LOAD-BEARING VEST OVERLAY JACKET

Abstract

A load-bearing vest overlay jacket (“overlay jacket”) is an overgarment configured to be joined with and fastened to a load-bearing vest (“tactical vest”) so that an open front area exists between the front left and front right of the overlay jacket, permitting a user's access to equipment on the tactical vest. Thus, the overlay jacket may provide uniform, comfortable body temperatures in colder weather, to include arm warmth and upper torso warmth, as a function of either optionally-insulated sleeve and/or torso regions of the overlay jacket, or of torso warmth provided by the tactical vest underlying the overlay jacket.

Description

This application is a non-provisional of U.S. Provisional App. Ser. No. 63/151,990 filed Feb. 22, 2021, which is incorporated by reference in its entirely for all purposes as if fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND

Embodiments of the present invention relate, in general, to outerwear, and more particularly to professional protective garments.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The aforementioned and other features and objects of the present invention and the manner of attaining them will become more apparent, and the invention itself will be best understood, by reference to the following description of one or more embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1A is a front view of the load-bearing vest overlay jacket overlaying a load-bearing vest with various equipment according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is an exploded front view showing the load-bearing vest overlay jacket as separated from and above an underlying load-bearing vest with various equipment according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of the load-bearing vest overlay jacket showing of the present invention.

FIG. 3 presents a set of Pouch Attachment Ladder System (PALS) strap-and-loop attachments incorporated to the side of a Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment (MOLLE)-compatible load-bearing vest overlay jacket according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view of the complementary PALS attachments of a typical load-bearing vest configured to affix to the PALS attachments of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 shows a strap with a cap-&-socket snap set at the ends of the strap as equipped according to one embodiment of the overlay jacket of the present invention

FIG. 6 is a view of the securing of the load-bearing vest overlay jacket to the load-bearing vest using the strap of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a side view of the load-bearing vest overlay jacket of the present invention as it is secured to a load-bearing vest.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of one embodiment of a methodology for manufacturing the load-bearing vest overlay jacket of the present invention.

The Figures depict embodiments of the present invention for purposes of illustration only. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. In the figures, the sizes of certain lines, layers, components, elements or features may be exaggerated for clarity. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. In the figures, the sizes of certain lines, layers, components, elements or features may be exaggerated for clarity. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following discussion that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the invention described herein.

DESCRIPTION

Overview

A load-bearing vest overlay jacket (or “overlay jacket”) 100, as presented in FIG. 1, joins as an overgarment for a load-bearing vest (or “tactical vest”) 110, providing warmth and protection from the elements for a user's arms, sides and back, while also providing the user access to tactical vest equipment 120 through an open front area 180 between the left front 130 and the right front 140 of the overlay jacket 100 and the underlying tactical vest 110, respectively. Tactical vests 110 are usually worn over a user's uniform or other clothing, and body armor is often mounted—depending upon the first-responder's role—inside these tactical vests 110. The overlay jacket 100 permits the user to store equipment 120 on the exterior of the tactical vest 110 rather than on the user's pants belt, providing better equipment 120 access and equipment 120 load distribution while not disturbing the custom fit of the user's body armor. The overlay jacket 100 of the present invention better accommodates tactical vests 110 laden with body armor and equipment 120, enabling a user to avoid having to periodically don and doff a tactical vest 110 to address thermal comfort and other environmental concerns, while also permitting the user to gain protection from thermal and other environmental impacts.

Embodiments of the present invention are hereafter described in detail with reference to the accompanying Figures. Although the invention has been described and illustrated with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure has been made only by way of example and that numerous changes in the combination and arrangement of parts can be resorted to by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of exemplary embodiments of the present invention as defined by the claims and their equivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Also, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness.

The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not limited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by the inventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the invention. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention are provided for illustration purpose only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a component surface” includes reference to one or more of such surfaces.

As used herein any reference to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular element, feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Further, unless expressly stated to the contrary, “or” refers to an inclusive or and not to an exclusive or. For example, a condition A or B is satisfied by any one of the following: A is true (or present) and B is false (or not present), A is false (or not present) and B is true (or present), and both A and B are true (or present).

