FOLDING SHED

• US 20090014044A1
• Filed: 07/12/2007
• Published: 01/15/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: UltraFold Buildings, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Paul E. Schaffert
• Inventors: Hartman, Carrol O., Hartman, Morris L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,763,315 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 135/143
• CPC Class Codes: E04B 1/343 Structures characterised by movable, separable, or collapsible parts, e.g. for transport movable roof parts E04B7/16; floatable buildings B63B; small prefabricated buildings, transportable as a whole, E04H1/12; small garages E04H6/02; tents or canopies, in general E04H15/00
• CPC Class Codes: E04B 1/34336 Structures movable as a whole, e.g. mobile home structures vehicles comprising living accommodation for people, e.g. caravans, camping or like vehicles B60P3/32
• CPC Class Codes: E04B 1/344 with hinged parts
• CPC Class Codes: E04B 1/3445 foldable in a flat stack of parallel panels
• CPC Class Codes: E04H 1/005 Modulation co-ordination

Abstract

A folding shed including a roof with a first roof section pivotally connected to a first sidewall and a second roof section pivotally connected to a second sidewall. The folding shed may further include foldable first and second end walls, each pivotally connected to the first and second sidewalls. The folding shed may be transformed from an operation to a storage configuration by outwardly pivoting the first and second roof sections until the exterior surface of each roof section approximately abuts the exterior surface of the sidewall to which it is connected and inwardly moving foldable end walls until the interior surfaces of the sidewalls approximately abut the interior surfaces of the end walls.

Claims

1. A folding shed comprising:

a first sidewall and a second sidewall;

a first roof section pivotally coupled with the first sidewall;

a second roof section pivotally coupled with the second sidewall;

a foldable first end wall pivotally coupled with the first sidewall, and the first end wall pivotally coupled with the second sidewall;

a foldable second end wall pivotally coupled with the first sidewall, and the second end wall pivotally coupled with the second sidewall;

the first and second sidewalls, the first and second roof sections, and the first and second foldable end walls are configurable into a first position to define an interior of a shed; and

the first roof section pivots outwardly from the interior of the shed when the first and second sidewalls, the first and second roof sections, and the first and second foldable end walls are configured in the first position.

2. The folding shed of claim 1, wherein the second roof section pivots outwardly from the interior of the shed when the first and second sidewalls, the first and second roof sections;

and the first and second foldable end walls are configured in the first position.

3. The folding shed of claim 1, wherein the foldable first end wall includes a first section pivotably connected to the first sidewall, and a second section pivotably connected to the first section and to the second sidewall.

4. The folding shed of claim 1, further comprising a means for pivotally coupling the first roof section to the first sidewall.

5. The folding shed of claim 4, wherein the means for pivotally coupling the first roof section to the first sidewall is at least one hinge.

6. The folding shed of claim 1, further comprising a first means for pivotally coupling the first end wall to the first sidewall, and a second means for pivotally coupling the first end wall to a second sidewall.

7. The folding shed of claim 6, wherein the first means for pivotally coupling the first roof end wall to the first sidewall is at least one first hinge, and the second means for pivotally coupling the first end wall to the second sidewall is at least one second hinge.

8. The folding shed of claim 1, wherein a maximum height of the folding shed is less than or equal to approximately eight feet.

9. The folding shed of claim 1, further comprising a roof plate operatively associated with at least one of the first and second roof sections.

10. The folding shed of claim 1, wherein the first roof section includes at least two first roof segments.

11. The folding shed of claim 10, wherein at least one of the at least two first roof segments is pivotable relative to the first sidewall independently of the other first roof segments.

12. The folding shed of claim 10, wherein at least one of the at least two first roof segments is pivotally coupled to an adjacent first roof segment.

13. The folding shed of claim 10, wherein the second roof section includes at least two second roof segments.

14. The folding shed of claim 13, wherein at least one of the at least two second roof segments is pivotable relative to the second sidewall independently of the other second roof segments.

15. The folding shed of claim 13, wherein at least one of the at least two second roof segments is pivotally coupled to an adjacent second roof segment.

16. The folding shed of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first sidewall and the second sidewall includes at least two sidewall segments.

17. A method for configuring a folding building from an operation to a storage configuration comprising:

pivoting a first roof section of a roof of a building outwardly until a surface of the first roof section approximately abuts a first sidewall; and

pivoting a second roof section of the roof outwardly until a surface of the second roof section approximately abuts a second sidewall.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising folding a first end wall of the building until a surface of a first section of the first end wall approximately abuts a surface of a second section of the first end wall.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising folding a second end wall of the building until a surface of a first section of the second end wall approximately abuts a surface of a second section of the second end wall.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the surface of the first section of the first end wall is an exterior surface and the surface of the second section of the first end wall is an exterior surface.