Modular building unit for a protective shelter
A composite panel assembly comprising at least one modular building unit. The modular building unit of the present invention may comprise two tubes aligned immediately adjacent, oriented parallel to each other, and having an integral connection over at least one portion of their outer circumferences. The volume surrounding the integrated tubes may be coated with a wide variety of function specific structural materials, and yet further, the inner diameter of the tubes may be filled with a wide variety of function specific filler materials. The composite panel assembly may be used in a wide variety of construction applications including, but not limited to, load bearing and impact resistant structures. One such application is a protective shelter that can be assembled in a pre-existing structure using common hand tools. The shelter may be assembled from the inside, and is resistant to both high winds and airborne missiles.
This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/785,113, filed with the USPTO on Mar. 23, 2006, which is incorporated by reference.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENTNot applicable.
INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISKNot applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the field of construction, and more particularly to a modular building unit that may be utilized to construct a protective shelter for enclosing the interior of a pre-existing room during a high-wind incident.
2. Background Art
High wind storms can cause significant structural damage resulting in substantial economic loss, significant injuries, and loss of life as was evident from hurricanes striking the coastal regions of Louisiana, Texas and Florida in recent years. Structural failure in high wind conditions is a significant factor contributing to economic loss, injuries and fatalities sustained by affected home and business owners.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has established criteria for in-residence shelters to protect the inhabitants of buildings from natural disasters. These shelters are “to provide a high degree of occupant protection during severe windstorms (hurricanes and tornadoes).” In-Residence Shelter, October, 1998. This FEMA publication provides construction plans and drawings for several different types of shelters including an in-ground shelter, a basement lean-to, a corner location basement shelter, a Concrete Masonry Unit (CMU), a CMU/concrete shelter, and a wood-frame shelter with plywood sheathing or steel wall sheathing.
There is also a published pamphlet sponsored by FEMA and written by the Wind Engineering Research Center of Texas Tech University entitled, “Taking Shelter from the Storm: Building a Safe Room Inside Your House” (Second Ed., March 2004), listed as publication FEMA 320. The publication states that the basis of the design of a shelter “is to provide a space where you and your family can survive a tornado or hurricane with little or no injury . . . To protect the occupants during extreme windstorms, the shelter must be adequately anchored to the house foundation to resist overturning and uplift. The connections between all parts of the shelter must be strong enough to resist failure, and the walls, roof, and door must resist penetration by windborne missiles.” However, the pamphlet further states that extensive testing has shown that “walls, ceilings, and doors commonly used in house construction cannot withstand the impact of missiles carried by extreme winds.” The publication then describes shelter designs that meet the design criteria.
All of the shelters in the FEMA publication involve permanent construction using concrete as the primary material or as the foundation material. The installation of these shelters thus cannot be performed by the average homeowner and requires the use of a professional builder. For example, the wall construction recommended for a typical frame shelter plan with plywood and steel wall sheathing includes two layers of three-quarter inch plywood panels on the outside, a 14 gauge steel sheathing on the inside and double 2×4 studs at 16 inches on center.
FEMA shelters have the following design criteria: they will withstand wind pressures developed from 250-MPH, 3-second gusts in accordance with ASCE 7-95; they will withstand windborne debris (missile) impact loads created by a 15 pound 2×4 traveling horizontally along the board's longitudinal axis at 100 mph, traveling vertically at 67 mph, and impacting perpendicular to the wall surface. This missile speed corresponds to a 250 mph wind. The tornado missile test criteria were established by the Wind Engineering Research Center (WERC) at the Texas Tech University. FEMA set another criterion for in-ground shelters wherein there must be a minimum of five square feet per person.
The shelter design criteria have contradictory requirements: on the one hand the shelters must be physically strong so they can withstand high wind and earthquake forces; and the shelters must also be able to withstand the penetration of windborne articles. If the shelter is constructed pursuant to the plans in the aforementioned FEMA publication, it can easily meet both of these contradictory criteria. However, such a shelter must be constructed by a professional building contractor having a number of different professional workers, each with one of the requisite construction skills such as masonry, carpentry, and iron work.
