Lift gate device

A lift gate for a vehicle, comprising:

• at least one upper arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the upper arm being pivotally attached to the vehicle at a first pivot location;
• at least one lower arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the lower arm being pivotally attached to the vehicle at a second pivot location, the second pivot location spaced below the first pivot location;
• a platform having a top side and a bottom side, the platform mounted for pivotal motion about the second end of the upper arm, the platform being capable of rotating between a stored position in which it overlies the upper arm and an extended position in which it projects rearwardly from the second end of the upper arm, the top side of the platform having a substantially planar portion, the bottom side of the platform having an angled section forming a first surface, the platform having an end portion disposed substantially perpendicular to the angled section to form a second surface, the first and second surfaces disposed such that when the platform is folded to overlie the upper arm the first and second surfaces form the shape of a bumper;
• a substantially vertical link connecting the second end of the upper arm to the second end of the lower arm thereby defining a parallelogram linkage;
• means for rotating the parallelogram linkage about the pivot locations on the vehicle;
• and,
• wherein the first and second surfaces on the bottom side of the platform form a bumper when the upper and lower arms are raised to a stored position.

A lift gate for a vehicle comprising:

• a pair of upper arms having a first end and a second end, the first end of the upper arm being pivotally attached to the vehicle at a first pivot location;
• a pair of lower arms having a first end and a second end, the first end of the lower arms being pivotally attached to the vehicle at a second pivot location, the second pivot location spaced below the first pivot location;
• a link connecting between the second end of respective upper and lower arms thereby defining a parallelogram linkage;
• means for rotating the linkage about the pivot locations at the rear of the vehicle;
• a platform having a first end and a second end, the first end of the platform pivotally attached to the second end of the upper arms, the platform capable of pivoting from a first position where it overlies the upper arms of the linkage to a second position where it extends rearwardly from the upper arms at a position substantially horizontal with respect to the ground, the platform having a top load carrying surface extending from a first end to a second end and having at least one planar portion for supporting a load, the platform having a bottom surface disposed opposite from the top surface, the bottom surface having an angled section forming a first surface, the angled section disposed at an angle with respect to the planar portion of the top surface, the platform having an end portion forming a second surface, the end portion disposed substantially perpendicular to the angled section, wherein the first and second surfaces form the appearance of a bumper when the platform is rotated to overlie the linkage;
• and
• a downwardly extending vertical planar surface extending from the vehicle;
• and,
• wherein the first and second surfaces on the bottom side of the platform form a bumper adjacent to the vertical planar surface when the upper and lower arms are rotated upward to a position where the lift gate is in its stored position underneath the vehicle.

A method of storing a lift gate on a vehicle, comprising:

• providing at least one upper arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the upper arm being pivotally attached to the vehicle at a first pivot location;
• providing at least one lower arm having a first end and-a second end, the first end of the lower arm being pivotally attached to the vehicle at a second pivot location, the second pivot location spaced below the first pivot location;
• providing a platform having a top side and a bottom side, the platform mounted for pivotal motion about the second end of the upper arm, the platform being capable of rotating between a stored position in which it overlies the upper arm and an extended position in which it projects rearwardly from the second end of the upper arm, the top side of the platform having a substantially planar portion, the bottom side of the platform having an angled section forming a first surface, the platform having an end portion disposed substantially perpendicular to the angled section to form a second surface, the first and second surfaces disposed such that when the platform is folded to overlie the upper arm the first and second surfaces form the shape of a bumper;
• providing a substantially vertical link connecting the second end of the upper arm to the second end of the lower arm thereby defining a parallelogram linkage;
• providing means for rotating the parallelogram linkage about the pivot locations on the vehicle, wherein the first and second surfaces on the bottom side of the platform form a bumper when the upper and lower arms are raised to a stored position.
• rotating the platform about its pivot point so that it overlies the linkage;
• and,
• rotating the linkage about its pivot point on the rear of the vehicle until the surfaces on the bottom side of the platform form a bumper at the rear of the vehicle.