JPH0751161B2 - Sports armor - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial field of application] The present invention is used for armor used in various sports, for example, armor used for martial arts such as kendo and karate, ball games such as American football, ice hockey and baseball. The present invention relates to a protective armor, particularly to a sports protective armor suitable for use as a stand for kendo.

[Prior Art] Conventionally, various types of sports armor have been used, and there are various materials such as natural materials and plastics.
If this is explained using a kendo stand as an example, the kendo stand is generally made of bamboo, leather, or the like. Bamboo body stand configuration is wide
Bamboo of 20 to 30 mm is arranged in one direction and the surface is covered with leather. However, this bamboo pedestal has sufficient strength in one direction, but lacks strength in the other direction. Therefore, when a bamboo sword is applied, it bends easily and the body is directly impacted. It hurts when hit. Also, even during storage, it will be easily broken if excessive force is applied in the left-right direction.

On the other hand, even in the case of a leather body, repeated impacts may cause dents or peeling of the leather, resulting in poor durability.

In addition, since natural materials such as bamboo and leather easily absorb water, there is a drawback that the bad odor becomes stronger due to sweat and the like as they are used. The current situation is that the surface coating has not been sufficiently studied so far, and the repeated impact of a bamboo sword tended to cause flaws and peeling on the surface.

For the natural materials such as bamboo and leather, a kendo stand that uses plastic has also been proposed. For example, a kendo body integrally molded with ABS resin (see Japanese Utility Model Publication No. Sho 45-32821) and a sports armor made by curing a material obtained by impregnating a flexible cloth with an adhesive resin (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 60-66770). Gazette), a kendo body formed by laminating a reinforcing layer in which glass fiber is embedded in polyester resin on one side of a synthetic resin material (see Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 47-41571 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 60-122583). Is proposed.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

However, the conventional kendo body made of plastic is impact-resistant, if it has a weight that does not hinder its use.
Insufficient strength, hardness, etc., on the contrary, necessary impact resistance, strength,
When it is given hardness and the like, it becomes heavy and cannot be used. Therefore, it is not generally used at present.

Therefore, as a result of various studies to eliminate such problems, the inventors of the present invention have reinforced the both sides of the lightweight core material with fiber reinforced plastics, so that they are extremely lightweight but have high impact resistance, strength, The inventors have found that a material having excellent hardness can be obtained, and that this material can be suitably used for other sports protective equipment such as a kendo stand, and have reached the present invention.

[Means for Solving the Problems]

That is, according to the present invention, a fiber-reinforced plastic is laminated on both front and back surfaces of a lightweight core material, and a soft thin film layer is interposed between any one of the lightweight core material and / or the fiber-reinforced plastic to integrate them. It is a sports armor characterized in that the lightweight core material has a plastic material containing micro hollow bodies.

Hereinafter, the configuration of the present invention will be described in more detail.

In the present invention, the lightweight core material has the functions of reducing the weight of the armor as a whole to improve the operability and preventing the fiber-reinforced plastic, which is the reinforcing material, from being distorted against the impact from the armor surface. For this lightweight core material, one that is as lightweight as or better than conventional bamboo or leather and that does not easily dent is used. Specifically, it contains a micro hollow body in the plastic material. The resulting material, for example a syntactic core, is used. This syntactic core is excellent in lightness, strength and productivity. The lightweight core material may be composed only of this syntactic core, or other lightweight and high-strength material such as honeycomb composed of aluminum or aramid, glass fiber,
It is also possible to have a configuration in which felt, wood, foam or the like obtained by impregnating a carbon fiber, aramid fiber or the like with a resin and hardening the resin is laminated. When laminating, the same material may be laminated, or different materials may be laminated. Further, in one armor, the entire lightweight core material does not necessarily have to be made of the same material, and the material of the lightweight core material may be changed according to the place of use.

The plastic matrix constituting the syntactic core used for the lightweight core material may be either thermosetting or thermoplastic plastic, but thermosetting plastic is preferable from the viewpoint of strength. Micro hollow bodies are carbon balloons, glass balloons with a diameter of several microns to several hundreds of microns,
Micro balloons such as silica balloons and plastic balloons are used. In the plastic matrix,
Single crystal fibers such as silicon carbide whiskers or short carbon fibers may be mixed with the micro hollow body to further strengthen it.

Examples of the matrix resin used for the fiber-reinforced plastic that reinforces the front and back surfaces of the lightweight core material include thermosetting resins such as epoxy resin, phenol resin, unsaturated polyester resin, polyimide resin, furan resin, nylon,
Thermoplastic resins such as polycarbonate, polysulfone, polyether sulfone, polyethylene, polypropylene, ABS resin and acrylic resin can be mentioned, and thermosetting resins such as epoxy resin are preferable. Examples of the reinforcing fiber include carbon fiber, glass fiber, and aramid fiber. Particularly, carbon fiber and aramid fiber are preferable because they are lightweight and have excellent strength. The reinforcing fibers are not limited to the same type, but different types may be used in combination. One layer of the fiber reinforced plastic may be provided on each surface of the lightweight core material, or a plurality of layers may be formed on each surface.

