Design and Low Cost Production of a Composite Mine Vehicle Survivability Kit

During Phase I KaZaK Composites Incorporated will develop at least three composite material replacement alternatives for an existing metal mine blast and fragment protection kit: o a minimum weight design, o a minimum cost design, and o a design that attempts to balance cost and weight factors. Designs will make maximum use of automated manufacturing technology to control acquisition cost of the final fielded system. KCI's composite designs will be shaped to minimize reflected overpressure (as is current metal configuration). KCI will reduce the magnitude of vertical acceleration transmitted to the crew compartment by including two other energy dissipation mechanisms in their composite designs: large scale matrix delamination and fiber pull-out from blast loads, and energy-absorbing mounts between the truck and the blast kit. Specially-developed software for analyzing blast effects on military vehicles and transient dynamic finite element analysis will assist in the design effort. A trade study will identify one design for prototyping during the Phase I Option. KCI specializes in design of composite structures for automated manufacturing. Other team members include: o Kaman Sciences, specializing in blast analysis of military vehicles, o Sam Dastin, former manager, advanced composite products, Northrop Grumman o Dr. Edwards, expert in acceleration-induced spinal injury.