There are many U.S. patents that disclose a multitude of shelters. Invariably, all of these shelters have the primary goal of providing structural integrity and protecting against collapse, ignoring the protection against the penetration of windborne articles. One issued patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,813,174 to Waller, discloses a light-weight steel structure that can be packaged and shipped as loose tubular and bent-plate channel modules and can be assembled by the user. Its disclosure states that the structure can be assembled entirely from within the structure as it is being built, and thus it can be installed in a pre-existing enclosure. It appears that an embodiment of this patent is presently being marketed by the Remagen Corporation of Monteagle, Tenn. However, the intent of this patent is to produce a structure comprised of a plurality of metal panels bolted together to produce extremely rigid walls that provide a solid enclosure. The construction features set forth in the patent clearly describe an I-beam configuration between adjacent panels that are connected to a rigid frame. For example,
The difficulty with very rigid and solid structures is that they will not pass the FEMA penetration test due to their high rigidity. Such structures are designed to protect against building collapse. The walls have virtually no “give” or “play”, and thus no means for absorbing and distributing the striking force of a propelled object (e.g. a 2×4 beam traveling at over 100 miles per hour). Page 12 of the publication FEMA 320 states, “[d]amage can also be caused by flying debris (referred to as windborne missiles). If wind speeds are high enough, missiles can be thrown at a building with enough force to penetrate windows, walls, or the roof . . . Even a reinforced masonry wall will be penetrated unless it has been designed and constructed to resist debris impact during extreme winds. Because missiles can severely damage and even penetrate walls and roofs, they threaten not only buildings but the occupants as well.”
Thus, there is a need for a protective shelter that will not only meet the aforementioned FEMA criteria, but can also be assembled by the consumer without the need for professional builders. Further, there is also a need for a shelter that can be installed within a pre-existing structure and does not require installation prior to construction of the structure. Still further, there is a need for a shelter that can be economically purchased and easily assembled with common hand tools. It is thus clear that well recognized need exists for an economical protective shelter that can be assembled by everyday consumers, from prefabricated components with readily available hand tools in a short period of time, and when assembled can pass both FEMA's structural integrity test and missile penetration test.
Thus, it would be useful to provide a protective shelter capable of installation within a pre-existing structure, using common hand tools, and not requiring an extensive structural foundation.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn accordance with one embodiment, a composite panel assembly is disclosed comprising at least one modular building unit that comprises: a first tube; a second tube aligned immediately adjacent and parallel to the first tube; and at least one integral connection between the outer circumference of the first tube and the outer circumference of the second tube.
Such composite panel assemblies may be further utilized in the construction of a protective shelter that protects an inner space. The protective shelter comprises: a front wall, the front wall having a door frame assembly therein and a door attached to the door frame assembly; a rear wall; two side walls; and a ceiling panel; wherein the walls and the ceiling panel each comprise a composite panel assembly, the composite panel assembly comprises a plurality of modular building units, each of the modular building units comprises a first tube, a second tube aligned immediately adjacent and parallel to the first tube, and at least one integral connection between the outer circumference of the first tube and the outer circumference of the second tube.
The present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. Unless otherwise defined, technical and scientific terms herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains. Suitable methods and materials are described below; additionally however, methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the present invention. In addition, the materials, methods and examples given are illustrative in nature only and not intended to be limiting. Accordingly, this invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the illustrated embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these illustrated embodiments are provided solely for exemplary purposes so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description.
Referring now to
As depicted in
The integral connection 26 may be provided for in a wide variety of configurations including, but not limited to, a single connection point, one continuous connection along the majority of the lengths of tubes 22, 24, connections at approximately the midpoint and both ends of the tubes 22, 24, uniformly spaced connections along the length of the tubes 22, 24 (depicted in
As depicted in
As depicted in
The modular building units 20 of composite panel assembly 10 may have an optional coating of structural material 28, as described above, disposed about the outer circumference of tubes 22, 24. In a preferred embodiment depicted in
A modular building corner unit 30 may be used in connecting two composite panel assemblies 10.
