Patent ID: 8215718

Claim:
An end gate assembly for a cargo box comprising a bed floor extending in a longitudinal direction between a front end and a rear end, a pair of sidewalls extending in the longitudinal direction along opposing sides of the bed floor to respective rear ends defining a gate opening therebetween at the rear end of the bed floor, the end gate assembly comprising: an end gate panel arranged to span between opposing ends in a lateral direction across the gate opening between the rear ends of the sidewalls of the cargo box; a pair of upper latch assemblies arranged to couple respective opposing ends of the end gate panel to respective ones of the rear ends of the sidewalls adjacent a top of the end gate panel in a latched position of the upper latch assemblies; a pair of lower latch assemblies arranged to couple respective opposing ends of the end gate panel to respective ones of the rear ends of the sidewalls adjacent a bottom of the end gate panel in a latched position of the lower latch assemblies; an actuator comprising a single actuator handle supported at one end of the gate opening; said single actuator handle being coupled to the upper latch assemblies and said single actuator handle being coupled to the lower latch assemblies; said single actuator handle including a neutral position in which both the upper and lower latch assemblies are in the latched position; said single actuator handle being movable from the neutral position in a first direction towards a first released position in which the pair of upper latch assemblies are both released from the latched position responsive to said single actuator handle being displaced into the first released position such that the end gate panel is pivotal about a lower pivot axis spanning in the lateral direction across the bottom of the end gate panel between the lower latch assemblies in the first released position; and said single actuator handle being movable from the neutral position in a second direction opposite to the first direction towards a second released position in which the pair of lower latch assemblies are both released from the latched position responsive to said single actuator handle being displaced into the second released position such that the end gate panel is pivotal about an upper pivot axis spanning in the lateral direction across the top of the end gate panel between the upper latch assemblies in the second released position.