US 4,792,178 A · Truck tonneau cover assembly

Abstract

A truck tonneau cover assembly (10) of the rollable storage type is disclosed as including a pair of elongated guides (22) and a cover (36) with slats (44) that move along converging front ends of the guides to provide the cover with an upwardly curved shape upon unrolling from a storage roll (34) so as to thereby be capable of shedding water. Enlarged side edges (38) of the cover (36) are received within grooves (24) of the guides with the cover extending through restricted guide slots (26) into these grooves to seal the cover edges and prevent the shed water from entering the truck bed (12) with which the cover assembly (10) is utilized. The guides (22) also have rear ends (30) that diverge such that the rear edge of the closed cover is straight and thus sealable with the vehicle truck tailgate (20). Antifriction bearings (48) mount the slats (44) on the guides (22) for forward and rearward movement along the truck bed.

Drawings

Drawings are temporarily unavailable. Open the PDF at USPTO

Drawings

Claims20

Dependent claims

A truck tonneau cover assembly for opening and closing a truck bed of the type having side walls defining lateral sides, a front wall, and a rear tailgate, the tonneau cover assembly comprising:

a pair of elongated guides respectively mountable on the truck bed sides so as to extend forwardly and rearwardly generally between the front wall and the tailgate;
each guide having an elongated groove extending along its length and an inwardly oriented restricted slot into the groove;
each mounted guide having a front end where the groove and slot thereof extend outwardly in a forward direction and also having a rear end;
the mounted guides each having an intermediate portion;
said intermediate portions of the mounted guides being located closer to each other than the front ends of the guides;
a storage roll mountable adjacent the front wall;
a flexible sheet like cover having enlarged side edges that are respectively received within the grooves of the guides with the cover closely extending through the restricted slots so as to be supported for movement by the guides in a sealed relationship;
the cover having a front edge that is rolled up on the storage roll to store the cover and open the truck bed;
the cover having a rear edge that is pulled rearwardly to unroll the stored cover and thereby close the truck bed;
bendable slats that extend laterally between the side edges of the cover with longer lengths than the spacing between the intermediate portions of the mounted guides;
and means extending generally from one mounted guide to the other mounted guide and operable to bow the slats upwardly upon rearward slat movement along the guides in order to curve the closed cover upwardly so as to shed water.

8 more elements

A truck tonneau cover assembly for opening and closing a truck bed of the type having side walls defining lateral sides, a front wall, and a rear tailgate, the tonneau cover assembly comprising:

a pair of elongated guides respectively mountable on the truck bed sides so as to extend forwardly and rearwardly generally between the front wall and the tailgate;
each guide having an elongated groove extending along its length and an inwardly oriented restricted slot into the groove;
each mounted guide having a front end where the groove and slot thereof extend outwardly in a forward direction and also ahving a rear end where the groove and slot thereof extend outwardly in a rearward direction;
the mounted guides each having an intermediate portion;
said intermediate portions of the mounted guides being located closer to each other than the front and rear ends of the guides;
a storage roll mountable adjacent the front wall;
a flexible sheet like cover having side edges including edge reinforcers and cords secured by the edge reinforcers so as to provide enlarged side edges with respect to the rest of the cover;
the enlarged side edges of the cover being respectively received within the grooves of the guides with the cover closely extending through the restricted slots so as to be supported for movement by the guides in a sealed relationship;
the cover having a front edge that is rolled up on the storage roll to store the cover and open the truck bed;
the cover having a rear edge that is pulled rearwardly to unroll the stored cover and thereby close the truck bed;
bendable slats that extend laterally between the side edges of the cover with sufficiently long lengths so as to be bowed between the intermediate portions of the mounted guides;
a positioning roll that is mountable between the side walls of the truck bed adjacent the front wall thereof and has a central positioning disc that flexes the slats in an upward direction upon rearward movement along the front ends of the guides upon unrolling from the storage roll whereby the closed cover curves upwardly so as to shed water;
and antifriction bearings that mount the slats for movement along the guides.

