WO2010055403A2

WO2010055403A2 - Inflatable tent structure

Info

Publication number: WO2010055403A2
Application number: PCT/IB2009/007444
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mauro Bartolini
Original assignee: Eurovinil S.P.A.
Priority date: 2008-11-13
Filing date: 2009-11-13
Publication date: 2010-05-20
Also published as: WO2010055403A3; IT1393154B1; ITPI20080117A1

Abstract

A tent structure (10) formed by inflatable tubular chambers and formed by a plurality of uprights (9) that laterally contain a protection canopy (11) and by tubular arches (8) that support the protection canopy (11). According to the invention, the structure (10) comprises a reservoir of pressurized fluid (21) that has a quick opening device adapted to be operated by simply pulling an actuating cord or a quick opening device (17). More precisely, the tent, which comprises a bag (11) with in the base structure (10) in a deflated state and the reservoir (21), is folded up to achieve a compact configuration such that, operating the quick opening device (17), the inflatable support structure (10) turns from the deflated state to the inflated configuration stretching the bag (11), such that the tent turns from the compact configuration A to an extended ready-to-use, configuration B Such a tent structure allows a quick arrangement of temporaneous shelters, for example in operations of civil defence. (Fig.10)

Description

TITLE INFLATABLE TENT STRUCTURE

DESCRIPTION

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to camp tents that are suitable, for instance, for providing shelter camps, emergency camps, refugee camps and so on. More precisely, the invention relates to an inflatable tent structure.

Description of the prior art

Camp tents are the most practical structures for providing refuge to people or for establishing provisional sites, like those provided by the civil defence, as well as campsites, military camps. In particular, the tents are an useful alternative to any other form of lodging for their practicalness and transportability.

Many types of tents exist, both of small size, often camping tents, which are adapted to receive a limited number of people, and of medium and large size, that may house a plurality of people, and are often used for civil defence, refugees, etc.

Camp tents may comprise various structural stiff elements that are assembled to one another to form a support frame which is then covered with a protection canopy; in alternative, camp tents may comprise an inflatable support structure.

Generally, the support structure of inflatable camp tents consists of robust tubular chambers, which form arches that are adapted to support a cover cloth or canopy, that is suitable to protect against cold and rain. Examples of such tents are shown in Figs. 1 and 2, or in GB2443821, and many other prior art documents. In particular, the procedure for mounting these tents comprises a first step, in which the whole structure is extracted from a transportable protection case, and a second step, in which the structure is completely unfolded, in such a way that no folded parts are left which might complicate the inflation, especially if the inflation is carried out manually. To make up the camp tent it is then necessary to inflate all the tubular chambers by means of a compressor, or of a manual pump.

Therefore, the large number of inflated arches forms a reticular structure, whereas the protection cloth, which is mechanically connected to the arches, is progressively stretched, along with the erection of the structure. Furthermore, in order to make the tent steady and to avoid that wind and/or rain detaches the cloth, guy ropes are arranged connected to the ground by means of tent pegs as well as stiff longitudinal connection rods are provided, which are then mounted between the arches.

A further drawback of the inflatable structures of the above type is that a ready assembling of the whole Structure is not allowed, since if, on the one hand, a lot of time is saved thanks to inflatable reticular support structures, on the other hand it is necessary to unfold the inflatable structure on the area where the tent has to be erected, and to inflate the various tubular chambers, which is not a quick operation, especially in adverse weather conditions .

In US5226261A, the tent has an inflatable rectangular base ring from which a plurality of inflatable arches extend vertically; flexible cloths are mounted between the arches, as well as a front cloth is provided. A bag is also provided which receives the tent in a folded configuration, which has a pocket for a manual pump. The base ring may comprise pockets for receiving support tent pegs for strengthening the tent in case the air pressure falls down. This type of tent requires a considerable time to be erected, since it must be completely unfolded before inflation. Moreover, if the arches are not completely inflated, the tent tends to collapse, and for this reason support tent pegs are provided. Furthermore, the inflatable rectangular base ring forms an obstacle that has to be stepped over to enter the tent.

