Patent Application
20160101330
The present invention relates to a golf club head with variable center of gravity. More specifically, the present invention relates to a wedge type golf club head wherein the center of gravity of the golf club head is adjustable along an x-axis in a heel to toe direction utilizing weights that are placed substantially near a sole portion of the golf club head. The weight, in one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, may be placed within a cavity that is formed at the bottom sole portion of the golf club head, while other embodiments may place the weights at different locations inside or even outside of the cavity to achieve different center of gravity locations.
In order to improve the performance of a golf club head, golf club designers have been utilizing weighting members to adjust the center of gravity location of the golf club head. U.S. Pat. No. 2,067,556 to Wettlaufer from back in 1937 provides one of the earlier illustrations of this idea by disclosing a golf club head with a plurality of ducts extending into the club head to accommodate bodies of mercury, which alter the weight of the golf club head and adjusts the center of gravity.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,771,291 to Willett et al. issued in 2010 illustrates a modern day version of a weight adjustment mechanism for altering the center of gravity in a metalwood type golf club head. U.S. Pat. No. 7,771,291 to Willett teaches a golf club head that includes at least one weight port situated to retain weights and positioned above an approximate club face geometric center. The patent goes on to show that weights can then be applied to the weight ports in different variations, allowing an adjustment to the center of gravity of the golf club head.
Although the bigger chassis of a wood or metalwood type of golf club head makes it a more preferred chassis for using weights to adjust the center of the golf club's center of gravity, adjustment of the center of gravity can also be accomplished in an iron type golf club head having a smaller chassis as well. U.S. Pat. No. 6,015,354 to Anh et al. issued back in 2000 provides an illustration of a weighting system used to adjust the center of gravity of an iron type golf club head. More specifically, U.S. Pat. No. 6,015,354 discloses a golf club head having built-in provisions to change the weight of the golf club head including a way to increase, decrease, or adjust the position and the amount of weight in a selected golf club head to enable the player to adjust the club's center of gravity.
In fact, the idea of using weights for adjusting the center of gravity of a golf club head is so prevalent, it can even extend to wedge type golf club head as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 7,309,295 to Solari back in 2007. U.S. Pat. No. 7,309,295 teaches a golf club head for a chipper or wedge that provides a large striking area as well as selectable weight distribution. The golf club head has an open interior cavity having an enclosed lid enabling the permanent or removable fixation of weights for selectable weight distribution.
Although there are numerous attempts in the past of using weights to adjust the center of gravity of a golf club head, none of these methods focus on a way to adjust the center of gravity in a way that truly benefits a wedge type golf club head. Because the wedge is such a precise club in a golfer's arsenal, the precise center of gravity location along the x-axis, y-axis, and z-axis are all critical in its ability to perform as needed. More specifically, in the current art, there is no wedge type golf club head that allows for the center of gravity adjustment described above to be accomplished in a cleaner and aesthetically pleasing manner.
Hence, as it can be seen from above, despite all the attempts in creating a golf club having an adjustable center of gravity, none of them are capable of applying them to a wedge type golf club head in a manner that is clean, effective, and aesthetically pleasing. Ultimately, it can be seen from above that there is a need in the art for a wedge type golf club head capable of providing the center of gravity adjustment in the x, y, and z-orientations in an effective and clean way.
One aspect of the present invention is a wedge type golf club head comprising of a striking face portion located at a frontal portion of the wedge type golf club head; a backing portion located behind the striking face portion; and a sole muscle portion located at a bottom of the wedge type golf club head between the striking face portion and the backing portion, wherein the sole muscle portion further comprises a cavity having an opening and one or more weights shaped to at least partially fit in the cavity, and wherein the wedge type golf club head has a center of gravity greater than about 28 mm from an intersection point between a hosel bore axis and a ground plane along an x-axis.
Another aspect of the present invention is a golf club head comprising of a striking face portion located at a frontal portion of the golf club head; a backing portion located behind the striking face portion; and a sole muscle portion located at a bottom of the wedge type golf club head between the striking face portion and the backing portion, wherein the sole muscle portion further comprises a cavity having an opening and one or more weights shaped to at least partially fit in said cavity, and wherein the opening of said cavity is opened towards a bottom sole portion of the sole muscle portion.
A further aspect of the present invention is a golf club head comprising of a striking face portion located at a frontal portion of the golf club head; a backing portion located behind the striking face portion; a sole muscle portion located at a bottom of the wedge type golf club head between the striking face portion and the backing portion, a weight pocket located at an upper toe portion of the backing portion of the golf club head, and a weight pad, located congruently within the weight pocket, wherein the wedge type golf club head has a center of gravity greater than about 28 mm from an intersection point between a hosel bore axis and a ground plane along an x-axis.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.
