Patent attributes
An apparatus and method to facilitate unloading material from the cargo area (e.g. bed) of a vehicle. The apparatus may include a flexible member placed to line the bottom of the cargo area before a load is placed therein. After moving the vehicle to a desired location, a friction-reducing member may be placed to extend across the rear edge of the cargo area (e.g. the rear edge of an open tailgate). One end of the flexible member may be wrapped around the friction-reducing member and placed just behind the rear wheels of the vehicle. The vehicle may then be moved in reverse. The wheels of the vehicle roll over the flexible material, fixing one end thereof to the ground. The friction reducing member acts like a pulley (whether rolling with, or simply sliding with respect to, the flexible member) at the edge of the moving tailgate, drawing the flexible member and associated load out of the cargo area of the vehicle.
