Portable Dwelling Segmentation for Single-Person Mobility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing solutions for homeless individuals lack adaptability to changing needs and do not provide a sustainable, community-oriented approach to address the ongoing issue of homelessness, often failing to offer adequate shelter, privacy, and a sense of community.
Innovation Solution
A portable dwelling designed for a single adult, capable of being moved by one person, which can be coupled with others to form a community, featuring a rigid frame for weather protection, wheels for mobility, and amenities such as document holders for personalization, solar flashlights, and communal arrangements to foster a sense of community and belonging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If existing programs and shelters for the homeless are used, then some degree of comfort and relief is provided, but they lack adaptability to changing needs and do not provide a sustainable, community-oriented approach
Solution Approach 1:
The solution segments the homeless population support system into individual portable dwelling units that can be independently deployed or combined. Each unit is a self-contained module that can be used alone or coupled with others to form communities, providing adaptability to different group sizes and needs without requiring complex centralized program structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The portable dwellings are designed to be dynamically reconfigurable - individuals can move between locations, units can be coupled or separated, and communities can grow or shrink by adding or removing units. This dynamic capability allows the system to adapt to changing needs of homeless individuals while maintaining simple, standardized unit designs.
2Ease of operation
If a portable dwelling is designed to be moved by one person, then ease of operation is improved, but the mass and size constraints may limit interior space
Solution Approach 1:
The dwelling uses a rigid panel frame structure with lightweight panel surfaces that provide weather protection while minimizing mass. The frame defined by rigid panel surfaces maintains structural integrity for rain protection without adding excessive weight, enabling single-person mobility while preserving adequate interior space.
Solution Approach 2:
The dwelling dimensions are optimized across multiple dimensions - the exterior profile is specifically dimensioned to fit through standard doorways and be moved along sidewalks, while the interior space is dimensioned to accommodate an adult in both reclined and upright sitting positions. This multi-dimensional optimization balances mobility constraints with living space requirements.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the enclosure is designed to maintain dryness during rainfall, then protection from harmful factors is improved, but the structural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The enclosure uses rigid panel surfaces that form a simple frame structure capable of maintaining interior dryness during rainfall. The panel surfaces between the interior space and exterior space provide weather protection through their inherent material properties and basic framing geometry, avoiding complex waterproofing systems while ensuring rain protection.
Data Source
AI summary
A portable dwelling for use on the ground is disclosed having an enclosure with an interior space so dimensioned to receive an adult human being in a reclined or laying position and in an upright sitting position within the interior space. The enclosure has a plurality of surfaces between the interior space and an exterior space capable of maintaining dryness of the interior space in the event of a rainfall. Wheels are attached to the enclosure to facilitate movement of the enclosure along the ground. The enclosure has a mass capable of being moved along the ground via the wheels by the single adult human being, and has an exterior profile so dimensioned to allow the enclosure to be moved along a sidewalk of a city without completely obstructing a navigable portion of the sidewalk.