Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F41—WEAPONS
  • F41H—ARMOUR; ARMOURED TURRETS; ARMOURED OR ARMED VEHICLES; MEANS OF ATTACK OR DEFENCE, e.g. CAMOUFLAGE, IN GENERAL
  • F41H1/00—Personal protection gear
  • F41H1/02—Armoured or projectile- or missile-resistant garments; Composite protection fabrics

Definitions

• the present invention relates generally to body armor and to a closure mechanism for use in body armor, and, particularly, to body armor for the torso including a self-adjusting side closure mechanism.
• Concealable body armor for protection from, for example, edged weapons, sharp objects and ballistic threats has been available for several decades. Since the introduction of concealable body armor, ballistic materials have been improved greatly, resulting in relatively soft or pliant body armor and increased comfort for the user. Modern concealable body armor often includes ballistic panels or packages formed from DuPont's KEVLAR ® ballistic grade fibers/fabrics.
• closure systems have been developed for body armor including, for example, zippers and hook-and-loop type fastening systems (for example, VELCRO ® available from Velcro Industries B.V.).
• closure systems for use in body armor it is desirable to have ballistic paneling cover or underlie the closure mechanism to prevent injury in the area of the body over which the closure mechanism is located.
• a side closure can be desirable to provide increased safety.
• a person wearing body armor will typically be facing an assailant during an attack ' .
• impact of a dangerous object such as a bullet with the side of the wearer is less likely than impact of the object with the front of the wearer.
• a side closure mechanism can thus reduce the likelihood of an object such as a bullet passing through the protection of the body armor in the area of the closure mechanism.
• a side closure mechanism including overlapping ballistic paneling it is desirable that a portion of a front ballistic panel overlap a portion of a back ballistic panel in the region of the side closure.
• a back-to-front overlap there have been cases with a back-to-front overlap in which a bullet has passed into the interior of the body armor by entering the body armor at the end point of the overlap.
• a person wearing body armor is most likely to be facing an assailant and any potential entry point for a projectile approaching the person from the front of the person is preferably eliminated.
• a front-to-back overlap may be desirable, a front- to-back overlap is difficult to achieve in practice. In that regard, it is very difficult for a wearer of body armor (for example, a vest) to achieve an effective front-to-back overlap while wearing the body armor. It is much easier for a wearer of body armor to achieve a back-to-front overlap.
• body armor for example, a vest
• the present invention provides body armor to be worn on the torso of a person.
• the body armor includes a front section having ballistic paneling therein and a back section having ballistic paneling therein.
• the body armor further includes at least one side closure mechanism including a rearward section adapted to be grasped and pulled in a forward direction around the side of the torso to close the closure mechanism.
• the rearward section is in operative connection with a forward section of the side closure mechanism so that the forward section moves in a rearward direction around the side of the torso of the person when the rearward section is pulled in a forward direction.
• the forward section is in operative connection with a portion of the ballistic paneling of the front section so that a portion of the ballistic paneling in the front section overlaps a portion of the ballistic paneling in the back section that extends around a portion of the side of the torso when the closure mechanism is in a closed position.
• the rearward section and the forward section further include cooperating fastening mechanisms to reversibly retain the closure mechanism in a closed state.
• the body armor can, for example, include a length of material attached at a first end to the rearward section and attached at a second end to the forward section.
• the length of material passes through a loop attached to the article of body armor.
• the cooperating fastening mechanisms of the rearward section and the forward section are hook-and- loop type fastening mechanisms.
• the present invention provides body armor to be worn on the torso of a person comprising a vest including a front section having ballistic paneling and a back section having ballistic paneling.
• the vest further includes at least one side closure mechanism including a rearward section adapted to be grasped and pulled in a forward direction around the side of the torso to close the closure mechanism.
• the rearward section is in operative connection with a forward section of the side closure mechanism so that the forward section moves in a rearward direction around the side of the torso of the person when the rearward section is pulled in a forward direction.
• the forward section is in operative connection with a portion of the ballistic paneling of the front section so that a portion of the ballistic paneling in the front section is adapted to overlap a portion of the ballistic paneling in the back section that extends around a portion of the side of the torso when the closure mechanism is in a closed position.
• the rearward section and the forward section include cooperating fastening mechanisms to reversibly retain the closure mechanism in a closed state.
• the cooperating fastening mechanisms of the rearward section and the forward section can, for example, be hook-and-loop type fastening mechanisms.
• the body armor further includes a length of material attached at a first end to the rearward section and attached at a second end to the forward section. The length of material passes through a loop attached to the article of body armor.
• the vest is attached to a shirt.
• the portion of the back section of ballistic paneling that extends around a portion of the side of the torso can be operatively attached to the shirt and at least a part of the portion of front section ballistic paneling that is adapted to overlap the portion of the back section of ballistic paneling can be free to move relative to the shirt.
• the present invention provides a side closure mechanism for body armor including a back-to-front overlapping closing mechanism wherein closing of the closing mechanism results in a front-to-back overlap of ballistic paneling in the area of the closure mechanism.
• Figure IA is an embodiment of an article of body armor of the present invention laid flat on a surface.