Filler material may optionally be disposed within the tubes 22, 24 of each modular building unit 20 and modular building corner unit 30. Filler materials enable a dramatic increase in the strength and impact resistance of the modular building units 20. Appropriate filler material may include, but is not limited to, cement, steel (e.g. steel rods disposed within tubes 22, 24), foam (e.g. high density foam), polymers (e.g. polyurethane), any combinations thereof, and any other filler materials known within the art. Use of such strengthening filler material allows the possibility of using a more economical material for tubes 22, 24 of the modular building units 20. As an example, with use of an appropriate filler material a user may opt for a lower grade standard metal fence post instead of ¼ inch steel pipe as the chosen material for pipes 22, 24.
Composite panel assemblies 10, as described above, are capable of use in a wide variety of construction functions. Such utility includes, but is not limited to, vertical structures such as walls and barriers, and horizontal structures such as decks, floors, roofs, and the like. Use of a plurality of strong and impact resistant composite panel assemblies together allows a user to construct a very safe definable space. Examples include safe rooms or storm rooms to protect people from harmful outside actions and forces. As an example, such a protective shelter would be highly advantageous in providing protection from tornadoes in the Midwest and hurricanes in the Southeast.
A preferred embodiment of the protective shelter 100 of the present invention is depicted in
After determining the dimensions of the room to be retrofitted, an appropriate number of modular building units 20 are joined along the length of each interior wall of the pre-existing structure via an attachment 29. Similarly each modular building corner unit 30 is joined to adjacent tubes 22, 24 of modular building units 20 via attachment 29. The combined length of adjacent modular building units 20 and joined modular building corner units 30 at each corner along a wall may equal the length of each room wall. The length of a modular building corner unit 30 may approximately equal that of a modular building unit 20. Walls 40, 42, 44, 46 incident to a corner without a modular building corner unit 30 from the orthogonal adjacent wall 40, 42, 44, 46 will include an attached modular building corner unit 30. Alternatively, the modular building units 20 and modular building corner units 30 may be sized during the manufacturing process so that the appropriate number of modular building units 20 extends the length of the inner surface of each room wall.
After room wall interior surfaces are fitted with adjacent modular building units 20 and room corners include modular building corner units 30, connecting means 54 may be used to further secure each modular building unit 20 to adjacent unit(s) 20 or corner unit(s) 30 along a wall 40, 42, 44, 46 or roof panel 48 (see
Connecting means 54 may be attached to walls 40, 42, 44, 46 in any manner known within the arts including, but not limited to, welding, conventional bonding, and the use of typical nuts, bolts and/or screws. A preferred embodiment comprises typical bolt(s) 56 and complementary receiving nut(s) 58, as shown in
A roof panel 48 is composed of adjacent modular building units 20 similar to the units 20 used in composing the room walls 40, 42, 44, 46, as discussed above. As shown in
The modular building units 20 of the walls 40, 42, 44, 46 can be secured to the base or floor via connecting means 54 in the same method in which they were secured to the roof panel 58 above. Connecting means 54 may include a portion for securing to the lower end of tubes 22, 24 of walls 40, 42, 44, 46 and another portion for securing to the base. As with the roof panel 48 above, any other method known to one of skill in the art may be used in securing the walls 40, 42, 44, 46 of the protective shelter 100 to the base. The base or flooring may include pre-drilled holed coinciding with holes within connecting means 54, into which screws are passed thereby securing the shelter 100 to the floor. All means of securing the connecting means 54 to the roof panel 48, walls 40, 42, 44, 46, and base may be accessible from the inside of the shelter to permit its construction from within the protected space.
