Military Protective Clothing: Implications for Clothing and Textiles Curriculum and Research

Abstract

Increased likelihood of armed forces operations occurring in hostile climatic regions have increased the need for highly specialized protective clothing systems. Protection is needed under a variety of conditions which often present conflicting requirements. Protective military clothing provides broad design possibilities and stimulates research for new textile materials and equipment. Development of protective gear provides the possibility for interdisciplinary teaching and research. Disciplines such as textile engineering, electrical engineering, industrial engineering and design, clothing design, textile science, and physiology can all be combined to provide satisfactory solutions to design problems presented by protective clothing systems. Current requirements for protective military clothing, problems with gear, and critical factors which can be addressed by clothing and textiles research are included.