Storage compartment for the overhead region of a passenger cabin

Abstract

A storage compartment for the overhead region of a passenger cabin of a passenger aircraft has a carrier which can be mounted in the passenger aircraft, and a pivoting part for receiving a storage item. The pivoting part is mounted on the carrier so as to be pivotable about a pivot axis in a pivoting region between an open position and a closing position. The storage compartment further contains a closing force module. The closing force module contains a switching module by which the closing force module can be brought into an active state or into a passive state. In the active state, a greater closing moment is brought about in the direction of the closing position on the pivoting part by the closing force module, at least in a partial region of the pivoting region, than in the passive state. The closing force module is configured free from electricity with respect to the generation of the closing moment and/or with respect to the switching over between the active state and passive state.

Claims

1. A storage compartment for an overhead region of a passenger cabin of a passenger aircraft, the storage compartment comprising: a carrier which can be mounted in the passenger aircraft; a pivoting part for receiving a storage item, said pivoting part being mounted on said carrier so as to be pivotable about a pivot axis in a pivoting region between an open position and a closing position; and a closing force module having a switching module by means of which said closing force module can be brought into an active state or into a passive state, in the active state, a closing moment, being greater than in the passive state, is brought about in a direction toward the closing position on said pivoting part by said closing force module, at least in a partial region of the pivoting region, said closing force module being mechanical with respect to generating the closing moment and/or with respect to a switching over between the active state and passive state; said closing force module containing a mechanical force accumulator for generating the closing moment, said mechanical force accumulator being configured for outputting work in a form of the closing moment during a movement of said pivoting part to the closing position and being configured for receiving work by means of the closing moment during a movement of said pivoting part towards the open position, said closing force module containing at least one mechanically connecting coupling module for transmitting the closing moment between said mechanical force accumulator and said pivoting part.

2. The storage compartment according to claim 1, wherein: said switching module contains a rocking device which is dependent on a mass of the storage item in said pivoting part; and said closing force module is brought into the active state by said switching module, which is controlled by said rocking device, when said pivoting part is loaded with the storage item of a mass greater than a predetermined limit mass, and otherwise is brought into the passive state.

3. The storage compartment according to claim 2, wherein: said rocking device has a sliding section along which said pivoting part is displaceable in said carrier in addition to pivoting about the pivot axis, wherein, in an inoperative orientation of the storage compartment, said sliding section has at least one direction component in a direction of a gravitational force and a spring element; on said sliding section in the direction of the gravitational force, said pivoting part is mounted on said spring element of said rocking device; and said closing force module is brought into the active state when said pivoting part is moved in said sliding section in the direction of the gravitational force beyond a switching point corresponding to the limit mass and is brought into the passive state when said pivoting part is not beyond the switching point.

4. The storage compartment according to claim 3, wherein said sliding section is oriented along a straight line extending in the direction of the gravitational force in the inoperative orientation of the storage compartment.

5. The storage compartment according to claim 2, wherein the limit mass is between 20% and 80% of a specified loading mass for the storage compartment.

6. The storage compartment according to claim 1, wherein said mechanical force accumulator contains a gas-filled compression spring and/or a load cell and/or a spring.

7. The storage compartment according to claim 1, wherein a coupling, which is brought about by said mechanically connecting coupling module, between said mechanical force accumulator and said pivoting part is achieved in the active state and is released in the passive state.

8. The storage compartment according to claim 1, wherein in an inoperative orientation of the storage compartment, the closing moment is smaller than an opening moment caused by an effect of gravitational force on said pivoting part and an inserted storage item.

9. The storage compartment according to claim 1, wherein: said switching module contains an end stop module with a movable stop element against which said pivoting part lies in an end region of the pivoting region that is adjacent to the closing position; said movable stop element is spring-loaded towards the open position and is configured to be movable along a spring path as far as the open position; said closing force module is brought into the active state when said movable stop element is configured to be moved beyond a switching point corresponding to a limit mass and otherwise to be brought into the passive state; said switching module contains a blocking module which prevents deactivation of the active state when a limit pivoting angle towards the closing position is exceeded; and said switching module contains a damper module which prevents a changing between the active state and the passive state in an interval of time after said pivoting part has passed a switching point and/or has fallen short of the limit pivoting angle and/or has experienced a change in mass of the storage item.

