Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor – Means assembling part within hole or aperture
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-29
2001-08-28
Chapman, Jeanette (Department: 3711)
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor
Means assembling part within hole or aperture
C156S447000, C156S446000, C156S475000, C156S494000, C156S556000, C029S450000, C473S300000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06279637
ABSTRACT:
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to insallation of a grip on a golf club shaft. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for automatically placing a handgrip on a golf club shaft without the use of a solvent.
2. Description of the Related Art
Grips have been used on golf clubs to provide a golfer with a greater ability to grasp the golf club during a swing. Grips were used as early as the 1700s when sheepskin grips were the choice of golfers. In the 1800s, leather grips began to appear on a golf clubs, and soon became the dominant grip. In the 1900s, numerous rubber grips were developed mainly by rubber manufacturers. Presently, grips are composed of synthetic rubbers, plastics, and the like.
Handgrips are usually placed on the butt end of a golf club shaft at the club manufacturer. This process has for the most part been a manual process, with very little automation. A golf club shaft is manually wrapped with a double-sided tape at its butt end. Next, a solvent or lubricant is sprayed into the hollow interior of the handgrip, through an open end, in order to place the handgrip over the wrapped butt end without deterring from the adhesiveness of the tape. The handgrip is pulled over the shaft until the closed end of the handgrip is flush with the butt end of the shaft. The solvent eventually evaporates allowing for the tape to adhere to the surface of the hollow interior of the handgrip. Thus, it is obvious that this is a highly repetitious process may lead to injuries to some laborers unless remedial steps are taken by the manufacturer. Further, the use of certain solvents and lubricants may be an environmentally unfriendly means of manufacturing. Yet further, the spraying of a solvent or lubricant is an undesirable step which increases the production time.
The golf industry, and those associated with it, have attempted to automate some of the processes to increase production and lessen injury to laborers. One example is Hsu, U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,428 (“the '428 Patent”) for a Golf Club Handle Sleeve Assembling Mechanism. The '428 Patent discloses an assembling mechanism that includes slidable tables, triple acutators with hooks for expanding the front end of the handgrip, an air blower for blowing air into the rear of the handgrip and a fluid hose for delivering a solvent or lubricant to the handgrip for facilitating insertion of the shaft into the handgrip. Another example is Vald'via, U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,026 (“the '026 Patent”) for a Golf Club Grip Installing Apparatus. The '026 Patent discloses the use of a grip lubricating device and a golf club shaft lubricating device. The '026 Patent allows for a controlled amount of lubricant to be applied for facilitated insertion of the shaft into the grip. Another example is Cresse et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,706 (“the '706 Patent”) for a System And Method For Installing A Hollow Handgrip Over An Elongated Shaft End. The '706 discloses a system and method for applying a liquid adhesive to an interior surface of the handgrip in substitution for the use of tape on the shaft to adhere the grip. The '706 patent inflates the handgrip prior to insertion of the shaft into the grip. Another example is U.S. Pat. No. 5,870,815 (“the '815 Patent”) for an Apparatus And Method For Aligning A Golf Club For Attaching A Handle Grip. The '815 Patent discloses an alignment assembly for positioning of a club head attached to a shaft prior to placement of a handgrip on the butt end of the shaft.
The above-mentioned patents fail to provide a fully automated installation of handgrips to golf club shafts, and also still require the need for a solvent or lubricant. Further, the above-mentioned patents require that a club head is attached to the shaft or that shaft is blocked. There still remains a need for a more automated method, one that can grip an open shaft, and one that does not utilize solvents or lubricants.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention fulfills the needs of the golf industry by providing a better automated process and apparatus for installation of a handgrip onto a golf club shaft. The present invention is able to accomplish this while maintaining the handgrip and the butt end of the golf club shaft in a dry state. That is, the present invention does not utilize solvents, lubricants or the like for installation of a handgrip on a golf club shaft.
One aspect of the present invention is a process for automatically installing a handgrip on a golf club shaft. The handgrip has a hollow interior with a first diameter. The process generally includes maintaining a butt end of a golf club shaft and the hollow interior of the handgrip in a dry state throughout the installation process. The next step of the process is flowing a gaseous medium into the handgrip to expand the hollow interior of the handgrip from the first diameter to a second diameter. The next step is mating the butt end of the golf club shaft with the expanded hollow interior of the handgrip.
The process may also include expanding an open end of the handgrip with a plurality of jaws prior to mating the butt end of the golf club shaft with the expanded hollow interior of the handgrip. The process may also include wrapping a double-sided tape over the butt end of the golf club shaft. The wrapping includes adhering a middle region of the tape to the butt end, then adhering a first side region of the tape to the butt end, and then adhering a second side region of the tape to the butt end with an end portion of the second side region of the tape overlapping the first side region. The process may also include orienting the handgrip for placement on the butt end of the shaft prior to flowing the gaseous medium into the handgrip. The step of mating the butt end of the golf club shaft with the hollow interior of the handgrip may include moving the hollow interior of the handgrip over the butt end of the golf club shaft. Alternatively, the step of mating the butt end of the golf club shaft with the hollow interior of the handgrip may include inserting the butt end of the golf club shaft into the hollow interior of the handgrip. The process may also include moving the plurality of jaws forward for release from the open end of the handgrip after mating the butt end of the golf club shaft with the hollow interior of the handgrip. The plurality of jaws may include six jaws for engaging with and expanding the open end of the handgrip.
Another aspect of the present invention is an apparatus for automatically applying a handgrip to a butt end of a golf club shaft. The apparatus includes a frame, a tape mechanism, a handgrip assembly and a shaft movement mechanism. The tape mechanism is mounted to the frame. The handgrip assembly is also mounted to the frame. The handgrip assembly has an air injector disposed on a handgrip receiving sleeve, a plurality of jaws movable from a closed position to an expanded position, and a drive mechanism. The shaft movement mechanism is capable of movement from a position on the frame in-line with the tape mechanism to a position on the frame in-line with the handgrip assembly.
The apparatus may also include a handgrip orientation device disposed on the handgrip assembly. The handgrip orientation device is capable of orienting a handgrip to a predetermined position. The tape mechanism of the apparatus may include a tape dispenser, a tape cutter disposed in proximity to the tape dispenser, a tape roller rotatable about a fixed axis, and a shaft rotation roller disposed in relation to the tape roller. The shaft movement mechanism of the apparatus may include a plurality of shaft guides for retention of a shaft therein during application of a handgrip to the shaft.
The apparatus may include a shaft orientation device mounted on the frame and inline with the handgrip assembly. The shaft orientation device includes a shaft aligner and a secon
Blanke Jerry V.
Lenhof Konrad
Callaway Golf Company
Catania Michael A.
Chapman Jeanette
Varma Sneh
LandOfFree
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