Aircraft luggage handling system

• US 20070284481A1
• Filed: 05/17/2007
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited (Airbus SE)
• Original Assignee: Airbus UK Limited (Airbus SE)
• Inventors: Linero, Luis
• Granted Patent: US 7,744,033 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 244/137.100
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/003 Stowage devices for passengers' personal luggage
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 9/00 Equipment for handling freight; Equipment for facilitating passenger embarkation or the like emergency equipment B64D17/00, B64D19/00, B64D25/00; structures integral with fuselage to facilitate loading, fuselage floors specially adapted for freight, steps mounted on and retractable within aircraft B64C; ground installations B64F
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/366 Check-in counters
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/368 Arrangements or installations for routing, distributing or loading baggage

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method of operating an aircraft having a passenger cabin and a cargo hold, comprises the steps of directing passengers to board the aircraft, directing passengers to deposit their luggage in a luggage deposit location on-board the aircraft, and subsequently taking the deposited luggage from the luggage deposit location and then storing the luggage in the cargo hold of the aircraft. In another embodiment, a method of unloading an aircraft having a cargo hold and a passenger cabin, comprises the steps of transporting items of luggage from the cargo hold to a luggage collection location on-board the aircraft, and directing passengers to collect their luggage from the luggage collection location and to disembark the aircraft is also provided. Information may be gathered with regard to the identity of passengers embarking and disembarking the aircraft. Yet another embodiment relates to an aircraft having a passenger cabin, a cargo hold, and a luggage handling system mounted in the cargo hold. The luggage handling system may comprise a plurality of luggage storage locations located in the cargo hold of the aircraft, a selector for selecting one of the luggage storage locations, and a luggage transporter for transporting luggage from a luggage deposit location, to the selected luggage storage location.

Claims

1. A method of operating an aircraft having a passenger cabin and a cargo hold, comprising the steps of:

directing passengers to board the aircraft,

directing passengers to deposit their luggage in a luggage deposit location on-board the aircraft, and

subsequently transporting the deposited luggage from the luggage deposit location and then storing the luggage in the cargo hold of the aircraft.

2. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 1, wherein

the cargo hold comprises a plurality of luggage storage locations, each luggage storage location being independently accessible, and

the step of storing the luggage includes selecting one of the plurality of luggage storage locations such that at least one item of luggage is stored in a selected luggage storage location that is different from the luggage storage location selected for another item of luggage.

3. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 2, wherein

the aircraft comprises a luggage storage location selector, and a step of selecting a luggage storage location for the storage of items of luggage is performed by the selector.

4. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 2, further comprising steps of

gathering information on-board the aircraft to identify each passenger, and

using such information to select a luggage storage location for an item of luggage.

5. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 4, further comprising a step of

gathering information relating a passenger to his/her item(s) of luggage.

6. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 2, further comprising steps of

gathering information relating to a characteristic of the luggage, and

using such information to select a luggage storage location for an item of luggage.

7. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 1, further comprising a step of

directing passengers to the passenger cabin of the aircraft after they have deposited their luggage in the luggage deposit location.

8. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 2, further comprising steps of

directing disembarking passengers to collect their luggage from a luggage collection location on-board the aircraft, and

selecting a luggage storage location and transporting the luggage in that luggage storage location to the luggage collection location.

9. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 8, further comprising steps of

gathering information to identify a disembarking passenger, and

using such information in the step of selecting the luggage storage location from which the luggage therein is transported to the luggage collection location.

10. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 1, further comprising steps of

directing disembarking passengers to collect their luggage from a luggage collection location on-board the aircraft, and

transporting luggage from the cargo hold to the luggage collection location in a predefined order.

11. A method of operating an aircraft according to claim 1, further comprising steps of

transporting luggage from the cargo hold to a luggage collection location on-board the aircraft, and

directing passengers to collect their luggage in an order defined by the order in which the luggage is returned to the luggage collection location.

12. A method of unloading an aircraft having a cargo hold and a passenger cabin, comprising the steps of

transporting items of luggage from the cargo hold to a luggage collection location on-board the aircraft, and

directing passengers to collect their luggage from the luggage collection location and to disembark the aircraft.

13. A method of unloading an aircraft according to claim 12, further comprising the steps of

transporting items of luggage from the cargo hold to the luggage collection location in a predefined order, and

directing passengers to collect their luggage in an order related to the order in which items of luggage are transported to the luggage collection location.

14. A method of unloading an aircraft according to claim 13, wherein the predefined order is dependent on the order in which items of luggage were stored.

15. A method of unloading an aircraft according to claim 13, wherein the predefined order is dependent on the seating location of the owner of each item of luggage.

16. A method of unloading an aircraft having a cargo hold and a passenger cabin, comprising the steps of

directing passengers to disembark the aircraft via a luggage collection location,

gathering information about the identity of a passenger,

utilising the information gathered about the identity of a passenger to identify one or more items of luggage related to that passenger,

transporting the item(s) of luggage related to the passenger to the luggage collection location, and

directing the passenger to collect their item(s) of luggage from the luggage collection location.

17. A method of unloading an aircraft having a cargo hold and a passenger cabin, comprising a repetition of the steps of

transporting an item of luggage from the cargo hold to a luggage collection location,

selecting a passenger based on the item of luggage transported to the luggage collection location, and

directing the selected passenger to collect their item of luggage from the luggage collection location.

18. An aircraft having a passenger cabin, a cargo hold, and a luggage handling system mounted in the cargo hold, the luggage handling system comprising:

a plurality of luggage storage locations located in the cargo hold of the aircraft,

a selector for selecting one of the luggage storage locations, and

a luggage transporter for transporting luggage from a luggage deposit location, to the selected luggage storage location.

19. An aircraft according to claim 18, wherein the luggage transporter also transports luggage from a selected one of the luggage storage locations to a luggage collection location.

20. An aircraft according to claim 18, wherein the selector selects a luggage storage location based upon input to an on-board luggage tracking system, which includes a boarding card reader mounted at an entrance to the aircraft.

21. An aircraft according to claims 18, further comprising

a luggage storage device comprising a plurality of moveably mounted luggage storage supports, each support corresponding to an independently accessible luggage storage location.

22. An aircraft according to claim 18, wherein the transporter comprises a main conveyor and a plurality of storage conveyors, each storage conveyor being configured to accept luggage from the main conveyor and deposit it in a luggage storage location corresponding to that storage conveyor.

23. An aircraft according to claim 22 wherein the main conveyor comprises a plurality of powered rollers, which are individually controllable to allow the independent, simultaneous, transport of a plurality of items of luggage.

24. An aircraft according to claim 18, wherein the height of at least part of both the cargo hold and the passenger cabin is sufficient for a person to stand.