JP2001510878A - Specially shaped multilayer protective clothing - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] Protective clothing, especially body protective clothing for female wearers, is specially shaped to fit the shaped area to be protected, such as the bust of a female wearer, such as polyaramid fiber It is made of a multi-layer (30) penetration-resistant material made of: The shaped portion of the protective garment is held in shape by a series of darts (37) in a continuous layer of material (30). Each dart of the material layer consists of a generally V-shaped portion (35) whose edges (37) are joined to form a dart. The V-shaped portion (35) of the material is folded on itself to form a folded pleat (40) on one side of the dart (37) and the adjacent portion of the material (30) Overlaid or placed underneath to form the added thickness. The darts (37) are angularly offset from one another and pleated in a direction such that the added thickness is substantially evenly distributed, thereby avoiding bulging or stiffness and improving comfort. (40) is arranged.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a protective garment made of a multi-layer, penetration resistant material, in particular a body armor comprising a specially shaped part to fit the curved area of the body, such as a female bust. ) And a method for producing the same.

[0002]

[Background technology]

It is known to use high toughness fibers, such as polyaramid fibers, as multilayer structures to provide ballistic protection to body protective clothing. The multi-layered bulletproof vest has proven to be extremely satisfactory as a body suit for men and women, but by shaping the suit to fit the female body, Difficulties have been encountered in improving comfort.

[0003] Comfort and the effectiveness of protective clothing in preventing injury are closely related. Approximately 10 to 50 layers of fabric are used, depending on the level of protection and type of fabric. This results in a slightly rigid structure that does not easily fit the salient contours of the body, especially the female breast area. If the protective clothing does not make comfortable contact with the wearer's body, the propagation of impact will be uneven and the body protective clothing will not perform its essential function. The shaped area of the body suit is particularly susceptible to damage from shots from the angle of incidence. In addition, the female breast is particularly susceptible to traumatic impact injury.

[0004] Various proposals have been made for multi-layer body protective clothing specially shaped to protect shaped areas of the body, such as the breasts of women. However, making multilayered protective garments in specially shaped shapes is made difficult by the fact that the layers of penetration resistant material are flexible but relatively inelastic. Therefore, a problem is encountered.

It has been proposed in US Pat. No. 4,183,097 to contour a front armor panel by stitching cut panels of fabric with overlapping seams using a special stitching pattern. However, if the overlapping seams are not large enough, angled shots will penetrate the vest, while increasing the size of the overlapping seams will create hard edges in areas where women need as much flexibility as possible.

[0006] US Pat. No. 4,578,821 proposes to insert a flexible multilayer ballistic panel into a front pocket of a carrier garment. This panel is held by Velcro hook-and-pile fasteners and can be adjusted to different bust sizes, but the area to be protected is limited and Velcro fasteners are Good bulletproof performance cannot be guaranteed. Therefore, this system is only suitable for low protection levels.

In British Patent Specification No. 2,231,481, a vest having a foamed plastic material whose inner surface is shaped to fit the breast was proposed. A shaped rigid or semi-rigid shock-absorbing sheet is added to the plastic layer and finally a multi-layer bulletproof pack (bal
listic pack) is inserted and the entire composition is placed in a bag. With this design, the bulletproof pack is conformed by folding around a horizontal line. This is done only by leaving large openings on the left and right sides of the rib cage,
There is a problem in the protection of the lateral area. In addition, this vest is relatively heavy, rigid and uncomfortable to wear.

Another proposal in US Pat. No. 5,020,157 is a high strength laminated, worn over the woman's breast and under a conventional soft body vest to protect against injuries resulting from ballistic impact. The use of rigid, inflexible cups made of polyethylene material. Nevertheless, the pressure resulting from the impact is transmitted to the rim of the cup and can cause injury. In addition, hard cups are not comfortable to wear.

[0009] It is possible to shape a layer of aramid fabric in a PVC shell into a multi-layered protective garment by shaping by pressure of 400-800 kPa and heating at 180-300 ° C. DE-A-4423194 and WO 96/01405
Was suggested in. However, aramid fibers have an elongation of up to 4% and can be damaged during molding. In addition, shaping the layers stretches the fabric, increases the spacing between the fibers, and reduces ballistic efficiency. Also, by forming in a PVC shell, the protective clothing becomes relatively rigid.

[0010] Thus, the above-mentioned prior proposals for specially shaped, multi-layered protective garments, while providing excellent ballistic protection, provide a comfortable fit to the body and operate at room temperature. It was not possible to produce a lightweight multilayer structure that could be manufactured using the resulting equipment.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to obviate the above-mentioned problems of the prior art and to provide a multi-layered protective suit specially shaped to fit the shaped area, combining reliable ballistic resistance with good comfort It is to provide.

