Pick-up style utility vehicle with expandable cargo bed

• US 8,267,454 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2009
• Issued: 09/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kawasaki Motors
• Original Assignee: Kawasaki Jukogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Takano, Kiyohito, Takaya, Satoshi, Maeda, Kiyoaki, Hokari, Kousei, Ewing, Geoffrey, Tamai, Naoki, Oda, Kenji, Asahi, Junhei
• Primary Examiner(s): Pape, Joseph
• Application Number:
  US12/647,862
• Publication Number:
  US 20110156419A1
• Time in Patent Office: 995 Days
• Field of Search: 296/26.06, 296/26.11, 296/183.1
• US Class Current: 296/26.02
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/24 for particular purposes or particular vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/3011 the back-rest being hinged on the cushion, e.g. "portefeuille movement"
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/305 the cushion being hinged on the vehicle frame
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0083 Pick-up trucks; Light trucks; Sport utility vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/06 Safety nets, transparent sheets, curtains, or the like, e.g. between occupants and glass B60R21/026 , B60R21/11, B60R21/12, B60R21/16 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 5/041 extensible externally of the vehicle body, e.g. to create an open luggage compartment of increased capacity devices for anchoring the boot lid while carrying oversize objects E05C17/042
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 33/0273 Movable tailboards for vehicles comprising non-movable sideboards, e.g. pick-up trucks B62D33/037 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 47/003 convertible in order to modify the number of seats foldable compact cars B62D31/006; convertible from one use to a different one B60P3/42

Abstract

A pick-up style utility vehicle with an expandable cargo bed, including a stationary cargo bed part serving as a bottom face and a side face of the cargo bed, a movable cargo bed part serving as the bottom face and the side face of the expanded cargo bed, and a cargo bed support mechanism for supporting the movable cargo bed part at a normal position and an expansion position set on the rear side of the normal position.

Claims

1. A pick-up style utility vehicle with an expandable cargo bed, comprising:

a stationary cargo bed part serving as a bottom face and a side face of the cargo bed;

a movable cargo bed part serving as the bottom face and the side face of the expanded cargo bed; and

a linkage mechanism for guiding movement of the movable cargo bed part between a normal position and an expansion position set on a rear side of the normal position,

wherein the linkage mechanism is provided with a link, a stationary shaft rotatably connecting one end of the link to a central part of a side plate of the stationary cargo bed part, and a movable shaft rotatably connecting the other end of the link to a front part of a side plate of the movable cargo bed part.

2. The pick-up style utility vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the movable cargo bed part, at the normal position, is positioned immediately above the stationary cargo bed part, and the movable cargo bed part at the expansion position is positioned immediately behind the stationary cargo bed part.

3. The pick-up style utility vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the stationary cargo bed part includes a bottom plate and a rear plate pivotally attached via a horizontal shaft on a rear end of the bottom plate,

wherein, when the movable cargo bed part is moved to the expansion position, the rear plate of the stationary cargo bed part can be pivoted rearwardly to form part of the cargo bed.