While watching news regarding the '04 christmas tsunami I did this once while sitting at home and haven't yet been able to replicate the feat.
Basically I took an A4 sized piece of paper and folded it into a shape that would be (at a much larger scale) able to be used as a tent. so the idea was, instead of using A4, making it a 'house for ants', I decided to make it 'at least 3 times this big' to serve human population (ref. Zoolander et. al).
The beauty of the fold was (and this is what I can't replicate) it folded up to form a sort of elongated pyramid shape, which with the addition of an axle and 2 wheels, can provide a mobile population with them shelter and a way of carrying their belongings along their travel to another safe area.
So basiclally it is a flat sheet of cardboard that can be folded up to form a semi permanent tent. I was looking into banana leaves as a biodegradable and sustainable resource for the card, which could also be waterproofed. Maybe they would last two weeks in heavy weather.
Being flat and maybe 8mm thick, a helicopter could potentially lift in up to 1000 of these per load.-- williamsmatt, Oct 08 2008 Temporary Housing http://i209.photobu...aconbrain/rumah.jpgCoconut wood, plywood and coconut thatch. [baconbrain, Oct 08 2008] hutu's http://edition.cnn....n/hutu/history.html [williamsmatt, Oct 08 2008] I keep almost bunning this, but what do you do with your belongings when you've turned your wheelbarrow over and are using it as a house ?-- FlyingToaster, Oct 08 2008 //but what do you do with your belongings when you've turned your wheelbarrow over and are using it as a house//
er, in the house? no really, if I could refold this shape I would post a diagram, then you could fold it and see how it works. Its not so much a wheelbarrow ( as something open topped), more a container in travel mode. In changing modes there is a simple fold where you bring the house 'legs' together, so the resulting enclosed internal space is available as storage in transit.
crikey, i wish I could refold it. have tried about 10 times with no luck. it turns into a sort of pyramid, but elongated along two sides, you bring the two long sides together (so it becomes pyramid shaped) in travel mode. the axle goes thru the pyramid near the point and you hang on to what would normally sit on the ground. all i needed was two paperclips on the 2 short sides to hold it together (easily supplied with tent), the rest was folded together. but i lost the damn thing!-- williamsmatt, Oct 08 2008 If you could reproduce the fold, it might be neat. Look in origami books for clues and reminders, perhaps.
I've linked to a picture of the housing I helped arrange in Indonesia after the tsunami. We used coconut logs from fallen trees to make the beams (sawn by local mills), we shipped in plywood on trucks (made I don't know where--it was in feet, not meters) as well as the tarp, and bought the coconut frond roofing thatch from local makers. Using various sources like that may help you in your design.-- baconbrain, Oct 08 2008 Maybe you should watch some 04 tsunami footage to get in the mood.-- bungston, Oct 08 2008 I am told that even in places that are exclusively metric, there may be tsunami footage.-- bungston, Oct 08 2008 sorry, a part of the idea is that it is portable.
plywood can get heavy, expecially if carried/wheeled over long distances + belongings. hence using card! or the stuff signboards are made from, however this will not break down.
the plywood structures discussed are great! but these are more permanent structures. this form of housing is for the recently displaced, on their way somewhere else eg. Hutu's in Rwanda [link]-- williamsmatt, Oct 08 2008 Pulp & paper companies produce rolls of paper that is commonly measured in double-digits of *kilometres*, ready for shipping.
A very basic machine at the receiving end could unroll it while pre-printing native-language instructions and fold lines, then cut it into flats to be transported to the camp (if the machine isn't there already).
After a team has shaped the shelter, a waterproofing glue would be sprayed on to set and reinforce the structural folds as well as adding to overall strength.-- FlyingToaster, Mar 16 2010 random, halfbakery