ENHANCED SIDE CLOSURE BODY ARMOR SYSTEMS

Abstract

A bullet-resistant vest has a vest-front and a vest-back with side panels able to join and fasten about the sides of a torso of the user. The side panels have a thickness of about half of that of the vest-front and vest-back. When the side panels are overlapped and fastened at the sides, the total thickness of the conjoined side panels equal that of the vest-front or vest back. In this way, the fastening system advantageously provides a wearable vest which has a consistent thickness all about the torso of the user which does not unnecessarily bulge at the sides or create an impediment to movement of the user.

Claims

1. A bullet-resistant vest for a torso of a user, the bullet-resistant vest (100) comprising: a vest-front, the vest-front made of a bullet-resistant material, and configured to be worn by the user, the vest-front including a chest-panel configured to protect a front area of the torso of the user, the chest-panel having a full panel thickness, a forward-left panel extending from a left side of the chest-panel, and configured to protect a left side area of the torso of the user, the forward-left panel having a partial panel thickness, the partial panel thickness being between forty-five and fifty-five percent of the full panel thickness, and a forward-right panel extending from a right side of the chest-panel, and configured to protect a right side area of the torso of the user, the forward-right panel having the partial panel thickness; and a vest-back coupled to the vest-front, the vest-back made of the bullet-resistant material, and configured to be worn by the user, the vest-back including a back-panel configured to protect a back area of the torso of the user, the back-panel having the full panel thickness, a back-left panel extending from a left side of the back-panel, and configured to protect the left side area of the torso of the user, the back-left panel having the partial panel thickness, and a back-right panel extending from a right side of the back-panel, and configured to protect the right side area of the torso of the user, the back-right panel having the partial panel thickness.

2. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel are constructed integrally to the chest-panel.

3. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the back-left panel and the back-right panel are constructed integrally to the back-panel.

4. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the bullet-resistant material comprises Kevlar fiber.

5. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the full panel thickness measures within five percent of one-half of an inch.

6. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the partial panel thickness measures within five percent of one-quarter of an inch.

7. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, further comprising a left-shoulder strap and a right-shoulder strap each coupling the vest-front to the vest-back.

8. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 7, wherein each of the left-shoulder strap and the right-shoulder strap includes a fastening element enabling the vest-front to be removably coupled to the vest-back.

9. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the forward-left panel and the back-left panel each comprise corresponding left-side-fasteners enabling the forward-left panel and the back-left panel to be removably coupled to each other.

10. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 9, wherein the left-side-fasteners comprise hook-and-loop fasteners.

11. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 9, further comprising a flexible left-side-hook-fastener-extension affixed to the front-left panel and a left-side-loop-fastener panel affixed to the back-left panel, such that the flexible left-side-hook-fastener-extension may be releasably coupled to the back-left panel via the left-side-loop-fastener panel.

12. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the forward-right panel and the back-right panel each comprise corresponding right-side-fasteners enabling the forward-right panel and the back-right panel to be removably coupled to each other.

13. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 11, wherein the right-side-fasteners comprise hook-and-loop fasteners.

14. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 9, further comprising a flexible right-side-hook-fastener-extension affixed to the front-right panel and a right-side-loop-fastener panel affixed to the back-right panel, such that the flexible right-side hook-fastener-extension may be releasably coupled to the back-right panel via the right-side-loop-fastener panel.

15. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the vest-front is symmetrical, such that the chest-panel is bounded laterally by the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel, and the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel mirror each other, with the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel each being substantially coplanar with the chest-panel when the vest-front is laid flat.

16. The bullet-resistant vest of claim 1, wherein the vest-back is symmetrical, such that the back-panel is bounded laterally by the back-left panel and the back-right panel, and the back-left panel and the back-right panel mirror each other, with the back-left panel and the back-right panel each being substantially coplanar with the back-panel when the vest-back is laid flat.

