About

Being a scout and now a youth-leader I noticed we have been using the same tents for 20+ years as most modern tents are not easy to repair, so this was a very obvious design opportunity for me.

Goal

Design a modern stationary (stays in the same place for 7+ days & is transported there via car/van) camping tent, with focus on longevity and sustained comfort.

Outcome

A rugged frame tent for 3 residents that offers comfortable standing hight (2m) and a first in a tent: vertical storage - all while beeing easy to put up for childen and grown ups.

Talo - A tent to stay

Bachelor Thesis / Semester Project
2021
University of Art, Linz, Austria
Team Members: Jakob Haider

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Interchangable

All three arcs are made up of exactly the same components to avoid user error as much as possible. By putting the third arc at an angle we achieved a lower height without the need for different parts. This reduces wind resistance and helps water to drain quickly.

Base shape

While keeping the same footprint the chosen shape provides more head room and overhang that can be utilized as storage space.

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Easy as 1,2,3,...

The setup should be as straight forward as possible.
This is why every step is described by a pictogram and a corresponding number imprinted on the packaging. The tent parts are stored in dedicated pockets with matching numbers.

For young and old

The tent bag has different carrying straps, so both adults and kids can carry it easily. Both features mentioned were really important to us since one youth worker often looks after 10+ kids with multiple tents so everything that improves self guidance is a big stress relief.

Made to stay

Most modern tents struggle with condensation and temperature regulation, which isn‘t ideal if you camp for a longer period of time. Weight isn‘t our biggest concern, that is why we chose a cotton blend for the innertent, which is still unmatched regarding ventilation. In addition to this it is also way easier to repair on your own.

Best of both world

The outer-layer is made from rip-stop-nylon, making it light and durable. This second layer adds isolation and counteracts the unwanted properties of cotton fabric. To give an example: It’s very likely that luggage in the storage area will touch the cotton fabric for a longer period of time which will result in leaks during rain. This is why the outer nylon layer also covers the storage area of the tent.

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Interchangable

In order to make the storage area accessible without taking your shoes off we turned the classic layout around by moving it to the front of the tent. Thanks to the exceptionally sturdy tent frame we could add shelfs to extend the storage vertically. Zippers also allow access to the storage compartments from the sleeping area.

Privacy in small space

The sleeping area accommodates up to three people. The storage and sleeping areas are physically separated so people who went to sleep early aren’t interrupted. The 100% waterproof polyamid tent floor extends even further up at the head end, which creates a waterproof pocket for electronics, personal items or anything that needs to be reached from your sleeping bag.

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Looking beyond

As the target audience youth (summer) camps is pretty small we needed to look for other potential markets to make talo a viable product. With the current outdoor trend and analysing our survey with more than 140 participants, rentable tents seemed like a great option.

Overlapping needs

35% of survey participants said they would rent a tent at a campsite or even bring one with them from a rental location close to home. A rentable tent needs to fullfil mostly the same criteria. Easy to build for the inexperienced customer and comfortable living for an extended amount of time. Not to forget easy repairability for the owner.

Effortless transformation

Talo could not only be rented out to individuals, but also to events/festivals. With glamping on the rise this offers a more luxurious and spacious way of camping compared to bringing your own tent. When the event is over the outer layer and therefor the brand is easily changed, making the inner tent reusable for multiple occasions.

Talo - behind the scenes - process - model building - gravity sketch - CLO 3d - survey 100+ people -Talo - behind the scenes - process - model building - gravity sketch - CLO 3d - survey 100+ people -Talo - behind the scenes - process - model building - gravity sketch - CLO 3d - survey 100+ people -Talo - behind the scenes - process - model building - gravity sketch - CLO 3d - survey 100+ people -Talo - behind the scenes - process - model building - gravity sketch - CLO 3d - survey 100+ people -