Patent Application
20160214657
The present disclosure relates to cargo bed extensions for vehicles.
Vehicles are commonly used to transport materials. Some vehicles are designed to include a bed, or cargo hold, to transport the materials. Designers of such cargo areas may balance tradeoffs between the capacity of the cargo hold and the overall length of the vehicle. A larger cargo hold typically results in a longer vehicle, and at the same time it may be desirable to limit the width and height of the vehicle based upon other factors. Additionally, extended length vehicles can be less maneuverable during driving.
Certain cargo area extenders require additional components to increase cargo capacity. The added components can be cumbersome to implement by a user and commonly must be stored in the cargo area consuming storage volume when not in use.
In at least one embodiment, a vehicle includes a main cargo bed including a floor and a first pair of opposed sidewalls extending from either side of the floor. The vehicle also includes an extension assembly having a base that is slidable relative to the main cargo bed and defines a stowed position that is substantially flat against the floor. The extension assembly includes a second pair of opposed sidewalls rotatably extending from the base. The vehicle further includes a tailgate pivotally coupled to the base.
In at least one embodiment, a vehicle includes a vehicle cargo bed including a floor and a first pair of opposed sidewalls extending from the floor. The vehicle also includes an extension assembly that is moveable with respect to the vehicle cargo bed. The extension assembly includes a base and a second pair of opposed sidewalls rotatably attached to the base. Each of the second pair of sidewalls is capable of retaining to one of the first pair of opposed sidewalls. The vehicle further includes a tailgate rotatably disposed on the base and cooperable with the second pair of opposed sidewalls. The extension assembly is movable to an extended position where the base is aligned with the bed floor forming an extended floor and the first pair of opposed sidewalls are aligned with the second pair of opposed sidewalls forming an extended pair of opposed sidewalls. The tailgate is capable of latching to the extended pair of opposed sidewalls in the extended position. The extension is further movable to a stowed position where the second pair of opposed sidewalls are superposed over the base and the extension assembly overlaps the floor.
In at least one embodiment, a cargo bed extension includes a base operable to translate relative to, and stow against a vehicle cargo bed. The cargo bed extension also includes a pair of opposing secondary sidewalls extending from the base that are adapted to latch to an opposing side of the cargo bed. The cargo bed extension further includes a tailgate pivotally coupled to the base and capable of selectively retaining to the cargo bed when the base is stowed. The tailgate is further capable of retaining to the secondary sidewalls when the base is extended.
As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale; some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention.
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The base 32 is operable to slide relative to the bed floor 16 to the stowed position using roller tracks or other sliding mechanisms. In at least one embodiment, a left roller track 36 and a right roller track 38 provides for fore and aft movement of the base 32. A user may selectively slide the base between the stowed position and the extended position on the roller tracks 36, 38. When the extension assembly 30 is extended, it effectively increases the available cargo area for transporting materials. At times when a user does not require the additional space, the extension assembly 30 may be conveniently stowed by sliding forward to overlap the cargo bed 12. The cargo space may be expanded when more cargo area is required, and reduced when necessary for a more compact vehicle size. For example, standard length eight-foot construction material would not typically fit in a six-foot cargo bed. However, an extension assembly according to the present disclosure may for example, allow a user to lengthen a six-foot cargo bed to an eight foot length to allow standard length eight-foot cargo to rest relatively flatly against the bed floor.
Extending from the base 32 is a left secondary sidewall 40 and a right secondary sidewall 42. The secondary sidewalls 40, 42 may be articulable between a horizontal position and an upright position. For example,
In the vertical position, the secondary sidewalls 40, 42 are operable to combine with cargo bed's pair of opposed sidewalls 18, 20 to provide extended sidewalls. The left sidewall 40 and the right sidewall 42 may be secured to the left sidewall 18 and right sidewall 20, respectively, of the cargo bed 12. The left sidewall 40 and right secondary sidewall 42 may include secondary retaining members 46 arranged to retain the secondary sidewalls 40, 42 to primary retaining members 24 located on the cargo bed 12. In at least one embodiment, the secondary retaining members 46 include a secondary catch 48 at a forward portion of each of the secondary sidewalls 40, 42. Each secondary catch 48 latches with a primary post 28 to secure each respective secondary sidewall to the main cargo bed. In alternative embodiments, a simple hook or other fixed receiving feature may retain the secondary sidewalls to the main cargo bed.
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The unitary member 132 may include a fixed left extension sidewall 140 and a fixed right extension sidewall 142. The extension sidewalls 140, 142 are arranged to remain in an upright position both when the extension assembly is stowed and extended. A lower portion of the unitary member is arranged to translate longitudinally between an extended position rearward of a bed floor 116 and a stowed position overlapping the bed floor 116. In at least one embodiment, the extension sidewalls 140, 142 are arranged to translate longitudinally and stow within an inner cavity of left side wall 118 and a right sidewall 120 of the vehicle cargo bed 112, respectively. In alternative embodiments, the extension sidewalls 140, 142 may be arranged to slide along an exterior surface of each of the extension sidewalls 140, 142.
This configuration eliminates the need for hinges on the sidewalls of the extension assembly 130, yet allows similar functionality relative to previous embodiments. In the extended position, the extension sidewalls 140, 142 in combination with the pair of opposed sidewalls 118, 120 form an extended vehicle cargo bed to accommodate longer cargo.
A tailgate 114 is pivotally coupled to the unitary member 132. The tailgate 114 may include primary retaining members 124 to secure the tailgate in a vertical position to the unitary member 132. The tailgate 114, as shown, includes a primary catch 126 arranged to latch to a primary post 128 located on each of the extension sidewalls 140, 142. A latch disposed on either side of the tailgate 114 may be used to distribute loads and enhance a stable connection. In contrast to previous embodiments, only a primary set of retaining members may be required. When the extension assembly 130 is translated forward into the stowed position, the primary posts 128 may protrude to be received by the primary catches 126. In this way, the tailgate selectively retains to the extension sidewalls 140, 142 in both of the stowed and the extended positions.
Similar to other embodiments, at least one lock pin 152 may be used to hold the extension assembly 130 in a desired travel position. However the present embodiment may provide for additional or alternative locations of the lock pin 152. In at least one embodiment, the extension assembly 130 is held in a desired position when one or more lock pins 152 is inserted through holes in both of the upper portions of extension sidewalls 140, 142. The extension sidewalls 140, 142 may define stowed position lock holes 156 near a rear portion, and extended position lock holes 158 near a forward portion. Stop pins located near an upper portion of the extension sidewalls 140, 142 may replace, or be in addition to, stop pins inserted at the bed floor 116.
The alternate embodiment depicted in
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While several embodiments are described above, it is not intended that these embodiments describe all possible forms of the invention. Rather, the words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Additionally, the features of various implementing embodiments may be combined to form further embodiments of the invention.
