Newbie Question: What's the name for my design idea?

[boojieboy]

[preface: sorry about the multiple posts. As I said, I am a newbie, and I'm not sure which forum to put this in.]

Hi All! Just starting in here because I am finally starting a trailer/camper project that I've been meaning to do since teardrops first caught my eye about ten years ago.

A little background on me: I'm 40-ish, wife and ten year old boy who's growing like mad, despite a pasta-and-dairy-only diet that makes me cringe.

So we have limited funds, but oodles of time and creative energy this summer. I am moderately handy and endowed with power tools. I have an old steel frame trailer that I bought when I sold my pickup, to haul stuff around. It's made to have a 4x8 footprint, though I could go a bit wider and longer if need be. There are ten metal anchor points that accept 2inch square stock vertical inserts, to create vertical supports for side rails. I am currently cleaning and repainting it, and will likely upgrade the springs and wheels to an approx 1500# load rating.

Any way, here's my thoughts:

What I'd like to do is make the trailer a hybrid cargo hauler/pop up camper. When in cargo mode, it'd have four side walls, approx 30inchs high, with a solid roof. Pulling it behind my subaru outback, it'd have a lower profile and would not create as much drag as a full height box trailer. Why haul around all that dead air space? Cleverly compacting it could make it much more efficient, if not nearly as cool looking as a tear drop.

When we're travelling, I'd drive with in in cargo mode. Only thing is that in addition to the food, supplies, etc, part of my cargo would be four additional wall panels (with windows probably). When we arrive for camp, our setup would be as follows:

Step 1: remove top and cargo.
Step 2: Place prefab wall panels on top of those that are already in place.
Step 3: Put up roof (probably a 2 person job)
Step 4: apply fasteners/clamps/straps/whatever to make it stiff.
Step 5: set up internal structure (sleeping benches etc)

Looking around the net I've come across a number of design possibililities of the sort of "box on top of a box sliding upward" design like the Kimberley Karavans. I had pondered such a design for a while, but I think the problem of the lifting mechanism is not one I'd like to deal with. Plus, I think I like the possibilities of my sectional prefab design better. Partly because with this design I could indulge my desire to do a big mortise-and-tenon joinery project. Not sure how I'd do the door(s) but I don't think that would be too hard really.

If done well, when it was in place it would look like a little cabin you see in the woods, complete with wood siding and possibly a tin roof, only on a trailer. Maybe even a little wood-burning pot belly stove. Hopefully setup/teardown could be 30 minutes for a well-practiced pair of individuals.

I've browsed around the site and done some searches, but the problem is I'm not sure what you would call such a thing, so I haven't found very much yet.

My question for all of you is: have any of you seen or heard of such a thing? Could you point me in the right direction, even if that is to warn me that such an idea is an inherently poor design, or harder to pull off, or whatever?

Thanks in advance,

boojieboy from Wisconsin

[Ageless]

This idea has been around as long as I've been.

http://www.tinytears.cc/Scans/Folding%20Bedroom.pdf

While this design is for a cartopper; it could be easily adapted to a trailer

[boojieboy]

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4165117.pdf

although I want my design to have all solid walls, no fabric.

[boojieboy]

Ageless: The linked pdf shows something along the lines of what I have in mind, but that's a pretty old reference (just as you said). I'm wondering if there's anyone who's done something more recently, and if so, WHAT is it called? "Folding Bedroom" doesn't bring up anything other than this article, really, so it's clear that design never really caught on with anyone.