A further kind of inflatable camp tent, which is described in GB2090622A, provides a base cloth, side cloths that extend from the base cloth to define side tent walls, and a tubular chamber that can be inflated by means of an automatic device, such as a cylinder of compressed air. In particular, the chamber is integrated with the cloths in such a way that, once inflated, the cloths are held in an erected position in a ready-to^use status. The tent structure is folded in order to allow transport, and before being inflated, it has to be unfolded on the ground and pegs are used for fixing the base cloth to the ground. Moreover_r this tent can only have sloping walls, since the inflatable tubular chamber provides one or two couples of V-shaped uprights and a longitudinal portion that keeps the junction of the sloping side walls in an erected position. This type of tent may be adapted for camping, but cannot be used in emergency situations, to provide provisional first aid stations, since the sloping walls make it difficult to enter the tent maintaining a standing position. A similar concept applies to GB2447857.

Similarly, small size existing inflatable tents exist that are most adapted for sports and leisure; owing to their light structure they are not suitable for civil defence uses, first aid, and so on.

Summary of the invention

It is a feature of the present invention, to provide an inflatable tent structure that can be easily and quickly erected.

It is another feature of the invention, to provide an inflatable tent structure that has a support structure that is steady and safe.

Another feature of the invention is to provide an inflatable tent structure that can be quickly inflated with no need of a compressor, which would require electric energy or an internal combustion engine.

It is also a feature of the invention to provide an inflatable tent structure that is compact in a deflated and folded position in order to assist the transportation of the tent.

It is also a feature of the invention to provide an inflatable tent structure that is adapted to be easily transported on police or civil defence transport means, in particular by helicopters ,

It is also a feature of the invention to provide a structure that is adapted to be thrown down from a flying helicopter, without loosing the functionality of the tent due to the impact to the ground.

It is another feature of the invention to provide an inflatable tent structure that is suitable for emergency situations and allows people to enter into the tent in a standing position.

It is another feature of the invention to provide an inflatable tent structure that doesn't need to be unfolded on the ground before inflation.

It is another feature of the invention to provide an inflatable tent structure that doesn't need to be secured by tent pegs or to fix the base cloth to the ground before inflation.

It is a particular feature of the invention to provide an inflatable tent structure that is contained in a bag in a folded configuration, but doesn't need to be extracted from the bag before inflation.

These and other objects are achieved by an inflatable tent, comprising an inflatable support structure formed by inflatable tubular chambers and a protection canopy, said inflatable support structure comprising: a plurality of upright chambers adapted to laterally stretch said protection canopy/ said upright chambers having respective bottom ends that are adapted to contact with the ground and top ends that are connected to each other by tubular arches that support said protection canopy, at least one tubular connection that is adapted to pneumatically connect said tubular arches with each other; at least two tubular ground chambers that are adapted to pneumatically connect to each other at least two of said bottom ends , said tubular ground chambers extending in use parallel to and next to the ground/ wherein said protection canopy is a closed bag that houses said inflatable support structure such that, when said inflatable support structure is in an inflated configuration, said bag remains stretched about said inflatable support structure, said inflatable tent comprising furthermore: an automatic inflation means that comprises a reservoir of a pressurized fluid, said reservoir connected to said inflatable structure by a quick opening device of said reservoir, said inflatable support structure and said bag adapted to be folded, starting from a deflated state until a compact configuration is attained; said inflatable support structure and said bag adapted to switch on said quick opening device when said inflatable support structure and said bag are in said compact configuration, such that said support structure automatically turns from said compact and deflated configuration to said inflated configuration stretching said bag about it, making said tent ready for use. Advantageously, said inflatable structure comprises two tubular ground chambers that pneumatically connect to each other¹ two opposite bottom ends of two distinct arches ,

Preferably, said reservoir of pressurized fluid is arranged around said bag near the edge of said bag. This way, it is possible to fold said tent up to achieve said compact configuration so that said reservoir is located at the centre of said compact configuration at the end of the folding operation .

In a preferred exemplary embodiment, said protection canopy comprises a wing that may be opened to form an entry door of said tent, said wing arranged such that said door is formed between two uprights that are not connected to each other by any of said two tubular ground chambers.

Advantageously, a covering is provided in which said tent is enclosed in said compact configuration..

In particular, said covering comprises a stopping means such that, when said quick opening device is operated, said inflatable structure begins to expand and causes said stopping means to automatically open, such that said covering and said stopping means do not hinder said tent to automatically turn from said compact configuration to said extended ready-to-use configuration.

Advantageously, said stopping means comprises a fastener, in particular a zip-fastener, said zip-fastener having two opening/closing sliders that are connected to an operation element that operates said quick opening device of said reservoir such that, by pulling said operation element, said tent starts inflating and at the same time said fastener is disengaged by the expansion of said tent, allowing the quick opening of said covering.

Alternatively, to said fastener, said stopping means is an hook-loop type stopping means, or a Velcro stopping means .

