Patent Application
20170334274
This disclosure relates generally to covers for pickup truck beds. In particular, the disclosure relates to a deployable pickup truck bed cap.
Pickup truck cargo areas, specifically the pickup truck bed, provide a convenient and utilitarian means of transporting large cargo. The user need simply place any desired items in the truck bed, close the liftgate, and transport the items. However, items placed in the pickup truck bed are exposed to the elements, and may be damaged by moisture (rain, snow, etc.) or displaced by wind forces created by the vehicle speed during transport. Often users tie a tarpaulin over items placed in a pickup truck bed to protect them from the elements and to hide them from view. A disadvantage to this solution is that if not properly secured, the tarpaulin can work loose due to wind forces. Tying a tarpaulin down over a load placed in a pickup truck bed is inconvenient and unattractive, and ropes or bungee cords used to secure the tarpaulin risk damaging vehicle paint.
One known alternative solution is to provide a tonneau cover for covering the pickup truck bed cargo area. A number of hard and soft embodiments of tonneau covers for pickup truck beds are known, including hard tonneau covers that are hinged at one end and effectively function similarly to an automobile trunk. It is also known to provide soft tonneau covers, i.e. tonneau covers made of flexible materials and configured to deploy by unfolding, unrolling, etc. to cover the pickup truck bed. Such soft tonneau covers may be deployed manually or by motorized means. While effective in hiding pickup bed contents from view and protecting them from the elements, tonneau covers typically are disposed substantially flush with the upper edges of the pickup truck bed sides and the liftgate. As such, covering items that extend over a top of those pickup truck bed side/liftgate upper edges is difficult or impossible.
For that reason, it is known to provide aftermarket truck bed caps which are defined by side edges and a top, and which provide coverage of an area that may extend upwardly from the truck bed to a plane defined by a pickup truck passenger compartment roof, or even higher. Such aftermarket pickup truck bed caps, while effective for their intended purpose, are typically heavy and cumbersome to install and remove.
To solve this and other problems, the present disclosure relates to deployable pickup truck bed cap. Advantageously, the described deployable pickup truck bed cap is flexible and lightweight, and is easily deployed for use in covering items but retracted when covering the pickup truck bed is not desired.
In accordance with the purposes and benefits described herein, in one aspect of the disclosure a deployable cap assembly for a pickup truck bed is described, comprising a collapsible frame assembly and at least one motor operatively connected to the collapsible frame assembly. A flexible cover is attached to the collapsible frame assembly. A frame guide system is provided, disposed on opposed pickup truck bed sides. A cap assembly housing may be provided into which the collapsible frame assembly can be stowed. The housing may be disposed adjacent to a pickup truck passenger compartment.
In embodiments, the frame guide system includes a pair of guide channels disposed at opposed bed sides of the pickup truck bed. The at least one motor reversibly drives a pulley system operatively connected to at least a portion of the collapsible frame assembly for translation between a fully retracted and a fully deployed configuration along the pair of guide channels. The pulley system may include a belt or strip operatively connected to at least a portion of the collapsible frame assembly.
A controller may be included, operatively connected to the motor and configured to at least partially translate the collapsible frame assembly between a fully stowed position and a fully deployed position. Likewise, an actuator may be included, in embodiments operatively connected to the motor and/or to the controller. The actuator in embodiments is associated with one or more of a pickup truck passenger compartment element, a pickup truck door element, a key fob, a smartkey, the pickup truck bed, and a pickup truck bed liftgate. Optionally, one or more actuable light sources may be disposed on the collapsible frame assembly and/or the flexible cover.
In the following description, there are shown and described embodiments of the disclosed deployable pickup truck bed cap. As it should be realized, the device is capable of other, different embodiments and its several details are capable of modification in various, obvious aspects all without departing from the devices as set forth and described in the following claims. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions should be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.
The accompanying drawing figures incorporated herein and forming a part of the specification, illustrate several aspects of the disclosed deployable pickup truck bed cap, and together with the description serve to explain certain principles thereof. In the drawings:
Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the disclosed deployable pickup truck bed cap assembly, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawing figures.
With reference to
The deployable pickup truck bed cap assembly 102 includes a collapsible frame 108 which, as shown in
As will be appreciated, the representative collapsible frame assembly 108 configuration depicted in the drawings figure is but one of many potentially suitable configurations, and will not be held as limiting. Any suitable frame configuration is contemplated, with the caveat that it must be configured to collapse for stowing.
Likewise, use of any suitably flexible, weather-resistant material is contemplated for the manufacture of the flexible cover 110. As non-limiting examples, the flexible cover 110 may be manufactured of a fabric laminate, for example a polyvinyl chloride (PVC)-backed woven acrylic, an embossed-PVC backed woven acrylic, and others. A number of such fabric laminates suitable for this use are known in the art, for example the laminates manufactured by the Haartz® Corporation, Acton, Mass.
The assembly 102 further includes a frame guide system 112 for guiding the flexible cover 110/collapsible frame assembly 108 between the stowed and deployed positions. With reference to
A number of suitable configurations for the frame guide system 112 are contemplated. In an embodiment, an under-mount drawer slide-type mechanism of a type well known in the art is contemplated, wherein the guide channels 114a, 114b include bearings or rollers 118 in an interior 120 thereof to ensure smooth sliding translation of rails 122 associated with the sliding main frame member 105 and optionally the intermediate sliding frame member 109 and a portion of the reinforcing linkages 111 (see
Alternatively, the main frame member 105 and optionally the intermediate sliding frame member 109 and a portion of the reinforcing linkages 111 may include a plurality of attached rollers, bearings, or wheels 124 configured for sliding translation within the interior channel 120 of guide channels 114a, 114b (see
For operation of the deployable pickup truck bed cap assembly 102, one or more motors 126 are operatively connected to the collapsible frame assembly 108. As shown in
Of course, alternative configurations are possible whereby the one or more motors 126 drive translation of the collapsible frame assembly 108 between the fully stowed and fully deployed positions, and all such configurations are contemplated for use herein. In embodiments, electric motors 126 of a type well known in the art are used, although alternative motor types may be readily incorporated also.
The system further includes a controller 128 configured to control deployment and retraction of the collapsible frame assembly 108. In a representative control system as shown in
The controller 128 may be configured to cause the motor 126 to translate the collapsible frame assembly 108 between a fully stowed position and a fully deployed position as described above, and also to one or more intermediate positions therebetween. For example, the controller may include computer executable instructions to define multiple preset configurations of the collapsible frame assembly 108, such as: (1) fully stowed; (2) deployed half-way; and (3) fully deployed. As will be appreciated, innumerable such intermediate configurations are possible.
One or more actuators 130 are operatively associated, directly or indirectly, with one or both of the controller 128 and the motor(s) 126. In the depicted embodiment, the actuator 130 is operatively associated with the controller 128. The actuator(s) 130 may be any suitable switch, button, touchscreen control, etc. as are well known in the art. The actuator(s) 130 may further be positioned in the vehicle 100 passenger compartment (for example, in the vehicle dash panel, on a vehicle door, as part of a dash panel- or console-mounted touchscreen, as part of a roof panel console, and others), or may be associated with one or more of a key fob, a smartkey, or on the pickup truck bed 106, such as in association with the truck bed 106 liftgate latch.
Other optional functionalities are contemplated. For example, as shown in
Obvious modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally and equitably entitled.
