In addition to testing the smart seat and window module in the cabin, Ryerson researchers will also be looking at ways to improve the overall cabin. Interdisciplinary teams are exploring the idea of overhead LED screens that could project the night sky above and seats that can collapse down when more storage space is necessary. Xi expects the research project will take five years to complete. Ontario’s Ministry of Research and Innovation is funding the purchase of equipment and technology for inside the cabin.

Jonathan Hack, manager of advanced interiors and systems for the Strategic Technologies Group at Bombardier, says that the company decided to donate to Ryerson due to the “great working relationship” that had already been established. “Any time you have an idea for a new project or initiative, Ryerson is willing to help you,” he says. Hack has high hopes for the research collaboration, which continues thanks to a recent $1 million contribution from Bombardier to Ryerson and U of T towards work at the Downsview Research Hub. “We’re looking at everything from advances in cabin air quality to advancing new and more lightweight materials,” he says.

Paul Walsh, an aerospace engineering professor who has been instrumental to the Downsview Research Hub as well as the Bombardier partnership, says the cabin donation allows researchers to go beyond computer modelling to simulate real-world experiments. “We can confirm how air is moving through the cabin, and how particulate matter is disseminated,” he explains. “And we can do the same for sound and heat.” While the experiments sound high-level, they can result in direct benefits to air quality and passenger comfort.

As passengers push back against the move toward compact seating arrangements, Walsh says that airlines are looking for ways to maximize the feeling of openness. “If you make it feel like it’s a bigger cabin, you can mitigate the effects of the small cabin size,” he says.

Winter 2019 / Ryerson University Magazine 27