Title: Multiple material golf putter head
Abstract: A putter club head having a metal body and a non-metal crown portion is disclosed herein. The body has a front wall, a sole wall, a ribbon wall and a ledge. The crown portion is preferably composed of a composite material and has a top wall, a side wall and a front wall. The crown portion is preferably attached by a liquid adhesive to the ledge of the body.
Patent Number: 6,984,181 Issued on 01/10/2006 to Hettinger, et al.
| Inventors:
|
Hettinger; Ronald K. (Oceanside, CA);
Reyes; Herbert (Laguna Niguel, CA);
Fox; Daniel T. (Lakeside, CA)
|
| Assignee:
|
Callaway Golf Company (Carlsbad, CA)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
065203 |
| Filed:
|
September 25, 2002 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
473/340; 473/345 |
| Current Intern'l Class: |
A63B 53/04 (20060101); A63B 53/06 (20060101) |
| Field of Search: |
473/313,340
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
| 4532169 | Jul., 1985 | Carley.
| |
| 4664385 | May., 1987 | Macera.
| |
| 5482281 | Jan., 1996 | Anderson.
| |
| 5676606 | Oct., 1997 | Schaeffer et al.
| |
| 6248025 | Jun., 2001 | Murphy et al.
| |
| 6280349 | Aug., 2001 | Cook.
| |
| 6342018 | Jan., 2002 | Mason.
| |
| 6575845 | Jun., 2003 | Galloway et al.
| |
| 6663504 | Dec., 2003 | Hocknell et al.
| |
| 6688990 | Feb., 2004 | Sanchez.
| |
| 6716110 | Apr., 2004 | Ballow.
| |
Primary Examiner: Vidovich; Gregory
Assistant Examiner: Hunter, Jr.; Alvin A.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Catania; Michael A., Lo; Elaine H.
Goverment Interests
FEDERAL RESEARCH STATEMENT
Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a putter club head with a major body composed
of a metal material, and a minor body composed of a light-weight material. More
specifically, the present invention relates to a putter club head with a major
body composed of a metal material and a non-metallic minor body.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,482,281 to Anderson discloses a putter head with a lower plate-like
member composed of a heavy metal material and an upper shell-like member composed
of lightweight material such as wood, aluminum or plastic. A heel weight and a
toe weight are mounted on the plate-like member and project upward therefrom.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,842,935 to Nelson discloses a putter head with a metal body
and a low-density solid insert that is positioned within a cavity of the body.
The insert is preferably composed of a polyurethane material with a Shore D hardness
of 65, and the insert forms the striking plate of the putter head.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,951,412 to Rose et al., discloses a putter head with a first
element composed of a high density material and a second element composed of a
low density material. The first element forms the heel and toe portions as well
as the sole of the putter head. The second element forms part of the face of the
putter head and is preferably composed of a metal such as aluminum or magnesium.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,146,571 to Vincent, et.al., discloses a method of manufacturing
a golf club head wherein the walls are obtained by injecting a material such as
plastic over an insert affixed to a meltable core. The core has a melt point lower
than that of the injectable plastic material so that once the core is removed,
an inner volume is maintained to form the inner cavity. The insert may comprise
a resistance element for reinforcing the internal portion of the front wall of
the shell upon removal of the core where the reinforcement element is comprised
of aluminum with a laterally extending portion comprised of steel.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,534 to Peters, et al., discloses a golf club head having
upper and lower metal engagement surfaces formed along a single plane interface
wherein the metal of the lower surface is heavier and more dense than the metal
of the upper surface.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,570,886 and 5,547,427 to Rigal, et al., disclose a golf club
head of molded thermoplastic having a striking face defined by an impact-resistant
metallic sealing element. The sealing element defines a front wall of the striking
surface of the club head and extends upward and along the side of the impact surface
to form a neck for attachment of the shaft to the club head. The sealing element
preferably being between 2.5 and 5 mm in thickness.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,425,538 to Vincent, et al., discloses a hollow golf club head
having steel shell and a composite striking surface composed of a number of stacked
woven webs of fiber.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,986 to Viollaz, et al., discloses a golf club head having
a body composed of a series of metal plates and a hitting plate comprised of plastic
or composite material wherein the hitting plate is imparted with a forwardly convex
shape. Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,310,185 to Viollaz, et al., discloses a hollow
golf club head having a body composed of a series of metal plates, a metal support
plate being located on the front hitting surface to which a hitting plate comprised
of plastic or composite is attached. The metal support plate has a forwardly convex
front plate associated with a forwardly convex rear plate of the hitting plate
thereby forming a forwardly convex hitting surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,106,094 to Desboilles, et al., discloses a golf club head having
a metal striking face plate wherein the striking face plate is a separate unit
attached to the golf club head with a quantity of filler material in the interior
portion of the club head.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,568,088 to Kurahashi discloses a wooden golf club head body
reinforced by a mixture of wood-plastic composite material. The wood-plastic composite
material being unevenly distributed such that a higher density in the range of