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the specification and relevant art and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein. Well-known functions or constructions may not be described in detail for brevity and/or clarity.

It will be also understood that when an element is referred to as being “on,” “attached” to, “connected” to, “coupled” with, “contacting”, “mounted” etc., another element, it can be directly on, attached to, connected to, coupled with or contacting the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being, for example, “directly on,” “directly attached” to, “directly connected” to, “directly coupled” with or “directly contacting” another element, there are no intervening elements present. It will also be appreciated by those of skill in the art that references to a structure or feature that is disposed “adjacent” another feature may have portions that overlap or underlie the adjacent feature.

Spatially relative terms, such as “under,” “below,” “lower,” “over,” “upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of a device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if a device in the figures is inverted, elements described as “under” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “over” the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “under” can encompass both an orientation of “over” and “under”. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly. Similarly, the terms “upwardly,” “downwardly,” “vertical,” “horizontal” and the like are used herein for the purpose of explanation only unless specifically indicated otherwise.

Referencing FIG. 1, an overlay jacket 100, according to one embodiment of the present invention, includes a left front 130, a right front 140, a pair of sleeves 150, 160, and a back 170. The left front 130 and right front 140 are disjoint so that an open front area 180 is created, exposing a tactical vest 110 underlying the overlay jacket 100. The open front area 180 permits a user to access equipment 120 mounted on the tactical vest 110. The left front 130, right front 140 and back 170 are configured to be circumferentially greater than the tactical vest 110, accommodating the tactical vest 110 and forming a gap or space between each of the left front 130, right front 140, back 170 and the tactical vest 110.

The overlay jacket 100, as shown in FIG. 1, can be removably coupled to a tactical vest 110, or the like, and configured to accommodate Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment (MOLLE) standards and further configured to use Pouch Attachment Ladder System (PALS) strap-and-loop attachments as shown in FIGS. 3-5. Such uses effectively integrates the overlay jacket 100 and the tactical vest 110 into a single tactical equipment system. Securing portions of the left front 130 and the right front 140 of the overlay jacket 100 to near the bottom of the tactical vest 110, reduces the likelihood of snagging fence posts, tree limbs, or other potential environmental snags by the overlay jacket 100, while presenting a professional uniform appearance. Further, the overlay jacket 100 can be quickly donned and doffed, yet it can also easily and quickly be secured to a tactical vest 110 so that the overlay jacket 100; does not have lower front portions that flap around loosely and endlessly as the user maneuvers; presents a professional appearance, since these lower portions are secure; better maintains thermal and elemental protection, as a result of a number of factors discussed below; and permits unfettered access to equipment 120 on the tactical vest 110. Thus, the overlay jacket 100 permits users to maintain uniform, comfortable body temperatures in colder weather—to include arm warmth and upper torso warmth—as a function either of its insulated sleeves 150, 160 for the user's arms or of the torso warmth provided by the tactical vest 110 underlying the left front 130 and right front 140 of the overlay jacket 100.

Additional Features

Other embodiments of the overlay jacket 100 of the present invention, may include other features and advantages. For example, in one version of the present invention the overlay jacket 100 is designed to be shorter in length than a traditional overgarment (or “traditional jacket”), extending approximately to the length of the tactical vest 110, thus allowing the user to access equipment on the user's pants belt, such as firearms, medical equipment or other first-responder equipment FIG. 7. In another embodiment, the overlay jacket 100 can be designed to be oversized in the torso to fit a tactical vest 110 with body armor and/or bulky equipment 120, providing easier access to the equipment 120 while making donning and doffing thermally-protective overgarments likewise easier, all while the user is wearing a tactical vest 110.

