Field of the Invention

The present invention is a shelter, which relates to a durable and comfortable living module, suitable for use in an emergency, which can be folded and unfolded, and transformed into a permanent shelter (home) by connecting an additional module to the side and on the top.

Known State of the Art

Modular structures, developed for people to live temporarily in case of natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods are widely used. The most known types of these structures belonging to the known state of the art are tents, containers and shelters.

The patent document US3763607 pertaining to the state of the art relates to a foldable camp shelter. The said shelter was developed for travelling purposes, utilized by being mounted on a passenger vehicle. It is known that weatherability level and service life are low due to the flexible walls it contains. In addition, it is known that its fixed structure makes it impossible to get expanded by adding additional shelter to the side or on the top. Similar systems as such do not respond to the situations arising from the prolonged time that develop during or after emergencies. They also fail to provide the possibility to meet the requirements to make vital modifications, attachments thereto.

The patent document US4635412 in the state of art relates to a portable and foldable life structure in the form of stacked containers. It is known that the invention of the subject of the said document, includes complex opening and closing steps. Being difficult to open and close, these living modules may put the users in a hard situation at the time of an emergency.

Another patent document in the state of art, numbered US20060016807 relates to a foldable load container. It is folded inward from the middle parts of the side walls and stacked. The developed system is used for cargo transport and does not provide any information pertaining to any convenience for people to live.

In addition to the above-mentioned systems, other shelter systems for use in case of emergencies are generally very space-consuming when stacking and only one shelter system fits into a truck. These systems constitute a major hindrance against the rapid elimination of the need for large numbers of shelters in emergencies. Apart from the living modules in the art, there is a need to develop a foldable, weather-resistant, long-life, practically foldable and unfoldable, expandable by addition of modules to the sides or to the top, space saving when stacked, habitable by at least two occupants, convenient and comfortable living module.

Description of the Invention

The present invention is an emergency structure which can be easily transported, used for sheltering purposes, quickly mountable and dismountable, foldable and stackable, optionally expandable by adding modules as necessary in cases of emergencies. The invention, in the most general sense, relates to the structure of a basic module (7) comprising a hinge for connecting panels to each other, and a panel carrier system (15) which is located in the panel.

The said panels, with the same connections (hinges) can be developed for different functions. The basic module (7), preferably developed in the form of a cube, can be expanded by adding one or more modules to the sides or on the top, thereby transformable into different forms such as a rectangular prism. In this way, living modules can be shaped for different purposes.

The panels can be produced from wood, steel, aluminum sheets and/or PVC materials according to the climatic conditions of the basic module's (7) deployment site. It is also possible to place xps, glass wool, stone wool sheets in the panels to provide protection against fires and thermal insulation. The panels, comprised by the basic module (7) are used as ceilings, floorings, lateral dividing panels.

The hinges are structures that connect panels together. Panels can be folded and unfolded by means of said hinges. In case of use, the foldable structure of the hinge system allows the panels to be opened and fixed, getting it ready for use. The hinges which allow 90° and/or 270° rotation depending on the opening and folding types of the panels are within the scope of the present invention. The hinge system employed in the invention enables the module to be deployed by opening the modules, not comprising a detailed mounting procedure, unlike the screwed connection systems. Preferably, additional modules can be added to the basic module (7) . These modules are connected by the lower hinge connector stud (8) and the upper hinge connector stud (9), illustrated in figures 3 and 4, respectively. Before the addition of a second module, the said connection bar is fixed by attaching to the first module.

The lower hinge connector stud (8) is used when the side module is added to the basic module (7) . The upper hinge connector stud (9) is used when the upper module is attached to the base module (7) . As shown in Figure 7, in the addition of the upper module, the upper modules are mounted by attaching them to the upper hinge connector stud (9) which is connected with the fitting bars, by engagement with the fitting at the basic module (7) . In other words, when the upper module is added, the upper hinge connector stud (9) is attached by passing through the lower hinge connector stud

(8) and is connected to the said upper hinge connector stud

(9) by passing through the fitting bars.

