CA2955267A1 - Attachment system with reinforcing coating - Google Patents

Abstract

An attachment system can include a plurality of apertures or openings in an attachment platform. The openings can be arranged in a pattern corresponding to a hexagon so that an attachment member for an accessory (such as a MOLLE-compatible accessory) may be passed through one or more of the openings so as to attach the accessory in any of a variety of different directions. The attachment platform can include a reinforcing coating that includes polyurea, such as a polyurea/polyurethane blend.

Description

ATTACHMENT SYSTEM WITH REINFORCING COATING
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Equipment, especially that used in tactical scenarios, can be attached to a garment on an individual or other equipment in a number of ways. MOLLE (Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment) is load-bearing equipment and rucksacks utilized by the United States armed forces. The MOLLE system is modular and permits the attachment of various MOLLE-compatible accessories, such as holsters, magazine pouches, radio pouches, knife sheathes, and other gear to MOLLE-compatible load-bearing garments, such as vests, backpacks, and jackets.

[0002] The MOLLE system's modularity is derived from the use of web platforms on load-bearing garments. For example, PALS (Pouch Attachment Ladder System) web platforms can be included on the load-bearing garments. PALS webbing includes rows of heavy-duty nylon stitched onto the vest or other load-bearing garment so as to allow for attachment of MOLLE-compatible accessories.

[0003] PALS webbing is attached to load-bearing garments in a grid structure.
The PALS grid consists of horizontal rows of 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) nylon webbing (most commercial vendors use Type Illa), spaced 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) apart, and reattached, typically via stitching, to the backing at 1.5 inch (3.81 centimeters) intervals. This consistent reattachment forms, for each strap, a series of upwardly and downwardly opened loops. The loops for adjacent straps are aligned so that a series of loops are stacked one on top of each other. This pattern provides secure and stable attachment for MOLLE accessories. As such, PALS
structures and other objects that can provide secure and stable attachment for MOLLE
accessories are generally collectively termed MOLLE attachment systems.

[0004] The following references may be relevant to this technology: U.S.
Patent No.

5,185,195, U.S. Patent No. 5,724,707, U.S. Patent No. 7,047,570, U.S. Patent No. 7,200,871, U.S. Patent No. 7,526,842, U.S. Patent No. 7,644,449, U.S. Patent No.
7,917,968, U.S. Patent No. 8,002,159, U.S. Patent No. 8,079,503, U.S. Patent No. 8,365,312, U.S.
Patent No. 8,490,213, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2007/0289045, U.S. Patent Publication No.
2009/0117300, U.S.
Patent Publication No. 2010/0025560, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0180189, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2013/0126566, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2013/0256498, Patent Cooperation Treaty Publication No. WO 2013/096110, Patent Cooperation Treaty Publication No. WO
2013/022976, Patent Cooperation Treaty Publication No WO 2010/046664, and Patent Cooperation Treaty Publication No. WO 2009/151643.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The following presents a simplified summary of some embodiments of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is not intended to identify key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some embodiments of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[0006] In accordance with embodiments, a mounting system is provided having a load-bearing platform and a hexagonal substrate. The load-bearing platform includes at least a portion of a garment or a pack. The hexagonal substrate includes an attachment platform connected to the load-bearing platform. The hexagonal substrate further includes a plurality of hexagonal openings formed in the attachment platform. The hexagonal openings are arranged in a repeating hexagonal pattern configured to facilitate attachment of MOLLE-compatible accessories to the attachment platform along any of at least three differing axes.

[0007] Additional embodiments are directed to a hexagonal substrate for a system configured to attach equipment to a wearable load-bearing platform. The hexagonal substrate includes an attachment platform configured for connection with the load-bearing platform.
The hexagonal substrate further includes a plurality of openings formed in the attachment platform and arranged in a repeating hexagonal pattern configured to facilitate attachment of MOLLE-compatible accessories to the attachment platform along any of at least three differing axes.

[0008] For a fuller understanding of the nature and advantages of the present invention, reference should be made to the ensuing detailed description and accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Various embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings, in which:

[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates a vest outfitted with known MOLLE attachment systems.

[0011] FIG. 2 illustrates a vest outfitted with a hexagonal attachment system according to an embodiment.

[0012] FIG. 3 illustrates mounting equipment to a hexagonal attachment system according to an embodiment.

[0013] FIG. 4 illustrates equipment mounted to the hexagonal attachment system according to an embodiment.

[0014] FIG. 5 illustrates an arrangement of openings of the hexagonal attachment system according to an embodiment.

[0015] FIGS. 6 through 11 illustrate examples of orientations at which equipment can be mounted via a hexagonal attachment system according to embodiments.

[0016] FIGS. 12 and 13 respectively illustrate a front view and a rear view of an attachment system component featuring a reinforcing coating according to embodiments.

[0017] FIG. 14 illustrates a vest outfitted with other attachment system components having reinforcing coating according to embodiments.

[0018] FIG. 15 is a flow chart illustrating an example process that may be utilized to produce attachment systems featuring a reinforcing coating according to embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] In the following description, various embodiments will be described.
For purposes of explanation, specific configurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will also be apparent to one skilled in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without the specific details. Furthermore, well-known features may be omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the embodiment being described.

[0020] Embodiments herein are directed to attachment systems. Referring now to the drawings, in which features that are identified by differing reference numerals across different drawings but share common names in the description herein may refer to features that may or may not differ across embodiments, FIG. 1 illustrates a vest 100 having known attachment systems 102 and 112.

