BALCONY BOX

Abstract

A foldable balcony has the appearance of a box in the folded state and during transportation. The foldable balcony can be delivered to a construction site and easily expanded and installed. The design of the balcony provides the following features: (1) factory manufacture of the main parts, shortening the construction time; (2) on-site construction that requires only a simple modification of the wall, providing a short on-site construction time and low labor cost; (3) easy installation; and (4) mechanical structural connections that provide a design that is easy to replace. Such balconies can be used for housing, and can be installed in villas, buildings and recreational vehicles (RVs), for example.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

Embodiments of the invention relate generally to modular furniture. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to a modular sofa bed that can be formed from modular sofa components and a modular coffee table component.

2. Description of Prior Art and Related Information

The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.

In some indoor environments, such as villas, buildings, mobile homes, and the like, there is a need for a quick access to the outdoors to enhance the experience of using the place and to increase its functionality. Traditional balconies have a long construction period, require professional technicians, are costly, are constructed on site, affecting the normal use of the construction site, and cannot ensure site hygiene during construction.

Manufacturers of traditional balconies must make several different parts that may be different sizes and shapes for different customers. Thus, the manufacture process may be labor and time intensive. Further, customers would have long lead times and higher prices in having such conventional balconies constructed. Further, if a part is damages, for example, if a railing is accidentally bent, the customer must order a new part, and the manufacturer would then need to make this specific part for this specific customer, leading to extending wait times and higher costs for the customer.

In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a balcony construction that may address some of the issues presented with conventional balconies.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention aim to solve the aforementioned problems in conventional balconies by providing a foldable balcony with the appearance of a box in the folded state and during transportation. The design of this balcony has the following main features: (1) Factory manufacture of the main parts, shortening the construction time; (2) On-site construction that requires only a simple modification of the wall, providing a short construction time and low labor cost; (3) Easy installation; and (4) Mechanical structure connection, providing a design that is easy to replace. Aspects of the present invention can be used to install or modify balconies for housing, and can be installed in villas, buildings and recreational vehicles (RVs), for example.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a balcony structure comprising a base member; a roof member movable between a folded position, adjacent the base member, and an expanded position, separated from the base member; and fence members movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a balcony structure comprising a base member; a roof member movable between a folded position, adjacent the base member, and an expanded position, separated from the base member; fence members movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member; support posts pivotably attached adjacent corners of a top surface of the base member, the support posts movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member; and a slider pivotably attached at distal ends, relative to a pivoting attachment end of the support posts with the base member, of the support posts, the slider attached to and slidable along an underside of the roof member, wherein sliding of the slider permits the balcony structure to move between the folded state and the expanded state.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a balcony structure comprising a base member; a roof member movable between a folded position, adjacent the base member, and an expanded position, separated from the base member; fence members movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member; support posts pivotably attached adjacent corners of a top surface of the base member, the support posts movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member; an upper end contour and a lower end contour, the upper end contour rounding an outside upper corner of the support posts, the lower end contour rounding an inside lower corner of the support posts, wherein the upper and lower end contours limit a rotation of the support posts when in the extended state; and support bars extending diagonally between the base member and at least front ones of the support posts.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments of the present invention are illustrated as an example and are not limited by the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references may indicate similar elements.

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a foldable balcony, in an expanded state, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a further perspective view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3A illustrates a perspective view of the foldable balcony, in a folded state, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3B illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 3A;

FIG. 3C illustrates a side view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 3A;

FIG. 4A illustrates a perspective view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, in a partially expanded state;

FIG. 4B illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4C illustrates a detail view about circle 401 of FIG. 4B;

FIG. 4D illustrates a detail view about circle 402 of FIG. 4B;

FIG. 5 illustrates a perspective view of a slider member used in the foldable balcony of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6A illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1 as expansion is initiated;

FIG. 6B illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, expanded about mid-way to a fully expanded state;

FIG. 6C illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, expanded nearly completely to the fully expanded state;

FIG. 7A illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, fully expanded without a railing yet expanded;

FIG. 7B illustrates a side view of a support post of the foldable balcony of FIG. 7A;

FIG. 8A illustrates a front detail view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, in a fully expanded state;

FIG. 8B illustrates a detailed view taken along circle 801 of FIG. 8A;

FIG. 8C illustrates a detailed view taken along circle 802 of FIG. 8A;

