Abstract:
A utility blanket is disclosed herein. In various aspects, the utility blanket includes a fabric layer. A strip that includes hook fastener material is located about the fabric layer, and the hook fastener material is adapted to engage removeably the fabric covering of a vehicle, in various aspects. A cover that is positionable between at least an engaged position and a disengaged position is located about the fabric layer, in various aspects, and a complementary strip comprised of loop material is located about the cover. With the cover positioned in the engaged position, the complementary strip engages the strip to secure the cover over the strip, and, with the cover positioned in the disengaged position, the strip is exposed, in various aspects. This Abstract is presented to meet the requirements of 37 C.F.R. §1.72(b) only. This Abstract is not intended to identify key elements of the apparatus disclosed herein or to delineate the scope thereof.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present disclosure relates to a portable utility blanket for use in the cargo area of a vehicle, and more particularly, to a portable utility blanket and associated methods for use in the loading, transportation, and unloading of cargo from the cargo area of the vehicle. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Various vehicles such as vans, sport utility vehicles, station wagons, as well as boats and aircraft may have a compartment that may be used to transport cargo. The compartment may be configured in various ways by placing seats into a collapsed position, removal of seats, repositioning of seats, and so forth. The compartment including backs of collapsed seats may be generally lined with a fabric covering that may be in the form of carpeting, felt, or other such textile material. All sorts of cargo may be placed in the compartment or otherwise placed about portions of the vehicle having a fabric covering. The cargo may damage the fabric covering, the portions of the vehicle that lack the fabric covering may rub against the cargo thereby damaging the cargo, or the fabric covering may be abrasive and may damage the cargo. Various devices have been developed to cover the fabric covering to protect the fabric covering from being damaged by the cargo or to protect the cargo from damage by rubbing or chaffing against portions of the vehicle. 
     However, there remains a need for improved apparatus that can facilitate the loading of cargo onto the vehicle or the unloading of cargo from the vehicle and that may be secured to the vehicle to protect the fabric covering, other portions of the vehicle, as well as protect the cargo. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     These and other needs and disadvantages may be overcome by the apparatus disclosed herein. Additional improvements and advantages may be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art upon study of the present disclosure. 
     A utility blanket is disclosed herein. In various aspects, the utility blanket includes a fabric layer. A strip that includes hook fastener material is located about the fabric layer, and the hook fastener material is adapted to engage removeably the fabric covering of a vehicle, in various aspects. A cover that is positionable between at least an engaged position and a disengaged position is located about the fabric layer, in various aspects, and a complementary strip comprised of loop material is located about the cover. With the cover positioned in the engaged position, the complementary strip engages the strip to secure the cover over the strip, and with the cover positioned in the disengaged position the strip is exposed, in various aspects. 
     This summary is presented to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the apparatus and methods disclosed herein as a prelude to the detailed description that follows below. Accordingly, this summary is not intended to identify key elements of the apparatus and methods disclosed herein or to delineate the scope thereof. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1A  illustrates by front perspective view an implementation of a utility blanket positioned about a vehicle; 
         FIG. 1B  illustrates by front perspective view the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 1A  removed from the vehicle and with cargo placed thereupon; 
         FIG. 1C  illustrates by front perspective view the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 1A  in a folded position for storage; 
         FIG. 2A  illustrates by frontal view portions of the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 1A  including the cover in a disengaged position; 
         FIG. 2B  illustrates by frontal view portions of the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 1A  including the cover in an engaged position; 
         FIG. 3  illustrates by cut-away view an implementation of a utility blanket including a fabric layer and a complementary fabric layer; 
         FIG. 4A  illustrates by top view an implementation of a utility blanket; 
         FIG. 4B  illustrates by bottom view the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 4A ; 
         FIG. 4C  illustrates by side view the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 4A  and  FIG. 4B  positioned about seats within the vehicle; 
         FIG. 4D  illustrates by side view the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 4A  and  FIG. 4B  positioned about seats within the vehicle and the cargo bay floor; 
         FIG. 4E  illustrates by side view the implementation of the utility blanket of  FIG. 4A  and  FIG. 4B  positioned generally about the cargo bay floor; and, 
         FIG. 5  illustrates by process flow chart an exemplary method of use of a utility blanket. 