Further, in contrast to problems generated from the wear of a traditional jacket under the tactical vest 110, the overlay jacket 100 enables a user to avoid being forced to make the choice between wearing a traditional jacket under the tactical vest 110 for the entirety of a work shift or periodically having to doff and don the tactical vest 110 to doff and don the traditional jacket throughout the shift, while the user transits through various temperature-regulated and -unregulated environments. While a user may feel comfortable outdoors wearing a traditional jacket under the tactical vest 110, transiting into an indoor environment may result in unacceptably warm temperatures for the user. Taking the time to remove the user's tactical vest 110 to don and doff the underlying, traditional jacket poses obvious undesirable time and safety concerns during typical first-responder shifts. Recall that the tactical vest 110 holds the user's armor as well as equipment 120 vital for the user to successfully perform assigned duties; it keeps the user safe. Donning and doffing a tactical vest 110 within the confines of threat environments is not practical. Additionally, the armor in a typical tactical vest 110 is custom-fit to the user; wearing a traditional jacket under such an armor-laden a tactical vest 110 means the armor will not fit the user correctly and may even pose a self-defense problem resulting from armor spacing issues arising from incorrectly-fitting armor. The overlay jacket 100 obviates each of these concerns, while also providing a less cumbersome option for thermal and elemental protection.

As with problems highlighted above concerning the wear of a traditional jacket under a tactical vest 110, wearing a traditional jacket over a tactical vest 110 poses its own set of problems. For instance, tactical vest 110 users typically affix equipment 120 to the tactical vest 110 for ease-of-access and rapid response; with equipment 120 attached to the front of the tactical vest 110, the user can redistribute weight from the user's hips—where such equipment 120 would otherwise be attached to a duty belt—onto the tactical vest 110, for added user comfort, equipment 120 access and mobility. But access to equipment 120 is unavailable to the user if the traditional jacket is zipped. Also, a zipped traditional jacket obscures cameras required in some jurisdictions to be mounted and unobscured on all first-responder tactical vests 110. Further, to accommodate a user wearing a tactical vest 110, such a traditional jacket must be oversized as compared to a traditional jacket sized for a user not wearing such a tactical vest 110. This means that while the torso portion of a traditional jacket may fit the user well while the user is wearing a tactical vest 110, the traditional jacket's sleeves will likewise be oversized for the user's arms—which will not be covered with load-bearing material or equipment—and thus expose the user's arms to environmental impacts as a result of the excess fabric around the user's arms as well as the additional spaces arising between the user's arms and the oversized, traditional jacket sleeves. Further, if a user opts to leave the traditional jacket unzipped for better equipment 120 access, a traditional jacket presents an unprofessional appearance, as the traditional jacket's unsecured, front lower portions of the unfastened traditional jacket flop loosely at the user's sides. Additionally, an open, unfastened, traditional jacket easily permits undesired airflow to flow under the traditional jacket. More critically, as the bottom, front portions of the traditional jacket flop loosely around, these portions often cover the user's critical pants belt equipment, such as a sidearm or other time-critically-needed equipment, preventing timely access to such equipment. Finally, the traditional jacket's flopping, lower portions pose snagging hazards for the user. These are especially of concern when time-critical user mobility is required. Traditional jackets thus pose several problems to users wearing tactical vests 110. These and other deficiencies of the jackets of the prior art are addressed by one or more embodiments of the present invention.

The overlay jacket 100 solves each of these “overwear” problems associated with a traditional jacket. First, the left front 130 and right front 140 of the overlay jacket 100 are disjoint forming an open front area 180 allowing unfettered access to equipment 120 mounted on the tactical vest 110. Second, the left front 130 and the right front 140 each removably fasten, respectively, to the tactical vest 110 near the lower portion of the open front area 180, FIG. 7. Third, by being designed to be oversized for the user's torso region to accommodate a user with a tactical vest 110, and being designed to be normally-sized in the user's arm regions, the overlay jacket 100 accommodates the normal size of a user's arms for a traditional jacket sized to a user not wearing a tactical vest 110 while simultaneously accommodating the user's wearing a tactical vest 110.

