Abstract:
An overhead galley/crew rest system for an aircraft, wherein the aircraft includes a main passenger cabin having a plurality of storage binds disposed along a generally planar ceiling portion thereof. The aircraft further includes an overhead storage section positioned generally above the ceiling portion of the main passenger cabin. The overhead galley/crew rest system includes a galley cart storage area disposed in this overhead storage section, which is capable of storing multiple galley carts. This galley cart storage area defines a generally planar cart plane. A walkway is provided that generally extends through the overhead storage section. The walkway is generally positioned between the plurality of storage binds and generally below the generally planar cart plane. A stairway interconnects the main passenger cabin and the walkway. Similarly, a cart lift mechanism interconnects the main passenger cabin to the overhead storage section for individually raising and lowering the plurality of galley carts. Furthermore, a plurality of sleeping berths and pursuer&#39;s&#39;s station may be included within this overhead storage section.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to aircraft and, more particularly, to a manually operated overhead galley and crew rest facility in an aircraft. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     As is well known in the art, modern long-range commercial aircraft often transport an enormous amount of food and beverages for consumption by the passengers of the aircraft. Typically, it is necessary to load enough food and beverages to feed hundreds of people at least two or more full meals during a single flight. However, it is not uncommon for this enormous amount of food and beverages, disposed in multiple galleys, to consume as much as 25% of the overall passenger cabin floor space. As should be readily apparent, such inefficient use of floor space leads to a reduction in the total number of passenger seating. This reduction in the total number of passenger seating results in significant loss of revenue for an airline. 
     Attempts have been made to provide automated systems that store galley carts off the main deck, thereby reducing the overall passenger cabin floor space used for food storage and increasing the number of passenger seating. However, these automated systems have not been well received due to the reliability and potential associated cost of maintaining any automated system. Additionally, many of these automated systems have not been well received due to the difficulty in maintaining their cleanliness. 
     Similarly, long-range commercial flights often require additional facilities for accommodating the flight crew during rest breaks. These facilities often include sleeping berths to enable various flight crew members or relief crews to sleep while in flight. These sleeping berths are typically placed on the main deck of the aircraft. As can be appreciated, such sleeping berths, like the galley carts, reduce the available passenger cabin floor space and, thus, reduce the number of passenger seating. 
     Accordingly, there exists a need in the relevant art to provide a device for maximizing the use of the passenger cabin floor space. Furthermore, there exists a need in the relevant art to provide an overhead galley for stowing galley carts during long-range flights. Still further, there exists a need in the relevant art to provide an overhead galley and crew rest facility to maximize passenger seating. Additionally, there exists a need in the relevant art to provide a manually accessible overhead galley and crew rest facility that overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An overhead galley/crew rest system for an aircraft, wherein the aircraft includes a main passenger cabin having a plurality of storage binds disposed along a generally planar ceiling portion thereof. The aircraft further includes an overhead storage section positioned generally above the ceiling portion of the main passenger cabin. The overhead galley/crew rest system includes a galley cart storage area disposed in this overhead storage section, which is capable of storing multiple galley carts. This galley cart storage area defines a generally planar cart plane. A walkway is provided that generally extends through the overhead storage section. The walkway is generally positioned between the plurality of storage binds and generally below the generally planar cart plane. A stairway interconnects the main passenger cabin and the walkway. Similarly, a cart lift mechanism interconnects the main passenger cabin to the overhead storage section for individually raising and lowering the plurality of galley carts. Furthermore, a plurality of sleeping berths and pursuer&#39;s&#39;s station may be included within this overhead storage section. 
     Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description and the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an overhead galley/crew rest system according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a partial cross-section view illustrating the overhead galley/crew rest system; 
     FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating the overhead galley/crew rest system; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a manual platform mechanism for transferring galley carts to a cart lift shown in a first position; 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the manual platform mechanism for transferring galley carts to a cart lift shown in a second position; 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating the manual platform mechanism for transferring galley carts to a cart lift shown in a third position; 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an overhead galley/crew rest system according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating an alternative galley cart storage method; 
     FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating an overhead galley/crew rest system according to yet another alternative embodiment of the present invention; and 
     FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating an overhead galley/crew rest system according to still yet another alternative embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 11 is a partial cross-section view illustrating the overhead galley/crew rest system of FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 12 is a plan view illustrating the overhead galley/crew rest system of FIG.  10 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The following description of the preferred embodiments is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention, its application, or uses. 
     According to the principles of the present invention, a manually accessible overhead galley and crew rest facility is provided that is capable of relocating a plurality of galley carts and crew rest facilities from the main deck of the aircraft to a previously unused overhead section. Relocation of these galley carts and crew rest facilities provides additional space for passenger seating on the main deck of the aircraft. By way of non-limiting example, it has been realized that the present invention enables approximately twelve additional seats to be placed in an economy section of a Boeing 747-400. 
     Moreover, the manual accessibility of the manually accessible overhead galley and crew rest facility of the present invention eliminates the need for complex mechanisms that are typically used in unmanned galley facilities. 
     Referring to FIGS. 1-6, an overhead galley/crew rest system  10  is illustrated according to a first embodiment of the present invention. According to this embodiment, overhead galley/crew rest system  10  is capable of conveniently and reliably storing a plurality of conventional galley carts  12  in a galley cart storage area  14 . Preferably, galley cart storage area  14  is refrigerated to provide proper food keep. 
     Overhead galley/crew rest system  10  further includes a stairway entry  16 , an overhead walkway  18 , a plurality of galley stowage modules  20 , a plurality of sleeping berths  22 , a pursuer&#39;s station  24 , and a cart lift system  26 , which are all disposed in an aircraft  28 . Aircraft  28  includes a fuselage  30 , a main deck  32 , a plurality of center overhead storage bins  34 , a main deck ceiling  36 , and an overhead section  38 . In conventional aircraft, overhead section  38  is typically not generally used for storage. 
     As best seen in FIG. 1, stairway entry  16  of overhead galley/crew rest system  10  generally extends from main deck  32  to overhead walkway  18 . Stairway entry  16  is generally sized to permit safe and convenient ingress and egress to overhead section  38  by the flight crew. Referring now to FIG. 2, overhead walkway  18  is shown preferably disposed between center overhead storage bins  34  of main passenger cabin  40 . That is, the walking surface of overhead walkway  18  is positioned below a galley cart support surface  42 , upon which galley carts  12  are placed. Accordingly, such arrangement enables the available headroom of overhead walkway to be maximized while further maximizing the headroom of a pair of main cabin passenger walkways  44 . However, it should be understood that the particular dimensions of overhead galley/crew rest system  10  might be easily changed depending on the customer&#39;s needs and/or preferences. Accordingly, depending on these dimensions, the overhead galley attendant could work either in a standing position or a seated position. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 1, the plurality of sleeping berths  22  are disposed on opposing sides of overhead walkway  18 . The plurality of sleeping berths  22  each include a sleeping surface  46  and an optional enclosure panel  48 . The occupant of the berth preferably manually slides optional enclosure panel  48  between a raised position and a lowered position. It should be appreciated that by positioning the plurality of sleeping berths  22  down past galley cart storage area  14  and galley stowage modules  20  enables galley carts  12  and the like to be accessed without disturbing crew in the crew rest facility. 
     Pursuer&#39;s station  24  preferably includes additional stacked berths  50 , a workstation  52 , an additional lavatory  54 , and seating  56 . Stacked berths  50  are of conventional design and are anticipated to add approximately four additional berths to a typical Boeing 747-400. However, as can be appreciated, stacked berths  50  may be eliminated should additional space is required for galley cart storage area  14 . Workstation  52  of pursuer&#39;s station  24  preferably includes a desk surface  58  for use with writing, computing, or other general work duties. 
     Additional lavatory  54  includes a stool  60 , sink  62 , and other standard lavatory accommodations. Lavatory  54  is a dedicated crew lavatory that enables convenient access for crewmembers during rest breaks and the like. 
