Patent Publication Number: US-7913460-B2

Title: Observation shelter

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority from provisional application Ser. No. 60/766,102, filed Dec. 30, 2005, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by this reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Observation structures are used for various purposes such as guard towers, lifeguard towers and the like. Observation structures may be exposed to the elements, and may be unattended when not in use. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Features and advantages of the disclosure will readily be appreciated by persons skilled in the art from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the drawing wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is an isometric view of an exemplary embodiment of an observation structure. 
         FIG. 2  is a front view of the structure of  FIG. 1 , with a closed front shutter, a closed left side shutter, and a partially open right side shutter. 
         FIG. 3  is an isometric view of the shelter of  FIG. 1 , with the front shutter, left side shutter and right side shutter closed over the window openings to secure the un-occupied lifeguard shelter. 
         FIG. 4  is an isometric view of an alternate embodiment of an observation shelter. 
         FIG. 5A  is a rendering of an isometric view of a further exemplary embodiment of an observation shelter, with front, left side and right side shutters in the raised position.  FIG. 5B  is an isometric view of the observation shelter of  FIG. 5A , with the front shutter in the closed position and the left and right side shutters in the raised position. 
         FIG. 6  is a front elevation view of an embodiment of an observation shelter mounted on a deck supported by a platform structure with skids. 
         FIG. 7  is a right side elevation view of the embodiment of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 8  is a rear elevation view of the embodiment of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 9  is a top plan view of the embodiment of  FIG. 6 , with a portion of the deck and roof cut away to show a portion of a shelter interior. 
         FIG. 10  is a partial cutaway top view of a corner between left side and front walls of the shelter of  FIG. 6 , illustrating a configuration of the left and front shutters in the closed position. 
         FIG. 11  is a diagrammatic cross-sectional view taken through the left shelter wall, roof portion and shutter, depicting an exemplary locking arrangement for locking the shutter in the upright position. 
         FIG. 12  is a diagrammatic cross-sectional view, showing the shutter of  FIG. 11  in a closed, locked position. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In the following detailed description and in the several figures of the drawing, like elements are identified with like reference numerals. The figures are not to scale, and relative feature sizes may be exaggerated for illustrative purposes. 
     An exemplary embodiment of an observation shelter  1  is illustrated in  FIGS. 1-3 . The shelter  1  is provided with movable shutters  2 ,  3  and  4 , with shutter  2  a front shutter, shutter  3  a left side shutter (as viewed from the perspective of a person standing inside the shelter and facing the front window opening  8 ), and shutter  4  a right side shutter. The shelter  1  in an exemplary embodiment has four walls, each with a window opening  8 ,  9 ,  10  placed therein to allow observation of the external environment by a person within the shelter. The window openings may have glass installed therein for some applications, and for other applications the openings are not covered by a transparent glass or glazing. A door  20  may provide entry to the interior of the structure. This exemplary embodiment of a shelter is particularly well suited to applications such as a lifeguard tower for a beach, ocean, lake or other body of water. For a lifeguard tower application, the structure may be mounted on a deck, which in turn is mounted to a platform. The platform may be fabricated of metal beams, to which skids may be attached to allow the shelter structure to be towed to and from designated beach sites. 
       FIG. 1  is an isometric view of an exemplary embodiment of the shelter  1  with the front shutter  2 , the left side shutter  3  and the right side shutter  4  in the raised and open positions. The shutters may be attached to the roof structure  22  by hinges, allowed hinged movement of the shutters from raised or open positions to closed positions. Latches may be used to latch the shutters in the open positions (depicted in  FIG. 1 ). The shape of the shutters may be so configured that, with the shutters in the raised, open position, they meet at a cut line or joint  7  generated from the corner of the shelter  1 . This shape provides substantially unbroken shelter from the sun for the front window opening  8 , the left side window opening  9 , and the right side window opening  10 . This may provide a benefit of reducing the amount of material needed to fabricate a shelter with full shelter from the sun. 
