Patent Grant
8727899
The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/470,407, filed on Mar. 31, 2011, and to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/481,080, filed on Apr. 29, 2011, the disclosure of each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.
Not Applicable
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a golf club head having an adjustable hosel assembly. More specifically, the present invention relates to a golf club hosel connection assembly that allows a user to adjust the loft, lie, and face angle of the golf club head, thus providing the user with a range of shaft orientations such that the club can be adjusted to provide the user with better performance.
2. Description of the Related Art
Golfers benefit from alteration of the orientation of a shaft relative to the club head for drivers and other clubs. Changing the orientation of shaft insertion in the club body can mitigate a golfer's various faults or weaknesses. In fact, changing the angle of a golf club shaft with respect to the golf club head will change certain club specifications, including loft, lie, and face angle. Changing orientation of shaft insertion or shaft angle with respect to the golf club head can also change mass location.
Shaft insertion orientation typically is adjusted by bending a golf club hosel so that the shaft has a desired angle with respect to the club head. There are also several types of adjustable golf clubs that are available on the market, including models that employ annular wedges or near annular spacers inserted into the hosel bore to create a custom bore center. By choosing and installing particular versions of these annular wedge spacers, the centerline of the shaft is oriented favorably. A drawback to this approach, however, is that it provides a limited adjustment capacity and requires increased hosel volume to achieve necessary geometry and durability.
The present invention relates to golf club heads that employ spherical interfaces between the shaft attachment portion or hosel and the head, thus enabling a broader range of settings. The present invention can be installed on top of the body of the head rather than inside the hosel of the club because of its conformal shape.
One aspect of the present invention is an adjustable hosel assembly for a golf club head, the adjustable hosel assembly comprising a hosel, a cam piece, and a bolt, wherein the cam piece sits on a surface of the golf club head and is movable along the surface of the golf club head, wherein the hosel sits on a surface of the cam piece and is movable along the surface of the cam piece, and wherein the bolt secures the cam piece and the hosel to the golf club head.
Another aspect of the present invention is an adjustable golf club assembly comprising a golf club head comprising a first surface, the first surface having a first bore, a cam piece comprising a second bore, a hosel comprising a third bore, and a bolt, wherein the cam piece is disposed on and movable along the first surface, wherein the hosel is disposed on and movable along the cam piece, and wherein the bolt extends through the first bore, the second bore, and the third bore to removably secure the cam piece and the hosel to the golf club head. The golf club head may comprise a face, a sole, and a crown, and the first surface may be located on the crown. The hosel may comprise a lower portion shaped to mate with the cam piece, and the first surface may be convex and the cam piece may be convex, or the first surface may be concave and the cam piece may be concave. The cam piece may comprise at least one marking, and the lower portion may also comprise at least one marking. In some embodiments, the cam piece may comprise at least one marking indicating a loft or lie angle, and the lower portion may comprise at least one marking indicating a loft or lie angle.
The adjustable golf club assembly may further comprise a lock ring and a spherical washer, wherein the lock ring comprises a fourth bore, wherein the spherical washer comprises a fifth bore, and wherein the bolt extends through the fourth bore and the fifth bore. The lock ring and the spherical washer may in some embodiments be disposed between the bolt and the hosel. The lower portion of the hosel may comprise at least one detent to inhibit movement of the lower portion along the cam piece, and the cam piece may further comprise at least one wall that abuts the detent.
Yet another aspect of the present invention is an adjustable driver comprising a body comprising a face, a sole, and a crown, the crown comprising a concave indent having a first bore, a concave cam piece sized to movably fit within the concave indent, the cam piece comprising a second bore, a hosel comprising a shaft receiving bore and a lower portion, the lower portion comprising a detent, a third bore, and a convex surface sized to movably mate with the concave cam piece, a washer comprising a fourth bore, and a bolt comprising a head and a threaded extension portion, the threaded extension portion sized to extend through each of the first, second, third, and fourth bores to removably affix the cam piece, hosel, and washer to the body, wherein the detent restricts the movement of the lower portion of the hosel along the cam piece, and wherein the first bore is threaded to receive the threaded extension portion. The shaft receiving bore may be disposed within a shaft holding portion, and the hosel may further comprise an extension portion connecting the shaft holding portion to the lower portion.
The adjustable driver may further comprise a lock ring disposed between the washer and the bolt, wherein the lock ring comprises a fifth bore. The crown may comprise at least one alignment marking proximate the concave indent, or the lower portion of the hosel may comprise a plurality of alignment markings, which may provide information regarding loft or lie angles. The body of the driver may be composed of more than one material. In some embodiments, the driver may further comprise a key assembly, wherein the key assembly comprises a crank, a cog having a first plurality of teeth, and an anchor, and wherein the cam piece comprises a second plurality of teeth sized to mate with the first plurality of teeth.
Having briefly described the present invention, the above and further objects, features and advantages thereof will be recognized by those skilled in the pertinent art from the following detailed description of the invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The invention utilizes a nested set of partial spherical shells or cams to provide hosel adjustability in golf club heads. These shells or cams include distributed detents such that the relative motion of the cams, and thus the hosels, can be stopped at a range of discrete orientations. In this application, the range of adjustment is small enough such that the orientation changes are on the order of rotations of a few degrees.