In the developed living module, the lower hinge connector stud (8) and the upper hinge connector stud (9) are the elements that carry and connect all of the modules. There is no need to use a hinge connector stud when a single module is used.

Hinge connector studs have many technical benefits compared to screwed systems. The number of components that make up the system is kept to a minimum by means of the developed connector studs. These hinge connection studs, which are used when a new module needs to be added to the system, allow one of the panels to be removed without any disassembly process, or other modules to be added by changing the angle. Less deformation happens in the hinge connector studs in time than in screwed connections. They also have a leaner, less distracting appearance than screwed connections.

If desired, the hinge and hinge connector studs used in the system can be reinforced with screw systems.

The developed system allows quick installation in emergency situations. The living module of the invention can be set up by one person. The top module placement is carried out by at least two persons.

As also mentioned above, sheltering amenities can be extended by connecting the basic modules (7) to each other. The basic module (7) is transformed into large and spacious living units by placing the additional modules next to and/or above the basic module (7) . Extension of the basic module (7) is possible with additional modules. In addition to the basic module (7), wet-volume modules (kitchen module, bath module, toilet module, etc.) and living modules (bed room module, study room module, etc.) can be added. These additional modules are the same size as the basic module (7) and are also foldable modules. The number of additional modules can be adjusted as shown in figures 5 and 6 according to functional requirements.

In cases where a top module is added on the basic module (7), a ladder system can be used to provide access. The interiors of the said modules can be elaborated by considering different usage purposes. Systems such as accordion ladder system, sliding ladder system and/or fixed ladder system to provide access from outside can optionally be added to the folded module which is developed during the detailing stage.

Panels can be changed for different uses. Figures 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 illustrate developed module panels according to different embodiments. The panels according to these figures can be used as flat panel (10), single-window panel (11), single-door panel (12), single-door single-window panel (13), two-window panel (14) . The doors and windows on the panels can also be attached and detached according to needs, and windowed panel, doored panel, doored-windowed panel configurations other than those shown in the figures can be developed. In summary, the panels can comprise windows, doors in desired numbers and locations or can be used as walls according to the requirements.

The panel according to the invention comprises a panel carrier system (15) . The panel carrier system (15) ensures that the load generated by the own weight of the panels is balanced, the load of the superstructured modules is carried, the extra loads caused by weather and the environmental conditions is countered, and the different materials to function together. Being the panel carrier system (15) these profiles placed in the panel, allow the vertical loads to be supported. The dimensions of the profile and the insulation materials to be used in the panel are determined according to the deployment area and the shape of the module. Different panel carrier system (15) materials can be used depending on the loads exerting on the profiles to be placed in the panel. The insulated and coated panel carrier system (16) is shown in Figure 15. Also, according to the areas to be deployed, panels containing different thermal insulation materials, for example, waterproofing materials in line with the precipitation levels are developed. Depending on the functional interior design, the details of panels, materials, inner panel carrier system (15) may vary.

In one embodiment of the developed invention, the basic module (7) comprises six panels. The said panels are used as floors, ceilings, lateral partition panels and hinged to each other. By means of these hinges it can be combined and stacked, taking the shape of a rectangular prism.

In a further embodiment of the invention, the basic module (7) is developed as a cube in the measures of 2600x2600x2600 mm. These accommodation units developed in the cubic form are suitable for meeting the housing needs of at least two people. The cube-shaped basic module (7) consists of 6 different panels with the dimensions of 2600x2600x60mm, which can be placed at 90° and multiples thereof on each other. The panel is folded and transformed into a rectangular prism with dimensions of 2600x2600x360 mm. Each panel is connected to each other by these hinges and the rotation and folding operations are done by means of these hinges. The developed basic module (7) occupies a minimum space. By means of the developed configuration, living modules with 30 basic modules (7) can be carried in a truck with dimensions of 13,60 x 2,42 x 2,60 m. The developed basic module (7) is suitable for adding or removing various functional modules according to the time- dependent changes such as the vital requirements, the number of family members and the economic situation. In this way, it both serves as a temporary shelter and provides a comfortable living possibility which may be tailored according to changing requirements. The folding and unfolding method of the basic module (7) of the developed invention has not been used in the systems of the known state of the art. The said method is suitable for folding and unfolding of the panels, whereby any deformation to be caused by continuous folding and unfolding in panels is prevented.