     During operation, galley carts  12  are preferably stored in refrigerated galley cart storage area  14 . Galley carts  12  would be locked down within galley cart storage area  14  in a conventional main deck means to inhibit damaging movement during flight. To facilitate raising and lowering galley carts  12  from overhead section  38  to main deck  32  of aircraft  28 , cart lift system  26  is employed. Specifically, as best seen in FIGS. 4-6, to remove galley cart  12  from galley cart storage area  14 , a manual platform mechanism  64  is employed. Manual platform mechanism  64  includes a base  66 , a pair of sidewalls  68 , and a laterally slidable mechanism  70 , which is longitudinally slidably on rails  71 . Base  66  generally is a flat platform for accommodating galley cart  12  thereon. Base  66  is disposed generally coplanar with a raised surface  72  of overhead section  38  and galley cart support surface  42  of galley cart storage area  14 . Raised section  72  interfaces with a cart lift door  76  of cart lift system  26  to permit smooth and convenient rolling of galley cart  12  to cart lift system  26 . 
     To this end, manual platform mechanism  64 , normally disposed in raised section  72  on an opposing side of overhead walkway  18  from galley cart storage area  14 , is manually slid such that base  66  is generally coplanar with galley cart support surface  42  of galley cart storage area  14  to define a relatively flat rolling surface that spans overhead walkway  18 . Galley cart  12  is then unlocked from galley cart storage area  14  and manually rolled across to base  66  and locked to prevent rolling. Base  66  is then slid back to raised section  72  via laterally slidable mechanism  70 . Once galley cart  12  is slid to raised section  72 , one of the pair of sidewalls  68  is articulated to enable longitudinal rolling of galley cart  12 . Cart lift door  76  of cart lift system  26  is opened to enable galley cart  12  to be rolled into cart lift system  26 . Cart lift door  76  is then closed and galley cart  12  is lowered to main deck  32 . The lowering of galley cart  12  via cart lift system  26  may be manual or automatic. That is, galley cart  12  may be lowered using a manual pulley system or an automated drive mechanism, such as a motor driven pulley or screw drive and the like. To raise galley cart  12  to overhead section  38 , an opposite operation is performed. 
     Referring now to FIGS. 7-9, an alternative embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, generally indicated at  110 . According to this embodiment, raised galley storage system  110  is capable of conveniently and reliably storing a plurality of conventional galley carts  12  in a galley cart storage area  114 . Preferably, galley cart storage area  114  is refrigerated to provide proper food keep. 
     Raised galley storage system  110  further includes a stairway entry  116 , an raised walkway  118 , and a cart lift system  126 , which are all disposed in an aircraft  28 . As best seen in FIG. 7, stairway entry  116  of raised galley storage system  110  generally extends from main deck  132  to raised walkway  118 . Stairway entry  116  is generally sized to permit safe and convenient ingress and egress to raised section  138  by the flight crew. Raised walkway  118  is preferably disposed generally above an existing galley  134  adjacent a passenger compartment  140 . However, the walking surface of raised walkway  118  is positioned below a pair of galley cart support surfaces  142 , upon which galley carts  12  are placed. Accordingly, such arrangement enables the available headroom of raised walkway  118  to be maximized while further maximizing the headroom existing galley  134 . However, it should be understood that the particular dimensions of raised galley storage system  110  might be easily changed depending on the customer&#39;s needs and/or preferences. Accordingly, depending on these dimensions, the overhead galley attendant could work either in a standing position or a seated position. 
     During operation, galley carts  12  are preferably stored in refrigerated galley cart storage area  114 . Galley carts  12  would be locked down within galley cart storage area  114  in a conventional main deck means to inhibit damaging movement during flight. To facilitate raising and lowering galley carts  12  from raised section  138  to main deck  132  of aircraft  28 , cart lift system  126  is employed. Specifically, to remove galley cart  12  from galley cart storage area  114 , a manually sliding trolley  164  is employed. Sliding trolley  164  includes a base  166  longitudinally slidably on rails  171 . Base  166  generally is a flat platform for accommodating galley cart  12  thereon. Base  166  is disposed generally coplanar with galley cart support surfaces  142 . Galley cart support surfaces  142  interface with cart lift system  126  to permit smooth and convenient rolling of galley cart  12  to cart lift system  126 . 