[0012] It is also an object of the present invention to provide a simple method of shaping such multi-layered protective garments that does not require heat treatment to degrade performance.

As described below, a novel method of folding darts that stacks layers shaped by darts that are more or less uniformly distributed by a sequence of rotations (angularly offset) These goals are achieved.

The present invention relates to a protective garment, especially a body, made of a multilayer, flexible, relatively inelastic, penetration-resistant material specially shaped to fit the shaped area to be protected. Suggest protective clothing.

“Specially shaped” means an out-of-plane portion of a three-dimensional structure such as clothing.

According to the invention, the layer is held in shape by a plurality of darts of a continuous layer of material.
Each dart in the layer consists of a generally V-shaped portion where the edges are joined to form a dart. The V-shaped part is folded over on itself, folded on one side of the dart and placed on or below the adjacent part of the layer to add the added thickness Form.

According to the invention, the darts are angularly offset from one another and the folded V-shaped portions are arranged such that the added thickness is substantially evenly distributed. You.

The resulting specially shaped lightweight protective garment is comfortable to wear without compromising the ballistic resistance. An unbroken dart means that there are no weak lines that can penetrate the projectile.

Due to the added thickness of the folded portion of the V-shaped portion, which is substantially evenly distributed around the shaped area, the projectile may strike at an angle and cause damage. An additional protective layer is provided on the shaped part having the irregularities. However, good ballistic resistance is not obtained from these thickened parts, but is mainly due to the fact that this design does not provide any weakness that reduces the ballistic effectiveness of the main layer.

The shape created in this way allows a better fit to the contours of the body without any restrictions on the degree of protection provided by the multilayer structure. Due to their even distribution, the folded-up part does not adversely affect the flexibility and comfort of the protective garment. Furthermore, the additional weight of the folded part is insignificant. Thus, the body suit will be lighter and more comfortable, while providing improved protection against injury.

The folded V-shaped portions of the material all form a pleat that can be arranged in the same direction, ie, folded on the same side. However, usually these pleats are arranged in different directions. In a preferred embodiment, the pairs of material layers have darts at the same angular position and are arranged in opposite directions so that the pleats do not overlap each other. The layers of material forming these pairs can be adjacent to each other, but with alternating layers, because the flexibility and comfort are improved by avoiding pleat jams that result in stiffness or bulging. Advantageously there is.

If convenient, angular spacing can be left between the darts such that a corresponding angular spacing remains between some or all of the angularly adjacent pleats of the different layers. This can contribute to the flexibility of the shaped part without compromising safety. What is important is that the pleats be angularly distributed so that the added thickness is evenly distributed, avoiding bulges or stiffness that would compromise safety.

Basically, darts generally extend radially from at least one point or region of convergence. Usually, the darts are angularly offset from each other, at an angle equal to or greater than the angle of the V-shaped part before folding, around at least one converging point or area. This avoids unwanted overlapping of the folded pleat edges.

Each layer of material is usually symmetrically distributed on either side of one dart or, in the case of a specially shaped body suit for women, two converging points or regions. It has two darts in a row. However, each layer of material can have even more darts, for example, four darts extending on either side of two converging points or regions and up and down.

The primary application of the specially shaped protective garment of the present invention is in the shaping of a body such as the torso, neck and / or collar area, shoulder area, or elbow, knee or other joint area. As a body suit comprising at least one part specially shaped to fit the part. The body armor can be a flexible or relatively rigid or rigid armor in the form of a vest or arm or leg protection and similar apparel.

A particular application is as a body suit that is specially shaped to fit the bust of a female wearer and has two side-by-side, internally concave indentations corresponding to the bust. It is. In this embodiment, the darts are angularly offset around each of the two side-by-side indented portions so that the added thickness is substantially evenly distributed on that side. .

In this specially shaped body protective suit for women,
Two side-by-side, concave indentations on the inside, usually defining a continuously shaped bust ("monocup") containing two breasts, above, below, and outside the recesses Formed by darts around the edge of

Alternatively, two breast cups can be provided, but this is not required. In this case, it is possible to provide enough darts that are angularly offset from each other so that the pleats cover a substantially full circular area around the two side-by-side indentations .

The darts of this specially shaped body protective suit for women extend radially from two side-by-side, convergent points or areas corresponding to the center of the indentations, It extends above and below a point or area, and possibly over an angle of at least about 180 degrees.

