ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 12 -- United States Patent no. 12,703,436, issued on Aug. 11, was assigned to FCA US LLC (Auburn Hills, Mich.).
"Tailgate cable slack pretensioner" was invented by James A Robertson (White Lake, Mich.), Ronald Lazarevich (Shelby Township, Mich.) and Gene Compton (Clinton Township, Mich.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A tailgate cable pretensioner includes a cable having at least one end having a terminal for securing to a vehicle or a tailgate. A pretensioner is on the other end of the cable. The pretensioner includes a fastener to secure it to the vehicle or the tailgate. The pretensioner takes up cable slack when the pretensioner is secured on the vehicle or the tailga...