[0021] A traditional MOLLE attachment system 102 can include a plurality of rows 104, 106, and 108, each including a number of loops 110. The loops 110 are commonly formed by webbing stitched down at regular intervals. For example, in a commonly used configuration, stitching is placed so that loops 110 have a width just over 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) so as to be configured to receive or accommodate attachment members up to 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) in width. Attachment members can be passed through loops 110 of successive rows 104, 106, and/or 108 to hold equipment or objects with respect to the vest 100. As may be appreciated, one limitation of such a traditional MOLLE attachment system 102 is that equipment can only be attached in a single orientation, even though the object can be attached at various locations on the vest 100 using the attachment system 102.

[0022] Other existing attachment systems can allow MOLLE-compatible items to be attached in either a vertical or a horizontal orientation. For example, the attachment system 112 includes a stretchable web platform that can facilitate such attachment and is described more fully in US
Non-Provisional Patent Application No. 14094583, entitled "GARMENT WITH
CARRYING
SYSTEM," filed December 2, 2013 (Attorney Docket No. 93168-888229), which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/732,165 (Attorney Docket No.

(001200 US)), filed on November 30, 2012. In either attachment system 102 or 112 depicted in FIG. 1, MOLLE-compatible items may be attached by hooking or weaving a feature of the item into the structure of the attachment system 102 or 112.

[0023] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a vest 200 having a hexagonal attachment system 202.
The hexagonal attachment system 202 can provide a greater number of attachment orientations than known attachment systems, such as the attachment systems 102 or 112. The hexagonal attachment system 202 can include an attachment platform 208 having a plurality of apertures or openings 204. The openings 204 can be hexagonally shaped and/or arranged in a hexagonal network, as is discussed in greater detail below with reference to FIG. 5. As such, the attachment platform 208 can provide a number of different options for orientation of items attached via the openings 204 of the attachment platform 208.

[0024] In some embodiments, the openings 204 can be separated by a plurality of links 206.
Any suitable manner of forming the network of openings 204 and links 206 may be utilized, including, but not limited to, cutting the openings 204 in a material or weaving portions of a material to form links 206 that define boundaries of the openings 204. The openings 204 can be arranged so that an attachment member (such as a hook, portion of webbing, or strip of rigid or semi-rigid material) may be passed through a number of the openings 204 (e.g., over and/or under a number of links 206) so as to attach equipment or gear to the vest 200.

[0025] Furthermore, although the hexagonal attachment system 202 is described in relation to a vest 200 with respect to FIG. 2 and elsewhere herein, any load-bearing platform may form an appropriate foundation for the hexagonal attachment system 202. Non-limiting examples of load-bearing platforms with which hexagonal attachment system 202 may be utilized include any suitable portion of a garment, clothing, pants, a shirt, a jacket, a vest, a girdle, a pack, a pouch, a holster, a sheath, an ammunition clip, gear, equipment, and/or an accessory thereof.

[0026] The attachment platform 208 can be attached, connected, or integral with the vest 200.
In some aspects, the attachment platform 208 can be connected to a backing structure 210 at positions between openings (such as described in greater detail below with respect to the connections 560 and 562 depicted in FIG. 5). In alternative aspects, the attachment platform 208 may be connected to the backing structure 210 without connections between openings 208 (such as by the stitching solely about a perimeter of the attachment platform 208 depicted in FIG. 2).
Although the backing structure 210 is depicted in FIG. 2 as a separate interposed and attached piece between the vest 200 and the attachment platform 208, in some aspects, the backing structure 210 may be an integral portion of the vest 200. In some embodiments, the openings 204 are formed directly in the material of the vest 200 and the backing structure 210 is not present. In some embodiments, neither the vest 200 nor the backing structure 210 is present, and the openings 204 are formed directly in a stand-alone attachment platform 208 (see for example FIGS. 6-11).

[0027] Any suitable material or combination of materials can be used in the hexagonal attachment system 202. For example, the attachment platform 208 and/or the backing structure 210 can include any suitable load-bearing material, including, but not limited to, nylon, rubber, and extruded polymers. Furthermore, the attachment platform 208 and/or the backing structure 210 can include any substrate formed of any single-layer or multi-layer construction.

[0028] The attachment platform 208 and/or backing structure 210 can be connected to the vest 200 by any suitable mechanism, including, but not limited to, stitching, hook and loop fasteners, bonding, or fusing. FIG. 3 illustrates a further example of a way in which a hexagonal attachment system 302 may be connected to a surface 326. For example, the surface 326 may be a portion of the vest 100, and the hexagonal attachment system 302 may attach to a known MOLLE-compatible attachment system 102 or 112 to retrofit the vest 100. An attachment platform 308 containing openings 304 of the hexagonal attachment system 302 may be affixed to a front side of a backing structure 310, such as by stitching about a perimeter of the attachment platform 308. A first set of loops 320 may be attached to a rear side of the backing structure 310.
The first set of loops 320 may align with a second set of loops 322 mounted to the surface 326.
An attachment member 324 can be alternatingly passed through the first set of loops 320 and the second set of loops 322 to attach the backing structure 310 to the surface 326. In some aspects, additional hexagonal attachment systems 302 can be utilized in place of either or both of the first set of loops 320 or the second set of loops 322.

[0029] FIG. 3 also illustrates an example of how a piece of equipment or gear¨such as holster 314¨can be attached via the hexagonal attachment system 302. FIG. 4 further illustrates the holster 314 attached. An attachment member 312 can be routed along an axis 318 (FIG. 3) through a plurality of openings 304 in an attachment platform 308. The attachment member 312 can interact with features of the holster 314, such as loops 316, to hold the holster 314 in place with respect to the attachment platform 308. Although the attachment member 312 is depicted as a piece separate from the holster 314 in FIGs. 3 and 4, the attachment member 312 may include any suitable attachment mechanism, including a hook on the holster 314 or an attachment member 312 that is otherwise secured to the holster 314, such as by stitching or snaps.

