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ArmourRelated Patent Categories: Apparel, Guard Or Protector, Penetration ResistantArmour description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070245441, Armour. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
[0001] The present invention relates to armour, and particularly though not exclusively to wearable armour and to items of armoured apparel, and methods for their manufacture. [0002] The persons most likely to wear, or be required to wear, personal armour are typically also most likely to carry, or be required to carry, communications equipment. Examples include personnel of the security, police or armed services. Other items of equipment including circuitry or circuit components may also be required to be carried by such personnel. Often, several separate items of equipment must be carried by such personnel in addition to personal armour (e.g. body armour) and may, in total, constitute a considerable burden and cause some fatigue or discomfort to the wearer. Typically, although items of personal armour may permit other items of equipment to be attached thereto, they are not specifically designed with a view to accommodating the carriage of separate items of communications or other equipment and it is often the case that the wearing of body armour may obstruct the means by which the additional equipment is to be attached about the person or the wearer. Additionally, the personal armour itself typically provides no protection for the additional equipment, nor does the additional equipment provide any protection (e.g. ballistic protection) to the user. [0003] The present invention aims to provide armour which addresses at least some of the aforementioned deficiencies in the prior art. [0004] At its most general, the present invention proposes integrating the structure of armour with the structure of signal transmission means to enable that armour to be used as armoured protection for a wearer and for the signal transmission means and/or as a platform for conveying signals (e.g. for communication purposes or otherwise). [0005] In a first of its aspects, the present invention may provide armoured apparel including armour means arranged to shield a wearer of the apparel in use, and signal conduit means incorporated within the apparel for conveying signals therein, the signal conduit means being arranged such that the armour means shields both the signal conduit means and the wearer of the apparel in use. In this way the armour means of the apparel, what ever form it takes (e.g. flexible armour such as sheets of flexible armour material, armour plating such as ceramic armour plates or the like) may be arranged within the apparel to at least shield the signal conduit means therein to at least some extent while simultaneously shielding the wearer of the apparel. The shielding of the signal conduit means may be performed by the armour means in the same way it performs shielding of the wearer. The armour means most preferably includes material(s) forming an area or areas resistant to penetration by impacting (e.g. ballistic) or cutting objects (e.g. stabbing objects) thereby to protect the wearer from such objects. The armour may be "ballistic armour" which is to be understood to include a reference to armour suitable for resisting and protecting a wearer from penetration by ballistic/high-velocity projectiles such as bullets etc. [0006] The signal conduit means is preferably arranged between portions of the armour means such that the armour means shields the signal conduit means at substantially opposite sides thereof simultaneously. For example, the armour means of the apparel may have armour portions or parts arranged to be worn at, or to protect, opposite sides/regions of the wearer (e.g. front and back coverage) simultaneously. The same simultaneous protection is thereby afforded to the signal conduit means of the apparel. [0007] The armour means preferably surrounds (e.g. wholly surrounds or encloses) the signal conduit means thereby to shield substantially all parts of the signal conduit means simultaneously, or at least at all sides of the signal conduit means. [0008] Preferably, the signal conduit means is arranged between an inner portion of the armour means which is nearmost the wearer of the apparel in use, and an outer portion of the armour means more distant from the wearer of the apparel in use and simultaneously overlapping the inner portion of the armour means and the signal conduit means such that the armour means shields the signal conduit means at substantially opposite sides thereof simultaneously. [0009] The armoured apparel according to the invention in its first aspect preferably incorporates signal conduit means within the armour means thereof for conveying signals therein. For example, incorporation may be by embedding and/or encapsulating within the armour means. [0010] The armour means may include a plurality of overlapping adjacent armour portions forming a stack of armour portions within which the signal conduit means is incorporated so as to be located between and covered by overlapping armour portions of the stack. Each armour portion of the stack may be a layer of armour which overlaps each other layer of the stack to form a laminate within which the signal conduit means is incorporated. [0011] In this way signal conduit means may be comprised and/or formed and/or embedded within the structure and body of the armour of the apparel as distinct from being merely surrounded by such armour without being incorporated therein. The conduit means is thereby robustly protected by the armour. [0012] The armoured apparel may incorporate passive circuit components and/or active circuit components shielded by, and preferably incorporated within, the armour means being most preferably operably connected to the signal conduit means therein. [0013] The armoured apparel may incorporate signal processor means shielded by (e.g. incorporated within) the armour means arranged to process signals conveyed to it e.g. by the signal conduit means therein. Additionally, or alternatively, the signal processor means may be arranged