between 5 and 15 mm lies adjacent to and extends substantially parallel with the
front face of the club head.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,047 to Mader discloses a golf club wherein the sole plate,
face plate, heel, toe and hosel portions are formed as a unitary cast metal piece
and wherein a wood or composite crown is attached to this unitary piece thereby
forming hollow chamber in the club head.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,331 to Lo, et al. discloses a hollow metal golf club head
where the metal casing of the head is composed of at least two openings. The head
also contains a composite material disposed within the head where a portion of
the composite material is located in the openings of the golf club head casing.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,167,387 to Daniel discloses a hollow golf club head wherein
the shell body is comprised of metal such as aluminum alloy and the face plate
is comprised of a hard wood such as beech, persimmon or the like. The face plate
is aligned such that the wood grain presents endwise at the striking plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,692,306 to Glover discloses a golf club head having a bracket
with sole and striking plates formed integrally thereon. At least one of the plates
has an embedded elongate tube for securing a removably adjustable weight means.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,410,798 to Lo discloses a method of manufacturing a composite
golf club head using a metal casing to which a laminated member is inserted. A
sheet of composite material is subsequently layered over the openings of the laminated
member and metal casing to close off the openings in the top of both. An expansible
pocket is then inserted into the hollow laminated member comprising sodium nitrite,
ammonium chloride and water causing the member to attach integrally to the metal
casing when the head is placed into a mold and heated.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,249 to Thompson discloses a wood golf club head embodying
a laminated upper surface and metallic sole surface having a keel. In order to
reinforce the laminations and to keep the body from delaminating upon impact with
an unusually hard object, a bolt is inserted through the crown of the club head
where it is connected to the sole plate at the keel and tightened to compress the laminations.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,897,066 to Belmont discloses a wooden golf club head having
removably inserted weight adjustment members. The members are parallel to a central
vertical axis running from the face section to the rear section of the club head
and perpendicular to the crown to toe axis. The weight adjustment members may be
held in place by the use of capsules filled with polyurethane resin, which can
also be used to form the faceplate. The capsules have openings on a rear surface
of the club head with covers to provide access to adjust the weight means.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,750,194 to Clark discloses a wooden golf club head with weight
adjustment means. The golf club head includes a tray member with sides and bottom
for holding the weight adjustment preferably cast or formed integrally with the
heel plate. The heel plate with attached weight member is inserted into the head
of the golf club via an opening.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,193,811 to Okumoto, et al. discloses a wood type club head body
comprised primarily of a synthetic resin and a metallic sole plate. The metallic
sole plate has on its surface for bonding with the head body integrally formed
members comprising a hosel on the heel side, weights on the toe and rear sides
and a beam connecting the weights and hosel. Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,107
to Okumoto, et al. discloses a golf club head having an outer shell, preferably
comprised of synthetic resin, and metal weight member/s located on the interior
of the club head. A foamable material is injected into the hollow interior of the
club to form the core. Once the foamable material has been injected and the sole
plate is attached, the club head is heated to cause the foamable material to expand
thus holding the weight member/s in position in recess/es located in toe, heel
and/or back side regions by pushing the weight member into the inner surface of
the outer shell.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,685 to Sun discloses a wood type golf club head wherein
a female unit is mated with a male unit to form a unitary golf club head. The female
unit comprises the upper portion of the golf club head and is preferably composed
of plastic, alloy, or wood. The male unit includes the structural portions of sole
plate, a face insert consists of the striking plate and weighting elements. The
male unit has a substantially greater weight being preferably composed of a light
metal alloy. The units are mated or held together by bonding and or mechanical means.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,398,935 to Katayama discloses a wood golf club head having a
striking face wherein the height of the striking face at a toe end of the golf
club head is nearly equal to or greater than the height of the striking face at
the center of the club head.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,780,625 to Mattern discloses a club head with a rear portion
composed of a light-weight metal such as magnesium. U.S. Pat. No. 1,638,916 to
Butchart discloses a golf club with a balancing member composed of persimmon or
a similar wood material, and a shell-like body composed of aluminum attached to
the balancing member.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The present invention is a putter-type golf club head having a body composed
of a metal material and a crown portion composed of a non-metallic material. The
body has a sole wall, a ribbon wall and a front wall which define an internal cavity.