[0030] FIG. 5 illustrates an arrangement of openings 504 (e.g., first through seventh openings 504a-504g) for a hexagonal attachment system 502 in accordance with embodiments.
The openings 504 can be hexagonally-shaped. However, the openings 504 are not limited to a hexagonal shape and may be any suitable shape, including round, circular, or polygonal. The openings 504 may be arranged so as to resemble a honeycomb pattern. The openings 504 may be arranged in patterns having other distinguishing features. For example, the openings 504 may form a pattern of overlapping adjacent columns. The openings 504 may form a pattern in which at least one hexagonal opening 504g from the plurality of hexagonal openings 504a-504g is positioned such that each side of the hexagonal opening 504g is adjacent to a parallel side of another hexagonal opening 504a-504f of the plurality of hexagonal openings 504a-504g. The openings 504 may form a staggered pattern.

[0031] The openings 504 can be separated by a plurality of interconnected links 506. Each link 506 may extend along and between adjacent sides of a pair of adjacent openings 504. For example, a link 506 may extend along and between adjacent sides of a pair of adjacent hexagonally-shaped openings 504g and 504b. Each link 506 may join at least one other link 506 near corners of adjacent openings 504.

[0032] The openings 504 may form a hexagonal pattern. For example, the openings 504 may be arranged in a pattern corresponding to a hexagon 550. As an illustrative example, the openings 504a-504f depicted in FIG. 5 are arranged such that a center of each opening 504a-504f is positioned at a respective corner 552a-552f of the hexagon 550 (although in some embodiments, the hexagon 550 may instead be demarcated by corners 552a-552f that correspond to akin edges or other features of the openings 504 other than the centers).
Further openings 504 may also be present, such as the seventh opening 504g depicted in the center of the hexagon 550 or other openings 504 beyond the periphery of the hexagon 550 (not shown in FIG. 5, but may be appreciated with reference to FIGS. 6-11).

[0033] The hexagon 550 may be a regular hexagon. The hexagon 550 may have a first pair of parallel sides 554, a second pair of parallel sides 556, and a third pair of parallel sides 558. The openings 504 may be arranged to allow an attachment member (such as the attachment member 312 depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4) to pass through multiple of the openings 504 in any direction parallel or perpendicular to any of the pairs of parallel sides 554, 556, 558. As illustrative examples of such parallel directions, an attachment member may be oriented parallel to the parallel sides 554 (e.g., passing through first opening 504a and second opening 504b; or passing through sixth opening 504f, seventh opening 504g, and third opening 504c; or passing through fourth opening 504d and fifth opening 504e), parallel to the parallel sides 556 (e.g., passing through second opening 504b and third opening 504c; or passing through first opening 504a, seventh opening 504g, and fourth opening 504d; or passing through fifth opening 504e and sixth opening 5040, or parallel to the parallel sides 558 (e.g., passing through sixth opening 504f and first opening 504a; or passing through fifth opening 504e, seventh opening 504g, and second opening 504b; or passing through fourth opening 504d and third opening 504c). As illustrative examples of such perpendicular directions, an attachment member may be oriented perpendicular to the parallel sides 554 (e.g., passing through first opening 504a and fifth opening 504e; or passing through fourth opening 504d and second opening 504b), perpendicular to the parallel sides 556 (e.g., passing through fifth opening 504e and third opening 504c; or passing through second opening 504b and sixth opening 5040, or perpendicular to the parallel sides 558 (e.g., passing through sixth opening 504f and fourth opening 504d; or passing through third opening 504c and first opening 504a).

[0034] In some aspects, the openings 504 can have uniform dimensions. A side-to-side width can correspond to a distance between two parallel sides of the hexagonal opening 504, as denoted by DI in FIG. 5. The side-to-side width may be wider than a width of an attachment member (such as the attachment member 312 depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4) so as to facilitate weaving the attachment member in a direction parallel to the two parallel sides of the hexagonally-shaped opening. A corner-to-corner width can correspond to a distance between two corners positioned on opposite ends of a hexagonal opening 504 along a bisecting axis of the hexagonal opening 504, as denoted D2 in FIG. 5. The corner-to-corner may be wider than a width of an attachment member so as to facilitate weaving in a direction perpendicular to the bisecting axis. Corners of a hexagonal opening can have a defined inner radius, such as denoted as RI in FIG. 5. Such rounded corners can reduce a sharpness of a transition between adjacent edges of a hexagonal opening 504 and reduce a likelihood of tearing at the corner. A link width, such as denoted as D3 in FIG. 5, can indicate a width of a link 506 separating parallel sides of adjacent hexagonal openings 504. The openings 504 may be sized to accommodate attachment members that are compatible with MOLLE systems and/or attachment members that are different. Providing a hexagonal attachment system 502 dimensioned to be compatible with MOLLE-compatible gear can allow owners of existing MOLLE-compatible gear to utilize the hexagonal attachment system 502 without replacing such gear. For example, in a particular embodiment, the arrangement of openings 504 may include a side-to-side width DI of I inch (2.54 centimeters), a corner-to-corner width D2 of 1.14 inch (2.896 centimeters), an inner radius RI of 0.25 inch (0.635 centimeter) inch, and/or a link width D3 of 0.32 inch (0.8128 centimeter).
A corner-to-corner width D2 of 1.14 inch (2.896 centimeters) can permit passage of a typical MOLLE-compatible attachment member (e.g., commonly 1 inch wide (2.54 centimeters)) to pass through openings 504 in any direction parallel to any parallel sides 554, 556, 558 of the hexagon 550 for attaching MOLLE-compatible gear by the hexagonal attachment system 502. A
side-to-side width D1 of 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) can permit passage of a more slender attachment member (e.g., 0.5 inches wide (1.27 centimeters)) to pass through openings 504 in any direction perpendicular and/or parallel to any parallel sides 554, 556, 558 of the hexagon 550 for attaching MOLLE-compatible gear by the hexagonal attachment system 502. An inner radius RI of 0.25 inch (0.635 centimeter) may improve durability or reduce a rate of wear or tearing of the hexagonal attachment system 502. A link width D3 of 0.32 inch (0.8128 centimeter) may provide sufficient load-bearing strength for the links 506 to support attached gear.

