Patent Application
20230323652
The present invention relates to modular building systems and to modular structures that are easily stored, movable, and foldable, as well as a method for installation of modular foldable structures.
There are many situations where transportable and customizable buildings are urgently needed for housing and commercial purposes. Under different circumstances, it may be desirable to provide movable buildings for people and/or equipment. For instance, it may be desirable to provide temporary hospitals that can be transported easily and assembled and disassembled promptly as necessary.
It may be desirable to have buildings that can be assembled by a limited number of people and with a relatively easy assembly process and minimal equipment, while providing structural strength and adequate protection from weather-related elements. For example, hospitals or housing “villages” might be required in response to wide-spread diseases and in response to natural disasters. In urgent or life-threatening instances, the available time for assembly and disassembly of such construction is short and thus, the time spent on these tasks must be minimal.
Such constructions also need to be easy to transport, reusable, convenient to store and assemble, and cost efficient.
In the past, tents or prefabricated mobile homes have been widely used. Tents, however, are an inadequate solution for prolonged use and/or use in adverse weather conditions. In addition, tents do not provide adequate security due to their fragile consistency and are easily subject to wear and tear particularly when overexposed to adverse weather conditions. While mobile homes provide a limited solution to the problems this invention resolves, mobile homes are not flexible in size, are difficult and expensive to transport and store, and are not customizable on demand in emergency situations.
Other modular building structures have the required strength and stiffness but are difficult to assemble and are not reusable. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 10,480,176 to Unger discloses a modular building system, where multiple box-like frames can be connected to form a larger structure. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 8,186,115 to Harig et al., discloses a modular wall panel system. These modular folding structures however cannot be easily assembled and disassembled or customized multiple times depending on the needs, as well as transported, stored, and reused. U.S. Pat. No. 10,577,174 to Fenneman and Hatcher discloses a folding system for intermodal shipping containers, but without the modular features of the instant invention.
An additional drawback is that the existing modular structures that are currently in the market are costly to manufacture and transport.
Therefore, the market needs a modular folding structure system having the advantages discussed above. The scalable modular structure of the present invention may become a valuable tool for first responders and victims of national crisis because such structure would help people in need and can be easily transported, assembled, disassembled, stored or used in another location, while providing adequate protection against the elements.
The present invention relates to a modular foldable structure that can be used to provide various services, including housing, equipment storage and others. The structure can be a single unit structure or a multi-unit structure, where each unit is formed by complimentary modules with foldable and/or detachable panels. In the present description, the term “module” includes a base, a floor panel covering the base, a front wall, or a rear wall and/or one or more side wall panels. Two complimentary modules and a roof form a “unit”, which can form an enclosed or a habitable space. In this invention, a modular structure can vary in size. A single unit can form a structure with a single habitable space or room. When assembled together multiple units form multi-unit structures, which can have multiple enclosed spaces or rooms. The term “habitable space” is used interchangeably with the term “enclosed space” and is understood to include, hallways, bathrooms, utility spaces, closets or similar areas.
Because of its portable modular and foldable design, the structure can be rapidly deployed to any location and transported over ocean, land, or air using truck, rail, aircraft or water vessels. The innovative design allows portability and easy assembly. The structure is compact when folded, inexpensive to store and is reusable. It can be promptly disassembled and shipped to another location if necessary. Its reusable feature as well as compact packaging, makes it also eco-friendly as it avoids unnecessary waste and fuel costs.
