Three technologies from Collins Aerospace, a Raytheon Technologies business, have been named as finalists for Crystal Cabin Awards. The international awards recognise excellence in aircraft interior innovation. The winners will be announced on 6 June in Hamburg, Germany, as part of Aircraft Interiors Expo 2023.
Collins’ InteliSence intelligent cabin experience is an integrated intelligence system designed to provide cabin crew and maintenance technicians with insights and predictions to improve airline operations, cabin service and the passenger experience. Deep learning AI software and sensor technology observe passenger interactions with objects within the suite – including glasses, plates, personal electronics and more. Data is collected and communicated in real-time to service teams. The intention is for passengers to get refills sooner, for bedding to be made quicker and faulty equipment to be remedied rapidly. The solution also aims to improve operational management, enabling airlines to better optimise power usage, proactive maintenance and onboard provisioning for every flight.
Another finalist is the Collins Pothos cabin air ioniser, which seeks to deodorise cabin air to levels that mimic and often exceed pristine, natural outdoor conditions. Collins said that Pothos is designed to be compact, lightweight and offer a variety of installation configurations, integrating into any enclosed space, including environmental control system ducts and direct passenger air systems. The ioniser targets problem spaces within the cabin where high odour and air recirculation are typically encountered. Pothos ionisation is intended to be more efficient and longer lasting than commercial solutions and when combined with current aircraft cabin filtering, seeks to provide passengers with a fresher smelling cabin.
Finally, Collins’ Q-Tech sound-absorbing metamaterial is a replacement for traditional honeycomb-core panels, designed to improve overall sound absorption as well as the range of frequencies able to be absorbed. It is made of highly flexible interconnected bulb arrays, and Collins said Q-Tech sound absorbing metamaterial has been shown to reduce noise transmission by 10 times when compared with a standard double-wall panel. Configurable to target specific noise frequencies, Q-Tech sound-absorbing metamaterial can be strategically configured and placed in multiple applications to mitigate specific problem noises – including within headrests, sidewalls, seats, monuments, galley equipment and air management systems. Q-Tech sound-absorbing metamaterial is made of thermoplastic materials, allowing for a simple recycling programme at time of replacement.
Collins has won 12 Crystal Cabin Awards, the most recent coming in 2022 when the SpaceChiller thermoelectric cooling system took home first prize in the Passenger Comfort category.
