Vest having releasable components

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9651339-B2
Application number	US-201414451410-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 4, 2014
Priority date	Nov 1, 2007
Publication date	May 16, 2017
Grant date	May 16, 2017

Abstract

A releasable vest having a front panel; front shoulder strap elements that include at least one front shoulder strap attachment opening; a back panel; a first waist belt element that extends from the front panel and has at least one waist belt element attachment opening formed through the waist belt element; a second waist belt element that extends from the front panel and has at least one release loop attached thereto, wherein the at least one release loop is capable of being passed through the waist belt attachment opening of the first waist belt element and the at least one front shoulder strap attachment opening of the front shoulder strap elements; and a release lanyard that is capable of being passed through the release loop so as to releasably secure the first waist belt element and the at least one shoulder strap element to the release loop.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A releasable vest, comprising:
a front panel;
shoulder strap elements that extend from the front panel, wherein each of the shoulder strap elements includes at least one shoulder strap attachment opening formed therethrough;
a back panel comprising at least a first layer and a second layer, wherein a portion of the second layer is attached to the first layer such that a cavity is formed between at least a portion of the first layer and the second layer such that at least a portion of the shoulder strap elements can be introduced into the cavity, and wherein a panel coupler further couples the first layer to the second layer and maintains at least a central portion of the first layer in close proximity to a central portion of the second layer;
a first waist belt element releasably attached or coupled to a portion of the front panel, wherein the first waist belt element comprises at least one waist belt element attachment opening formed therethrough;
a second waist belt element releasably attached or coupled to a portion of the front panel, wherein the second waist belt element comprises at least one waist belt element attachment opening formed therethrough;
at least one release loop, wherein the at least one release loop comprises a separate structure not permanently attached to any portion of the vest, wherein the at least one release loop comprises an obstruction, wherein the obstruction is sufficient to keep at least a portion of the release loop from passing through at least one waist belt element attachment opening of the first waist belt element or the second waist belt element, and wherein at least a portion of the at least one release loop is capable of being aligned with and passed through at least one waist belt attachment opening of the first waist belt element, at least one waist belt attachment opening of the second waist belt element, and at least one shoulder strap attachment opening of each shoulder strap element; and
a release lanyard, wherein the release lanyard extends from a pull handle to a terminal end, and wherein the release lanyard is capable of being aligned with and passed through the release loop so as to releasably secure the first waist belt element, the second waist belt element, and the shoulder strap elements to the release loop.

2. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the shoulder strap elements are formed as an integral part of the front panel.

3. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the shoulder strap elements are releasably attached to the front panel.

4. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein each of the shoulder strap elements includes a plurality of shoulder strap attachment openings.

5. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the shoulder strap attachment openings are reinforced by stitching, a grommet, or a reinforced eyelet.

6. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the panel coupler provides an upper limit for an assembled combination of the waist belt elements and the shoulder strap elements, such that these elements are held in a desired position relative to the back panel.

7. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the panel coupler comprises a grommet, a stitch, a stitched portion, one or more male/female snap-release buckles, one or more buttons, or one or more snaps.

8. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the panel coupler maintains a surface of a central portion of the first layer immediately adjacent to a surface of a central portion of the second layer.

9. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the front panel comprises at least a first layer and a second layer, wherein an upper portion of the second layer is attached to the first layer and wherein a lower portion of the second layer extends beyond an area where the second layer is attached or coupled to the first layer to form a front access panel portion of the second layer, and wherein a releasable coupler releasably couples the front access panel portion of the second layer to the first layer so as to cover at least a portion of the first waist belt element.

10. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein a back access panel portion of the second layer extends beyond a lower portion of the first layer and is releasably coupled to a second side of the first layer.

11. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the first waist belt element is releasably attached to the front panel via a mating pair of coupling elements.

12. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the waist belt elements include an elastic portion to allow for a measure of expansion of the waist belt elements.

13. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein each of the waist belt elements includes a plurality of waist belt attachment openings.

14. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the second waist belt element is formed integral to the front panel.

15. The releasable vest of claim 1 , wherein the release loop comprises a fabric, metallic, plastic, or composite material.

16. A releasable vest, comprising:
a front panel;
shoulder strap elements that extend from a portion of the front panel, wherein each of the shoulder strap elements includes at least one shoulder strap attachment opening formed therethrough;
a back panel comprising at least a first layer and a second layer, wherein a portion of the second layer is attached to the first layer so as to define a cavity between at least a portion of the first layer and at least a portion of the second layer such that at least a portion of the shoulder strap elements can be introduced into the cavity, and wherein a panel coupler further couples the first layer to the second layer and maintains at least a central portion of the first layer in close proximity to a central portion of the second layer;
a first waist belt element releasably attached or coupled to a portion of the front panel, wherein the first waist belt element comprises at least one waist belt element attachment opening formed therethrough;
a second waist belt element releasably attached or coupled to a portion of the front panel, wherein the second waist belt element comprises at least one waist belt element attachment opening formed therethrough;
at least one release loop, wherein the at least one release loop comprises a separate structure not permanently attached to any portion of the vest, wherein the at least one release loop comprises an obstruction that is sufficient to keep at least a portion of the release loop from passing through at least one waist belt element attachment opening of the first waist belt element or the second waist belt element, and wherein at least a portion of the at least one release loop is capable of being aligned with and passed through at least one waist belt element attachment opening of each waist belt element and at least one shoulder strap attachment opening of each shoulder strap element; and
a release lanyard, wherein the release lanyard extends from a pull handle to a terminal end, and wherein the release lanyard is capable of being aligned with and passed through the release loop so as to releasably secure the first waist belt element, the second waist belt element, and the shoulder strap elements to the release loop.

17. The releasable vest of claim 16 , wherein a lower portion of the second layer extends beyond an area where the second layer is attached or coupled to the first layer to form a back access panel portion of the second layer, and wherein a releasable coupler releasably couples the back access panel portion of the second layer to the first layer.

18. The releasable vest of claim 1

Assignees

• Vista Outdoor Operations Llc

Inventors

• Storms Jr Frederick W
• Yeates Eric M
• Marx Thomas A
• Goldman Marty

Classifications

• F41H1/02 Primary

  Armoured or projectile- or missile-resistant garments; Composite protection fabrics {(F41H5/04 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• A41D1/04

  Vests, jerseys, sweaters or the like · CPC title