Abstract:
Presented is a tool storage system for pick-up trucks that includes releasably interconnected independent units that are separately manufactured and which are assembled into a composite assembly of interconnected units that fit snugly yet removably in the cargo bed of a pick-up truck. The tool storage system incorporates elongated left and right side storage boxes that straddle the rear wheel compartments that protrude into the truck bed. These elongated lidded storage boxes are attached to associated side walls of the truck bed so that the top surface of the lids lie flush with the top edges of the truck side walls. A central array of separate and independent storage boxes arranged in tandem from the front wall of the truck bed to the tailgate are mounted within the cargo compartment between the elongated left and right side storage boxes. Crossbeams are associated with these independent storage boxes that make up the center array and lockable lids associated with each of the storage boxes are pivotally mounted on the crossbeams. The lids of the storage boxes forming the center array are flush with the lids on the left and right side storage boxes so that collectively the storage boxes provide a flat surface on which cargo may be transported. Closure of the tailgate locks all of the storage boxes within the cargo compartment of the pick-up truck.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to pick-up trucks generally, and particularly to a tool storage system or tool storage assembly that may be detachably mounted in the bed of a pick-up truck to facilitate access to the tools by the owner of the truck, but which provides security for such tools to prevent their theft by unauthorized persons. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     A preliminary patentability and novelty search relating to this invention has revealed the existence of the following United States patents: 
     
       
         
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
                 2,784,027 
                 3,664,704 
               
               
                   
                 3,727,971 
                 4,705,317 
               
               
                   
                 5,687,895 
                 5,779,117 
               
               
                   
                 5,848,818 
                 5,899,544 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
     It requires only a cursory examination of the patents listed above to indicate that the problem of providing storage compartments or storage for tools or toolboxes in a pick-up truck has been a long-standing problem and has generally been solved by mounting in the bed of the pick-up truck a fixed or non-removable structure that limits the availability of the pick-up truck for use for other purposes. 
     Accordingly, one of the important objects of the present invention is the provision of a tool storage system for a pick-up truck that is easily removable from the truck bed. 
     Another object of the invention is the provision of a tool storage system for mounting in the bed of a pick-up truck that provides a flat work area on top of the composite assembly of independent units that form the storage system. 
     Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a storage system for a pick-up truck that provides a flat working surface accessible by a person, and which enables the mounting of a circular saw assembly within the storage system and adjustable to retain the saw blade either retracted or deployed for use by protuberance through a slot in the working surface of the storage system so as to use the top surface of the storage system as the top surface of a table saw. 
     A still further object of the invention is the provision of a compartment within the storage system equipped with a pivotal cover plate on the underside of which an electric circular saw may be temporarily detachably mounted so that the circular saw blade may be deployed to protrude through the slot in the top plate. 
     Yet another object of the invention is the provision in a pick-up truck storage system of a compartment in which a cook-top assembly may be detachably mounted for use and then removed to enable use of the same compartment for other purposes. 
     A still further object of the invention is the provision in a pick-up storage system of a compartment equipped with thermally insulated walls and an automatic drain to enable use of the thermally insulated compartment as an ice box for cold storage of readily accessible food and drink products. 
     The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be apparent from the following description and the drawings. It is to be understood however that the invention is not limited to the embodiment illustrated and described since it may be embodied in various forms within the scope of the appended claims. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In terms of broad inclusion, the pick-up truck storage system of the invention includes a plurality of releasably interconnected independent units that may be separately manufactured and which may be assembled into a composite assembly of interconnected units that fit snugly yet removably into the bed of a pick-up truck. More specifically, the overall toolbox assembly or system includes left and right toolbox subassemblies that straddle the rear wheel compartments that protrude into the inside of the truck bed and include pivoted lids that may be opened or closed. These left and right toolbox subassemblies fit snugly and are detachably secured to the lateral walls of the truck bed and are preferably also supported on the floor of the truck bed so that the top surfaces of the pivoted lids of the left and right side subassemblies lie flush with the left and right upper edge surfaces of the side walls of the truck bed. The overall assembly also includes a central array of front, rear and intermediate independent storage boxes that fit slidably between the confronting inner wall surfaces of the left and right toolbox subassemblies, each of the front, rear and intermediate independent storage boxes comprising the array being provided with a hinged lid that may be locked or unlocked and pivoted open to give access to the interior of each of these independent storage boxes. Preferably, the rear storage box compartment of the array is provided with a top cover plate that is independently pivoted on a detachable crossbeam to enable the removable attachment to the underside of the pivotal top cover plate of an electric circular saw assembly. Means are provided for interlocking the interrelated subassemblies so as to form an interconnected composite unit that fits snugly within the cargo compartment of the pick-up truck bed. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a pick-up truck incorporating a conventional commercially available toolbox. 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a pick-up truck embodying the tool storage system forming the subject matter of this invention. 
     FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken in the plane indicated by the line  3 — 3  shown in FIG.  2 . 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the storage system of the current invention shown apart from the bed of a pick-up truck and showing elements of the system in exploded form. 
     FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a portion of the right side toolbox subassembly and the detachable interconnection thereto of a crossbeam or cross member that extends between the confronting surfaces of the inner side walls of the left and right side toolbox subassemblies adjacent the rear ends of those subassemblies at spaced intervals therealong. 
     FIG. 6 is a fragmentary side elevational view illustrating the detachable interconnections of the front, rear and intermediate storage box subassemblies to the left and right side tool box assemblies and to the truck bed by means of detachable crossbeams extending transversely between the inner walls of the elongated tool boxes. 
     FIG. 6A is a fragmentary rear perspective view of the storage system of the invention illustrating the top cover of the rear storage box provided with a transverse slot to accommodate a circular saw blade and slide locks detachably securing the rear storage box to the associated elongated toolboxes. 
     FIG. 7 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken in the plane indicated by the line  7 — 7  in FIG.  6 A and illustrating the support structure for a removable electric circular saw on the underside of the top cover plate of the rear storage box. 
     FIG. 8 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the manner in which an electric circular saw is detachably secured to the underside of the cover plate of the rear storage box. 
     FIG. 9 is a rear elevational view illustrating an electric circular saw detachably mounted on the underside of the plate cover for the rear storage box. 
     FIG. 10 is a rear elevational view illustrating the electric circular saw detachably secured to the cover plate of the rear storage box with the saw adjusted to provide protrusion of the circular saw blade through the slot in the cover plate. 
     FIG. 11 is a rear perspective view similar to FIG. 6A but showing the electric saw mounted on the underside of the cover plate of the rear storage box and illustrating the saw blade deployed to protrude through the slot in the top cover plate in cooperative association with an adjustable fence. 
     FIG. 12 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken in the plane indicated by the line  12 — 12  in FIG.  11  and illustrating the construction of the saw fence illustrated in FIG. 11, and illustrating the detachable attachment of the fence to associated structure. 
     FIG. 13 is a top perspective view illustrating the manner in which a workman may use the protruding circular saw blade mounted on the cover of the rear compartment to rip an elongated board. 
     FIG. 14 is a top perspective view illustrating the storage system fully incorporated into the bed of a pick-up truck and the rear gate of the pick-up truck closed and locked to retain the storage system fully enclosed within the bed of the pick-up truck and the various compartments or subassemblies thereof locked against unauthorized access. 
     FIG. 15 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken in the plane indicated by the line  15 — 15  shown in FIG.  14 . 
     FIG. 16 is a rear fragmentary end view of the right side toolbox subassembly shown in relation to the right side wall of the truck, and showing the manner in which the open rear end of the right side subassembly is closed by a cover plate. 
     FIG. 17 is a top perspective view illustrating the embodiment of a cook-top in association with the rear storage box compartment of the storage system. 
     FIG. 17A is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the cook-top of FIG. 17 in greater detail and specifically illustrating the relationship of the cook-top to the cover plate of the rear storage box compartment. 
     FIG. 18 is a top perspective view of a pick-up truck embodying the storage system of the present invention and illustrating the manner in which a truck so equipped may be used for other purposes such as hauling of elongated objects supported on the cab of the truck and the rear tailgate of the truck equipped with a detachable framework forming a rack. 