As alluded to in the previous paragraph, the overlay jacket 100 can be removably fastened to the tactical vest 110. In one embodiment, the left front 130 and the right front 140 each can be fastened, respectively, to the tactical vest 110 near the lower portion of the open front area 180 with any fastener or fastening system compatible with a tactical vest 110. In one embodiment the tactical vest 110 and overlay jacket 100 include a MOLLE configuration, using a PALS strap-and-loop fastening system as shown in FIG. 6. While a PALS fastening system FIG. 6 is not the only means of fastening the overlay jacket's left front 130 and right front 140 to the tactical vest 110—any of an array of fasteners may be used (e.g., zippers, snaps, buttons, hook-and-loop fasteners, fabric straps, etc.)—PALS-type fasteners are often used on MOLLE-equipped tactical vests 110. In a MOLLE system, loops (or “webbing”) 400 are attached to the outside of a garment (e.g., a backpack or tactical vest 110), while other systems (e.g., PALS 200, 500 etc.) or fasteners weave through or hook to the MOLLE webbing 400 to fasten equipment 120. And although in one embodiment the overlay jacket 100 is attached to a tactical vest 110, FIGS. 3-7 using a PALS-type of fastener, the overlay jacket 100 can be used with and fastened to any underlying clothing requiring access to the front-torso, open front area of the clothing. Referencing FIGS. 3-7, MOLLE webbing 400 and complementary PALS loops 200 on the overlay jacket 100 are joined by threading a strap 500 through both sets of loops 200, 400 and joining onto itself 500 using a cap 510 and socket 520 fastener FIG. 6. The fastened set of PALS/MOLLE loops 200, 400, FIG. 7 secures the overlay jacket 100 to the tactical vest 110, joining the two effectively into a single overlay-jacket/tactical-vest system FIG. 7.

The overlay jacket 100 may also be designed to be shorter than the length of the tactical vest 110 so that the lower portion of the back of the tactical vest 110 is exposed, permitting access to additional equipment mounted on the back of the tactical vest 110, as many tactical vests' MOLLE/PALS systems (FIGS. 3-7) extend around to the back portions of such tactical vests. Essentially, such an embodiment would be a “half-overlay-jacket”: The half-overlay-jacket would still cover the user's shoulders and arms but would also provide additional access to back-mounted equipment, should the user desire.

One or more portions of the overlay jacket 100 can be insulated to accommodate user comfort requirements. For example, the sleeves 150, 160 and/or torso 130, 140, 170 of the overlay jacket 100 may be insulated with either permanent or removable insulating materials, permitting a range of temperatures within which a user may operate. For example, if the temperatures are above 50-degrees Fahrenheit, a user may choose simply to wear any overlay jacket 100 without insulation. At lower temperatures, the user may choose instead to wear an overlay jacket 100 having sleeves 150, 160 that are insulated yet with no additional insulation on the left front 130 right front 140 or back 170. At even colder temperatures, the user may choose to wear an overlay jacket 100 having insulation throughout the overlay jacket 100, including the sleeves 150, 160 and each of the left front 130, right front 140 or back 170.

The overlay jacket 100 may also include a drawstring 210 that either joins together with itself at the lower portion of the overlay jacket 100 or remains un-joined as shown in FIG. 2. Additionally, the tension of the drawstring 210 may be adjusted as the user desires to permit or inhibit airflow entering the lower portions of the overlay jacket 100 through the space or gap 190, as drawstring 210 tension is loosened or tightened, respectively, according to the user's desires. Additional drawstrings may be added to the overlay jacket 100 at various torso locations to minimize left front 130 and right front 140 bowing, so that the airflow flowing through these potentially bowed regions (depending upon the user's torso and tactical vest 110 contours vis-à-vis the overlay jacket 100) can be adjusted according to user demand.

Various Embodiments and Features

In general, the invention may feature an overlay jacket 100 comprising a back 170, a left front 130, a right front 140, and a pair of sleeves 150, 160, joined into an overgarment configured to be joined with a tactical vest 110. In this overlay jacket 100, the right front 140 and the left front 130 are disjoint, forming an open front area 180. A front portion of the tactical vest 110 occupies the open front area 180 independent of the left front 130 and the right front 140; and the back 170, the left front 130 and right front 140 are each dimensioned to be circumferentially greater than the tactical vest, forming a gap 190 between the tactical vest 110 and each of the back 170, the left front 130 and the right front 140. The gap 190 and the open front area 180 are configured to permit access to one or more pieces of equipment 120 removably coupled to the tactical vest, and the sleeves 150, 160 include a optional thermal protection layer to cover a full length of a human arm. Further, the left front 130 and the right front 140 each include one or more fasteners configured to removably fasten or couple the left front 130 and the right front 140, respectively, to a left lower portion and a right lower portion of the tactical vest 110 near the open front area 180.

