Patent Of The Week: Ford Cinemas, Coming Soon

Tailgating is a national pastime in the US, as in the have a barbeque and sit in the back of a truck and not the “following too closely” way us English would see it. Pickup trucks are still a thing that hasn’t found the following that has them dominating vehicle sales across the Atlantic. Just looking back at NAIAS this year, tailgates are now one of the hotbeds of innovation. Now you might be able to have a Ford cinema in the back of your truck. (I say “Ford cinema” not just being British, but also due to potential negative connotations of “Ford’s Theater” for any Lincoln fans (not the cars…))

RAM trucks showed their split tailgate this year, but they are not alone. GM, Honda and Ford all have tricks hidden in their tailgates, such as steps, fold-out handles to help you get in and out of the truck bed and hidden “trunks”.

Ford definitely sees this as a fertile space for further development, indicated by their patent for a “Portable entertainment support system for a pickup truck box”.

In the patent, Ford intend to provide a “plurality of receptacles in sidewalls of a truck box” and “horizontal arm(s) extending between opposing sidewalls”. In layman’s terms, they have come up with a system of slots and rails that will allow you to mount a projector, speakers and a screen in the back of your truck and make your own open-air cinema.

Just picture this…

But in this…

Not sure what the demand would be for this, but I can’t wait to see what the manufacturers come up with next…