10. A storage compartment for an overhead region of a passenger cabin of a passenger aircraft, the storage compartment comprising: a carrier which can be mounted in the passenger aircraft; a pivoting part for receiving a storage item, said pivoting part being mounted on said carrier so as to be pivotable about a pivot axis in a pivoting region between an open position and a closing position; and a closing force module having a switching module by means of which said closing force module can be brought into an active state or into a passive state, in the active state, a closing moment, being greater than in the passive state, is brought about in a direction toward the closing position on said pivoting part by said closing force module, at least in a partial region of the pivoting region, said closing force module being mechanical with respect to generating the closing moment and/or with respect to a switching over between the active state and passive state; said closing force module having a first pivot bearing about which said pivoting part is rotatable in the active state of said closing force module, and said closing force module having a second pivot bearing about which said pivoting part is rotatable in the passive state of said closing force module.

11. The storage compartment according to claim 10, wherein said closing force module contains a mechanical force accumulator for generating the closing moment, said mechanical force accumulator being configured for outputting work in a form of the closing moment during a movement of said pivoting part to the closing position and being configured for receiving work by means of the closing moment during a movement of said pivoting part towards the open position.

12. The storage compartment according to claim 10, wherein by means of said switching module, said first pivot bearing is released and said second pivot bearing is blocked in the active state and, in the passive state, said second pivot bearing is released and a said first pivot bearing is blocked.

13. The storage compartment according to claim 11, wherein said switching module has a respective blocking bolt which, for respective blocking, is retractable together into bearing parts of at least one of said first and second pivot bearings.

14. The storage compartment according to claim 10, wherein pivot axes of said first pivot bearing and said second pivot bearing do not coincide.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic, perspective view of a storage compartment in a passenger cabin according to the invention;

(2) FIG. 2 is a side view of the storage compartment;

(3) FIGS. 3A and 3B are illustrations of two pivot bearings in an empty storage compartment (FIG. 3A), and a storage compartment with a storage item above the limit mass (FIG. 3B);

(4) FIG. 4 is a detailed illustration of an end stop module of the storage compartment shown in FIG. 2; and

(5) FIG. 5 is an illustration of a spring damper system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(6) Referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first, particularly to FIG. 1 thereof, there is shown a cutout from a passenger aircraft 2 or the passenger cabin thereof with a storage compartment 6 arranged in an overhead region 4. The storage compartment 6 contains a carrier 8 (merely indicated by dashed lines here) which is mounted in the passenger aircraft 2, and a pivoting part 10. The pivoting part 10 is pivotable about a pivot axis 12 between an open position O shown in FIG. 1 and a closing position S (indicated by dashed lines). It moves here from the open position O in the direction of the arrow which is shown through a pivoting region B as far as the closing position S, or vice versa. The pivoting region B is a pivoting angle about the pivot axis 12. FIG. 1 therefore shows a movable luggage compartment of an aircraft.

(7) FIG. 2 shows the storage compartment 6 from FIG. 1 in a side view in the direction of the arrow II in FIG. 1. The storage compartment 6 contains a closing force module 14 (indicated by dashed lines) which can be brought both into a passive state P and into an active state A. In the active state A, the closing force module 14 brings about a closing moment MS about the pivot axis 12 in the direction of the closing position S, i.e. in the arrow direction, on the pivoting part 10 throughout the pivoting region B. In the passive state P, the closing force module 14 does not bring about any such closing moment. Both the generation of the closing moment MS by the closing force module 14 and the switching over between the active state A and the passive state P are designed free from electricity, that is, purely mechanically. A storage item 18 can be inserted into the pivoting part 10 and is inserted here. The storage item has the mass MA.

(8) The closing force module 14 contains a switching module 16. The latter contains a rocking device 20 which is dependent on the mass MA of the storage item 18 which is inserted in the pivoting part 10 or storage compartment 6. The rocking device 20 is dependent on the mass MA in so far as it causes the switching module 16 to bring the closing force module 14 into the active state A when the mass MA exceeds a limit mass MG, and otherwise to bring same into the passive state P. The limit mass MG here is 50% of the specified loading mass for the storage compartment 6. The rocking device 20 therefore serves for determining at least one dimension for the mass MA. The rocking device 20 contains a sliding section 22 (indicated by an arrow in FIG. 2) along which the pivoting part 10 is displaceable (downwards) in the carrier 8, in addition to the pivoting about the pivot axis 12, by increasing the mass MA. By lowering the mass MA, the pivoting part 10 moves in the opposite direction (upwards). FIG. 2 shows the storage compartment 6 in an inoperative orientation R, that is to say, in a state mounted in the aircraft 2, while the passenger aircraft 2 is resting flat on an underlying surface, here the tarmac. The sliding section 22 here is a straight line which extends in the direction of gravitational force 24. On the sliding section 22, the pivoting part 10 is mounted in the direction of gravitational force 24 on a spring element 26 of the rocking device 20.