In order to accomplish these purposes, an embodiment of a modular foldable building structure (10) is provided including at least one room unit (100) having a first foldable module (100′) and a second foldable module (100″), wherein each module has a storage position (238) and an erected position (
In another embodiment, a modular foldable building structure is provided including at least one room unit (10) having a first foldable module (100′) and second foldable module (100″), wherein each module has a storage position (238) and an erected position (
In another embodiment, a modular foldable building structure (10) is provided having at least one room unit (100) having a first foldable module (100′) and a second foldable module (100″), wherein each module has a storage position (238) and an erected position (
In another embodiment, a modular foldable building structure (30) is provided having a room unit having a first and second foldable module (100′, 100″) having a storage position (238) and an erected position, where each module has a first module base (110′, 110″) having a rectangular shape with two long edges (224′, 224″, 225′, 225″) and two shorter edges (226′, 226″, 227′, 227″), a floor panel covering the first module base, wherein one long edge of each base is a joinable interior edge (224′, 224″) and the other long edge of the base defines a long exterior edge (225′, 225″) with two exterior corners (269), wherein each short edge (226′, 226″,227′, 227″) has an open side wall (240) hingeably connected to the corner (269) of the short edge, such that the side wall lays flat along the base in the storage position, and each side wall pivots upward in the erected position to define a right angle between the base and the wall when erect, and wherein the side wall (240) has a vertical support member (241) and an upper side panel (242). The first foldable module in the erected position and the second foldable module in the erected position may be configured to couple together along the interior edge (224) of each module to form a unit body 100 with a rectangular or square-shaped floor, and a long edge upper panel (243) is placed between the two upper side panels (242), and wherein a roof (200) that at least covers the floor (120) is affixed to a support beam (177), to form a modular foldable building structure.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building structure is provided, wherein the roof (200) comprises one or more roof panels (200′, 200″), and said roof panels are mounted on the room unit to form a habitable space with at least one door opening.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the support beam is an I-beam (117a).
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the support beam is a hollow tube (117b) having at least a flat surface on the top affixable to the roof panels.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the roof panels are supported by two or more trusses (177c).
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the coupling of the first and second modules along the joinable edge (224) to form the room unit further comprises at least one joining part (162) having a bolt and nut (161) to fasten the two modules together.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein any wall (130, 140, 150, 160) further comprises a frame made of steel tubing, wood, rigid plastic or another suitable construction material. Any wall may also comprise a panel made of wood, sheet metal, rigid plastic, or other suitable construction materials.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein adjacent wall panels are connected together with at least one bolt (164) and nut.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the hinges for each side wall comprise two outer knuckles affixed to the base, and an inner knuckle affixed to the wall, and pin through the knuckles.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the first or second module or both has a wall affixed to the long exterior edge wherein the wall comprises one or more horizontal panels connected to each other by hinge mechanisms, said plurality of horizontal panels fold and unfold with respect to each other along a horizontal axis.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein each wall is joined to another wall to form a corner, wherein the joint comprises at least one bolt, and the joined walls are locked into position.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided having a plurality of interconnected foldable room units according to claim 1, wherein one or more joined short edges (232) can be joined to form a plurality of interconnected foldable units.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein one or more long edges (234) can be joined to form a plurality of interconnected foldable units.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein a wall has a window or door opening (158).
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein a wall has large opening (236) and an upper panel (237).
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein each wall has a frame (170) and one or more solid panels.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the floor of each module has a frame (123) and may have one or more solid floor panels (120).
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the floor and walls may be insulated.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein an opening may be provided in a wall section for air conditioning unit, and the air conditioning unit can cool or heat the air in the room unit.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building may be provided, wherein electrical outlets and plumbing fixtures are provided.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided further comprising one or more walls coupled to the first or the second module walls that may extend the height of the structure.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein the structural members and all floor, wall, and roof panels are made from a material selected from steel, wood, or plastic or other suitable construction material.
In an embodiment, a modular foldable building is provided, wherein each module may be sufficiently light weight that it can be carried into position by a team of two to six people.
In an embodiment, a method of assembling a modular foldable unit is provided, comprising the steps of:
An objective of the present invention is to provide a structure that can be used anywhere, under various weather conditions. The modular building system subject to this invention may be eligible for a Risk IV Category structure certification and can withstand a Category 4 Hurricane (155 miles per hour), as well as roof snow loads of 50 lbs./sq.ft., may be a Seismic Design Category C, and meets IBC 2015 with ASCE-7-10 classifications for a structure.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a customizable structure at a low transport, manufacture and assembly costs.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide pre-manufactured components for a customizable structure that may be carried by two to four persons, for example from a delivery truck to a building location without the use of a forklift.
