Armour with Interlocking Projections for Composite Bonding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing armor systems for vehicles lack effective interaction between components to respond to hostile fire and kinematic loads, requiring additional structural components and often fail at material interfaces, leading to inefficient energy absorption and potential damage.
Innovation Solution
A lightweight armor design featuring a metallic outer layer, an inner fibre composite layer, and a supporting structure with projections that mechanically interlock with the fibre composite, providing a truss-core sandwich structure with a filler material to enhance bond strength and energy absorption, allowing for efficient handling of both static and kinematic loads without additional components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional layered armour systems are used, then basic protection is provided, but the components fail to interact effectively and require additional structural components
Solution Approach 1:
The supporting structure merges the functions of structural support and component interaction into a single integrated element. The projections on the supporting structure simultaneously provide mechanical interlocking with the fibre composite layer and distribute loads across the armour system, eliminating the need for separate structural components while enhancing component interaction.
Solution Approach 2:
The armour uses a composite structure combining a metallic outer layer, a fibre composite inner layer, and a supporting structure with projections. This multi-material composite approach enables effective interaction between components through the projections that penetrate and mechanically interlock with the fibre composite, providing both structural integrity and enhanced protection without additional components.
2Strength
If armour components are designed for basic protection, then simple structure is maintained, but bond strength at material interfaces is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The projections on the supporting structure feature curved or hooked configurations that enhance mechanical interlocking with the fibre composite layer. This curved geometry increases the surface area of contact and creates interlocking mechanical bonds, significantly improving bond strength at the material interface without requiring complex additional structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The interface between the metallic outer layer and fibre composite inner layer is strengthened through the supporting structure with projections. The composite design allows the projections to penetrate and mechanically interlock with the fibre composite, creating a strong bond that prevents delamination and failure at the material interface while maintaining structural simplicity.
3Weight of moving object
If lightweight armour is designed, then weight is reduced, but ability to handle static and kinematic loads is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The supporting structure is segmented into multiple projections distributed across the armour surface. This segmentation allows the structure to handle both static and kinematic loads efficiently by distributing forces across multiple discrete elements, maintaining high load-handling capability in a lightweight configuration without requiring additional structural components.
Solution Approach 2:
The lightweight armour handles substantial loads through its composite structure consisting of a metallic outer layer, fibre composite inner layer, and supporting structure with projections. The projections mechanically interlock with the fibre composite and distribute static and kinematic loads across the entire armour system, enabling lightweight design without compromising load-handling capability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The armor achieves improved bond strength, energy-to-failure performance, and structural integrity, reducing the risk of failure at material interfaces and enabling effective blast and ballistic protection without additional structural components, while minimizing the risk of secondary projectile formation.
Implementation Method 1
the projections are arranged to mechanically interlock with the fibres of the fibre composite
Implementation Method 2
the ends of the projections penetrating the fibre composite are arranged in a hooked, dove-tailed or capped configuration
Data Source
Figure 1(a)~1(b)
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
There is disclosed armour (100) comprising an outer metallic layer (110), an inner fibre composite layer (120), and a supporting framework (135) between th inner and outer layers (110,120). The supporting framework (135) can comprise projections from the outer layer arranged to mechanically interlock with the fibres of the fibre composite, and can be arranged to provide an open region between the inner and outer layers (110,120) that can be filled with a functional filler material.