The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 23, 2025
Filed:
Jan. 17, 2024
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US);
Haley L. Grantham, Saline, MI (US);
Aaron R. Steinhilb, Milan, MI (US);
Jeremiah T. Hammer, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Troy N. Grantham, Saline, MI (US);
Paxton S. Williams, Milan, MI (US);
Hailan Hu, Sylvania, OH (US);
TOYOTA MOTOR ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING NORTH AMERICA, INC., Plano, TX (US);
TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA, Toyota-shi, JP;
Abstract
A vehicle includes a frame member and a tow hook assembly coupled to the frame member. The tow hook assembly includes a tow hook positionable between a first position and a second position, and a locking mechanism operable between a locked position and an unlocked position to permit the tow hook to move into the second position. The vehicle further includes a contact sensor and an electronic control unit communicatively coupled to the tow hook assembly and the sensor, the electronic control unit configured to operate the locking mechanism into the unlocked position to permit the tow hook to be positioned into the second position upon the sensor detecting that a predetermined condition is satisfied.