A tonneau cover access panel assembly connectable to a vehicle that eliminates the need for side rails to both locate and tension a tonneau cover. The assembly also reduces weight and complexity. The assembly incorporates a readily accessible rear latching system that reduces or eliminates interference with the tonneau cover during operation. The assembly also incorporates a tonneau cover tensioning system. The tension seals out environmental elements and holds the tonneau cover and locating bows in place. The assembly holds the tonneau in the closed tension state keeping the tonneau cover secured and tight until the cover is opened by an operator. The assembly is movable between a closed position and a fully open/stowable position and any intermediate positions. The assembly is also movable between at least a first open position and the deployed position for more limiting access to the cargo bed of the vehicle when desired.

A lid arrangement for a canister for a rollup truck bed cover comprises a lid and a canister. The canister has a main housing part and opposite housing end parts. The lid spans between said housing end parts across the main housing part, and the lid is pivotally connected to at least one of the housing end parts. The pivotal lid need not be taken fully off the canister when access is needed to the main housing part, e.g. to inspect the drain(s) or wipe up water inside the canister.

A tarping system and method for covering at least a portion of a cargo load carried on a cargo carrying surface of a bed of a truck or trailer are provided. The tarping system includes at least one flexible tarp extending from a mounted end to a free end. At least one reel is coupled to the mounted end and is operative to automatically urge the tarp to a self-stowed positon, coiled onto a spool of the reel, under a return force imparted by the reel. A mounting structure is configured to support the at least one reel and the associated tarp in an upstanding relation relative to the cargo carrying surface to enable a user, while standing on the ground, to draw the tarp from the stowed position to a deployed position to cover at least a portion of a side of the cargo load.

A retractable truck bed cover having an array of parallel aluminum slats joined together by connective hinges including leading and trailing edge configuration for improving the security of the cover by covering and concealing the seam between adjacent slats while improving the connective hinge's resistance to the effects of aging and/or exposure to temperature fluctuations. The truck bed cover connective hinge slat is designed to be in an array of discrete slats, which are joined to one another by means of joiner members secured at each end to slat end caps. The distal ends of the joiner members are attached to slat end caps at the distal ends of the slats, thereby preventing the joiner members from shrinking in relationship to the slats due to aging and/or exposure to temperature fluctuations.

An arm assembly for a cover system includes a force mechanism associated within a hollow arm of the assembly that includes a resiliently compressible element, such as a compression spring or gas spring, connected to one end of a cable. The opposite end of the cable is fastened to a non-circular pulley mounted to the container body, so that the cable is wound around the pulley as the arm pivots relative to the container body. As the arm pivots in a stowed direction, energy is stored by the compressible element, and releasing the stored energy causes the arm to pivot toward an extended or deployed position.

A tonneau cover assembly that selectively covers a truck bed of a truck is provided. The tonneau cover assembly includes a cover and a longitudinally extending rail located adjacent a sidewall of the truck bed. The longitudinally extending rail includes an attachment member. The attachment member extends longitudinally along with the rail and at least a portion of the attachment member is located over a portion of the bed. The cover includes a stiffener located adjacent the attachment member of the longitudinally extending rail.

A trailer and boat covering combination system includes a trailer including a frame having a front end, a first lateral member and a second lateral member. A plurality of wheels is rotatably attached to and extends downwardly from the frame. A pair of supports is attached to the trailer such that each of the first and second lateral members has one of the supports attached thereto. A spindle is attached to and extends between the supports. The supports are pivotable forwardly and rearwardly relative to the trailer such that the spindle is movable over the trailer. The supports are biased toward an upright position. A covering is positioned on the spindle and is unwound off of the spindle to cover a boat positioned on the trailer. The covering is wound back onto the spindle to store the covering on the spindle.

A device for covering at least part of a container using a tarpaulin. The device includes a rod to deploy the tarpaulin across the container and an actuator. An arm extends between the actuator and the rod to allow the actuator to rotate the rod, the arm having an arm first end coupled to the rod and an opposed arm second end. The rod is coupled to the container so that the rod second end is movable relative to the container.

A joint groove is defined in a joint section of a roof structure and a side body structure of a vehicle. A roof rail having a hollow structure is fixed to the vehicle so as to extend along the joint groove. A housing space for housing a tarpaulin is cooperatively defined by both the roof rail and the joint groove. Greater housing space can be more easily secured as compared to a case in which the housing space is defined solely by the roof rail.

Disclosed are embodiments of a retractable tonneau cover for a vehicle that has been modified in order to generally minimize the size of a housing of the tonneau cover, providing more vehicle cargo space for a user. The modified retractable tonneau cover can be automatically closed through an electronic system.