10 more elements

A truck tonneau cover assembly for opening and closing a truck bed of the type having side walls defining lateral sides, a front wall, and a rear tailgate, the tonneau cover assembly comprising:

a pair of elongated guides respectively mountable on the truck bed sides so as to extend forwardly and rearwardly generally between the front wall and the tailgate;
each guide having an elongated groove extending along its length and an inwardly oriented restricted slot into the groove;
each mounted guide having upper and lower flanges respectively located above and below the restricted slot thereof;
each mounted guide also having a front end where the groove and slot thereof extend outwardly in a forward direction and also having a rear end where the groove and slot thereof extend outwardly in a rearward direction;
the mounted guides each having an intermediate portion;
said intermediate portions of the mounted guides being located closer to each other than the front and rear ends of the guides;
a pair of support plates mountable on the side walls of the truck bed adjacent the front wall thereof;
each support plate including a pair of guide rolls;
a storage roll mounted by the support plates adjacent the front wall;
a flexible sheet like cover having side edges including edge reinforcers and cords secured by the edge reinforcers so as to provide enlarged side edges with respect to the rest of the cover;
the enlarged side edges of the cover being respectively received within the grooves of the guides with the cover closely extending through the restricted slots so as to be supported for movement by the guides in a sealed relationship;
each cover reinforcer including plastic that facilitates movement thereof within the associated guide groove;
the cover having a front edge that is rolled up on the storage roll to store the cover and open the truck bed;
a retainer for securing the front edge of the unwound cover to the front wall of the truck bed;
the cover having a rear edge that is pulled rearwardly to unroll the stored cover and thereby close the truck bed;
the cords being separated from the side edges of the cover adjacent the front edge thereof and extending between the pair of guide rolls of the adjacent support plate to the storage roll for winding and unwinding with respect thereto upon winding and unwinding of the cover;
bendable slats that extend laterally between the side edges of the cover with sufficiently long lengths so as to be bowed between the intermediate portions of the guides;
a positioning roll mounted on the support plates adjacent the front wall of the truck bed and having a central positioning disc that flexes the slats in an upward direction upon rearward movement along the front ends of the guides upon unrolling from the storage roll whereby the closed cover curves upwardly so as to shed water;
and antifriction bearings that mount the slats for movement along the guides while the upper and lower flanges of the guides position the antifriction bearings and the slats.

16 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Description3,607 words

Summary1,391 words

#This invention relates to a truck tonneau cover assembly for opening and closing a truck bed.

#Truck tonneau cover assemblies have previously been utilized to open and close truck beds at the upper extremities of lateral side walls, a front wall, and a rear tailgate that cooperatively define the truck bed. Such cover assemblies enclose cargo being carried and also enclose the truck bed from the environment even when the truck bed is empty.

#Truck tonneau cover assemblies have previously included covers that are unrolled for use to close the associated truck bed and rolled for storage when the truck bed is to be opened. See U.S. Pat. No. 3,086,811 Hartviksen; U.S. Pat. No. 3,146,824 Veilleau; U.S. Pat. No. 4,252,362 Campbell; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,844 Romano. Another truck tonneau cover assembly disclosed by the U.S. Pat. No. 4,479,677 of Gullette et al. has a cover that is wound and unwound for storage and use and is also provided with curved slats that are positioned below the unrolled cover in order to provide an upwardly curved shape for shedding water. At its lateral edges, the cover has snaps which are secured to provide sealing of the cover over the truck bed. A further truck tonneau cover assembly of the rollable type is disclosed by the U.S. Pat. No. 2,594,910 of Germann and includes tracks that converge toward each other and receive opposite edges of the cover which has slats with opposite ends also received by the tracks. Converging portions of the track curve the ribs and the cover upwardly to shed water. There is no seal provided between the lateral edges of the cover and the track such that rainwater or other moisture is not prevented from entering the truck bed with the cover closed.

