Aircraft door opening system

Abstract

The invention relates to an opening system (10) for an auxiliary door (20) of an airplane in a fuselage (30), the door and the fuselage having skins in the extension of one another. In one exemplary embodiment, the system (10) includes a framing lintel (11) integrated into the fuselage, an upper beam (2S) of the door structure arranged opposite the lintel (11), and a set of three lever links (4A, 4B, 4C). Each link is connected, on the one hand, to the lintel (11) by a lever articulation (5a, 6a) fixed relative to the fuselage (30) and, on the other hand, to the upper beam (2S) by a lever articulation (5b, 6b) mobile with the door (20), the articulations (5a, 5b; 6a, 6b) being connected respectively to the lintel (11) and to the upper beam (2S) by fittings (41, 43; 42, 44). The set of links includes two types of link mounted alternately, in which the mobile articulation (5b, 6b) remains positioned respectively close to the fuselage skin (30) and further from this skin (30), the articulations (5a, 5b; 6a, 6b) of two adjacent levers (4A, 4B; 4B, 4C) forming an evolving quadrilateral.

Claims

1. An Aircraft comprising: a door opening system; and a fuselage having a fuselage skin; the door opening system comprises: an auxiliary door having a door skin, the door skin integrated into the fuselage skin; a lintel integrated into the fuselage skin; an upper beam located on the door skin and arranged opposite the lintel; and a set of lever links including a first lever link, a second lever link, and a third lever link extending transversely with respect to the door skin and fuselage skin to form a coupling of the door skin to the lintel, wherein each lever link is connected, on a first side to said lintel by a fixed articulation fixed relative to the fuselage skin and on a second side to said upper beam by a mobile articulation pivotally mobile with the door skin when open, the fixed and the mobile articulations being formed at the end of the set of lever links and connected respectively to the lintel and to the upper beam by a fixing device, and the first lever link and the second lever link are mounted successive and alternately and the fixed articulation are positioned head to tail, so that the mobile and the fixed articulations of two adjacent first and second lever links form an evolving quadrilateral which controls the kinematics of opening the door skin, maintaining flexibility of articulation between the lintel and the upper beam.

2. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein the upper beam has an upper face perpendicular to the door skin, the fitting connecting the mobile articulation of the first and the third lever links to said upper beam and a fixing base extending on the upper face of said upper beam.

3. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lintel has a lower face perpendicular to the fuselage skin and a front face parallel to the fuselage skin, a fitting connecting the articulations of the first and the second lever links to the lintel and a fixing face that is square on the lower face and on the front face of the lintel.

4. The aircraft as claimed in claim 2, wherein the upper beam has a front face parallel to the door skin and perpendicular to the upper face of said upper beam, a fitting connecting the articulation, of the second lever link to the upper beam and is fixed on the upper face and on the front face of said upper beam.

5. The aircraft as claimed in claim 3, wherein the fitting connecting the articulation, of the second lever link to the lintel a has a fixing base extending on the lower face of the lintel.

6. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein an insulation panel extends from an end region of the fuselage skin and in front of a zone, the panel pressing against a door seal when the door skin is in a closed position.

7. The aircraft in claim 1, wherein a mass compensation system is installed in the door skin in extension of the second lever link.

8. The aircraft as claimed in claim 7, wherein the compensation system comprises at least one jack arranged as an extension of at least one of the first and second lever links.

9. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fixing device is fixed on the upper beam and connected to the articulations of the first and the third lever links and the fitting; have a form of a gooseneck, wherein the second lever link has a lateral profile with a curved shape facing the upper beam.

10. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein a stiffening bar connects, parallel to the lintel, the articulations of the first and the third lever links from the fuselage skin.