[0035] FIG. 6-11 illustrate a variety of orientations at which equipment can be mounted via a hexagonal attachment system 602. The variety of orientations possible can permit equipment to be attached at a certain position and orientation so as to facilitate ease of access at a time of use.
As may be appreciated by reference to FIG. 6-11, by virtue of using a hexagonal arrangement of openings, equipment can be attached at any orientation corresponding to an hour of the clock.
For example, in FIG. 6, a holster 614a can be mounted pointing upward towards the 12 o'clock direction or a holster 614b can be mounted pointing downward toward a 6 o'clock direction. An attachment member (such as the attachment member 312 depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4) routed along an axis 618 through openings 604 in the attachment platform 608 may facilitate such attached orientations of either holster 614a or 614b. The axis 618 may correspond to a direction parallel to a side of the hexagon 550 described with respect to FIG. 5.

[0036] As illustrated in FIG. 7, routing an attachment member along an axis 718 (e.g., in a direction perpendicular to a side of the hexagon 550 described with respect to FIG. 5) can facilitate mounting a holster 714a pointed toward a 1 o'clock direction and/or mounting a holster 714b pointing in a 7 o'clock direction.

[0037] As illustrated in FIG. 8, routing an attachment member along an axis 818 (e.g., in a direction parallel to a side of the hexagon 550 described with respect to FIG.
5) can facilitate mounting a holster 814a pointed toward a 2 o'clock direction and/or mounting a holster 814b pointing in an 8 o'clock direction.

[0038] As illustrated in FIG. 9, routing an attachment member along an axis 918 (e.g., in a direction perpendicular to a side of the hexagon 550 described with respect to FIG. 5) can facilitate mounting a holster 914a pointed toward a 3 o'clock direction and/or mounting a holster 914b pointing in a 9 o'clock direction.

[0039] As illustrated in FIG. 10, routing an attachment member along an axis 1018 (e.g., in a direction parallel to a side of the hexagon 550 described with respect to FIG.
5) can facilitate mounting a holster 1014a pointed toward a 4 o'clock direction and/or mounting a holster 1014b pointing in a 10 o'clock direction.

[0040] As illustrated in FIG. 11, routing an attachment member along an axis 1118 (e.g., in a direction perpendicular to a side of the hexagon 550 described with respect to FIG. 5) can facilitate mounting a holster 1114a pointed toward a 5 o'clock direction and/or mounting a holster 1114b pointing in a 11 o'clock direction.

[0041] As may be appreciated with reference to various of the previously discussed figures, an attachment member (such as the attachment member 312 depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4) may be weaved in any suitable manner to secure gear to an attachment platform. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 4, an attachment member 312 may pass through an opening 304, through an attachment feature of gear (such as loop 316 of holster 314), and back through the same opening 304 without weaving over a link 306 in the process. In some aspects, an attachment member may be weaved alternatingly over and under consecutive links, such as may be appreciated with reference to the axes 718 depicted in FIG. 7. In some aspects, attachment members may be weaved so as to pass over or under two or more links at a time, such as may be appreciated with reference to the axes 818 depicted in FIG. 8.

[0042] As may be appreciated with reference to various of the previously discussed figures, a hexagonal attachment system can include a number of connections for securing an attachment platform to a backing structure. For example, links 206 may be secured between openings 204 of the attachment platform 208 with the backing structure 210 described above with respect to FIG. 2. Non-limiting examples of such connections include the round (e.g., circular) stitch-downs 560 or the triangular stitch-downs 562 depicted in FIG. 5. The triangular stitch downs 562 may be triangular in shape and may be arranged so that each corner of the triangular stitch-down 562 is directed at a proximate corner of a hexagonal opening 504.
In some embodiments, a round stitch-down 560 may be less complex and/or smaller than a triangular stitch-down 562 and yet still provide adequate support for the attachment platform.

[0043] Although including connections such as stitch downs 560 or 562 may improve stability, the connections between openings 504 may also limit the number of directions in which an attachment member (such as the attachment member 312 depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4) may be routed to attach gear via the hexagonal attachment system 502. For example, in the arrangement depicted in FIG. 5, the connections such as stitch downs 560 or 562 may prevent the member from passing in a direction along a length of a link 506 (such as between first opening 504a and third opening 504c) while still permitting passage of the member in a direction across a width of the link 506 (such as between seventh opening 504g and second opening 504b).

[0044] Furthermore, although the connections are depicted in FIG. 5 as a combination of round stitch-downs 560 and triangular stitch-downs 562, the connections may alternatively or additionally include all round stitch-downs 560, all triangular stitch-downs 562, or other forms of connections including bonding, fusing, other stitching, grommets, and/or snaps. Snaps may provide detachable connections, thereby selectively providing additional support when desired, yet maintaining the functionality of being able to pass attachment members in other directions that would be blocked by the connections if in place.