The body armor according to the invention in the form of a vest usually comprises a front and a back panel permanently joined together or detachably fixed, for example by means of a velcro fastener, the front panel comprising: For example, the novel arrangement of darts described above can be shaped to fit the bust of a female wearer. The present invention relates to both the overall vest and the front panel, which may be sold separately.

The angle of the V-shaped portion of the flexible material depends on the degree of curvature required for a particular application. For most applications, the V-shaped sections each make an angle of about 10 to 40 degrees.

For this specially shaped body suit for women, an angle of about 15 to 30 degrees, conveniently about 20 to 25 degrees, is a shape that is suitable for many women's breasts This is preferred because it provides a recessed portion with

A V-shaped part having an angle of less than 10 ° is possible, for example, in the form of a neck. When using small angles, special care must be taken to avoid the relatively narrow pleats (half the angle of V) being properly folded, aligned and bulging.

A V-shaped part having an angle greater than 40 ° is necessary, for example, for an elbow shape.

Typically, the assembled layer of material has at least three dart locations around each of the two side-by-side indentations. However, for some applications, two dart positions are sufficient, in which case the pleats of different layers are folded in opposite directions at each dart position to minimize the additional thickness of the pleats. spread.

An array having at least six dart positions around each of the two side-by-side indentations has been found to be quite satisfactory for a women's vest. The maximum number of dart positions is determined by the application envisioned and by manufacturing considerations.

The shape created by the particular arrangement of darts according to the invention can be symmetric or asymmetric around one or more converging points or regions. Asymmetric shapes can be created by an asymmetric distribution of dart positions and / or include using V-shaped portions (of the same or different layers) with different angles, or pleated Is created by the asymmetrical folding of

As will be described in more detail below, the penetration resistant material is advantageously made of polyaramid fibers, and one or more layers (through holes) are provided to improve penetration resistance and reduce backside deformation. Usually, only the back and / or front layers) are bonded to the polymer. Body armor should include one or more front pockets to accommodate ballistic panels or, if necessary, combine with other protective layers to improve ballistic performance and / or reduce rear deformation It is also possible. For example, a rigid or semi-rigid front layer can be applied.

[0039] penetration resistant material used in the multilayer body protective clothing according penetration resistant material present invention can be applied various types of fibers, equal to almost seven grams / denier, according to ASTM D-885 It consists of fibers of a polyolefin having a toughness of at least 900 MPa, for example polyethylene, polyimide, polyester or polyaramid. To provide good penetration resistance, preferably the toughness of the fiber is at least 2000 according to ASTM D-885.
MPa.

Polyaramid fibers are preferred because they may exceed the preferred limit of 2000 MPa, have the required toughness and have good chemical resistance.

Preferably, as a knitted fabric, a woven fabric, a single woven structure, a unidirectional structure or a multidirectional sheet (eg, having fibers intersecting at an angle between 20 and 90 degrees),
Alternatively, fibers, such as nonwoven (eg, felt) layers, can exist as many forms of material. Film-like sheets of penetration-resistant materials are also possible.

For reasons of manufacturing efficiency, availability and geometric strength (well-defined and stable structure), highly tough woven fabrics are preferred. Depending on the requirements of use, other woven structures can be used as well, but the construction of the fabric is preferably plain weave, usually 42 × 42 or 28 × 28 warp / cm, or 14 × 14 or 6.7 × 6.7 warp / cm
It consists of.

To obtain a balance between penetration resistance and specific weight, the specific weight of such a fabric is
Generally 0.5 kg / m ² 0.02, preferably 0.3 kg / m ² from 0.5 kg / m ^2, more preferably from 0.08 0.05.

If the specific weight is less than 0.02 kg / m ² , the ballistic performance of the woven fabric is generally unacceptable, even if it is made of polyalamide fibers, while the specific weight is greater than 0.5 kg / m ² In some cases, weight constraints make the use of multiple fabric layers impractical.

The fibers used can range from 0.1 to 3500, depending on the required fabric weight / ballistic performance ratio.
Having a preferred denier number (defined as the weight in grams of 9000 meters of yarn) of from 10 to 3500. Fibers of 1000 to 3000 denier are used in less demanding applications, and for high performance / low specific weight applications, fibers of 1 to 1000, more particularly 50 to 1000 denier are preferred.

In many cases, a denier range of 1 to 3000 for fibers is superior.

