Actuatable door for an aircraft passenger suite

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11613360-B2
Application number	US-202117163052-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 29, 2021
Priority date	Jan 29, 2021
Publication date	Mar 28, 2023
Grant date	Mar 28, 2023

Abstract

An actuatable door for an aircraft passenger suite may include a flexible privacy divider configured to actuate between a stowed divider position and a deployed divider position, a cartridge configured to actuate between a stowed cartridge position and a deployed cartridge position via at least one intermediate cartridge position, and a mechanism housed within the cartridge and configured to actuate the flexible privacy divider between the stowed divider position and the deployed divider position, where the flexible privacy divider may be at least partially stowed within the cartridge when in the stowed divider position. The actuatable door may be configured to actuate between a stowed door position and a deployed door position via at least one intermediate door position, and configured to separate the aircraft passenger suite from an open area within an aircraft cabin when in the deployed door position and provide privacy to the aircraft passenger suite.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. An aircraft passenger suite, the aircraft passenger suite comprising:
a suite wall installed within an aircraft cabin, the suite wall including an opening configured to allow for access to the passenger suite from an open area within the aircraft cabin; and
an actuatable door coupled to the suite wall, the actuatable door being configured to actuate between a stowed door position and a deployed door position via at least one intermediate door position, the actuatable door being configured to separate the passenger suite from the open area within the aircraft cabin when in the deployed door position and provide privacy to the aircraft passenger suite, the actuatable door comprising:
a flexible privacy divider, the flexible privacy divider being configured to actuate between a stowed divider position and a deployed divider position;
a cartridge, the cartridge being configured to actuate between a stowed cartridge position and a deployed cartridge position via at least one intermediate cartridge position, the cartridge held in the deployed cartridge position across the opening when the flexible privacy divider is in the deployed divider position across the opening; and
a mechanism housed within the cartridge, the mechanism being configured to actuate the flexible privacy divider between the stowed divider position and the deployed divider position, the flexible privacy divider being at least partially stowed within the cartridge when in the stowed divider position.

2. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , the actuatable door being in the stowed door position when the cartridge is in the stowed cartridge position.

3. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , the actuatable door being in the at least one intermediate door position when the cartridge is in the deployed cartridge position and the flexible privacy divider is in the stowed divider position.

4. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , the actuatable door being in the deployed door position when the flexible privacy divider is in the deployed divider position.

5. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , the flexible privacy divider being fabricated from a continuous piece of material.

6. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , the flexible privacy divider being fabricated from a plurality of segmented or slatted pieces of overlaid material.

7. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , the flexible privacy divider being fabricated from a honeycomb material or origami-folded material.

8. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , at least a portion of the passenger suite being defined by a bridge installed within the aircraft cabin.

9. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 8 , the actuatable door comprising:
an actuation assembly including a hinge, the hinge being coupled to at least one of the suite wall or the bridge,
the cartridge being configured to rotate between the stowed cartridge position and the deployed cartridge position via the at least one intermediate cartridge position about an axis through the hinge.

10. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 8 , the actuatable door comprising:
an actuation assembly including a hinge, the hinge being coupled to at least one of the suite wall or the bridge,
the cartridge being configured to rotate and translate between the stowed cartridge position and the deployed cartridge position via the at least one intermediate cartridge position about an axis through the hinge.

11. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 8 , the cartridge being stowed within a space proximate to the bridge when in the stowed cartridge position.

12. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 8 , further comprising:
a channel proximate to at least one of the suite wall or the bridge,
the cartridge being configured to translate between the stowed cartridge position and the deployed cartridge position via the at least one intermediate cartridge position along the channel.

13. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 1 , further comprising:
an aircraft seat,
the cartridge being stowed within a space proximate to the aircraft seat when in the stowed cartridge position.

14. The aircraft passenger suite of claim 13 , the actuatable door comprising:
an actuation assembly including a hinge, the hinge being coupled to the suite wall,
the cartridge being configured to rotate between the stowed cartridge position from the space proximate to the aircraft seat and the deployed cartridge position via the at least one intermediate cartridge position about an axis through the hinge.

15. An actuatable door for an aircraft passenger suite installed within an aircraft cabin, the actuatable door comprising:
a flexible privacy divider, the flexible privacy divider being configured to actuate between a stowed divider position and a deployed divider position;
a cartridge, the cartridge being configured to actuate between a stowed cartridge position and a deployed cartridge position via at least one intermediate cartridge position, the cartridge held in the deployed cartridge position across the opening when the flexible privacy divider is in the deployed divider position across the opening; and
a mechanism housed within the cartridge, the mechanism being configured to actuate the flexible privacy divider between the stowed divider position and the deployed divider position, the flexible privacy divider being at least partially stowed within the cartridge when in the stowed divider position,
the actuatable door being coupled to a suite wall of the aircraft passenger suite, the suite wall including an opening configured to allow for access to the passenger suite from an open area within the aircraft cabin,
the actuatable door being configured to actuate between a stowed door position and a deployed door position via at least one intermediate door position, the actuatable door being configured to separate the passenger suite from the open area within the aircraft cabin when in the deployed door position and provide privacy to the aircraft passenger suite.

Assignees

• Be Aerospace Inc

Inventors

• Dowty Mark B

Classifications

• B64D11/0023

  Movable or removable cabin dividers, e.g. for class separation · CPC title

• B64D11/0606 Primary

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