Shape-changing cargo blanket and tonneau cover
AssigneesToyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsYuyang Song, Koray Benli, Shinnosuke Shimokawa, Umesh N. Gandhi
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Embodiments described herein relate to covers. In one embodiment, a shape-changing cargo blanket and tonneau cover includes a jamming component. The jamming component includes a sleeve and jamming layers housed within the sleeve that cause the jamming component to become rigid when the sleeve is substantially under vacuum. The cover conforms to a shape of an item when in a flexible state and becomes rigid in the shape when substantially under vacuum.
Claims20
A cover, comprising:
- a jamming component including:
- a sleeve,
- jamming layers housed within the sleeve that cause the jamming component to become rigid when the sleeve is substantially under vacuum;
- and
- wherein the cover conforms to a shape of an item when in a flexible state and becomes rigid in the shape when substantially under vacuum.
An apparatus, comprising:
- a cover having a jamming component including:
- a sleeve,
- jamming layers housed within the sleeve that cause the jamming component to become rigid when the sleeve is substantially under vacuum, one or more of the jamming layers including an array of tiles flexibly interconnected by hinges;
- and
- a membrane that is flexible and connected to the jamming component, the membrane defining an inflation chamber that is inflatable separately from the sleeve;
- and
- wherein the cover conforms to a shape of an item when in a flexible state and becomes rigid in the shape when substantially under vacuum, and wherein the membrane is inflatable to provide additional securement to the item.
A system, comprising:
- a cover having a jamming component including:
- a sleeve,
- jamming layers housed within the sleeve that cause the jamming component to become rigid when the sleeve is substantially under vacuum, one or more of the jamming layers including:
- an array of tiles flexibly interconnected by hinges, the tiles having a shape that is substantially rhomboidal such that the jamming layers fold along the hinges according to a crease pattern with various degrees of folding such that the cover covers items of varying dimensions, the tiles being formed of a substantially rigid material to provide rigidity to the cover in combination with the jamming layer when the cover is under vacuum, the hinges being formed of a flexible material to allow the cover to conform to a shape of an item;
- and
- wherein the cover conforms to the shape when in a flexible state and becomes rigid in the shape when substantially under vacuum.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.