Load-bearing vest overlay jacket

Abstract

A load-bearing vest overlay jacket (“overlay jacket”) is an overgarment configured to be joined with and fastened to a load-bearing vest (“tactical vest”) so that an open front area exists between the front left and front right of the overlay jacket, permitting a user's access to equipment on the tactical vest. Thus, the overlay jacket may provide uniform, comfortable body temperatures in colder weather, to include arm warmth and upper torso warmth, as a function of either optionally-insulated sleeve and/or torso regions of the overlay jacket, or of torso warmth provided by the tactical vest underlying the overlay jacket.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A tactical vest overlay jacket comprising:
 a back, a left front, a right front, and a pair of sleeves, joined into an overgarment configured to be joined with a tactical vest, wherein the right front and the left front are disjoint forming an open front area and wherein a front portion of the tactical vest occupies the open front area independent of the left front and the right front, and wherein the back, the left front, and right front are each dimensioned to be circumferentially greater than the tactical vest;   a thermal protection layer incorporated into each of the pair of sleeves; and   one or more fasteners configured to fasten the left front and the right front, respectively, to a left lower portion and a right lower portion of the tactical vest proximate of the open front area.   
     
     
         2 . The tactical vest overgarment of  claim 1 , wherein the gap is configured to provide unimpeded access to the one or more pieces of equipment removably coupled to the tactical vest. 
     
     
         3 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 1 , wherein the thermal protection layer is configured to provide protection for temperatures at or below  50  degree Fahrenheit 
     
     
         4 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 1 , wherein the left front, the right front and the back are void of the thermal protection layer. 
     
     
         5 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 1 , wherein the lower portion of the overlay jacket has a drawstring. 
     
     
         6 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 1 , wherein the tactical vest includes pouch attachment ladders system (PALS) webbing and wherein the one or more fasteners are configured to couple the overlay jacket to the PALS webbing of the tactical vest. 
     
     
         7 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 5 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a hook and loop fastener. 
     
     
         8 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 5 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a loop and snap fastener. 
     
     
         9 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 5 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a cap and socket fastener. 
     
     
         10 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 1 , further comprising a left front interior surface and a right front interior surface and wherein each of the left front interior surface and the right front interior surface includes pouch attachment ladders system (PALS) webbing and wherein the one or more fasteners are configured to respectively couple the PALS webbing of the left front interior surface and the right front interior surface of the overlay jacket to the tactical vest. 
     
     
         11 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 9 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a hook and loop fastener. 
     
     
         12 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 9 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a loop and snap fastener. 
     
     
         13 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 9 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a cap and socket fastener. 
     
     
         14 . The tactical vest overlay jacket of  claim 1 , further comprising a gap between the tactical vest and each of the back, the left front, and right front, the gap configured to permit access to one or more pieces of equipment removably coupled to the tactical vest. 
     
     
         15 . A method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket, the method comprising:
 joining a back, a left front, a right front, and a pair of sleeves, into an overlay jacket wherein the overlay jacket is configured to join with a tactical vest and wherein the right front and the left front are disjoint creating an open front area and wherein a front portion of the tactical vest occupies the open front area independent of the left front and the right front;   dimensioning the back, the left front, and right front to be circumferentially greater than the tactical vest;;   adding a thermal protection layer to each of the pair of sleeves; and   incorporating one or more fasteners to each the left front and the right front, the one or more fasteners configured to fasten the left front and the right front, respectively, to a left lower portion and a right lower portion of the tactical vest proximate of the open front area.   
     
     
         16 . The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to  claim 15 , further comprising configuring the gap to provide unimpeded access to the one or more pieces of equipment removably coupled to the tactical vest. 
     
     
         17 . The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to  claim 15 , wherein the left front, the right front and the back are void of the thermal protection layer. 
     
     
         18 . The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to  claim 15 , wherein the lower portion of the overlay jacket has a drawstring. 
     
     
         19 . The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to  claim 15 , further comprising incorporating into a left front interior surface and a right front interior surface pouch attachment ladders system (PALS) webbing and configuring the one or more fasteners to respectively couple the PALS webbing of the left front interior surface and the right front interior surface of the overlay jacket to the tactical vest. 
     
     
         20 . The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to  claim 19 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a hook and loop fastener. 
     
     
         21 . The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to  claim 19 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a loop and snap fastener. 
     
     
         22 . The method for manufacturing a tactical vest overlay jacket according to  claim 19 , wherein the one or more fasteners are each a cap and socket fastener.