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US 11,951,948 B2Granted
Deployable step for vehicle with extendable cargo bed
AssigneeFord Global Technologies, LLC
InventorsMichael John Harmon, Ryan Mathew Sandor, Matthew B. Rutman, Amol Borkar, Hussain Z. Tajmahal
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A cargo bed system of a vehicle includes a floor assembly of a cargo bed. The floor assembly is configured to transition back-and-forth between a standard position and an extended position. A step that moves with the floor assembly back-and-forth between the standard position and the extended position. The step is movable back-and-forth between a stowed position and a deployed position.
Claims18
A cargo bed system of a vehicle, comprising:
- a floor assembly of a cargo bed, the floor assembly configured to transition back-and-forth between a standard position and an extended position;
- and
- at least one step that moves with the floor assembly back-and-forth between the standard position and the extended position, the at least one step movable back-and-forth between a stowed position and a deployed position, the at least one step is supported entirely by the vehicle when in the deployed position.
An extendable cargo bed accessing method, comprising:
- transitioning a floor assembly for a cargo bed of a vehicle from a standard position and an extended position;
- and
- moving at least one step together with the floor assembly during the transitioning, the at least one step movable from a stowed position to a deployed position when the floor assembly is in the standard position and when the floor assembly is in the extended position, the at least one step is supported entirely by the vehicle when in the deployed position.
A cargo bed system of a vehicle, comprising:
- a floor assembly of a cargo bed, the floor assembly configured to transition back-and-forth between a standard position and an extended position;
- and
- at least one step that moves with the floor assembly back-and-forth between the standard position and the extended position, the at least one step movable back-and-forth between a stowed position and a deployed position
- wherein the at least one step is movable back-and-forth between the stowed position and the deployed position when the floor assembly is in the standard position, and the at least one step is movable back-and-forth between the stowed position and the deployed position when the floor assembly is in the extended position,
- wherein the at least one step comprises a first step and a second step,
- wherein the first step and the second step are independently movable back-and-forth between the deployed position and the stowed position,
- wherein the first step includes no more than one step platform, the step platform pivotably connected to at least one support arm assembly, the step platform suspended from the at least one support arm assembly at a position vertically above ground when the at least one step is in the deployed position.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.