17. An anti-bulge bullet-resistant vest for a torso of a user, the anti-bulge bullet-resistant vest comprising: a vest-front, the vest-front made of a bullet-resistant material, and configured to be worn by the user, the vest-front including a chest-panel configured to protect a front area of the torso of the user, the chest-panel having a full panel thickness, a forward-left panel extending from a left side of the chest-panel, and configured to protect a left side area of the torso of the user, the forward-left panel having a partial panel thickness, the partial panel thickness being between forty-five and fifty-five percent of the full panel thickness, and a forward-right panel extending from a right side of the chest-panel, and configured to protect a right side area of the torso of the user, the forward-right panel having the partial panel thickness; and a vest-back coupled to the vest-front, the vest-back made of the bullet-resistant material, and configured to be worn by the user, the vest-back including a back-panel configured to protect a back area of the torso of the user, the back-panel having the full panel thickness, a back-left panel extending from a left side of the back-panel, and configured to protect the left side area of the torso of the user, the back-left panel having the partial panel thickness, and a back-right panel extending from a right side of the back-panel, and configured to protect the right side area of the torso of the user, the back-right panel having the partial panel thickness; wherein the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel are constructed integrally to the chest-panel; wherein the back-left panel and the back-right panel are constructed integrally to the back-panel; wherein the bullet-resistant material comprises Kevlar fiber; wherein the full panel thickness measures within five percent of one-half of an inch; wherein the partial panel thickness measures within five percent of one-quarter of an inch; further comprising a left-shoulder strap and a right-shoulder strap each coupling the vest-front to the vest-back; wherein each of the left-shoulder strap and the right-shoulder strap includes a fastening element enabling the vest-front to be removably coupled to the vest-back; wherein the forward-left panel and the back-left panel each comprise corresponding left-side-fasteners enabling the forward-left panel and the back-left panel to be removably coupled to each other; wherein the left-side-fasteners comprise hook-and-loop fasteners; wherein the forward-right panel and the back-right panel each comprise corresponding right-side-fasteners enabling the forward-right panel and the back-right panel to be removably coupled to each other; wherein the right-side-fasteners comprise hook-and-loop fasteners; wherein the vest-front is symmetrical, such that the chest-panel is bounded laterally by the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel, and the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel mirror each other, with the forward-left panel and the forward-right panel each being substantially coplanar with the chest-panel when the vest-front is laid flat; and wherein the vest-back is symmetrical, such that the back-panel is bounded laterally by the back-left panel and the back-right panel, and the back-left panel and the back-right panel mirror each other, with the back-left panel and the back-right panel each being substantially coplanar with the back-panel when the vest-back is laid flat.

18. A method of wearing a bullet-resistant vest without inducing bulging at the sides of the vest, the method comprising the steps of: providing a bullet-resistant vest for a torso of a user, the bullet-resistant vest comprising a vest-front, the vest-front made of a bullet-resistant material, and configured to be worn by the user, the vest-front including a chest-panel configured to protect a front area of the torso of the user, the chest-panel having a full panel thickness, a forward-left panel extending from a left side of the chest-panel, and configured to protect a left side area of the torso of the user, the forward-left panel having a partial panel thickness, the partial panel thickness being between forty-five and fifty-five percent of the full panel thickness, and a forward-right panel extending from a right side of the chest-panel, and configured to protect a right side area of the torso of the user, the forward-right panel having the partial panel thickness; and a vest-back coupled to the vest-front, the vest-back made of the bullet-resistant material, and configured to be worn by the user, the vest-back including a back-panel configured to protect a back area of the torso of the user, the back-panel having the full panel thickness, a back-left panel extending from a left side of the back-panel, and configured to protect the left side area of the torso of the user, the back-left panel having the partial panel thickness, and a back-right panel extending from a right side of the back-panel, and configured to protect the right side area of the torso of the user, the back-right panel having the partial panel thickness; overlapping the forward-left panel with the back-left panel, such that when the forward-left panel is overlapped with the back-left panel, their combined thickness is substantially equivalent to the thickness of the chest-panel; fastening the forward-left panel to the back-left panel; overlapping the forward-right panel with the back-right panel, such that when the forward-right panel is overlapped with the back-right panel, their combined thickness is substantially equivalent to the thickness of the back-panel; and fastening the forward-right panel to the back-right panel.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments and methods of use for the present disclosure, an armor with improved comfort characteristics and method, constructed and operative according to the teachings of the present disclosure.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the bullet-resistant vest during an ‘in-use’ condition, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

[0012] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the bullet-resistant vest of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0013] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the bullet-resistant vest of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0014] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the bullet-resistant vest of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of use for wearing a bullet-resistant vest, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0016] The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] As discussed above, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a soft body armor system and more particularly to an armor with improved comfort characteristics and method as used to improve the wearability of a bullet-resistant vest.

