US 11,731,549 B2
Vehicle cooler with passenger cabin access
Eric F. Bursch, Ann Arbor, MI (US)
Assigned to Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US)
Filed by Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US)
Filed on Feb. 18, 2020, as Appl. No. 16/793,448.
Prior Publication US 2021/0253012 A1, Aug. 19, 2021
Int. Cl. B60N 3/10 (2006.01); B60P 7/08 (2006.01); B62D 33/04 (2006.01); B60P 3/20 (2006.01)
CPC B60N 3/104 (2013.01) [B60P 3/205 (2013.01); B60P 7/08 (2013.01); B62D 33/048 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A cold-storage container assembly for a pickup truck that provides multiple access points, the assembly comprising:
a passenger cabin, the passenger cabin including a rear wall;
a cargo bed adjacent the passenger cabin, the cargo bed including a header portion, a floor portion, and two opposing side-wall portions cooperating to defining a cargo space, the header portion being adjacent to the rear wall;
a passageway between the cargo bed and an interior of the passenger cabin; and
a cold-storage container disposed in the cargo bed, the cold-storage container including a first opening configured to provide access to an interior of the cold-storage container from a location in the cargo bed, and a second opening configured to provide access to the interior of the cold-storage container from a location in the passenger cabin, the passageway being elevationally aligned with the cold storage container, whereby a plane parallel to the ground passes through both the passageway and the cold storage container,
the floor portion of the cargo bed including a recess area configured to receive a portion of the cold-storage container, the recess area being shaped to retain the cold-storage container in a fixed location within the cargo bed.