Vehicle Armor
|
The mission of today’s military combat vehicles is ever-changing. With terrorist threats increasing in severity and complexity, it is becoming vital for tactical vehicles to carry heavier armor and still be deployable via aircraft into global hotspots. Armor design and development is a problem historically bounded by three constraints: Protection Level, Weight and Cost…The Iron Triangle. A Tactical Wheeled Vehicle Armor System comprised of low-cost, high-weight traditional Rolled Homogeneous Armor (RHA) or High Hard Steel (HHS) will meet high protection levels at areal densities that will (at some point) inhibit mission performance. However these systems come with a cost low enough to outfit an entire vehicle fleet. In this case, the Iron Triangle is out of balance due to very high areal density. Conversely, a vehicle comprised of a Ceramic Armor System Design will meet high protection levels at areal densities significantly lower than traditional RHA or HHS, but at a very high cost. The cost differentia of a high performance ceramic armor system is hundreds of dollars more per square foot than a comparable metallic system. Again, the triangle is out of balance due to the high cost of a ceramic armor system. In both cases, the Iron Triangle is unbalanced and does not meet the design requirements to protect all vehicle crews to a high level during any assigned mission. What is the answer?
A Revolutionary New Metallic Armor System The Iron Triangle is Now Balanced |