FIG. 9 illustrates a perspective view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, in an expanded state, without the railing being expanded;

FIG. 10 illustrates a perspective view of a base member of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1 with support bars installed;

FIG. 12A illustrates a side view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, showing a side rail post being moved into an expanded position;

FIG. 12B illustrates a side view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, with the side rail post in the expanded position;

FIG. 13 illustrates a front view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, showing the side railings being moved into the expanded position;

FIG. 14 illustrates a perspective view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, with the railings fully expanded;

FIG. 15A illustrates a perspective view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, in the fully expanded state;

FIG. 15B illustrates a detail view taken along circle 1503 of FIG. 15A;

FIG. 15C illustrates a detail view taken along circle 1504 of FIG. 15A;

FIG. 16 illustrates a perspective view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, in the fully expanded state; and

FIG. 17 illustrates a perspective view of the foldable balcony of FIG. 1, in the fully expanded state, attached to a wall.

The illustrations in the figures may not necessarily be drawn to scale.

The invention and its various embodiments can now be better understood by turning to the following detailed description wherein illustrated embodiments are described. It is to be expressly understood that the illustrated embodiments are set forth as examples and not by way of limitations on the invention as ultimately defined in the claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS AND BEST MODE OF INVENTION

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well as the singular forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one having ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

In describing the invention, it will be understood that a number of techniques and steps are disclosed. Each of these has individual benefit and each can also be used in conjunction with one or more, or in some cases all, of the other disclosed techniques. Accordingly, for the sake of clarity, this description will refrain from repeating every possible combination of the individual steps in an unnecessary fashion. Nevertheless, the specification and claims should be read with the understanding that such combinations are entirely within the scope of the invention and the claims.

In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.

The present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated by the figures or description below.

As is well known to those skilled in the art, many careful considerations and compromises typically must be made when designing for the optimal configuration of a commercial implementation of any system, and in particular, the embodiments of the present invention. A commercial implementation in accordance with the spirit and teachings of the present invention may be configured according to the needs of the particular application, whereby any aspect(s), feature(s), function(s), result(s), component(s), approach(es), or step(s) of the teachings related to any described embodiment of the present invention may be suitably omitted, included, adapted, mixed and matched, or improved and/or optimized by those skilled in the art, using their average skills and known techniques, to achieve the desired implementation that addresses the needs of the particular application.

Broadly, embodiments of the present invention provide a foldable balcony that has the appearance of a box in the folded state and during transportation. The foldable balcony can be delivered to a construction site and easily expanded and installed. The design of the balcony provides the following features: (1) factory manufacture of the main parts, shortening the construction time; (2) on-site construction that requires only a simple modification of the wall, providing a short on-site construction time and low labor cost; (3) easy installation; and (4) mechanical structural connections that provide a design that is easy to replace. Such balconies can be used for housing, and can be installed in villas, buildings and recreational vehicles (RVs), for example.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, embodiments of the present invention provide a foldable box-shaped balcony, including a base 101, a top protective roof 102, a fence system 103, a rotating support post system 104, a reinforcement system 105, and a wall auxiliary system 106. The base 101, located at the bottom of the balcony, can be directly connected to all parts except the top protective roof 102. The base 101 forms the lower half of the balcony when folded (see FIGS. 3A through 3C). The top protective roof 102, located at the top of the balcony, can shield the user on the balcony from sun, rain, and the like. The roof 102 is located at the upper part of the balcony when folded, as shown in FIGS. 3A through 3C. The fence system 103 can be distributed in the outermost periphery of the base 101 and can include a foldable long side fence and opposing foldable short side fences, which are used to limit the range of human activities and to protect personal safety. The rotating support post system 104 is used to support the top protective roof 102. The post system 104 can be connected to the four corners of the base by a pivot as described in greater detail below. The reinforcement system 105 includes a support bar position fixing mechanism and guardrail fixing parts, which can stabilize the structure of the balcony after unfolding. Wall auxiliary system 106 can include an auxiliary slide and a bottom support, which can be used to assist the unfolding and installation of the balcony.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show perspective views of the foldable balcony in the fully expanded state. As described above, the balcony includes a base 101, a top protective roof 102, a fence system 103, a rotating support post system 104, a reinforcement system 105, and a wall auxiliary system 106. The fence system 103 can include a foldable long side fence 1031 and two foldable short side fences 1032, 1033. A rotating support post system 104 can include four support posts, where support posts 1041, 1042 are in the outer side of base 101, which are mounted at or near the corner of the base 101.

