CZ300595B6 - Armor made of multiple layers and process for producing thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an armor made of multiple layers (30) of flexible relatively inelastic penetration-resistant material shaped to fit over a shaped area to be protected, wherein the layers (30) are held by a plurality of darts (37) in successive layers (30) of the material, each of said layers of material having at least one dart (37) and each dart (37) in a layer (30) comprising a generally V-shaped section (35) whose edges are joined to form the dart (37), with the V-shaped section (35) folded on itself and folded over to one side to form an added thickness overlaying or underlying an adjacent part of the layer (30), the darts (37) in said multiple layers being angularly offset from one another with the folded V-shaped sections (35) oriented such that said added thickness is distributed substantially evenly around said shaped area. The invention also relates to a process for producing the above-described armor, said process comprising: providing multiple layers (30) of flexible relatively inelastic penetration-resistant material to be assembled into the shaped armor, each layer (30) having fold lines (36, 38) defining at least one dart (37) comprising a generally V-shaped section of the material, the darts (37) of the different layers (30) being angularly offset from one another around at least one point (39) of convergence; joining the edges of the V-shaped sections (35) to form the dart(s) (37) in each layer (30), the layers (30) with formed darts (37) all having substantially the same peripheral shape for assembly into the shaped armor; assembling the multiple layers (30) to form the shaped part, with darts (37) of different layers (30) angularly offset to one another and with the V-shaped sections (35) of material folded in directions to distribute the added thickness substantially evenly; and attaching the shaped multiple layers (30) to form the armor.

Description

The invention relates to a shell made of a plurality of layers of penetration-resistant material, and more particularly to a body shell having a portion which is specially shaped to abut a rounded body area such as a female bust or a female chest.

The invention also relates to a method for producing the object of a specially shaped multilayer carapace.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is known to use resilient fibers, such as polyaramid fibers, in multilayer structures to provide ballistic protection in body shells. Bulletproof vests from a multilayer structure have proven very satisfactory as body armor for men and women, but difficulties have arisen in improving comfort for female wearers, especially in shaping the armor and adapting it to the woman's body.

The comfort and comfort of the wearer as well as the effectiveness of the carapace in preventing injuries are in a very close relationship. Depending on the level of protection and the type of fabric, 10 to 50 layers of fabric are used. This creates a somewhat rigid structure that does not fully adapt to distinct body contours, particularly in the female bust area. If the carapace does not fit in comfortable contact with the wearer's body, the impact transmission becomes uneven and the body carapace does not function as it should. Shaped body shell regions are particularly susceptible to damage through shots at a tangential incidence angle. In addition, the female bust is particularly susceptible to traumatic shock injury.

A number of proposals have already been made for a multi-layered body shell, specially shaped to protect contoured areas of the body, such as a female bust. However, the formation of a multi-layered carapace in a special shape is very difficult due to the fact that the layers of the body-resistant material are flexible but relatively inelastic. This is the biggest problem.

Shaping the front shell panel by attaching cut fabric panels with overlapping seams using a special moving pattern has been suggested in U.S. Pat. No. 4,183,097. However, if the overlapping seams are not long enough, the missiles can penetrate the vest at a certain angle while increasing the dimensions of the overlapping seams. creates a hard edge in an area where a woman needs as much flexibility and flexibility as possible.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,578,821 proposes the insertion of a flexible multilayer ballistic panel into the front pocket of the carrier garment. This part is held by Velcro fasteners, ie using a so-called Velcro fastener, which allows it to be adapted to different chest sizes, but the protected area is limited and the Velcro fastener cannot provide a good ballistic effect. Such a system is therefore only suitable for a low level of protection.

GB 2 231 481 proposes a waistcoat, the inner part of which is provided with a foamed plastic material shaped to abut against the bust. A molded rigid or semi-rigid impact absorbing member is added to these plastic layers and finally a multilayer ballistic assembly is inserted, the entire arrangement being enclosed in the package. With this construction, the ballistic system can be shaped by bending around a horizontal line. This can only be achieved by leaving large openings on the left and right sides of the chest,

So that protection in these side areas will be very problematic. In addition, such a vest will be relatively heavy, stiff and uncomfortable to wear.

Another suggestion in U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,157 was the use of rigid non-reflective bowls made of high-strength laminated polyethylene material which are worn on a female bust under a conventional soft body vest to protect against ballistic impact injury. However, the impact-induced pressure will nevertheless be transmitted to the rim of the dish, which may cause injury. In addition, such rigid bowls are very uncomfortable to wear.

A shaped body shell of shaped aramid fiber layers in a PVC shell, produced at a pressure of 400 to 800 kPa and at a temperature of 180 to 300 ° C, was proposed in DE-A 44 23 194 and in WO 96/01405. However, the aramid fibers have an elongation of up to 4%, which can lead to damage during molding. In addition, the forming of the layers stretches the fibers, thereby increasing the interstices between the fibers and reducing the ballistic efficiency. Also, this shaping in the PVC shell creates a shell that is relatively stiff.

