Airbus files patent for split-level passenger seat design

It may look like like some kind of torture device but it's actually a glimpse of what future airplane seating could look like.

Global airline manufacturer Airbus recently filed a patent with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for a split level seating design taht could be used in business cabins on wide body aircrafts. Passengers would be seated on top of each other in a bi-level configuration.

In rows where passengers are normally seated six across, the middle rows would alternate between floor level and elevated seating to fit an additional two passengers per row. The raised seats would be accessible by a stair or ladder and would be able to fully recline above the passengers seated below.

Airbus says the new design would maximize seating capacity on planes that have yet to reach their full potential.

But don't worry, just because the patent is filed it doesn't mean this will become a reality. Airbus reportedly files hundreds of patents each year to protect new designs and intellectual property and this isn't its first seating patent. A previous one had passengers sitting in a bicycle like configuration.

You can find out more on this story from news.com.au and FOX News.