The fibers may be present in an uncoated, or coated, or otherwise pre-treated (eg, pre-drawn or heat-treated) form. When using polyaramid fibers, it is generally not necessary to coat or otherwise pretreat the fibers, other than to arrange them in a suitable woven or non-woven layer. However,
In some cases, a coating is applied to the fibers, for example, to enhance bonding to the polymer continuum.

To improve penetration resistance and reduce back deformation, one or more layers of the fabric described above,
Usually, only the back and / or front layers are bonded to the polymer layer or impregnated with the polymer to take advantage of the properties of both the fiber and the polymer continuum.

Such a complex described in EP-A- (KB-4060) includes ASTM D
Flexural modulus from 42 to 1,000MPa according to -790, at least 10MP according to ASTM D-638
Consisting of a fiber having a tenacity of at least 900 MPa (7 grams / denier) by ASTM D-885 bonded to a polymer continuum having a tensile strength at break of a and an elongation at break of at least 100% according to ASTM D-638 Layers included.

For such a composite, a thermoplastic polymer is preferably used. Suitable polymers include certain polyethylenes, polyimides, polyetheretherketones,
Includes ionomer resins, phenol modified resins, and polyesters.

[0051] Preferably, the thermoplastic polymer is an ionomer resin, more preferably an ionomer resin containing a cation selected from the group consisting of lithium, sodium and zinc, especially at 0.1 to 0.3% by weight.

Alternatively, the thermoplastic polymer is a phenol-modified resin, especially a phenol-polyvinyl butyral resin.

The polymer continuum should preferably have a tensile strength at break of at least 20 MPa and an elongation at break of at least 200%, more preferably at least 300%, according to ASTM D-638.

The flexibility of the polymer layer is an important factor for both the penetration resistance of the composite and the comfort of the body armor that includes the composite sheet.

The bending modulus of the polymer is preferably between 42 and 1,000 MPa according to ASTM D-790.
Between 50 and 800 Mpa.

A flexural modulus higher than 1,000 MPa indicates that the polymer is too stiff to effectively resist perforation or cannot be comfortably worn as a body suit, whereas a flexural modulus lower than 42 MPa is It shows that the material is too soft to provide effective stiffness to the intended composition which resists perforation. An additional advantage of a body suit made of such a polymer is the reduction of back deformation when a bullet hits the body suit.

Another important property of the polymer layer is its density, especially in view of the ease of wearing body protective clothing and the desirability of low specific weight for effective fabrication for the purpose of handling and weight reduction. It is.

Preferably, the density of the layer composed of the polymer compound is 2,500 kg / m ³ or less, in particular 1,500 kg / m ³ or less. If the density is less than 1,000 kg / m ³ , the ionomer polymer layer is preferred in this regard.

Preferably, the application of the polymer continuum as a layer which can be bonded on one or both sides to the fiber-containing layer, if an appropriate manufacturing process is available in practical terms Can be. In a preferred embodiment, a layer containing the fibers is embedded in a polymer continuum to immobilize the fibers, resulting in a very strong composition. The polymer and fiber layers are known in the art, such as calendering, extrusion coating, gluing, impregnation, heat bonding, other forms of laminate layers of two different materials, or even in-system polymerization, in a batch or continuous process. To form a polymer continuum with the fibers.

The preferred method of joining the fibrous polymer / composite layers is in the form of a batch process or in the form of a continuous process, in particular by thermal bonding by means of a belt press or calender.

If a composite fiber / polymer layer is to be included in the shaped body armor according to the present invention, it can be shaped into such sheets using the darts and folded pleats described herein. it can. There is no need to apply heat during this shaping process. However, it is possible to include one or more layers of the fiber / polymer composite formed by casting.

Manufacturing Method In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method of manufacturing a multilayer, specially shaped body armor comprises a multilayer, flexible, relatively non-woven body to be assembled into the shaped armor. Begin by providing an elastic penetration resistant material. Each layer has a fold line that defines at least one dart consisting of a generally V-shaped portion of the material, and the darts of the different layers are angularly offset from each other about one or more converging points or regions. It has been.

First, the edges of the V-shaped portion are joined to form a dart in each layer, and the layers having the dart formed all have substantially the same peripheral shape, and are used for body protective clothing. Assembled.

Typically, all of these layers are identical in shape and size. However, it is sometimes convenient to arrange the layers with slightly different shapes or sizes, for example to accommodate the progressive shaping of the layers.

Next, the multilayers are assembled to form a shaped portion, the darts of the different layers are angularly offset, and a V-shaped portion of the material is substantially formed around the shaped portion. To be folded in a direction in which the thickness uniformly added to the sheet is distributed.