Thus, the above-mentioned prior art designs for forming a specially shaped multilayer body shell cannot ensure the production of a lightweight multilayer structure that snugly adheres to the body while providing excellent ballistic protection, and can be manufactured using available devices operating under normal ambient conditions. temperature.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to overcome the aforementioned problems of the prior art and to develop a multilayered carapace, specially shaped to abut the contoured region while providing reliable ballistic protection and high wearing comfort.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a simple method of shaping such a multilayered shell which will not require the use of a heat treatment that reduces the effectiveness of the shell.

The above objects are achieved by developing a new method of folding darts to form shaped layers by more or less uniformly distributed darts in a rotational process (angular offset), as will be described in more detail below.

Thus, in accordance with the present invention, a shell made of a plurality of layers of flexible, relatively inelastic material, resistant to penetration of bodies, shaped to abut the shaped area to be protected, has been developed.

The layers are held by a plurality of darts in successive layers of material, each of the layers of material having at least one dart and each dart in the layer comprising a generally V-shaped section whose edges are joined to form the darts, the V-shaped section being folded stacked over one side to form an additional thickness lying above or below the adjacent portion of the layer, wherein the darts are angled relative to one another with the V-shaped sections oriented such that the additional thickness is distributed substantially uniformly around the shaped areas.

The folded V-shaped sections are preferably oriented in different directions.

The material layer pairs preferably have darts in the same direction, wherein their folded V-shaped sections are oriented in opposite directions so that they do not overlap one another. The layers forming pairs with darts in the same direction are preferably alternating layers.

-2GB 300595 B6

The darts preferably extend radially from at least one convergence point.

The darts are preferably angularly offset relative to each other about a convergence point by an angle equal to or greater than the angle of the V-shaped sections.

In a preferred embodiment, it is a body shell comprising at least one part shaped to abut a shaped body part.

The armor of the present invention is preferably shaped to abut a bust of a female wearer, and is provided with two laterally positioned internally concave recessed portions corresponding to the bust, in which the darts are angularly passed around each of the two laterally located recessed portions around which is additionally the thickness is distributed substantially uniformly.

The two laterally located concave recessed portions corresponding to the bust are preferably formed by darts around the upper, lower and outer edges of the recessed portions defining a continuously shaped bust for receiving two breasts.

The darts preferably extend radially from two laterally spaced convergence points corresponding to the 20 centers of the recessed portions, wherein the darts extend above and below the two convergence points over an overall angle of at least about 180 °.

Preferably, each of the V-shaped sections forms an angle of 10 to 40 °.

The shell according to the invention preferably comprises darts in at least three angularly offset positions about the convergence point, or at least six angularly offset positions about the convergence point.

The layers of the penetration-resistant material preferably comprise polyaramid fibers.

Preferably, the at least two successive layers of penetration-resistant material are glued together or joined together as a sandwich.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method for producing the aforementioned shell has also been developed, comprising the following steps:

providing a plurality of layers of flexible, relatively inelastic, penetration-resistant material for assembly into a shaped shell, each layer provided with fold lines defining at least one dart comprising a generally V-shaped material portion, wherein the darts of the different layers are angularly offset relative to each other around at least one convergence point, the edges of the V-shaped sections are joined to form a dart or darts in each layer, wherein the dart-shaped layers all have substantially the same circumferential shape to assemble into a shaped carapace; parts, wherein the darts of the different layers are angularly offset relative to one another, and the V-shaped fabric sections fold substantially uniformly in the directions of additional thickness distribution, and the plurality of shaped layers are joined to form carapace.

The material layer pairs preferably have darts in the same direction, wherein the V-shaped sections of these layers 50 flex in opposite directions so that they do not overlap one another.

The pairs of layers with darts in the same direction are preferably assembled in alternating layers.

-3GB 300595 B6

Preferably, the edges of the V-shaped sections are joined to form the darts by stitching, stapling, riveting or gluing.

According to the present invention, a shell, in particular a body shell, has been proposed which is made of a plurality of layers of flexible and relatively inelastic material, resistant to penetration of bodies and specially shaped to abut the shaped area to be protected.

By "specially shaped" is meant non-planar parts of a three-dimensional structure, such as a corset.

In accordance with the present invention, the layers are maintained in shape by a plurality of darts in subsequent layers of material.

Each dart in the layer comprises a generally V-shaped section whose edges are joined to form the darts, wherein the V-shaped section is folded on top of one another and is folded over one side of the darts to create an additional thickness lying above or below the adjacent parts of the layer.

Also in accordance with the present invention, said darts are angularly offset relative to one another, wherein the folded V-shaped sections are oriented such that said additional thickness is distributed substantially uniformly.

The resulting specially shaped light shell is comfortable to wear without compromising on ballistic protection. The absence of cut-outs in the darts means that there are no lines of weakening that could allow projectiles to penetrate.

The additional thickness of the enclosed portions of the V-shaped sections, which are distributed substantially uniformly around the molded region, creates special protective layers over the molded portions where the projectiles are likely to fall at a tangential angle and cause injury.