In particular, said covering comprises a protective inner surface that is adapted to cushion an impact that said tent may experience, for example, during a helicopter rescue operation.

Alternatively, said covering is a tearable covering, in particular a bag made of a disposable thin film.

In this case said covering may have tear-off lines that are torn off when said tent is inflated, thus opening the thin film covering and allowing the expansion of the tent.

Preferably, said covering has an outer surface that comprises a remotely perceptible signal means, in particular an optical, acoustical, transponder-based or radio signal means and the like.

Advantageously, a method for folding the above defined tent comprises the steps of: stretching said tent structure when said tent structure is in said deflated state, comprising said deflated support structure, said bag and said reservoir of fluid, bending the uprights of said structure within said bag, so that said arches are folded and are located near the outer edge of said bag; completing said folding operation up to achieving said compact configuration; prearranging the tent in said compact shape into said covering; closing said covering.

Advantageously, said step of completing said folding operation comprises the steps of: making a first fold at the opposite edge of said reservoir of fluid, for a length equal to 1/3 of the length of said tent; making a second fold orthogonal to said first fold laterally aligned to the bottom of said reservoir of fluid; carrying out a back fold along the centre line of said second fold; making a third fold at the opposite edge of said tent similar to said first and second folds up to obtaining a determined width; making a fourth fold at a side edge of said reservoir of pressurized fluid for a the same length as about

1/4 of the length of said tent; making a fifth fold at a side edge opposite to said reservoir for about 1/4 of the length of said tent; making a sixth fold additional to said fifth fold for about 1/4 of the length of said tent; tying an actuating cable to the opening device of said reservoir of fluid.

Advantageously, said step of closing said covering is carried out by means of said fastener and, in particular, the actuating cable of said reservoir is tied to the sliders of said fastener, such that by pulling said cable an expansion of said tent and a contemporaneous opening of said fastener is achieved.

Brief description of the drawings

The invention will be made clearer with the following description of an exemplary embodiment thereof, exemplifying but not limitative, with reference to the attached drawings in which:

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a tent structure according to the prior art;

Fig. IA shows the camp tent structure of Fig. 1, ready for use, according to the prior art;

Fig. 2 shows an inflatable tent structure to provide a tent, according to the invention;

Fig. 3 shows the portable compact covering that contains the tent structure, the protection canopy and the inflation reservoir, according to the invention;

Fig. 3 shows the compact portable covering that contains the tent in the form of a covering that may be torn like a bag made of a disposable thin film;

Figs. 4 and 5 show the operations for opening the camp tent _c according to the invention;

Fig. 6 shows the camp tent, of Fig. 5, during an inflation step;

Fig. 7 shows the camp tent, according to the invention, completely mounted and ready for use;

Fig. 8 shows a detailed view of the inside of the inflatable tent structure of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9_r shows a camp tent with inflatable structure, according to the invention, with a transparent coating covering for showing the support structure of the tent;

Fig. 10 shows a camp tent with an inflatable tent

_Structure, according to the invention, that equipped for medical rescue;

Figs. 11 to 19 shows a sequence of the steps of the method for folding the tent, according to the invention, into the portable covering.

Detailed description of some exemplary embodiments

With reference to Fig. 1, an inflatable support structure 1, according to the prior art, comprises a plurality of uprights 3 and arches 3' connected to each other by means of further tubular inflatable portions 4' that support a protection canopy 2 (visible in Fig. IA) . Furthermore, uprights 3 are connected to each other by stiff rods 4 that have the function of spacers, since the various arches 3' , once they have been inflated, could not remain in a position of use.

Furthermore, as shown in Fig. IA, the above described tent, when completely mounted, is also comprised of pulling elements β that are arranged at opposite sides with respect to the inflatable structure 1 which is connected to ground by the tent pegs 6' for maintaining an optimal configuration. In particular, structure 1 must be very strong since it must support a protection canopy 2, which is particularly heavy for protection against cold and rain.

However, assembling such an inflatable tent structure 1 requires physical effort of a plurality of operators, and a long installation time, therefore it cannot be readily mounted in rescue operations .

Fig. 2 shows an inflatable support structure 10 that comprises inflatable tubular chambers and a plurality of uprights 9 that laterally contain a protection canopy 11; it also comprises tubular arches 8 that support protection canopy 11 from above. In particular, uprights 9 have a bottom end 15 that is adapted, in use, to come into contact with the ground; at least two base ends 15 of uprights 9 are connected by a further tubular ground chamber 12 that in use extends parallel to ground 13.