The body also has a heel mass and a toe mass formed integrally within an interior
of the body. The crown portion is preferably composed of a composite material such
as plies of pre-preg material and a bulk molding compound. The crown portion is
attached to the body to cover the internal cavity of the major body, and thus form
a hollow interior.
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.
Claims
We claim as our invention:
1. A putter-type golf club head comprising:
a body composed of cast stainless steel, the body having a front wall, a bottom
wall, a ribbon wall and a ledge, the front wall having a thickness in the range
of 0.010 inch to 0.250 inch, the ledge extending inward a distance ranging from
0.05 inch to 0.25 inch from an exterior surface of the body, and the front wall,
the bottom wall and the ribbon wall defining an internal cavity, the body having
a heel mass and a toe mass; and
a crown portion composed of plies of pre-preg material over a bulk molding compound,
the crown portion having a top wall, a side wall and a front wall, the crown portion
attached to the ledge of the body,
wherein the golf club head has a moment of inertia about an Izz axis of the golf
club head that ranges from 2800 grams-centimeter squared to 5000 grams-centimeter squared.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
Not Applicable
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a front view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is top view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a toe side plan view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a heel side plan view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a bottom plan view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a bottom perspective view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a rear perspective view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 9 is top perspective view of a putter head of the present invention.
FIG. 10 is an isolated bottom perspective view of the crown portion of a putter
head of the present invention.
FIG. 11 is an isolated bottom view of the crown portion of a putter head of
the present invention.
FIG. 12 is an isolated view of a hosel insert.
FIG. 13 is an isolated rear view of the body portion of a putter head of the
present invention.
FIG. 14 is an isolated toe view of the body portion of a putter head of the
present invention.
FIG. 15 is an isolated heel view of the body portion of a putter head of the
present invention.
FIG. 16 is an isolated front view of the body portion of a putter head of the
present invention.
FIG. 17 is an isolated top plan view of the body portion of a putter head of
the present invention.
FIG. 18 is an isolated top perspective view of the body portion of the putter
head of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
As shown in FIGS. 1-9, a putter head is generally designated
20. The putter
head
20 is generally composed of two components, a body
22 and a
crown portion
24.
The body
22 is generally composed of a single piece of metal, and is preferably
composed of a cast metal material. More preferably, the cast metal material is
a stainless steel material or a titanium material such as pure titanium and titanium
alloys such as 6-22-22 titanium alloy available from RMI, 6-4 titanium alloy, SP-700
titanium alloy available from Nippon Steel of Tokyo, Japan, DAT 55G titanium alloy
available from Diado Steel of Tokyo, Japan, Ti 10-2-3 Beta-C titanium alloy available
from RTI International Metals of Ohio, and the like. Alternatively, the body
22
is manufactured through forging, welding, forming, machining, powdered metal forming,
metal-injection-molding, electro-chemical milling, and the like.
As shown in FIGS. 13-18, the body
22 is generally composed of a sole wall
26, a ribbon wall
28 and a front wall
30. The body
22
also has a heel mass
34 at a heel end
35 of the body
22 and
a toe mass
36 at a toe end
37 of the body
22. Both masses
34 and
36 are positioned within the interior of the body
22.
An internal cavity
32 of the body
22 is defined by the sole wall
26, the ribbon wall
28, the front wall
30, the heel mass
34
and the toe mass
36. The body
22 preferably has an internal tube
38 for receiving a hosel insert
25 and/or shaft, not shown.