The forming operation is performed on a suitable support. For example, to form a vest,
Layers can be stacked on the bust.

Finally, the thus formed multilayer is assembled to form a protective suit.

Gradual stacking of angularly offset (“rotated”) darts, with folded pleats of progressive layers (from layer number 2), results in a contouring of 30, 50
Or it may be referred to as gradual contouring as it proceeds between subsequent layers of more layers.

As described above, by performing lamination in an anatomically correct method, a protective suit can be prepared. Dart folding, stitching, pleat folding, and lamination of successive layers can shape each single layer of relatively inelastic, penetration resistant material.

On the other hand, clothing such as vests can be prepared for individual wearer measurements. On the other hand, shaped garments such as vests can be made to fit different wearers.

The folding and fastening techniques do not require special equipment or instruments and can be handled by existing procedures of current textile cutting techniques.

The advantage of this assembling method is that a relatively thin layer of the penetration-resistant material can be used and a very large number of layers, for example, up to 50 or more layers, can be easily formed into a multilayer shape. It is. It is well known that ballistic performance improves with the number of layers, even for the same overall thickness.

Preferably, the pairs of material layers have darts at the same angular position, and the V-shaped portions of these layers are folded in opposite directions so that they do not overlap each other and dart at the same angular position. Are preferably assembled as alternating layers.

This new approach of laminating a thick protective layer provides a layer that provides additional protection against bullet impact (at the overlap where the pleats overlap and fold),
Particularly valuable in shaped areas where bullets or debris strikes at an angle (non-vertical impact).

A dart is formed by sewing the edges of the V-shaped portion preferably using a polyaramid thread. Alternatively, the edges can be joined together by other means, such as a polyaramid stapler or rivet, or by gluing. The layers of impact resistant material are conveniently stitched together by stitching.

Once the layers of material have been attached together, care is taken to maintain shape and avoid air pockets. Fabricating the front panel of body armor by joining together two or more packs of shaped layers of penetration-resistant material by assembling layers with angularly offset darts as described above. Can be.

[0077]

[Detailed description]

FIG. 1 shows a lightweight ballistic vest consisting of a front panel 10 and a rear panel 20 each specially shaped to fit the bust of a female wearer, each made of an assembly of layers of penetration resistant material. The front panel 10 has an upper breast portion 14 shaped to form two side-by-side, concave inner concave portions corresponding to the bust.
And a lower breast portion 15. The inner layer of the penetration-resistant material constituting the front panel 10,
Shaped by a series of angularly offset darts, as described with reference to FIGS.

As shown in FIG. 1, the front and back panels 10, 20 of the vest are provided by a series of velcro fasteners, ie, velcro hook fasteners on shoulder straps 21 fitted to the back panel 20. The front panel 10 moves together with a velcro pile fastener 11 on the upper side of the front panel 10 and a velcro hook fastener on a side strap 22 fitted at the bottom of the rear panel 20. Velcropile fasteners 12 on the bottom side of the lip lock together so that they can be removed. These side straps 22 have additional velcro cross-pieces (cross-piece
A belt 24 with velcro fasteners is provided to attach the) 23 and for added safety.

The layer of penetration-resistant material that makes up front panel 10 is encapsulated between the lining and the outer cover sheet of non-penetration-resistant material. Seams extending to and beyond the bust level to fit this outer sheet into the shape of the front panel 10
17 are provided. However, according to the present invention, as described below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4, the inner layer of the penetration-resistant material has no breaks and a series of angularly pleats with folded pleats. It is emphasized that it is assembled by offset darts.

If desired, the outer coversheet, like that of the inner layer of the penetration-resistant material,
It can have a dart with folded pleats.

FIGS. 2-1 to 2-12 show each of the twelve layers 30 of penetration resistant material before assembling successive layers to form the shaped front panel 10 of the ballistic proof of FIG. The right half of one material layer is shown. The other half of each layer 30 is a mirror image around line X. The lines shown inside the perimeter of each layer 30 merely indicate the function of indicating the positions of the folding lines and the joining lines.

Each layer 30 includes two lateral extensions 31 (corresponding to the portion of the front panel 10 that fits around the waist of the wearer), lateral recesses 32 (front panel that fits under the arm of the wearer). 10), a rounded top 33 (corresponding to the portion of the front panel 10 that covers the upper breast of the wearer to which the fastener 11 is attached) and a concave top 34 (
(Corresponding to the portion of the front panel 10 that fits around the neck of the wearer).

