Patent ID: 6305643
Filing Date: 2001-10-23
Classification: B64D

Abstract:
An automated cart stowage system in an aircraft having a passenger deck with a galley and a lower deck located below the passenger deck at the galley, the system comprising:(a) a number of movable galley carts;(b) a container sized and shaped to be located within the lower deck, the container for storing the plurality of galley carts during flight, the container having a first end and a second end, the distance therebetween defining a longitudinal direction; the container further including first and second interior regions each extending between the first and second ends, the number of galley carts being storable in rows in the second region, an access space being left available between stored carts in the second region; the access space being an empty row oriented transverse to the longitudinal direction;(c) a passageway located in the container in the first region and extending vertically upward into the galley; the first region otherwise being free of objects;(d) a cart lift for automatically transferring at least one galley cart at a time between the passenger deck and the container, the cart lift being located in the passageway in a non-blocking manner; and(e) access means postionable within the passageway to assist a person in moving between the passenger deck and the container via the passageway;wherein during normal operations the cart lift transfers carts between the passenger deck and the container; and wherein during anomalous conditions, the access means are made available to assist the person in entering and exiting the container via the passageway to thereby manually transfer material to and from the carts stored in the container, the first region providing an aisle for the person to access the carts, the access space between carts allowing the person to shift carts longitudinally in order to access each cart without having to remove carts from the container.