Brief description of the drawings6 figures

#FIG. 1 is a perspective view taken from above and the rear at one side of a truck which includes a tonneau cover assembly constructed in accordance with the present invention;

#FIG. 2 is a broken away sectional view of the cover assembly taken along the direction of line 2--2 in FIG. 1;

#FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the truck tonneau cover assembly of the invention;

Detailed description2,041 words

#With reference to FIG. 1 of the drawings, a truck tonneau cover assembly of this invention is indicated by 10 and functions to provide opening and closing of a truck bed 12. This truck bed 12 is of the conventional type including lateral sides 14 provided by side walls 16, a front wall 18, and a rear tailgate 20. As is hereinafter more fully described, the cover assembly 10 is movable between a rolled storage position adjacent the front wall 18 and an unrolled use position closing the truck bed 12 with a construction that sheds water as well as sealing the truck bed from intrusion of the shed water adjacent the lateral sides 14.

#With combined reference to FIGS. 1, 3, and 5, the cover assembly 10 includes a pair of elongated guides 22 that are respectively mountable on the truck bed sides so as to extend forwardly and rearwardly generally between the front wall and the tailgate of the truck bed. As shown in FIG. 5, each guide 22 has an elongated groove 24 extending along its length and an inwardly oriented restricted slot 26 into the groove. As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, each guide has a front end 28 where the groove and slot thereof extend outwardly in a forward direction adjacent the front wall of the truck bed. Each guide 22 also has a rear end 30 located generally adjacent the tailgate 20 as shown in FIG. 1. The guides 22 have intermediate portion 32 which are located closer to each other than the front ends 28 of the guides. Adjacent the front guide ends 28, a storage roll 34 of the cover assembly is mountable adjacent the front wall 18 of the truck bed as is hereinafter more fully described.

#A flexible sheet like cover 36 of the cover assembly 10 is shown in FIG. 1 and, as best illustrated in FIGS. 3, 5 and 6, has enlarged side edges 38 that are respectively received within the grooves 24 (FIG. 5) of the guides 22 with the cover extending through the guide slots 26 so as to be supported for movement by the guides in a sealed relationship. This cover 36 is preferably made as a vinyl covered fabric so as to be strong and waterproof. As shown in FIG. 2, the cover 36 has a front edge 40 which as is hereinafter more fully described is rolled up on the storage roll 34 to store the cover and open the truck bed. Cover 36 also has a rear edge 42 that is pulled rearwardly to unroll the stored cover and thereby close the truck bed 12. Bendable slats 44 of the cover assembly 10 extend laterally between the side edges 38 of the cover 36 with sufficiently long lengths so as to be bowed upwardly between the intermediate portions 32 of the guides 22 in order to curve the cover upwardly so as to shed water.

Facts

Application

07/087,145Filed 19 Aug 1987

Granted

20 Dec 1988

Term ended

19 Aug 2007

Estimated · how

Pre-1995 term; greater of 17 years from grant or 20 years from filing when eligible. Maintenance-fee lapses, terminal disclaimers and statutory extensions have not been checked. The continuity chain may be incomplete; this is not an enforceability determination.

Classification4 codes

B60J 7/068
Sliding and winding up: for utility vehicles, e.g. of tarpaulin or roller-blind type
B60P 7/04
Covering of load: by tarpaulins or like flexible members
B60J
Windows, windscreens, non-fixed roofs, doors, or similar devices for vehicles
B60P
Vehicles adapted for load transportation or to transport, to carry, or to

Truck tonneau cover assembly

Life of this patent

Truck tonneau cover assembly

Life of this patent

Life of this patent

Abstract

Drawings

Drawings

Claims20

Description3,607 words

Drawings

Classification4 codes

Life of this patent

Description3,607 words