In general, the invention may also feature a method, as illustrated in the flowchart shown in FIG. 8, for manufacturing an overlay jacket 100, comprising joining 810 a back 170, a left front 130, a right front 140, and a pair of sleeves 150, 160, into an overlay jacket 100. The blocks of the flowchart illustrations support combinations of means for performing the specified functions and combinations of steps for performing the specified functions. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations, can be implemented by special purpose hardware and/or hardware-based computer systems that perform the specified functions or steps, or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.

The overlay jacket 100 may be configured to join with a tactical vest 110 so that the right front 140 and the left front 130 are disjoint, creating an open front area 180. Further, a front portion of the tactical vest 110 occupies this open front area 180, independent of the left front 130 and the right front 140; and the back 170, the left front 130, and right front 140 are designed to be circumferentially greater than the torso of the tactical vest 110, so that a gap 190 is formed between the tactical vest 110 and the back 170, the left front 130, and the right front 140. The gap 190 is further configured to permit access to one or more pieces of equipment 120 removably coupled to the tactical vest 110. A thermal protection layer is to the sleeves 150, 160 and the sleeves 150, 160 cover the full length of a human arm. Finally, one or more fasteners are incorporated into each of the left front 130 and the right front 140, and the one or more fasteners are configured to fasten the left front 130 and the right front 140, respectively, to a left lower portion and a right lower portion of the tactical vest 110 near (i.e., proximate to) the gap.

The invention may include one or more of the following features, and these features may be used singly, or in combination with each other. The overlay jacket 100 may be configured to provide unimpeded access to the one or more pieces of equipment 120 removably coupled to the tactical vest 110. The overlay jacket 100 may have a thermal protection layer, and the thermal protection may be configured to provide protection for temperatures at or below 50 degree Fahrenheit, and the overlay jacket's 100 left front 130, right front 140 and back 170 may be void of the thermal protection layer. The overlay jacket 100 may include one or more PALS systems and the one or more fasteners 500 may be configured to couple the overlay jacket 100 to the PALS systems 200, 400 of the overlay jacket 100. The overlay jacket 100 may include one or more hook and loop fasteners, loop and snap fastener, and/or cap and socket fasteners. The overlay jacket 100 may include a left front 130 interior surface and a right front 140 interior surface, and each of the left front 130 interior surface and the right front 140 interior surface may include a PALS system 200, 500, and the one or more fasteners may be configured to respectively couple the PALS system 200, 500 of the left front 130 interior surface and the right front 140 interior surface of the overlay jacket 100 to the tactical vest 110.

The above advantages and features are of representative embodiments only and are not all-inclusive. They are presented only to assist in understanding the invention, thus it should be understood that they are not to be considered limitations on the invention as defined the claims. Novel features and additional advantages of the invention will become apparent from the above description, the drawings, and the claims. Many of these features will also become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the entire specification or may be a human arm; and learned through practice of the invention.

For clarity of explanation, the above description has focused on a representative sample of all possible embodiments, a sample that teaches the principles of the invention and conveys the best mode contemplated for carrying it out. The invention is not limited to the described embodiments. Well known features may not have been described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the principles relevant to the claimed invention. Throughout this application and its associated file history, when the term “invention” is used, it refers to the entire collection of ideas and principles described; in contrast, the formal definition of the exclusive protected property right is set forth in the claims, which exclusively control.

The description has not attempted to exhaustively enumerate all possible variations. Other undescribed variations or modifications may be possible. Where multiple alternative embodiments are described, in many cases it will be possible to combine elements of different embodiments, or to combine elements of the embodiments described here with other modifications or variations that are not expressly described. A list of items does not imply that any or all the items are mutually exclusive, nor that any or all the items are comprehensive of any category, unless expressly specified otherwise. In many cases, one feature or group of features may be used separately from the entire apparatus or methods described. Many of those undescribed alternatives, variations, modifications, and equivalents are within the literal scope of the following claims, and others are equivalent. The claims may be practiced without some or all the specific details described in the specification. In many cases, method steps described in this specification can be performed in different orders than that presented in this specification, or in parallel rather than sequentially, or in different computers of a computer network, rather than all on a single computer.

Claims

1. A tactical vest overlay jacket comprising:

a back, a left front, a right front, and a pair of sleeves, joined into an overgarment configured to be joined with a tactical vest, wherein the right front and the left front are disjoint forming an open front area and wherein a front portion of the tactical vest occupies the open front area independent of the left front and the right front, and wherein the back, the left front, and right front are each dimensioned to be circumferentially greater than the tactical vest;

a thermal protection layer incorporated into each of the pair of sleeves; and

one or more fasteners configured to fasten the left front and the right front, respectively, to a left lower portion and a right lower portion of the tactical vest proximate of the open front area.

2. The tactical vest overgarment of claim 1, wherein the gap is configured to provide unimpeded access to the one or more pieces of equipment removably coupled to the tactical vest.

3. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 1, wherein the thermal protection layer is configured to provide protection for temperatures at or below 50 degree Fahrenheit

4. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 1, wherein the left front, the right front and the back are void of the thermal protection layer.

5. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 1, wherein the lower portion of the overlay jacket has a drawstring.

6. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 1, wherein the tactical vest includes pouch attachment ladders system (PALS) webbing and wherein the one or more fasteners are configured to couple the overlay jacket to the PALS webbing of the tactical vest.

7. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 5, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a hook and loop fastener.

8. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 5, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a loop and snap fastener.

9. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 5, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a cap and socket fastener.

10. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 1, further comprising a left front interior surface and a right front interior surface and wherein each of the left front interior surface and the right front interior surface includes pouch attachment ladders system (PALS) webbing and wherein the one or more fasteners are configured to respectively couple the PALS webbing of the left front interior surface and the right front interior surface of the overlay jacket to the tactical vest.

11. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 9, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a hook and loop fastener.

12. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 9, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a loop and snap fastener.

13. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 9, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a cap and socket fastener.

14. The tactical vest overlay jacket of claim 1, further comprising a gap between the tactical vest and each of the back, the left front, and right front, the gap configured to permit access to one or more pieces of equipment removably coupled to the tactical vest.

15. A method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket, the method comprising:

joining a back, a left front, a right front, and a pair of sleeves, into an overlay jacket wherein the overlay jacket is configured to join with a tactical vest and wherein the right front and the left front are disjoint creating an open front area and wherein a front portion of the tactical vest occupies the open front area independent of the left front and the right front;

dimensioning the back, the left front, and right front to be circumferentially greater than the tactical vest;;

adding a thermal protection layer to each of the pair of sleeves; and

incorporating one or more fasteners to each the left front and the right front, the one or more fasteners configured to fasten the left front and the right front, respectively, to a left lower portion and a right lower portion of the tactical vest proximate of the open front area.

16. The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to claim 15, further comprising configuring the gap to provide unimpeded access to the one or more pieces of equipment removably coupled to the tactical vest.

17. The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to claim 15, wherein the left front, the right front and the back are void of the thermal protection layer.

18. The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to claim 15, wherein the lower portion of the overlay jacket has a drawstring.

19. The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to claim 15, further comprising incorporating into a left front interior surface and a right front interior surface pouch attachment ladders system (PALS) webbing and configuring the one or more fasteners to respectively couple the PALS webbing of the left front interior surface and the right front interior surface of the overlay jacket to the tactical vest.

20. The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to claim 19, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a hook and loop fastener.

21. The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to claim 19, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a loop and snap fastener.

22. The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to claim 19, wherein the one or more fasteners are each a cap and socket fastener.