     The shutters may have a non-rectangular shape. For example, the front shutter  2  may include triangular extension portions  11  (bounded by phantom lines  2 A,  2 B which extend beyond a generally rectangular-shaped portion  2 B of the shutter  2 . The left side shutter  3  may have a triangular extension portion  15  outside a pocket structure  13  of the shutter  3 . The right side shutter  4  may have a triangular extension portion  16  outside a pocket structure  14 . The extension portions  11 ,  14 ,  15  of the shutters  2 ,  3  provide additional shutter area to provide shelter at otherwise exposed areas which are left unsheltered by conventional rectangular shutters. The pocket structures of the shutters  3 ,  4  provide receptacles in which the extension portions  11 ,  12  of the front shutter  2  may be received when the shutters are in closed positions. 
       FIG. 2  shows a front view of the shelter  1  with the front shutter  2  in a closed position and the left side shutter  3  closed over the extended triangular portion  11  of the left hand side of the front shutter  2 . The right side shutter  4  is shown partially raised showing the uncovered extended portion  12  of the front shutter  2 . The right hand shutter  4  and the left hand shutter  3  have pocket structures  13 ,  14  designed to close over the extension portions  11 ,  12  of the front shutter  2 . 
       FIG. 3  is an isometric view of the lifeguard shelter  1  with the front shutter  2 , left side shutter  3  and right side shutter  4 , closed over the windows  8 ,  9 ,  10  in order to secure the un-occupied shelter.  FIG. 3  shows the left shutter extension portion  15  and pocket  14  that covers the front shutter left extension portion  11  (shown in phantom). 
       FIG. 4  illustrates an alternate version of a lifeguard shelter  1  with the front shutter  2 , left side shutter  3 , and right side shutter  4  closed over the window openings  8 ,  9 ,  10  in order to secure the un-occupied lifeguard shelter. Although the appearance of the lifeguard shelter is changed, the functions of the front shutter extension portions  11 ,  12  and the side shutter pockets  13 ,  14  are still incorporated so as to provide the desired shielding from the sun. 
     One or more of the shutter pockets may alternatively be incorporated into the front shutter, so that the front shutter accommodates one or both of the extension portions of the side shutters. 
     Another exemplary embodiment of an observation shelter is illustrated in  FIGS. 5A-12 . This embodiment of a shelter  100  includes walls including front wall  100 - 1  and side wall  100 - 2 , with respective window openings formed in the front and side walls including window openings  108 ,  109 . For some applications, the window openings may have window glazing installed therein. For other applications, the glazing or glass may not be included. The shelter further includes roof structure  122 , and shutters  102 ,  103 ,  104  mounted for hinged movement between respective open positions and closed positions.  FIG. 5A  depicts the shutters in the open position, and  FIG. 5B  shows the front shutter  102  in the closed position, and side shutters  103 ,  104  in the open position. 
     In this exemplary embodiment, the extension portions  111  and  112  of the front shutter  102  are peaked or generally pyramidal shaped regions, which not only provide shielding against the sun, but also may provide structural rigidity and strength to the shutter. This may be advantageous for the exemplary embodiment in which the shutter is a one-piece structure fabricated from a layer or layers of fiberglass. Similarly the side shutters  103 ,  104  include pocket regions  113 ,  114  which are peaked or pyramidal regions which not only are shaped to enclose the extension portions  111 ,  112  of the front shutter in the closed position, but also may provide structural rigidly and strength to the shutters. In an exemplary embodiment, the shutters may be unitary structures molded of a fiberglass material. 
     elevation and top plan views of  FIGS. 6-9  depict the shelter  100  mounted on a deck  150 , which is supported on a platform structure  160  with skids  170 , which may be useful for a beach application.  FIGS. 6-9  depict the shutters  102 - 104  in the open position. 
     It will be seen that in an exemplary embodiment, the window openings  108 ,  109 ,  110  of the shelter are inset at bottom edges, so that a ledge or sill portion  128  ( FIGS. 5A-5B ) is formed just below the bottom of the window openings. This provides a surface against which the bottom edges of the shutters may abut when the shutters are closed, to enhance the security achieved by closing the shutters. 
     In the exemplary embodiment of  FIGS. 5A-12 , the roof structure  122  has a bowed or curved configuration which may be generally in the form of a sector of a cylinder. The side wall edges of the roof structure may be generally linear to meet with generally linear edges of the side shutters  103 ,  104 . The front shutter may have a curved or bowed top edge to generally conform to the curvature of the roof structure along an edge at the front of the shelter. The bottom edge of the front shutter may have a generally linear form, to conform to the linear line formed by the ledge  128 . 