The ribbon wall
28 is partitioned into a heel ribbon
28a at
the heel end
35 of the body
22, an aft ribbon wall
28b
at the aft end
39 of the body, and a toe ribbon wall
28c at
the toe end
37 of the body
22. The ribbon wall
28 preferably
has a thickness that ranges from 0.03 inch to 0.30 inch, and more preferably ranges
from 0.05 inch to 0.150 inch.
At the upper end of the ribbon wall
28 is a perimeter ledge
50,
which defines the upper limit of the ribbon wall
28. The perimeter ledge
50 has a width that preferably ranges from 0.05 inch to 0.25 inch. An upper
ribbon wall
70 begins at the inward limit of the perimeter ledge
50,
and the upper ribbon wall
70 extends preferably perpendicular to the perimeter
ledge
50. At the upper limit of the upper ribbon wall
70 is an interior
edge
52 which is preferably parallel to the perimeter edge
50 along
the extent of the upper ribbon wall
70. The interior ledge
52 has
a width that preferably ranges from 0.05 inch to 0.25 inch.
The toe ribbon wall
28c and the heel ribbon wall
28a
merge into the front wall
30. The front wall
30 has a striking
surface
30a and an interior surface
30b. The front
wall
30 preferably has a thickness that ranges from 0.05 inch to 0.50 inch,
and more preferably ranges from 0.125 inch to 0.200 inch. The front wall
30
preferably has a convex curvature relative to the sole wall
26, and the
front wall
30 is preferably perpendicular to the sole wall
26. The
convex curvature of the front wall
30 has an apex
30c about
the center line of the body
22. The radius of the convex curvature of the
front wall
30 is preferably constant from the heel end
35 of the
front wall
30 to the toe end
37 of the front wall
30. Preferably,
the apex
30c of the front wall
30 is slightly greater in height
than the interior edge
52.
The interior tube
38 for receiving a shaft, not shown, and a portion of
the hosel insert
25 are located within the interior of the body
22,
nearer the heel end
35 of the body
22. The interior tube
38
is defined by a cylindrical wall
60, which projects upwards from the interior
surface
26a of the sole wall
26. The cylindrical wall
60
defines a bore
62, which preferably terminates at the sole wall
26.
The bore
62 has a diameter sized to receive a shaft, not shown, and the
hosel insert
25. The interior
38 is preferably cast with the body
22, however those skilled in the pertinent art will recognize that the interior
tube
38 may also be a separate component that is welded to the body
22
without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention.
The crown portion
24 is preferably composed of a non-metal material, preferably
a composite material such as continuous fiber pre-preg material (either thermosetting
resin or thermoplastic resin) over a bulk molding compound. Most preferably, the
crown portion is composed of a twill pre-preg woven fabric material over a carbon
bulk molding compound. Such bulk molding compounds include MS-4A carbon fiber and
epoxy molding system from YLA, Inc., of Benicia Calif., LYTEX 4181 and LYTEX 4149
carbon fiber epoxy molding compounds from Quantum Composites of Bay City Mich.,
ENDURON compound from Cytec Fiberite, and other similar bulk molding compounds.
One preferred method for making a crown portion
24 includes creating a preform
of the crown portion
24 composed of twill pre-preg woven fabric material
and a preform of the crown portion
24 composed of a bulk molding compound,
and then compression molding the two preforms (the twill pre-preg woven fabric
preform over the bulk molding compound preform) to create the crown portion
24.
Other materials for the crown portion
24 include other thermosetting materials
or other thermoplastic materials such as injection molded plastics. The crown portion
24 is preferably manufactured through compression molding a continuous carbon
fiber pre-preg material. Alternative methods for manufacturing the crown portion
24 include bladder-molding, resin transfer molding, resin infusion or injection molding.
As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the crown portion
24 has a crown top wall
93, a crown side wall
94 and a crown front wall
96. The crown
portion
24 has an inner surface
24b and an external surface
24a. The crown front wall
96 has a concave curvature that
corresponds to the convex curvature of the front wall
30. The crown portion
24 also has a crown perimeter
90 that defines its lower limit. The
thickness of the crown perimeter
90 preferably corresponds to the thickness
of the perimeter ledge
50 of the body
22. The crown portion
24
also has a bore
92 for receiving the shaft, not shown and the hosel insert
25.
