Patent ID: 8393508

Claim:
A rack for carrying cargo on top of a vehicle, the vehicle having a pair of rails, the rails being substantially parallel to each other and to the direction of vehicle travel, the rack comprising: a pair of crossbars, each crossbar having a pair of towers for mounting the crossbar on the rails of the vehicle, each tower including a clamp device, the clamp device having a fixed wall and a claw assembly that is slideable in a first track back and forth relative to the fixed wall, in a direction parallel to the crossbar, each claw assembly having a base portion connected to the first track, the base portion having a second track substantially perpendicular to the first track, and a hook member that is slideable along the second track to adjust a separation of the hook member from the first track, and each clamp assembly device having a screw member engaging the base portion, the screw member being parallel to the first track and having a head for manipulating the screw member, rotation of the screw member causing movement of the base portion along the first track, relative to the fixed wall, wherein each tower has a compartment containing the head of the screw member, and a pivotal cover blocking access to the head of the screw member when the cover is closed, and permitting access to the head of the screw member when the cover is open.