The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and form a part of the specification, further serve to explain the principles of the invention and to enable a person skilled in the pertinent art to make and use the invention.
The following detailed description describes the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.
Various inventive features are described below and each can be used independently of one another or in combination with other features. However, any single inventive feature may not address any or all of the problems discussed above or may only address one of the problems discussed above. Further, one or more of the problems discussed above may not be fully addressed by any of the features described below.
Before engaging in any further discussion regarding the structure of the golf club head, it is important here to recognize the coordinate system 101 shown in
The exploded view of the golf club head 200 also shows the weight pocket 208 as well as the weight pad 210. Based on the location of the weight pocket 208 and weight pad 210, it can be seen that the weight pad 210 can serve to help shift the center of gravity further towards the toe portion of the golf club head 200 while at the same time raising the center of gravity higher along the y-axis. The exploded view of the golf club head 200 also shows that in the current exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the weight pad 210 may generally be secured into the weight pocket 208 via a plurality of two or more screws 216. In alternative embodiments of the present invention, the weight pad 210 may be attached to the weight pocket 208 via only one screw 216, via any other mechanical locking process, via a welding process, via a swaging process, or any other process capable of retaining the weight pad 210 without departing from the scope and content of the present invention.
In the current exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the portion of the cavity 312 that is not occupied by the weight member 314 may generally remain empty and hollow to accentuate the effects of the weight member 314 in shifting the center of gravity location of the golf club head 300. However, in alternative embodiments of the present invention, the unoccupied portion of the cavity 312 may be filled with a lightweight material such as a polymer, aluminum, or any other material so long as the material has a density that is lower than that of the weighted member 314 without departing from the scope and content of the present invention.
In addition to the weight member 314, the weight pad 310 may generally also be comprised out of a high density tungsten material with a density of greater than about 17 g/cm3. Similar to the above, the exact material of the weight pad 310 is not critical, so long as it has a higher density than the body portion of the golf club head 300.
The exemplary golf club head, due to the extreme placement of the weight member 314, may also have an improved performance in the moment of inertia numbers. For example, the current inventive golf club head may have a moment of inertia about the x axis of greater than about 105 kg-mm2, a moment of inertia about the y axis of greater than about 320 kg-mm2, a moment of inertia about the z axis of greater than about 310 kg-mm2, and a moment of inertia about the shaft axis of greater than about 775 kg-mm2.
In addition to the moment of inertia numbers above, the current inventive golf club head may have a center of gravity that is significantly different from any prior art golf club head. In order to illustrate this center of gravity location,
The center of gravity 422 location, as measured from the distance of the intersection point 423 along the x-axis, may generally be at a distance d1 of greater than about 28 mm, more preferably greater than about 30 mm, and more preferably greater than about 33 mm. The center of gravity along the y-axis may generally be at a distance d2 of greater than about 20.5 mm above a ground plane 420, more preferably greater than about 21.5 mm above the ground plane 420, and most preferably greater than about 22.5 mm above the ground plane 420.
Having a center of gravity 422 location that is further away from the intersection point 425 may generally be a result of the extreme weighting that is accomplished by the current inventive golf club head 400. In a conventional golf club head, because so much weight is occupied by the hosel portion, the center of gravity 422 may generally be very close to the intersection point 425. However, in the current inventive golf club head 400, due to the extreme weighting shown in the prior figures, the center of gravity 422 may generally be further away from the intersection point 425 both along the x-axis and the y-axis.
In addition to the above, it can be seen that the weight member 614 could be comprised of a plurality of two or more weight pieces depending on the desired center of gravity change without departing from the scope and content of the present invention. In fact, in alternative embodiments of the present invention multiple weight pieces can be used to create the weight member 614 at different locations within the cavity 612 even if they are not concentrated at a specific location within the cavity 612.
Finally,
Other than in the operating example, or unless otherwise expressly specified, all of the numerical ranges, amounts, values and percentages such as those for amounts of materials, moment of inertias, center of gravity locations, loft, draft angles, various performance ratios, and others in the aforementioned portions of the specification may be read as if prefaced by the word “about” even though the term “about” may not expressly appear in the value, amount, or range. Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth in the above specification and attached claims are approximations that may vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by the present invention. At the very least, and not as an attempt to limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to the scope of the claims, each numerical parameter should at least be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques.
Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as possible. Any numerical value, however, inherently contains certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements. Furthermore, when numerical ranges of varying scope are set forth herein, it is contemplated that any combination of these values inclusive of the recited values may be used.
It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the present invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.