       The Figures are exemplary only, and the implementations illustrated therein are selected to facilitate explanation. The number, position, relationship and dimensions of the elements shown in the Figures to form the various implementations described herein, as well as dimensions and dimensional proportions to conform to specific force, weight, strength, flow and similar requirements are explained herein or are understandable to a person of ordinary skill in the art upon study of this disclosure. Where used in the various Figures, the same numerals designate the same or similar elements. Furthermore, when the terms “top,” “bottom,” “right,” “left,” “forward,” “rear,” “first,” “second,” “inside,” “outside,” and similar terms are used, the terms should be understood in reference to the orientation of the implementations shown in the drawings and are utilized to facilitate description thereof. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     A utility blanket is disclosed herein. In various aspects, the utility blanket includes a fabric layer. A strip of hook fastener material may be attached to the fabric layer, and the hook fastener material may be formed to removeably engage the fabric covering of a vehicle, such as the fabric covering generally found within the cargo area of a van, sport utility vehicle, station wagon, and so forth. In various aspects, the utility blanket includes a cover and the cover includes a complementary strip of loop material. The cover may be positioned between an engaged position and a disengaged position to cover or uncover the strip of loop fastener material, respectively. 
     With the cover positioned in the engaged position, the complementary strip of loop material engages the hook fastener material of the strip to secure removeably the cover to the strip. With the cover removeably secured to the strip, the cover covers the strip of hook fastener material so that the strip of hook fastener material, and, thus, the fabric layer to which the strip is attached, may be slid or otherwise moved about the fabric covering of the vehicle without engaging the fabric covering of the vehicle. With the cover positioned in the disengaged position, the hook fastener material of the strip is exposed to allow the hook fastener material of the strip to be secured removeably to the fabric covering of the vehicle, thereby securing the fabric layer to the fabric covering of the vehicle. 
     Cargo may be placed upon the fabric layer of the utility blanket. One or more handles may be located generally about the perimeter of the fabric layer of the utility blanket. A user may manipulate the fabric layer and any cargo placed upon the fabric layer of the utility blanket by the one or more handles, for example, in order to position the utility blanket about the vehicle, to place the utility blanket on board the vehicle, to unload the utility blanket from the vehicle, or to carry the utility blanket to or from the vehicle. 
       FIG. 1A  illustrates an implementation of the utility blanket  10  placed within vehicle  400 . Utility blanket  10 , as illustrated, includes fabric layer  20  with sides  22 ,  24  and handles  82 , which are located generally about the perimeter of fabric layer  20 . Handles  82  may be located generally proximate the corners of fabric layer  20 . A user may grasp utility blanket  10  by handle(s)  82  to load utility blanket  10  onto vehicle  400 , position utility blanket  10  within vehicle  400 , or unload utility blanket  10  from vehicle  400 . With cargo placed upon side  22  of fabric layer  20  of utility blanket  10 , the user may grasp the handle(s)  82  and slide the fabric layer  20  upon cargo bay floor  410  of vehicle  400  to load the utility blanket  10  into vehicle  400 , to position the utility blanket within the vehicle  400 , or to unload utility blanket  10  from vehicle  400 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1A , utility blanket  10  is placed upon cargo bay floor  410  of vehicle  400  such that side  24  of utility blanket  10  is biased against cargo bay floor  410 . In other implementations, utility blanket  10  may be otherwise placed in or about vehicle  400 . Vehicle  400  may be a truck, sport utility vehicle, car, station wagon, other wheeled vehicle, an aircraft, a boat, and so forth, in various implementations. As illustrated, seats  432  and  434 , which form a second row of seating in vehicle  400 , are positioned in the upright position. Seat  436 , which is illustrated in phantom, forms a third row of seating in vehicle  400 . Seat  436  of vehicle  400  is positioned in a folded position, as illustrated, to expand the area of cargo bay floor  410 , so that portions of cargo bay floor  410  are defined by the seat back  438  of seat  436  in the folded position. At least portions of the cargo bay floor  410  including seat back  438  of seat  436  may be generally covered with a fabric covering  440  that may be generally formed, for example, of a carpeting, piled fabric material, felt, other woven material, or other material having loop material characteristics such that the fabric covering  440  may engage with or disengage from a hook fastener material  32  (see  FIG. 2A ). The fabric covering  440  may be made from wool or from a manmade fiber such as polypropylene, and may include twisted tufts, in various implementations. 