to generate signals for output to the signal conduit means. [0014] The signal processor means may be operably connected to the signal conduit means or may be unconnected thereto but otherwise arranged to convey signals to/from the signal conduit means (e.g. wirelessly). [0015] For example, the signal conduit means may include signal transfer means shielded by, or incorporated within, the armour means to transfer signals between the signal conduit means shielded by, or incorporated within, the armour means and signal responsive means external or internal to the apparel or the armour means to permit the passage of signals therebetween. The signal transfer means may include antenna means for wirelessly passing signals through the armour means. Such wireless communication may be between components incorporated for example within the apparel (e.g. within the armour means) or may be between internal and external communication means. Active components within the apparel and/or armour means may, therefore, include wireless signal generators/transmitters and/or receivers, each may be connected operably to one or more of the antenna means. [0016] The signal transfer means may include connector means arranged to connect the signal conduit to signal a signal conduit external to the apparel and/or armour means. The connector means may pass through the armour means thereby enabling contact/connection therewith by an external signal conduit externally or vice versa for internal connection. The connector means may provide signal input/output ports via which signals may be communicated to and/or from within the apparel and/or armour means. Power may also be conveyed to/from within the apparel and/or armour means in this way. [0017] The signal conduit means may incorporate electrically responsive signal transmission means, and may incorporate at least a part of an electrical circuit means. [0018] A power supply means, for supplying power to the signal conduit means and components operably connected thereto, may be incorporated within the apparel so as to be shielded by (e.g. incorporated within) the armour means. The power supply means may be connected to the signal conduit means, or to passive/active or signal processor means within the apparel and/or armour means. The power supply means may include an inductive coupling means (e.g. an inductor coil/loop) arranged to be responsive to an external inductive coupling means to generate energy thereby to power electrical components incorporated within the apparel and/or armour means. [0019] Additionally, or alternatively, the signal conduit means may incorporate or include optical signal transmission means, such as fibre-optic transmission lines. Passive or active optical or electro/optical components may be incorporated in the armour. The signal conduit means may incorporate/include electromagnetic signal transmission lines such as micro-strip lines/waveguides for conveying microwave or similar radiation. [0020] Preferably, the signal conduit means is flexible. This enables the conduit to be flexed in use and when worn thereby enabling its use in armour of a curved nature. The armoured apparel in which the signal conduit means is incorporated may be flexed, and the signal conduit means may be in a correspondingly flexed state. [0021] At least a part of (preferably all of) the signal conduit may be mounted upon, or formed within, a mounting means which itself forms at least a part of the armour of the apparel. Kevlar.RTM. or similar materials are suitable for this purpose since this material is suitable for use not only as armour (e.g. ballistic armour) but also as a mounting board for electrical circuits (e.g. a circuit board). Other (e.g. ceramic) materials may be used with or in place of flexible armour. For example, at least a part of (or the whole of) the signal conduit may be embedded within a mounting means which itself forms at least a part of the armour means of the apparel. [0022] The mounting means may be structured to afford strengthened regions for mounting delicate/sensitive components thereon, and weaker, but preferably lighter and more flexible regions for mounting the conduit. The mounting means may be a sheet (e.g. Kevlar (RTM), ceramic material etc) having regions where passive and/or active circuit components are located, and relatively thinner regions where the signal conduit means is located. Preferably, only signal conduit means is/are located at/on the thinner regions. Alternatively, where the material of the mounting means is suitably flexible, the mounting means may dispense with variations in thickness as described above. [0023] The mounting means may be a sheet of flexible electronic circuit board and the conduit means may be signal conduit tracks (e.g. printed/etched conductive tracks) formed on the circuit board. Active and/or passive components etc. may also simply be mounted on the circuit board in a conventional manner. Kevlar.RTM. circuit boards may be used. The mounting means may be flexed in use. [0024] At least a part of the signal conduit is preferably fully enclosed (e.g. encapsulated) within the armour means of the apparel. That is to say, the signal conduit, or at least parts of it, may be wholly surrounded (e.g. on all sides) by the armour of the apparel. In alternative embodiments the conduit may be within the armour means (e.g. sandwiched therein between armour parts) without being wholly surrounded thereby. Continue reading about Armour... Full patent description for Armour Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Armour patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Armour or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Apparatus and method for the preparation of hot beverages by brewing a water-extractable particulate substance Next Patent Application: Device for protection against unintended needle point punctures Industry Class: Apparel ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Armour patent info. IP-related news and info Results in 0.11037 seconds Other interesting Feshpatents.com categories: Tyco , Unilever , Warner-lambert , 3m 174 |
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