Description

DRAWINGS

(1) Other details, features and advantages of the present invention will emerge from reading the following non-limited description with reference to the appended figures in which, respectively:

(2) FIG. 1a shows a front perspective view of an example of an auxiliary airplane door opening system according to the invention provided with a three-lever mechanism, the door being in the closed position;

(3) FIG. 1b show a detailed perspective view of an example of an auxiliary airplane door opening system according to the invention provided with a three-lever mechanism, the door being in the closed position;

(4) FIG. 2a shows a first side view of the three-lever door mechanism of FIG. 1 facing a lever of the first type and facing the central lever of the second type, the door being in the closed position;

(5) FIG. 2b shows a second side views of the three-lever door mechanism of FIG. 1 facing a lever of the first type and facing the central lever of the second type, the door being in the closed position;

(6) FIG. 3a shows a perspective view of the example system of FIG. 1 during the door opening kinematics, in a first intermediate door opening position;

(7) FIG. 3b shows a perspective view of the example system of FIG. 1 during the door opening kinematics in a second intermediate door opening positions;

(8) FIG. 3c shows a perspective views of the example system of FIG. 1 during the door opening kinematics in the maximum opening position of the door;

(9) FIG. 4a shows a side view of the three-lever door mechanism of FIG. 1, facing a lever of the first type, the door being in the maximum opening position;

(10) FIG. 4b shows a side views of the three-lever door mechanism of FIG. 1, facing the central lever of the second type, the door being in the maximum opening position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(11) In the figures, identical reference signs refer to the same element as well as to the corresponding passages of the description.

(12) The overall and respectively more detailed perspective views of FIGS. 1a and 1b illustrate, inside an airplane passenger cabin, an example according to the invention of an auxiliary door opening system 10 provided with a door skin 20 integrated into a 3d cutout of the fuselage skin 30. For reasons of simplification and legibility of the figures, the door and the fuselage are not shown in volume and can be assimilated, for understanding, to their skins 20 and 30.

(13) The system 10 comprises a lintel 11 for the upper frame of the door skin 20. This lintel 11 is integrated into the fuselage by its rear longitudinal face 11a being fixed to the internal face 30i of the fuselage skin 30 by any known means (welding, adhesive bonding, melting, crimping, cofiring, etc.). The opening system 10 couples the door skin 20 to the lintel 11.

(14) Said door skin 20 has an internal framing structure consisting of an upper beam 2S, arranged opposite the lintel 11, two lateral beams 2L and a lower beam (not shown) parallel to the upper beam 2S. The door skin 20 is held in the closed position by immobilization means conventionally affixed to the lower beam.

(15) In this example, the coupling mechanism 40 consists of a set of three lever links 4A, 4B and 4C between the lintel 11 and the upper beam 2S extending transversely, that is to say substantially parallel to the side beams 2L as well as perpendicular to the door skin 20 and fuselage skin 30. The lever links 4A and 4C, which surround the central lever link 4B, are identical and are said to be of the first type. They are connected to the lintel 11 by fixing identical fittings 41 extending, at right angles, on its front longitudinal face 11b parallel to its rear face 11a, and on its lower longitudinal face 11c perpendicular to the front 11b and rear 11a faces. In addition, the levers 4A and 4C are connected to the upper beam 2S of the door skin 20 by other identical fittings 42, as a “gooseneck” in the example shown, fixed to the upper face 2a of the upper beam 2S.

(16) Each lever 4A or 4C of the links of the first type has in this example two parallel, rectilinear and identical fins 4u which, at their opposite ends, form two articulations: an articulation 5a in axial rotation with one end of the fitting 41 which engages between the two fins 4u, and an articulation 5b in axial rotation with one end of the fitting 42 which also comes into engagement between the two fins 4u. The end articulations 5a connect the levers 4A and 4C to the lintel 11 in a fixed manner, while the end articulations 5b connect the levers 4A and 4C to the upper beam 2S in a mobile manner, in pivoting with the door skin 20.

(17) In addition, the articulations 5a and 5b are aligned respectively on a fixed axis of rotation A′A and a movable axis of rotation B′B, parallel to the door skin 20 and the fuselage skin 30. The movable axis of rotation B′B, and therefore the articulations 5b, remain close to the internal face 30i of the fuselage skin 30 while the fixed axis of rotation A′A, and therefore the articulations 5a, remain more distant and at constant distance from this internal face 30i.

