Collapsible folding truck trunk

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11529909-B2
Application number	US-202017089391-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 4, 2020
Priority date	Feb 17, 2016
Publication date	Dec 20, 2022
Grant date	Dec 20, 2022

Abstract

A collapsible trunk for use with a vehicle having a wheel well. The trunk comprises a base wall and a side wall pivotally connected thereto. The side wall extends from the base wall and terminates at an upper edge. The side wall and base wall collectively define a storage cavity. The base wall and the side wall each have an expandable portion conformable to the wheel well in response to placement of the base wall and the side wall over the wheel well. The trunk is selectively transitional between a collapsed configuration and a deployed configuration. In the collapsed configuration, the base panels overlap each other, and in the deployed configuration, the plurality of base panels are co-planar to each other. The upper edge of the side wall moves away from the base wall as the trunk transitions from the collapsed configuration toward the deployed configuration.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A truck with a truck bed convertible into a trunk, the truck comprising:
the truck bed defining a front wall, a passenger side sidewall, a driver side sidewall and a tailgate pivotable between an opened position and a closed position;
a cover pivotably attached to the truck bed or a container between an open position and a closed position, in the open position, objects may be placed into the container at a top side of the container;
the container extending across a width of the truck bed slidably disposed within the truck bed so that the container is slidable along a length of the truck bed and securable in at least two different positions, the container having a rear side closer to the tailgate than the front wall of the truck bed, the rear side having an opening through which objects can be placed into the container, the opening of the rear side being closed with a rear panel attachable to the container or the tailgate, a floor of the container being adjacent to a floor of the truck bed, a first position of the container being where a front wall of the container is adjacent to the front wall of the truck bed so that a full length of the truck bed is utilized when the opening of a rear wall of the container is open.

2. The truck of claim 1 wherein the cover is attached to the truck bed and is a tonneau cover.

3. The truck of claim 1 wherein the cover is attached to the container.

4. The truck of claim 1 wherein the rear panel is attached to the container to close the opening of the rear side of the container.

5. The truck of claim 1 wherein the tailgate is used to close the opening of the rear side of the container.

6. The truck of claim 1 wherein the container when the container is in a second position, the container is over the tailgate and the tailgate is in the opened position.

7. A trunk for a truck bed, the trunk comprising:
a rail attached to and extending horizontally along the truck bed;
a container slidably attached to the rail so that the container is slidable along a length of the truck bed and securable in at least two different positions, the container having a rear side with an opening and a panel selectively positionable over the opening of the rear side or a tailgate positionable over the opening of the rear side, a floor of the container being immediately adjacent to a floor of the truck bed, a first position of the container being where a front wall of the container is adjacent to the front wall of the truck bed so that a full length of the truck bed is utilized when the panel is removed from the opening of the rear side of the container or the tailgate traversed to an opened position;
wherein the container forms an enclosure in the truck bed.

8. The trunk of claim 7 wherein a cover closes a top opening of the container and the cover is traversable between a closed position and an opened position.

9. The trunk of claim 8 wherein the cover is attached to the truck bed.

10. The trunk of claim 8 wherein the cover is attached to the container.

11. The trunk of claim 7 wherein a second position being where the container is over the tailgate and the tailgate is in the opened position.

12. A method of reconfiguring a trunk attached to a bed of a truck, the method comprising the steps of:
unlocking the trunk so that the trunk is operative to be horizontally slid to first or second positions, a tailgate of the truck bed or a rear panel forming a part of an enclosed space of the trunk when the trunk is in the first position, the trunk being closer to a cab of the truck when the trunk is in the second position;
sliding the trunk to the second position;
locking the trunk to the second position;
traversing a cover of the trunk to an open position so that a full length of the truck bed is available for use.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the sliding step comprises the steps of traversing the tailgate to the opened position and sliding the trunk over the tailgate when the tailgate is in the opened position.

Assignees

• Singer Nicholas J

Inventors

• Singer Nicholas J

Classifications

• B60J7/1621

  hinged on one side · CPC title

• B60R9/05

  Carriers characterised by wind deflecting means (wind deflectors for open roofs B60J7/22) · CPC title

• B60R11/06

  for tools or spare parts (for vehicle roof parts B60J7/20; for spare wheels B62D) · CPC title

• B60P3/42

  convertible from one use to a different one (vehicles capable of travelling in or on different media, rail-and-road vehicles B60F) · CPC title

• B62D33/023

  Sideboard or tailgate structures {(vehicle side panels in general B62D25/02)} · CPC title