     FIG. 18A is a fragmentary top perspective view illustrating the detachable rack and the manner in which it is mounted on the rear tailgate of the truck for hydraulic deployment. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     In terms of greater detail, the tool storage system for a pick-up truck forming the subject matter of this invention may be considered to be a composite assembly of multiple independent units each of which may be independently and separately fabricated from selected materials. It is to be understood that only where necessary to provide sufficient strength, or to provide sufficient security against unauthorized entry, need metal be used in the construction of the storage system as will be described hereinafter. Preferably, where expedient without detracting from the security of the system, many of the independent elements are formed from injection molded synthetic resinous materials of sufficient strength to withstand the compressive loads that might be imposed on such structures by loading additional cargo for transport on the flat upper surface of the storage system. It should be understood that while the storage system forming the subject matter of this invention facilitates the storage of tools of various kinds that are used by a mechanic in the field, nevertheless, because the upper surface of the storage system is essentially flat and flush with the top surfaces of the side walls of the pick-up truck bed, other types of materials may be loaded on top of the integrated storage system and offloaded therefrom upon completion of transport thereof. 
     Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, it will be seen that this illustration shows a conventional pick-up truck equipped with a conventional commercially available toolbox mounted within the pick-up truck bed immediately behind the cab of the truck. By contrast, and referring now to FIG. 2 of the drawings, it will be noted that the tool storage system for a pick-up truck constituting the subject matter of this invention includes an elongated generally quadrilateral right side toolbox subassembly designated generally by the numeral  2 , an elongated generally quadrilateral left toolbox subassembly designated generally by the numeral  3 , both of the right and left toolbox subassemblies being mounted within the confines of the pick-up truck bed adjacent the right and left side walls thereof designated generally by the numerals  4  and  6 , respectively. In addition to the elongated right and left toolbox subassemblies illustrated in FIG. 2, it should be noted that the tool storage system of this invention also includes three additional storage boxes that are designated generally by the numeral  7  for the front box located immediately behind the cab of the truck, an intermediate storage box  8  and a rear storage box  9  that is positioned within the pick-up truck cargo compartment immediately adjacent the rear tailgate  12  of the pick-up truck. For convenience in referring to these three storage boxes, they may be referred to collectively as the center toolbox array that includes all three of the boxes as illustrated in FIG.  2 . 
     To provide an over all view of the tool storage system for a pick-up truck forming the subject matter of this invention, reference is made to FIG. 4, which is a perspective view of the entire tool storage system shown apart from the truck bed so as to more clearly illustrate the various component parts of the storage system. Referring to FIG. 4, it will be noted that the elongated right and left side storage boxes  2  and  3  are provided with a central recess  13  to accommodate the conventional wheel cover  14  that normally extends into the interior of the bed of a pick-up truck in a “fleet” type pick-up truck bed. Such a protrusion of the wheel cover  14  is seen in the truck bed illustrated in FIG.  1 . Thus, when the elongated right and left storage boxes are positioned within the truck bed, they extend from the front wall of the truck bed to adjacent the tailgate of the truck bed and the exterior recess  13  encompasses the projection of the wheel cover  14  into the interior of the truck bed. 
     It will of course be understood that both of the elongated right and left side storage boxes could be constructed identically, or one of the side storage boxes can be further compartmentalized to provide what is in effect a hidden compartment within that box that is very difficult to discern by a casual observer. Thus, referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, it will be seen from FIG.  3  and FIG. 4 that the left side box referred to generally by the numeral  3  is provided with a pivotally hinged lid  15  that includes a top surface  16  one elongated edge of which is pivotally secured to the top edge of the inner wall of the storage box  3  by an appropriate hinge as shown, conveniently a piano type hinge but preferably a so-called “European” hinge. The lid  15  is provided with a return flange  17  which overlaps the upper outer edge of the storage box when the lid is closed as illustrated in FIG.  4 . 
