Body armor ballistic plate carrier
The present plate carrier includes front and rear panel sections with internal pockets for supporting ballistic plates and inserts, but positions the rear panel section to provide improved thoracic protection. The front and rear panel sections are suspended by shoulder straps, which connect to the rear panel section at a mid point below the top edge of the rear panel section. The mid point connection of the shoulder straps causes the rear panel section to ride higher than the front panel section and higher on the wearer's back thereby positioning the ballistic plate inside high on the wearer's back and providing better ballistic coverage of the wearer's upper thoracic area. One of the internal pockets of each panel section has facing strips of hook and loop material sewn around its inner periphery that adhere together around a ballistic plate to center and hold the plate in place within the pocket. The plate carrier has removable side plate pockets mounted to a detachable cummerbund by hook and loop fasteners allowing the ballistic plates to be properly positioned on the cummerbund.
This is a continuation-in-part of pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/927,975 filed on Nov. 30, 2010.
This invention relates to ballistic resistant “body armor” and in particular, a plate carrier for rigid ballistic plates and flexible ballistic inserts.
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONBody armor and particularly “plate carriers” are well known in the military and law enforcement communities. Plate carriers are garments that support rigid ballistic armor plates and/or flexible ballistic armor inserts within internal pockets or pouches of the carrier. The plate carrier is generally comprised of front and back panel sections connected by shoulder straps and a waist strap or cummerbund. Generally, conventional plate carriers are not sized and proportioned for particular wearers but to accommodate the sizes of inserts and armor plates, which are typically available in small, medium, large and extra large sizes. Consequently, conventional plate carriers have suffered from issues relating to the proper fit of the plate carrier to the individual wearer. Ideally, a plate carrier must properly position and secure the plates to adequately cover the wearer's vital areas, while accommodating the various sizes of plates and inserts. One common issue with conventional plate carriers is the position and height of the rear plate on the wearer's back. Because the front and back panels are suspended from shoulder straps, the rear panel often does not ride high enough on the wearer's back to provide adequate thoracic protection. In addition, because the armor plates and inserts are simply carried within internal pockets or pouches within the panel sections, smaller plates and inserts often shift about within the pockets as the wearer moves.
The present invention provides a plate carrier that includes both front and rear panel sections with internal pockets for supporting armor plates and inserts, but positions the rear panel section to provide improved thoracic protection. The front and rear panel sections are suspended by shoulder straps, which connect to the rear panel section at a mid point below the top edge of the rear panel section. The mid point connection of the shoulder straps causes the rear panel section to ride higher than the front panel section and higher on the wearer's back thereby positioning the armor plate inside high on the wearer's back and providing better ballistic coverage of the wearer's upper thoracic area. One of the internal pockets of each panel section has facing strips of hook and loop material sewn around its inner periphery that adhere together around an armor plate to center and hold the plate in place within the pocket. One additional embodiment of the plate carrier has removable side plate pockets mounted to a detachable cummerbund by hook and loop fasteners. In another embodiment, the side ballistic plates themselves have sections of hook and loop material so that they can be mounted directly to corresponding hook and loop material on the cummerbund.
Various advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of an embodiment of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The drawings illustrate an embodiment of the present invention, in which:
Referring now to the drawings,
As shown, the front and rear panel sections 20 and 40 are covered in PALS (Pouch Attachment Ladder System) webbing to be MOLLE (MOdular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment) compatible. The PALS webbing allows the pouches to be attached to other MOLLE compatible vests, packs and pouches. PALS webbing consists of horizontal rows of heavy-duty 1″ nylon webbing. PALS webbing allows the pouches to be quickly attached to other MOLLE compatible vests, packs and pouches using “Natick” snaps (polyethylene reinforced webbing straps with push the dot snaps for security) or polymer MALICE Clips® from Tactical Tailor (not shown). Different areas of the PALS webbing may use braided nylon webbing, while others use hook and loop webbing for enhanced utility. The type, placement and arrangement of the PALS webbing may vary. In addition, some of the PALs webbing may be formed from hook and loop webbing so that hook and loop attachments may be directly mounted to the surface of the carrier sections.
Rear panel section 40 includes a pair of padded shoulder straps 42. Front carrier section 20 also has a pair of shoulder straps 22 formed by lengths of nylon webbing, which extend from the top edge of the front carrier body. As shown, shoulder straps 22 and padded shoulder straps 42 are connected by quick connect buckles 24, but may be connected by D-rings or other fasteners. While front shoulder straps 22 extend from the top edge of front carrier section 20, padded shoulder straps 42 extend from a mid point on the rear carrier section's inner face. As best shown in
Detachable Cummerbund 60 wraps around the wearer and secures the rear panel section 40 to the front panel section 20. Cummerbund 60 is constructed of a length of elastic webbing with hook and loop patches sewn to its ends. The elastic webbing gives cummerbund 60 sufficient elasticity for freedom of movement, while holding front and rear carrier section snugly against the wearer's body. Other embodiments of cummerbund 60 may include PAL webbing (not shown) for additional load carrying capacity or replace the elastic webbing with other elastic materials such as elastic cord. Cummerbund 60 pass through a lateral sleeve (not shown) in rear panel section 40 and is detachably secured within the sleeve by patches of hook and loop fasteners (not shown) and sewn to the cummerbund 60 and the inside of the lateral sleeve. The ends of cummerbund 60 are held to front panel section 20 by hook and loop material 26 on the outer face of the front carrier plate and hook and loop material 62 on either side of the cummerbund. When secured, the ends of cummerbund 60 are covered by two cover flaps 28 sewn to the outer face of front carrier section 20.