(9) The closing force module 14 is brought in the present case here into the active state A since the pivoting part 10 is moved in the sliding section 22 beyond a switching point 28, downwards in the example, i.e. in the direction of gravitational force 24. In an alternative operating state (not illustrated), the storage item 18 is removed, and therefore the pivoting part 10 is not lowered beyond the switching point 28, as indicated by dotted lines. The closing force module 14 is then in the passive state P. For space reasons, the conditions are indicated representatively for the sliding section 22 on the right edge of the pivoting part 10 in the figure.

(10) The closing force module 14 has a mechanical force accumulator 30 for generating the closing moment MS which outputs work here in the form of the closing moment MS only in the active state A, during a movement of the pivoting part 10 towards the closing position S. During a movement of the pivoting part 10 towards the open position O, the force accumulator 30 receives the resulting work by application of the closing moment MS to the pivoting part 10 by an operator (not illustrated). In the passive state P, the force accumulator 30 is ineffective and has no influence on the pivoting movement and is therefore neither charged nor discharged. In the present example, the force accumulator 30 is a gas-filled compression spring.

(11) The closing force module 14 also contains a mechanically connecting coupling module 32 which is only illustrated symbolically in FIG. 2. The coupling module serves for transmitting the closing moment MS between force accumulator 30 and pivoting part 10. In the active state A, the corresponding coupling is produced, and is released in the passive state P. In accordance with the coupling, in the active state A the illustrated piston rod of the gas-filled compression spring is moved in a circular segment guide (merely indicated) when the pivoting part 10 is pivoted in the direction of the open position O. The gas-filled compression spring is compressed here (indicated by dashed lines). The spring is expanded during a countermovement. For this purpose, a pin (not illustrated) engages only in the active state A in the guide and runs in the latter in order to guide the piston rod.

(12) In the inoperative orientation R illustrated, the opening moment action of gravitational force caused on the pivoting part 10, including a possibly inserted storage item 18, both in the active state and in the passive state is greater than the closing moment MS, and therefore a manual force additionally always has to be applied in order to press the pivoting part 10 either in the direction of the closing position S or to support the pivoting part in a controlled manner during a countermovement towards the open position O.

(13) According to FIG. 2, the rotational point (pivot axis 12) is therefore guided in Z (in the inoperative orientation: sliding section in the direction of gravitational force) and mounted on a spring (spring element 26).

(14) FIGS. 3A, 3B show a closing force module 14 for an alternative embodiment of a storage compartment 2. The closing force module has a first pivot bearing 34a which is formed by the fact that a running ring 36 is mounted in a bearing shell 38 so as to be rotatable about a first pivot axis 12a. The pivoting part 10 is rotatable about said pivot bearing 34a in the active state A, as primarily shown in FIG. 3B.

(15) The closing force module 14 contains a second pivot bearing 34b which is formed by the fact that the running ring 36 is mounted on a shaft 40 so as to be rotatable about a second pivot axis 12b. The pivoting part 10 is pivotable about the second pivot bearing 34b in the passive state P, as is primarily illustrated in FIG. 3A. The second pivot axis 12b is different from the first pivot axis 12a. The first pivot bearing 34a is configured for generating the closing moment MS about the pivot axis 12a. The second pivot bearing 34b does not generate any torque about the pivot axis 12b, i.e. is rotatable in this direction in a manner free from force.

(16) The switching module 16 is formed here as follows: in the active state A, the switching module 16 releases the first pivot bearing 34a and blocks the second pivot bearing 34b, see FIG. 3B. By contrast, in the passive state P, the first pivot bearing 34a is blocked and the second pivot bearing 34b is released, see FIG. 3A. This takes place by means of a respectively coupled displacement of two blocking bolts 42a, b in corresponding guides 44a, b. The guide 44a is formed from two sections, one in the running ring 36 and one in the bearing shell 38, wherein the sections align during blocking of the pivot bearing 34a when the blocking bolt 42a projects into the two guide sections (see FIG. 3A). If the bolt 42a is pulled back into the bearing shell 38, the pivot bearing 34a is rotationally free (see FIG. 3B).

(17) The guide 44b is correspondingly formed in the bearing shell 38 and the shaft 40. During blocking, the two sections of the guide 44b are also aligned here and the blocking bolt 42b projects into the two guide sections (FIG. 3B). If the blocking bolt 44b is pulled back into the running ring 36, the bearing 34a is rotationally free (FIG. 3A). Since the bolts 42a, b are moved synchronously, precisely just one is always pulled back into the running ring 36 or the bearing shell 38 in order to release the relevant pivot bearing 34a, b, and the respective other projects into the two guide halves of the corresponding guide 44a, b in order to block the correspondingly other pivot bearing 34b, a.