A first embodiment of the present invention is shown in
The lower portion 25, the cam piece 30, and the golf club head 10 each have bores 29, 32, 12 to receive the bolt 40, which holds each of these pieces together. The hosel 20 in this embodiment has a standard construction, but may have any construction known to a person of ordinary skill in the art, including the constructions shown in
A second embodiment of the present invention is shown in
To adjust the angle of the hosel 20 with respect to the golf club head 10, the bolt 40 is loosened, the hosel 20 is adjusted by moving the convex lower portion 25 along the surface of the cam piece 30, or the cam piece 30 along the convex portion 11 of the club head 10, and then the bolt 40 is tightened to secure the hosel in place when the hosel 20 has a desired orientation. At least one detent 23 prevents the pieces of this embodiment from moving too much relative to one another and allows a user to achieve discrete shaft orientations. The lower portion 25 of the hosel 20 and the cam 30 also include markings 80, 90 to aid a user in adjusting the overall loft and lie of the golf club head 10.
A third embodiment of the present invention is shown in
As in the second embodiment, the hosel 20 of the third embodiment includes an extension portion 27 and a shaft holding portion 26 containing a hosel bore 22. When the hosel 20 has the configuration shown in
A fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown in
To adjust the angle of the hosel 20 with respect to the golf club head 10, as well as to adjust the distance D, the bolt 40 is loosened, the hosel 20 is adjusted by moving the lower portion 25 along the surface of the cam piece 30, or the cam piece 30 within the convex portion 15 of the club head 10, and then the bolt 40 is tightened to secure the hosel in place when the hosel 20 has a desired orientation. At least one detent 23 prevents the pieces of this embodiment from moving too much relative to one another and allows a user to achieve discrete shaft orientations. The lower portion 25 of the hosel 20, and visible portions of the cam piece 30, if any, can also include markings 80, 90 to aid a user in adjusting the overall loft and lie of the golf club head 10.
A fifth, preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown in
Once a desired angle is achieved, the key assembly 100 is removed and the bolt 40 is tightened to secure the hosel 20 in place at its desired orientation. The notch 24 and the opening 16 may be covered with preformed inserts sort to prevent dirt and debris from becoming lodged within them during use of the golf club head 10. The inserts preferably are formed of an elastomeric material such as rubber, but may be constructed from any other type of material.
The golf club head 10 of each of the embodiments disclosed herein may include markings on one or more surfaces, but preferably the crown 18, in addition to any markings 80, 90 disposed on the hosel 20 and the cam piece 30, that can assist the golfer with adjustment.
The present invention provides golfers with the ability to easily and quickly modify club specifications such as loft, lie and face angle of their golf club, as well as mass location. This invention enables golfers to change these specifications at the practice range or golf course. The tools used to alter the club's specifications are minimal and can be carried in a pocket of the user's golf bag. The technical ability required to modify the club specifications with this invention is minimal and its approach is intuitive and easy to understand.
The present invention is also valuable because a golfer's swing may change over time, thus requiring alterations to his or her clubs. A golfer may improve his or her game through lessons and may gain greater flexibility and strength through practice and exercise. As such, it is reasonable for a golfer to wish to change his or her club's face, lie, and/or loft angles, and also mass location, to help improve his or her accuracy, distance, and feel as needed or desired. The embodiments of the present invention disclosed herein may be used in connection with any kind of golf club head, including woods, irons, and putters.
The golf club of the present invention may also have material compositions such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,244,976, 6,332,847, 6,386,990, 6,406,378, 6,440,008, 6,471,604, 6,491,592, 6,527,650, 6,565,452, 6,575,845, 6,478,692, 6,582,323, 6,508,978, 6,592,466, 6,602,149, 6,607,452, 6,612,398, 6,663,504, 6,669,578, 6,739,982, 6,758,763, 6,860,824, 6,994,637, 7,025,692, 7,070,517, 7,112,148, 7,118,493, 7,121,957, 7,125,344, 7,128,661, 7,163,470, 7,226,366, 7,252,600, 7,258,631, 7,314,418, 7,320,646, 7,387,577, 7,396,296, 7,402,112, 7,407,448, 7,413,520, 7,431,667, 7,438,647, 7,455,598, 7,476,161, 7,491,134, 7,497,787, 7,549,935, 7,578,751, 7,717,807, 7,749,096, and 7,749,097, the disclosure of each of which is hereby incorporated in its entirety herein.
The golf club head of the present invention may be constructed to take various shapes, including traditional, square, rectangular, or triangular. In some embodiments, the golf club head of the present invention takes shapes such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,163,468, 7,166,038, 7,169,060, 7,278,927, 7,291,075, 7,306,527, 7,311,613, 7,390,269, 7,407,448, 7,410,428, 7,413,520, 7,413,519, 7,419,440, 7,455,598, 7,476,161, 7,494,424, 7,578,751, 7,588,501, 7,591,737, and 7,749,096, the disclosure of each of which is hereby incorporated in its entirety herein.
The golf club head of the present invention may also have variable face thickness, such as the thickness patterns disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,163,682, 5,318,300, 5,474,296, 5,830,084, 5,971,868, 6,007,432, 6,338,683, 6,354,962, 6,368,234, 6,398,666, 6,413,169, 6,428,426, 6,435,977, 6,623,377, 6,997,821, 7,014,570, 7,101,289, 7,137,907, 7,144,334, 7,258,626, 7,422,528, 7,448,960, 7,713,140, and 8,012,041, the disclosure of each of which is incorporated in its entirety herein.
From the foregoing it is believed that those skilled in the pertinent art will recognize the meritorious advancement of this invention and will readily understand that while the present invention has been described in association with a preferred embodiment thereof, and other embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, numerous changes, modifications and substitutions of equivalents may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention which is intended to be unlimited by the foregoing except as may appear in the following appended claims. Therefore, the embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined in the following appended claims.
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