TONNEAU COVER APPARATUS FOR A PICKUP TRUCK BED
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A tonneau cover apparatus for a vehicle comprising:
- a mount;
a pickup truck bed cover overlaying the mount and being coupled to the mount;
a handle rotatably coupled to the mount such that the handle rotates about a substantially horizontal axis and is movable between an open position and a closed position, wherein the handle is substantially vertical when in the open position, wherein the handle is substantially horizontal when in the closed position, and wherein the handle is above a substantially horizontal plane extending across a pickup truck bed when in the closed position; and
a clamp being movably fixed to the handle such that when the handle is closed the clamp is fixed to the pickup truck bed.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A tonneau cover apparatus is provided. In one aspect, a tonneau cover apparatus includes a handle or lever, a mount, a locator, a finger, a detent and a complementary peg. In another aspect, a handle and mount are configured such that the handle is substantially horizontal when in a closed position. A further aspect employs at least one locator to align a tonneau cover to a truck bed. Another aspect includes a finger which is coupled to a handle to clamp a tonneau cover apparatus to a truck bed when the handle is in a closed position, thus securing the tonneau cover to the truck bed.
34 Citations
43 Claims
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1. A tonneau cover apparatus for a vehicle comprising:
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a mount; a pickup truck bed cover overlaying the mount and being coupled to the mount; a handle rotatably coupled to the mount such that the handle rotates about a substantially horizontal axis and is movable between an open position and a closed position, wherein the handle is substantially vertical when in the open position, wherein the handle is substantially horizontal when in the closed position, and wherein the handle is above a substantially horizontal plane extending across a pickup truck bed when in the closed position; and a clamp being movably fixed to the handle such that when the handle is closed the clamp is fixed to the pickup truck bed. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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9. The tonneau cover apparatus of claim 9, wherein the handle in the closed position is above a substantially horizontal plane extending across a base of the interior wall.
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14. A tonneau cover apparatus comprising:
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a bracket; a pickup truck bed cover overlaying the bracket, wherein the bracket is attached to the pickup truck bed cover; a lever portion being joined to the bracket such that the lever is movable between an extended position and a folded position; a locator being attached to the bracket and acting as a wedge to locate the pickup truck bed cover to a desired location on the pickup truck bed; and a finger coupled to the lever portion, wherein the finger is clamped in a vehicle-engaging orientation when the lever portion is in the folded position, and the finger is freely movable when the lever is in the extended position. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A tonneau cover apparatus for a vehicle comprising:
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an elongated side and front rail, wherein the side rails are foldable by at least one set of hinges; at least one locator wedge on each of the front and side rails; and a vehicle compartment having at least one tab, wherein the locator wedge aligns with the tab such that the wedge pulls the side and front rails into alignment with the vehicle compartment as the wedge is inserted into the tab.
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25. A tonneau cover apparatus for a vehicle comprising:
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a tonneau cover latch having a mount and a handle, wherein the handle is coupled to the mount such that the handle is movable between an open position and a closed position; a peg on the handle; and a detent on the mount engaging the peg on the handle when the handle is moved to the closed position, wherein the detent retains the handle in the closed position. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A tonneau cover apparatus comprising:
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a mount being of a polymeric material; a storage compartment cover overlaying the mount, fixed to the mount, and being of a flexible material; a handle being of a polymeric material and being rotatably joined to the mount such that the handle rotates about a substantially horizontal axis and is movable between an open position and a closed position, wherein the handle is substantially vertical when in the open position, wherein the handle is substantially horizontal when in the closed position, and wherein the handle is above a substantially horizontal plane extending across a top of a storage compartment when in the closed position; a finger being movably fixed to the handle, wherein the finger is in a clamping position when the handle is in the closed position and the finger is freely movable when the handle is in the open position; a grip being of an elastomeric material and being attached to the finger such that when the finger is clamped to storage compartment the grip is directly adjacent to an interior wall of storage compartment and prevents the finger from unintentionally releasing the storage compartment; a plurality of arms coupling the grip to the finger and hinging the finger to the handle; a locator being attached to the bracket and locating storage compartment cover to an aligned position on the storage compartment, wherein the locator is clamped to the storage compartment when the lever portion is in the closed position; a wedge being of an elastomeric material on the locator and locating each tonneau cover apparatus to a predetermined location on the storage compartment; an arm coupling the wedge to the locator and the locator to the bracket; a fastener coupling the locator to the bracket; a peg being on one of the handle and the bracket; and a detent being on the other of the handle and the bracket engaging the peg when the handle is moved to the closed position, wherein the detent retains the handle in the closed position.
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35. A method of installing a tonneau cover, the method comprising:
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(a) positioning elongated and foldable rails on top of a truck bed; (b) locating at least a first fore-after orienting projection against a front edge of a truck bed; (c) locating at least a second cross-vehicle orienting projection against a side wall of the truck bed; (d) clamping the rails to the truck bed by moving at least one latch lever from an open position to a closed position; and (e) fully installing and clamping the tonneau cover to the truck bed within thirty seconds. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43)
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Specification