However, excellent ballistic protection is not the result of these thickened portions, but is mainly due to the fact that the design does not create any weaknesses that could reduce the ballistic efficiency of the main layers.

The shape formed in this way allows it to fit better on the body contours without representing any restriction on the extent of protection provided by the multilayer structure.

Due to their uniform distribution, the folded parts do not adversely affect the flexibility of the carapace and its wearing comfort. In addition, the excess weight of the folded parts is negligible. The body shell thus remains lightweight and comfortable to wear, while providing increased protection against injury.

The folded sections of the V-shaped material create folds that can all be oriented in the same direction, i.e. they can be folded to the same side. However, these folds are usually oriented in different directions. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the pairs of layers of material are provided with darts at the same angular position, the folds of which are oriented in opposite directions so that they do not overlap one another. The layers of material forming these pairs may be adjacent to each other, but are preferably alternating layers, which improves flexibility and comfort by eliminating the possibility of blocking these folds, which could lead to increased stiffness or bulging.

If preferred, angular gaps may be left between the darts so that corresponding angular gaps may be left between some or all of the angularly adjacent folds of the different layers.

-4GB 300595 B6

This can contribute to the flexibility of the molded part without compromising its safety. Importantly, it is the angular distribution of the pleats in such a way that the extra thickness is uniformly distributed, thereby eliminating bulging or increased stiffness, which could lead to reduced comfort and safety.

The darts essentially extend generally radially from at least one convergence point or region. Typically, the darts are angularly displaced about a point or region of convergence by an angle that is equal to or greater than the angle of the V-shaped section before it is folded. This eliminates unwanted overlapping of the fold fold edges.

Each layer of material is usually provided with one dart or, in the case of a women's specially shaped body shell, two darts that are arranged symmetrically on either side of two points or regions of convergence. However, it is also possible for each layer of material to have multiple darts, for example four darts on each side, extending above and below two convergence points or regions.

The main application of the specially shaped armor according to the invention is a body armor comprising at least one part which is specially shaped to abut a shaped body part, such as a chest, cervical and / or collar region, shoulder or elbow, knee or another joint. The body shell may be a soft or relatively rigid or hard shell in the form of a waistcoat or arm or leg protector and the like.

A particular application is the body shell, which is specially shaped to abut the breast of a female wearer, and which has two laterally positioned concave recessed parts corresponding to the breast. In this embodiment, the darts are angled about each of the two laterally located recessed portions about which the additional thickness is distributed substantially uniformly.

In this feminine specially shaped body shell, the two laterally spaced concave recessed portions that correspond to the bust are typically formed by darts around the upper, lower, and outer edges of the recessed portions defining a contoured contoured breasts for receiving two breasts.

Alternatively, two breast dishes may be provided, but this is not necessary. In this case, it would be possible to arrange enough darts axially offset relative to each other such that the folds cover substantially the entire circular region around each laterally located recessed portion.

The darts of this feminine specially shaped body shell extend radially from two laterally spaced points of convergence corresponding to the centers of the recessed portions above and below the two points or convergence regions, preferably extending along an angle of at least about 180 °.

The body shell of the present invention in the form of a waistcoat typically has a front and a back panel which are attached to each other or releasably fastened by, for example, Velcro fasteners, or so-called Velcro fasteners, for example shaped to fit the bust of a female through the described new arrangement of darts.

The invention relates both to the entire waistcoat and to its front panel, which can be sold separately.

The angle of the V-shaped flexible material sections depends on the degree of curvature required for a particular application. For most applications, the V-shaped sections will occupy an angle of about 10 to 40 ° C.

For a women's specially shaped body shell, an angle of from about 15 to 30 °, more preferably from 20 to 25 °, is preferably recommended, providing recessed portions having a shape that is suitable for most women's breasts.

V-shaped sections having an angle of less than 10 ° are suitable, for example, for neck-forming. If small angles are used, special attention must be paid to the proper folding and position of the relatively narrow folds (half-angle V-shaped) to prevent bulging.

V-shaped sections having an angle greater than 40 ° may be suitable, for example, for elbows and shapes.

The assembled layers of material typically have at least three dart locations around each of the two laterally located recessed portions.

However, for certain applications, two dart locations may suffice, with pleats in different layers at each dart location folded in opposite directions to widen as much as possible the additional thickness of the pleats.

The six-fold configuration with folds around each of the two laterally located recessed portions has proven very satisfactory for women's vests. The maximum number of dart locations must be determined for the intended application and also in terms of production conditions.

The shape formed by a special dart arrangement according to the invention may be symmetrical or asymmetric about one or more convergence points or around one or more convergence regions. The non-symmetrical shape may be made by the non-symmetrical distribution of the dart locations and / or may comprise V-shaped sections (in the same layer or different layers) having different angles, or through the non-symmetrical fold folding.

