Modular Adaptive Seating System (M.A.S.S)

Inspiration

The inspiration for our project was the experiences that several of our teammates personally had during their flights. A common theme we found was the poor environment during our flight. Some examples were lack of flight information, uncomfortable seats, and the language barrier when traveling. We all incorporated the brainwriting technique during our brainstorming session to solve the common problem we all faced to develop a solution. Our first idea was an assistant app that would help passengers with a universal translator. This idea aimed to make flying more convenient and more welcoming. Our team's second idea was a food delivery system that used pneumatic pumps to carry food to passengers. The food delivery system's goal was to create a healthier environment that is more hygienic. The third idea was a seating system that the passenger could adjust to produce a more comfortable environment. While many of these ideas were very innovative we all decided to choose the seating system solution. During a flight, the traveler will spend most of their time in their seat. If the seat is uncomfortable then the overall experience that is primarily based on this aspect would be ruined.

What it does

M.A.S.S is a seating system that allows the passenger to adjust the softness and position of their seat. This is done with the use of an expanding material field with air with the control button. The structure of the seat will consist of layers similar to the layers found within hybrid foam mattresses. Overall the design of the adaptive cushions will feature an air pocket, support foam, spring, and tapered spring layers. This air pocket layer will be used only in the lower parts of the body padding in the back of the seat. The base of the seat will consist of the previously mentioned layers except for the expandable air pocket. The frame of the seat will be made with PLA (Polylactic Acid), which is made from plants and uses no oil. The production of this plastic has very low carbon emissions as well. To make the seat foldable joints will be located in the top and bottom portions of the back of the seat. This will allow the seat to be folded twice creating a box shape. Once compacted in the storage configuration the seat can be nested placed on the floor of the plane, allowing for more space in the cabin area. This extra space allows airlines to convert a passenger plane into a light cargo one.

How we built it

Our team created a 3D CAD module to show how the seat configuration can be adjusted. As previously mentioned the idea of the seating system is to allow the passenger to adjust the seat's softness. To make the seat softer air is introduced to the pocket layer with a pump within the cabin. The amount of air is determined by a control pattern that the passenger will have access to. To deflate a vacuum mechanism will take out the air within the air pocket layer. Finally, the frame of the seat will incorporate an ergonomic design to increase the comfort of the traveler.

Challenges we ran into

The main challenge was how to effectively explain our concept. We also had to research materials that would allow for the configuration to be feasible. When we recorded in the blank room we were able to get the footage of one of our teammates, this meant that our video only has four of the members of our team talking.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We believe designing the mechanism and reaching materials were a very important accomplishment.

What we learned

We learned a lot about new materials such as PLA and ocean plastic. We also learned about how planes were configured.

What's next for Modular Adaptive Seating System (M.A.S.S)

Once we finalize the design, the next thing would be thinking about how to make our design cheap. We would also need to think about getting a patent for our design and licensing it to plane manufacturers.