In one aspect, the present invention provides for a single unit box-shaped modular structure formed by two complimentary modules.
In another aspect, the present invention provides for a multi-unit modular structure that includes a variety of modules, which can be coupled together to form habitable, storage and/or other units, which once joined together form a multi-unit structure. Thus, a modular structure can be either a single unit structure or a multi-unit structure. The units themselves are versatile as they can be joined to form a large variety of modular structures from a single row, multiple rows, branched or multi-storied structures. Modules can be easily added or removed depending on the required specifications to conform habitable, storage and/or other enclosed spaces.
The module foldability allows the entire modular structure to be disassembled and folded into compact “shipping units”, each shipping unit comprising a module, which allows for multiple shipping units to be stacked on top of each other and shipped together over ocean, land, or air using truck, rail, plane or water vessel at a lower cost.
Another advantage of the present invention is that the parts of a module may be attached together during assembly, disassembly, and transport to ensure that nothing gets misplaced and to ensure the parts are unloaded and moved with ease until they reach the desired final positions.
In addition, having parts of a module attached to each other significantly speeds up the process of assembly and disassembly which saves time and labor costs.
It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the description and the following drawings. The use of “including” or “comprising” or “having”, for instance, shall be understood to encompass the items listed thereafter and their equivalents. The description and figures are presented to enable a person skilled in the art to make and use embodiments of the invention.
The exemplary embodiments described herein are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not limiting. Other exemplary embodiments are possible as would be understood by those skilled in the art. Adaptations and modifications that would be understood by those skilled in the art are intended to be within the meaning and plurality of the exemplary embodiments based upon the teaching and guidance presented herein. It is to be understood that the terminology used in the description is for the purpose of description and not limiting. The terminology is to be interpreted by those skilled in relevant art(s) in light of the teachings herein.
This invention provides a modular folding building structure (10) having at least one room unit (100) assembled from two foldable modules (100′ and 100″) that are coupled together. The complete foldable building structure also has a roof. Room units can be used singly or ganged together to form multiroom structures. Each room unit has a floor that may include floor panels or floor planks supported by a floor frame.
Each room unit has four walls. The walls are connected to the floor with hinges, such that each room module has a storage position in which the walls are folded down parallel to the floor. Each module also has an erect position in which the walls are unfolded to a vertical orientation perpendicular to the floor by rotating a wall around the hinges. Connectors are provided where the walls meet to lock the walls into an erect position.
The walls may be solid walls with wall panels and appropriate openings for doors, windows, in-wall air-conditioning, medical grade ventilation systems, or other purposes. Alternatively, the walls may be largely openings. In an embodiment, open walls have an upper panel, under the roof, to provide structural support and locations for connecting members.
One or more couplers are provided to couple the two modules together to form a room unit. Such couplers may include a pin or bolt can be inserted into edge connectors to secure two modules to each other to form a room unit. A roof is installed on top of the walls. The roof may have one or more supporting members, such as a beam.
In some figures, various sides are denoted as Sides A, B, C, or D. These notations are for the convenience of pointing out certain features in the figures. In most figures, side A is the front or side facing out of the page in the drawings, and sides B, C, and D are assigned in a counterclockwise direction. These notations are internal to each figure and may change with different figures because modules or other parts can be rotated, oriented differently, or used as mirror images. Thus, there is no implication that e.g., Side A on one figure is the same side as Side A on another figure.
The folding nature of the modules of this invention allow the modules to be easily transported to a location for rapidly erecting buildings. This may be particularly useful in the event of natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, wildfires, pandemics and the like, where mass housing or nonresidential structures such as medical clinics and hospitals may be needed on an emergency basis. The easy transportability of the inventive modules is conducive to rapid transport and assembly for such emergency use.