The reinforcement system 105 can fix the rotating support post system 104 (including support posts 1041, 1042) and can fix the fence system 103. Support bars 1051, 1052 limit the position of at least front ones of the support posts (at least support posts 1041, 1042 respectively), the support bar 1051 can fix with support post 1041 at the support point 1053. Also, the reinforcement points 1055, 1056 fix the foldable long side fence 1031 and short side fences 1032, 1033, and the reinforcement point 1057 fixes the foldable short side fence 1033 and the support post 1044.

The wall auxiliary system 106 can include two parallel auxiliary slides 1061 and two bottom supports 1062. The auxiliary slide 1061 can be connected to the top protective roof 102 to assist in the unfolding of the balcony. The bottom support 1062 can be connected to the base 101 to transfer the load from the base 101 to the wall 108 (see FIG. 17).

FIGS. 3A through 3C show views the balcony in the retracted or folded state. A safety locking mechanism 201 can be located on the outside of the roof 102. In the folded state and during transport, the locking mechanism 201 can be used to secure the relative positions of the base 101 and the top protective roof 102, which consequently confines the individual movable mechanisms inside the entire folded structure.

FIGS. 4A through 4D show views when the balcony starts to expand from its folded state. Detailed views of FIGS. 4C and 4D show the motion of the sliding and articulated points of support posts 1041, 1042. A slider 301 can be mounted on one end of the support post 1042 so that the support post 1042 can both rotate relative to the slider 301 and slide relative to the top protective roof 102. FIG. 5 shows a detailed view of the slider 301. A sliding structure 401 can fit into a track inside the top protective roof 102 and can slide within the track. A pivot shaft 402 can be connected to the upper end of the support posts 1041, 1042 so that relative rotation can occur between the two components.

FIGS. 6A through 6C show the steps of moving the top protector roof. FIG. 6A shows the balcony starting to unfold. Under the action of the wall auxiliary mechanism 106 (see FIG. 1), the top protective roof 102 can unfold in the direction of the dotted arrow 1091, so that the support posts 1041, 1042 can rotate in the direction of the arrow 1092. In FIG. 6B, the slider 301 can slide inside the top protective roof 102 in the direction of the horizontal arrow 1093, and the two sliders travel in close proximity to each other. In FIG. 6C, the balcony can further be expanded and the two sliders pass the closest distance and continue to travel away from each other, as shown by arrow 1094, with a farther separation distance.

FIGS. 7A and 7B show the front view of the balcony achieving its maximum height (fully expanded), and the support post 1041 in the same state. The articulating hole 601 fits into the pivot shaft 402 of the slider 301, and the articulating hole 602 fits into the pivot shaft 8011 on the base 101. The end contours 603, 604 can limit the range of rotation of the support posts and are not limited when the support post 1041 is in a horizontal position. When it is in the vertical position, the end contours 603, 604 limit the rotation of the upper and lower ends of the support post 1041 so that the support post 1041 does not have a tendency to continue to rotate counterclockwise, but only has a tendency to rotate clockwise and to remain vertical.

FIGS. 8A through 8C illustrate the state of the end contours 603, 604 inside the base 101 and top protective roof 102 when the support post 1041 is in a vertical position. FIG. 9 shows the schematic view of the balcony achieving its maximum height (fully expanded).

FIG. 10 shows a top perspective view of the base 101. The pivot shafts 801, 802, 803, 804 allow the support posts to mate with and rotate relative to each other. As can be seen in FIG. 9, the right-side front support post (support post 1041) can be disposed in a front position on the pivot shaft 8011, while the left-side front support post (support post 1042) can be disposed on a rear position on the pivot shaft 8041. In some embodiments, the unused pivot shafts (rearward of pivot shaft 8011, for example) can be omitted.

Articulated positions 805, 806 can be mated to the short side fences 1032,1033 respectively, allowing them to rotate. The articulated position 807 can mate with the long side fence 1031, allowing it to rotate. When the balcony box is in the folded state, long side fence 1031 can be located on top of short side fences 1032, 1033. A rectangular long slot 808 can be used to protect and confine short side fences 1032, 1033 when the balcony box is in the folded state. Rectangular short slots 8091, 8092 can be used to store support bars 1051, 1052 when the balcony is in the folded state.