[0045] As may be appreciated with reference to various of the previously discussed figures, arrangements of hexagonally shaped openings may differ as to an orientation of hexagonally shaped openings relative to a top side of an attachment platform. For example, as may be appreciated with reference to FIG. 4, in some aspects, a corner of a hexagonally shaped opening 304 faces a top side of an attachment platform 308. In a contrasting example that may be appreciated with reference to FIG. 6, a flat side of a hexagonally shaped opening 604 may face a top side of an attachment platform 608. In some aspects, as is the case with respect to these two examples of FIG. 4 and FIG. 6, one extreme orientation may be attained by rotating the other extreme orientation by 90 degrees. In some aspects, an attachment platform may include an arrangement of hexagonally shaped openings that are arranged at a skewed orientation falling between the extremes described and depicted with respect to FIG. 4 and 6.

[0046] Rotating between one extreme orientation and another may alter which directions are blocked by a set of connections (such as stitch downs 560 and 562 depicted in FIG. 5). For example, the arrangement of stitch downs 560 and 562 depicted in FIG. 5 may permit the routing of an attachment member along axes corresponding to the 12 o'clock, 2 o'clock, and 4 o'clock directions relative to a vest (e.g., directions shown in FIGS. 6, 8, and 10), while preventing routing along axes of the 1 o'clock, 3 o'clock, and 5 o'clock directions (e.g., directions shown in FIGS. 7, 9, and 11). However, if the arrangement of stitch downs 560 and 562 depicted in FIG. 5 is rotated by 90 degrees (e.g., so that corners instead of flat sides of the hexagonal openings 504 face upward), the rotated arrangement may instead permit the routing of an attachment member along axes corresponding to the 1 o'clock, 3 o'clock, and 5 o'clock directions relative to a vest (e.g., directions shown in FIGS. 7, 9, and 11), while preventing routing along axes of the 12 o'clock, 2 o'clock, and 4 o'clock directions (e.g., directions shown in FIGS.
6, 8, and 10).
ATTACHMENT SYSTEM FABRICATION
10047] Attachment systems can be made from a variety of materials. For example, as noted previously, the attachment platform 208 and/or the backing structure 210 can include any suitable load-bearing material, including, but not limited to, nylon, rubber, and extruded polymers. Other types of attachment systems (such as PALS loops or other MOLLE-compatible attachment systems) may also include these or other materials. Significantly, in the course of developing attachment systems, the present inventors have determined that attachment systems with advantageous qualities can be produced with utilization of coatings applied to other base materials. Particularly well-suited materials for such coatings may include various materials (hereinafter called "P-materials" or "P-blends" for the sake of simplicity) that include polyurea.
Various suitable P-materials are commercially available under the tradename Linex 0. Various P-materials are polyurea-containing hybrid elastomer compounds. Indeed, some P-materials may be hybrid elastomer compounds that contain polyurea blended with other substances. Many types of P-materials include polyurethane blended with the polyurea and may be characterized as polyurethane/polyurea hybrids or polyurethane/polyurea blends or polyurethane/polyurea hybrid blends. Examples of P-materials that include polyurethane may include, but are not limited to, P-materials known as Linex XS-100, Linex XS-152, Linex XS-252, Linex SE-500, Linex PX-2100, and PAXCONg. Other examples of P-materials may include, but are not limited to, P-materials known as Linex XS-310 (aromatic polyurea), Linex XS-350 (aromatic polyurea), Linex XS-470 (aromatic polyurea), Linex XS-650 (aliphatic polyurea), Linex ULTRA (aliphatic polyurea), and ASPART-X (aliphatic polyurea). Other suitable P-materials may also be available from other sources, including, but not limited to the company operating under the trade name Rhino Linings , which produces e.g., materials known as TUFF STUFF, RHINO PP1195, RHINO PP2190, RHINOGUARD 2185, and RHINOGUARD 2195.
[0048] Various effects for attachment systems may be obtained individually or in combination by including the coating. In various embodiments, including a coating (e.g., of P-material) may reduce a propensity of attachment system features (e.g., loops 110 described with reference to FIG. 1, stretchable web platforms of attachment systems 112 described with reference to FIG. 1, or links 206 that define boundaries of the openings 204 described with reference to FIG. 2) to sag or stretch under load of attached gear. In various embodiments, including the coating can provide increases in tensile and/or shear strength of the finished assembly in comparison to the base material in the absence of the coating. Moreover, the coating in various embodiments may be applied while still maintaining¨or without significantly compromising¨advantageous flexibility characteristics that may be exhibited by the base material when independent of the coating.
[0049] In various embodiments, the coating when included may provide comparable or improved characteristics in comparison to an arrangement that instead utilizes much larger or bulkier additional layers of fabric or other material for reinforcement. As an illustrative example, in certain testing performed by the present inventors, different instances of an attachment system featuring a hexagonal arrangement of openings in a base layer were constructed with different forms of reinforcement and load-tested. Each instance featured the same size and arrangement of openings. A first instance included a construction of N1000 nylon cordura coated with P-material (specifically, Linex0 XS-100 was used in the testing). A second instance included N1000 nylon cordura combined with N500 nylon fabric. A third instance included N1680 ballistic nylon cordura combined with N500 nylon fabric. A
fourth instance included N1680 Thermoplastic Polyurethane ("TPU")-coated nylon combined with N500 nylon fabric.
[0050] Each instance was tested for what may be termed "parallel pull strength" and "perpendicular pull strength." Parallel pull strength was tested to gauge a strength of the attachment platform against attached gear being pulled in a direction substantially parallel to the attachment platform. For example, for a vest incorporating the attachment platform on a front panel, the parallel pull strength may correspond to the attachment platform's ability to withstand attached gear being pulled upward, downward, leftward, rightward, or some other direction of pull within or along a reference plane in which the attachment platform is situated. For testing parallel pull strength, a pair of 1 inch (2.54 cm) webbing strips (e.g., approximating a common size of attachment member that would be likely to be used to attach pouches or other gear to the attachment platform) were respectively wrapped or looped about links at opposite sides of a particular opening. One of these wrapped or looped webbing strips was pulled away from the other until failure occurred about the opening of the attachment platform. The maximum load applied prior to failure was recorded as the parallel pull strength.
100511 In contrast, perpendicular pull strength was tested to gauge a strength of the attachment platform against attached gear being pulled in a direction substantially perpendicular to the attachment platform. For example, for a vest incorporating the attachment platform on a front panel, the perpendicular pull strength may correspond to the attachment platform's ability to withstand attached gear being pulled outward from the attachment platform, such as in a forward (or backward) direction away from the wearer, e.g., perpendicular, transverse, or otherwise non-parallel to a reference plane in which the attachment platform is situated.
For testing perpendicular pull strength, the attachment platform was folded in half so that a link near the center of the attachment platform was presented near the fold line. The attachment platform was secured in this folded position. A 1 inch (2.54 cm) webbing strip (e.g., approximating a common size of attachment member that would be likely to be used to attach pouches or other gear to the attachment platform) was wrapped or looped about the presented link near the fold line and pulled until failure occurred in the presented link of the attachment platform. The maximum load applied prior to failure was recorded as the perpendicular pull strength.
[0052] Results of the parallel pull strength and perpendicular pull strength tests for the aforementioned four specific instances are presented in the following table:

