Assessment of the effect of No Stay, Bent Stay or Straight Stay when the Clothe the Soldier Rucksack is Worn with the Fragmentation Vest

Abstract : The Clothe the Soldier (CTS) load carriage system includes the Fragmentation Protection Vest (FPV) with Bullet Resistant Plates (BRP), Tactical Vest (TV), the Rucksack, and a Small Pack System which have been designed to be compatible Loads carried in the CTS rucksack often exceed the officially recommended 25 kg and are reported to approach 45 kg. Under these conditions, optimizing load distribution onto the torso becomes even more essential. The purpose of this work was to examine the effects of various stays in the rucksack (straight stays, bent stays, and no stay) on pressure effects and load distribution to the body. Results showed that wearing the FPV and TV under the rucksack will increase the compressive load on the upper body by 50 to 100 percent, depending on the stay configuration compared with wearing just the TV and Rucksack configuration. Stays bent to conform to the body were the most effective configuration while removal of the stays caused the greatest increase in compressive loads. Edges of the BRP caused multiple peak pressure points of with values on the mannikin of 60 to 110 kPa. These pressure values are expected to considerably exceed the tissue tolerance of skin and underlying muscle and are expected to result in localized skin damage and bruising.