Patent ID: 8434395
Filing Date: 2013-05-07
Classification: F41H

Abstract:
1. An assembly for the hatch on the upper body of an M1A2 Abrams tank at the tank commander's weapon station, to conceal, to cover and to ballistically shield an operator, said assembly comprising: a vertically positioned first shield device of sheet steel armor plating, with rectangular space for a window in a central region of said first shield device, said window being of laminated ballistic glass, wherein the sheet steel armor plating occupies the majority of the surface area of said first shield device, said first shield device having two rounded concave portions at its upper edge, one at each corner, and wherein a machine gun is attached at one of said concave portions upon a spring clip means, and wherein said first shield device has a narrow sill across its lower edge, said sill configured to being plane parallel to the upper body surface of the tank, and wherein said first shield device has two vertically positioned wings of flat solid sheet steel armor plating, each one bent in at an angle to the vertical plane of said central region of said first shield device so that they can be attached to a ring shaped circular base; and a lower portion of first shield device and the wings including viewing openings for accessing at least one periscope at a viewing opening; a vertically positioned second shield device of sheet steel armor plating, with rectangular space for a window in a central region of said second shield device, said window being of laminated ballistic glass, wherein the sheet steel armor plating occupies the majority of the surface area of said second shield device, and wherein said second shield device has a narrow sill across its lower edge, said sill configured to being plane parallel to the upper body surface of the tank, and wherein said second shield device has two vertically positioned wings of flat solid sheet steel armor plating, each one bent in at an angle to the vertical plane of said central region of said second shield device so that they can be attached to a ring shaped circular base; and a lower portion of second shield device and the wings including viewing openings for accessing at least one periscope at a viewing opening, and wherein one of said first or said second shield device further includes a hatch stop for engaging an opened hatch; said ring shaped circular base being fixedly attachable to said tank upper body at the hatch area of the tank commander's weapon station in an upright position perpendicular to said tank upper body said first shield device and said second shield device, said ring shaped circular base having an open area and base supports around its circumference to support it above the upper body of said tank, and which ring shaped circular base is also fixedly attached there to said tank upper body such that the hatch opening is fittable within the open area of said ring shaped circular base, and wherein the sides of said first shield device and second shield device that face each other define an open area there between to stand and further there are two, side openings between said first shield device and said first shield device through which an operator may ingress to or egress from said assembly while the operator is upon the tank upper body.