Inflatable evacuation ramp

Claim 2

An inflatable device for use in evacuating aircraft passengers departing from an exit over the wing of the aircraft comprising an elongated structure forming a base member and defined by a first pair of elongated tubular members, a second pair of relatively short tubular members extending between said first pair of tubular members near the ends thereof and in fluid communication therewith, means near a first end of said base member adjacent the wing of the aircraft for receiving inflation injecting fluid for introduction into said base member, and handrail means extending along and supported by said first pair of tubular members and in fluid communication with said base member only near the end thereof distal from the location for injection of air by said inflation means and control means disposed in the path of fluid communication between said handrail means and said base member for providing for the inflation of said handrail means only after an inflation of said base member to extend the first pair of elongated tubular members to their elongated position.

Claim 3

The device of claim 1 including an offset portion adjacent at least one end of said device providing space for a person to stand out of the path of evacuees traversing said walkway surface.

Claim 4

The device of claim 1 including means in The control means for positively prohibiting inflation of said handrail means until said base member has been substantially completely inflated.

Claim 5

The device of claim 1 wherein said handrail means comprises a substantially tubular elongated member extending along said base member and elevated relative thereto and a plurality of inflatable support members at spaced intervals extending between one of said base member elongated members and said handrail elongated member and in fluid communication only with the latter.

Claim 6

The device of claim 4 wherein said vehicle is an aircraft and said device is extended across a wing thereof, and including means for releasably attaching said device at one end thereto said aircraft means at the other end thereof for releasably attaching an additional evacuation device for passage of evacuees from said device to the ground.

Claim 7

The device of claim 1 including at least one inflatable cross support member extending between and in fluid communication with said first pair of tubular members and located intermediate said second pair of tubular members, and a walkway surface supported by said base member and said at least one cross support member.

Claim 8

The device of claim 6 including means supported by said cross tube members for dividing said walkway surface into a plurality of evacuation paths.

Claim 9

The device of claim 6 wherein said inflatable means includes means associated with said elongated base member and in communication therewith for supporting said base member upon a multi-plane surface so as to maintain said walkway means within a predetermined plane.

Claim 10

The device of claim 6 including means for deforming said walkway means to produce two distinct evacuee walkway paths thereon.

Claim 11

The device of claim 6 having two such handrails, and means attached to said walkway means and extending upwardly along said handrails to prevent evacuees from stepping or falling through said handrails.

Claim 12

The device of claim 6 wherein the fluid receiving means are disposed in a particular one of the elongated tubular members at a position near the wing of the aircraft and the control means are disposed in the particular one of the tubular members at the distal end of the tubular member and are constructed to normally prevent the passage of fluid into the handrail means and are responsive to at least a partial inflation of the tubular member to provide for the passage of fluid into the handrail means.

Claim 13

An aircraft evacuation aid comprising an elongated tubular structure comprising a pair of elongated leg members, cross tube members extending between the elongated legs of said tubular structure and in inflatable communication therewith, and a divider tube supported by said cross tube members, extending parallel to the elongated legs of said tubular structure, and in inflatable communication with said tubular structure, means fastened to and in inflatable communication with said tubular structure and said cross tube members for supporting said tubular structure in a predetermined plane relative to said aircraft, handrail means supported by and in inflatable communication with said tubular structure, and means for inflating all of the above-recited elements including means for inflating said above-recited elements in sequence so that said handrail means is inflated after the remainder of said above-recited elements are substantially fully inflated.

Claim 14

An aircraft evacuation aid comprising an elongated tubular structure comprising a pair of elongated leg members, cross tube members extending between the elongated legs of said tubular structure and in inflatable communication therewith, and a divider tube supported by said cross tube members, extending parallel to the elongated legs of said tubular structure, and in inflatable communication with said tubular structure, means fastened to and in inflatable communication with said tubular structure and said cross tube members for supporting said tubular structure in a predetermined plane relative to said aircraft, handrail means supported by and in inflatable communication with said tubular structure, and means for inflating all of the above-recited elements including means for inflating said above-recited elements in sequence so that said handrail means is inflated after the remainder of said above-recited elements are substantially fully inflated.