     The cut-away top plan view of  FIG. 9  has the roof  122  and front shutter  102  cutaway along line A, illustrating interior features of the shelter  100 . The right shutter is not shown in this figure. The shutters, e.g. shutter  103 , may include another peaked region  126 , situated to run generally transverse to the line A in this example, for providing a mounting point for a latch structure generally depicted as  130  in  FIG. 9 . The roof structure  122  may have a corresponding peaked region  128  which forms a stop shoulder against which the peaked region  126  of the shutter may abut to register the open position of the shutter, and provide a further mounting location for a portion of the latch structure  130 . Each of the shutters  102 - 104  may be provided with a latch structure to provide a capability of latching the shutters in the open position, while readily being readily unlatched by a shelter user to close the shutters. 
       FIG. 10  is a partial cutaway view of a portion of the shelter  100 , depicting portions of the shutters  102  and  104  in their closed positions. This illustration is a top view, showing the front window opening  108  and right side window opening  110  set into the front wall  100 - 1  and the right side wall  100 - 3 , meeting at a corner region  140 . The front shutter  102  is closed first, and the side shutter  104  closed thereafter. The extension portion  112  has a region which is enclosed or captured by the extension portion  114  of the side shutter  104  in this example. The right side shutter may be locked in place, e.g. by a locking pin accessible from the interior of the shelter, securing the front shutter in the closed position. The left side shutter has an extension portion  113  which encloses or captures a portion of the extension portion  111  of the front shutter on the left side, so that both sides of the front shutter are captured in place by the extension portions of the side shutters. A lock mechanism, which may include a padlock or key-operated lock, may be employed to lock the left side shutter in the closed position to prevent unauthorized access to the shelter interior. The lock mechanism for the left side may be operated by a person situated outside the shelter, while the lock mechanism for the right shutter may be operated only by a person situated within the shelter. The side shutters may also cover the doors  120  ( FIG. 5A ), so that a separate lock may not be need for the doors when made to open outwardly. 
       FIGS. 11-12  depict partial cutaway views of a shutter, e.g. shutter  103 , and exemplary latch structures to latch or lock the shutter in respective open ( FIG. 11 ) and closed ( FIG. 12 ) positions. The latch structure  130  includes a striker plate  130 -A mounted to the peaked portion  128  of the roof  122 , with a pin opening formed therein, and a spring-loaded lock pin  130 -B carried in the peaked portion  126  of the shutter  103 . The pin  130 -B is movable between an extended position (to which the pin is biased by a spring) and a retracted position which allows the pin to be withdrawn from engagement with the striker plate and the shutter moved to the closed position by rotation about a hinge  103 - 1  which mounts the shutter  103  to the wall  100 - 2  in this exemplary embodiment. A latch structure  142  may be provided for latching the side shutter in the closed position to resist vandalism. The structure  140  may include a structure including actuator rod  140 - 3  which is mounted for pivoting movement, and which carries a lock pin  140 - 1  at each rod end. The rod is thus mounted for pivotal movement and when rotated counterclockwise with the shutter  103  in the closed position causes the pin  140 - 1  to be received in or a pin opening formed in wall surface  140 - 2 . The rod  140 - 3  may be locked in the closed position by a padlock from the exterior, to prevent rotation which would withdraw the lock pin from the opening in the wall structure, thus preventing the opening of the shutter. Each of the shutters may include a latching or locking structure to secure the respective shutters in the raised, open positions. Of course, other arrangements may be employed to serve as latching or locking mechanisms. 
     In an exemplary embodiment, the walls, roof, door and shutters of the shelter may be fabricated of a moldable material. One exemplary material suitable for the purpose is a fiberglass material, e.g., 3/16 inch thick, which may be coated with a gel-coat finish. The windows may slope out from the bottom, e.g. at a 15 degree angle to the vertical, to reflect heat and reduce glare. 
     A shutter configuration which provides generally continuous shelter from the sun may reduce the weight and amount of material for fabrication of the shelter. The sun protection may be provided by shutters without use of additional structural shield elements. The shutters are also vandal resistant, which may be advantageous for times in which the shelter with shutters closed is left unattended. 
     Although the foregoing has been a description and illustration of specific embodiments of the invention, various modifications and changes thereto can be made by persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as defined by the following claims