Pickup-truck cargo bed, convertible from fully open to partially enclosed
First Claim
1. In a pickup truck with a frame, cab, and drive train of conventional construction, and a cargo bed comprising a pair of substantially vertical, longitudinally extending side walls, a substantially vertical, laterally extending front wall longitudinally rearwardly spaced from the rear wall of said cab, and a substantially horizontal, laterally and longitudinally extending floor panel;
- the improvement wherein said cargo bed is constructed to be convertible from a fully-open position to a partially-enclosed position and back again, and in said partially-enclosed position has;
(a) an approximately vertical rear panel, extending substantially between said side walls and from said floor panel to the upper edges of said side walls, and longitudinally rearwardly spaced from said front wall by a distance approximately equal to the vertical distance from said floor panel to the upper edges of said side walls;
(b) a substantially horizontal, laterally extending lid assembly which rests on the upper edges of said front wall and of said side walls and of said rear panel of said cargo bed; and
(c) an upwardly facing concavity in said floor panel, said concavity having a bottom wall substantially below the lowermost downwardly facing surface of said floor panel;
substantially between said side walls, and substantially between said front wall and said rear panel;
so that(d) said rear panel, said lid assembly, and said concavity, together with said side walls and said front wall of said cargo bed, form an enclosed storage compartment when said cargo bed is converted to said partially-enclosed position, and(e) said lid assembly and said rear panel are capable of being relocated between purpose-made locations in said cargo bed, to accomplish the conversion of said cargo bed from said partially-enclosed position to said fully-open position, or vice versa.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An improved cargo bed for pickup trucks is built by the truck manufacturer to include movable panels which allow the cargo bed to be quickly and easily converted, without tools, from a partially-enclosed position to a fully-open position. In the partially-enclosed position, the forward section of the cargo bed becomes a secure, weather-resistant "trunk" for luggage, etc., the rest of the cargo bed remaining open. In the fully-open position, the cargo bed is nearly identical to that of an ordinary pickup truck, but with a small auxiliary storage compartment underneath the forward section of the cargo bed. Storage space is provided in the cargo bed for the movable panels, so they are available any time they are needed.
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Citations
8 Claims
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1. In a pickup truck with a frame, cab, and drive train of conventional construction, and a cargo bed comprising a pair of substantially vertical, longitudinally extending side walls, a substantially vertical, laterally extending front wall longitudinally rearwardly spaced from the rear wall of said cab, and a substantially horizontal, laterally and longitudinally extending floor panel;
- the improvement wherein said cargo bed is constructed to be convertible from a fully-open position to a partially-enclosed position and back again, and in said partially-enclosed position has;
(a) an approximately vertical rear panel, extending substantially between said side walls and from said floor panel to the upper edges of said side walls, and longitudinally rearwardly spaced from said front wall by a distance approximately equal to the vertical distance from said floor panel to the upper edges of said side walls; (b) a substantially horizontal, laterally extending lid assembly which rests on the upper edges of said front wall and of said side walls and of said rear panel of said cargo bed; and (c) an upwardly facing concavity in said floor panel, said concavity having a bottom wall substantially below the lowermost downwardly facing surface of said floor panel;
substantially between said side walls, and substantially between said front wall and said rear panel;
so that(d) said rear panel, said lid assembly, and said concavity, together with said side walls and said front wall of said cargo bed, form an enclosed storage compartment when said cargo bed is converted to said partially-enclosed position, and (e) said lid assembly and said rear panel are capable of being relocated between purpose-made locations in said cargo bed, to accomplish the conversion of said cargo bed from said partially-enclosed position to said fully-open position, or vice versa. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
- the improvement wherein said cargo bed is constructed to be convertible from a fully-open position to a partially-enclosed position and back again, and in said partially-enclosed position has;
Specification