[0018] Disclosed is a body armor vest which is specifically constructed to reduce bulging at the sides, a situation representative of traditional vests which can interfere with drawing a sidearm and other movements performed by a user. This reduction in width may be accomplished by providing side panels having a reduced thickness relative to the front and rear panels, such that the vest effectively tapers as the front and back sides of the vest transition to the sides. A closure mechanism is built into the sides of the vest, where extensions of the front and rear panels overlap to form each side panel. The extensions may overlap partially or completely to provide a secure closure while simultaneously forming the side panel when worn by the user. By reducing the thickness of the extensions on both sides by fifty percent, the side panel may have a total thickness equal to the front and rear panels when the closure mechanism is overlapped. In this way, when in an in-use condition worn by the user, the vest is of a consistent thickness all around the user, eliminating bulging or otherwise excessive thickness at the sides of the vest. The system may include a vest having fastening extensions at the left and right side of the vest, as well as shoulder straps having fastening elements at the left and right sides of the vest. Importantly, body armor material is integrated within the front panel, the rear panel, and each side extension. Preferably, the body armor material includes soft armor panels meeting NIJ 3A standard levels of ballistic resistance.

[0019] The enhanced side closure body armor system may include a wearable vest containing body armor material. As shown, the vest may include a front panel, a rear panel, a right shoulder strap, a left shoulder strap, and a plurality of side extensions. The right shoulder strap and the left shoulder strap may each include fastening elements dividing the right and left shoulder straps into front and rear separable portions. In this configuration, the rear portions of the shoulder straps may be affixed to or integrated with the rear panel, and the front portions of the shoulder straps may be affixed to or integrated with the front panel. In the preferred embodiment, the shoulder strap portions are integrated with their corresponding panels, as illustrated. The shoulder strap fastening elements may be hook-and-loop fasteners, clasps, or other fastener types. Preferably, the front panel, the rear panel, and each extension may contain armor material sufficient to meet 3A body armor standards as defined by the U.S. National Institute of Justice. The plurality of side extensions may overlap on the left and right sides of the vest to secure the vest about a user. The left and right side extensions may mirror each other.

[0020] Each side extension may include a front extension integrated with the front panel and a rear extension integrated with the rear panel. In use, the front extension and rear extension may be overlapped and fastened. In some embodiments, the front and rear extensions may be overlapped to a degree selected by a user in order to selectively adjust the total circumference of the vest, thereby making the vest adaptable to multiple user sizes. In some embodiments, a third extension may be included to provide a redundant fastening mechanism to secure the side extensions in place as illustrated. This third fastening extension may be of a reduced thickness relative to the front and rear extensions.

[0021] The front extension and rear extension may overlap in an in-use condition. The front extension may be integrated with the front plate. The front plate may transition to the front extension by a taper. The front extension may have a thickness of fifty percent of the front panel. Likewise, the rear extension may be integrated with the rear plate. The rear plate may also transition to the rear extension by a taper. The rear extension may have a thickness of fifty percent of the rear panel. As before, the front panel may include two such front extensions oppositely arranged, with one on the left and one on the right. Likewise, the rear panel may include two rear extensions oppositely arranged, with one on the left and one on the right. In this way, both the left and right sides of the vest may have closure mechanisms which mirror each other. Because each extension is approximately fifty percent as thick as the front and rear panels they are adjoined to, when the extensions are overlapped and joined about a user the vest is a consistent thickness circumferentially about the user. In one example, the front and rear panel may each measure one inch thick, while each extension may measure one-half on an inch thick, such that when overlapped with a corresponding extension, both extensions in combination may measure one inch thick. In various embodiments, each front extension may be secured to a corresponding rear extension by hook and look fasteners, clasps, or a variety of other fastening means. The exact specifications, materials used, and method of use of the enhanced side closure body armor system may vary upon manufacturing.

