Rivian Applied to Patent Complex Bed Storage and Seating System
The Rivian R1T takes a unique perspective on the pickup truck, offering staggering electric performance and clever outdoors-inspired features. That same philosophy is behind the automaker’s new patent filing, which depicts a beefy off-road truck with several fold-out panels and storage areas on its bed.
Application paperwork shows the truck with a fold-out table, two seats, and hidden storage areas. There’s also a charging port for a mobile phone, and the panels appear to be adjustable in height. The truck in the images does not look like an R1T, and some believe it to be a preview of the company’s future R2 platform.
Rivian already offered a $5,000 Camp Kitchen option for the R1T pickup but removed it earlier this year. CEO RJ Scaringe told MKBHD that the company found that owners use the gear tunnel for larger items like duffel bags, so the kitchen is being redesigned to leave more storage space.
He also said the automaker is exploring other vehicle form factors, looking to replicate its experience in different vehicle types and smaller models. The R2 is expected to land by 2026, but Scaringe’s note that the name is attached to smaller models casts doubt that the truck in the patent filings is related. Perhaps we’ll see a Rivian R1T dune runner with a robust storage and seating system sometime soon.
[Image: USPTO]
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Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.
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Since the R1T is their bread and butter, this filing is very likely a preview of future features that they want to protect.
Why was the Chevrolet Avalanche discontinued? I had a 2008 and loved their mid-gate system. 5 ft bed that could turn into 8 ft. with or without the 3 pc hard bed cover.
This is a 1950's "kitchen of the future" gimmick created as a patent cock-block. No one is going to find it convenient to climb three feet up the muddy side of their offroader to eat a sandwich or bento box lunch.
Since no one will be able to afford houses going forward, you can live in this truck for 1/10 the cost of a cheap Los Angeles bungalow.