As will be described in more detail below, the material which is resistant to penetration of the bodies is preferably made of polyaramid fibers, and in order to improve the penetration resistance and to reduce the deformation of the back part, one or more layers (usually only the back and / or or front layer) attached to the polymer. It is also possible for the body shell to provide one or more front pockets for receiving the ballistic panels, or it may be associated with other protective layers to improve the ballistic effect and / or reduce the deformation of the rear portion if desired. For example, a rigid or semi-rigid front layer may be attached.

Various types of fibers, such as polyolefin-containing fibers, such as polyethylene, polyimide, polyester, or polyaramide, having a toughness of at least 900 MPa in accordance with ASTM, can be used as the body penetration-resistant material of the multilayered body shell of the present invention. D-885, which is approximately 7g / denier. In order to achieve excellent resistance to body penetration, the fiber toughness must be at least 2000 MPa in accordance with ASTM D-885.

Polyaramid fibers are recommended because they have the required toughness which exceeds the recommended limit of 2000 MPa up to 45 ends and in addition have good chemical resistance.

The fibers may be present in the material in many different forms, preferably as a knitted fabric, a woven fabric, a single-wave structure, a unidirectional structure or a multidirectional fabric (having, for example, fibers intersecting at an angle between 20 and 90 °) or as a nonwoven layer. (for example, felt felts). It is also possible to use foil-like sheets of material which is resistant to penetration of bodies.

For manufacturing efficiency, availability and geometric strength (well defined stable structure), a woven fabric of high tenacity fibers is recommended. The fabric structure can

Preferably, the plain weave is made of 42 x 42 or 28 x 28 warp threads per centimeter, or 14x14 or 6.7 x 6.7 warp threads per centimeter, but other woven structures can be equally well used. , depending on applicable requirements.

The specific weight of such a fabric is usually from 0.02 to 0.5 kg / m ² , preferably from 0.05 to 0.5 kg / m ^2, and even more preferably from 0.08 to 0.3 kg / m ² , to achieve a balance between body penetration resistance and specific gravity.

If the specific gravity is below 0.02 kg / m ² , the ballistic resistance of the fabric, even if made of polyaramid fibers, is generally unacceptable, and if the specific gravity is above 0.5 kg / m ² , A larger number of textile layers becomes impractical due to weight constraints.

The fibers used have a suitable denier number (defined as a weight in grams of 9000 m of yarn) of from 0.1 to 3500 and preferably from 10 to 3500 depending on the desired ratio of fabric weight to ballistic effect. Fibers with a denier number of from 1000 to 3000 are used for less demanding applications, while for highly demanding applications of low specific gravity, fibers with a denier number of from 1 to 1000 and preferably from 50 to 1000 are used.

In a number of cases, the denier number range from 1 to 3000 for fibers is very excellent. The fibers may be present in uncoated form, or they may be coated or otherwise pretreated (e.g., prestretched or heat treated). When polyaramid fibers are used, it is generally not necessary to coat or otherwise pre-treat the fibers other than by arranging them in a suitable woven or nonwoven layer. In some cases, however, the coating may be applied to the fibers, for example, to increase their adhesion to the polymeric continuous material.

In order to improve the resistance to penetration and to reduce the deformation of the rear portion, one or more layers of the above-described fibers, usually no and / or a front layer, may be attached to the polymer layer or impregnated with the polymer to achieve both fiber and polymer continuous material properties.

Such a composite material described in European Patent Specification (KB-4060) comprises a layer composed of fibers having a toughness of at least 900 MPa (7 g / denier) in accordance with ASTM D-885 attached to a polymeric continuous material having a flexural modulus from 42 to 1000 MPa in accordance with ASTM D-790, a tensile strength of at least 10 MPa in accordance with ASTM D-638, and an elongation at break of at least 100% in accordance with ASTM D-638.

Thermoplastic polymer is preferably used in such composite materials. Suitable polymers include specific polyethylenes, polyimide, polyetheretherketone, ionomeric resins, phenolic modified gums and polyesters.

The thermoplastic polymer may preferably be an ionomeric resin, more preferably a cation-containing ionomeric resin selected from the group consisting of lithium, sodium and zinc, in particular from 0.1 to 3.0% by weight of such cations.

Alternatively, the thermoplastic polymer may be a phenolic modified resin, in particular a phenolic polyvinyl butyral resin.

The polymeric continuous material may preferably have a tensile strength of at least 20 MPa and an elongation at break of at least 200%, more preferably at least 300%, both in accordance with ASTM D-638.

The flexibility of the polymer layer is an important factor for both the resistance of the composite material to body penetration and the wearing comfort of the body shell containing one or more composite panels.

-7EN 300595 B6

The flexural modulus of the polymer is preferably between 42 and 1000 MPa in accordance with ASTM D-790, in particular between 50 and 800 MPa.

A flexural modulus of greater than 1000 MPa means that the polymer is too stiff to be effectively perforated or to be conveniently worn as a body shell, and a flexural modulus of less than 42 MPa means that the material is too flexible to to exhibit effective stiffness as a composite material for said purposes.

Another advantage of a body shell comprising such a polymeric material is the reduced deformation of the rear portion, which is achieved when the bullet strikes the body shell.

