1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to prefabricated housing modules. In particular, the present invention relates to structural support for transporting a prefabricated housing module from its manufacturing site to its installation site.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Prefabricated housing derives its cost advantage by performing many of the assembly steps required for a housing unit at the factory, rather than at the job site. The building block for multi-unit prefabricated housing is typically the individual pre-fabricated modules. A typical module may include one or more bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen and a bathroom. Each module, typically including all of its exterior and interior walls, is manufactured and assembled at a manufacturing facility and transported to the building site for further assembly (if required) and for installation into the multi-unit structure. At a building site, a concrete foundation is typically prepared, to which a pre-fabricated module is attached and fastened. Typically, for efficiency reasons, the pre-fabricated module and the foundation are both provided means for the attachment and fastening ahead of the installation time. For a multi-story unit, a second floor module is then stacked on top of and fastened to the first floor unit. If the multi-unit structure has additional stories, additional modules are similarly stacked and fastened to the story immediately underneath. If the multi-unit design includes abutting side by side modules, the abutting modules are placed along side each other and fastened along the abutting exterior walls.
It is not unusual to transport a prefabricated module hundreds of miles to an installation site. Therefore, the prefabricated module must have structural integrity that can withstand the forces experienced on the road. Typically, structural integrity is provided by the module's exterior load-bearing side walls and a structural floor and a structural ceiling. As a result, a multi-unit housing unit built with these modules has both a structural floor and a structural ceiling between two floors, and two load-bearing walls between abutting side by side units. In contrast, in custom-built housing, structural integrity can be provided by a single load-bearing structure between floors or between side by side adjacent units. The redundant walls, ceilings and floors in prefabricated modules add significant cost, and because the redundancy is not needed in the final building structure, the additional material is wasted.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a structural brace for a pre-fabricated housing module includes (a) a temporary beam connecting two opposite side walls of the pre-fabricated housing module along an open side of the pre-fabricated housing module; (b) ceiling bracing panels each providing horizontal temporary structural support between a third side wall of the pre-fabricated housing module and the temporary beam; and (c) wall bracing panels each providing temporary vertical structural support between the temporary beam and a floor of the pre-fabricated module. A further transverse beam may be provided to connect the ceiling bracing panels for greater structural support and to facilitate lifting of the module during transportation. A tarp may be provided to cover the top and any exposed side of the pre-fabricated housing module to prevent damage to the interior on route to an installation site.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a ceiling bracing panel includes a base board and a number of dimensional lumber pieces secured to the base board which are placed substantially parallel to each other and spaced at predetermined intervals. A wall bracing panel may be similarly provided.
The structural brace of the present invention may include steel blocks that secure the ceiling panels to the studs of a side wall of the pre-fabricated housing module, so as to allow the side wall to bear the weight of the pre-fabricated housing module when it is moved. Additional structural support is achieved using hold downs bolted to structural elements of the side wall. Sound deadened steel plates may be provided for reducing sound and vibration during transportation.
n one embodiment, the structural brace of the present invention is a temporary structure that provides structural strength to the prefabricated housing unit, as the prefabricated housing unit is moved between manufacturing and installation sites. Possibility of the housing unit suffering damages on route to the building site is therefore greatly reduced. The structural brace is removed at the time of installation. The removed structural brace can be returned to the manufacturing facilities to be reused. The structural brace of the present invention therefore eliminates need for redundant walls, floors and ceilings, thus reducing the waste, as compared to the prior art.
The present invention is better understood upon consideration of the detailed description below and the accompanying drawings.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a structural brace is developed to provide a prefabricated housing module structural integrity during transportation between a manufacturing facility and a building site where the module is to be installed.
According to the present invention, as module 100 is a unit which abuts a neighboring unit on one of its sides and with another unit stacked on top, a structural side wall and a structural ceiling is not included. At the building site, module 100 is attached and fastened on its open side to another unit that has a structural side wall. Similarly, at the building site, another module with a structural floor is attached and fastened to the open top to module 100, so that the structural floor of the other unit provides the ceiling for module 100. According to this design, therefore, redundant ceilings and side walls are eliminated to achieve material efficiency.
As discussed above, wall bracing panel 202 may be provided substantially the same structure as ceiling bracing panel 201 (e.g., dimensional lumber (e.g., 2×4's) secured to a base board and spaced apart at regular intervals). A riser (indicated by reference numeral 507) having, for example, the construction of small sections of a double stud party wall, may be provided from floor 108 of prefabricated module 100 to allow wall brace panel 202 to attach. Such a riser structure would allow wall brace panel 100 to be attached to module 100 in substantially the same manner as ceiling panel 201 attaches to side wall 101b. In one embodiment, sound deadened steel (SDS) plates 506 are provided for attachment to floor 108 of module 100 to limit sound and vibrations in wall bracing panel 202.
The detailed description above is provided to illustrate specific embodiments of the present invention and is not intended to be limiting. Numerous variations and modifications within the scope of the present invention are possible. The present invention is set forth in the following claims.
Number | Date | Country | |
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61089644 | Aug 2008 | US |