Convertible Shipping Container Sliding Panels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing shipping containers used for residential purposes face challenges such as limited interior space, high installation costs, and the need for extensive assembly and additional fittings to create habitable living areas.
Innovation Solution
A convertible shipping container with a parallelepiped structure that includes slots on its longitudinal side walls for deployable panels, allowing for a significant increase in floor surface area by sliding panels outward to form additional rooms, and an extension block that can be deployed to further expand the living space.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If deployable panels are added to expand living space, then floor surface area is increased, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The deployable panels are nested inside the container when retracted, similar to a nested doll structure. The panels store within the container's interior space and deploy outward to expand the living area, allowing space expansion without permanently increasing the container's external dimensions or complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The container transitions from a static structure to a dynamic one with panels that can freely slide between retracted and deployed positions. This dynamic capability allows the container to adapt its living space according to needs while maintaining a simple base structure.
2Stability of the object's composition
If multiple people are required for assembly, then structure stability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The container is divided into modular components including the main container body, deployable panels, and extension block. Each segment can be independently handled and assembled, reducing the need for multiple people during deployment while maintaining overall structural stability through standardized connection interfaces.
3Productivity
If installation time is reduced, then productivity is improved, but manufacturing precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The container is pre-equipped with all necessary fittings, fixtures, and finishings during manufacturing. The deployable panels and extension block are pre-assembled with integrated connections, allowing rapid on-site deployment without compromising assembly precision. Electrical, plumbing, and insulation systems are pre-installed to enable immediate habitability upon deployment.
Data Source
AI summary
A convertible shipping container includes one or more slots arranged on at least one longitudinal wall, a set of deployable panels mounted to freely slide through the plurality of slots so as to define at least one additional room adjacent to the container and an extension block coaxially arranged inside the container and mounted to freely longitudinally slide at one end of the container. The container is convertible between a first configuration, called retracted configuration, in which the set of deployable panels, as well as the movable extension block, are respectively in the retracted position and are contained in the container, and a second configuration, called deployed configuration, in which the set of deployable panels and/or the movable extension block are deployed outside the container.