Any known method may be used to form the reinforcing fiber-reinforced plastic layer on both sides of the lightweight core material. Among them, unidirectional array (UD) of various fibers, knitting, woven cloth, mats, etc. It is preferable to use a prepreg obtained by impregnating a fiber aggregate such as the above with a thermosetting resin. This prepreg can be laminated directly on the surface of a lightweight core material or through an adhesive, a soft film, etc. and heated under pressure to easily form a high strength, high hardness fiber reinforced plastic layer bonded to the lightweight core material. Can be formed.

As described above, in the armor of the present invention, between the lightweight core material and the fiber reinforced plastic, between the lightweight core material in the laminated structure, between the layers, in the case where the fiber reinforced plastic has the laminated structure, the interlayer, etc. Are integrated by interposing a soft thin film layer between the layers. This soft thin film layer has the effect of preventing peeling between the adhesive surfaces of the layers, the effect of mitigating the impact on the armor, the effect of preventing breakage of the fiber reinforced plastic layer, the effect of improving the impact strength of the armor, It has the effect of damping vibration and sound. As a material for forming the soft thin film layer, a flexible material, for example, a thin film of natural rubber, synthetic rubber, polyurethane rubber or the like, or a foamed thin film thereof,
Examples thereof include thin films of flexible plastics such as vinyl chloride, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyethylene and nylon, foamed thin films thereof, and woven or non-woven fabrics made of nylon fibers and the like. The thickness is 0.05 to 3.0
mm is good, and more preferably in the range of 0.1 to 1.0 mm.

If necessary, a film or a paint may be applied to the front and back surfaces of the armor of the present invention.

The manufacturing method of the sports armor having the above-mentioned constitution may be appropriately selected according to the characteristics of the material of each layer constituting the armor,
For example, a method of forming a lightweight core material into a predetermined shape in advance and forming a layer of a soft thin film and a fiber reinforced plastic layer on both surfaces thereof, and a soft thin film on both sides of a flat plate material before the lightweight core material is formed. It is possible to employ a method of laminating the materials before forming the layer and the fiber reinforced plastic layer, setting the whole in a mold of a predetermined shape, pressurizing and heating, and molding into the final shape.

Examples of the use of the armor of the present invention include a kendo stand, ice hockey, an American football protector, a helmet, etc., and is particularly suitable for a kendo stand.

[Action]

The sports armor of the present invention having the above-described structure has a structure in which fiber reinforced plastics are arranged on both front and back surfaces of a lightweight core material having a plastic material containing a micro hollow body.
Despite being lightweight, it has high strength and rigidity, and strong impact strength. Therefore, when the present invention is applied to a kendo stand, it is lightweight and very easy to use, and since it is not locally deformed even if it is struck with a bamboo sword, it has less impact on the body and less pain. Furthermore, there is no deformation or corrosion even after long-term use. The conventional bamboo body for kendo absorbs water and is deformed when it is used for a long time. On the other hand, the leather body for kendo becomes brittle due to water absorption and corrodes.
The kendo trunk according to the invention does not have this concern at all.

Furthermore, the layers of the soft thin film interposed between the lightweight core material and the fiber-reinforced plastic, the layers in the lightweight core material, the layers in the fiber-reinforced plastic, etc., prevent peeling between the adhesive surfaces of the layers and act on the armor. It has the effects of mitigating impacts, preventing damage to the fiber reinforced plastic layer, improving the impact resistance strength of armor, and damping vibrations and sounds. Therefore, the life of the armor can be further extended. When armor with a layer of soft thin film is applied to a kendo stand, it not only reduces the impact on the person who is hit by the bamboo sword, but also reduces the impact on the hand holding the sword. You can
Moreover, the sound produced when the body is struck is similar to that of a commonly used bamboo body, which is preferable.

〔Example〕

An example of the sports armor of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a kendo trunk, and 1 is a kendo trunk having a predetermined shape.
As shown in FIG. 2, this kendo body stand 1 is formed by joining fiber-reinforced plastic layers 4, 4 on both sides of a central lightweight core material 2 with soft thin film layers 3, 3 interposed therebetween. It has a laminated structure. FIG. 3 shows a modified example of the laminated structure that constitutes the body stand 1 for kendo. In the laminated structure of FIG. 3, two layers of the lightweight core materials 2A and 2B are joined together via the soft thin film layer 3 and further the soft thin film layers 3 and 3 are provided outside the lightweight core materials 2A and 2B. Each of the two layers of fiber-reinforced plastic 4A, 4B is laminated and integrated as a whole. FIG. 4 shows still another modified example of the laminated structure that constitutes the body stand 1 for kendo. In the laminated structure of FIG. 4, the soft thin film layer 3, the fiber reinforced plastic layer 4A, the soft thin film layer 3 and the fiber reinforced plastic layer 4B are laminated on both sides of the central lightweight core material 2, respectively, and the whole is integrated. It was done. All of the laminated structures shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 have characteristics suitable for the kendo trunk 1. Fig. 5 is an enlarged view of an example of the material that constitutes the lightweight core materials 2, 2A, 2B in the laminated structure of Figs. 2 to 4, 5 being a plastic material, and 6 being contained therein. It is a large number of minute hollow bodies.

