dimensioned such that the highest point of the cover 11 fits into an area of a staircase 22. As already explained above, for example, the first (highest) step can be placed lower for this purpose. In addition, the platform 12 may also be movable relative to the cover 12 and/or relative to the rear wall 14. Thus, the platform 12 can likewise be moved vertically for the case in which the trolley lift 10 in its upper (highest) position cannot be arranged high enough to produce a flush transition between platform 12 and floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck. Such a relative movement of the platform 12 can also be used for tolerance compensation between platform 12 and floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck.

(17) FIGS. 5 and 6 show another design variant of a trolley lift 10. Elements which correspond or at least functionally correspond to those from the design variant of FIGS. 1 to 4 have been provided with the same designations. In order to avoid repetitions, a detailed description of the same elements has been omitted here. In particular, FIGS. 5 and 6 show, schematically, a cross-sectional view of an aircraft 1 (see FIG. 9) having an aircraft area 5 with a trolley lift 10 and a passenger seat 7 arranged thereon in various states of the trolley lift 10. In FIG. 5, the trolley lift 10 is illustrated in a lower position, in which the side of the platform 12 that faces the lift compartment is arranged flush with the upper side of the floor 4 of the lower aircraft deck, so that at least one trolley 30 and/or other objects can easily be moved out of or into the trolley lift 10 onto the floor 4 of the lower aircraft deck. FIG. 6 shows, in a corresponding way, the trolley lift 10 in the upper position, in which the side of the platform 12 that faces the lift compartment is arranged flush with the upper side of the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck, so that the trolley 30 and/or other objects can easily be moved out of and into the trolley lift 10 on the floor 6 of the upper aircraft deck.

(18) Furthermore, seat rails 8 (illustrated only in FIG. 6) can be provided on or in the cover 11 of the trolley lift, in order to fix the passenger seat 7 via standard components. Instead of or in addition to the passenger seat 7, a flight attendant seat can also be installed.

(19) Also in this design variant, a locking element 25 can fix the trolley lift 10 in a specific position; in FIG. 5, the lower position of the trolley lift 10 is illustrated for this purpose. Such a locking element 25 can, for example, be blocked via a mechanism and/or a controller if a person or an object is located on the passenger seat 7. For example, the movement of the locking element 25 can be blocked beginning at a low weight (less than 5 kg or even less than 1 kg), which loads the passenger seat 7.

(20) In the design variant according to FIGS. 7 and 8, which, schematically, show a cross-sectional view of an aircraft 1 having an aircraft area 5 with a trolley lift 10 arranged in a gangway beside passenger seats 7 in various states of the trolley lift 10, a similar arrangement to that of FIGS. 5 and 6 is shown. Instead of being arranged under a passenger seat 7, the trolley lift 10 is arranged under a gangway between the rows of passenger seats. This permits a greater longitudinal extent (at right angles to the drawing plane of FIGS. 7 and 8) of the trolley lift, which means that more or larger trolleys 30 or objects can be transported with the trolley lift 10. The positions of the trolley lift 10 that are illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 correspond to those from FIGS. 5 and 6. The remaining elements correspond to those from the design variants according to FIGS. 1 to 6 and are provided with the same designations.

(21) FIG. 9 shows, schematically, an aircraft 1 having an aircraft area 5 with a trolley lift 10. Although in FIG. 9 the design variant according to FIGS. 1 to 4 is illustrated, it is obvious that, alternatively or additionally, at least one trolley lift 10 according to one of the configurations of FIGS. 5 and 6 and/or FIGS. 7 and 8 can be installed in the aircraft 1.

(22) While at least one exemplary embodiment of the present invention(s) is disclosed herein, it should be understood that modifications, substitutions and alternatives may be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art and can be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. This disclosure is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the exemplary embodiment(s). In addition, in this disclosure, the terms “comprise” or “comprising” do not exclude other elements or steps, the terms “a” or “one” do not exclude a plural number, and the term “or” means either or both. Furthermore, characteristics or steps which have been described may also be used in combination with other characteristics or steps and in any order unless the disclosure or context suggests otherwise. This disclosure hereby incorporates by reference the complete disclosure of any patent or application from which it claims benefit or priority.