In an embodiment, a one room unit 100 includes a first foldable module (100′) and a second foldable module (100″), wherein each module has a storage position (238) and an erected position (
Room unit 100 is formed from two foldable modules 100′ and 100″, connected to each other as depicted in
As used herein, the term “panel” means a solid sheet with a smooth surface facing an interior or exterior of the room unit or modular foldable building structure. This is distinguished from frame members which may be present in the floor, walls, and roofs of the modular foldable building structure. In some case, floors, walls, and roofs may be provided that are no more than frames. In other cases, walls or roofs may have a frame with a panel on one side of the frame only. In other cases, walls or roofs may have a frame with a panel on both sides of the frame. (
In an embodiment, each unit 10 is formed out of two complementary modules, module 100′ and 100″, depicted in
As illustrated in
Modules 100′ and 100″ are coupled together to form a room unit, as shown in the exploded view in
Various room unit configurations are possible, as illustrated in
In an embodiment, the floor may be solid and relatively level and suitable as floor for residential or commercial (other than residential) uses. Floor panels 120′ and 120″ may comprise any conventional flooring material, such as plywood panels or wood planking, or a material such as steel, aluminum, or plastic, or another suitable construction material provided in sheets or planks. Such flooring material may be laid over the framing such as 113, 122, and 123 and secured with nails, screws, glue, or other methods, or a combination thereof. Alternatively, the floor area may be filled in with concrete or other suitable filling material to make a flat floor.
In an embodiment shown in
In an embodiment, the base supports 115, 117, and 119 may vary in height, to account for the thickness of the walls and to allow the walls to fold over the module base 110′ and the floor panel 120′ to form the compact flat configuration 238 as shown in
The drawings show various embodiments of the order of assembly and unfolding, all of which are in the scope of this invention. For example, in
In an embodiment, each module has a storage position 238 illustrated in
An embodiment of a storage mode is shown in the elevation view of
The module foldability creates the ability to fold the entire structure into compact shipping units, which allows for multiple units to be stacked on top of each other and shipped together at a lower cost. According to the present invention, all or some parts of a module remain attached together during the assembly, disassembly, and transport to ensure that nothing gets misplaced and to have them easily unloaded and moved until their final positions. In addition, having all or some parts of a module attached to each other significantly speeds up the assembly and disassembly saving time, labor and cost.
In an embodiment, the folded module 238 may be lightweight enough (depending on the material the module is made from) that it can be lifted by a group of people, for example two to six people, and manually carried into position for erection. In emergency situations, this can be an important advantage to the overall system.
In an embodiment shown in
A module may have three walls, for example front module 100′, may have walls 140′, 160′, and 130, each connected to the base 110′ by hinges. Several hinge embodiments are discussed here. This discussion is not intended to be a comprehensive discussion of hinge technology, and the specific type of hinge is not limiting as long as the range of motion required by this invention is provided.
An exemplary hinge embodiment 121 is shown in
Another hinge embodiment is illustrated in
An embodiment of the front and rear walls is illustrated in
After all walls are assembled in an erect position, the side walls may be secured to the front or rear walls. In an embodiment, this is accomplished as shown in
Another wall embodiment, as illustrated in
Any of the wall panels can also have one or more openings for a door, air conditioner, windows or other purpose. An exemplary opening 158 is depicted in rear wall 150 in
In an embodiment, a multifold or bifold front wall 130 or rear wall 150 may be formed from two horizontal panels—a bottom panel (132, 152) and a top panel (134, 154). The bottom panels may be connected to the base 110′ or 110″ with hinge mechanisms 121. The bottom panels 132, 152 and the top panels 134, 154 may be connected to each other by one or more hinge mechanisms 136, 156. The seam between a bottom panel and top panel is 259 (
An embodiment of the construction of a side wall such as 160 or 140 is shown in
An interior panel 180 may be affixed to the frame. An exterior panel 184 may be affixed to the frame 170. The manner of affixing is dependent on the materials used. If steel, either panel may be weldable to the frame. Alternatively, screws, nails, glue, or other method of attachment may be used. In an optional embodiment, an insulation layer 182 may be interposed between the frame and exterior panel 184.