(18) In the central lever link 4B, this lever 4B is connected to the lintel 11 by a fitting 43 fixed on the lower face 11c of the lintel 11 and to the upper beam 2S by a fitting 44 extending, at right angles, on the upper face 2a and on the front face 2b of the upper beam 2S.

(19) In addition, the central lever 4B here has two fins 4v of generally curved lateral profile, facing the upper door beam 2S, and connected by a central bridge 4p giving an “H” shape to this central lever 4B. At the ends of these fins 4v, two articulations are also formed: an articulation 6a in axial rotation with one end of the fitting 43 which extends between the two ends of fins 4v, and an articulation 6b in axial rotation with one end of the fitting 44 which also extends between the two fins 4v. Thus, the end articulation 6a connects the central lever 4B to the lintel 11 fixedly via the fitting 43, while the end articulation 6b connects this central lever 4B in a pivoting manner to the door skin 20 via the fitting 44.

(20) Thus, it appears that each pair of adjacent levers, the levers 4A and 4B on the one hand and the levers 4B and 4C on the other hand, has articulations 5a, 5b, 6a and 6b forming a quadrilateral with two opposite articulations 5a and 6a that are fixed relative to the lintel 11 (and therefore to the fuselage 30), to which they are connected by the fittings 41 and 43, and with two opposite articulations 5b and 6b pivotally mobile with the upper beam 2S (and therefore with the door), to which they are connected by fittings 42 and 44.

(21) Furthermore, the internal face of the fuselage 30i advantageously has an insulation panel 31 extending from a skin end region 3e of the fuselage 30, being offset in front of the 3d fuselage cut-out and up to coming to press on a door seal 2j which runs along the periphery 21 of the door skin 20.

(22) Moreover, a mass compensation system 50, which is used during the door opening and comprises in this example two jacks 51 and 52, is advantageously mounted in the extension of the central lever 4B. This assembly is created between the upper beam 2S and a support arm 53 fixed parallel to the upper beam 2S, between the lateral beams 2L. The central lever 4B having a greater amplitude of angular movement than the others with respect to the door skin 20, the compensation system 50 then has a shorter travel, which makes it possible to reduce the travel of the mass compensation. It also appears that the fitting 44 is extended by a longitudinal extension 44e which is fixed at the end to the support arm 53.

(23) Advantageously, a cylindrical stiffening bar 7 (which is not shown in FIG. 1b for reasons of visibility) connects, parallel to the upper beam 2S, the articulations 5a of the levers 4A and 4C of the first type of link most distant from the internal fuselage face 30i. The geometric axis of this bar 7 coincides with the fixed rotation axis A′A of the articulations 5a. Such stiffening ensures uniform operation of the levers 4A to 4C.

(24) The side views of FIGS. 2a and 2b respectively illustrate, from another angle, the position of the lever links of the first type, 4A or 4C, and the position of the lever link of the second type 4B, when the door is in the closed position, in the 3d cutout of the fuselage skin 30. In these figures, the connection between the insulation panel 31 and the skin end zone 3e of the fuselage 30 appears in greater detail, as does the pressing of this panel 31 on the seal 2j of the door.

(25) The side view of FIG. 2a shows that the fixed articulations 5a, linked directly to the lintel 11 via the fitting 41, are positioned at the level of the front face 11b of the lintel 11, and therefore more distant than the articulations 5b which are located near the fuselage internal face 30i. And these articulations 5b, linked to the upper beam 2S by the gooseneck fittings 42, will be able to be made to pivot about the articulations 5a when the door is opened.

(26) The side view of FIG. 2b also shows that the end articulation 6a of the central lever 4B is fixedly connected to the lintel 11 via the fitting 43, and that the end articulation 6b of this central lever 4B, connected to the upper beam 2S via the fitting 44, will be able to make the lever 4B pivot with the door skin 20 about the other end 6a.