The invention is a system that can be enlarged and shaped according to the user needs, using preferably cube-shaped module or modules. The system has been developed in accordance with different interior designs within a certain standardization. For example, kitchen, bathroom, lavatory, kitchen bedroom, study room modules and combinations thereof can be improved thanks to the system of the invention. The folding method of the system is shown progressively in Figures 17a-17f. According to the developed folding method, the module view changes as a, b, c, d, e and f respectively. As for the installation method, the module view changes in the opposite fashion as the figures f, e, d, c, b and a respectively.

Panels comprised by the module, an embodiment of which is included in Figure 2 are shown in Figure la - Figure If. Accordingly, by passing through the hinge at a 90° angle, Panel A (1) is attached to Panel B (2), Panel C (3) to Panel D (4), Panel E (5) to Panel D (4), Panel F (6) to Panel C (3); thereby getting the installation complete. When the system is disassembled, Panel E (5) is folded firstly at 270°, then the Panel F (6) at 270°, the Panel D (4) at 90°, the Panel A (1) at 270° and the Panel B (2) is folded at 90°, respectively. When it is assembled, firstly the Panel B (2) is unfolded at 90°, the Panel A (1) at 270°, the Panel D (4) at 90°, the Panel F (6) at 270° and the Panel E (5) is unfolded at 270°, thereby getting the module installation complete. By means of the developed folding method, in the case of using the living module multiple times, i.e. repeated installations of the living module, the deformations at the connection points are reduced to a minimum. Since the panels in the developed module system will not be opened and closed dynamically on a constant basis, the system is a static one. No problems arise either geometrically or in terms of the angle of force (opening-closing force and frictional force) which would prevent folding at the connection point during opening and closing operations of the panels as detailed above.

In summary, the present invention is a foldable living module that allows persons to be safely sheltered, wherein a floor, ceiling, side and/or dividing panel, a hinge connecting the panels, hinge connector stud enabling other modules can be added on top of and/or adjacent to the basic module, making possible to remove one of the panels without any disassembly process and/or to add another module, a panel carrier system (15) located inside the panel are comprised. Description of the Drawings

Figure-la: The view of panel A

Figure-lb: The view of panel B

Figure-lc: The view of panel C

Figure-Id: The view of panel D

Figure-le: The view of panel E

Figure-l : The view of panel F

Figure-2 : Basic module structure

Figure-3: View of the hinge bottom hinge connection stud

Figure- : View of the hinge upper hinge connection stud

Figure-5 : A view of the connection of modules from an aspect Figure-6: A view of the connection of modules from another aspect

Figure-7 : Perspective view of the connector studs used in the connection of modules

Figure-8: Panel view

Figure-9: Single-window panel view

Figure-10: Single-door panel view

Figure-11: Single-door single-window panel view

Figure-12: Two-window panel view

Figure-13: Another single-window panel view

Figure-1 : The view of the panel carrier system

Figure-15: The view of the insulated and coated panel

Figure-16: Panel carrier system and insulation installation. Figure-17a: Module view

Figure-17b: The view of the first stage in folding the module Figure-17c: The view of the second stage in folding the module

Figure-17d: The view of the third stage in folding the module Figure-17e: The view of the fourth stage in folding the module

Figure-17 : The view of the fifth and the last stage in folding the module Re erences

I . Panel A

2. Panel B

3. Panel C

4. Panel D

5. Panel E

6. Panel F

7. Basic module

8. Lower hinge connector stud

9. Upper hinge connector stud

10. Flat panel

II. Single-window panel

12. Single-door panel

13. Single-door single-window panel

14. Two-window panel

15. Panel carrier system

16. Insulated and coated panel carrier system