     By contrast, the elongated right side storage box  2  (FIG. 3) is provided with a laterally and longitudinal extending floor  18  medianly positioned between the top edge of the right side box and the bottom of the box to thus form a compartment  19  in the bottom portion of the right side storage box the presence of which is covered by the end wall  21  (FIG. 4) of the right side box and the rear storage box  9 , but access to which is enabled as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, by slidable movement of a door  22  to expose an opening  23  that gives access to the interior of the “secret” compartment  19  from within the interior of the truck bed when the rear storage box  9  is slid out of the truck bed as illustrated in FIG.  4 . The elongated right side storage box  2  is also provided with a hinged lid  24  that is pivotally secured to the upper inner edge portion of the right side box conveniently by a piano hinge  25  and the outer edge of the lid  24  is provided with a flange  26  that drops over the outside of the upper outer edge of the box as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4. To retain the right and left side elongated storage boxes closely adjacent the right and left side walls  4  and  6 , respectively, of the truck bed, multiple appropriate fastener elements such as screws  41  (FIG. 16) spaced at six inch intervals, are driven from the inside of each of the boxes through spacer pads  30  and into the associated right and left side walls of the truck so as to retain the elongated side boxes within the truck bed. This retention of the elongated right and left side storage boxes within the truck bed is preferably accomplish by the placement of the spacer pads, say 2″×2″×¼″, at intervals between the outer surface of the side walls of the elongated boxes and the associated side walls of the truck bed through which appropriate screws extend. The spacer pads are preferably spaced about ½″ below the upper edge of the associated side wall to accommodate the flanges  17  and  26  on the lids of the elongated boxes. 
     The elongated right and left side storage boxes described above are unitary structures that are independently manufactured and then mounted within the truck bed in the manner described. These right and left side tool storage boxes as illustrated in FIGS. 3,  4 ,  6 ,  6 A and  11  are preferably quadrilateral as illustrated but this is not the only form or configuration that may be utilized. This form of quadrilateral storage box is convenient when the side walls of the truck bed descend to a floor panel of the truck cargo compartment that is perpendicular to the side walls with a very small and unobtrusive radius between the side wall and the floor panel. This enables the placement of an essentially quadrilateral box within the interior of the truck bed. On the other hand, as illustrated in FIGS. 14-16, the elongated side storage boxes may be constructed so as to take advantage of a large radius between the interior of the side wall and the floor panel of the pick-up truck by forming the elongated storage boxes as shown in end view in FIG. 16, wherein each of the boxes is provided with an inner wall  27  that extends from the hinge  28  downwardly to the floor  29  of the truck bed. On its outer side, the elongated box is provided with a side wall  31  that is approximately one-half the height of the wall  27  and is provided with a latterly inwardly extending floor plate  32  the proximate end of which is attached to the side wall  27  to thus form an upper bay or compartment designated generally by the numeral  33 . 
     Additionally, each of the right and left side storage boxes in this embodiment is provided with a lower curved wall portion  34  that attaches at its lower horizontal portion to the floor  29  of the truck bed through the use of a screw  36 , or multiple screws, and at its opposite vertical portion jogs inwardly to provide a flange  37  that is attached to the side wall of the truck bed by means of a spacer pad  38  and a screw  39 . To securely mount the side storage box to the associated side wall of the truck bed, a screw  41  is driven through the outside wall  31 , through the spacer pad  38  and into the side wall of the pick-up truck as shown in FIG.  16 . In this embodiment of the side storage box, access to the interior of the lower bay defined by the lower end of the inside side wall  27  and the radiused side wall  34  is provided by a sliding door  42  that is mounted inboard of the wall  27  within which an access aperture is formed and appropriate guide members  43  and  44  are provided that retain the slidable door  42  slidably movable relative to the associated inner surface of wall  27  of the toolbox. 
     Referring to FIG. 2, it will be noted that the storage boxes  7 ,  8  and  9  that may be referred to collectively as the center toolbox array are each independently mounted within the bed of the pick-up truck so that each box may be inserted or removed from the truck bed as necessity dictates. Referring to FIG. 3 of the drawings, it will be seen that spacer/fastener blocks  46  secured to the inner side walls of the elongated storage boxes are interposed between the inner side walls of the elongated right and left side storage boxes (as shown) and the associated end walls of the center toolbox array so as to provide a relatively narrow space between the end walls of the center toolbox array (FIGS. 7,  8  and  9 ) and the associated elongated inner side walls of the right and left side toolboxes  2  and  3 , thus enabling the center toolbox array storage boxes to slide in relation to the elongated boxes and be guided by the spacer blocks  46 . 
     The provision of this space, provided by the placement of the spacer/fastener blocks  46 , enables the securement by thermo-welding or otherwise, as illustrated in FIG. 5, of a flange  51  to the inner side walls  47  and  48  of the associated right and left side elongated storage boxes as illustrated in FIGS. 3,  4  and  5 , and the inner side walls  27  of the elongated side boxes  2  and  3  as seen in FIG.  16 . The flange  51  is provided with a pair of spaced downwardly projecting flanges  52  having aligned apertures  53  therein for reception of a removable retention pin  54 . Each of the inner walls of the right and left side elongated toolbox subassemblies are provided with these flanges  52  spaced along the length of the box and located so that crossbeams  56  (FIGS. 3,  4 ,  5  and  8 ), having apertures  57  at each end, may be extended transversely across the truck bed between the inner walls of the elongated storage boxes and detachably connected to the opposed flanges  51 , with one of the crossbeams being mounted immediately behind the truck cab (FIG.  6 ), and functioning to provide an abutment against which the box  7  of the center array may abut. From this beam, the remaining three beams are spaced to extend laterally between the side walls of the right and left side elongated boxes in positions between the successive boxes  7 ,  8  and  9 , with the last beam extending across the space between the right and left side boxes in a position adjacent the rear ends of the right and left side storage boxes as illustrated in FIGS. 4,  5  and  6 . These flanges  51  may be secured directly to the associated side wall or may be secured to one leaf of a hinge  55  with the other leaf of the hinge being secured to the inner wall of the elongated box. The use of a hinge  55  as illustrated in FIG. 5 enables the flange  51  to be pivoted out of the space between the boxes that make up the center array and the inner side walls of the elongated boxes when the crossbeams are removed, thus simplifying removal of the center array storage boxes. This retracted position of the flange-carrying hinge leaf is illustrated in broken lines in FIG.  5 . 
     It will thus be seen that the crossbeams  56  are detachably secured to the flanges  51  and serve several functions. One function that is served by these crossbeams is to retain the right and left side elongated storage boxes separated an amount sufficient to center the array of storage boxes between the inner sidewalls of the right and left side elongated storage boxes. A second function that is performed by these transversely extending crossbeams  56  is to provide a means to which the lids  58 ,  59  and  61  of the storage boxes  7 ,  8  and  9  may be conveniently pivotally hinged by means of appropriate piano type hinges or preferably so-called “European” hinges that facilitate engagement and disengagement of the lids from the associated crossbeams. It will of course be understood that in addition to the lids  58 ,  59  and  61 , each of the storage boxes that form the center toolbox array have right and left end walls that extend longitudinally and parallel to the longitudinal axis of the truck bed, and which are spaced from, yet parallel, to the associated inner side walls of the right and left side elongated storage boxes  2  and  3 . Additionally, each of the storage boxes  7 ,  8  and  9  is provided with a rear wall and a front wall that extend transversely across the center space between the spacer/fastener blocks  46  attached to the right and left side elongated storage boxes, and which spacer blocks  46  are slidably abutted by the right and left side end walls of each respective storage box. 
     Specifically, with respect to the storage box  7 , referring to FIGS. 2 and 6, it will be seen that storage box  7  is provided with a right end wall  62 , a rear wall  63 , and a front wall  64 , the front walls of these center array storage boxes being the walls facing to the rear of the cargo compartment. The left end wall of the storage box  7  is not shown in the drawings but lies parallel to the right end wall  62  and parallel also to, albeit spaced from, the inner side wall of the elongated left side storage box  3 . Referring to the intermediate storage box  8 , it should be noted that this box is provided with a front wall  66  (FIGS.  4  and  6 ), a right end wall  67 , a rear wall  68  and a left end wall (not shown) but which lies parallel to the inner side wall of the elongated storage box  2 . Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, it will be seen that the rear box  9  of the center toolbox array is shown to have a front wall  71 , a rear wall  72 , a right end wall  73  and a left end wall  74  seen in FIG.  4 . It should also be noted that each of the boxes  7  and  8  is provided with a bottom wall similar to the bottom wall  76  of the storage box  9  shown in a FIG.  3 . 
