Patent ID: 7556471
Filing Date: 2009-07-07
Classification: B63B,B64D

Abstract:
1. A method for transporting personnel between locations, said method comprising: adjusting a compactable transport device from a completely compacted state to a completely non-compacted state, said adjusting including unfolding a frame from a completely folded state to a completely unfolded state, and unfolding each of at least eight chairs from said completely folded state to said completely unfolded state; at a first location, embarking at least four passengers on said device in a completely non-compacted state, said embarking including situating said at least four passengers in said at least eight chairs, each said passenger being situated in one said chair; hoisting said device in said completely non-compacted state with said at least four passengers embarked thereon from a first location to a second location; and at said second location, disembarking said at least four passengers from said device in said completely non-compacted state; said device being characterized by symmetry and including a foldable frame and said at least eight foldable chairs mounted on said floor, said foldable frame including a rigid rectangular floor, a rigid rectangular ceiling, and four foldable posts, said floor and said ceiling being characterized by approximately the same rectangular size, each said post including two post sections of approximately equal length and having two post ends and a junction between said two post sections so that each said post section has one of said post ends and so that said two post sections are hingedly connected to each other at said junction, said ceiling having four ceiling corners, four ceiling edges and a ceiling geometric center; said floor having four floor corners, four floor edges and a floor geometric center, each said post being hingedly connected at a first said post end to said ceiling at a said ceiling corner and being hingedly connected at a second said post end to said floor at a said floor corner, each said chair including a seat, a chair back, a pair of lateral head restraints, and a chair support, each said restraint being hingedly connected to said chair back, said seat being hingedly connected to said chair support, said chair support being hingedly connected to said floor; wherein when said device in said completely non-compacted state, said frame approximately describes a rectangular prismatic geometric shape having four vertical edges and four prismatic vertical rectangular sides, each said prismatic vertical rectangular side is bounded by one said ceiling edge, one said floor edge, and two said vertical edges, said at least eight foldable chairs are centrally mounted on said floor and arranged in a rectangular chair array characterized by four chair array geometric sides, each said chair array geometric side having at least two said chairs facing in a perpendicular direction with respect to one of said prismatic vertical rectangular sides, said chair array being characterized by a chair array geometric center approximately aligned vertically with said ceiling geometric center and with said floor geometric center, said post sections of each said post being approximately coaxial, said posts being approximately straight and approximately parallel to each other and approximately corresponding to said four vertical edges of said rectangular prismatic geometric shape, said ceiling and said floor approximately lying in respective geometric planes that are approximately parallel with respect to each other, said device being characterized by openness between said ceiling and said floor and between said posts; said openness and said symmetry of said device facilitating said embarking and said disembarking of each said passenger through one of said prismatic vertical rectangular sides, and facilitating situation of each said passenger in one of said chairs facing said prismatic vertical rectangular side through which said passenger embarks and disembarks; said embarking and said disembarking of said at least four passengers being performed so that each of said four prismatic vertical rectangular sides has at least one said passenger embarking and disembarking therethrough.