Another important property of the polymer layer is its density, particularly in terms of the desired low specific weight (expressed in kg / m ^{2 of} composite), which is advantageous for easy body shell and ease of handling and efficient construction to reduce weight.

The density of the layer containing the polymer compound is preferably less than 2500 kg / m ³ , and in particular less than 1500 kg / m ³ . Ionomer polymer layers are particularly advantageous in this respect if their density is less than 1000 kg / m ³ .

The polymeric continuous material may suitably be applied as a layer, which may be attached on one side or both sides to the fiber-containing layer, depending on the application and the availability of a suitable manufacturing process.

In a preferred embodiment, the fiber-containing layer is embedded in a polymeric continuous material to immobilize the fibers, resulting in an extremely strong composition. The polymer and fiber layers can be bonded in batch or continuous process by any known techniques such as calendering, extrusion coating, gluing, impregnation, thermal bonding, other forms of bonding layers of two different materials, or even polymerization on site, thereby a polymeric continuous material is formed along with the fibers.

A preferred method of bonding the fibrous and polymer composite layers is by thermal bonding, such as batch molding or in a continuous process, in particular by means of a belt press or calender.

When layers of such composite fibers and polymers are contained in the shaped body shell of the present invention, such panels can be shaped using darts and folds as described above.

No heat treatment is required during this shaping process. However, it is possible to use one or more layers of fibrous and polymer composite material that have been preformed by compression.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of making a multilayer specially molded shell which comprises providing a plurality of layers of flexible and relatively inelastic body penetration-resistant material to be assembled into a shaped shell. Each layer has a fold line defining at least one dart comprising a generally V-shaped material section, wherein the darts of the various layers are angularly offset relative to each other about at least one point or convergence region.

First, the edges of the V-shaped sections are joined to form darts in each layer, wherein the layers with the formed darts all have substantially the same circumferential shape for the purpose of assembling them into a body shell.

-8EN 300595 B6

Usually all of these layers are identical in shape and size. However, sometimes it may be advantageous to arrange the layers with slightly different shapes or dimensions, for example in order to achieve a progressive shape when the layers are assembled.

Thereafter, the plurality of layers are assembled to form the molded part from different layers with darts angled relative to each other and with sections of V-shaped material folded in the direction of distribution of the additional thickness substantially uniformly around the molded part.

This forming operation is carried out on a suitable substrate. To form, for example, a waistcoat, the layers may be assembled on the breast of a tailor's doll.

Finally, such shaped layers are assembled so as to form a body shell.

The gradual formation of angled darts with folded folds in successive layers (from Layer 2) may be referred to as sequential contour formation, as the contour progresses over successive layers up to thirty, fifty or even more layers.

In this way, the carapace can be sewn so that it is constructed in an anatomically correct shape. Each individual layer of relatively inelastic body-resistant material can be formed by folding, joining the darts, folding the folds, and forming subsequent layers.

On the one hand, it is possible to sew such corsets, such as waistcoats directly tailored to the individual wearer. On the other hand, shaped corsets such as waistcoats can be manufactured and adapted to fit different wearers.

Folding and fastening does not require the use of any special equipment or tools, as it can be performed using known existing techniques of modern textile and cutting techniques.

An advantage of such a method of assembly is that multilayer shapes can be advantageously produced using relatively thin layers of penetration-resistant material assembled into a plurality of layers, for example fifty layers or more.

Indeed, it is well known that ballistic efficiency improves along with the number of layers, even with the same overall thickness.

Preferably, the pairs of layers of dart material are arranged at the same angular location, wherein the V-shaped portions of the layers are folded in opposite directions so that they do not overlap, and the pairs of dart layers at the same angular location are preferably assembled in alternating layers.

Through this new method of construction of thin protective layers, layers (at overlapping points where the folds are folded) are provided which provide additional additional protection against ballistic impact, especially in shaped areas where bullets or shells strike at a certain angle (not perpendicular) impact).

The edges of the V-shaped sections can be sewn together to form darts, preferably using aramid yarn poles. Alternatively, the edges may be joined by other means, such as by means of polyaramide clips or rivets, or by gluing. The layers of impact-resistant material are commonly joined by stitching.

When the layers of material are attached to each other, care is taken to maintain the shape and prevent the formation of air pockets. The front panel may be

300595 B6 formed by interconnecting two or more bodies of layers of material resistant to penetration of bodies formed by assembling the layers with angularly offset darts as described above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to the following examples, which will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front axonometric view of a body armor whose front panel is specially shaped in accordance with the present invention and is intended to be worn by women;

Figs. 2-1 to Fig. 2-12 are schematic plan views, each showing half of one layer of material, the twelve layers of Figs. 2-1 to Fig. 2-12 being shown prior to assembly of subsequent layers to form a shaped the front panel of the body armor of FIG. 1;

Fig. 3 shows dart formation in one of said layers;

Figures 4-1 to 4 4 illustrate folding of the darts of the four successive layers prior to (or during) the assembly of the layers;

Fig. 5 is a schematic plan view showing the angular distribution of the folded folds; and Fig. 6 is a schematic plan view showing how the rear body armor of Fig. 1 can be assembled.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Figure 1 shows a light bulletproof vest provided with a front panel 10 specially shaped to abut the breast or chest of a female wearer and further provided with a rear panel 20, both of which are formed from a stack of layers, made of a material that is resistant to penetration of bodies.

The front panel 10 has an upper thoracic section 14 and a lower thoracic section 15, which sections are shaped so as to form two lateral spatially inner concave recessed parts corresponding to the female bust. The inner layers of the penetration-resistant material of the bodies from which the front panel 10 is formed are formed by a series of angled-through darts, as will be described in more detail hereinafter with reference to Figures 2 to 4.

As shown in FIG. 1, the front panel 10 and the rear panel 20 of the vest are releasably connected to each other by a series of hair clips, in particular hair clips 11 on the top of the front panel 10 which cooperate with the hairs 12 which are fastened to the upper shoulder straps 21, which are fastened to the rear panel 20, and further through hair clips 12 on the lower sides of the front panel 10, which cooperate with hair clips mounted on the lower side belts 22 which are fastened to the bottom of the rear panel 20.

These lower side bands 22 carry an additional cross band 23, and furthermore, for added safety, a belt 24 provided with hair clips in the form of a Velcro.

The layers of penetration-resistant material of the bodies of which the front panel 10 is formed are arranged between the outer cover layer and the lining of a material that is not penetration-resistant. In order to adapt this outer layer to the shape of the front panel 10, seams 17 are provided which extend to and above the bust level.

- 10GB 300595 B6

However, it should be pointed out that in accordance with the present invention, the inner layers of the body penetration-resistant material are provided with no cut-outs as they are assembled by a series of angled-through darts provided with folded folds as described in more detail below with reference to the drawing. 2 to 4.

If desired, the outer cover layer can also be provided with a dart and a folded fold, as is the case with inner layers of a material which is resistant to penetration of the bodies.

Figures 2-1 to 2-12 show the right half of one of the twelve layers 30 of cut-resistant, body-penetrating material 30 prior to assembly of the subsequent layers to form the shaped front panel 10 of the body armor of Figure 1. The other half of each layer 30 is mirror-inverted along line X.

The lines marked inside the perimeter of each layer 30 serve only to indicate the location of the storage and connection lines.

Each layer 30 has two lateral extensions 31 (corresponding to the portions of the front panel W adjacent the waist of the wearer), two lateral arm slits 32 (corresponding to the portions of the front panel adjacent the armpit of the wearer) of a rounded upper chest portion 33 which cover the upper portion of the wearer's chest, i.e., where the fasteners 11) and the concave neck top 34 (corresponding to the portion of the front panel 10 adjacent the wearer's neck) are secured.

Each half of the layer 30 also has a V-shaped section 35 provided with a central fold line 36 about which it can be folded and joined to form darts as shown in Fig. 3. This Fig. 3 shows a layer corresponding to the layer according to FIG. Fig. 2-1 or Fig. 2-3.

As shown in the figures, the layer 30 is folded around a vertical fold line 38 which coincides with the center fold line 36, whereupon the layer 30 may be joined by stitching or stapling along the darts line 37 defining a V-shaped section 35 to forming the darts along the dart connecting line 37, leaving the fold 40, which consists of a V-shaped section 35, that is folded over itself.

As shown for the layers 30 in Figs. 4-1 to 4-4, when two darts 37 are formed on the right and left portions of each layer 30, the outer perimeter of the layer 30 assumes a shape that is substantially the same for However, the subsequent layers 30 may have different dimensions and shapes as a function of the desired shape to be formed.

By comparing the figures in Figs. 1-2 to Figs. 2-12, it can be seen that the following layers have darts 37 that are angularly offset relative to each other about the convergence point 39, each layer 30 having two laterally convergence points 39 corresponding to centers of the cut out portions in the front panel 10, which are adapted to receive the wearer's bust.

These convergence points 39 are at approximately the same locations for all twelve layers 30. It will be understood that the pointed ends of the darts 37 may be spaced around the convergence space, for example, around a circular region that is not folded as a result. Such an area will be large enough to prevent twisting and unwanted “duplication” at the convergence point.

Alternate pairs of material layers 30 (particularly those of Figs. 2-1 and 2-3; Figs. 2-2 and 24; Figs. 2-5 and Figs. 2-7, Fig. 2 Figs. 6 and 2 - 8; Figs. 2 - 9 and Figs. 2 - 11; Figs. 2-10 and Fig. 2-12) are identical, so that the darts 37 of the layers of each pair are located at the same angular position. . The darts 37 of the following layers (Fig. 2-1, Fig. 2-2, Fig. 2-3 and so on) are angularly offset relative to each other. The darts 37 of FIG. 2-1, FIG. 2-2, and FIG.

- 11 GB 300595 B6

2-3, Figs. 2-4 are offset by 180 ° to each other. The darts 37 of the other successive layers lie at different angles, as represented in FIGS. 2-5 through 2-12 by the center fold lines 36.

