Ford Motor Company has filed a patent for a reconfigurable heated shelf that could be used in future Ford vehicles, Ford Authority has learned.
The patent was filed on May 12th, 2022, published on November 16th, 2023, and assigned serial number 0364974.
The Ford Authority Take
Ford has filed patents for all sorts of heated items that could be used in future vehicles over the past few months, a list that includes a heated SecuriCode keypad, heated interior trim, a deployable heated shelf, and an outdoor heating system, to name just a few. Now, this newly filed patent keeps that trend going by introducing a similar idea – this time, for a reconfigurable heated shelf that could be used in future Ford vehicles, too.
The idea behind this particular patent filing is that currently, many vehicles offer cargo areas accessible by a tailgate, such as crossovers and SUVs, but in many cases, those cargo areas aren’t really what one might call feature rich. Thus, Ford is looking at enhancing the functionality of rear cargo areas by adding this reconfigurable heated shelf that can be used for a number of purposes – including, it seems, for tailgating at sporting events or things like concerts.
The shelf could be moved into many different positions as desired, doubling as a seat, a table with cupholders, or just a seat back, to name a few. The kicker here is, the shelf would also be equipped with a heating element, which could be quite nice for those cool weather outdoor gatherings when one is looking to stay warm. In any event, it’s clear that Ford is at least thinking about making more tailgate-friendly vehicles in the future, and this may be one possible way to achieve that goal.
We’ll have more on this and all Ford patents soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for the latest Ford patent news, Ford business news, and continuous Ford news coverage.
Comments
Future Ford vehicles will not get a reconfigurable heated shelf. Innovative things like this disappeared from automotive manufacturing several decades ago, when the manufacturers ditched station wagons and mainstream, full size passenger vans. It was sad to see the rotating seats, rear facing seats, configurable tables and shelves, etc. all disappear.
Ford filing patents pretending all this stuff didn’t previously exist (well, the “heated” part didn’t), is just laughable. Besides, even if Ford did add a configurable heated shelf to a future Ford vehicle, with Ford’s quality how long would it actually function properly?
I guess you have nothing better to do during your day. More fun to criticize and spread negativity. Find something meaningful to do that will give you a sense of purpose and make the world a better place.
Have you been following all of Ford’s patent filings via the articles on this site? I’m not the one that needs to find something meaningful to do. Ford needs to find something meaningful to do, like focus on improving quality, and manufacturing and delivering ordered vehicles to their customers, and stop wasting time and money on filing patents for things that have already been done before and for things that are just outright silly crap that will never, ever actually get added to a vehicle.
Also, I commented on the article, expressing my opinion that their patent filing is complete nonsense and will never make it to market. What did you come here to do? Throw a personal attack and tell me to get a life. It would seem to me, in addition to Ford, you need to find something more meaningful to do.