Ford Patent Reveals Glow-in-the-Dark Canopy
Ford’s liftgate canopy is ready to provide everything you need for privacy, shade, and parking lot raves.
Whether you’re camping in the woods or hanging out with a few thousand friends at the big game, a canopy covering your head is an excellent way to keep the sun’s rays at bay (especially if you forgot your sunscreen).
Ford knows this well, and has submitted a patent for a canopy which can do this and so much more. Fox News happened upon this patent via All Ford Mustangs, which learned just how extra-special this patent is.
Ford’s take on the canopy is a track-mounted unit with the track built into the liftgate of a crossover or SUV — perhaps something like the upcoming Bronco? The canopy can be drawn around the entirety of the liftgate opening for privacy while changing clothes or showering (it does look a bit like a shower curtain). Or it can be stretched out from the liftgate to provide more shade from the sun, or protection from the rain, since it’s waterproof, while cooking burgers and knocking back a few.
What makes this canopy extra-special, though, is it can glow in the dark. According the patent, the canopy is made “from a phosphorescent material that can be illuminated by lighting elements that are embedded in the lift gate.” Another option places the canopy inside a storage compartment where it can be “excited” prior to installation, serving as a glowing beacon for the mini-rave on the campsite.
While having a factory-option canopy is handy to have, we’re wondering if a glow-in-the-dark canopy is cool or lame. Ford, of course, may opt not to court the rave circuit should they make the patent into a physical product, but then again, they have made some bold moves lately; why not a glowing canopy?
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