Rollable Ballistic Shield for Fast One-Hand Handgun Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing handgun shields are either heavy and rigid, making them cumbersome, or lightweight but lacking in ballistic protection and ease of deployment, and often require complex mechanisms that are prone to malfunction.
Innovation Solution
A compact, lightweight handgun shield that rolls up for storage and deploys in seconds with a single-hand release, utilizing a flexible ballistic panel and resilient panel that returns to its unrolled shape, providing semi-rigid protection and maintaining shape under its own weight, with optional features like rib assemblies for enhanced stability and rapid deployment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If rigid materials are used for ballistic shields, then ballistic protection and structural stability are improved, but weight and ease of operation deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The shield is divided into multiple rigid ballistic panels that can be folded relative to each other, allowing the shield to be segmented for storage while maintaining rigidity when deployed. This segmentation enables the shield to be broken down into manageable sections that can be easily transported and stored.
Solution Approach 2:
The shield transitions from a static rigid structure to a dynamic system with movable joints and folding mechanisms. This allows the shield to adapt its form factor - rigid and stable when deployed for protection, yet foldable and compact when needed for storage or transport, resolving the contradiction between rigidity and ease of operation.
2Stability of the object's composition
If rigid materials are used for ballistic shields, then structural stability is improved, but storage space and portability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The shield panels are designed to nest within each other when folded, with each panel containing or overlapping the previous one. This nesting arrangement minimizes the volume required for storage while maintaining the full structural integrity and stability of the shield when deployed in its extended configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
The shield utilizes three-dimensional folding mechanisms that allow it to collapse from a large two-dimensional protective surface into a compact three-dimensional package. By transitioning between dimensional configurations, the shield achieves both structural stability when deployed and compact storage when folded.
3Volume of moving object
If gravity-deployed folded panels are used, then compactness is improved, but deployment speed and reliability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The shield panels are pre-positioned and pre-aligned in their folded configuration, with connection mechanisms already in place. When deployment is initiated, the panels are already ready to unfold rapidly without requiring complex real-time alignment or adjustment, significantly increasing deployment speed while maintaining compact storage.
Solution Approach 2:
The design replaces complex mechanical deployment mechanisms (such as springs, gases, or motors) with a simpler system based on pre-engineered folding joints and panel connections. This substitution reduces mechanical complexity while enabling rapid, reliable deployment through the inherent geometry and pre-positioning of the folded panels.
4Area of stationary object
If overlapping panels are used, then ballistic coverage is improved, but weight and compactness deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The shield is divided into multiple overlapping ballistic panels that provide comprehensive coverage. Each panel is a separate, lightweight component that contributes to the overall protective area, allowing the shield to achieve extensive ballistic coverage through the cumulative effect of multiple segmented panels rather than requiring a single heavy panel.
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 shield offers reliable, rapid deployment and effective ballistic protection against handgun threats while being lightweight and easy to carry, allowing for versatile use in various environments and scenarios without the drawbacks of existing designs.
Implementation Method 1
a resilient panel, the resilient panel being a body that is rollable but, with a spring force, returns to its unrolled shape when permitted to unroll
Implementation Method 2
The plurality of sheets of ballistic fabric in the flexible ballistic panel may be stitched together
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B~1C
Figure 2
AI summary
A rollable ballistic shield that has a carrier having a strike face and a rear face opposite the strike face, a flexible ballistic panel inside the carrier facing the rear face, the flexible ballistic panel being comprised of a plurality of sheets ballistic fabric; and a resilient panel inside the carrier and facing the strike face, the resilient panel being a body that is rollable but returns to its unrolled shape when permitted to unroll.