As shown in
Inner pocket 31 is designed to accommodate a flexible ballistic armor insert 2 or a foam pad (not shown). The use of soft armor inserts provides enhanced ballistic protection, while the use of an additional foam pad provides increased wearer comfort. It should be understood that plate carrier 10 can be used and worn without any of the armor plates, inserts or pads. Outer pocket 33 is designed to accommodate rigid ballistic armor plates 2. As best shown in
One skilled in the art will note that the plate carrier of this invention provides improved upper thoracic protection, as well as improved wearer comfort. The mid point connection of the rear shoulder straps on the rear panel section allows the rear panel section to ride higher on the wearer's back so that the armor plate covers more of the vital upper thoracic area. It should be noted that conventional wisdom in backpack and load bearing garment design tends to desire to distribute and support the weight of the load lower on the wearer's back and across the wearer's hips. By contrast, the plate carrier of this invention positions and supports the weight of the rear panel section higher on the wearer's back to improve ballistic protection to the upper thoracic area. While the mid point connection of the shoulder straps on the rear panel section shifts the weight of the plates and inserts higher on the wearer's back, the weight is not unnatural or uncomfortable. The mid point connection of the shoulder strap to the rear panel section also allows for greater freedom of movement. The rear panel section remains substantially upright with the lower portion of the rear panel section abutting the wearer's mid back and the upper portion of the rear panel section elevated above the wearer's scapulas. Because of the mid point connection of the shoulder straps to the rear section, bending forward or backward will not cause the top or bottom of the rear section to flare outward from the wearer's back. The two spaced rows of back padding and central spinal channel also provides enhanced wearer comfort and ventilation.
As before, cummerbund 70 wraps around the wearer and secures the rear panel section to the front panel section. Cummerbund 70 pass through a lateral sleeve (not shown) in the rear panel section and is held to the front panel section by a large area of hook and loop fasteners 78, which cover all or at least a large portion of the length of the cummerbund. Side plate pocket 80 has a corresponding large patch or area 88 of hook or loop fasteners on one face, i.e. its outward facing surface. The connective interface between hook and loop materials 78 and 88 on the inner face of the cummerbund and the outer face of the side plate pocket 80 securely hold the ballistic plates in place when plate carrier 10′ is worn and cummerbund 70 is wrapped tightly around the wearer, but allow the side plate pockets to be quickly and easily removed if desired. The connective interface between the hook and loop materials areas and section 78 and 88 also allows the position of the side plate pocket relative to the cummerbund to be selectively adjusted. Consequently, the ballistic plates and inserts can be positioned for maximum coverage and protection. Also, in the case of rectangular plates and inserts, side plate pocket 80 can be affixed to cummerbund 70 either vertically or horizontally as desired to provide the desired coverage, protection and comfort. For additional security, side plate pocket 80 is tethered to cummerbund 70 by a length of elastic cord 90. Elastic cord 90 extends through an opening in side plate pocket 80 around the ballistic plate and/or inserts and the ends pass through an eyelet 76 in cummerbund 70. The ends of elastic cord 90 are pulled tight and knotted together to prevent the ends from pulling through the eyelet, thereby tethering side plate pocket 80 to cummerbund 70.
The embodiments of the present invention herein described and illustrated are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. They are presented to explain the invention so that others skilled in the art might utilize its teachings. The embodiment of the present invention may be modified within the scope of the following claims.
Claims
1: A user wearable carrier for the ballistic body armor plate or insert comprising:
- a front panel section;
- a rear panel section;
- a cummerbund for connecting the rear panel section to the front panel section; and
- a side plate pocket having an interior for supporting a ballistic plate or insert therein,
- the cummerbund having a section of hook and loop fasteners, the side plate pocket having a section of hook and loop fasteners corresponding to the hook and loop fasteners of the cummerbund so that the side plate pockets are selectively mountable to and positioned on the cummerbund.
2: The carrier of claim 1 wherein the side plate pocket includes a front, a back, and a pair of opposed elastic sides, the side plate pocket also includes a strap part for enclosing the interior thereof.
3: The carrier of claim 1 wherein the hook and loop fastener of the side plate pocket is mounted to the side plate pocket front.
4: The carrier of claim 1 and a length of cord for tethering the side plate pocket to the cummerbund.
5: A user wearable carrier for the ballistic body armor plate or insert comprising:
- a front panel section;
- a rear panel section;
- a cummerbund for connecting the rear panel section to the front panel section; and
- a ballistic plate,
- the cummerbund having a section of hook and loop fasteners, the ballistic plate pocket having a section of hook and loop fasteners corresponding to the hook and loop fasteners of the cummerbund so that the ballistic plate can be selectively mounted to and positioned on the cummerbund.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 23, 2010
Publication Date: May 31, 2012
Inventor: Jo Won Seuk (Highland Falls, NY)
Application Number: 12/930,061
International Classification: F41H 5/08 (20060101);