An armor component that includes a ballistic tile made of, for example, boron carbide or silicon carbide, a plurality of wraps made of ballistic fibers such as carbon fiber, and a metal plate, for example, a steel plate, the metal plate being positioned behind the reverse side of the tile and the wraps being wrapped around the tile and the metal plate.

An armor plate system includes an integrated damage detector which may permit field testing of an armor plate. The system includes a ceramic plate and a piezoelectric transducer attached to lateral face of the ceramic plate. The piezoelectric transducer may apply a signal to the ceramic plate and receive a reflected signal. The applied signal may form a compression wave. An ultrasonic signal may be applied.

A ballistic panel formed with a ballistic material, the panel comprising: a panel with a filled void; wherein the filled void is filled with a ballistic replacement material; and wherein the filled void exhibits ballistic properties equivalent to the ballistic panel formed with the ballistic material; wherein the ballistic replacement material and the ballistic material comprise between about 1121 kg/cubic meter (about 70 pounds per cubic foot) and about 1442 kg/cubic meter (about 90 pounds per cubic foot); and wherein the ballistic replacement material and the ballistic material comprise: about 1 part by mass Portland cement; about 0.5 to 1.5 part by mass fine aggregate; and about 0.0005 to 0.05 part by mass air entrainment additive; about 0.005 to 0.15 part by mass fiber; about 0.005 to 0.05 part by mass aluminum hydroxide and about 0.005 to 0.05 part by mass calcium phosphate.

A measurement system may include control electronics; an electrical signal source; a plurality of measurement system electrical contacts; at least one feature for repeatably electrically connecting the plurality of measurement system electrical contacts to selected locations of a tested material. The control electronics may be configured to cause the electrical signal source to output an electrical signal; determine a measured voltage in response to the electrical signal using a measurement electrical contact from the plurality of measurement system electrical contacts. The measurement electrical contact is electrically coupled to the tested material. The control electronics also may be configured to determine whether the tested material includes a crack or other defect based on the measured voltage.

Anti-ballistic armor element, comprising a ceramic body comprising a sintered material consisting of ceramic grains with a Vickers hardness of more than 5 GPa, the total pore volume of said material being between 0.5 and 10%, said ceramic body being characterized in that the cumulative volume of pores with a diameter of between 30 and 100 micrometers represents between 0.2 and 2.5% of the volume of said material, the cumulative volume of pores with a diameter of more than 100 micrometers is less than 0.2% of the volume of said material , the remainder of said total pore volume consisting of pores whose diameter is less than 30 micrometers.

Disclosed herein are embodiments of a releasably engagable system of ballistic-resistant panels including a first ballistic-resistant panel comprising a ceramic plate system, the first ballistic-resistant panel having opposing first ballistic-resistant panel front and back surfaces; and a second ballistic-resistant panel having opposing second ballistic-resistant panel front and back surfaces. Additionally, the embodiments of the releasably engagable systems of ballistic-resistant panels include at least one of fasteners, an adhesive coating, or a securement element, all of which function to releasably engage the second ballistic-resistant panel front surface with the first ballistic-resistant panel back surface in fixed adjacent relation to provide releasably engaged ballistic-resistant panels.

An armor plate damage detection and testing system is disclosed that uses an initial electrical signal to generate mechanical energy waves that travel across the armor plate and reflect off the plate surfaces, wherein the reflections of those waves are recorded and analyzed with reference to a previously stored wave reflection signature to determine if damage has occurred to the armor plate. The analyzed results are communicated to the user in real time using a display unit and can further be communicated to a remote entity through an incorporated wireless transmitter.

A shaped composite body of a reaction-bonded, silicon-infiltrated mixed ceramic, the microstructure of which is determined by primary grains of crystalline B.sub.4C grains (1) of mean grain size d50>100 ?m and <500 ?m and a fraction of >10%, by weight, and <50%, by weight, and by primary grains of a finer silicon carbide with d50<70 ?m and a fraction of >10%, by weight, and <50%, by weight, and the primary grains are siliconized (3) bonded by secondarily formed silicon carbide with a fraction of >5%, by weight and <25%, by weight, in a silicon carbide matrix having a free metallic silicon (2) content of >1%, by weight, and <20%, by weight.

Antiballistic armour plate includes a ceramic body including a hard material, provided, on its inner face, with a back energy-dissipating coating. The ceramic body is monolithic. The constituent material of the ceramic body includes grains of ceramic material having a Vickers hardness that is higher than 15 GPa, and a matrix binding the grains, the matrix including a silicon nitride phase and/or a silicon oxynitride phase, the matrix representing between 5 and 40% by weight of the constituent material of the ceramic body. The maximum equivalent diameter of the grains of ceramic material is smaller than or equal to 800 micrometres. The constituent material of the ceramic body has an open porosity that is higher than 5% and lower than 14%. The metallic silicon content in the material, expressed per mm of thickness of the body, is lower than 0.5% by weight.

A multi-layered material protects armored vehicles by providing a skin which absorbs kinetic energy and heat from projectiles, such as IEDs and EFPs. The material also will resist penetration from other ordnance such as high-caliber bullets. The various layers may include inner and outer armor plating, which sandwiches a layer of Kevlar and/or Nextel, and also sandwiches a layer of fire-tempered quartz.