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US 12,576,919 B2Granted
Combined drivetrain access panel and footrest
AssigneeFca US LLC
InventorsMichael L Nemeth, Kevin A Spangler, Chris Borczon
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vehicle including a vehicle cabin floor having an aperture formed therein for providing access to a vehicle drivetrain component located beneath the vehicle cabin floor. The aperture is covered by a removable panel. The removable panel, in addition to providing access to the vehicle drivetrain component, also includes a planar section that may serve as a footrest of a passenger located in the vehicle.
Claims9
A vehicle, comprising:
- a vehicle body defining a passenger cabin having a floor, the passenger cabin including a driver side compartment and a passenger side compartment positioned laterally adjacent to the driver side compartment;
- an aperture having an outer perimeter formed in a portion of the floor located in the passenger side compartment that provides access to a drivetrain component of the vehicle located beneath the floor;
- and
- a removable panel configured to mate with the aperture, the removable panel being configured to provide access to the drivetrain component when removed from the aperture,
- wherein the removable panel includes a planar section that overlaps the drivetrain component and an angled section that extends from the planar section and mates with the outer perimeter of the aperture, and
- wherein the planar section of the removable panel and the floor located in the passenger compartment located outboard from the outer perimeter are each configured to serve as a footrest for an occupant of the vehicle located in the passenger side compartment.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.