Projectile-retaining wall panel

Abstract

A ballistic panel to prevent firearm bullets from escaping a firearm training room. Elastomeric ballistic panels are butted against each other on a metal backing plate and along a seam. Each elastomeric panel butting edge has an overlap feature complementary to another elastomeric panels's butting edge along the seam to prevent bullets striking at the seam from traveling along the seam to the backing plate and then ricocheting therefrom into the training room.

1 . In a ballistic panel of the type having a bullet-resisting backing plate defining an interior surface and a plurality of elastomeric panels covering the interior surface of the backing plate, each elastomeric panel adjacent to at least one other elastomeric panel along a seam with each elastomeric panel having a butting edge butted to a butting edge of at least one other adjacent elastomeric panel to form the seam, the improvement wherein each elastomeric panel butting edge has an overlap feature, said overlap feature being complementary to an overlap feature of an adjacent elastomeric panel.  
   
   
       2 . The ballistic panel of  claim 1 , wherein the overlap feature comprises a lap projection extending along the length of each elastomeric panel butting edge.  
   
   
       3 . The ballistic panel of  claim 2 , wherein each lap projection tightly fits against another lap projection.  
   
   
       4 . The ballistic panel of  claim 1 , wherein the overlap feature comprises a tongue projecting from and extending along the length of one elastomeric panel butting edge and a groove extending along the length of another elastomeric panel butting edge, said groove receiving said tongue.  
   
   
       5 . The ballistic panel of  claim 4 , wherein the tongue of the one elastomeric block tightly fits into the groove of the other elastomeric block.