Generally, the darts 37 of the odd-numbered layers are located at the top, while the darts 37 of the even-numbered layers are located at the bottom of their layer 30, except for the layer 30 of Figs.

In this example, the angle of the letter V between the dart lines 37 forming each dart is about 22.5 ° so that the 6 darts side by side will occupy a range of 135 °.

However, it can be seen that all darts 37 will occupy an angle of about 195 °, starting from one end at the top from darts 37 of Figures 2-9 and Figs. 2-11 to darts 37 of Figures 2-2 and Figs. 2-4 at the bottom end, with a gap between the other darts 37, as shown in FIG. 5.

As shown in Figures 4-1 to 4-4, the pleats 40 associated with the darts 37 are folded in alternate directions to achieve the best possible thickness distribution when assembling all layers 30. Each pleat 40 occupies half the widths of the V-shaped section, the folds 40 being optionally folded in alternating directions.

In Fig. 4-1, the left fold 40 at the top of the first layer 30 is folded to the right, and the right fold 40 is folded to the left. Similarly, in Figure 4-2, the left fold 40 at the bottom of the second layer 30 is folded to the right and the right fold 40 is folded to the left.

For the corresponding subsequent two layers of Figs. 4-3 and 4-4, the folding of the corresponding folds 40 is reversed, that is, for the third and fourth layers 30, the left folds 40 are folded to the left and the right folds 40 are folded to the right.

The same pattern of inverted folds 40 follows for the next group of layer pairs 30. The principle is that the folds 40 of the darts 37 are placed in the same location for the alternate layers (as in FIGS. 2-5 and 2-7, for example). 26 and 2-8), will be folded in opposite directions so that when the layers 30 are assembled, these folds 40 will not overlap each other (see FIG. 5). This folding of the folds 40 may be performed after the darts 37 have been formed or the layers 30 have been assembled.

The layers 30 with their darts 37 are then successively assembled on the bust with the pleats 40 of the subsequent layers folded as described above.

Each layer 30 is arranged on the next (or previous) layer by needles. The same procedure is repeated for all twelve layers 30 with the folds 40 lying in selected directions at the top of layer 30, except for the last layer where the fold can be rotated inward to provide a smooth outer surface.

The assembled and shaped layers 30 are held in clamps and stapled (or otherwise attached to each other) around their periphery, taking care to maintain shape during stitching and to force air to prevent the formation of air pockets. For this purpose, it is preferable not to stitch continuously around the circumference, but to sew one circumferential section each, starting from the rounded upper chest portion 33 and ending at the lower corners. If desired, the waist portion may be arranged to provide the best possible shape.

Due to the darts 37, the assembled layers 30 are shaped to form two side spatial recessed portions in a single cup configuration adapted to abut the wearer's bust, wherein the pleats 40 of the different layers 30 are directionally oriented such that the additional thickness is distributed in substantially uniformly around the molded portions so that any bulging or poor flexibility is prevented.

- 12GB 300595 B6

In Fig. 5, the angular distribution of the pleats 40 in the assembled group is schematically illustrated. In this Fig. 5, the pleats L1 to L12 are referred to and the respective layers 30 correspond to those of Figs. 2-1 to Fig. 2-12.

In this example, the folds are L11-L9. L3-L1, L7-L5, L12-L10, L6-L8 and L2-L4, running in clockwise direction, arranged together in pairs folded in opposite directions along the lines forming their darts 37. L1-L7, L5 folds L12, L10-L6, and L8-L2 are all angularly spaced from each other by extending the layer 30 that is not covered by the folds.

Due to the alternating angular arrangement of the darts 37 and the selected orientation of the pleats 40, no pleat in the bundle overlaps each other. In addition, the folds 40, the outer edges of which coincide angularly with each other (in this case L3 and L9), are separated by an overlapping portion of at least one intermediate layer 30 (especially L4-L8) so that there is no risk of interference between folds 40 which could cause wrinkling or bulging.

In the final assembly, the pleats 40 are spaced evenly around the outer portions of the cup-like recess, forming two separate protective layers in this sensitive zone at the locations covered by the pleats 40.

If two special protective areas are required over the non-covered areas in the illustration of FIG. 5, this can be achieved simply by including the special layers in the dart bundle at the desired extraordinary locations.

The front panel 10 of FIG. 1 may be formed by interconnecting a selected number of bundles of the twelve layer stack 30 as described above, for example, two bundles forming a twenty-four layer stack, or three bundles forming a thirty-six layer stack, and so on.

It is also possible to form fractional assemblies, for example two and a half bundles, forming a 30-layer panel.

FIG. 6 illustrates how layers of a body-penetrating material can be assembled to form the back panel 20 of FIG. 1.

Here, the layers 50 that are shaped to form the rear panel 20 are placed together with a curvature for the shape of the rear panel 20, after which they are sewn or otherwise attached to each other.