[0022] Referring now more specifically to the drawings by numerals of reference, there is shown in FIGS. 1-4, various views of a bullet-resistant vest 100.

[0023] FIG. 1 shows the bullet-resistant vest 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Bullet-resistant vest 100 may fit over a torso of a user 40 (FIG. 2). Bullet-resistant vest 100 may include vest-front 110 and vest-back 120 opposite vest-front 110. Vest-front 110 may be made of a bullet-resistant material, and is configured to be worn by user 40 (FIG. 2). Vest-front 110 may include chest-panel 112, forward-left panel 114, and forward-right panel 116. Chest-panel 112 may be configured to protect a front area of the torso of user 40 (FIG. 2), and may be characterized by full panel thickness 140 (FIG. 4). Forward-left panel 114 may extend from a left side of chest-panel 112, being configured to protect left side area 42 (FIG. 2) of the torso of user 40 (FIG. 2). Forward-left panel 114 may be characterized by partial panel thickness 150 (FIG. 4), partial panel thickness 150 (FIG. 4) being between forty-five and fifty-five percent of full panel thickness 140 (FIG. 4). Forward-right panel 116 may extend from a right side of chest-panel 112, being configured to protect right side area 44 (FIG. 2) of the torso of user 40 (FIG. 2). Forward-right panel 116 may also be characterized by partial panel thickness 150 (FIG. 4). Vest-back 120 may be coupled to vest-front 110, vest-back 120 being made of the bullet-resistant material, and being configured to be worn by user 40 (FIG. 2). Vest-back 120 may include back-panel 122, back-left panel 124, and back-right panel 126. Back-panel 122 may be configured to protect a back area of the torso of user 40 (FIG. 2). Back-panel 122 may be characterized by full panel thickness 140 (FIG. 4) in likeness to that of chest-panel 112. Back-left panel 124 may extend from a left side of back-panel 122, being configured to protect left side area 42 (FIG. 2) of the torso of user 40 (FIG. 2). Back-left panel 124 may also be characterized by partial panel thickness 150 (FIG. 4) Back-right panel 126 may extend from a right side of back-panel 122, being configured to protect right side area 44 (FIG. 2) of the torso of user 40 (FIG. 2), back-right panel 126 being also characterized by partial panel thickness 150 (FIG. 4).

[0024] Forward-left panel 114 and forward-right panel 116 may be constructed integrally to chest-panel 112. Likewise, back-left panel 124 and back-right panel 126 may be constructed integrally to back-panel 122. As shown, vest-front 110 is preferably symmetrical, such that chest-panel 112 is bounded laterally by forward-left panel 114 and forward-right panel 116, and forward-left panel 114 and forward-right panel 116 mirror each other, with forward-left panel 114 and forward-right panel 116 each being substantially coplanar with chest-panel 112 when vest-front 110 is laid flat. Likewise, vest-back 120 is symmetrical, such that back-panel 122 is bounded laterally by back-left panel 124 and back-right panel 126, and back-left panel 124 and back-right panel 126 mirror each other, with back-left panel 124 and back-right panel 126 each being substantially coplanar with back-panel 122 when vest-back 120 is laid flat.

[0025] Forward-left panel 114 and back-left panel 124 may each also include corresponding left-side-fasteners 162 which are positioned to enable forward-left panel 114 and back-left panel 124 to be removably coupled to each other. In an exemplary example, forward-left panel 114 may include a male hook-and-loop fastener (or a hook counterpart of a hook-and-loop fastener), and back-left panel 124 may include a female hook-and-loop fastener (or a loop counterpart of a hook-and-loop fastener). Bullet-resistant vest 100 may yet further include flexible left-side-hook-fastener-extension 172 affixed to front-left panel 114 and left-side-loop-fastener panel 174 affixed to back-left panel 124, such that flexible left-side-hook-fastener 172 may be releasably coupled to back-left panel 124 via left-side-loop-fastener panel 174. Forward-right panel 116 and back-right panel 126 may each comprise corresponding right-side-fasteners 164 enabling forward-right panel 116 and back-right panel 126 to be removably coupled to each other.