No Item Perpendicular Pull Parallel Pull Strength (Load in Strength (Load in N/cm) N/cm) 1 N1000 Cordura with Linex XS- 610.47 504.8 100 Spray 2 N1000 Cordura with N500 552.11 309.4 3 N1680 Ballistic Nylon with N500 669.79 134.84 4 N1680 TPU coated Nylon with 592.81 289.79 As may be appreciated, adding the P-material coating to the N1000 material resulted in equal or better performance of combining N1000 or higher den nylon fabrics with N500 nylon fabrics.
Although Linex XS-100 was the specific P-material used in these specific tests, other P-materials may be utilized and may provide suitable performance.
[0053] FIGS. 12 and 13 show one example of a component 1201 of an attachment system 1200 that includes a coating 1203. FIGS. 12 and 13 respectively illustrate a front view and a rear view of the component 1201. The illustrated component 1201 corresponds to an attachment platform, which may be an example of the attachment platform 208 discussed with respect to FIG. 2. For example, the attachment platform 1201 is shown in FIG. 12 and 13 with links 1206 that form boundaries between openings 1204.
[0054] In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the coating 1203 is present on a rear side 1205 of the component 1201. However, the coating 1203 may be present on any surface of the component 1201, including on the rear side 1205, on a front side 1207, on interior surfaces 1209 between the front side 1207 and rear side 1205 (e.g., on surfaces of the links 1206 extending through the component and forming through-edges of the openings 1204), or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, presenting the coating 1203 on one side (e.g., rear side 1205) may provide strength or other characteristics for the component 1201 yet still permit viewing of a pattern or other visually discernable feature on the opposite side (e.g., front side 1207). For example, the component 1201 shown in FIGS. 12-13 may be incorporated into a vest 200 (FIG.
2) with the front side 1207 facing outward from the vest 200 (e.g., so that a camoflauge pattern on the front side 1207 is visible to a viewer of the vest 200 when worn) and with the rear side 1205 facing toward other material of the vest 200 (e.g., so that the coating 1203 is not readily visually observable by a viewer of the vest 200).
[0055] FIG. 14 illustrates a vest 1400 outfitted with other attachment system components having reinforcing coating according to embodiments. For example, in addition to (or in lieu of) the attachment platform 1201, the vest 1400 may include attachment system features such as loops 1410 (e.g., which may be examples of loops 110 described with reference to FIG. 1) and/or stretchable web platforms 1412 (e.g., which may be examples of the stretchable web platforms of attachment systems 112 described with reference to FIG. 1). The loops 1410 and stretchable web platforms 1412 are each shown with coating 1403 on outward-facing surfaces (e.g., loop-outer surfaces 1415 of the loops 1410), although the coating 1403 may additionally or alternatively be positioned on inward-facing surfaces (e.g., loop-inner surfaces 1417 of the loops 1410) and/or through-surfaces (e.g., loop-edge surfaces 1419) extending between inward-facing surfaces and outward facing surfaces. Hence, in some embodiments, the coating 1403 may face outwardly from the vest 1400 (e.g., so as to be visible), and in some embodiments, the coating 1403 may additionally or alternatively face away from an exterior of the vest 1400 (e.g., so that at least a portion of the coating 1403 is not visible).
[0056] FIG. 15 is a flow chart illustrating an example process 1500 that may be utilized to produce attachment systems featuring a reinforcing coating according to embodiments. As illustrative examples, the process 1500 may be utilized to fabricate the attachment platform of FIGS 12-13 and/or the vest 1400 of FIG. 14.
[0057] The process 1500 at 1510 includes providing a base material for an attachment system.
By "providing", we mean purchasing, manufacturing, taking from stock or any other action that results in obtaining and/or having the base material. Examples of suiable materials for base materials include, but are not limited to nylon (e.g., high denier or other varieties such as 100D, 300D, 500D, 1050D,), plastic, rubber, extruded polymers, mesh, resin-reinforced materials. The base material may be formed using any suitable construction method, and may for example, include knit material, woven material, non-woven material, or some combination thereof. The base material may be of any suitable form factor from which attachment system features can be formed or are already formed. As non-limiting examples, the base material may correspond to mesh,a sheet or panel into which holes are to be cut or have already been cut, a knit netting or other structure from which an array of apertures or other features for an attachment system can be or are already formed, fabric strips to be combined or already combined to form loops or other attachment system features, or rigid members or semi-rigid structures combinable or combined into an attachment system lattice. In some embodiments, rigid or semi-rigid base material may be particularly well-suited for attachment systems for attaching gear to walls, vehicle interior panels, vehicle exterior body components, or other rigid or semi-rigid surfaces.
[0058] The process 1500 at 1520 includes applying a coating to the base material. The coating can include a suitable P-material. The coating can be applied by any suitable method, such as spraying, brushing, rolling, dipping, or other application method. In various embodiments, the coating can be provided as a mixture of different compounds that are routed through separate hoses (e.g., from separate drums) and then combined shortly before or during spraying (e.g., via a double nozzle arranged to cause the separate streams to combine and mix together into the final coating compound). In some embodiments, multiple passes or sprays may be utilized, for example, to obtain a target thickness, uniformity, or other characteristic of the coating. The coating may be applied to any combination of surfaces of the base material, including, but not limited to a front, to a back, or to both the front and the back of the base material.
[0059] The process 1500 at 1530 includes allowing the coating to cure. In various embodiments, the coating may cure rapidly. For example, various P-materials are known to initially cure within approximately 15 seconds after spraying. Such initial curing may allow the coating to be sufficiently solid to permit handling without causing the coating to pull away from the base material. In some embodiments, a longer period of time (such as 24 to 48 hours) may be utilized to allow a full cure of the coating (e.g., to cure sufficiently that subsequent handling will not risk separation between the base material and coating).
[0060] The process 1500 at 1540 includes forming attachment system features from the base material. This may include any method of forming holes or other geometry relative to the base material. For example, laser-cutting, water-jet cutting, die-cutting, or other cutting methods may be utilized to cut openings through the base material to form the geometry of the attachment platform described previously herein. As other examples, the operation at 1540 may correspond to forming loops 1410 or stretchable web platforms 1412 from the base material.

