Patent Publication Number: US-2005114995-A1

Title: Earthquake-proof bed

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of the Invention  
      The present invention relates to an earthquake-proof bed that (1) has a ceiling (protective overhead canopy) and (2) provides excellent resistance in case of an earthquake, and more particularly relates to an earthquake-proof bed that has a structure intended to secure human lives in an earthquake that occurs during bedtime and is so big that it causes houses to collapse.  
      2. Prior Art  
      Earthquakes repeatedly occur during bedtime, and sometimes people lose their lives because they are buried under houses that collapse due to an earthquake. As a countermeasure against this, this applicant has already proposed several earthquake-proof beds, each of which is the subject of one of the patent-related documents listed below.  
      Each of these beds has an almost box-shaped structure, including walls and a ceiling, both of which consist of metallic panels and cover the bottom of said bed; in other words, each of said beds comprises (1) bottom metallic panels that constitute a floor portion, (2) side metallic panels that surround said bottom metallic panels and extend upward so as to form walls, and (3) top metallic panels that form a ceiling and a separate roof.  
      [Patent Document 1] Japanese Registered Utility Model No. 3021056  
      [Patent Document 2] Japanese Registered Utility Model No. 3026811  
      [Patent Document 3] Japanese Unexamined Published Patent Application No. H8-266373  
      [Patent Document 4] Japanese Unexamined Published Patent Application No. H8-322956  
      [Patent Document 5] Japanese Unexamined Published Patent Application No. S57-93012  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention has been made with the aim of securing human lives at the time of an earthquake; one object of the present invention is to provide an earthquake-proof bed that can be assembled and disassembled, and that is such that (1) its components are segmentalized so that they are easy to handle, and (2) it is devised in such a way that it can be assembled easily and simply, using connecting parts such as bolts and nuts.  
      An earthquake-proof bed according to the present invention as described is comprised of (1) multiple lower frames that are dividable in the longitudinal direction of a bottom-plate of the earthquake-proof bed, (2) multiple side frames that have support beams to be connected to the floor frames at a desired height above the floor—which are assembled and then connected together by using connecting parts, (3) multiple upper frames that are connected by using connecting parts to the top-side beams of the side frames in such a way that said plurality of upper frames are arranged at the ceiling portion of a rectangle that is surrounded by the side frames (4) multiple cambered roof units that are mounted by using connecting parts on the upper frames, and (5) multiple floor panels that are arranged on the floor frame.  
      The earthquake-proof bed according to the present invention as described, includes, under the floor frame, a storage area in which emergency goods and foods can be stored.  
      In an earthquake-proof bed according to the present invention as described, the side frames are equipped with diagonal braces between a frame&#39;s top-side beam and its support pillars, and a wall panel is mounted at least on the lower half of each side frame, except for the side frames that have a portion that is to be used as an entrance and exit.  
      In an earthquake-proof bed according to the present invention as described, retractable bars that can be placed on the shoulders of a user so as to carry the bed are mounted on several bottom-side beams of the side frames.  
      Due to such a constitution of the present invention, each component is made as an individual unit panel. As a result, packaging can be done easily and the size of the package can be made small for transporting/carrying the bed, and this bed can be assembled easily, using connecting parts such as bolts and nuts. Therefore, one advantage of this earthquake-proof bed is that even ordinary people can easily and surely assemble it at whatever place it is to be installed. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing an embodiment of an earthquake-proof bed according to the present invention.  
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view showing the first stage of its assembly.  
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing the second stage of its assembly.  
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing the third stage of its assembly.  
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view showing the fourth stage of its assembly.  
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view showing the final stage of its assembly.  
       FIG. 7  is a partial perspective view showing a case where a storage area is used for storing emergency foods and goods. 
    
    
     EXPLANATION OF NUMERALS  
     
         
         
           
              Floor frame  
               1   a ,  1   b,    1   c  Lower frames  
               2   a,    2   b,    2   c  Side frames  
               2   t  Diagonal brace  
               2   u  Wall panel  
               2   v  Bottom-side beam  
               2   w  Shoulder bar  
               2   x  Support beam  
               2   y  Top-side beam  
               2   z  Support pillar  
               3   a,    3   b,    3   c  Upper frames  
               4   a,    4   b,    4   c  Cambered roof units  
               5   a,    5   b,    5   c  Floor panels  
           
         
       
