Title: Instructions for New Projects and Validation Guidelines of Tonneau Covers for Pickup Truck Bed
text: The purpose of this paper is to suggest guidelines for new projects of soft tonneau covers for pickup truck beds made up of aluminum framework and soft coverage. As the main objective, this paper will make an overall about new accessories projects focusing on each one of the main components of the assembly. The target is to obtain a low cost tonneau cover with a great performance regarding functionality, water accumulation, sealing, noise, robustness, vibration and compatibility with another pick up box's accessories. This article also explores basic procedures for testing and validation of a new soft tonneau covers or a carry over one, with its use extended to a different pickup truck. It is one of the first technical documents about truck soft tonneau covers available, so few references could be found in technical databases. Into this scenario, this article had the objective of give an overall about the subject, offering basic information for new developments and being a start point for future and in-depth studies about this truck component.