[0061] In some embodiments, the operation 1540 may occur before operation 1520. For example, openings may be cut through a base material before the coating is applied. As other examples, the base material may be formed into loops 1410 or stretchable web platforms 1412 before the coating 1403 is applied.
[0062] In some embodiments, the operation 1540 occurs after operation 1520.
For example, the base material may be formed into loops 1410 or stretchable web platforms 1412 after the coating 1403 is applied. In another illustrative example, openings 1204 may be cut through a base material after the coating 1203 has been applied. In some embodiments, instead cutting openings before the coating has been applied may allow the coating to be sprayed through the openings and permit the coating to reach both a front and a back side of the base material. In embodiments in which it is desired to limit the coating to one side (e.g., rear side 1205) of the base material, it may therefore be desireable to cut the openings after spraying the coating so that excess sprayed coating is not passing through formed openings to reach the side of the base material that is to be maintained free of coating. Maintaining a side free of coating may permit printing or other treatments to the uncoated side that would be inhibited or prevented in the presence of coating. Moreover, in some embodiments, formed openings may allow spray pressure to pass through the base material and act on an opposite side in a manner that causes the base material to flap or otherwise make consistent application of the coating difficult, and for this further reason, it may be advantageous to cut openings after applying the coating rather than before.
[0063] The process 1500 at 1550 includes mounting attachment system features formed from coated base material. For example, the attachment platform 1201 having openings 1204 and coating 1203 may be sewn, glued, strapped, buckled, weaved, or otherwise secured to the vest 200. The process 1500 at 1550 may correspond to mounting attachment system features formed from the coated base material to any suitable load-bearing platform. As non-limiting examples, the suitable load-bearing platforms may include components connected with or comprising at least a portion of a garment, clothing, pants, a shirt, a jacket, a vest, a girdle, a pack, a pouch, a holster, a sheath, an ammunition clip, gear, a wall, a vehicle interior panel or other interior part, a vehicle exterior component or other exterior part, or other load-bearing equipment and/or an accessory thereof.

100641 In some embodiments, the operations at 1550 and at 1540 may include common actions. For example, a strip of webbing at least partially coated with P-material may be sewn to the vest 1400 at regular intervals to both form the loops 1410 at 1540 and mount the attachment system features at 1550.
[0065] In some embodiments, the operation at 1540 may be performed without separately performing an operation at 1550. As a non-limiting example, if a wall with an attachment system is to be produced, openings may be formed in a panel of base material corresponding to the wall to form the attachment features in the wall without involving a separate mounting operation at 1550 for coupling the openings to the wall.
[0066] In a particular illustrative example, the process at 1510 includes providing a sheet of 1050 ballistic nylon cordura approximately 60 inches (1.54 meters) long and 36 inches (0.91 meters) across. At 1520, Linex XS-100 subcomponents maintained in separate drums are routed for spraying together through a dual nozzle into an environment maintained between 50 F
and 95 F (between 10 C and 35 C). The combined spray is applied to the nylon sheet with the nozzle approximately 36 inches (0.91 meters m) from the sheet. The combined spray is applied with a spray overlap width of approximately 50% overlap between successive rows or columns applied. Completing a first coat may take approximately 2 minutes. A second coat may be applied (e.g., with like application criteria), for example, to fill in any discontinuities in the coating. The thickness of the coating resulting from operations at 1550 may be between 15 and 25 mil or thousandths of an inch (between 0.381 mm and 0.635 mm). At 1530, the coated nylon sheet is left alone for an appropriate amount of time after spraying to permit initial curing, and in some cases may then be moved out of a spraying station to sit in a curing station for a suitable amount of time to adequately cure to permit cutting operations. At 1540, the cured coated nylon sheet is subjected to a laser cutter to cut out the openings. The laser cutter is operated at appropriate conditions to prevent melting of the coating. Around the portion of the coated sheet in which the openings are formed, the laser cutter also cuts a pattern to form the perimeter boundary of the sheet, which may include straps or other attachment features.
At 1550, the cut coated sheet is attached to a vest or other piece of equipment, such as by cinching and securing straps of the sheet about a portion of the vest.