In particular, 2 two tubular ground chambers 12 are provided which pneumatically connect two bottom ends 15 to each other, said bottom ends opposite to each other and belonging to two different tubular arches 8.

A tubular connection chamber 14 is also provided that is adapted to pneumatically connect tubular arches 8 with each other.

This way, ground chambers 12 and tubular connection chamber 14 allow a higher stability to inflatable structure 10 and also allow a correct expansion of the tent when the tent is inflated. As described hereinafter, this feature is particularly relevant to allow the tent to be inflated from a deflated and compact state, with no need of unfolding it beforehand.

Furthermore, bottom ends 15 are kept at a predetermined distance from each other with no need of tent pegs and cables -

In particular, protection canopy 11 (see Fig. 6 and 7) is a closed bag that houses inflatable support structure 10 in such a way that, when inflatable support structure 10 is in an inflated configuration, (Fig. 7), bag 11 is stretched about inflatable support structure 10,

According to the invention, structure 10 comprises also a reservoir 21 of a pressurized fluid that has a quick opening device, which allows the reservoir to be actuated by simply pulling an actuating cord, or a quick opening device 17 (Fig. 4) . This opening device will be described in detail later.

In particular, the tent, comprising bag 11 with base structure 10 in a deflated state and reservoir 21 inside it, is folded until a compact configuration (Fig. 17) is attained such that, by operating quick opening device 17, inflatable support structure 10 directly and automatically turns from the compact and deflated state to the inflated configuration, thus stretching bag 11. In other words,^, by simply pulling quick opening device 17 the tent turns from the compact configuration A of Fig. 3 or 5 to an extended, ready-to-use configuration B of Fig. 7.

More in detail, as shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5, such a tent may be put into a covering 16 (see also Fig. 18 and 19, in a different exemplary embodiment) in which it is reduced to compact configuration A. Then, covering 16 comprises a fastener 18 ' such that, when quick opening device 17 is operated, inflatable structure 10 begins to expand and causes closure fastener 18' to automatically open, such that covering 16 and fastener 18' don't hinder the tent from automatically turning from the compact configuration A to the extended, ready-to-use configuration E.

In the exemplary embodiment of Fig. 3, 4 and 5 covering 16 is a semi-rigid covering and has a protection wing 24' that overlaps fastener 18' . This way, to pull an actuating cable 17, an operator has only to displace protection wing 24' (Fig. 4) through a ring 24, and then to grip a handgrip 17' of cable 17, as shown in Fig. 5. Then, by pulling cable 17 to which closure sliders 18 of fastener 18' are connected, reservoir 21 opens, the tent starts inflating and at the same time sliders 18 _f which move in a direction substantially orthogonal to normal closure direction, disengage fastener 18' thus allowing covering 16 to open without hindering the expansion step of tent structure 10 that is enclosed within it.

According to the above description, the tent may be inflated starting from a deflated and compact state within covering 16, with no need of either unfolding it or extracting it from the covering.

Another feature of covering 16 of Fig. 5 is that it comprises a plurality of remotely perceptible signalling belts, in particular reflecting belts 25, which allow, for example in case of darkness during a rescue operation, to find out the position of the tent if this is thrown from an helicopter engaged in a civil defence operation. Other types of remotely perceptible signal means might comprise acoustic, transponder-based, radio, signalling devices and so on. Covering 16 may comprise a protective inner surface, not shown, that is adapted to cushion a fall that said tent may experience, for example, during a helicopter rescue operation. For example, this surface may be made of an expanded plastic material or it may contain air bubbles.

Fig. 6 shows a step that follows that of Fig. 5, in which covering 16 is open and tent structure 10 starts to expand. Furthermore, reservoir of pressurized fluid 21 and inflation tube 22 are shown in the present picture, which are operated by means of actuating cable 17, as previously described.

Fig. 7 shows, instead, a completely inflated and ready-to-use tent structure 10, with protection canopy H that is completely stretched about support structure 10. Therefore, such a tent doesn't need further assembling operations by operators and can be quickly brought to a ready-to-use state in any operation environments.

Obviously, the tent may even be supplied without covering, or it may have a covering that may be torn 16' , for example a bag made of a disposable thin film. (Fig. 3A) and may be manually torn in a simple way like a well-known package. In an exemplary preferred embodiment, a thin film bag 19 may have tear-off lines 19a that tear when said tent is inflated, thus opening the thin film covering 19 and allowing the expansion of the tent.

