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Hila Raam's 'Rhinoskin' Kevlar Protective Backpack for Civilians

By Ray Hu - July 23, 2013

in Accessories | Bags

As an individual with the good fortune of being born and raised in the United States of America, I can't say that I've ever witnessed a bombing or any other kind of terror-related attack, much less lived with the potential threat of such as a facet of day-to-day existence. Politics aside, many major conurbations in Israel are hotbeds of guerilla activity, and civilians are trained to heed air raid sirens with Pavlovian efficacy. Yet simply taking cover doesn't guarantee one's safety, an issue that designer Hila Raam tackled with her recent graduation project, the Rhinoskin.

Raam won the Best Final Project award for the backpack, which incorporates kevlar panels—discreetly integrated into an otherwise unassuming bag design—to protect one's head and torso in dangerous situations. Thus, it is an unobtrusive solution for residents of "countries or areas that are under daily attacks, protecting against debris and impact created from missile and rocket attacks."

Seeing as the detachable vest portion can be used as a standalone safety garment—the backpack can be used on its own as well—I imagine it could be adapted for additional applications in emergency response or other tactical situations as well. Of course, kevlar body armor is easy enough to find on the Internet—a quick search suggests that pricing starts around $200—so the question is whether there are other scenarios in which there is an advantage to an easily-deployed partial covering, i.e. for lying prone; I can only assume that the hood offsets any cost savings from the lack of a chest panel. It's certainly an interesting concept, but I'd be curious as to whether it would need further refinement or tweaking to bring it to market.

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Sam

11 years ago

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First thing that I thought of was safety during a bear attack. It protects the back of your neck and ribs when playing dead.
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Joel

11 years ago

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When I first saw this image I thought this was a rain protection device which, after being caught in an unexpected downpour moments ago, I can safely say would be a useful summer design feature for packs.
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Mister

11 years ago

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although a nice idea to help save the world, i dont think it would provide much more then $200 sense of "security". Any piece of flying laceration waiting to happen will still pack a big enough punch to still do damage with the hood on. i am excited to see how this turns out "outlook not so good"
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