     To this end, sliding trolley  164  is manually slid such that base  166  is generally coplanar with galley cart support surfaces  142  of galley cart storage area  114  to define a relatively flat rolling surface that spans raised walkway  118 . Galley cart  12  is then unlocked from galley cart storage area  114  and manually rolled across to base  166  and, preferably yet optionally, locked to prevent rolling. Sliding trolley  164  is then slid back to cart lift system  126  at which time it is lowered by cart lift system  126 . The lowering of galley cart  12  via cart lift system  126  may be manual or automatic. That is, galley cart  12  may be lowered using a manual pulley system or an automated drive mechanism, such as a motor driven pulley or screw drive and the like. To raise galley cart  12  to raised section  138 , an opposite operation is performed. Moreover, it is anticipated that sliding trolley  164  may be used as the lower support structure of cart lift system  126 , such that sliding trolley  164  and galley cart  12  are simply slid into cart lift system  126  and lowered as a single unit. Still further, it is anticipated that sliding trolley  164  may be indexed to each cart location of galley cart storage area  114  such that galley cart  12  may remain locked to sliding trolley  164  without the need for rolling. 
     In the event, cart lift system  126  functions improperly, galley carts  12  may still be removed from raised galley storage system  110  using stairway entry  116 . It is also anticipated that galley carts  12  may be stored on multiple sliding trolleys  164  over raised walkway  118  to increase storage capacity. Still further, it is anticipated that movement of sliding trolley  164  may be motorized to reduce crew fatigue. 
     As best seen in FIG. 8, it is anticipated that multiple banks of galley carts  12  may be stored in a stacked fashion in a galley cart storage area  214  to permit additional storage efficiency to be realized. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 9, a plurality of sleeping berths  122  may be disposed on opposing sides of a secondary raised walkway  119 , which is accessible via a second stairway  117  from raised walkway  118 . It should be appreciated that by positioning the plurality of sleeping berths  122  down past galley cart storage area  114  enables galley carts  12  and the like to be accessed without disturbing crew in the crew rest facility. 
     Referring now to FIGS. 10-12, an alternative embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, generally indicated at  210 . According to this embodiment, overhead galley/crew rest system  210  is capable of conveniently and reliably storing a plurality of conventional galley carts  12  in a galley cart storage area  114 . The particular component parts of raised galley storage system  210  is similar to overhead galley/crew rest system  10 . Therefore, in the interest of brevity, further description is not deemed necessary. It should be noted that like reference numbers, which employ a 200 series prefix, indicate like parts. 
     The present invention being thus described provides a manually accessible overhead galley and crew rest facility that is capable of relocating a plurality of galley carts and crew rest facilities from the main deck of the aircraft to a previously unused overhead section. Relocation of these galley carts and crew rest facilities provides additional space for passenger seating on the main deck of the aircraft. By way of non-limiting example, it has been realized that the present invention enables approximately twelve additional seats to be placed in an economy section of a Boeing 747-400 or approximately ten additional seats to be placed in an economy section of a Boeing 777. It should be understood that over the life span of a Boeing 777, ten additional seats generate approximately $4 billion in added revenue. 
     The simplicity of the present invention further provides economies to be realized in maintenance, cleanliness, and weight. Furthermore, the present invention is easily bypassed through the various stairways so as not to prevent food service to the aircraft passengers. The combination of simplicity, low weight, low cost, high reliability, manual backup, minimal operational impact, minimal ground turnaround impact, and the ability to use standard galley carts proves the present invention should be widely accepted. 
     The description of the invention is merely exemplary in nature and, thus, variations that do not depart from the gist of the invention are intended to be within the scope of the invention. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention.