Abstract:
A universal tailgate latch and support system for receiving a commonly available latching mechanism. The latch housing secures the latch to the side of a vehicle cargo bed and allows the cargo door to be supported with a cable or the like when open and secured when closed. The housing may be modified to fit a variety of latches and lends itself to restoring a variety of new or vintage truck beds.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/995,294, Filed 2014 Apr. 7 by the present inventor. 
    
    
     FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH 
     Not Applicable 
     SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM 
     Not Applicable 
     BACKGROUND 
     Field 
     This invention relates to latches and supporting members for securing and supporting doors or gates, specifically latches used to secure the tailgates of trucks in a closed position and members to support open tailgates of trucks. 
     Prior Art 
     The truck market is in a constant state of flux. Most manufacturers of trucks and truck beds have changed their styles to meet the needs of the average consumer. The people that want to bring back early model trucks have had to adapt to the change. One change in particular is the latching mechanism on truck tailgates. Most of the step-side pickup truck beds relied on a chain to secure the tailgate to the bed of the truck, this was done by most manufacturers until the late 1980s. The chain offered support for the tailgate when it was parallel to the bed of the truck. When the gate was closed, in most cases, the chain was hooked to the bed of the truck to secure it in place. If the chain was outside the bed of the truck, the chain would rub against the body of the truck as it went down the road. For many people attempting to restore vintage trucks, this meant the chain would rub against a custom paint job that required a lot of money to restore. U.S. Pat. No. 2,955,863 to Olender (1960) illustrates one such chain with a covering over it. Although this covering would protect the finish of the truck, it is visible, which is typically not desired by truck enthusiasts. Furthermore, the latching mechanism is on the visible, outer side of the tailgate. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,707,095 to Pribak (1998) teaches a latching and support mechanism that although hidden when the tailgate is closed, makes it difficult to mount on a wide variety of aftermarket tailgates when different styles of beds and gates are involved. U.S. Pat. No. 7,258,373 to Plett (2007) offers a very functional latching mechanism that is best installed by the truck manufacturer before the tailgate is fully assembled. 
     Additionally, the original manufacturer of the truck beds typically phases out the stocking of replacement body and bed parts. This is especially true of those required on trucks from the mid twentieth century. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A universal tailgate latch and support system, according to one embodiment, is furnished in a kit to be installed by a person restoring a vintage truck bed. The latch kit is designed to be used on a variety of custom truck beds and tailgates. The latch kits consist of a left and right hand set of components further comprising a housing, a flexible tailgate support, a latch mechanism, a latch bolt, and hardware to fasten it to a restored truck bed. Holes are transferred from a template to the inside walls of the bed and the inside surface of the tailgate. Holes are drilled by the installer and the assembly is mounted to the truck bed. 
     A second embodiment of the present invention utilizes main components of the bolt on kit, but lacks some hardware if the installer chooses to weld the mounting plates to the truck bed and tailgate. Welding of components is sometimes preferred for its cleaner appearance, but relies on the skill of the person restoring the truck. 
    
    
     
       DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an isometric view of a truck bed with right and left hand latch and support kits installed in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is an isometric view of the right hand kit assembled with some of the hardware removed in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded view of a right hand latch and support assembly in accordance with one embodiment. This view shows additional hardware for sandwiching portions of the truck bed and tailgate. 
         FIG. 4  is a simplified view of a left hand latch and support assembly in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of a right hand latch and support assembly in its closed position in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  is an exploded view of a right hand latch and support assembly for use in a welded application in accordance with one embodiment. This assembly is for use when the installer wishes to weld the housing and brackets directly to the truck bed and tailgate rather than bolting them on. This installation may produce a cleaner appearance since it removes some of the hardware but it is also more difficult to install. 
         FIG. 7  is an isometric view of a truck bed with the tailgate in a closed position in accordance with one embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DRAWINGS—REFERENCE NUMERALS 
     