     So that the contents of each of the storage boxes  7 ,  8  and  9  may be secure from theft or unauthorized use, each of the storage boxes is provided with a lock mechanism  77  formed in the top lid of each of the boxes and positioned near the front edge of each of the lids  58 ,  59  and  61  to enable locking of each of the lids to the underlying crossbeam  76 . Additionally, with respect to the storage box  9 , it will be noted that the front wall  71  of this storage box is provided with slidable bolt locks  78  that enable the rear box  9  to be detachably latched to the associated spacer blocks  46  secured to the inner side walls of the elongated storage boxes  2  and  3  to prevent loss of the boxes by inadvertent sliding of the box  9  out of the truck bed when the tail gate is lowered. In this respect, it should be noted that when the tailgate is closed and locked as is conventionally possible with the tailgates of pick-up trucks and as illustrated in FIGS. 2,  13 ,  14 ,  17  and  18 , the center array of storage boxes or compartments are locked in place between the front wall of the truck bed and the tailgate, thus preventing their unauthorized removal. To ensure that the center array of storage boxes may not be removed except by authorized personnel, hidden latches (not shown) in addition to the conventional tailgate lock may be provided for use only by those who know their whereabouts and are authorized to open the tailgate. 
     It will thus be seen that the tool storage system for a pick-up truck illustrated apart from a truck in FIG. 4 of the drawings embodies independently manufactured components such as the right and left side elongated storage boxes  2  and  3 , and the center array of toolboxes  7 ,  8  and  9  which, while manufactured independently, may be assembled into the interior of a pick-up truck bed in such a manner that the top surfaces of all of the storage boxes or compartments lie essentially flush with the top surfaces of the left and right side walls of the truck bed and flush with one another. This relationship is best seen in FIGS. 14 and 15. The tool storage system of the invention thus provides the facility to store many different types of tools in different locations within the storage system so as to facilitate their use by a mechanic in the field. For instance, referring to FIG. 4, some trucks are provided with the fuel fill pipe located on the right side of the vehicle. In that instance, the compartment portion  79  of the left side elongated box  3  adjacent the back wall of the truck cab, for instance, may be utilized to store a generator that may be operated within the compartment without danger of igniting fumes from the gas tank. In like manner, for those vehicles in which the fuel fill pipe is mounted on the left side of the vehicle, the complementary front compartment of the right side elongated box  2  may be utilized to store a generator and operate that generator while in the compartment without danger of igniting fuel fumes. 
     Other amenities that make the tool storage system of the invention particularly useful in the field include, as illustrated in FIG. 8, the choice of mounting an electrically driven circular saw designated generally by the letter S on the underside of the top cover plate  61  of the rear compartment  9  by modification of the cover plate  61  of this compartment to provide support structure for such a circular saw and an appropriate slot in the lid through which the blade of the saw may protrude for use of the protruding saw blade in conjunction with the flat upper surface of the cover plate or lid  61 . In this embodiment, the lid or cover plate  61  is reinforced on its underside surface by placement of conveniently secured mounting flanges  81  that are spaced apart on opposite sides of the slot  82  so as to provide a retention slide-way for the body of the saw. To limit the distance that the saw body extends into the slide-way, there is provided a stop flange  83  adjacent one end of the flange  81  and which forms an abutment against which the saw base frame may abut. As will be seen in a FIG. 8, all that is required of the workman is that he open the top cover plate  61  and insert the base frame of the saw into the slide-way and advance it in the slide-way until it abuts the flange  83 . The final position of the mounted electrical saw is illustrated in a FIG. 9 where it is seen that retention bolts  84  may be passed through the top plate or lid  61  and through the frame of the saw confined in the slide-way to retain the saw in a fixed position below the cover plate  61  when the saw is in use. Additionally, as illustrated in FIG. 10, because of the placement of the saw blade under the slot  82  formed in the top plate, the saw blade may be selectively adjusted or deployed upwardly through the slot so that the top surface of the top plate  61  may be used as a tabletop for the placement of material to be cut by the circular saw blade. 
