A new-generation hybrid armor system developed for military land vehicles through a collaborative effort between researchers from Bartın University and several other universities has been officially granted patent protection by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office.

The project, titled “A Novel Add-on Hybrid Laminated Composite Armor System for Military Land Vehicles,” was carried out under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Mustafa Sabri Gök from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Design at Bartın University. The study introduces an innovative structure that integrates hybrid laminated composite materials compatible with add-on armor design. The developed model presents an original armor approach aimed at both enhancing ballistic resistance and reducing the overall weight of vehicles.

Supported under the TÜBİTAK 1001 Program, the project resulted in an advanced composite armor system capable of providing full ballistic protection against armor-piercing (AP) ammunition. The armor structure was developed with contributions from Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yılmaz Küçük (Bartın University), Prof. Dr. Ali Günen (İskenderun Technical University), Prof. Dr. Mustafa Serdar Karakaş (Konya Technical University), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Farshid Khosravi (Manisa Celal Bayar University), and Prof. Dr. Mustafa Güden (İzmir Institute of Technology).

The ballistic performance of the project was tested at the Elmadağ facilities of ROKETSAN in accordance with the NATO STANAG 4569 Level III standard. During multiple armor-piercing ammunition impact tests, the armor system was verified to provide full protection against all hits.

Rector Prof. Dr. Ahmet Akkaya of Bartın University expressed his satisfaction with the patent registration of this innovative armor technology developed for the defense industry. He congratulated Prof. Dr. Mustafa Sabri Gök and the entire research team for their achievements, emphasizing that such studies make significant contributions to Türkiye’s domestic and national production capacity in defense technologies.