(27) The opening kinematics of the door skin 20 by the system 10 are illustrated by the perspective views of FIGS. 3a to 3c, the door skin 20 being seen partially in transparency through the fuselage skin 30. Before opening, the door is held in the closed position by immobilization means affixed to the lower beam of the door structure (not visible), in particular a rigid holding mechanism of the “C-latch” lock type (“C” as in cylindrical) with unlocking controlled by the opening handle. The lever links 4A to 4C open the door by pivoting about the lintel 11.

(28) FIGS. 3a and 3b show that, once released from the immobilization means (not shown in the figures), the door skin 20 pivots out of the airplane, to the outside “E” of the fuselage skin 30—shown through the window 9—about the fixed articulations 5a and 6a of the levers 4A to 4C connected to the lintel 11 via the fittings 41 and 43, as well as about the bar 7 which connects the articulations 5a of the levers of the first type of link 4A and 4C.

(29) The other articulations 5b and 6b of the levers 4A to 4C, connected to the upper door beam 2S via the fittings 42 and 44, then pivot with the door skin 20. The quadrilaterals whose vertices are the articulations 5a, 5b, 6a and 6b are deformed with the variable position of the opposite articulations 5b and 6b, while the position of the other opposite articulations 5a and 6a is fixed. The position of the articulations 5a, 5b, 6a and 6b thus control the kinematics of opening the door, while allowing a certain “float” or flexibility of adaptation to the links between the upper beam 2S and the lintel 11.

(30) In FIG. 3c, the door skin 20 reaches its maximum opening position. This position is maintained by known locking means—jaws, hooks, stops—or by the pressure exerted by the jacks 51 and 52 (cf. FIG. 1a or 3a) which form the system for mass compensation during opening by applying suitable pressure.

(31) The lateral views of FIGS. 4a and 4b also illustrate, respectively at the level of the lever links of the first type, 4A or 4C, and at the level of the central lever link of the second type 4B, the configuration of the opening system 10 when the door skin 20 is in the maximum opening position.

(32) In particular, in these lateral views, it appears that the shape of the fittings 42 (FIG. 4a) and of the lever 4B (FIG. 4b) makes it possible to move precisely, and closely, around the projection formed by the skin end region 3e of the fuselage 30 and extended by the insulation panel 31 which extends from this region. In the case of the levers of the first type of link 4A and 4C between the fittings 41 and 42, fixed on the lintel 11 and the upper door beam 2S, this movement around is advantageously achieved by the gooseneck shape of the fittings 42 (FIG. 4a); in the case of the lever of the second type of link 4B (FIG. 4b), this movement around is achieved by the curved profile shape of this lever 4B between the fittings 43 and 44, fixed on the lintel 11 and the upper door beam 2S.

(33) The invention is not limited to the embodiments described and shown. Thus, the mass compensation system may include one or more than two jacks which can be installed as an extension of the central lever or other levers.

(34) The upper face of the upper door structure beam may be not perpendicular to the door skin. Similarly, the front face of the upper beam or the lintel may be not parallel to the door skin or fuselage skin. Other types of fittings and other fixing methods can be provided, including integration into the door threshold. In this case, the fittings are modified so that the axis of rotation AA′ remains parallel to the axis of the desired hinge (generally according to the cutout of the panel), and that the articulations of the first and second type of link move in parallel planes.

(35) Furthermore, the system for immobilizing the door in the open position is installed on a lever of the first type of link, on the fuselage side or on the door side, or on a lever of the second type of link, in particular on the central lever of the second type of link in the case of a three-lever link set, wherein this immobilizing system can then be mounted either by means of the compensation system or between the lever and the fuselage.

(36) In addition, the profile of the fittings and levers is adapted to allow movement around the fuselage during the opening of the door and can adopt, in addition to the shapes described above, any suitable curved or concave shape.

(37) In addition, the links of the two types can be centered on a link of the first or of the second type.