Claim 15

The device of claim 12 including walkway means supported by said tubular structure, cross tube members, and divider tube for easy traversal of the evacuation aid, and means extending from said walkway means upwardly along said handrail means to prevent accidental departure of an evacuee from the aid through said handrail means.

Claim 18

The device of claim 14 wherein said sequence inflating means includes restrictor means which prevent passage of air from said base member to said prevention means until the said base member is nearly completely inflated.

Claim 19

An inflatable device for use in evacuation of a vehicle when inflated by inflation apparatus comprising an inflatable base member inflatable near the end adjacent to the vehicle, into an elongated configuration, a walkway surface supported by said base member, an inflatable guard rail means fixed to and in fluid communication with said base member and comprising a substantially tubular elongated member extending substantially parallel to said base member, a plurality of inflatable upstanding tubular members disposed between the base member and the guard rail means at spaced intervals for support of the guard rail means, the tubular members being in fluid communication with said tubular member, said guard rail means and said base member being disposed in fluid communication near the end of said device removed from the vehicle, means for introducing inflation air into said device near the end adjacent to the vehicle, and means in the path of fluid communication between the guard rail means and the base member for inhibiting introduction of the inflatable air until the inflation of the base member to provide the base member with the elongated configuration and for thereafter providing for the introduction of the inflatable air into the guard rail means.

Claim 20

An inflatable device for use in evacuation of a vehicle when inflated by inflation apparatus comprising an inflatable base member inflatable near the end adjacent to the vehicle, into an elongated configuration, a walkway surface supported by said base member, an inflatable guard rail means fixed to and in fluid communication with said base member and comprising a substantially tubular elongated member extending substantially parallel to said base member, a plurality of inflatable upstanding tubular members disposed between the base member and the guard rail means at spaced intervals for support of the guard rail means, the tubular members being in fluid communication with said tubular member, said guard rail means and said base member being disposed in fluid communication near the end of said device removed from the vehicle, means for introducing inflation air into said device near the end adjacent to the vehicle, and means in the path of fluid communication between the guard rail means and the base member for inhibiting introduction of the inflatable air until the inflation of the base member to provide the base member with the elongated configuration and for thereafter providing for the introduction of the inflatable air into the guard rail means.

Claim 21

The device of claim 16 including side wall means extending from said walkway surface to said tubular member to prevent passage of evacuees between the locations of said upstanding members.

Claim 22

The device of claim 16 wherein said base member comprises a pair of spaced elongated inflatable tubular means, a pair of shorter inflatable tubular means extending between said elongated means near each end thereof, and at least one cross tube means interconnecting said elongated inflated tubular means intermediate said pair of shorter tubular means and wherein the air-introducing means introduces air into a particular one of the elongated tubular means near the end of such elongated tubular means adjacent to the vehicle and the inhibiting means are disposed in the particular one of the elongated tubular means at a position near the other end of such elongated tubular means.

Claim 23

The device of claim 18 wherein said base member and said guard rail means each includes an inflatable offset tubular means in fluid communication therewith to protect and support a person standing out of the path of evacuees traversing said walkway surface.

Claim 24

The device of claim 18 wherein said inhibiting means includes first means normally disposed in said base member in a position to block the passage of air into the guard rail means and includes second means cooperative with the first means and tensioned by the elongation of the elongated inflatable tubular means in the base member to remove the first means from the position blocking the passage of air into the guard rail means.

Claim 25

An inflatable device for use in evacuating a vehicle, such as an aircraft, via extis located above a surface, such as a wing, which surface must be traversed by evacuees, comprising an elongated base member to be supported by the surface to be traversed comprising a first pair of spaced elongated tubular members which, when inflated, extend along the path of movement of the evacuees, and a second pair of relatively shorter tubular members extending between Said first pair of tubular members near the ends thereof and in fluid communication therewith, and handrail means extending along and supported by said base member comprising a substantially tubular elongated member extending substantially parallel to said base member, a plurality of inflatable upstanding members extending between said base member and said handrail elongated tubular member to locate and support the latter relative to said base member, and means for closing off the tubular elongated member in the handrail means from inflation until the base member has extended substantially across the wing surface to be traversed by the evacuees.