In an embodiment, panels 180 and 184 may be steel sheet metal with a thickness varying from 18 gauge (1.2 mm thick) to 30 gauge (0.3 mm thick) or other thickness. In a specific embodiment, the interior panel 180 is 26-gauge steel sheet metal (about 0.5 mm thick), and exterior panel 184 is 22 gauge steel sheet metal (about 0.8 mm thick). Either panel may be painted or powder coated on the side facing away from the wall frame. The optional insulation layer 182 may be a foam insulation sheet, such as extruded polystyrene, polyisocyanurate, polyurethane sheet insulation or another suitable insulating material. These materials are typically available in from 0.75 in (19 mm) to 4 in (102 mm) thickness, in 4′×8′ sheets (American sizes). In an embodiment, sheet polyurethane with a thickness of 30 mm (1.2 in) may be used. The thickness of the insulation may vary with the weather in a particular location. A location with cold winters may require a thicker layer of insulation. Interior walls in multiunit assemblies will not need an exterior panel 184 or an insulation layer at all. In an embodiment, the folded modules 238 may not include the insulation 182 and exterior panel 184 because the required insulation is too thick to be conveniently packaged in a storable module 238. In such an embodiment, the walls may include interior panel 174 and frame 170, and insulation 182 and exterior panel 184 is installed after the room is erected. In an embodiment, the insulation has fire resistant properties, or the insulation can be covered by a fire-resistant layer. Acoustic insulation can also be added to the wall panels to help decrease noise transference.
Many different types of materials may be used in this invention. For example, panels 174 and 184 may be made from steel sheet metal or other materials such as aluminum sheet metal, other types of sheet metal, plastic, drywall (for interior panels) wood paneling, or other suitable construction materials. Walls and flooring made entirely of rigid plastic may have a cost advantage, being less expensive than steel, and a weight advantage, being lighter than steel or wood. A lower weight module is presumably less expensive to ship since weight may be a factor in shipping costs. Also, if sufficiently light weight, a module may be picked up by a team of two to six people and carried a short distance instead of a forklift.
Anchoring a moveable structure of this invention, even if made from steel, may be important to prevent high winds from moving the building. Anchor tabs 260 are shown in exterior edges 257 in
In an alternative embodiment extended wall panels can be added to increase the height of the structure. An extended height wall may only have a small extension, such as an inch (2.5 cm), to ensure that the roof has a slope for drainage. In another embodiment, an extension may be larger. An extension may be desired for functional or architectural purposes.
With the two modules 100′ and 100″ thus described and assembled in the erected position as shown in
It should be apparent that the two modules should be positioned so that the floor of each module is level. The requisite position may include ground preparation or mounting the modules on blocks or a foundation that provides appropriate support for the finished structure. In an embodiment, the units are installed on a concrete slab or a paved area such as a parking lot. In a multiroom assembly such as in
In an embodiment, coupling of the two modules may be accomplished with bolts through frame members 178 as shown in
When joined together the module base 110′ of the front module 100′ and the module base 110″ of the rear module 100″ form the unit base 110, and respectively the floor panels 120′ and 120″ are joined together to form the unit floor 120. This forms room unit 100, having a floor and four walls. Note that in some embodiments, the walls may be open for decorative or architectural purposes (for example, for forming hallways or open spaces).
With the room unit 100 thus described, a roof 200 is necessary since this invention provides buildings and rooms providing shelter from the elements. In an embodiment, a roof is supported by a supporting member 177 depicted in
To support a roof, some wall panel frames may have a notch 174 depicted in
With a roof supporting member in place, roof panels can be affixed to the walls and supporting to form completed room units such as 10, 20, 30, or 40 (
In an embodiment, roof panels may have a sandwich construction analogous to the wall construction shown in
In an embodiment, depicted in
In an embodiment, the roof frame 210 covers one module. The roof may be supported by the vertical wall panels for example 140′, 160′ and of the side walls 140 and 160, respectively, and by the I-beam 177a which spans horizontally between the opposite side walls 140, 160 of the unit. Additionally, the front and/or rear walls may further support the roof and stiffen the structure so it can withstand lateral forces.
