Embraer and USP open first Comfort Engineering Center

Embraer and the University of São Paulo (USP) opened the Comfort Engineering Center (CEC), today, in USP's Polytechnic School, in the State capital. The Center was built for the Cabin Comfort Project, in a partnership with the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC) and the Federal University of São Carlos (UFScar), with financial support from the Research Assistance Fund of the State of São Paulo (FAPESP) and the Study and Project Funding Office (Finep).

The main purpose of the Center, which is the only one of its kind outside of Europe and will be a reference point for comfort studies, is to improve aircraft cabin comfort by establishing harmonious esthetic and functionality standards.

"Improving aircraft interiors and providing superior levels of well-being for passengers is one of the most relevant objectives of Embraer's Technological Development," says Mauro Kern, Embraer Executive Vice President, Engineering and Technology. "The passenger's in-flight experience will increasingly be a decisive factor for the success of our aircraft on the global market."

The Center has two full-size mock-ups of sections of the cabins of an E-Jet, of the EMBRAER 170/190 family, for performing tests. One of the models is for reproducing thermal conditions. The other is set up in an area similar to a boarding area, with a 30-seat structure installed inside a pressure chamber, which is able to reproduce conditions very close to those of a real flight. In this setting, it will be possible to determine how various parameters, like air pressure and humidity in the cabin, noise, vibrations, temperature, lighting, and other factors impact the perception of comfort of the passenger during a flight.

The inauguration of the Center is one more phase of a project partnership begun in 2006. The project is coordinated by Professor Jurandir Itizo Yanagihara, of Poli/USP, and involves an investment of R$ 3.2 million from FAPESP, plus R$ 4.5 million from Embraer, and R$ 4.3 million from Finep, plus R$ 2.9 million from Embraer. The results will be applied to future aircraft designed by the Company.