Appeal No. 2001-0552
Application No. 09/277,412
along opposite edges thereof. Based on this positively recited relationship between
elongated member components of the “door” and the tailgate of the truck, we view claim 1
as being directed to a door assembly mounted on a truck tailgate.
The Habdas Reference
Habdas is directed to a cargo box extending tailgate utilizing a two panel design.
As stated in the abstract of the patent, the tailgate construction consists of an inner panel 2
and an outer panel 1 hinged in such a way as to extend the axially secured length of the
cargo bed of a pickup truck by approximately 18 inches when the outer panel 1 is secured
in a horizontal position and the inner panel 2 is secured in a vertical position. This
relationship is illustrated in Figure 4 in the full line horizontal position of the outer panel 1
and the phantom line vertical position that the inner panel 2 assumes when it has been
rotated through an angle of rotation “A” of 90E relative to the outer panel.
An objective of Habdas is to provide a tailgate construction that is directly
interchangeable with the standard tailgate (column 2, lines 33-37). A further objective of
Habdas is to provide a tailgate having an outer panel and an inner panel, wherein the two
panels having an intermeshing relationship so as to have high lateral bending
strength and yet maintain a thin profile when maintained in the stowed position (column 3,
lines 23-37). To this end, the inner and outer panels are constructed of sheet metal having
4
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