Modular Ballistic Battery Housing for Wearable Armor Power
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current conformal batteries integrated with soft armor provide limited ballistics protection and add weight, while alternatives with greater protection increase weight concerns and may not be necessary in all situations, posing a challenge for wearable armor systems that require both electrical power and effective ballistics protection.
Innovation Solution
A modular armor system with a ballistic housing case, a flexible backplane system, and a control unit, where the electrical energy storage unit is fully integrated within the case, allowing for adjustable ballistics protection levels by removable panels and utilizing a flexible substrate with electrical connectors and traces to manage power distribution efficiently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If conformal batteries are integrated with soft armor, then electrical capacity is improved, but ballistics protection deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The armor system is divided into modular components: soft armor panels, hard SAPI plates, and integrated battery compartments. This segmentation allows users to configure different levels of protection by combining or removing panels, maintaining electrical capacity while adjusting ballistics protection based on mission requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The armor system transitions from static to dynamic configuration, allowing users to add or remove SAPI plates and soft armor panels depending on the threat level. This dynamic adaptability enables the system to optimize both protection and weight in real-time based on operational needs.
2Reliability
If SAPI plates are added for greater ballistics protection, then protection level is improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
SAPI plates are designed as removable inserts that can be added or removed based on mission requirements. This dynamic configuration allows the system to provide enhanced protection when needed while minimizing weight during lower-threat operations, directly addressing the weight-protection tradeoff.
Solution Approach 2:
Hard SAPI plates are strategically positioned in high-threat zones (chest, abdomen) rather than covering the entire body. This localized approach provides critical protection where most needed while minimizing overall weight, allowing users to balance protection and mobility effectively.
3Power
If additional batteries are added to increase electrical capacity, then power output is improved, but weight and volume increase
Solution Approach 1:
The battery system is merged with the armor structure itself, with batteries integrated into the armor panels and compartments. This combination eliminates the need for separate battery packs, providing high electrical capacity while maintaining the protective function and minimizing additional weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The armor panels serve multiple functions: providing ballistics protection, structural support, and housing for electrical components. This multi-functionality allows the system to achieve high electrical capacity without adding dedicated battery weight, as the same structure provides both protection and power storage.
4Volume of moving object
If conformal batteries are used to reduce space limitations, then volume is reduced, but ballistics protection deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The armor system segments protective functions into removable soft panels and hard SAPI plates, while batteries are integrated into dedicated compartments within the armor structure. This segmentation allows compact battery placement that minimizes volume while maintaining protection through the modular panel system.
Solution Approach 2:
Battery compartments are merged with the armor structure rather than being separate additions. This integration provides space-efficient packaging that maintains ballistics protection, as the same structural elements provide both protective coverage and battery housing.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for an armor system includes a housing case, an interior ballistic panel, a frame, an electrical energy storage unit, a flexible backplane system, and a control unit. The housing case includes a top shell and a bottom shell, where the top shell is removably secured to the bottom shell, forming a cavity. The interior ballistic panel is removably arranged within the cavity between the top shell and the bottom shell. The frame is arranged within the cavity between the top shell and the interior ballistic panel, the frame including a compartment. The electrical energy storage unit is arranged within the compartment of the frame, and the control unit is communicatively connected to the electrical energy storage unit to manage operation of the electrical energy storage unit. The flexible backplane system includes electrical connectors and electrical traces on a flexible substrate connecting the electrical energy storage unit to the control unit.