Toyota Patents Cool Truck Bed Cover That Protects Your Gear – and You Can Sleep on It
In January, Toyota filed a new patent with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The design presents a new multi-use truck bed cover. The cover would be paired with an air bladder. When inflated, the air bladder would cushion any stored cargo from vibrating or shifting.
The Toyota patent explains that while many pickup truck drivers use straps to tie down items in the bed, something with multiple uses is better.
The bed cover’s inflatable bladder would be filled by an air compressor connected to the underside of the bed cover assembly. In another iteration, an air compressor would be placed inside the truck bed sidewall. This leaves the bed’s cargo zone for full driver use.
The patent also includes a note specifying that the air bladder would be removable in all iterations. It would double as an air mattress.
The camping uses for this feature are super helpful. You could haul all your gear and not have to strap stuff down, pay for an aftermarket tonneau cover, or pack an air mattress.
The patent doesn’t specify which Toyota trucks would receive the truck bed cover. It’ll be interesting to see whether the Tundra, Tacoma, or both will have trims with this bed cover option.
Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