A roof frame 210 is depicted in
In an embodiment, the roof may require either a pitch or a slope so rainwater drains off. This can be accomplished by ensuring that one wall is slightly higher so that a flat roof has a slight slope. Alternatively, a truss roof support such as 177c may be used to provide a pitched roof.
In an alternative embodiment depicted in
In alternative embodiments, the roof might have other shapes, including hip, shed (mono slope) or other shapes.
The modular structures disclosed in this invention are scalable in that the already assembled units may be added together to form larger structures with multiple enclosed spaces. For example, the unit structure can be assembled as two, three four or more compartments in a single row or in multiple rows or as branched structures. The units are also stackable to form a multi-storied structure with stairwells and elevators. Various exemplary unit configurations are formed by matching different modules as shown for example in
In an embodiment, room units such as 10 may form a cube with dimensions of 12′ length (L)×12′ width (W)×12′ high (H) (in American dimensions). In metric dimensions, this is 3658 mm L×3658 mm W×3658 H. The unit dimensions, however, can vary depending on the needs. For example, standard American plywood dimensions are 4′ W×8′ L, and room units could be made to this dimension, to form room units 8′ L×8′ W×8′ H. From an architectural standpoint, rooms 12′ W are comfortable as living and working spaces. Moreover, the final room unit need not have a square profile. It could also be rectangular.
In different embodiments the modules' dimensions can be varied in size and shape to meet the client's needs and form rectangularly or square shaped spaces of different dimensions and/or habitable spaces having different shapes.
For example,
Modules can be joined together in an innovative variety of ways to create structures of various sizes, shapes and for different uses. For example, a simple home is shown formed from three coupled units in
More complex ganged structures are shown in
Various room unit configurations are pointed out in
Room unit 10 is illustrated in
In an embodiment illustrated in
In a multiunit structure such as depicted in
The purpose of the joint design in
In an embodiment, at least two sets of bolts 198 are used for each four-way corner, but additional sets may be used.
The invention provides a method for erecting the foldable modules, assembling the erected modules into room units, and optionally linking a plurality of room units together.
In an embodiment of the method, a user transports folded modules 238, optionally stacked as depicted in
In an embodiment, the user then installs a roof support beam, such as an I-beam 177a (
These steps are repeated for subsequent units for ganged assemblies, which can then be assembled together with joining elements as depicted in
Larger open spaces within the modular structure can be added by assembling units from two complimentary modules having at least a floor base, a floor panel covering the base, a roof and one or more elements supporting the roof. To assemble such multi-unit structures, the user will transport the base, covered with the base panel, to the desired location and erect the roof supporting elements of each module. Thereafter, the user will attach the body of each module to form a unit body. Additional unit bodies are assembled and joined together to form the body of the multi-unit structure. The user, then installs the horizontal beams in the beam pockets. Finally, the user installs the roof panels over the supporting elements and the beams to form a multi-unit structure. Depending on the requested specifications, insulation panels and a waterproof membrane can be installed over the roof of the multi-unit structure. Depending on the needs of the user, complimentary modules can be mixed and matched allowing for spaces of various shapes, dimensions and uses.
The base, walls, and roof of the room units may further be equipped with electrical and plumbing fixtures, such as electrical wires, electric fixtures, pipes, toilets and sinks. Parts such as wires and pipes (fresh water or sewer water) may be installed during manufacture of the units or may be installed on site. Bulky fixtures such as sinks, toilets, and light fixtures may be installed on site.
This patent application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 63/069,167 filed Aug. 24, 2020, which is incorporated by reference herein.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US21/71253 | 8/23/2021 | WO |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63069167 | Aug 2020 | US |