         
           1  Truck Bed 
           2  Left Hand Latch and Support Assembly 
           3  Right Hand Latch and Support Assembly 
           4  Tailgate 
           5  Latch 
           6 A Left Hand Latch Housing 
           6 B Right Hand Latch Housing 
           7 A Left Hand Housing Backing Plate 
           7 B Right Hand Housing Backing Plate 
           8 A Left Hand Tailgate Latch Bolt Bracket 
           8 B Right Hand Tailgate Latch Bolt Bracket 
           9  Latch Bolt Backing Plate 
           10  Threaded Nut Plate 
           11  Adjustable Cable End Clamp 
           12  Clamp Backing Plate 
           13  Cable End Guard 
           14  Support Cable 
           15  Latch Bolt 
           16  Hardware 
           17  Stake Pocket 
           18  Closed End Cable Bolt 
           19  Shoulder Bolt 
           20  Clamp Pivot Stopping Tab 
           21  Latch Housing Mounting Holes 
           22  Latch Bolt Bracket Mounting Holes 
       
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     According to one embodiment, the universal tailgate latch and support system is furnished in a kit to be assembled and installed by the person restoring a vintage truck bed  1 . The latch kits are supplied as a left hand  2  and right hand  3  assembly. The housings  6 A and  6 B are meant to secure a commonly available rotary style latch  5 , also known as a bear claw latch, to the side of the bed  1 . If the latch and support kit will be fastened to the truck body with threaded fasteners, the following procedure is used. A template is provided to transfer bolt holes to the side of the bed  1  and the tailgate  4 . The kit consists of right and left latch housings  6 A and  6 B, latch housing backing plates  7 A and  7 B, two rotary style latches  5 , tailgate latch bolt brackets  8 A and  8 B, two latch bolt bracket backing plates  9 , two threaded nut plates  10 , two adjustable cable end clamps  11 , two clamp backing plates  12 , two cable end guards  13 , two tailgate support cables  14 , two latch bolts  15 , and mounting hardware  16 . 
     To install the universal tailgate latch and support mentioned above, lay the hole template on the inside side panel of the truck bed  1 . Mark and drill the clearance holes to mount the latch housing  6 A or  6 B to the bed side panel and the holes to mount the tailgate bracket  8 A or  8 B to the tailgate  4 . A nut plate  10  inserted in the side stake pocket  17  with threaded holes allows for blind attachment of the housing  6 A or  6 B with bolts through the side of the bed  1 . The use of the nut plate  10  allows for fastening without the use of a second wrench. The latch housing backing plate  7 A or  7 B is fastened to the side of the truck bed  1  with the nut plate  10 . The rotary style latch  5  is attached to the inside of the latch housing  6 A or  6 B. The latch housing  6 A or  6 B is then fastened to the side of the truck bed  1 . 
     The tailgate latch bolt bracket  8 A or  8 B is attached to the inside of the tailgate  4 . This bracket  8 A or  8 B holds the latch bolt  15  that is captured by the latch  5  when the tailgate  4  is closed. The support cable  14  is supplied with a formed loop  14 A on one end with the other end  14 B open to allow for final adjustment. The closed loop  14 A is typically attached to the latch bolt bracket  8 A or  8 B first with a bolt  18  and a clamp end guard  13 . With the tailgate  4  at the desired open position, the support cable  14  is trimmed to length and a second loop  14 B is formed to be attached to the adjustable cable end clamp  11  and clamp backing plate  12 . The adjustable cable end clamp  11  holding the support cable  14  is allowed to pivot during movement of the tailgate  4  with a shoulder bolt  19 . A clamp pivot stopping tab  20  is provided to allow the installer to bend it away from the sides of the truck bed to prevent the cable end clamp  11  and clamp backing plate  12  from pivoting too far back into the bed area during tailgate closure. 
     The above procedure is then repeated for the other side of the tailgate  4 . With the exception of the latch housings  6 A and  6 B, latch housing backing plates  7 A and  7 B, and latch bolt brackets  8 A and  8 B, the component parts of the left hand latch and support assembly  2  is similar to the right hand assembly  3 . 
     If the installer prefers to weld the assembly rather than using threaded fasteners, a “weld-on” kit may be used. This kit would be similar in form to the above kit but would be supplied without mounting holes  21  in the latch housings  6 A and  6 B and would also be without the backing plate  9  and the corresponding holes  22  in the latch bolt brackets  8 A and  8 B. The nut plate  10  would also be eliminated. 
     Although the bolted and weld-on embodiments are shown in great detail in the above description, these details should not be construed as to limit the scope of the embodiments. The above description is to illustrate the present preferred construction of the latch and support assembly. Different fasteners and shape configurations of the latch housing and brackets may be used, for example, to secure hinged cargo gates to vehicle cargo panels. The scope of the embodiments should be determined by the following claims rather than the examples given.