Ulmer Nest, it’s a pilot project dedicated to help homeless people to avoid hypothermia in colder weather. This sleeping pod functions as an emergency shelter to protect homeless people in extreme cold nights in hypothermia death prevention. There are some homeless people who can’t accept existing measures such as collective accommodations, this can be a good alternative to unprotected night outdoors.

This compact pod allows user to spend the night in a controlled and secure environment, just like in a homeless shelter. Designed with closed and isolated construction, Ulmer Nest reduces and minimizes wind, coldness, and moisture.

Choosing the right material for Ulmer Nest was pretty challenging, it involved careful considerations of different aspects. The design team talked to many experts from different areas to get the best material combination to protect the user. The use of wood is the best option, it’s renewable and easy-to-work material, it’s also durable and has insulation properties.

Ulmer Nest is not just another wooden shelter pod. During the initial design phase, technical part was also considered as an important part. This shelter would monitor user’s safety, it uses multiple sensors for GPS, temperature and humidity, smoke and CO2. Powered by solar energy, it also has motion detection inside, basic illumination, alarm signal, electric monitoring of door lock state, a heat exchanger, and ventilation system, which all connect to a central control unit. User inside this pod can get supply of fresh air through a heat exchanger with a ceramic element for heat recovery.