[0067] The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. It will, however, be evident that various modifications and changes may be made thereunto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the disclosure as set forth in the claims.
[0068] Other variations are within the spirit of the present disclosure. Thus, while the disclosed techniques are susceptible to various modifications and alternative constructions, certain illustrated embodiments thereof are shown in the drawings and have been described above in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit the disclosure to the specific form or forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure, as defined in the appended claims.
[0069] The use of the terms "a" and "an" and "the" and similar referents in the context of describing the disclosed embodiments (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms "comprising," "having,"
"including," and "containing" are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning "including, but not limited to,") unless otherwise noted. The term "connected" is to be construed as partly or wholly contained within, attached to, or joined together, even if there is something intervening.
Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., "such as") provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate embodiments of the disclosure and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the disclosure unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the disclosure.
[0070] Disjunctive language such as the phrase "at least one of X, Y, or Z,"
unless specifically stated otherwise, is intended to be understood within the context as used in general to present that an item, term, etc., may be either X, Y, or Z, or any combination thereof (e.g., X, Y, and/or Z). Thus, such disjunctive language is not generally intended to, and should not, imply that certain embodiments require at least one of X, at least one of Y, or at least one of Z to each be present.
[0071] Preferred embodiments of this disclosure are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the disclosure. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate and the inventors intend for the disclosure to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this disclosure includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the disclosure unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

Claims (20)

CLAIMS:

1. A method of fabricating an attachment system for receiving MOLLE-compatible gear relative to a load-bearing platform, the method comprising:
applying a coating to a sheet of base material, the coating comprising material comprising polyurea;
cutting a plurality of openings in the sheet of base material so that the openings are arranged in a repeating hexagonal pattern;
mounting an attachment platform to the load-bearing platform, the attachment platform comprising the sheet of base material haying the coating and the plurality of openings arranged in the repeating hexagonal pattern.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the cutting is performed after the applying the coating.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the applying the coating to the sheet of base material comprises applying the coating to a rear side of the sheet of base material without applying the coating to a front side of the sheet of base material.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the mounting the attachment platform to the load-bearing platform comprises mounting the attachment platform so that the rear side of the sheet of base material faces the load-bearing platform.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the sheet of base material comprises nylon.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the load-bearing platform is connected with or comprises at least a portion of a vest assembly such that the mounting the attachment platform to the load-bearing platform comprises mounting the attachment platform to the vest assembly.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the material of the coating comprises a hybrid elastomer compound that contains polyurea blended with other substances.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the material of the coating comprises a polyurea/polyurethane blend.

9. A vest assembly, comprising:
a front panel;
a rear panel;
a shoulder yoke attached to the front panel and the rear panel so that when the shoulder yoke is wom by a wearer, the front panel is positioned on a front of the wearer and the rear panel is positioned on a rear of the wearer;
a load-bearing platform connected with or comprising at least a portion of at least one of the front panel or the rear panel; and a substrate comprising:
a) an attachment platform mounted to the load-bearing platform, the attachment platform comprising a coating comprising polyurea; and b) a plurality of openings formed in the attachment platform and arranged in a repeating hexagonal pattern configured to facilitate attachment of MOLLE-compatible accessories to the attachment platform.

10. The vest of claim 9, wherein the coating comprises a hybrid elastomer compound that contains polyurea blended with other substances.

11. The vest of claim 9, wherein the coating comprises a polyurea/polyurethane blend.

12. The vest of claim 9, wherein the substrate comprises a first side and a second side, wherein the coating is present on the first side and not present on the second side.

13. The vest of claim 12, wherein the first side is mounted to the load-bearing platform so as to face outwardly from the vest.

14. A substrate for an attachment system, the substrate comprising:
a) an attachment platform;
b) a coating applied to the attachment platform and comprising polyurea; and c) a plurality of openings formed in the attachment platform and arranged in a repeating hexagonal pattern configured to facilitate attachment of accessories to the attachment platform by weaving through multiple of the openings along any of at least three differing axes.

15. The substrate of claim 9, wherein the coating comprises a hybrid elastomer compound that contains polyurea blended with other substances.

16. The substrate of claim 9, wherein the coating comprises a polyurea/polyurethane blend.

17. The substrate of claim 9, wherein the attachment platform comprises nylon material.

18. The substrate of claim 9, wherein the attachment platform is connected with or comprises at least a portion of an article of load-bearing equipment.

19. The substrate of claim 18, wherein the article of load-bearing equipment comprises at least one of a vest assembly, a garment, clothing, pants, a shirt, a jacket, a vest, a girdle, a pack, a pouch, a holster, a sheath, an ammunition clip, gear, a wall, a vehicle interior panel or other interior part, a vehicle exterior component or other exterior part.

20. The substrate of claim 19, wherein the article of load-bearing equipment comprises a vest assembly.