The tent shown in Fig. 7 comprises an entry door 23 with a quick closing device, for example a zip fastener, whereas inside the tent, as shown in Fig. 8 and 9, tubular uprights 9, arches 8 and tubular portions 12 are provided that assure a good resistance and give stability to the tent. In particular, protection canopy 11 comprises a wing 23a that can be opened to form entry door 23. The wing is made on protection canopy 11 such that door 23 is formed between two uprights 9 that are not connected to each other by tubular base portions 12, in such way that none of the latter makes it difficult to pass through door 23. This may be particularly comfortable if the tent is used in emergency conditions;

Fig. 10 shows an inflatable tent, according to the invention, that is larger than that of Pig. 9, which, as shown, is adapted to receive, for instance, an emergency medical rescue centre. Inflatable tent support structure 10 comprises, in this case, a number of uprights 9 which is higher than that previously described, owing to the apparent size differences.

Figs. 11 to 19 show an operative sequence of steps according to a method for folding such an inflatable tent, said sequence including a preliminary step of: stretching tent 10 in the deflated state (Fig. 11), said tent comprising deflated support structure 10, bag 11 and reservoir of pressurized fluid 21, and folding the uprights of the structure into bag 11 in such a way that they remain contained within the perimeter of the tent itself.

In particular reservoir of pressurized fluid 21 is arranged around bag 11 proximate to an edge 41 of said bag. This way, it is possible to fold the tent, as explained hereinafter, up to achieve the compact configuration such that the tent is located at the centre of the compact configuration when the folding operation is over.

After the above described unfolding step, a first fold 80 is made at edge 40, according to an axis 70, opposite to reservoir of pressurized fluid 21, for a length 61 that is about 1/3 of a length 60 of the tent (Fig. 12). As shown in Fig. 13, a second fold 81 is made from an edge 50, according to an axis 71, that is orthogonal to first fold 80 for a length 62 such that an alignment is obtained with the bottom of reservoir of pressurized fluid 21, and then making a back fold 82 according to an axis 72 along a centre line of the above described second fold 81 (Fig. 14).

In a way not shown, the steps described in Fig. 13 and 14 are repeated from an edge 51 in order to obtain the configuration of Fig. 15. Fig. 15 shows furthermore subsequent steps according to which a fourth fold 83 is made on edge 41 of reservoir of pressurized fluid 21, for a length 63 that is about 1/4 of the length of the tent in the configuration so far obtained.

The subsequent operation provides a fourth and fifth fold 84 according to an axis 74 at an edge 40, both of such folds of a length 64 adapted to attain the arrangement of Fig. 16. Then, it is necessary to tie actuating cable 17 to the opening device of the reservoir of pressurized fluid 21, and to complete such steps with a fold 85, to obtain the compact shape A of Fig. 17.

Finally, the tent in compact shape A arranging s put into covering 16' (Fig. 18) and then the latter is closed by fastener 18' and actuating cable 17 is tied to sliders 18 of fastener 18'. This way, as above described, by pulling actuating cable 17, the tent structure starts inflating and at the same time fastener 18' is disengaged due to the expansion of the tent, thus allowing a quick opening of covering 16' .

As in the case of above described covering 16, a covering 16' can be provided with an inner protection surface 26 (Fig. 18) that is adapted to protect the content of the covering against hits or against other external forces. This feature makes the covering adapted in case of helicopter rescue operations, for instance.

Therefore, such an exemplary embodiment allows quickly preparing rescue camps or emergency reception centres, without any additional operation, in order to effectively face emergency situations. All such steps are carried out by transporting a compact covering that is adapted, for example, to be used as an emergency equipment by the police or during civil defence operations. The capacity of the tent to completely inflate starting from the compact configuration, in particular within the covering, with no need to open or to unfold it, allows a quick and immediate use of it.

