Metal working – Means to assemble or disassemble – With signal – scale – illuminator – or optical viewer
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-13
2001-10-09
Hughes, S. Thomas (Department: 3726)
Metal working
Means to assemble or disassemble
With signal, scale, illuminator, or optical viewer
C473S206000, C473S239000, C033S508000, C033S0010DD, C033S534000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06298546
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
(Not Applicable)
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
(Not Applicable)
REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX
(Not Applicable)
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to golf clubs and more specifically to a device and method to quantitatively position a golf club handle grip.
2. Description of Relevant Art
Correctly aligning the golf club leading edge in relation to an intended target is a hallmark of golf instruction. Precise placement of the hands on a golf club handle grip is an important extension of the alignment principle. Hand placement on a golf club handle grip can assume many positions in relation to the clubhead. Further, those skilled in the game teach that deviations in hand placement, intentional or not, can influence a golf ball's flight. In fact, many grips have indicia and raised areas called reminder ribs intended for use as alignment aids to facilitate placement of the hands correctly in relation to the clubhead.
Golf club handle grips wear or individual preferences change, consequently, grip replacement occurs several times during the life of a set of golf clubs. Installation of common rubber composite grips generally involves removing the old grip and grip tape and applying double sided adhesive tape to the club handle. Next the tape is activated by wetting with solvent and the new grip is slipped on the handle. The appropriate grip indicia are then positioned in relation to the clubhead's leading (striking) edge so both form lines that are simultaneously substantially perpendicular to an intended target.
Grip installation protocols disclosed by Karner (U.S. Pat. No. 5,870,304), Hsu (U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,428) and Gore (U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,304) include aligning and restraining or clamping the club in the aligned position and finally, installing the grip. All the above disclosed methods for installing grips accomplish the alignment task by using large, relatively complex apparatus. Crooks (U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,655) disclosed an alignment device with a marking template but this system is limited in application. Most wood clubs have their hosels and shafts offset from the face portion of the clubhead. This property of golf clubs will restrict accurate positioning of the device claimed by Crooks.
The ability to verify grip installation and quantify and mark preferred positions on a handle grip are beneficial to the golfer. The apparatus of Karner (U.S. Pat. No. 5,870,304), Hsu (U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,428), Gore (U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,304) and Crooks (U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,655) partially satisfy these desirable attributes, but none provide means to quantify preferred positions on a grip. None of the referenced apparatus measure the deviation of any point on a handle grip from an aligned clubhead position. The present invention provides a device and method that fulfill all the attributes mentioned while being suited for use by a larger cross-section of independent clubmakers and golfers who occasionally replace golf club handle grips.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention includes two components, the first is the alignment assembly removably attachable to the shaft for identifying the diameter of a shaft cross section that is both substantially perpendicular to the shaft axis and substantially parallel to the clubhead leading edge. The alignment assembly includes an alignment rod and removable pointer mounted on a support providing a substantially planar surface. The second is a shaft rotation gauge removably attachable to the shaft for measuring the deviation of any point on a grip or shaft from any position referenced by the alignment assembly. The shaft rotation gauge includes an arched ruled indicator surface attached to and radially extended a predetermined distance from the shaft axis. The present invention overcomes problems of previous apparatus and methods by providing a simple accurate device and method to position a newly installed grip or to verify the position of a previously installed grip quantitatively, in relation to the leading edge of a golf club head.
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the present invention are:
(a) to provide an alignment device and method generally applicable for use with iron and wood style golf clubs.
(b) to provide an alignment device and method which also eliminates the need to clamp the clubhead for grip alignment.
(c) to provide a device and method which allow the club handle to freely rotate 360 degrees about the alignment device allowing the operator to set other indicia substantially parallel to those which indicate face alignment.
(d) to provide a device and method which correctly position a grip in relation to the leading edge of the clubhead.
(e) to provide a device alignment rod which also can be used as a template for marking preferred positions on a grip.
(f) to provide a device alignment rod which further can be used to reference grip length and therefore, verify correct grip thickness.
(g) to provide a device shaft rotation gauge removably attachable to the shaft for measuring the deviation of any point on a grip or shaft from any position referenced by the device alignment assembly and pointer.
(h) to provide a device shaft rotation gauge removably attachable to the shaft which further can measure the offset of an iron style golf club.
(i) to provide an alignment device and method generally applicable for use with left or right handed golf clubs.
(j) to provide a device which can also be used to assist positioning shaft indicia of iron type golf clubs.
Further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the accompianing drawings and detailed description.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4655457 (1987-04-01), Thompson
patent: 4858332 (1989-08-01), Thomas
patent: 5125655 (1992-06-01), Crooks
Hong John C.
Hughes S. Thomas
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