(18) Shaft 40, bearing shell 38 and running ring 36 therefore form respective bearing parts of the respective pivot bearings 34a, b. For the blocking, the respective blocking bolt 42a, b is therefore in each case retracted together into the two bearing parts of the respective pivot bearing 34a, b.

(19) The pivot axes 12a and 12b are therefore different from each other or do not coincide. The effect achieved by this is that, in the active state A (see FIG. 3B), a switch is made from the pivot axis 12b to the higher pivot axis 12a although the pivot axes 12a, b have been displaced downwards in their entirety by introduction of the storage item 18 and movement of the pivoting part 10 in the sliding section 22. The rotation therefore effectively takes place about the pivot axis 12a which is nevertheless higher, instead of the lower pivot axis 12b.

(20) FIG. 4 symbolically illustrates a further embodiment of a switching module 16. The latter here contains an end stop module 46 which is also already indicated in FIG. 2. FIG. 2 therefore shows a side view of an OHSC with an end stop.

(21) The end stop module 46 contains a stop element 48 which is mounted movably on the carrier 8 and against which the pivoting part 10 can be placed or then lies with the aid of a structural part 50, which is fastened to the pivoting part 10, when the pivoting part 10 is in an end region 52 of the pivoting region B. The end region 52 is adjacent to the open position O or ends there at. From the beginning of the end region 52, the structural part 50 therefore lies against the stop element 48, as illustrated by dashed lines in FIG. 4. The stop 48 is spring-loaded in the direction of the closing position S by a spring (indicated in FIG. 5). By further opening of the pivoting part 10, the latter penetrates further into the end region 52, here by loading with a storage item 18 beginning. The stop element 48 is thus gradually pressed back counter to a corresponding spring force until said stop element has arrived at a switching point 28, indicated here by dotted lines.

(22) From the switching point 28, the closing force module 14 is switched into the active state A. If the pivoting part 10 is now moved in the direction of the closing position S, the stop element 48 is moved again beyond the switching position 28.

(23) However, a damper module 54 (only indicated symbolically in FIG. 5) prevents a mechanical switching over into the passive state P: the damper module is fastened fixedly to the carrier 8 with a fixed section 58. The stop element 48 is guided movably on the carrier 8 via the abovementioned spring and a damper. Owing to the damping, the stop element 48 cannot move sufficiently rapidly back over the switching point 28, and the active state A continues to exist for a length of time. This suffices for the pivoting part 10 to pass a limit pivoting angle 56 towards the closing position S. This is true of a customarily rapid closing movement.

(24) After the limit pivoting angle 56 is exceeded, the active state A is now locked by a blocking module 57 (merely indicated here), i.e. can no longer be released towards the passive state P. The locking takes place by the stop element 48 continuing to be held mechanically on the other side of the switching point 28. During the opening of the pivoting part 10, and when the limit pivoting angle 56 is fallen short of (and the stop element 48 is released), the damper module 54 prevents said stop element from passing the switching point 28 before the structural part 50 lies again against the stop element 48 and the latter is now held again by the structural part 50. The active state A thus continues to be maintained.

(25) Only after the pivoting part 10 is unloaded does the stop element 48 now return back beyond the switching point 28 by a slow movement of the damper module 54, and the closing force module 14 switches again into the passive state P.

(26) In the example, the blocking module 57 therefore brings the stop element 48 into, and holds it in, the end position (shown in extended form) of the open position O. The time between falling short of the limit pivoting angle 56 and exceeding the switching point 28 by means of the structural element 50 is not sufficient in a customarily rapid opening movement in order to allow the stop element 48 to pass beyond the switching point 28.

(27) The following is a summary list of reference numerals and the corresponding structure used in the above description of the invention: 2 Passenger aircraft 4 Overhead region 6 Storage compartment 8 Carrier 10 Pivoting part 12 Pivot axis 12a First pivot axis 12b Second pivot axis 14 Closing force module 16 Switching module 18 Storage item 20 Rocking device 22 Sliding section 24 Direction of gravitational force 26 Spring element 28 Switching point 30 Force accumulator 32 Coupling module 34a First pivot bearing 34b Second pivot bearing 36 Running ring 38 Bearing shell 40 Shaft 42a, b Blocking bolt 44a, b Guide 46 End stop module 48 Stop element 50 Structural part 52 End region 54 Damper module 56 Limit pivoting angle 57 Blocking module 58 Fixed section O Open position S Closing position B Pivoting region A Active state P Passive state MS Closing moment MA Mass MG Limit mass R Inoperative orientation