Each half of the layer 30 also has a V-shaped portion 35 with a central fold line 36, which is folded around the fold line and joined to form a dart as shown in FIG. Can be formed. This figure shows the corresponding layers of FIG. 2-1 or FIG. 2-3. As shown, the layer 30 is folded around a vertical fold line 38 that coincides with the fold line 36, then sewn or stapled along a line 37 defining a V-shaped portion 35. The layers 30 are joined together to form a dart along the joined lines 37, leaving a pleat 40 of V-shaped portions 35 folded on itself.

As shown in layer 30 of FIGS. 4-1 to 4-4, when two darts 37 are formed on the right and left portions of each layer 30, the outer circumference of layer 30 is The shape is essentially the same as that of FIG. However, the continuous layer 30
It has different sizes and shapes as a function of the shape to be laminated.

By comparing FIGS. 2-1 to 2-12, the continuous layer has darts 37 angularly offset from each other around the point or region of convergence, and each sheet 30 It can be seen that it has two side-by-side convergent points 39 corresponding to the center of the recessed part of the front panel 10, adapted to accommodate the breast of the subject. These convergence points 39 are at approximately the same location for all twelve layers 30. It is understood that the end points of the darts 37 are distributed around a region of convergence, for example a circular region that does not collapse. Such areas can be twisted in terms of convergence and undesirable "doubling
bling up) ".

The alternating pairs of layers 30 of material, namely FIGS. 2-1 and 2-3, 2-2 and 2-4,
2-5 and 2-7, 2-6 and 2-8, 2-9 and 2-11, 2-10 and 2-
The twelve of them are identical, and the darts 37 of each pair of layers are located at the same angular position. The darts 37 of successive layers (FIGS. 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, etc.) are angularly offset from one another. 2-1 and 2-2 and those of FIGS. 2-3 and 2-4,
180 degrees from each other. Those of the other continuous layers are at different angles represented by fold line 36 in FIGS. 2-5 to 2-12. Generally, except for layer 30 of FIGS. 2-10, where the darts are located in the middle, the darts 37 of the odd layers are located at the top of layer 30 and those of the even layers are located at the bottom of layer 30 .

In this given embodiment, the angle of V between the lines 37 forming each dart is about 22.5 degrees, so the six darts arranged side by side extend over 135 degrees. However, the darts 37 start at one end at the top from the darts 37 in FIGS. 2-9 and 2-11 and at the other end at the bottom to the darts 37 in FIGS. 2-2 and 2-4 for a total of about 195. It will be seen that there is a gap between the other darts 37 over a degree angle. See FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 4-1 to 4-4, pleats combined with darts 37
40 are folded in alternate directions to provide the best possible distribution of additional thickness when assembling layer 30. Each pleat 40 occupies half the width of the V-shaped portion, and these pleats 40 are selectively folded in alternate directions.

In FIG. 4A, the left pleat 40 at the top of the first layer 30 is folded right and the right pleat 40 is folded left. Similarly, in FIG. 4-2, the left pleats 40 in the lower portion of the second layer 30 are folded right and the right pleats 40 are folded left.

For the next two corresponding layers in FIGS. 4-3 and 4-4, the folding of the corresponding pleats 40 is reversed, ie, for the third and fourth layers 30, the left Pleated 40
Is folded to the left and the right pleat 40 is folded to the right.

In subsequent groups of pairs of layers 30, the same pattern that reverses the fold of the pleats 40 is followed. The principle is that darts placed in the same position on alternating layers
The 37 pleats 40 are folded in opposite directions, for example, as in FIGS. 2-5 and 2-7 and FIGS. 2-6 and 2-8, and when assembling the layer 30, the pleats 40
That is, they do not overlap each other (see FIG. 5). This folding of the pleats 40 can be performed when the darts 37 are formed or when the layers 30 are assembled.

Next, the layer 30 having the darts 37 is continuously assembled on the bust while folding the continuous layer pleats 40 as described above. Each layer 30 is adjusted with a needle to the next (or previous) layer. While arranging the pleats 40 in the direction chosen at the top of the layer 30,
The same process is repeated for all twelve layers 30. Only the last layer inverts the pleats inward so as to have a smooth outer surface.

While assembling and shaping the layer 30, while taking care to maintain its shape during stitching, extrude air, hold it by a clamp avoiding the formation of air pockets and stitch the perimeter (so If not, fix them together). For this purpose, it is preferable to start sewing from the rounded upper portion 33 and sew the peripheral portion at one time so as to end at the lower corner, instead of continuously sewing around the periphery. If desired
The corresponding portion of the waist can be captured to provide a better shape.