FIG. 11 is the front view of balcony where the support posts 1041, 1042 are limited by support bars 1051, 1052, respectively. The support bars 1051,1052 can rotate in the direction of the arrow 1095, can connect with the support posts 1041, 1042 at fixing points 1053, 1054 and can fix their position so that the support posts 1041, 1042 no longer have a tendency to rotate.

FIGS. 12A through 14 show how the fence system is deployed. The movement comes into contact with the base 101 in its final position so that it has no tendency to continue to rotate. FIGS. 12A and 12B show the long side fence 1031 being moved into its deployed position (typically vertical). The long side fence 1031 can include a short side fence connector 1031A that can help secure the short side fence to the long side fence 1031, as described below. As shown in FIG. 13, the short side fences 1032, 1033 can include long side fence connectors 1032A, 1033A that can mate with and attach to the short side fence connector 1031 on the long side fence 1031.

FIGS. 15A through 15C show detailed views of a fence reinforcement system. A bolt 1501 and a nut 1502 can be used to fix the fence system 103 at matching point 1056 (for example, the bolt can fit through the short side fence connector 1031A and the long side fence connector 1032A to join the two together). A steel angle piece 1057 can fix the fence system 103 and the support post system.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the balcony in the fully expanded state while FIG. 17 shows a perspective view of the balcony in the fully expanded state installed on the wall 108.

The balcony, discussed above, describes the installation process of the balcony, where the process can be broadly divided into the following steps: (1) transport the balcony, in the folded state, to the installation site; (2) install the wall auxiliary system 106 in the wall 108; (3) fix the foundation 101 of the balcony box with the bottom support 1062, and connect the top protective roof 102 with the wall auxiliary slide 1061; (4) unlock the balcony i.e., remove the position locking mechanism 201; (5) slide the top protective roof 102 along the slide in the vertical direction until the top; (6) unfold the support bars 1051, 1052; (7) unfold the fence system 103; and (8) install the remaining fixing mechanisms 105.

All the features disclosed in this specification, including any accompanying abstract and drawings, may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

Claim elements and steps herein may have been numbered and/or lettered solely as an aid in readability and understanding. Any such numbering and lettering in itself is not intended to and should not be taken to indicate the ordering of elements and/or steps in the claims.

Many alterations and modifications may be made by those having ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it must be understood that the illustrated embodiments have been set forth only for the purposes of examples and that they should not be taken as limiting the invention as defined by the following claims. For example, notwithstanding the fact that the elements of a claim are set forth below in a certain combination, it must be expressly understood that the invention includes other combinations of fewer, more or different ones of the disclosed elements.

The words used in this specification to describe the invention and its various embodiments are to be understood not only in the sense of their commonly defined meanings, but to include by special definition in this specification the generic structure, material or acts of which they represent a single species.

The definitions of the words or elements of the following claims are, therefore, defined in this specification to not only include the combination of elements which are literally set forth. In this sense it is therefore contemplated that an equivalent substitution of two or more elements may be made for any one of the elements in the claims below or that a single element may be substituted for two or more elements in a claim. Although elements may be described above as acting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, it is to be expressly understood that one or more elements from a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from the combination and that the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or variation of a subcombination.

Insubstantial changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person with ordinary skill in the art, now known or later devised, are expressly contemplated as being equivalently within the scope of the claims. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later known to one with ordinary skill in the art are defined to be within the scope of the defined elements.

The claims are thus to be understood to include what is specifically illustrated and described above, what is conceptually equivalent, what can be obviously substituted and also what incorporates the essential idea of the invention.

Claims

1. A balcony structure comprising: a base member;a roof member movable between a folded position, adjacent the base member, and an expanded position, separated from the base member; andfence members movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member.

2. The balcony structure of claim 1, further comprising support posts pivotably attached to a top surface of the base member, the support posts movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member.

3. The balcony structure of claim 2, wherein the support posts are pivotably attached to corners of the top surface of the base member.

4. The balcony structure of claim 2, wherein the support posts include an upper end contour and a lower end contour, the upper end contour rounding an outside upper corner of the support posts, the lower end contour rounding an inside lower corner of the support posts, wherein the upper and lower end contours limit a rotation of the support posts when in the extended state.

