Extendable cargo bed floor and cargo bed side walls

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12090912-B2
Application number	US-202217673856-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 17, 2022
Priority date	Feb 17, 2022
Publication date	Sep 17, 2024
Grant date	Sep 17, 2024

Abstract

A vehicle cargo bed system includes a floor assembly that transitions back-and-forth between a standard floor position and an extended floor position. The floor assembly includes floor sections each having a cargo support surface. The floor sections are folded when the floor assembly is in the standard floor position. The floor sections are unfolded when the floor assembly is in the extended floor position. The assembly further includes first and second side wall assemblies of the cargo bed that transition back-and-forth between a standard wall position and an extended wall position. The first and second side wall assemblies each include an extendable portion and a fixed portion. The extendable portions extend and retract relative to the respective fixed portions when the first and second side wall assemblies transition back-and-forth between the standard wall position and the extended wall position.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A cargo bed system, comprising:
a floor assembly for a cargo bed of a vehicle, the floor assembly configured to transition back-and-forth between a standard floor position and an extended floor position, the floor assembly including a plurality of floor sections each having a cargo support surface, the floor sections folded when the floor assembly is in the standard floor position, the floor sections unfolded when the floor assembly is in the extended floor position; and
first and second side wall assemblies of the cargo bed, the first and second side wall assemblies each configured to transition back-and-forth between a standard wall position and an extended wall position, the first and second side wall assemblies each including an extendable portion and a fixed portion, the extendable portions extending and retracting relative to the respective fixed portions when the first and second side wall assemblies transition back-and-forth between the standard wall position and the extended wall position, wherein the extendable portion of at least the first wall includes a cargo holding surface.

2. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , wherein cargo coupled to the cargo holding surface of the first wall is received within the fixed portion of the first wall when the first side wall assembly is in the standard wall position.

3. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , further comprising taillights of the extendable portions, the taillights extending and retracting with the extendable portions relative to the respective fixed portion.

4. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , wherein the extendable portion of the first wall and the extendable portion of the second wall are configured to, when extended, provide respective side walls of an extended area of the cargo bed.

5. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , further comprising a first taillight on the extendable portion of the first wall, and a second taillight on the extendable portion of the second wall, the first taillight extending and retracting with the extendable portion of the first wall, the second taillight extending and retracting with the extendable portion of the second wall.

6. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , wherein the first side wall is a driver side wall, and the second side wall is a passenger side wall.

7. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , wherein the extendable portion of the first side wall is telescopically received within the fixed portion of the first side wall when the first side wall is in the standard wall position, wherein the extendable portion of the second side wall is telescopically received within the fixed portion of the second side wall when the second side wall is in the standard wall position.

8. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , further comprising a grab handle that can be actuated to release the extendable portion of the first side wall assembly such that the extendable portion of the first side wall can extend relative to the fixed portion of the first wall.

9. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , wherein the floor assembly is laterally widened at an aft end of the floor assembly to provide opposing laterally widened portions that extend outboard toward the first or the second wall assembly when the floor assembly is in the standard floor position.

10. The cargo bed system of claim 9 , wherein an outer profile of the floor assembly has a “T” shape.

11. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of floor sections includes a plurality of pivotable floor sections that are folded against one another when the floor assembly is in the standard floor position.

12. The cargo bed system of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of floor sections further includes at least one slidable floor section that slides when the floor assembly is transitioned back-and-forth between the standard floor position and the extended floor position, the at least one slidable floor section sliding without pivoting.

13. The cargo bed system of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of pivotable floor sections are stacked against one another and stacked against a front wall of the cargo bed when the floor assembly is in the standard floor position.

14. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , further comprising a tailgate having a first tailgate door and a second tailgate door, the first tailgate door configured to pivot about a first vertically extending axis back-and-forth between a closed position and a fully open position, the second tailgate door configured to pivot about a second vertically extending axis back-and-forth between a closed position and a fully open position.

15. The cargo bed system of claim 1 , further comprising at least one step deployable from beneath the cargo bed.

16. A cargo bed adjustment method, comprising:
transitioning a floor assembly for a cargo bed of a vehicle from a standard floor position and an extended floor position by unfolding a plurality of floor sections of the floor assembly; and
transitioning first and second side wall assemblies of the cargo bed from a standard wall position to an extended wall position by extending extendable portions of the first and second side wall assemblies relative to respective fixed portions of the first and second side wall assemblies, wherein transitioning the first and second wall assemblies from the standard wall position to the extended wall position causes the floor assembly to transition from the standard floor position to the extended floor position.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the plurality of floor sections are folded against a front wall of the cargo bed when the floor assembly is in the standard floor position, wherein the plurality of floor sections are unfolded when the floor assembly is in the extended floor position.

18. The method of claim 16 , wherein, when the cargo bed is in an extended bed position, the floor assembly is in the extended floor position, and the first and second side wall assemblies are each in the extended wall position, the extendable portions of the first and second side wall assemblies providing respective side walls of an extended area of the cargo bed.

19. The method of claim 16 , wherein a first taillight is mounted to the extendable portion of the first side wall such that the first taillight extends and retracts with the extendable portion of the first side wall, wherein a second taillight is mounted to the extendable portion of the second side wall such that the second taillight extends and retracts with the extendable portion of the second side wall.

Assignees

• Ford Global Tech Llc

Inventors

• Harmon Michael John
• Sandor Ryan Mathew
• Chimento Vincent Anthony
• Stojkovic Dragan B
• Marchlewski Jack
• Borkar Amol
• Bowser Christopher
• Sanborn Kirk E
• Sacka Michelle Lorraine
• Tajmahal Hussain Z
• Jordan Iii Dale F

Classifications

• B62D33/08

  comprising adjustable means (B62D33/10 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B60R5/041

  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 title

• B60R13/01

  Liners for load platforms or load compartments · CPC title

• B60R11/06

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

• B62D33/027 Primary

  movable · CPC title