The layer 30 assembled by the darts 37 is applied to form two side-by-side, internally concave recesses in a “monocup” structure that is fitted to fit the wearer's breast. The pleats 40 of the various layers 30 are arranged such that the shaped and added thickness is substantially evenly distributed around the shaped portion and avoid any bulging or stiffness.

FIG. 5 schematically shows the angular distribution of pleats 40 in the assembled pack. In this figure, the pleats 40 correspond to the respective layers 30 corresponding to FIGS. 2-1 to 2-12.
It is identified by the numbers L1 to L12. In this example, going clockwise, the pleats L11-L9, L3-L1, L7-L5, L12-L10, L6-L8 and L2-L4 were folded in opposite directions around this line. Arranged together in pairs to form pleats. Pleated L1-L7, L5-L12, L10-L6 and L8-L2 are all layers not covered by pleats
Due to the spread of 30, they are arranged angularly separated from each other.

Due to the angular displacement of the darts 37 and the preferential orientation of the pleats 40, the pleats of the pack do not overlap each other. Furthermore, the pleats 40 whose outer edges are angularly coincident with each other-in this example L3-L9-are separated by at least one unpleated part of the intermediate layer 30-i.e., the layers L4-L8-and are jammed or jammed. There is no risk of interference between the pleats 40 causing the formation of blisters.

In the final assembly, the pleats 40 are evenly distributed around the outside of the monocup recess, providing two additional layers of protection in this sensitive band at the location covered by the pleats 40.

If it is desired to have two additional protected areas in the uncovered area of FIG. 5, simply include the additional layer with darts in the desired additional locations in the pack. Can achieve this.

The front panel 10 of FIG. 1 is manufactured by fitting together a selected number of packs of twelve plies 30 assembled as described above, for example, two packs having 24 plies, Three packs will be a 36-layer panel, and so on. It is also possible to produce fractional assemblies, for example, a two and a half pack becomes a 30-layer panel. FIG. 6 shows how the layers of the penetration-resistant material are assembled to form the rear panel 20 of FIG.
Is formed. Here, the layer 50 shaped to form the back panel 20
Are put together, bent into the shape of the back and then stitched or otherwise attached together. All layers 50 except the last five are stitched together at 51 at the perimeter and at 52 at the cross. The last five layers 50 (closest to the body) are sewn together only at the perimeter at 51. The pack is then stitched together only at the top and side areas of the perimeter 51.

The front and back panels 10, 20 are encapsulated in their respective cover layers and linings, mating with velcro fasteners and slings.

[0101]

【Example】

With vehicle have been front panel of bulletproof vest, as described above, was prepared by Kevlar ^R Style 363F fabric 30 layers sewed using 930 dtex Kevlar ^R sewing thread. Kevlar ^R , Du
Pont is a registered trademark. The layers were assembled on a bust measuring 94-64-97 cm (size 42). The finished shaped front panel was mounted on a Plastilina backing material and subjected to a standard firing test. Under standard conditions, a bullet was shot at the tip, side and border of the curved breast. All bullets stopped in the first half of the pack, indicating a good bulletproof design. In addition, the back deformation of Plastilina was satisfactory.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front overhead view of a bulletproof vest having a front panel specially shaped according to the present invention as a vest worn by a woman.

2 is a schematic plan view showing each half of one material layer, and FIGS.
The twelve layers at -12 show before the continuous layers are assembled to form the shaped front panel of the bulletproof vest of FIG.

FIG. 3 illustrates the formation of darts in one of these layers.

FIG. 4 illustrates the folding of darts in four consecutive layers before (or during) the assembly of the layers.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing an angular distribution of folded pleats.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view illustrating how the back panel of the body protective clothing of FIG. 1 is assembled.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Front panel 11 Velcro pile fastener 12 Velcro pile fastener 14 Upper breast part 15 Lower breast part 16 Lateral extension 17 Seam 20 Back panel 21 Top suspension string 22 Lower suspension string 23 Cross member 24 Belt 30 Layer of material cut into shape 31 Lateral extension 32 Arm recess 33 Upper breast cover 34 Neck 35 V-shaped part of material 36 Fold line 37 Joint line 38 Vertical fold line 39 Convergence point or area 40 V shape Pleats (folded up) 50 Back layer 51 Perimeter 52 Cross stitching

[Procedure for Amendment] Submission of translation of Article 19 Amendment of the Patent Cooperation Treaty

[Submission date] January 7, 2000 (2000.1.7)

