Patent ID: 8840065

Claim:
A multifunctional cargo bay system for an aircraft, comprising: a cargo bay floor; a plurality of rolling means for rolling elements to be loaded, each of the rolling means comprising: a frame structure including a floor plate and first and second lateral walls extending perpendicularly from the floor plate; and a rolling cylinder extending between the first and second lateral walls such that at least a part of the rolling cylinder protrudes across a plane defined by free edges of the first and second lateral walls; and a retaining rail mounted on the cargo bay floor, wherein the retaining rail is configured for installing the rolling means; wherein each of the plurality of rolling means is variably mounted with respect to an adjacent rolling means along the longitudinal direction of the retaining rail; wherein the cargo bay system has a plurality of loading positions that are each adapted to accommodate at least four different elements selected from the group consisting of a net for dividing the cargo bay, a standard air cargo container, a pallet, a telescope system, a lower deck catering container, a lower deck break area, a fixed-length conveyor belt, a variable-length conveyor belt and a combination thereof.