• Figure IB is a front view of the body armor of Figure IA wherein the body armor is in the form of a pull over shirt having attached thereto a ballistic vest.
• Figure 2 illustrates a back view of the article of body armor of Figure IA wherein the body armor is laid flat on a surface and the rear closure sections of the opposing closure mechanisms are folded back.
• Figure 3 illustrates a perspective view of an embodiment of a side closure mechanism of the article of body armor of Figure IA and the body armor is not worn on a user.
• Figure 4 illustrates another perspective view of the side closure of Figure 3 wherein force is being applied to the rearward section thereof and the body armor is not worn on a user.
• Figure 5 illustrates another perspective view of the side closure of Figure 3 wherein force is being applied to the rearward section thereof and the body armor is not worn on a user.
• Figure 6A illustrates a perspective view of the closure mechanism of Figure 3 in an open state when worn by a user.
• Figure 6B illustrates a perspective view of the closure mechanism of Figure 3 in the process of being closed when worn by a user.
• Figure 6C illustrates a perspective view of the closure mechanism of Figure 3 in a closed state when worn by a user.
• Figure 7 illustrates a perspective view of a second side closure of the body armor of Figure IA positioned on the opposite side of the side closure illustrated in Figure 3.
• Figure 8 illustrates another perspective view of the side closure of Figure 6A as worn by a user while in an open state.
• the present invention provides a side closure mechanism or system for body armor in which the wearer effects a back-to-front closing or fastening of the side closure mechanism, but such closing results in a front-to-back overlap of ballistic paneling in the area of the closure mechanism.
• FIGs 1 through 8 illustrate an embodiment of an article of body armor 10 of the present invention in which a body armor vest 20 is in operative connection with a shirt 200.
• a body armor vest 20 For example, an exterior shell fabric of the body armor can be sewn to the shirt.
• a user of body armor 10 first dons shirt 200 by pulling shirt 200 over the user's head in a typical fashion. The user can then adjust the fit of body armor vest 20 using one or more side closure mechanisms as described below.
• the side closure mechanisms of the present invention are suitable for use in many different configurations of body armor other than the configuration illustrated in Figures 1 through 8.
• body armor 10 includes ballistic panels (fabricated, for example, from ballistic grade KEVLAR® available from DuPont) that provide resistance to, for example, edged weapons, sharp objects, and ballistic threats.
• vest 20 includes a generally contiguous (in coverage) front ballistic panel 22.
• ballistic panel 22 can be formed from one section or a plurality of separate sections of ballistic fabric. However, the coverage provided by ballistic panel 22 is preferably contiguous.
• Front ballistic panel 22 includes sides sections 24 and 26 adapted to extend around the side of a user.
• Ballistic panel 22, including side sections 24 and 26, is enclosed within an outer shell of fabric forming the front of vest 20.
• vest 20 also includes a generally contiguous (in coverage) rear ballistic panel 32.
• rear ballistic panel 32 can be formed from one section or a plurality of separate sections of ballistic fabric.
• Rear ballistic panel 32 includes sides sections 34 and 36 adapted to extend around the side of a user.
• ballistic panel 32, including side sections 34 and 36 is enclosed within an outer shell of fabric forming the rear of vest 20.
• FIGS 3 through 8 illustrate the operation of side closure mechanisms 50a and 50b of vest 20.
• the structure and operation of side closure mechanisms 50a and 50b are essentially identical. Such structure and operation will be described primarily with reference to side closure mechanism 50a.
• Like components of side closure mechanism 50a and 50b are correspondingly numbered.
• the vest fabric encompassing side section 34 of rear ballistic panel 32 is attached (for example, sewn) to shirt 200 such that side section 34 extends at least partially around the side of shirt 200 when donned by the user (see for example, Figures 3 through 5 and 6 A for closure mechanism 50a and Figure 8 for closure mechanism 50b).
• a rear closure section 60a is in connection (for example, by sewing) with the rear of body armor 10.
• Rear closure section 60a is also in operative connection with a front closure section 70a (which encompasses side section 24 of front ballistic panel 22) via an intermediate member 80a.
• intermediate member 80a is sewn to an underside of rear closure sections 60a a few inches from the end thereof, passes under a loop of material 90a which is attached to vest 20 and is sewn to the end of front closure section 70a on an upper side thereof.
• the fit of vest 20 can be adjusted to fit various size bodies by adjusting the position or amount of overlap of rear closure sections 60a and 60b on front closure sections 70a and 70b, respectively.
• front side ballistic sections 24 and 26 overlap rear side ballistic sections 34 and 36, respectively.
• An underside of rear closure section 60a includes a connection mechanism 62a (for example, a cooperating portion of a hook-and-loop type connecting or fastening system) that cooperates with a cooperating connection mechanism 72a on front closure section 70a to secure rear closure section 60a to front closure section 70a in a desired position to effect a desired fit of armor 10.
• a connection mechanism 62a for example, a cooperating portion of a hook-and-loop type connecting or fastening system
• a cooperating connection mechanism 72a on front closure section 70a to secure rear closure section 60a to front closure section 70a in a desired position to effect a desired fit of armor 10.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Professional, Industrial, Or Sporting Protective Garments (AREA)
• Outer Garments And Coats (AREA)
• Orthopedics, Nursing, And Contraception (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=37769430

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Families Citing this family (1)

Family Cites Families (5)

• 2006
  • 2006-05-04 WO PCT/US2006/017353 patent/WO2007046863A2/en active Application Filing
  • 2006-05-04 CA CA2611420A patent/CA2611420C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2006-05-04 EP EP06844094A patent/EP1899672B1/de not_active Not-in-force

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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