Military Power

AmericanPride wrote:I know this is a far stretch...but what if the perforated steel armor acted like a conductor for water? The water entered a tank, which allowed the vehicle to submerge (with less drag on the vehicle) and come back up on dry land, then the perforated armor drained the water out? Just a though...

CrazyCatman wrote:Maybe the image of perforated armor I have is not what is being talked about here. I'm thinking a sheet of steel that looks like a slice of swiss cheese.

Perforated or slit armor plates are in use for many years in armor systems where they are installed at some stand-off distance from the vehicle's basic armor. The use of those plates is mainly to effectively break an incoming projectile or at least to divert it from its incident trajectory and thus substantially reduce its residual penetration capability through the basic armor. The total weight of such armor system is considerably less than the weight of a basic armor with the same antiballistic capability. Usually the holes or slits are designed to interact with the characteristic diameter of the threat (projectile caliber), and the performance effectiveness of such armor under impact is dominated by the plate material and thickness.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,593 discloses perforated plate armor including outer and inner perforated steel plates and which have associated patterns of holes. The plates are spaced with respect to each other and with respect to the object to be protected. The patterns of holes of the perforated steel plates are offset with respect to each other to prevent straight line penetration. An inner backing plate is provided to stop any particles that might penetrate both perforated steel plates. Fillers and connectors space the outer and inner perforated steel plates and the backing plate with respect to each other.