Passenger seat for a system of seats of an aircraft cabin

• US 8,979,194 B2
• Filed: 07/11/2012
• Issued: 03/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Safran Aerotechnics SAS (Safran SA)
• Original Assignee: Zodiac Aerotechnics
• Inventors: Boomgarden, Gunter, Niedostatek, Mark, Rittner, Wolfgang, Meckes, Rdiger
• Primary Examiner(s): GABLER, PHILIP F
• Application Number:
  US13/546,003
• Publication Number:
  US 20130020845A1
• Time in Patent Office: 979 Days
• Field of Search: 297/217.1, 297/217.3, 297/248
• US Class Current: 297/217.3
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/0015 Arrangements for entertainment or communications, e.g. radio, television
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/06 Arrangements of seats, or adaptations or details specially adapted for aircraft seats crew seat constructions for emergency purposes B64D25/04
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/0619 with energy absorbing means specially adapted for mitigating impact loads for passenger seats, e.g. at a crash
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/0624 Arrangements of electrical connectors, e.g. for earphone, internet or electric supply
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/0647 Seats characterised by special upholstery or cushioning features
• CPC Class Codes: H02N 2/18 producing electrical output from mechanical input, e.g. generators for measurement devices G01
• CPC Class Codes: H10N 10/13 characterised by the heat-exchanging means at the junction
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/40 Weight reduction
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/50 On board measures aiming to increase energy efficiency

Abstract

Passenger seat for a system of passenger seats of an aircraft cabin, comprising:

• • a seat body,
  • an energy harvesting system for providing electrical energy, in particular for use in the passenger seat electrical net and/or aircraft electrical net, wherein an energy harvesting device of the energy harvesting system is provided to the seat body, wherein
  • the energy harvesting device is adapted for capturing from the seat body ambient energy.

Claims

1. A system of passenger seats of an aircraft cabin, each passenger seat comprising:

a seat body;

at least one load consuming device; and

an energy harvesting system for providing electrical energy, the energy harvesting system comprising an energy harvesting device provided to the seat body, wherein;

an aircraft electrical net connects a number of passenger seat electrical nets for a predetermined number of passenger seats such that each passenger seat electrical net connects a respective energy harvesting system for the predetermined number of passenger seats;

load wiring connects the aircraft electrical net to each of the at least one load consuming devices for the predetermined number of passenger seats; and

each energy harvesting device for the predetermined number of passenger seats is adapted for capturing ambient energy from the seat body and each energy harvesting system is configured to transfer electrical energy from each energy harvesting device to both (1) at least one of the number of passenger seat electrical nets and (2) the aircraft electrical net.

2. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein the ambient energy is provided by a passenger to the seat body when the passenger is disposed in the seat body.

3. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein the ambient energy is provided to the seat body by a construction of the aircraft cabin to which the seat body is attached.

4. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each energy harvesting device provides electrical energy based on a piezoelectric effect, a thermoelectric effect, or a solarelectric effect.

5. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein the seat body comprises:

a stable seat construction inside the seat body; and

a seat coverage comprising an inside seat cushion and an outside seat cover, wherein;

each energy harvesting device is configured such that the ambient energy is provided by a passenger to the seat coverage when the passenger is disposed in the seat body;

each energy harvesting device is adapted for capturing ambient energy from the stable seat construction when the stable seat construction is mounted near a floor and a sidewall of the aircraft cabin;

or

each energy harvesting device is adapted for capturing residual light from the aircraft cabin when the seat body is placed in the aircraft cabin.

6. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein a seat coverage is flexible such that the seat coverage is movable and deformable based on movement of a passenger disposed in the seat body, wherein:

each energy harvesting device comprises a flexible energy harvesting structure incorporated in the seat coverage for capturing kinetic energy when the passenger moves in the seat body; and

each flexible energy harvesting structure is adapted to provide electrical energy based on a piezoelectric effect.

7. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each energy harvesting device comprises an energy harvesting structure and each energy harvesting structure comprises a fabric having a multitude of piezoelectric fibers.

8. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein a piezoelectric fiber is woven into a seat cover or is incorporated in a seat cushion.

9. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein a piezoelectric fiber is provided in a flexible sleeve and the flexible sleeve is layered adjacent to a seat cushion and a seat cover.

10. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein:

a warmable seat coverage is configured to be capable of being warmed up by body heat of a passenger in the seat body;

each energy harvesting device comprises an energy harvesting structure incorporated in the warmable seat coverage for capturing heat energy when the passenger warms up the warmable seat coverage; and

each energy harvesting structure is adapted to provide electrical energy based on a thermo-electric effect.

11. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each energy harvesting device comprises an energy harvesting structure and each energy harvesting structure comprises a plate of Peltier-elements.

12. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each energy harvesting device comprises an energy harvesting structure and each energy harvesting structure comprises a solar cell.

13. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each energy harvesting system further comprises an energy storing device electrically connected to the energy harvesting device such that each energy storing device is assigned individually to the passenger seat and is adapted to provide energy for each of the at least one load consuming devices electrically connected to the passenger seat electrical net and integrated in the passenger seat.

14. The system of passenger seats of claim 13 wherein each energy storing device is a capacitor, a super capacitor, or a rechargeable battery.

15. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each energy harvesting system further comprises an energy storing device electrically connected to the energy harvesting device and each energy storing device is assigned to a number of passenger seats and is adapted to store energy from a number of energy harvesting devices to provide energy for each of the at least one load consuming devices in the aircraft cabin.

16. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein the energy is provided for each of the at least one load consuming devices in form of a WLAN- or other wireless-system in the aircraft cabin.

17. An aircraft cabin comprising the system of passenger seats of claim 1, wherein the seat bodies are attached to a construction near a floor of the aircraft cabin.

18. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each energy harvesting device provides electrical energy based on a piezoelectric effect, a thermoelectric effect, and a solarelectric effect.

19. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein the seat body comprises:

a stable seat construction inside the seat body; and

a seat coverage comprising an inside seat cushion and an outside seat cover, wherein;

each energy harvesting device is configured such that the ambient energy is provided by a passenger to the seat coverage when the passenger is disposed in the seat body;

each energy harvesting device is adapted for capturing ambient energy from the stable seat construction when the stable seat construction is mounted near a floor and a sidewall of the aircraft cabin; and

each energy harvesting device is adapted for capturing residual light from the aircraft cabin when the seat body is placed in the aircraft cabin.

20. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein the seat body comprises:

a stable seat construction inside the seat body; and

a seat coverage comprising an inside seat cushion and an outside seat cover, wherein

each energy harvesting device is configured such that the ambient energy is provided by (1) body heat of a passenger transferred to the seat coverage and (2) kinetic energy of the passenger transferred to the seat coverage when the passenger is disposed in the seat body.

21. The system of passenger seats of claim 1 wherein each passenger seat electrical net comprises a seat energy storing device and the aircraft electrical net comprises an aircraft energy storing device such that the electrical energy transferred from each energy harvesting device is stored in both the seat energy storing devices and the aircraft energy storing device.

22. The system of passenger seats of claim 21 wherein the electrical energy transferred from the energy harvesting devices is sufficient to charge both the seat energy storing devices and the aircraft energy storing device.

23. The system of passenger seats of claim 21 wherein the electrical energy transferred from the energy harvesting devices is sufficient to charge a battery.