     Utility blanket  10  may include one or more strips  30  formed of a hook fastener material  32  (see  FIG. 2A ) secured to side  24  of fabric layer  20 , and fabric layer  20  may be secured to fabric covering  440  of cargo bay floor  410  by engagement of the hook fastener material  32  with fabric covering  440  thereby securing utility blanket  10  to fabric covering  440  and, thus, securing utility blanket  10  to vehicle  400 . Utility blanket  10  may be disengaged from vehicle  400  by disengagement of hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  from the fabric covering  440 . In other implementations (see  FIGS. 4C ,  4 D) portions of the utility blanket  10  may be secured to seat back(s) of seat(s) in the upright position by engagement of the hook fastener material  32  with the fabric covering  440  of the seat back(s), such as seat backs  433 ,  435  of seats  432 ,  434 , respectively, to protect the seat backs  433 ,  435 , other portions of the seats, or both. 
       FIG. 1B  illustrates cargo  465  placed upon side  22  of fabric layer  20  of utility blanket  10 . One or more users may carry the utility blanket  10  with cargo  465  placed thereupon by handle(s)  82  by one or more users.  FIG. 1C  illustrates utility blanket  10  folded for storage. The utility blanket  10  including fabric layer  20  may be generally made of various fabrics, textiles, sheet(s) of material, combinations thereof, or suchlike that are generally compliant such that utility blanket  10  including fabric layer  20  may be folded, rolled up, or otherwise condensed for storage. 
       FIG. 2A  illustrates a portion of utility blanket  10  including strip  30  formed to include hook fastener material  32 . Utility blanket, in this implementation, includes cover  40 , and cover  40  includes complementary strip  50  formed to include loop material  52 . Strip  30  is secured to side  24  of fabric layer  20  of utility blanket  10 , and strip  30  is generally rectangular, in this implementation, but may have other shapes in other implementations. Strip  30  may be formed of fabric or other generally compliant material, in various implementations, and strip  30  may be secured to side  24  of fabric layer  20 , for example, by stitching, adhesive, rivets or other fasteners, combinations thereof, or in other ways or combinations of ways. Hook fastener material  32  may be formed into strip  30  such that hook fastener material  32  is unitary with strip  30 , or hook fastener material  32  may be secured to strip  30  or otherwise formed onto strip  30  in various ways in various implementations. In some implementations, strip  30  may be unitary with fabric layer  20  and may be formed, for example, by integration of hook fastener material  32  with fabric layer  20 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 2A , cover  40  is generally rectangular in shape with edges  42 ,  43 ,  44 ,  45  to match the shape of strip  30 , but cover  40  and corresponding strip  30  may have other shapes in other implementations. Edge  45  of cover  40  is hingedly secured to side  24  of fabric layer  20  of utility blanket  10  by attachment  47  along edge  45 . Attachment  47  may be formed for example, by stitching, adhesive, rivets or other fasteners, combinations thereof, or in other ways or combinations of ways. Edges  42 ,  43 ,  44  are unattached and attachment  47  is formed so that cover  40  may be hingedly positioned about attachment  47  of side  45 . As illustrated in  FIG. 2A , cover  40  is positioned in a disengaged position  60  such that cover  40  does not cover strip  30 . With the strip  30  not covered by cover  40  (i.e. the cover  40  in the disengaged position  60 ), the hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  is exposed and may be engaged with fabric covering  440  of cargo bay floor  410  of vehicle  400  to secure strip  30  and, thus, side  24  of fabric layer  20  to fabric covering  440  of vehicle  400 . 
     Complementary strip  50  is disposed about side  46  of cover  40 . Complementary strip  50  includes a loop material  52  and complementary strip generally conforms to strip  30  in size and shape, as illustrated. In some implementations, the loop material  52  of complementary strip  50  may be integral with the cover  40 —i.e. the cover is formed, at least in part, of the loop material. In other implementations, the loop material  52  may be a separate piece of material attached to cover  40  by stitching, adhesive, or so forth, or otherwise incorporated into cover  40 . The edges  42 ,  43 ,  44 ,  45  of cover  40  may extend beyond the edges  53 ,  54 ,  55 ,  56  of complementary strip  50 , as illustrated, or edges  42 ,  43 ,  44 ,  45  of cover  40  may generally conform to the edges  53 ,  54 ,  55 ,  56  of complementary strip  50 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 2B , cover  40  is positioned in an engaged position  65  such that strip  30  is covered by cover  40  and loop material  52  of complementary strip  50  is engaged with hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  to hold cover  40  in the engaged position  65 . With the cover  40  in the engaged position  65 , sides  53 ,  54 ,  55 ,  56  of complementary strip  50  generally align with sides  35 ,  34 ,  33 ,  36 , respectively, of strip  30  so that strip  30  is completely engaged with complementary strip  50 . In other implementations, strip  30  may have other shapes such as square, circular, and so forth, and complementary strip may be correspondingly square shaped, circular shaped, and so forth such that the shape of the complementary strip  50  conform to the shape of the strip  30 . With the strip  30  covered by cover  40 , side  24  of fabric layer  20  and side  48  of cover  40  may be slid across fabric covering  440  of vehicle  400  without hook fastener material  32  engaging fabric covering  440 . The side  48  of cover  40  may contact the fabric covering, while strip  30  is shielded from contact with fabric covering  440  by cover  40 . Accordingly, with cover  40  positioned in the engaged position  65 , the utility blanket  10  may be slid or otherwise positioned about the fabric covering  440  of vehicle  400  without the hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  engaging with the fabric covering  440 . 
     When the utility blanket  10  is positioned about vehicle  400 , the cover  40  may be positioned from the engaged position  65  into the disengaged position  60 . With the cover  40  in the disengaged position  60 , the hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  is exposed, so that the hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  may be engaged with fabric covering  440  to secure the strip  30  to the fabric covering  440 . Thus, the utility blanket  10  may be secured to vehicle  400  by exposing the hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  and then engaging the exposed hook fastener material  32  of strip  30  with fabric covering  440 . 
       FIG. 3  illustrates a portion of an implementation of a utility blanket  100  that includes multiple fabric layers. As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , utility blanket  100  includes fabric layer  120  with sides  122 ,  124 , and complementary fabric layer  170  with sides  172 ,  174 . With continuing reference to  FIG. 3 , fabric layer  120  is secured to complementary fabric layer  170  such that side  122  of fabric layer  120  is oriented toward side  172  of fabric layer  170 . Fabric layer  120  may be secured to fabric layer  170  by stitching, adhesive, mechanical attachment, combinations thereof, and so forth, in various implementations. In the implementation of  FIG. 3 , side  124  of fabric layer  120  includes one or more strips, such as strip  30 , and corresponding cover(s), such as cover  40  (see  FIGS. 2A &amp; 2B ), to allow side  124  of fabric layer  120  to be secured to the fabric covering of a vehicle, such as fabric covering  440  of vehicle  400 . Cargo, such as cargo  465 , may be placed about side  174  of complementary fabric layer  170 . In various implementations, fabric layer  120  may be formed from polyamide, polyvinyl, canvas, or other material. The material of fabric layer  120  may be woven or may be in the form of a sheet, and may be water repellent, chemically resistant, and may have other desirable properties. The material and construction of fabric layer  120  may be chosen such that side  124  slides readily over the fabric covering of the vehicle or to provide protection to the fabric covering of the vehicle or otherwise protect the vehicle. Complementary fabric layer  170  may be formed of various natural or synthetic generally compliant materials or combinations of materials. In various implementations, the complementary fabric layer  170  may be formed of materials that resist staining, resist wear, are liquid repellant, liquid absorptive, or that may cushion the cargo, protect the cargo, or protect the vehicle. In various implementations, the complementary fabric layer  170  may be formed of materials that are non-abrasive, fluffy, or have other properties that protect cargo positioned thereupon. Fabric layers  120 ,  170  may be formed of cloth or other textiles or compliant sheets of plastic (such as vinyl or rubber) or combinations thereof. Fabric layer  120  or complementary fabric layer  170  may be treated with various materials that, for example, confer stain resistance, repel insects, or repel water or other liquids. Fabric layer  120  or fabric layer  170  may include multiple layers of material and may include multiple materials in various implementations. 
       FIGS. 4A and 4B  illustrate an implementation of utility blanket  200 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4A , utility blanket  200  includes fabric layer  220  and complementary fabric layer  270 . Cargo, such as cargo  465 , may be placed upon surface  274  of complementary fabric layer  270 . Handles  282  may be located about the perimeter of utility blanket  200  to allow the user to carry or maneuver the utility blanket  200 , and cargo may be positioned upon utility blanket  200  as utility blanket  200  is being so carried or maneuvered. Handles  282  may be secured to reinforcement strips  286 . Reinforcement strips  286  may pass about the fabric layer  220 , the complementary fabric layer  270 , or both. The reinforcement strips  286  may be secured to the fabric layer  220 , the complementary fabric layer  270 , or both by stitching, adhesive, mechanical attachment, etc., and combinations thereof to provide attachment for the handles  282  to the utility blanket  200  and to buttress the structure of the utility blanket  200 . The utility blanket  200  is generally rectangular as shown, but may be square, circular, or assume other shapes in various other implementations. 
     Attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  are disposed about surface  224  of fabric layer  220  of utility blanket  200 , and the utility blanket  200  may be secured to the fabric covering  440  of vehicle  400  at the attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298 . More or fewer attachment points may be included in various implementations, and the attachment points may be distributed about surface  224  of fabric layer  220  in various ways. 
     The utility blanket, such as utility blanket  200  may be sized, and the attachment points, such as attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298 , chosen to conform to a specified vehicle, i.e. a specific make and model of vehicle. The utility blanket may be sized to fit the specified vehicle and the attachment points may be selected to align with locations in the specified vehicle and may so align in various ways dependent upon how the vehicle is configured. For example, the vehicle may be configured by placing the seats in an upright position or in a collapsed position, removing seats, shifting the position of the seats, configuring the cargo space in various ways, and so forth, and the attachment points may be selected to align with the fabric covering of the vehicle under these differing vehicle configurations. 
     In the implementation of  FIGS. 4A and 4B , each of attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  includes a strip  230  that includes a hook fastener material. The utility blanket  200  may be secured to fabric covering  440  by engagement of the hook fastener material of strips  230  at attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  with the fabric covering  440 . Attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  include covers  240 , and the covers  240  include strips  250  of loop material. The covers  240  are positionable between an engaged position and a disengaged position. 
     In the engaged position, the loop material of the cover  240  is engaged with the hook fastener material of the strip  230  such that the covers  240  cover the strips  230  at the attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298 , so that, for example, the utility blanket may be slid across the fabric covering without the hook fastener material of the strips  230  at the attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  engaging the fabric covering  440 . 
     In the disengaged position, the covers  240  at attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  are positioned to expose the hook fastener material of strips  230  to allow the hook fastener material of strips  230  to be engaged with the fabric covering  440  of the vehicle  400  in order to secure the utility blanket  200  to the vehicle  400  at the attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298 . 
       FIG. 4C  illustrates utility blanket  200  placed over portions of seats  432 ,  434  to cover those portions of seats  432 ,  434 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4C , strips  230  at some combination of attachment points, such as attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 , are secured to seat back  433  of seat  432  and seat back  435  of seat  434  (see  FIG. 1A ) to secure utility blanket to seat backs  433 ,  435  of seats  432 ,  434 , respectively, of vehicle  400 . Portions of utility blanket  200  are draped over seat front  437  of seat  432  and the seat front (not shown) of seat  434  and some combination of attachment points, such as attachment points  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298 , may be secured to seat front  437  of seat  432  and the seat front of seat  434  or vehicle floor  457  to secure utility blanket  200  thereto. For example, as illustrated, attachment points  294 ,  295 ,  296  are secured to the vehicle floor  457 . Attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  may be located about utility blanket  200  to attach to pre-selected locations on seats  432 ,  434 , vehicle floor  457 , or both seats  432 ,  434  and vehicle floor  457 . 
       FIG. 4D  illustrates utility blanket  200  placed over seat back  433  of seat  432 , over seat back  435  of seat  434  (see  FIG. 1A ), and over portions of cargo bay floor  410  of vehicle  400 . As illustrated, some combination of attachment points, such as attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 , are secured to seat back  433  of seat  432  and seat back  435  of seat  434  to secure utility blanket to seat back  433  of seat  432  and seat back  435  of seat  434  of vehicle  400 . Attachment point  298  may be secured to seat back  433  of seat  432  and attachment point  292  may be secured to seat back  435  of seat  434 . Attachment points  292 ,  298  may be located such that attachment points  292 ,  298  attach to seat backs  435 ,  433 , respectively, generally proximate cargo bay floor  410 . Some combination of attachment points  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297  may be secured to cargo bay floor  410  to secure utility blanket  200  to cargo bay floor  410  in this implementation. Attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  may be located about utility blanket  200  to attach to pre-selection locations on seat backs  433 ,  435 ,  438 , or other locations about cargo bay floor  410 , in various implementations. 
       FIG. 4E  illustrates utility blanket  200  secured to cargo bay floor  410  of vehicle  400 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4E , portions of cargo bay floor  410  are defined by seat backs  435 ,  433  of seats  434 ,  432 , respectively, with seats  434 ,  432  placed in the folded position, and portions of cargo bay floor  410 , are defined by the seat back  438  of seat  436  in the folded position. As illustrated in  FIG. 4E , strips  230  at some combination of attachment points, such as attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 , may be secured to seat back  453  of seat  452  and the seat back of the companion seat to seat  452  (seat in the same row—not included in this illustration) as seat  452  to secure utility blanket  200  thereto. The remaining attachment points  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  may be secured to cargo bay floor  410  of vehicle  400  to secure the utility blanket  200  to the cargo bay floor  410 , as illustrated in  FIG. 4E . Attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298  may be located about utility blanket  200  to attach to pre-selection locations on seats back  453  of seat  452  or the seat back of the companion seat to seat  452 , or to attach to pre-selected locations about cargo bay floor  410  including pre-selected locations on seat backs  433 ,  435 ,  438 , in various implementations. In various implementations, the attachment points, such as attachment points  288 ,  289 ,  291 ,  292 ,  293 ,  294 ,  295 ,  296 ,  297 ,  298 , may be located about the utility blanket, such as utility blanket  200 , to attach to pre-selection locations on or about a particular make and model of vehicle. 
     In operation, a utility blanket, such as utility blanket  10 ,  100 ,  200 , may be positioned about a vehicle, such as vehicle  400 , and cargo, such as cargo  465 , may be placed upon the utility blanket. A user may grasp the utility blanket, which may have cargo placed thereupon, by handle(s), such as handles  82 ,  282 , to maneuver the utility blanket into or out of the vehicle or to position the utility blanket about the vehicle. With the utility blanket positioned about the vehicle, covers, such as covers  40 ,  240 , may be positioned from an engaged position, such as engaged position  60  into a disengaged position, such as disengaged position  65 , to expose a strip, such as strip  30 ,  230  that includes a hook fastener material, such as hook fastener material  32 . With the cover positioned in the disengaged position, the exposed hook fastener material of the strip may be engaged with fabric covering, such as fabric covering  440 , of the vehicle to secure the utility blanket thereto. The user may apply pressure about the strip to engage the hook fastener material with the fabric covering. A plurality of strips may be provided about the utility blanket, and each strip of the plurality of strips may be secured to the fabric covering by engagement of the hook fastener material of the strip with the fabric covering. 
     In order to remove the utility blanket from the vehicle, the user may grasp the strip and may disengage the hook fastener material of the strip from the fabric covering by pulling the strip away from the fabric covering with force sufficient to release the hook fastener material from the fabric covering. The user may then position the cover from the disengaged position into the engaged position. In the engaged position, a complementary strip, such as complementary strip  50 ,  250 , of loop material, such as loop material  52 , located on the cover engages the hook fastener material of the strip thereby securing the cover over the strip in order to cover the strip. With the strip covered by the cover, the utility blanket may be slid about the fabric covering of the vehicle without the hook fastener material engaging with the fabric covering, so that the utility blanket may be slidably extracted from the vehicle or repositioned about the vehicle. Only the cover and not the strip may contact the fabric covering of the vehicle when the cover is in the engaged position. The utility blanket may be slid over the fabric covering in order to load the vehicle by slidably inserting the utility blanket onto the vehicle. The utility blanket may be slid about the vehicle in order to reposition the utility blanket on the vehicle. The utility blanket may be removed from the vehicle by sliding the utility blanket over the fabric covering. The material of which the fabric layer, such as fabric layer  20 ,  120 ,  220 , is formed may be selected to facilitate the sliding of the utility blanket over the fabric covering with cargo placed upon the utility blanket. 
     An exemplary operational method  600  of a utility blanket is illustrated by process flow chart in  FIG. 5 . Method  600  may be entered at step  601 . At step  605 , covers are positioned to cover strips of hook fastener material located about the utility blanket. With the covers so positioned, the utility blanket may be slid into position over fabric covering of a vehicle at step  610 . The covers may contact the fabric covering as the utility blanket is slid into position, and the covers prevent engagement of the hook fastener material of the strips with the fabric covering. Cargo may be positioned upon the utility blanket as the utility blanket is positioned about the vehicle, and one or more handles secured to the utility blanket may be used to manipulate the utility blanket into position. With the utility blanket generally in position, the covers may be removed from the strips of hook fastener material at step  615  to expose the strips of hook fastener material. At step  620  the strips of hook fastener material are engaged with the fabric covering of the vehicle to secure the utility blanket to the vehicle. 
     At step  625 , the hook fastener material of the strips is disengaged with the fabric covering. At step  630  the covers are positioned to cover the strips of hook fastener material to prevent engagement of the hook fastener material of the strips with the fabric covering. At step  635  the utility blanket is slid out of the vehicle. Cargo may be positioned upon the utility blanket as the utility blanket is slid forth from the vehicle. One or more handles secured to the utility blanket may be used to grasp the utility blanket as the utility blanket is slid forth from the vehicle. The exemplary method  600  terminates at step  638 . 
     The foregoing discussion along with the Figures discloses and describes various exemplary implementations. These implementations are not meant to limit the scope of coverage, but, instead, to assist in understanding the context of the language used in this specification and in the claims. Upon study of this disclosure and the exemplary implementations herein, one of ordinary skill in the art may readily recognize that various changes, modifications and variations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the inventions as defined in the following claims.