US5228736A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Truck box top molding
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1991-11-19
•
Granted: 1993-07-20
•
Expires: 2011-11-19
Abstract
Abstract Rails are mounted to the tops of the sides, ends and tailgate of a pickup truck box. Each rail has an outwardly extending base resting on the top of the truck box. The rails are fastened to the box by screws extending through holes in the rails and outwardly into the inside wall of the truck box at the sides and ends. An upstanding, longitudinally-extending flange in an internal cavity in each of the side rails receives the hooked outer end of longitudinally movable anchors having clamping screws with knurled knobs thereon to clamp the anchors to the rails in any of an infinite number of possible positions longitudinally of the rails. Apertures in the anchors receive cargo strap or chain hooks or partition connectors or other accessories. An upwardly opening longitudinally extending groove in each of the side and end rails receives and secures a reinforced hem of a tonneau cover.
Inventors
- 👤 Virgil R. Dutton
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-02 21:31
CPC Classifications
B; B60; B60R; B60R13/00; B60R13/04; B60J; B60J7/00; B60J7/08; B60J7/10; B60J7/102; B60J7/104; B60P; B60P7/00; B60P7/06; B60P7/08; B60P7/0807; B60P7/0815; B60P7/135; B60P7/15
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 24
Claim 1
Independent Claim
112 words
Truck box molding comprising: an elongate rail having a height substantially greater than width, the rail having an inside face to face the interior of the truck box when the molding is installed on the top of the side wall of the truck box, the rail having an outside face to face away to the outside from the side wall of the truck box, the rail having an internal passageway throughout its length, the rail having an upstanding flange in the passageway and extending throughout the length of the rail, and the rail having a slot in the inside face and extending the length of the rail and communicating with the passageway.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
112 words
Truck box molding comprising: an elongate rail having a height substantially greater than width, the rail having an inside face to face the interior of the truck box when the molding is installed on the top of the side wall of the truck box, the rail having an outside face to face away to the outside from the side wall of the truck box, the rail having an internal passageway throughout its length, the rail having an upstanding flange in the passageway and extending throughout the length of the rail, and the rail having a slot in the inside face and extending the length of the rail and communicating with the passageway.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
32 words
The molding of claim 1 and wherein: the rail has a groove coextensive longitudinally with the rail and opening upwardly to a top-of-rail entrance to receive the edge of a tonneau cover.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
132 words
The molding of claim 2 wherein: the groove has an inner margin defined by an outwardly facing wall that begins at the entrance and slopes downwardly and inwardly toward said inside face and then turns outwardly and upwardly into a substantially vertical and inwardly facing wall and then turns outwardly and upwardly to the groove entrance at the top of the rail; and the horizontal space between the vertical downward projection of the outermost point of the outwardly facing wall and the vertical upward projection of the substantially vertical wall is less then the thickness of the marginal portion of the tonneau cover to be installed in the groove; whereby an outwardly facing margin of the tonneau cover can be confined to a downwardly and inwardly sloping attitude by the vertical wall.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
66 words
An anchor system for cargo in a pickup truck box comprising: the molding of claim 1; and an anchor having a hook received on the flange and clamped to the flange in the passageway, the anchor having a portion extending out from the passageway through the slot and away from the inside face of the rail and having a receiver for a cargo anchoring member thereon.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
14 words
The system of claim 4 wherein: the receiver is an aperture in the anchor.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
40 words
The system of claim 5 wherein the anchor further comprises: a clamp member rollable longitudinally in the passageway, an adjustment screw engaging the clamp member, an adjustment knob for manually turning the screw to apply and release the clamp member.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
86 words
The system of claim 6 wherein the anchor further comprises: a spring wire affixed to one of the screw and the clamp member and extending along the axis of the screw and passing through the center of the clamp member and holding the clamp member in alignment with the screw while permitting rotation of the screw during axial movement of the anchor in the passageway in the rail as the anchor is adjusted longitudinally in the rail while the hook is unclamped from the rail flange.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
103 words
In a pick-up truck box having sides and an upper edge on each side, the improvement comprising: box top molding including elongate side rails fastened to the sides of the box adjacent to the upper edge, each rail having a laterally extending base coextensive longitudinally of the rail and covering at least part of the upper edge of the box, each rail having a longitudinally movable anchor releasably clamped to the rail and having a receiver for cargo restrainer means thereon; and each rail having a groove coextensive longitudinally with the rail and opening upwardly to receive portions of a tonneau cover therein.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