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] Claims

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[Claims]

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventors Van Gille, Nicholas A. Swiss CH-1218 Legrand Saconex Chouman Francois Lehmann 22 F term (reference) 3B011 AA01 AB04 AC04 3B031 AA01 AC11 3B035 AA02 AB18 AC02 AC07 AD02

Claims (19)

[Claims] 1. A protective garment made of a multi-layer, flexible, relatively inelastic, penetration-resistant material specially shaped over the shaped area to be protected, wherein the layer is a continuous layer of material. The darts of the layer are held together by edges, each dart of the layer being joined together at the edges to form a roughly V-shaped part forming a dart, the V-shaped part being folded over itself and one of the darts Folded on one side and rides on or below the adjacent part of the layer to form the added thickness, the darts are angularly offset from each other and the added thickness above Protective clothing with folded V-shaped parts arranged so that the slabs are substantially evenly distributed. 2. The multilayered shaped protective suit according to claim 1, wherein the folded V-shaped portions are arranged in different directions. 3. A pair of layers of material having darts at the same angular position and folded
3. The multi-layer shaped protective garment of claim 2, wherein the V-shaped portions are arranged in opposite directions such that they do not overlap each other. 4. The multi-layer shaped protective garment of claim 3, wherein said paired layers having darts at the same angular position are alternating layers. 5. The multi-layer shaped protective garment of claim 1, wherein the darts extend radially from one or more converging points or regions. 6. The dart of claim 5, wherein the darts are angularly offset from one another about one or more converging points or regions by an angle equal to or greater than the angle of the V-shaped portion before folding. 2. A multilayered shaped protective suit according to claim 1. 7. At least one part specially shaped to fit a shaped part of the body, such as the torso, neck and / or collar area, shoulder area, or elbow, knee or other joint area. The multilayer shaped protective suit according to claim 1, which is a body protective suit. 8. The dart is shaped to fit the bust of a female wearer and has two side-by-side, inwardly concave depressions corresponding to the bust, and the darts are side-by-side 8. The multi-layer shaped protective garment of claim 7, wherein the multi-layer shaped protective garment is angularly offset around the inner concave recess and the added thickness thereabout is substantially evenly distributed. 9. The two side-by-side, inwardly concave depressions corresponding to the bust are formed by darts around an upper edge, a lower edge and an outer edge of the depression, 9. The multi-layer shaped protective garment of claim 8, wherein the claim defines a continuous shaped bust ("monocup") to contain the breast. 10. The dart extends radially from two side-by-side points or regions of convergence corresponding to the center of the indentation, wherein the dart extends at least about 180 degrees above and below the two points or regions of convergence. The multilayer shaped protective suit according to claim 8 or 9, which extends over all angles. 11. The multi-layer shaped protective garment of claim 1, wherein the V-shaped portions each form an angle of 10 to 40 degrees, usually about 15 to 30 degrees. 12. The multi-layer shaped guard according to claim 1, comprising darts in at least three angularly offset positions around the point or region of convergence or each point or region of convergence. clothes. 13. A multilayer shaped guard according to claim 12, comprising darts in at least six angularly offset positions around the point or region of convergence or each point or region of convergence. clothes. 14. The multilayer shaped protective garment of claim 1, wherein the layer of penetration resistant material comprises polyaramid fibers. 15. The multilayered protective garment of claim 1, wherein at least one of the layers of the penetration resistant material comprises polyaramid fibers bonded to a continuum of polymer. 16. Providing a multilayer, flexible, relatively inelastic, penetration resistant material to be assembled into a shaped protective garment, each layer comprising at least one dart comprising a generally V-shaped portion of the material. The darts of the different layers are angularly offset from each other around one or more converging points or regions, and- The layers with the formed darts have substantially the same perimeter shape for being assembled into the body armor;-assembling the multilayers to form the shaped parts, darts of different layers Are angularly offset, and the V-shaped portion of the material is folded in a direction that distributes a substantially even applied thickness around the shaped portion, and thus shaped. Attach multiple layers to form a protective suit Method of manufacturing a multilayer shaped been protective garment according to one of the claims consists of. 17. The claim of claim 16, wherein the pairs of layers of material have darts at the same angular position and the folded V-shaped portions are folded in opposite directions so that they do not overlap each other. The described method. 18. The method of claim 17 wherein said paired layers having darts at the same angular position are assembled in alternating layers. 19. The dart of claim 16, wherein the edges of the V-shaped portions are stitched, stapled, riveted or glued together to form a dart.
19. The method according to 17 or 18.