Ford Motor Company has filed a patent for a lift assist system with repositioning that may be used in future Ford pickups, Ford Authority has learned.
The patent was filed on December 14th, 2021, published on March 19th, 2024, and assigned serial number 11932279.
The Ford Authority Take
Ford has filed a bevy of patents recently that aim to redefine the way we haul cargo in the beds of our pickups, including two specifically related to crossbars – one for crossbars with lift assists, and another for a sliding crossbar for cargo beds. Now, this newly filed patent keeps that trend going by introducing an idea for a lift assist system with repositioning that may be used in future Ford pickups, too.
The purpose behind this new patent filing is to give future Ford pickups a lift assist system that resides in the bed, and could be used to move items around, almost like a miniature crane or mechanical arm of sorts. This part would attach to a crossbar that’s positioned above the bed and could move from the front to the rear of that portion of a pickup, repositioning heavy items as needed, or perhaps just making room for other items.
Of course, this apparatus could also be used to load or unload those same items from a pickup bed, which could come in handy for those working in places like a construction site, where heavy things are frequently moved from place to place. Even more interestingly, Ford notes that a drone could be used to map out worksites and even help a vehicle move and retrieve an item autonomously, too. Either way, such a concept seems like it would be quite popular among commercial entities, at the very least.
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 ongoing Ford news coverage.
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