Low Cost Opaque Armor Material and Manufacturing for Non Standard Commercial Vehicles

A novel composite structure based low cost opaque armor material and associated manufacturing/installation method are proposed. This process offers immediate field upgrade potential to Non Standard Commercial Vehicles (NSCV) capable of advancing into denied areas while operating indistinguishably from indigenous platforms. Our innovative armor installation procedure has already been shown to increase ballistic efficiency, limit damage to adjacent vehicle areas and withstand multiple impacts with minimal performance degradation in a related armor protection application. The proposed unique composite structure has also demonstrated robust and absolute spall protection as a result of its inherent fragment capture capability within its hybrid matrix. Phase I will focus on: 1) Completing a feasibility study to establish our proposed technology offers immediate ultra low field upgrade cost with minimum vehicle weight increase while providing maximum protection against virtually all NSCV threats; 2) Defining manufacturing and field installation processes in terms of weight, space, cost, visual signature, threat performance and functionality; 3) Rigorous comparison of this solution against current standard armoring solutions; and 4) Documenting the pros and cons of this innovative armor in a NSCV. During Phase II large scale production cost, cycle time and integration burden will be fully quantified. This will be followed by independent demonstration that our proposed technology exceeds all desired customer performance requirements.