5. The balcony structure of claim 2, further comprising a slider pivotably attached at distal ends, relative to a pivoting attachment end of the support posts with the base member, of the support posts, the slider attached to and slidable along an underside of the roof member, wherein sliding of the slider permits the balcony structure to move between the folded state and the expanded state.

6. The balcony structure of claim 1, further comprising support bars extending diagonally between the base member and at least front ones of the support posts.

7. The balcony structure of claim 6, further comprising slots formed in the base, the slots housing the support bars in the folded state, wherein the support bars pivotably extend from the slots to connect to the at least front ones of the support posts I the expanded state.

8. The balcony structure of claim 1, wherein the fence members include: side fence members extending from the base member at opposing sides of the base member in the expanded state, the side fence members foldable to be positioned adjacent the base member in the folded state; anda long front fence member extending from the base member at a front side of the base member in the expanded state, the long front fence member foldable to be positioned on top of the side fence members in the folded state.

9. The balcony structure of claim 8, wherein the long front fence member includes short side fence connectors disposed at an upper end of the long front fence member, the short side fence connectors operable to connect to the side fence members when in the expanded state.

10. The balcony structure of claim 9, further comprising angled connectors connecting an upper end of the side fence members to rear support posts when in the expanded state.

11. The balcony structure of claim 1, further comprising a safety lock operable to lock the balcony structure in the folded state to prevent inadvertent movement of the balcony structure toward the expanded state.

12. The balcony structure of claim 1, further comprising a wall auxiliary system including first and second parallel auxiliary slides and first and second bottom supports, wherein: the first and second auxiliary slides are attached to the roof member; andthe first and second bottom supports are attached to an under surface of the base member and to a wall to transfer loads from the base member to the wall.

13. A balcony structure comprising: a base member;a roof member movable between a folded position, adjacent the base member, and an expanded position, separated from the base member;fence members movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member;support posts pivotably attached adjacent corners of a top surface of the base member, the support posts movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member; anda slider pivotably attached at distal ends, relative to a pivoting attachment end of the support posts with the base member, of the support posts, the slider attached to and slidable along an underside of the roof member, wherein sliding of the slider permits the balcony structure to move between the folded state and the expanded state.

14. The balcony structure of claim 13, wherein the support posts include an upper end contour and a lower end contour, the upper end contour rounding an outside upper corner of the support posts, the lower end contour rounding an inside lower corner of the support posts, wherein the upper and lower end contours limit a rotation of the support posts when in the extended state.

15. The balcony structure of claim 13, further comprising support bars extending diagonally between the base member and at least front ones of the support posts.

16. The balcony structure of claim 15, further comprising slots formed in the base, the slots housing the support bars in the folded state, wherein the support bars pivotably extend from the slots to connect to the at least front ones of the support posts I the expanded state.

17. The balcony structure of claim 13, wherein the fence members include: side fence members extending from the base member at opposing sides of the base member in the expanded state, the side fence members foldable to be positioned adjacent the base member in the folded state; anda long front fence member extending from the base member at a front side of the base member in the expanded state, the long front fence member foldable to be positioned on top of the side fence members in the folded state.

18. The balcony structure of claim 17, wherein the long front fence member includes short side fence connectors disposed at an upper end of the long front fence member, the short side fence connectors operable to connect to the side fence members when in the expanded state.

19. A balcony structure comprising: a base member;a roof member movable between a folded position, adjacent the base member, and an expanded position, separated from the base member;fence members movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member;support posts pivotably attached adjacent corners of a top surface of the base member, the support posts movable between the folded position, sandwiched between the base member and the roof member, and the expanded position, vertically extending from the base member toward the roof member;an upper end contour and a lower end contour, the upper end contour rounding an outside upper corner of the support posts, the lower end contour rounding an inside lower corner of the support posts, wherein the upper and lower end contours limit a rotation of the support posts when in the extended state; andsupport bars extending diagonally between the base member and at least front ones of the support posts.

20. The balcony structure of claim 19, wherein the fence members include: side fence members extending from the base member at opposing sides of the base member in the expanded state, the side fence members foldable to be positioned adjacent the base member in the folded state;a long front fence member extending from the base member at a front side of the base member in the expanded state, the long front fence member foldable to be positioned on top of the side fence members in the folded state; andthe long front fence member includes short side fence connectors disposed at an upper end of the long front fence member, the short side fence connectors operable to connect to the side fence members when in the expanded state.