Patent Application
20240139587
The putter is a club that typically consists of a head that has a relatively flat front face and is connected to one end of a shaft that has a golf grip at the other end. A typical prior art putter is shown in
The lie angle of a putter 100 is the angle in which the golf shaft 1 enters the putter head 5 relative to a level playing position of the putter 100. Some putters are manufactured in such way that the head 5 and the hosel 2 are one piece. Other putters have a hosel cavity 7 which is an opening or cavity in the club head that is slightly larger than the foot 8 of the hosel 2. This allows for great tunability, specific to the player. There are different hosel types such as straight neck, slanted or plumber's neck. The hosel usually has a round hosel tip 9 that is glued at one end onto the shaft tip 10 with golf epoxy, and the hosel foot 8 is glued into the hosel cavity 7 of the putter head 5. The golf epoxy softens between 600 and 700 degrees Fahrenheit so that applying heat with a heat gun permits disassembling the putter.
The hosel 2 is shaped in such way to position the club face 4 relative to the ground and target line to the player's preference. The lie angle of a common putter can vary, but is typically around 70 degrees with a loft angle on the putter face 19 in between 1 and 3 degrees. Golf putters are commonly balanced in three different ways: face balanced, toe balanced, and variable toe hangs. Face balanced means by balancing the shaft across your fingers with the golf shaft 1 in a horizontal position, the putter face 19 will automatically roll to a level position, parallel to the ground. In the toe balance, holding the putter shaft 1 in a horizontal position, the toe 3 of the club head 5 will automatically point down towards to the ground. The variable toe hang typically has the face of the putter being from 30-45° from the horizontal. The type of balance used by a golfer is based on the type of stroke used by the golfer. The correct putter set up, with its geometry and weighting is crucial to compliment the player's stroke and swing path.
There are numerous aspects in club design that influence the performance. A well “tuned” club has the right combination of lie angle, loft, head weight, balance, resonance, shaft flex and appearance to provide the right feel, sound and performance to the individual player. The result of a dynamic set up is maximum performance, which means fewer strokes in a golf game.
The putter design stimulates the golfer's confidence, which is a crucial element to provide improvement in the game of golf.
While each part of the club is designed for a specific purpose, particular material properties such as high tensile strength and hardness are utilized in parts of the club. Stainless steel or carbon fiber or similar unbreakable materials (hereinafter referred to as “metal”), for example allow for a sleek but strong design of the hosel which is the intermediate connection of the club head to the shaft and transfers all mechanical forces from the players hands into the face of the club head for impact into the golf ball.
There are two main directions of kinetic energy transmissions during the putting stroke, One is the force of the players stroke, transferred from the hands into the grip 6 to the shaft 1, through the hosel 2, into the club head 5, the club face 4 and finally into the golf ball.
The second chain of kinetic energy transmission travels the opposite way during impact, from the golf ball through the club face, head, hosel, shaft and grip into the player's hands, delivering the “feel”. The sensation of feel during putting is described by the best players in the world. It is the dynamic feedback of all physical principals, occurring during a putt. The right feel is created by a combination of many different settings on the club, specific to the preference of the player.
There have been golf putter heads made entirely of stone, such as granite, marble or quartz. The term “stone” hereinafter refers to quartz, marble, granite and other similar materials. Such putter heads have an opening 7 drilled into the top surface of the putter head. The typical cylindrical surface area of bonding a shaft to a club head is approximately 1 square inch. The foot 8 of the hosel 2 is of such a size that it is either force fit into the opening or the foot is slightly smaller than the opening 7 and glue is used to attach the tip of the shaft to the stone putter head. Applying the shaft to the stone head in this fashion is not practical because the putter head will develop stress fractures around the area of the shaft entering the head, especially when the tip of the shaft is force fit into the opening 7.
Granite is a particularly desirable material for golf putter heads because of its unique properties. Granite is the oldest igneous rock in the world, believed to have been formed as long as 300 million years ago. It is the main component that makes up the earth's crust. The word granite comes from the Latin “granum”, which means “a coarse grain”. Granite has been used in construction since the ancient Egyptians.
Granite is one of the hardest substances in the world, second to diamonds. It is very tough and durable, weather resistant and accepts a brilliant polish. The exotic colors can vary from white, pink, gray or black, depending on the mineralogy. Granite contains between 20% and 60% quartz by volume and has a chemical composition of 70-77% silica, 11-13% alumina, 3-5% potassium oxide, 3-5% soda, 2-3% iron and 1% lime. Granite is rated 6 on the Mohs scale, has a density of ˜165-172 pounds per cubic foot. The compression strength is above 200 MPa. The resonant frequency of granite is 6900 Hz. Granite's appearance, resonance, density, hardness, noncorrosive and acoustic properties make this a fine material to achieve better performance in putter design.
Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica. The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, and has the chemical formula Si02.
A golf putter head has a support base made of metal material and a hosel receiver adapted for connection to the hosel of a golf shaft. Stone is attached to the top of the support base and the face of the golf putter head. The metal support base, with the attached hosel receiver prevents the forces from the hosel and shaft causing stress fractures in the stone putter head. Various forms of metal support bases are disclosed.
For golf putter heads made entirely of stone, where the foot of the hosel is attached to an opening in the top of the stone putter head, the foot of the hosel is surrounded by a sleeve of resilient material, such as rubber polycarbonate or teflon and other similar materials.
There are multiple designs of putter heads disclosed, having different putter heads, all are based on the same method of strategically distributing the impact forces of a golf ball into a large area of the material. This achieves a “suspended” or “float effect,” resulting in a very smooth feel of the club as well as protecting the club head from damage.
In order to balance the stone putter heads, adjustable weights can be provided in the body of the putter heads.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a putter head that has a better feel when putting;
It is another object of the present invention to provide a putter head that has an aesthetic design;
It is another object of the present invention to provide an assembly that will not be damaged;
It is another object of the present inventions that has a pleasing tone when contacting the golf ball;
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a way to balance the putter head.
These and other objects of the present invention will be apparent from the description of the invention in the specification and accompanying drawings.
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The metal support member has an attached upstanding hosel receiving member 12 for receiving the foot of a hosel. A pair of stone members having an internal tubular depression corresponding to the tubular member are attached to the support member by a suitable adhesive, surrounding the support member with a flat portion 19 forming the putter face. The weights can also have external threads and the openings on the ends of the support member can have corresponding internal threads.
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The description of the disclosure is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the examples and designs described herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein. The following goes at the end of the current detailed description of the invention
Although several embodiments have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the disclosure is not to be limited by the examples presented herein, but is envisioned as encompassing the scope described in the appended claims and the full range of equivalents of the appended claims.
