Vehicle bulkhead safety system
First Claim
1. A safety system for reducing the risk of injury during a survivable crash of a high-speed passenger vehicle, said safety system comprising:
- at least one bulkhead support base mountable to the vehicle within a passenger compartment;
a bulkhead panel having a compliant impact surface, mounted to a portion of said bulkhead support base;
energy absorbing means operatively associated with said bulkhead panel for absorbing the energy of a passenger impacting on said bulkhead panel and thereby minimizing injury to said passenger;
said bulkhead support base including a recessed cavity within which said energy absorbing means may be mounted, and said bulkhead panel mounted at least partially within said recessed cavity; and
said bulkhead panel pivotally mounted to said bulkhead support base by means of a hinge secured along an upper edge of said recessed cavity and an upper edge of said bulkhead panel.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A safety system for reducing the risk of injury during a survivable crash of a high-speed passenger vehicle. The safety system includes at least one bulkhead support base mounted to a vehicle within a passenger compartment and a bulkhead panel mounted to a portion of the bulkhead support base. In addition, the device includes energy-absorbing means associated with the bulkhead panel for absorbing the energy of a passenger impacting on the bulkhead panel. In this manner, the system minimizes injury to a passenger striking upon a bulkhead wall or class-divider wall within the vehicle. A triggering system is also provided for electronically activating the safety system when necessary.
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Citations
10 Claims
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1. A safety system for reducing the risk of injury during a survivable crash of a high-speed passenger vehicle, said safety system comprising:
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at least one bulkhead support base mountable to the vehicle within a passenger compartment; a bulkhead panel having a compliant impact surface, mounted to a portion of said bulkhead support base; energy absorbing means operatively associated with said bulkhead panel for absorbing the energy of a passenger impacting on said bulkhead panel and thereby minimizing injury to said passenger; said bulkhead support base including a recessed cavity within which said energy absorbing means may be mounted, and said bulkhead panel mounted at least partially within said recessed cavity; and said bulkhead panel pivotally mounted to said bulkhead support base by means of a hinge secured along an upper edge of said recessed cavity and an upper edge of said bulkhead panel. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A safety system for reducing the risk of injury during a survivable crash of an airliner and thereafter avoiding blockage of passenger egress from a row of passenger seats by automatic return to a stored position, said safety system comprising:
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at least one bulkhead support base mounted to the vehicle within a passenger compartment, said bulkhead support base including a recessed cavity positioned directly in front of a passenger seat, said recessed cavity being defined by upper and lower transverse walls and two oppositely facing side walls; an energy absorbing bulkhead panel pivotally mounted to said bulkhead support base along said upper transverse wall of said recessed cavity, said bulkhead panel positioned at least partially within said recessed cavity in a latched position to minimize interference with passenger ingress and egress in a passenger row, and having a compliant impact surface on a side facing said passenger seat; latching means for releasably latching said bulkhead panel in said latched position; an inflatable airbag mounted within said recessed cavity, said airbag being automatically inflated upon the occurrence of an airliner crash, said inflation of said airbag causing said latching means to release said bulkhead panel from said latched position and pivot outwardly to an impact absorbing position, whereby a passenger impacting upon said outwardly pivoted bulkhead panel will cause said bulkhead panel to compress and deflate said airbag, thereby permitting said bulkhead panel to pivot to its latched position.
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Specification