     From FIGS. 6,  7 ,  9  and  10 , it will be seen that the preferred attachment of the circular saw to the underside of the compartment cover plate  61  is to utilize the appropriate screws  86  to attach the side flanges directly to the underside of the cover  61 . To eliminate or minimize vibration from the circular saw to the cover plate  61 , there is provided a strap-like rubber cushion  87  at the location of the retention bolts  84 , each of which includes a wing nut for easy manipulation of the interconnection. Additionally, a plastic block  88  is mounted by the bolts  84  in a manner to provide a supporting surface for the passage of the saw frame through the slide-way to the point of abutment with the stop bracket  83 . This construction is illustrated in detail in FIG.  7 . Installation of the saw to the underside of the cover plate  61  is illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9 where it is indicated that the saw blade guard member is manually swung backward to permit close attachment of the saw frame in the slide-way inasmuch as when the saw is in use, the saw guard member  89  is not in use but lies deployed beneath the lid or cover plate  61 . 
     In conjunction with the use of a circular saw such as the one illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10, it is imperative that a workman be provided a safe environment during use of his equipment. To that end, as illustrated in FIGS. 11,  12  and  13 , the cover plate  61  of the storage compartment  9  may be modified to include an auxiliary angle member  90  detachably secured to the outer surface of the lateral edge or lateral flange of the cover plate  61  as shown in FIG.  12 . Suitable machine screws  91  may be utilized to secure the angle member to the cover plate flange. The opposite flange on the cover plate is also provided with a corresponding angle iron member  90 . Mounted on the top of the cover plate  61  and releasably yet slidably engaging the angle irons  90 , is a fence subassembly designated generally by numeral  92  having on one end an adjustable handle  93  that rotates selectively adjustable threaded steel screw  94  that extends the length of the fence on its interior and which may be selectively adjusted to lock the fence in a position of use. Preferably fabricated from rectangular steel tubing  96 , opposite ends of which are closed by closure plates  97  and  98 , the closure plate  98  supports the adjustable handled  93 , while the closure plate  97  supports the distal end of the adjustment rod  94 , providing a threaded bore in which the threaded adjustment rod may be rotated to accomplish adjustment of the fence. Once adjusted, and the electric saw activated, it may be utilized by a workman as indicated in FIG. 13 to safely rip-saw a board  99  as shown. 
     For security purposes, the lids of the two elongated storage boxes mounted adjacent the vertical side walls of the truck cargo compartment are latched with a structure similar to an automobile hood latch, mounted medianly of each lid and preferably activated by a handle  101  attached to the proximate end of a cable  102  that extends lengthwise of the elongated storage box and the distal end of which is connected to the latch mechanism which lies hidden (not shown) below the undersurface of the associated lid. It is contemplated that in some models of the storage system forming the subject matter of this invention the handle  101  will be mounted within the truck cab, thus requiring that the truck door or doors be unlocked before the handle can be displaced to tug on the cable and unlatch the associated lid. In other embodiments the handle may be mounted between the rear wall of the cab and the front wall of the cargo compartment, preferably in a manner that it is not readily visible. As seen in FIGS. 17 and 17A, he rear storage box  9  may be used to enclose a deployable cook-top assembly adated to accommodate either electric or gas fired burners to facilitate preparation of meals when then pick-up tuck is being used in isolated areas in the field far from home or a metropolitan community. 
     To maximize the usefulness of the pick-up truck to haul elongated objects such as lumber as illustrated in FIG. 18, the tailgate  12  is provided with a pair of laterally spaced hydraulic rams  103  and  104  connected to operate in unison and normally confined in retracted condition within the confines of the tailgate. Through a hydraulic control system (not shown) the hydraulic rams are selectively actuable, from within the cab or from outside the cab, into elevated position as shown in FIGS. 18 and 18A. Preferably, the hydraulic rams are elevated to a position corresponding approximately to the height of the cab. A transversely extending crossbeam  106 , constituting a load supporting rack member having deployable end portions  107  and  108 , is detachably mounted on the upper ends of the rams above the level of the laterally spaced elongated storage boxes and above the center array of multiple independent storage boxes. An additional rack member  109  mounted on the top surface of the cab at approximately the height of the rack member  106  cooperates with the rack member  106  to support elongated objects such as lumber and conduit above the level of the elongated side storage boxes and the center array of storage boxes confined within the quadrilateral cargo compartment of the pick-up truck. 
     Having thus described the invention, what is believed to be new and novel and sought to be protected by Letters Patent of the United States is as follows.