Claim 26

An inflatable device for use in evacuating a vehicle, such as an aircraft, via extis located above a surface, such as a wing, which surface must be traversed by evacuees, comprising an elongated base member to be supported by the surface to be traversed comprising a first pair of spaced elongated tubular members which, when inflated, extend along the path of movement of the evacuees, and a second pair of relatively shorter tubular members extending between Said first pair of tubular members near the ends thereof and in fluid communication therewith, and handrail means extending along and supported by said base member comprising a substantially tubular elongated member extending substantially parallel to said base member, a plurality of inflatable upstanding members extending between said base member and said handrail elongated tubular member to locate and support the latter relative to said base member, and means for closing off the tubular elongated member in the handrail means from inflation until the base member has extended substantially across the wing surface to be traversed by the evacuees.

Claim 27

The device of claim 21 wherein said base member further includes at least one cross support member extending between and in fluid communication with said first pair of tubular members and located intermediate said second pair of tubular members.

Claim 28

The device of claim 21 wherein said inflatable upstanding members extend between one of said first pair of elongated tubular members and said handrail elongated tubular member.

Claim 29

The device of claim 21 including a walkway surface supported by said first and second pairs of tubular members.

Claim 30

The device of claim 24 including an elongated tubular member extending between said second pair of tubular members and intermediate said first pair of tubular members for dividing said walkway surface into a plurality of distinct walkway paths.

Claim 31

The device of claim 21 including means extending between said handrail means and said base member for preventing evacuees from inadvertently falling from said device and having means for reducing the effect of wind acting against said preventing means.

Claim 32

The device of claim 21 wherein the closing means are disposed in a particular one of the elongated tubular members in the base member and are operative to normally block the passage of air into the tubular member in the handrail means and are responsive to at least a particular pressure in the particular one of the elongated tubular members in the base member to permit the passage of air under pressure into the tubular member in the handrail means.

Claim 33

The device of claim 21 including inflatable offset means in said base member and inflatable offset means in said handrail means defining an aid''s station adjacent the extremity of the device distal from the vehicle to be evacuated.

Claim 34

An inflatable ramp across which persons may walk comprising a first pair of inflatable support members extending in the direction in which persons are to walk and supportable by a surface to be traversed, a second pair of inflatable support members elevated above and substantially parallel to said first pair of members and respectively associated with individual ones of the support members in the first pair to prevent persons traversing the ramp from leaving it except at the ends thereof, inflatable support means extending between each one of said first pair of inflatable support members and an associated one of said second pair of inflatable support members at predetermined intervals along said ramp for supporting and locating said second pair of members relative to said first pair of members, at least a third pair of inflatable support members each extending between said first pair of members at a spaced position to support and locate said first pair of members relative to one another, flexible surface means located between and supported by said first pair of inflatable support members and said second pair of said inflatable support members, the inflatable support members in the first and second pairs being disposed in fluid communication with one another, and means disposed to inhibit the fluid communication between the inflatable support members in the first pair and the inflatable support members in the second pair until the inflatable support members in the first pair have extended substantialLy across the surface to be traversed

Claim 35

An inflatable ramp across which persons may walk comprising a first pair of inflatable support members extending in the direction in which persons are to walk and supportable by a surface to be traversed, a second pair of inflatable support members elevated above and substantially parallel to said first pair of members and respectively associated with individual ones of the support members in the first pair to prevent persons traversing the ramp from leaving it except at the ends thereof, inflatable support means extending between each one of said first pair of inflatable support members and an associated one of said second pair of inflatable support members at predetermined intervals along said ramp for supporting and locating said second pair of members relative to said first pair of members, at least a third pair of inflatable support members each extending between said first pair of members at a spaced position to support and locate said first pair of members relative to one another, flexible surface means located between and supported by said first pair of inflatable support members and said second pair of said inflatable support members, the inflatable support members in the first and second pairs being disposed in fluid communication with one another, and means disposed to inhibit the fluid communication between the inflatable support members in the first pair and the inflatable support members in the second pair until the inflatable support members in the first pair have extended substantialLy across the surface to be traversed

Claim 36

The ramp of claim 29 including inflatable means extending below said first pair of members and suspended from said ramp to compensate for known irregularities from horizontal in the surface to be traversed so as to maintain said flexible surface in a substantially constant plane.