As depicted in
Another embodiment of a modular building unit 20 and protective shelter 100 in accordance with the present invention will now be described in reference to
The positioning material 82 serves to hold the tubular member 74 at the weakest part of the I-beam 72. Positioning material 82 may include, but is not limited to, polyurethane, other polymers, cement, foams, composite materials, and any other materials known within the art. The exposed surface of positioning material 82 may be formed in a concave shape that is complimentary to the external circumference of the tubular member 74, as shown in
Another embodiment of a protective shelter 100 may comprise a plurality of modular building units 70 combined in a manner similar to the above disclosed shelter 100 constructions using modular building units 20. Walls, a roof panel and a door may be constructed from a panelized plurality of modular building units 70, as depicted in
The I-beams 72 and tubular members 74 of each modular building panel 70 of the roof panel extends the length or width of the room to be retrofitted, as discussed above with the modular building units 20. Similarly, the walls of the shelter 100 may be fixedly connected to both the base and the roof panel via connecting means 54, which may be secured at both the upper and lower portion of each adjacent I-beam 72 constituent of the shelter 100 walls. Attachment of connecting means 54 to the roofs, walls, and base can be in any manner known in the art. A preferred means of attaching the connecting means is via typical nuts and bolts, as discussed above for the first embodiment of the protective shelter 100.
In the drawings and specification, there have been disclosed typical preferred embodiments of the invention, and all though specific terms are employed, the terms are used in a descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation. The invention has been described in considerable detail with specific references to these illustrated embodiments. It will be apparent, however, that various modifications and changes can be made within the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the forgoing specification.
While the above description contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of any embodiment, but as exemplifications of the presently preferred embodiments thereof. Many other ramifications and variations are possible within the teachings of the various embodiments.
Thus the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, and not by the examples given.
Claims
1. A composite panel assembly, comprising:
- at least one modular building unit, comprising, a first tube; a second tube aligned immediately adjacent and parallel to said first tube; and at least one integral connection between the outer circumference of said first tube and the outer circumference of said second tube.
2. The composite panel assembly of claim 1, wherein a first modular building unit is attached to a second modular building unit, said modular building units being disposed parallel, within the same plane, and having an attachment between said outer circumference of one of said tubes of said first modular building unit and said outer circumference of one of said tubes of said second modular building unit.
3. The composite panel assembly of claim 2, wherein a filler material is disposed within said tubes.
4. The composite panel assembly of claim 1, further comprising a structural material disposed about the outer surface of said modular building units.
5. The composite panel assembly of claim 4, wherein said structural material is disposed in a manner providing the outer surface of said structural material a rectangular cross section, a portion of said outer circumference diametric to said integral connection of both said first tube and said second tube remaining uncovered by said structural material.
6. The composite panel assembly of claim 5, wherein a first modular building unit is attached to a second modular building unit, said modular building units being disposed parallel, within the same plane, and having an attachment between said uncovered portion of the outer circumference of one of said tubes of said first modular building unit and said uncovered portion of the outer circumference of one of said tubes of said second modular building unit.
7. The composite panel assembly of claim 6, wherein a filler material is disposed within said tubes.
8. The composite panel assembly of claim 6, wherein abutting surfaces of said structural material on said first modular building unit and said second modular building unit are bonded together to increase the strength of said attachment between said modular building units.
9. The composite panel assembly of claim 8, wherein a filler material is disposed within said tubes.
10. A protective shelter that protects an inner space, comprising:
- a front wall, said front wall having a door frame assembly therein and a door attached to said door frame assembly;
- a rear wall;
- two side walls; and
- a ceiling panel;
- wherein said walls and said ceiling panel each comprise a composite panel assembly, said composite panel assembly comprises a plurality of modular building units, each of said modular building units comprises a first tube, a second tube aligned immediately adjacent and parallel to said first tube, and at least one integral connection between the outer circumference of said first tube and the outer circumference of said second tube.
11. The protective shelter of claim 10, wherein said composite panel assembly comprises a plurality of interconnected modular building units wherein a first modular building unit is attached to a second modular building unit, said modular building units being disposed parallel, within the same plane, and having an attachment between the outer circumference of one of said tubes of said first modular building unit and the outer circumference of one of said tubes of said second modular building unit.
