Bulletproof vest

A bullet-resistant vest (body armour or body armor (U.S.)) - is an article of protective clothing that works as a form of armour to minimize injury from projectiles fired from handguns, shotguns and rifles . They are commonly worn by police forces, the military, and private security and civilians where legal. However, they have sometimes been misused by criminals.

Performance standards

Both the Underwriters Laboratories (UL Standard 752) and the United States National Institute of Justice (NIJ Standard 0101.04) have specific performance standards for bullet resistant vests. The US NIJ rates vests on the following scale against penetration and also blunt trauma protection (deformation) (Table from NIJ Standard 0101.04):

Related Topics:
Underwriters Laboratories - United States - National Institute of Justice - Standards

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Bomb disposal officers often wear heavy armor designed to protect against most effects of a moderate sized explosion, such as bombs encountered in terror threats. Full head helmet, covering the face and some degree of protection for limbs is mandatory in addition to very strong armour for the torso. An insert to protect the spine is usually applied to the back, in case an explosion blasts the wearer. Visibility and mobility of the wearer may be severely limited.

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In terms of Kevlar, a IIA vest has around sixteen layers and a IIIA vest around thirty layers.

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German standards allow for bullet impact depression of 20 millimeters on the mannequin's wax body under the vest; US standards allow for more than twice that (44 millimeters), which can be potentially lethal.

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In addition, there are vests available for police dogs which offer a measure of protection for the animals.

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A vest's material must not get wet, because it will lose its protective capability until dry again, or in some cases be permanently degraded (water acts as a lubricant, helping the bullet slip through between the fibres; ions may also weaken the structure of the fiber, see Kevlar for details). Most bulletproof vests have panels in sealed enclosures, but waterproofing is usually not perfect.

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