Vehicle lavatory with air replenishment system
A vehicle lavatory monument assembly that includes an enclosure having a plurality of walls that cooperate to define a lavatory interior, an entry door, and a toilet positioned in the lavatory interior. The enclosure includes an inlet and the toilet includes an outlet. An air replenishment system is configured to move a first volume of air from the lavatory interior and through the outlet and a second volume of air through the inlet an into the lavatory interior to replenish the air in the lavatory interior.
1 . A vehicle lavatory monument assembly comprising:
an enclosure that includes a plurality of walls that cooperate to define a lavatory interior, wherein one of the plurality of walls includes an entry door thereon, and wherein the enclosure includes an inlet,
a toilet positioned in the lavatory interior, wherein the toilet includes an outlet,
an air replenishment system configured to be manually or automatically actuated to create two airflow paths simultaneously, the air replenishment system comprising a controller configured to complete the air replenishment in less than 30 seconds by:
activating a toilet dry flush to move a first volume of air from the lavatory interior and through the outlet of the toilet, wherein the first volume of air is greater than 50% of the total volume of the lavatory interior; and
concurrently activating an environment control system (ECS) of the vehicle to force a second volume of air through the inlet and into the lavatory interior such that a cycle time of the air replenishment system is less than 30 seconds.
2 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the air replenishment system includes a controller that is configured to activate the air replenishment system a predetermined number of seconds after the lavatory interior has been vacated.
3 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the air replenishment system includes a controller that is configured to activate the air replenishment system a predetermined amount of time after a previous activation of the air replenishment system.
4 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the toilet further comprises a toilet cover, and
the controller is configured to open the toilet cover when the air replenishment system is activated.
5 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 1 ,
wherein the controller is configured to automatically lock the entry door to prevent the entry door from being opened when the air replenishment system is active.
6 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the air replenishment system includes a manual activation switch configured to activate the air replenishment system, and wherein the manual activation switch is located outside the lavatory interior.
7 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 6 , wherein the manual activation switch is disabled when the lavatory interior is occupied.
8 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 6 , wherein the manual activation switch is disabled when the entry door is locked.
9 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 6 , wherein the manual activation switch is part of an activation assembly, wherein the activation assembly includes an indication system that is configured to indicate an air status of the lavatory interior.
10 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 9 , wherein the indication system includes a plurality of indication lights that include a first indication state and a second indication state, wherein the first indication state indicates that the lavatory interior is clean, and wherein the second indication state indicates that the lavatory interior is not clean.
11 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 10 , wherein the activation assembly is positioned on the entry door.
12 . A vehicle lavatory monument assembly comprising:
an enclosure that includes a plurality of walls that cooperate to define a lavatory interior, wherein one of the plurality of walls includes an entry door thereon, and wherein the enclosure includes an inlet,
a toilet positioned in the lavatory interior, wherein the toilet includes an outlet,
an air replenishment system configured to move a first volume of air from the lavatory interior and through the outlet and a second volume of air through the inlet and into the lavatory interior, wherein the air replenishment system includes an activation assembly positioned on an outside of the entry door,
wherein the activation assembly includes a manual activation switch configured to activate the air replenishment system and a plurality of indication lights, wherein the indication lights that include a first indication state that indicates that the lavatory interior is clean and a second indication state that indicates that the lavatory interior is not clean, wherein the manual activation switch is disabled when the lavatory interior is occupied and when the entry door is locked,
wherein the air replenishment system includes a controller that is configured to activate the air replenishment system a predetermined number of seconds after the lavatory interior has been vacated, wherein the controller is configured to complete the air replenishment in less than 30 seconds by activating a toilet dry flush to move a first volume of air from the lavatory interior and through the outlet of the toilet, wherein the first volume of air is greater than 50% of the total volume of the lavatory interior; and concurrently activating an environment control system (ECS) of the vehicle to force a second volume of air through the inlet and into the lavatory interior such that a cycle time of the air replenishment system is less than 30 seconds,
wherein the air replenishment system is configured to automatically lock the entry door to prevent the entry door from being opened when the air replenishment system is active, and open a toilet cover.
13 . The vehicle lavatory monument assembly of claim 12 , wherein the controller is configured to activate the air replenishment system a predetermined amount of time after a previous activation of the air replenishment system.
14 . A method of replenishing air in a lavatory interior of a vehicle lavatory that includes a toilet with an outlet, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) activating a toilet dry flush to move a first volume of air from the lavatory interior and through the outlet of the toilet, wherein the first volume of air is greater than 50% of the total volume of the lavatory interior; and
(b) concurrently with (a) activating an environment control system (ECS) of the vehicle to force second volume of air through an inlet and into the lavatory interior such that a cycle time of air replenishment is less than 30 seconds.
15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein step (a) is performed a predetermined number of seconds after the lavatory interior has been vacated.
16 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising:
automatically locking an entry door of the lavatory to prevent the entry door from being opened during the steps (a) and (b); and
automatically opening a toilet cover during the replenishing step (a) to move the air through the outlet.
17 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the step (a) is performed after activation of a manual activation switch.
18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the manual activation switch is located outside the lavatory interior.