Universal pickup truck bed liner, loading ramp and ladder assembly

Claim 1

A pickup truck bed liner, loading ramp and ladder assembly comprising a rigid, generally rectangular bed liner for a pickup truck bed having a rear end with a tailgate, said liner including a load supporting surface adapted to cover substantially the entire area between wheel wells on the truck bed, frame means extending downwardly from the periphery of the load supporting surface to engage the pickup truck bed and support the load supporting surface in spaced relation to the pickup truck bed to form a storage space, said frame means having an open end, said open end of the frame means facing to the rear end of the pickup truck bed and providing access to the storage space under the load supporting surface when the pickup tailgate is in an open position, and ramp means slidably positioned through the open end of the frame means for positioning in stored relation in the storage space below the load supporting surface of the liner and movement rearwardly to a downwardly inclined position toward a ground surface at the rear end of the pickup truck bed to provide a ramp from the ground surface to the load supporting surface of the liner, said ramp means comprising a frame having parallel side rails and a plurality of spaced cross rails to provide a ladder structure capable of use as a ramp for the bed liner and as a ladder structure, said ramp means including a mesh panel overlying the side rails and cross rails and means detachably connecting the mesh panel to the ramp means, said means connecting the mesh panel to the ramp means including a depending rigid channel-shaped cleat mounted on the undersurface of the mesh panel in downwardly telescoping relation to one of said cross rails to position the mesh panel on the ramp means to enable removal of the mesh panel when desired for use of the ramp means as a ladder or as a ramp for vehicles having large wheels, said load supporting surface being a tread plate having projections on the upper surface thereof to enhance traction, said bed liner frame means including a pair of inwardly facing, channel-shaped parallel side rails, a pair of centrally disposed, outwardly facing channel-shaped center rails secured in back-to-back relation and facing the side rails to form two parallel spaces in underlying relation to the load supporting surface, said ramp means including two ramps with the ramps being individually slidable into the spaces.