Aircraft passenger seat with enhanced lie flat position spacing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10569884-B2
Application number	US-201715668364-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 3, 2017
Priority date	Nov 11, 2015
Publication date	Feb 25, 2020
Grant date	Feb 25, 2020

Abstract

In an illustrative embodiment of an aircraft cabin passenger seating arrangement, first and second adjacent passenger seats are positioned at different angles with reference to a longitudinal axis of an aircraft, and longitudinally offset from each other such that the first seat is positioned forward of the second seat by an amount less than a length of the second passenger seat when in the lie-flat position. The first and second adjacent passenger seats may be longitudinally offset from a third passenger seat separated from the second passenger seat by an aisle, the third passenger seat disposed proximate a fourth passenger seat, such that a row of passenger seats includes two staggered groups of passenger seating. The first passenger seat may be vertically offset from the second passenger seat.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A passenger seating arrangement for an aircraft cabin, comprising:
a first passenger seat comprising a first longitudinal axis arranged at a first angle relative to a longitudinal axis of an aircraft;
a second passenger seat comprising a second longitudinal axis arranged at a second angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, the second angle different than the first angle, wherein the second passenger seat is longitudinally offset from the first passenger seat in the aircraft cabin such that a portion of the second passenger seat is laterally adjacent to the first passenger seat when the second passenger seat is in a lie-flat seating position;
a third passenger seat comprising a third longitudinal axis arranged at a third angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, the third angle different than the first angle,
wherein
the third passenger seat is longitudinally offset from the second passenger seat such that a portion of the third passenger seat is laterally aligned with the second passenger seat when the third passenger seat is in a lie-flat seating position, and
the third passenger seat is separated from the second passenger seat by longitudinal aisle; and

a fourth passenger seat comprising a fourth longitudinal axis arranged at the first angle, wherein the fourth passenger seat is longitudinally offset from the third passenger seat in the aircraft cabin such that a portion of the fourth passenger seat is laterally adjacent to the third passenger seat when the third passenger seat is in a lie-flat seating position, and
wherein the first passenger seat when in a lie-flat position resides in a first plane at a first vertical position, and the second passenger seat when in a lie-flat position resides in a second plane at a second vertical position lower than the first vertical position, and wherein the third passenger seat when in a lie-flat position resides in the second plane and the fourth passenger seat when in a lie-flat position resides in the first plane, and
wherein the first and fourth passenger seats are positioned apart from the longitudinal aisle, and the second and third passenger seats are positioned directly adjacent the longitudinal aisle.

2. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 1 , wherein a head rest of the first passenger seat in the lie-flat seating position is at a first vertical position different from a second vertical position of a head rest of the second passenger seat in the lie-flat seating position.

3. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 2 , wherein the first vertical position is higher than the second vertical position by at least three inches.

4. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 2 , wherein a difference between the first vertical position and the second vertical position allows for a portion of a bed surface provided to a second passenger seated in the second passenger seat to overlap vertically with a seating region available to a first passenger seated in the first passenger seat.

5. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 4 , wherein the portion of the bed surface comprises a portion of an arm rest of the second passenger seat.

6. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 4 , wherein the portion of the bed surface overlaps vertically with a partition dividing a first passenger suite including the first passenger seat from a second passenger suite including the second passenger seat.

7. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 1 , wherein each of the first longitudinal axis and the second longitudinal axis are parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft.

8. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the second passenger seat and the fourth passenger seat, when in the lie-flat seating position, are each inclined downwards from a respective headrest at a decline angle offset from a floor surface of the aircraft cabin.

9. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 1 , wherein a leg rest of each of the second passenger seat and the fourth passenger seat, when in the lie-flat seating position, extends into a footwell region of a respective passenger suite.

10. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the first and second passenger seats are both generally forward facing.

11. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the second angle is opposite the third angle such that a footrest end of the second passenger seat when in the lie-flat seating position angles toward a footrest end of the third passenger seat when in the lie-flat seating position.

12. A passenger seating arrangement for an aircraft cabin, comprising:
a starboard side seating group comprising a first plurality of rows, each row of the first plurality of rows comprising a first passenger seat and a second passenger seat,
wherein
the first passenger seat comprises a first longitudinal axis arranged at a first angle relative to a longitudinal axis of an aircraft,
the second passenger seat comprises a second longitudinal axis arranged at a second angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft different than the first angle, and
the second passenger seat is longitudinally offset from the first passenger seat in the aircraft cabin such that a portion of the second passenger seat is laterally adjacent to the first passenger seat when the second passenger seat is in a lie-flat seating position;

a center seating group comprising a second plurality of rows, each row of the second plurality of rows comprising a third passenger seat, a fourth passenger seat, and a fifth passenger seat, wherein
the third passenger seat is separated from the second passenger seat by a first aisle,
the third passenger seat comprises a third longitudinal axis arranged at a third angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft,
the fourth passenger seat comprises a fourth longitudinal axis arranged at a fourth angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft different than the third angle, and
the fifth passenger seat comprises a fifth longitudinal axis arranged at a fifth angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, wherein the fifth angle is equal to and opposite the third angle;

wherein, in each row of the plurality of rows, the second passenger seat is longitudinally offset from the third passenger seat in the aircraft cabin such that a portion of the second passenger seat is laterally adjacent to the third passenger seat when the second passenger seat is in a lie-flat seating position,
wherein the first passenger seat when in a lie-flat position resides in a first plane at a first vertical position, and the second passenger seat when in a lie-flat position resides in a second plane at a second vertical position lower than the first vertical position, wherein the third passenger seat when in a lie-flat position and the fifth passenger seat when in a lie flat position reside in the second plane, and wherein the fourth passenger seat when in a lie-flat position resides in the first plane, and
wherein the first and fourth passenger seats are positioned apart from the first aisle, the second and third passenger seats are positioned directly adjacent the first aisle, and the fifth passenger seat is positioned directly adjacent a second aisle parallel to the first aisle.

13. The passenger seating arrangement of claim 12 , further comprising:
a port side seating group comprising a third plurality of rows, each row of the third plurality of rows comprising a sixth passenger seat and a seventh passenger seat,
wherein
the sixth passenger seat comprises a sixth longitudinal axis arranged at a sixth angle relative to the longitudin

Assignees

• Rockwell Collins Inc

Inventors

• Morgan Edward William

Classifications

• B64D11/0601

  Arrangement of seats for non-standard seating layouts, e.g. seats staggered horizontally or vertically, arranged in an angled or fishbone layout, or facing in other directions than the direction of flight · CPC title

• B64D11/0604

  including a bed, e.g. cocoon type passenger seat modules · CPC title

• B64D11/0606 Primary

  with privacy shells, screens, separators or the like (class dividers B64D11/0023) · CPC title

• B64D11/0605

  including tables or desks · CPC title

• B64D11/0641

  Seats convertible into beds · CPC title