As shown in the FIG. 12, the hosel insert
25 preferably includes a tapered
top
80, a center body
82, and a bottom body
84 with a notch
86. The notch
86 allows for the hosel insert
25 to be fixed
in position in the interior tube
38. In an alternative embodiment, the hosel
insert
25 does not have a notch
86. The hosel insert
25 is
preferably composed of a polyurethane material, and preferably has a mass ranging
from 0.5 gram to 2.0 grams, and more preferably from 0.75 gram to 1.5 grams.
In a preferred process, the body
22, with an adhesive on the exterior
surface
of the interior ledge
52 is press-fitted with the crown portion
24.
Such adhesives include thermosetting adhesives in a liquid or a film medium. A
preferred adhesive is a two part liquid epoxy sold by 3M of Minneapolis, Minn.
under the brand names DP420NS and DP460NS. Other alternative adhesives include
modified acrylic liquid adhesives such as DP810NS, also sold by the 3M company.
Alternatively, foam tapes such as Hysol Synspan may be utilized with the present invention.
In a preferred embodiment, the crown portion
24 is composed of a bulk
molding
compound and a plurality of plies of pre-preg, typically two to seven plies, such
as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,248,025, entitled Composite Golf Head And Method
Of Manufacturing, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The mass of the putter head
20 preferably ranges from 200 grams to 400
grams, more preferably from 275 grams to 370 grams, and most preferably from 300
grams to 350 grams, with a most preferred mass of 330 grams. Preferably, the body
22 has a mass ranging from 180 grams to 380 grams, more preferably from
250 grams to 350 grams, yet more preferably from 275 grams to 320 grams, and most
preferably 300 grams. The crown portion
24 has a mass preferably ranging
from 10 grams to 30 grams, more preferably from 20 grams to 25 grams, and most
preferably 24 grams.
The center of gravity and the moment of inertia of a golf club head
20
are preferably measured using a test frame (X
T, Y
T, Z
T),
and then transformed to a head frame (X
H, Y
H, Z
H).
The center of gravity of a golf club head may be obtained using a center of gravity
table having two weight scales thereon, as disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 09/796,951, filed on Feb. 27, 2001, entitled High Moment Of
Inertia Composite Golf Club, and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
If a shaft is present, it is removed and replaced with a hosel cube that has a
multitude of faces normal to the axes of the golf club head. Given the weight of
the golf club head, the scales allow one to determine the weight distribution of
the golf club head when the golf club head is placed on both scales simultaneously
and weighed along a particular direction, the X, Y or Z direction.
In general, the moment of inertia, Izz, about the Z axis for the putter head
20
ranges from 2800 g-cm
2 to 5000 g-cm
2, preferably from 3000
g-cm
2 to 4500 g-cm
2, even more preferably from 3200 g-cm
2
to 4000 g-cm
2, and most preferably 3758 g-cm
2. The
moment of inertia, Iyy, about the Y axis for the putter head
20 ranges from
1500 g-cm
2 to 4000 g-cm
2, preferably from 2500 g-cm
2
to 3400 g-cm
2, even preferably from 2900 g-cm
2 to 3100
g-cm
2, and most preferably 3003 g-cm
2.
Further, the putter head
20 preferably has low products of inertia
such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,425,832, which was filed on Jul. 26, 2001
and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. The product of inertia
Ixy of the putter head
20 preferably has an absolute value less than 100
g-cm
2. Preferably, the product of inertia Ixy is less than 50 g-cm
2,
and most preferably the product of inertia Ixy approaches zero. The product of
inertia Ixz of the putter head
20 has an absolute value less than 100 g-cm
2.
Preferably, the product of inertia Ixz is less than 50 g-cm
2, and most
preferably the product of inertia Ixz approaches zero. The product of inertia Iyz
of the putter head
20 preferably has an absolute value less than 100 g-cm
2.
Preferably, the product of inertia Iyz is less than 50 g-cm
2, and most
preferably the product of inertia Iyz approaches zero.
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.
*