12. The protective shelter of claim 11, wherein a filler material is disposed within said tubes.
13. The protective shelter of claim 10, further comprising a structural material disposed about the outer surface of said modular building units.
14. The protective shelter of claim 13, wherein said structural material is disposed in a manner providing the outer surface of said structural material a rectangular cross section, a portion of said outer circumference diametric to said integral connection of both said first tube and said second tube remaining uncovered by said structural material.
15. The protective shelter of claim 14, wherein a first modular building unit is attached to a second modular building unit, said modular building units being disposed parallel, within the same plane, and having an attachment between said uncovered outer circumference of one of said tubes of said first modular building unit and said uncovered outer circumference of one of said tubes of said second modular building unit.
16. The protective shelter of claim 15, wherein a filler material is disposed within said tubes.
17. The protective shelter of claim 15, wherein abutting surfaces of said structural material on said first modular building unit and said second modular building unit are bonded together to increase the strength of said attachment between said modular building units.
18. The protective shelter of claim 17, wherein a filler material is disposed within said tubes.
19. The protective shelter of claim 18, wherein both the inner upper ends and inner lower ends of said tubes each further comprise at least one fastening hole, wherein an upper connecting means comprises an L-bracket disposed along the upper end of each of said walls for fastening said ceiling panel to said walls, wherein wall bolts and ceiling bolts pass through both said L-bracket and said fastening holes into at least one receiving nut disposed within said tubes and aligned with said fastening holes, and further wherein a lower connecting means comprises an L-bracket disposed along the lower end of each of said walls for fastening said walls to a base, wherein said wall bolts pass through both said L-brackets and said fastening holes into said at least one receiving nut disposed within said tubes and aligned with said fastening holes and wherein base bolts pass through said L-bracket and anchor into said base, thereby fixedly anchoring said walls to said base.
20. A protective shelter that protects an inner space, comprising:
- a front wall, said front wall having a door frame assembly therein and a door attached to said door frame assembly;
- a rear wall;
- two side walls; and
- a ceiling panel;
- wherein said walls and said ceiling panel each comprise a composite panel assembly, said composite panel assembly comprises, a plurality of modular building units, each of said modular building units comprises, a first tube; a second tube aligned immediately adjacent and parallel to said first tube; and at least one integral connection between the outer circumference of said first tube and the outer circumference of said second tube, a structural material disposed about the outer surface of said plurality of modular building units, wherein said structural material is disposed in a manner providing the outer surface of said structural material a rectangular cross section with a portion of said outer circumference diametric to said integral connection of both said first tube and said second tube remaining uncovered by said structural material, wherein a first modular building unit is attached to a second modular building unit, said modular building units being disposed parallel, within the same plane, and having an attachment between the outer circumference of one of said tubes of said first modular building unit and the outer circumference of one of said tubes of said second modular building unit, abutting surfaces of said structural material on said first modular building unit and said second modular building unit being bonded together to increase the strength of said attachment between said modular building units, wherein both the inner upper ends and inner lower ends of said tubes each further comprise at least one fastening hole, wherein an upper connecting means comprises an L-bracket disposed along the upper end of each of said walls for fastening said ceiling panel to said walls, wherein wall bolts and ceiling bolts pass through both said L-bracket and said fastening holes into at least one receiving nut disposed within said tubes and aligned with said fastening holes, and a lower connecting means comprises an L-bracket disposed along the lower end of each of said walls for fastening said walls to a base, wherein said wall bolts pass through both said L-brackets and said fastening holes into said at least one receiving nut disposed within said tubes and aligned with said fastening holes and wherein base bolts pass through said L-bracket and anchor into said base, thereby fixedly anchoring said walls to said base.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 22, 2007
Publication Date: Oct 11, 2007
Inventor: Richard Gage (Indialantic, FL)
Application Number: 11/726,628
International Classification: E04D 13/18 (20060101);