[0026] Bullet-resistant vest 100 may yet further include flexible right-side-hook-fastener-extension 182 affixed to front-right panel 116 and right-side-loop-fastener panel 184 affixed to back-right panel 126. Flexible right-side-hook-fastener-extension 182 and right-side-loop-fastener panel 184 face each other when bullet-resistant vest 100 is assembled about a wearer. In this way, flexible right-side-hook-fastener 182 may be releasably coupled to back-right panel 126 via right-side-loop-fastener panel 184. Left-side-fasteners 162 and right-side-fasteners 164 may each comprise hook-and-loop fasteners. The bullet-resistant material preferably includes Kevlar fiber. However, in some embodiments alternative projectile-resistant materials may be used. Some embodiments may add additional layers, such as insulating layers, anti-spalling layers, and blade-resistant layers.

[0027] FIG. 2 shows a bullet-resistant vest during an ‘in-use’ condition 50, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Here, the bullet-resistant vest may be beneficial for use by a user 40 to wear a bullet-resistant vest. As illustrated, bullet-resistant vest 100 may also include left-shoulder strap 132 and right-shoulder strap 134 each coupling vest-front 110 to vest-back 120. Each of left-shoulder strap 132 and right-shoulder strap 134 includes fastening elements 136 and 138, such that fastening elements 136 and 138 enable vest-front 110 to be removably coupled to vest-back 120. Fastening elements 136 and 138 may be placed on top of left-shoulder strap 132 and right-shoulder strap 134 such that they may easily be manipulated by the wearer while worn.

[0028] FIG. 3 is a left-side perspective of the bullet-resistant vest of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Shown are flexible left-side-hook-fastener 172, vest-front 110, vest-back 120, and back-left panel 124.

[0029] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the bullet-resistant vest of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Front-left panel 114 and rear-panel 124 are overlapped and fastened to each other. In this way, vest-front 110 and vest-back 120 together circumscribe user 40 (FIG. 2). Preferably, full panel thickness 140 measures within five percent of one-half of an inch, and partial panel thickness 150 measures within five percent of one-quarter of an inch. This allows bulletproof-vest 100 to circumscribe user 40 (FIG. 2) with a constant thickness all the way around when worn and fastened. This system is advantageous compared to prior art vests which merely double up material thickness at the fastened areas, thereby causing inconvenient bulges which impede the mobility and flexibility of the wearer.

[0030] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for wearing a bullet-resistant vest, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In particular, the method for wearing a bullet-resistant vest 500 may include one or more components or features of the bullet-resistant vest 100 as described above. As illustrated, the method for wearing a bullet-resistant vest 500 may include the steps of: step one 501, providing a bullet-resistant vest for a torso of a user; step two 502, overlapping the forward-left panel with the back-left panel, such that when the forward-left panel is overlapped with the back-left panel, their combined thickness is substantially equivalent to the thickness of the chest-panel; step three 503, fastening the forward-left panel to the back-left panel; step four 504, overlapping the forward-right panel with the back-right panel, such that when the forward-right panel is overlapped with the back-right panel, their combined thickness is substantially equivalent to the thickness of the back-panel; and step five 505, fastening the forward-right panel to the back-right panel.

[0031] It should be noted that the steps described in the method of use can be carried out in many different orders according to user preference. The use of “step of” should not be interpreted as “step for”, in the claims herein and is not intended to invoke the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112(f). It should also be noted that, under appropriate circumstances, considering such issues as design preference, user preferences, marketing preferences, cost, structural requirements, available materials, technological advances, etc., other methods for wearing a bullet-resistant vest, are taught herein.

[0032] The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which are intended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application.