The foregoing description of a specific embodiment will so fully reveal the invention according to the conceptual point of view, so that others, by applying current knowledge, will be able to modify and/or adapt for various applications such an embodiment without further research and without parting from the invention, and it is therefore to be understood that such adaptations and modifications will have to be considered as equivalent to the specific embodiment. The means and the materials to realise the different functions described herein could have a different nature without, for this reason, departing from the field of the invention. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

Claims

An inflatable tent, comprising an inflatable support structure formed by inflatable tubular chambers and a protection canopy, said inflatable support structure comprising: a plurality of upright chambers adapted to laterally stretch said protection canopy, said upright chambers having respective bottom ends that are adapted to contact with the ground and top ends that are connected to each other by tubular arches that support said protection canopy, at least one tubular connection chamber that is adapted to pneumatically connect said tubular arches with each other; at least two tubular ground chambers that are adapted to pneumatically connect to each other at least two of said bottom ends, said tubular ground chambers extending in use parallel to and next to the ground; wherein said protection canopy is a closed bag that houses said inflatable support structure such that, when said inflatable support structure is in an inflated configuration, said bag remains stretched about said inflatable support structure, said inflatable tent comprising furthermore: an automatic inflation means that comprises a reservoir of a pressurized fluid, said reservoir connected to said inflatable structure by a quick opening device of said reservoir, said inflatable support structure and said bag adapted to be folded, starting from a deflated state until a compact configuration is attained, said inflatable support structure and said bag adapted to switch on said quick opening device when said inflatable support structure and said bag are in said compact configuration, such that said support structure automatically turns from said compact and deflated configuration to said inflated configuration stretching said bag about it, making said tent ready for use.

An inflatable tent, according to claim 1, wherein said inflatable structure comprises two tubular ground chambers that pneumatically connect to each other two opposite bottom ends of two distinct arches.

An inflatable tent, according to claim 1, wherein said protection canopy comprises a wing that may be opened to form an entry door of said tent, said wing arranged such that said door is formed between two uprights that are not connected to each other by any of said two tubular ground chambers,

An inflatable tent, according to claim 1, wherein a covering is provided in which said tent is enclosed in said compact configuration.

An inflatable tent, according to claim 4, wherein said covering comprises a stopping means such that, when said quick opening device is operated, said inflatable structure begins to expand and causes said stopping means to automatically open, such that said covering and said stopping means do not hinder the automatic change of said tent from said compact configuration to said extended ready-to-use configuration.

An inflatable tent, according to claim 5, wherein said stopping means comprises a fastener, in particular a zip-fastener, said zip-fastener having two opening/closing . sliders that are connected to an operation element that operates said quick opening device of said reservoir such that, by pulling said operation element, said tent starts inflating and at 009/007444

19

the same time said fastener is disengaged by the expansion of said tent, allowing the quick opening of said covering.

7. An inflatable tent, according to claim 5, wherein said stopping means is an hook-loop type stopping means, or a Velσro stopping means.

8. An inflatable tent, according to claim 4, wherein said covering comprises a protective inner surface that is adapted to cushion an impact that said tent may experience, for example, during a helicopter rescue operation.

S. An inflatable tent, according to claim 4, wherein said covering is a tearable covering, in particular a bag made of a disposable thin film.

10. An inflatable tent, according to claim 9, wherein said covering has tear-off lines that tear when said tent is inflated, thus opening the thin film covering and allowing the expansion of the tent.

11. An inflatable tent, according to claim 4, wherein said covering has an outer surface that comprises a remotely perceptible signal means, in particular an optical, acoustical, transponder-based or radio signal means, and the like.

12. A method for folding an inflatable tent according to claim 1, comprising the steps of: stretching said tent structure when said tent structure is in said deflated state, said tent structure comprising said deflated support structure, said bag and said reservoir of fluid, bending the uprights of said structure within said bag, so that said arches are folded and are located near the outer edge of said bag; completing said folding operation up to achieving said compact configuration/ prearranging the tent in said compact shape into said, covering; closing said covering.

13. A method for folding an inflatable tent, according to claim 12, wherein said step of completing said folding operation comprises the steps of: making a first fold at the opposite edge of said reservoir of fluid, for a length equal to 1/3 of the length of said tent; making a second fold orthogonal to said first fold laterally aligned to the bottom of said reservoir of fluid; carrying out a back fold along the centre' line of said second fold; making a third fold at the opposite edge of said tent similar to said first and second folds up to obtaining a determined width; making a fourth fold at a side edge of said reservoir of pressurized fluid for a the same length as about 1/4 of the length of said tent; making a fifth fold at a side edge opposite to said reservoir for about 1/4 of the length of said tent; making a sixth fold additional to said fifth fold for about 1/4 of the length of said tent; tying an actuating cable to the opening device of said reservoir of fluid.

14. A method for folding an inflatable tent, according to claim β and 12, wherein said step of closing said covering is carried out by means of said fastener and, in particular, the actuating cable of said reservoir is tied to the sliders of said fastener, such that by pulling said cable an expansion of said tent and a contemporaneous opening of said fastener is achieved.