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION  
      An earthquake-proof bed according to the present invention will now be explained in detail with reference to illustrated embodiments. An earthquake-proof bed proposed herein is comprised of (1) multiple rectangular lower frames  1   a ,  1   b ,  1   c  that are dividable in the longitudinal direction of a bottom-plate of the earthquake-proof bed, (2) multiple rectangular side frames  2   a ,  2   b ,  2   c  that have support beams  2   x  and that are connected to an assembled floor frame  1 —which is constituted by connecting together the lower frames  1   a,    1   b,    1   c  by using connecting parts such as bolts and nuts—at a desired height above the floor, (3) multiple rectangular upper frames  3   a ,  3   b ,  3   c  that are connected to top-side beams  2   y  of the side frames so as to be arranged at the ceiling portion of a rectangle that is surrounded by the side frames, (4) multiple cambered roof units  4   a ,  4   b ,  4   c  that are mounted on top of the upper frames, and (5) multiple rectangular floor panels  5   a ,  5   b ,  5   c  that are aligned and arranged on the floor frame  1 .  
      The side frames  2   a ,  2   b ,  2   c  are provided with diagonal braces  2   t  that are positioned between the top-side beams  2   y  and the support pillars  2   z.  Porous wall panels  2   u —which are made of, for example, punching metal—are mounted to at least the lower halves of the side faces, except for the side frames  2   b that have an entrance/exit portion. In this embodiment, bolt-insertion holes (not shown) are formed at appropriate connecting portions for bolt-and-nut fastening. At the time of fastening, bolts (not shown) are inserted in the bolt-insertion holes and then fastened with nuts.  
      Retractable shoulder bars  2   w  are mounted on some of said side frames—namely, the bottom-side beams  2   v  of the side frames  2   c  in this embodiment—and they can be used to aid workers in lifting the bed when it is to be moved after it has been assembled. Also, these bars can be pulled out so that the stability of the bed in the lateral direction can be improved during an earthquake.  
      Assembly of the earthquake-proof bed will now be explained in due order, with reference to the drawings. First, as shown in  FIG. 2 , the lower frames  1   a ,  1   b ,  1   c  are jointed together at their sides and connected to each other by connecting parts (not shown) such as bolts and nuts. Then, as shown in  FIG. 3 , the side frames  2   a ,  2   b ,  2   c  are vertically placed at prescribed positions. The support beams  2   x  are jointed and connected to the floor frame  1 —which is constituted by assembling and connecting together the lower frames  1   a,    1   b,    1   c —at a desired height above the floor.  
      As shown in  FIG. 4 , the upper frames  3   a ,  3   b ,  3   c  are connected to the top-side beams  2   y  (See  FIG. 3 ) of the side frames so that said upper frames  3   a ,  3   b ,  3   c  are arranged at the ceiling portion of a rectangle that is surrounded by the side frames  2   a ,  2   b ,  2   c . Then, as shown in  FIG. 5 , the roof units  4   a ,  4   b ,  4   c  are connected to each other, then arranged on the upper frames  3   a ,  3   b ,  3   c , and then connected to said upper frames  3   a ,  3   b ,  3   c . Last, as shown in  FIG. 6 , rectangular floor panels  5   a ,  5   b ,  5   c  are aligned and arranged on top of the floor frame  1 . Thus, an earthquake-proof bed is finally completely assembled as shown in  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 7  is an exploded perspective view showing a part of an example where there is constituted in the space under the floor frame  1   a  storage area that can be used for storing (1) emergency goods (such as dishes and utensils, flashlight, radio, mobile phone, and other daily necessities, as well as a shovel, hammer, and so on to be used to escape from the living space, if necessary), and (2) food and drinks (such as drinking water and nonperishable processed foods that are edible without cooking). As a result, even if one or more persons are buried alive due to the collapse of their residence, he/she/they can stay in the bed&#39;s space and have access to food and drink, which are necessary to maintain life, by simply lifting a part of the floor panel so as to access such stored items. Depending on the situation, a countermeasure—such as using the equipment that is stored in said storage area to escape out of the collapsed site—also can be taken.  
      As is apparent from the above explanation, an earthquake-proof bed of the present invention is intended to protect human lives at the time of collapse of a residence, and therefore each component of the bed must be of sufficient strength to withstand such an earthquake and the resulting collapse of the structure in which the bed is located. It is therefore preferable that metallic materials—such as aluminum, or materials that have strength similar to that of aluminum—be adopted for its frame members, pillar members, and beam members.