103 words
In a pick-up truck box having sides and an upper edge on each side, the improvement comprising: box top molding including elongate side rails fastened to the sides of the box adjacent to the upper edge, each rail having a laterally extending base coextensive longitudinally of the rail and covering at least part of the upper edge of the box, each rail having a longitudinally movable anchor releasably clamped to the rail and having a receiver for cargo restrainer means thereon; and each rail having a groove coextensive longitudinally with the rail and opening upwardly to receive portions of a tonneau cover therein.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
65 words
The improvement of claim 8 and further comprising: a tonneau cover having reinforced edges tucked into the upwardly opening grooves in the rails and thereby retained in position covering the truck box, the grooves being shaped such that reinforced edges must move upwardly and outwardly for removal from the grooves in a direction tending to tighten the cover whereby removal is resisted by the cover.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
76 words
The improvement of claim 8 wherein: the box has a front wall and rear tailgate, each having an upper edge, and the top molding includes end rails having upwardly opening grooves like the grooves in the side rails, one of the end rails being fastened to the front wall, the other of the end rails being fastened to the tailgate, with the end rails resting on the upper edges of the front wall and the tailgate.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
12 words
The improvement of claim 10 and wherein: the rails are metal extrusions.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
32 words
The improvement of claim 10 and further comprising: a tonneau cover having reinforced edges tucked into the upwardly opening grooves in the rails and thereby retained in position covering the truck box.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
27 words
The improvement of claim 12 wherein: the reinforced edges have reinforcing stays of generally flat rectangular cross section received and confined in marginal hems of the cover.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
19 words
The improvement of claim 13 and wherein: the side rails have a cross-sectional shape resembling the arabic numeral "4."
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
46 words
The improvement of claim 10 and further comprising: corner brackets having arms received in the passageways of the side rails at the front ends of the side rails and having arms received in the opposite ends of the rail on top of the front end wall.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
30 words
The improvement of claim 15 and further comprising: end caps having arms received and secured in the passageways of the side rails at the rear ends of the side rails.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
70 words
The improvement of claim 16 and wherein: the corner brackets and end caps have upwardly opening grooves in the upper edges thereof in registry with the grooves in the rails with which the end caps and brackets are associated, the improvement further comprising a tonneau cover having margins tucked in the grooves of the rails and corner brackets and end caps and securely retained therein and covering the truck box.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
80 words
A truck box top molding comprising: an elongate member of substantially uniform cross-sectional shape throughout its length and having first and second generally upstanding faces, the second face having a longitudinally extending slot therein; and an anchor member having a portion received in the slot and having a clamp screw assembly operable to clamp the received portion in the slot, the anchor member being movable longitudinally in the elongate member while the received portion is in the slot but unclamped.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
80 words
A truck box top molding comprising: an elongate member of substantially uniform cross-sectional shape throughout its length and having first and second generally upstanding faces, the second face having a longitudinally extending slot therein; and an anchor member having a portion received in the slot and having a clamp screw assembly operable to clamp the received portion in the slot, the anchor member being movable longitudinally in the elongate member while the received portion is in the slot but unclamped.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
77 words
The molding of claim 18 and wherein the clamp screw assembly includes: a screw in the anchor member and which has a thread axis generally perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the elongate member, and which has a proximal end and a distal end; and a lug mounted at the distal end of the screw and engageable with the elongate member to clamp the portion of the anchor member received in the slot, to the elongate member.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
51 words
The molding of claim 19 wherein: the lug including a rolling surface that is circular about the screw axis and the lug has a clamping wall generally perpendicular to the screw axis; and a spring wire is affixed to the screw and extends into the lug, the lug being rotatable thereon.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
37 words
The molding of claim 20 and wherein: the lug is a sphere and the clamping wall is a flat face perpendicular to the screw axis; the screw has a cavity in the distal end engaging the sphere.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1996-07-19 | 1997-01-18 | 1997-07-20 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2000-07-19 | 2001-01-18 | 2001-07-20 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2004-07-19 | 2005-01-18 | 2005-07-20 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |