Abstract:
A cargo restraint system for securing cargo within a truck bed having fixed anchors includes a plurality of adjustable-length straps attachable to the truck bed, and a cargo net attached to the straps and slidable along at least a portion thereof. Hooks are fixed to the straps for attaching the straps to the truck bed anchors, and each strap includes a cam buckle for selectively adjusting the length of the strap.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates to a laterally adjustable truck bed webbing that stretches across the tailgate or cargo area of a truck and operates to keep cargo secure while eliminating cargo shifting. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The pickup truck is a utility vehicle with an open rear cargo area (commonly referred to as the “bed”) and a passenger cab located just behind the engine. Pickups are designed for hauling or pulling heavy loads. 
         [0003]    Pickup trucks are manufactured by different automobile companies all over the world and are available in many different sizes and styles. Compact pickups, such as the Ford Ranger or Chevrolet Colorado, typically seat two people and have a smaller towing capacity. Full-size pickups can usually seat three or four people and have much larger engines. Pickup trucks can also be even larger with double rear tires (usually referred to as “duallies”) which serve to allow for an even heavier towing capacity. But regardless of the pickup size, all pickup beds commonly feature a cargo area with a tailgate that lowers to allow for loading and unloading. 
         [0004]    Pickup beds come in sizes that range from short to long with a short bed stretching back a few feet behind the cab. A long bed may be as long as eight feet. The bed of the a pickup is most commonly formed with the rear of the cab making up one side of the cargo area with two sides being formed by raised panels extending from the cab with the final side being formed by the tailgate. The tailgate can be raised or lowered on a hinge to allow for loading and unloading. 
         [0005]    Pickup trucks are most useful for hauling items that would be difficult to fit into a closed cab vehicle like a regular car or minivan. Additionally, pickup trucks are also useful for transporting items that are very heavy, even though they may not be large. Such heavy items may be difficult to lift into a smaller vehicle, but are easy to lift into the bed of a pickup truck. A problem arises, however, when a pickup truck user wishes to transport an item in the bed of his pickup that is either smaller than the pickup bed, or does not fit inside the bed when the tailgate is raised. In such a situation, the item is liable to slide around inside the pickup bed and be damaged by hitting the sides of the bed, or to fall out of the bed entirely because the tailgate cannot be raised all the way. In such situations, a need arises for alternate means for securing a load inside the bed of a pickup truck. 
         [0006]    The prior art teaches several types of restraint systems that can be used in the bed of a pickup truck. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,964,771 to Callihan discloses a cargo restrainer that is a piece of flexible material that is suspended between two cords that run along the long sides of the flexible material. Once the flexible material is positioned over the cargo, the cords are tied down to anchors that are mounted inside the truck bed. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,944 to Fry discloses a tailgate barrier that is a net with incorporated stiffening members that attach to a mounted attach point inside the truck bed. 
         [0007]    Other restraint systems include straps, clamps, buckles, and clips but nothing in the prior art provides a restraint system that is fully adjustable, expandable, shrinkable, and self-conforming. Likewise, the prior art restraint systems do not teach a system that does not require special hardware or tools in order to attach to the inside of a pickup truck bed. The present invention meets these needs and provides other related advantages. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    A cargo restraint system is disclosed for securing cargo within a truck bed having fixed anchors. The cargo restraint system comprises a plurality of adjustable-length straps which are attachable to the truck bed, and a cargo net attached to the straps and slidable along at least a portion thereof. 
         [0009]    Hooks are fixed to the straps for attaching the straps to the truck bed anchors. Each strap includes a cam buckle for selectively adjusting the length of the strap. 
         [0010]    The straps comprise a heavy duty nylon net. Similarly, the cargo net comprises a heavy duty nylon net. This cargo net material is compressible allowing the cargo net to conform to the shape of cargo to be restrained within the truck bed. The cargo net can easily be adjusted to fit around large or oddly shaped pieces of cargo to ensure that the cargo does not slide around the truck bed or fall out of the vehicle. The cargo restraint system of the present invention is advantageously lightweight, strong and easy to use. 
         [0011]    Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]    The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention. In such drawings: 
           [0013]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the rear of the pickup truck with the cargo restraint system of the present invention in place; 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  is a front elevated view of the cargo restraint system of the present invention; 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view, similar to  FIG. 1 , with the cargo restraint system of the present invention in place and adjusted to the side of the truck bed; 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a front elevated view of the cargo restraint system of the present invention illustrating the side-to-side adjustability of the cargo net; 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view, similar to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , with the cargo restraint system of the present invention in place and conformed around a piece of cargo; and 
           [0018]      FIG. 6  is a front elevated view of the cargo restraint system, similar to  FIGS. 2 and 4 , illustrating the compressibility of the cargo net. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0019]    The cargo restraint system  10  of the present invention is fully adjustable, expandable and shrinkable. It automatically conforms to the load it is restraining and features adjustable buckles and variable length straps. The cargo restraint system  10  is also lightweight, strong, and easy to store. These features are illustrated in the following figures. 
         [0020]      FIG. 1  shows the cargo restraint system  10  employed across the back-end of a pickup truck  12 . Here it can be seen that the cargo restraint system  10  features hooks  14  that allow for attachment to the truck bed  16  via pre-existing loops or fixed anchors  18  inside the truck bed  16 . Thus, there is no need for any special hardware or mounts in order to secure the cargo restraint system  10 . Likewise, attaching the cargo restraint system  10  requires no tools because the hooks  14  attach easily by hand to the truck bed  16 . 
         [0021]      FIG. 2  shows the cargo restraint system  10  with the cargo net  20  positioned in the center of the adjustable straps  22 . Also illustrated in this figure are heavy duty cam buckles  24  that are situated along the adjustable straps  22  and attached to the hooks  14 . These cam buckles  24  allow for the straps  22  to be shortened or lengthened. For example, if the cargo  26  is shorter than the length of the truck bed  16 , a user would shorten the straps  22  so that the cargo net  20  is held taut across the end of the truck bed  16 . But if the cargo  26  was longer than the length of the truck bed  16  (such that a portion of the cargo  26  was extending beyond the truck bed  16 ), the user would lengthen the straps  22  so that the cargo net  20  could wrap around the cargo  26 . 
         [0022]      FIG. 3  shows the cargo restraint system  10  employed across the back-end of a pickup truck  12 . Additionally, this figure illustrates adjustability of the cargo net  20 . The cargo net  20  of the cargo restraint system  10  is made from heavy duty nylon net that is formed around the adjustable straps  22 , but not connected to the adjustable straps  22 . In this way, the cargo net  20  is adjustable along the length of the straps  22  by sliding the cargo net  20  from one side to the other. Because the cargo net  20  is not stitched or otherwise integrally formed to the straps  22 , it can be moved along the straps  22  while still remaining functionally formed with the straps  22 . This allows the user to customize the cargo net  20  to fit an irregularly shaped piece of cargo  26 . 
         [0023]      FIG. 4  is the cargo restraint system  10  with the cargo net  20  adjusted to one side. The directional arrow in  FIG. 4  shows that the cargo net  20  is slidable from one side of the adjustable straps  22  to the other. 
         [0024]      FIG. 5  shows the cargo restraint system  10  employed across the back-end of a pickup truck  12  with a piece of cargo  26  that is restrained therein. This figure illustrates the cargo restraint system&#39;s  10  ability to shrink and conform around the cargo  26  so as to give a better fit and tighter hold to the cargo  26  while the vehicle  28  is in operation. 
         [0025]      FIG. 6  shows the cargo restraint system  10  with the cargo net compressed along the adjustable straps  22 . The directional arrows demonstrate the manner in which the cargo net  20  can be compressed. This compressibility is due to the cargo net  20  being made from nylon net with no stiffening members contained therein. This compressibility also means that the cargo restraint system  10  is easy to pack up and store. Additionally, because the cargo restraint system  10  does not utilize heavy stiffening members, it remains lightweight. 
         [0026]    The cargo restraint system  10  disclosed here is advantageous over other restraint systems because it is lightweight, strong, and easy to use. The cargo restraint system  10  comprises a cargo net  20  that is formed around adjustable straps  22 . The cargo net  20  and the adjustable straps  22  are made from heavy duty nylon net. The cargo net  20  is formed around the adjustable straps  22  such that the cargo net  20  is both slidable along the length of the straps  22  as well as compressible. Thus, the cargo net  20  can easily be adjusted to fit around large or oddly shaped pieces of cargo  26  to ensure that the cargo does not slide around inside the truck bed  16  or fall out of the vehicle  28 . 
         [0027]    While the cargo net  20  has been described as stretching across the back-end of a pickup truck  12 , the cargo net  20  can also stretch over the top of a loaded truck bed  16 . Using the cargo net  20  in this way is advantageous for the transport of cargo  26  that may fit inside the truck bed  16  but is too light to be safely transported at higher speeds. Because the cargo net  20  is slidable and compressible, it can be configured to secure any type of load. And since the cargo net  20  utilizes pre-existing loops or fixed anchors  18  inside the truck bed  16 , the placement of cargo net  20  is easy to reconfigure. In this way, the cargo net  20  can also be fitted diagonally across the truck bed. The cargo restraint system  10  does not require special hardware, tools, or permanent attach points in order to be securely fitted to a truck bed  16 . As stated above, the cargo restraint system  10  features hooks  14  that can be hand-attached to pre-existing loops/fixed anchors  18  inside the truck bed  16 . Thus, the cargo restrain system  10  can be utilized in any configuration and when the cargo restraint system  10  is no longer needed, it can be easily detached and stored for later use. 
         [0028]    Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited, except as by the appended claims.