SUVs have largely displaced sedans from showrooms and driveways partially due to their capacity to hold extra cargo. However the tall journey top of an SUV may also make loading and unloading objects harder—one thing a just lately surfaced Ford patent utility goals to deal with.

Revealed by the US Patent and Trademark Workplace (USPTO) on March 7, however filed by Ford on Sept. 1, 2022, the appliance offers with a deployable loading ramp that will permit customers to slip objects out and in of an SUV’s cargo space as an alternative of lifting them and risking strained backs.

Ford SUV cargo ramp patent picture

The ramp would deploy from a channel on the identical top because the cargo ground, a bit just like the slide-out ramps on field vans. Along with offering a shallow sufficient angle for loading and unloading cargo, the ramp may be utilized by pets for getting out and in of the cargo space, Ford suggests.

Constituted of a number of layers of fabric bonded along with resin, the ramp can be simply 0.3-1.1 inches thick, however would be capable to assist at the very least 220 kilos, and maybe as a lot as 661 kilos, in keeping with the appliance.

Ford SUV cargo ramp patent picture

The design additionally requires moisture sensors to assist forestall the ramp from being utilized in circumstances the place moisture would get into its workings and freeze. It might even have a microphone to detect the sound of the ramp scraping on the bottom so drivers would not inadvertently draw back with the ramp deployed.

Each Ford and Normal Motors just lately tried to patent totally different types of built-in ramps for pickup vans, and aftermarket ramps are already a preferred accent for these autos. An SUV cargo ramp is uncommon although, so this characteristic may set future Ford SUVs aside from the competitors ought to it get the inexperienced gentle for manufacturing.