All layers 50, except the last five, are sewn together around their perimeter 51 and are cross-stitched 52. The last five layers 50 (i.e., those layers that will be closest to the tangent) are only about each other around the perimeter 5 ί. Thereafter, the groups are moved together only at the top and side regions of the perimeter 51.

The front panel 10 and the rear panel 20 are then provided with their respective covering layer and lining, and are also provided with appropriate Velcro fasteners.

Example

The molded body armor front was made as described above from thirty layers of Kevlar® Style 363 F fabric stitched using 930 dtex Kevlar® yarns. Ke v 1 ar® is a trademark owned by DuPont.

The layers were assembled on a chest model having dimensions of 94-64-97 cm (i.e., size 42). The finished molded front panel was arranged on a liner liner backing and then subjected to standard ballistic testing.

- 13 GB 300595 B6

The bullets were aimed at the top, side, and interface of the curved chest section under standard conditions. All bullets were captured in the first half of the beam, which is evidence of a very good ballistic design. In addition, the deformation of the back of the plastilina backing material was very satisfactory.

Claims (7)

A shell made of a plurality of layers (30) of flexible, relatively inelastic material, resistant to penetration of bodies, shaped to abut the shaped area to be protected, characterized in that the layers (30) are held by a plurality of darts (37) in following 15 layers of material (30), each of the material layers (30) having at least one dart (37) and each dart (37) in the layer (30) comprising a generally V-shaped section (35) whose edges are joined for forming the darts (37), wherein the V-shaped section (35) is folded on top of one another and is folded over one side to create an additional thickness lying above or below the adjacent portion of the layer (30), wherein the darts (37) are multiple of the layers (30) angularly 20 are pushed relative to one another with V-shaped sections (35) oriented such that the additional thickness is distributed substantially uniformly around the shaped area. A shell according to claim 1, characterized in that the folded V-shaped sections (35) are oriented in different directions. A shell according to claim 2, characterized in that the pairs of material layers (30) have darts (37) in the same direction, wherein their folded V-shaped sections (35) are oriented in opposite directions so that they do not overlap one another. 30 A shell according to claim 3, characterized in that the layers (30) forming pairs with darts (37) in the same direction are alternating layers (30). A shell according to claim 1, characterized in that the darts (37) extend radially from at least one convergence point (39). A shell according to claim 5, characterized in that the darts (37) are angularly offset relative to each other (39) by an angle equal to or greater than the angle of the V-shaped sections (35). The armor of claim 1, wherein the armor comprises at least one portion shaped to abut the shaped body portion. 8. A shell according to claim 7, characterized in that it is shaped to abut on the breast of a female wearer, and is provided with two laterally positioned internally. 45 with concave recessed portions corresponding to the bust, in which the darts (37) are angularly offset about each of the two laterally located recessed portions around which the additional thickness is distributed substantially uniformly. Armor according to claim 8, characterized in that two laterally placed concave The recessed portions corresponding to the bust are formed by darts (37) around the upper, lower and outer edges of the recessed portions defining a continuously shaped bust for receiving two breasts. A shell according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that the darts (37) extend 55 radially from two laterally spaced convergence points (39) corresponding to the centers of the recessed parts, wherein the darts (37) extend above and below the two convergence points (39) over an overall angle of at least about 180 °. A shell according to claim 1, characterized in that each of the V-shaped sections (35) forms an angle of 10 to 40 °. Armor according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises darts (37) in at least three angularly offset positions about the convergence point (39). A shell according to claim 12, characterized in that it comprises darts (37) in at least six angularly offset positions about the convergence point (39). Armor according to claim 1, characterized in that the layers (30) of the body-resistant material comprise polyaramid fibers. A shell according to claim 1, characterized in that at least two successive layers (30) of the body-resistant material are glued together or joined together as a sandwich. A method for producing a shell according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises the following steps: providing a plurality of layers (30) of flexible, relatively inelastic, penetration-resistant material for assembly into a shaped shell, each layer (30) being provided with fold lines (36, 38) defining at least one dart (37) comprising a section (30); 35) of a generally V-shaped material, wherein the darts (37) of the different layers (30) are angularly offset relative to one another 25 to each other around at least one convergence point (39), the edges of the V-shaped sections (35) merge to form darts (37) or darts (37) in each layer (30), wherein the layers (30) with darts formed (37) ) all having substantially the same circumferential shape to be assembled into a shaped carapace, the plurality of layers (30) being assembled to form the shaped portion, the darts (37) of the different 30 layers (30) being angularly offset relative to each other and fabric sections (35) of the letter V translates substantially uniformly in the directions of distribution of the additional thickness, and a plurality of shaped layers (30) merge to form a shell. Method according to claim 16, characterized in that the pairs of layers (30) of material 35 have darts (37) in the same direction, wherein the sections (35) of these V-shaped layers (30) fold in opposite directions so that do not overlap each other. A method according to claim 17, characterized in that (37) are assembled in alternating layers in the same direction. 'XJ ¹ Method according to claims 16, 17 or 18, characterized in that the edges of the V-shaped sections (35) are joined to form darts by stitching, stapling, riveting or gluing. 7 drawings