Vehicle protection system

• US 7,866,250 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2006
• Issued: 01/11/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation, Foster-Miller Incorporated (Thermo Fisher Scientific Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Foster-Miller Incorporated (Thermo Fisher Scientific Incorporated)
• Inventors: LaValley, Scott, Howard, Loren, Farinella, Michael D., Hafer, Thomas F., Moeller, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): HAYES, BRET C
• Application Number:
  US11/351,130
• Publication Number:
  US 20070180983A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,797 Days
• Field of Search: 89/360.4, 89 3607- 3612, 89/361.7, 296/187.06, 296/187.07
• US Class Current: 89/36.17
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 11/02 Anti-aircraft or anti-guided missile or anti-torpedo defence installations or systems cartridges or missiles for producing smoke or for dispensing radar chaff or infrared material F42B5/15, F42B12/48, F42B12/70; informative reference: details of radar or sonar systems G01S7/00; jamming or electronic countermeasures G01S7/38, G01S7/495, H04K3/00
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 5/026 Slat armour; Nets

Abstract

A protection system features a flexible packaged net with perimeter weighting housed in a deployment box releasably attached to a vehicle. One deployment subsystem includes an airbag packaged in the deployment box behind the net. A sensor subsystem detects an incoming threat and a fire control subsystem is responsive to the sensor subsystem and is configured to activate the deployment subsystem to inflate the airbag and deploy the net in the trajectory path of the incoming threat.

Claims

1. A protection system comprising:

a sensor subsystem for detecting an incoming threat;

a flexible packaged net with perimeter weighting housed in a deployment box attached to a ground based vehicle or structure;

a deployment subsystem including an airbag packaged in the deployment box behind the net; and

a fire control subsystem, responsive to the sensor subsystem, configured to activate the deployment subsystem to inflate the airbag and deploy the net several feet from the ground based vehicle or structure in the trajectory path of the incoming threat.

2. The system of claim 1 in which the sensor subsystem includes a radar system.

3. The system of claim 1 in which the net has a mesh size between a nose diameter and a body diameter of the threat.

4. The system of claim 1 in which the net mesh size between 30-60 mm.

5. The system of claim 1 in which the net has a knotless “

ultracross”

weave.

6. The system of claim 1 in which the net is made of PBO material.

7. The system of claim 1 in which the net has a line diameter of 0.5-3 mm.

8. The system of claim 1 in which the airbag is mounted centrally in the box, the perimeter weighting is located over the airbag, and the remainder of the net is folded adjacent the sides of the airbag.

9. The system of claim 8 in which the deployment box defines a concave compartment for the remainder of the net around the airbag.

10. The system of claim 1 in which the net is attached to the deployment box.

11. The system of claim 1 in which the net is not attached to the deployment box.

12. The system of claim 1 in which there are two or more layers of net material packaged in the deployment box.

13. The system of claim 12 in which the layers do not have their mesh aligned.

14. The system of claim 1 in which the net includes at least a first layer of line material and a second layer of line material having a diameter larger than the first layer.

15. The system of claim 14 in which there are between 2-4 layers of line material over a single layer of another line material having a diameter larger than the 2-4 layers.

16. A protection system comprising:

a sensor subsystem for detecting an incoming threat;

a flexible packaged net in a deployment box attached to a ground based structure or vehicle;

an airbag packaged in the deployment box behind the net; and

a fire control subsystem, responsive to the sensor system, configured to activate the deployment system to inflate the airbag and deploy the net into the trajectory path of the incoming threat.

17. The system of claim 16 in which the airbag is mounted centrally in the deployment box, the net perimeter is located over the airbag, and the remainder of the net is folded on the sides of the airbag.

18. The system of claim 17 in which the deployment box defines a concave compartment for the remainder of the net on the sides of the airbag.

19. The system of claim 18 in which the net is made of PBO material.

20. The system of claim 18 in which the net has a line diameter of 0.5-3 mm.

21. A protection system comprising:

a mobile vehicle including sensor subsystem for detecting an incoming threat;

a deployment box removably attached to the vehicle, the deployment box including therein;

a flexible packaged net with perimeter weighting, and

a deployment subsystem including an airbag packaged in the deployment box behind the net; and

a fire control subsystem, responsive to the sensor subsystem, configured to activate the deployment subsystem to inflate the airbag and deploy the net in the trajectory path of the incoming threat.

22. The system of claim 21 in which the net includes at least a first layer of smaller diameter line material and a layer of larger diameter line material.

23. The system of claim 22 in which there are between 2-4 layers of smaller diameter line material over a single layer of larger diameter line material.