Next, specific examples of the present invention will be described.

Example I As a lightweight core material, a syntactic core (trade name: Thin core, manufactured by Hisol Co., thickness: 7 mm) obtained by mixing a glass balloon into an epoxy resin is used as a prepreg for forming a fiber reinforced plastic layer. Carbon fiber prepreg impregnated with resin (Nippon Steel Chemical Co., Ltd.)
Made of aramid fiber prepreg (trade name: Kevlar, manufactured by DuPont, thickness: about 0.1 mm), and EVA (ethylene-ethylene) as a film for forming a soft thin film layer.
A vinyl acetate type film (thickness: about 0.3 mm) is prepared, and the film, the aramid fiber prepreg, the film and the carbon fiber prepreg are laminated symmetrically above and below the syntactic core as a center, and at 130 ° C for 90 minutes, By pressurizing and heating, the kendo stand for the laminated structure shown in Fig. 4 (thickness about 8m
m) got.

The weight of this kendo stand was about 700g, which was significantly lighter than the conventional bamboo ones weighing 900-1000g.

Next, this kendo body stand was put on an impact tester, and a
1m, diameter 24mm, weight 640g) was continuously beaten at a speed of 40km / h. After hitting about 15,000 times, visual inspection revealed no abnormalities.

For the purpose of comparison, when a conventional bamboo pedestal was tested with the same impact tester, peeling and peeling between the surface skin and bamboo began to occur at about 4000 times, and it was destroyed at about 7600 times. Therefore, the life of the kendo trunk according to the present embodiment is extremely longer than that of the conventional bamboo body.

Further, when the body for the kendo body of the present example was worn and hit with a bamboo sword, the sound was the same as that for the bamboo body, and at that time the body was worn. The impact on the person was smaller and less painful than that of bamboo.

As described above, the kendo trunk according to the present embodiment is lighter in weight than the conventional one made of bamboo, can be used without feeling uncomfortable, and has a long life.

Comparative Example I As a lightweight core material, a glass fiber felt (thickness: about 5 mm) impregnated with an epoxy resin and cured, was used as a prepreg for forming a fiber reinforced plastic layer, and a carbon fiber prepreg impregnated with an unsaturated polyester resin. (Thickness about 1 mm) and glass fiber prepreg (thickness about 1 mm)
Furthermore, a polyethylene film (thickness: about 0.3 mm) was prepared as a film for forming a soft thin film layer, and the film, the glass fiber prepreg, and the carbon fiber prepreg were laminated symmetrically above and below the glass fiber felt, 100
By pressurizing and heating at ℃ for 1 hour, an integrated laminated structure for kendo (thickness: about 8 mm) was obtained.

The weight of this kendo body stand was about 800 g, which was lighter than the conventional bamboo body, but heavier than that of Example I.

In addition, when the same test was performed using the impact tester used in Example I for this kendo trunk, even if it was hit 15,000 times or more,
No abnormalities were found and it had an excellent life.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE II A kendo trunk was made under the same conditions as in Example I except that the film forming the soft thin film layer in Comparative Example I was omitted. When this body stand for kendo was worn on the body and hit with a bamboo sword, compared to Example I, a shock was felt in the hand and a loud metallic sound slightly different from that of a normal bamboo body was emitted.

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, the sports armor of the present invention is lightweight, yet has high strength and rigidity and strong impact strength, and is not only very easy to use, but also used for a long time. It has effects such as long life without deterioration due to water absorption, deformation and corrosion.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a kendo body according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a laminated structure constituting the kendo body, and FIG. 3 is a laminated body. Sectional view showing a modified example of the structure, FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a further modified example,
FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of an example of the lightweight core material. 1 …… Kendo stand, 2,2A, 2B …… Light weight core material, 3 …… Soft thin film layer, 4,4A, 4B …… Fiber reinforced plastic layer, 5 …… Plastic material, 6 …… Micro hollow body.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Hiroaki Yamashita 1-4-36 Nakamuneoka, Shiki City, Saitama Prefecture (56) References JP-A-60-122583 (JP, A) JP-A-63-283657 (JP, 63-283657) A) Actual opening 63-158373 (JP, U) Actual opening 59-79170 (JP, U) Actual opening 14-13909 (JP, Y1) Actual opening 47-41571 (JP, Y1)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A light-weight core material, wherein fiber-reinforced plastics are laminated on both front and back surfaces, and a soft thin film layer is interposed between any of the light-weight core material and / or fiber-reinforced plastics to integrate them. A sports armor, wherein the core material comprises a plastic material containing a hollow micro body.