Games using tangible projectile – Golf – Club or club support
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-21
2001-08-21
Pierce, William M. (Department: 3711)
Games using tangible projectile
Golf
Club or club support
C473S329000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06277033
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to improvements in construction of golf club heads and faces for golf clubs such as a driver, iron or putter.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A large variety of materials have been proposed and in fact used and offered commercially as golf club heads and faces. These materials have been applied monolithically or as inserts in the club face in an attempt to achieve more distance and/or more control over the ball. The list of materials includes polymers, ceramics, and metals, typically the most common stainless steels, BeCu, and lately various titanium alloys, and shape memory materials such as NiTi based and copper based alloys.
Each of these materials has individual properties, different from each other but basically uniform unto themselves and hence provide a surface on a golf club that impacts the golf ball with essentially uniform mechanical properties across the face. For example, a typical titanium alloy such as Titanium 6-4 has a modulus of about 15 million psi and a yield strength of about 120,000 psi at a strain of less than 1%. Other materials will have different moduli and different yield strengths with different associated strain levels but as noted uniform properties as to themselves as used on the face of a golf club.
Since the mechanical characteristics (club speed, materials properties, geometry) at the impact of the club face with the ball determine the course (trajectory, distance, dispersion) of the ball; control of the materials properties can be key to control of the course of the ball. Club head speed and geometry being constant or independent of the specific properties of the material used as the impact surface of the club.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention provides a golf ball striking face of a golf club wherein first and second zones of material are distributed across the striking face, one or more of the first zones being surrounded by one or more of the second zores and the one or more first zones having a higher or lower modulus of elasticity than the one or more second zones. The first and second zones can be differentially heat treated zones of a unitary piece of metallic material. Alternatively, a plurality of the first zones can comprise discrete pieces of a first material such as a shape memory alloy and the second zone can comprise a unitary piece of a second material such as &bgr;-titanium or stainless steel wherein the first zones are embedded in the second material.
According to various embodiments of the invention, a plurality of the first zones can comprise individual wire segments arranged in a pattern with central axes of the wire segments intersecting an exposed surface of the striking face. The striking face can be planar or non-planar. A plurality of the first zones can comprise discrete pieces arranged in a pattern and the second zone can comprise a frame surrounding the first zones. The first zones can have various shapes such As polyhedral shapes, cylindrical shapes or any other desired shape. A plurality of the second zones can be separated by a plurality of the first zones such as alternating rings of first and second zones. For example, the first zones can comprise an annular ring and the second zones can include an inner second zone surrounded by the first zone and an outer second zone surrounding the first zone. The first zones can comprise a perimeter weighting arrangement of an insert or club head of a golf club. Alternatively, third zones of material can surround the first and second zones wherein the third zones comprise a dense material providing perimeter weighting of an insert or club head of a golf club. The first zones can comprise solid or hollow metallic members. For example, the one or more first zones can comprise wires of single crystal CuNiAl and the wires can be arranged with central axes thereof intersecting the striking face.
REFERENCES:
patent: D. 57980 (1921-05-01), Kraeuter
patent: D. 63284 (1923-11-01), Challis
patent: D. 79684 (1929-10-01), Munro-Spencer
patent: D. 138380 (1944-07-01), Myers et al.
patent: D. 340492 (1993-10-01), Flood
patent: D. 368126 (1996-03-01), Magerman et al.
patent: D. 411275 (1999-06-01), Bottema et al.
patent: D. 415809 (1999-10-01), Bottema et al.
patent: 732136 (1903-06-01), Taylor
patent: 1094599 (1914-04-01), Samson
patent: 1289553 (1918-12-01), Sanders
patent: 1337958 (1920-04-01), Reach
patent: 1494494 (1924-05-01), Lippincott
patent: 1524731 (1925-02-01), Davis
patent: 1526951 (1925-02-01), Beaumont
patent: 1532545 (1925-04-01), Pedersen
patent: 1535670 (1925-04-01), Kidd
patent: 1595589 (1926-08-01), Tyler
patent: 1646461 (1927-10-01), So Relle
patent: 1654257 (1927-12-01), Hillerich
patent: 1659272 (1928-02-01), Link
patent: 1968626 (1934-07-01), Young
patent: 2429351 (1947-10-01), Fetterolf
patent: 3211455 (1965-10-01), Hyden
patent: 3869126 (1975-03-01), Thompson
patent: 4027885 (1977-06-01), Rogers
patent: 4156526 (1979-05-01), Huggins et al.
patent: 4413825 (1983-11-01), Sasse
patent: 4422638 (1983-12-01), Tucker
patent: 4508349 (1985-04-01), Gebauer et al.
patent: 4529203 (1985-07-01), Ribaudo
patent: 4679792 (1987-07-01), Straza et al.
patent: 4681322 (1987-07-01), Straza et al.
patent: 4740345 (1988-04-01), Nagasaki et al.
patent: 4768787 (1988-09-01), Shira
patent: 4884808 (1989-12-01), Retzer
patent: 4964641 (1990-10-01), Miesch et al.
patent: 4999000 (1991-03-01), Finney
patent: 5083778 (1992-01-01), Douglass
patent: 5301941 (1994-04-01), Allen
patent: 5332214 (1994-07-01), Tucker, Sr.
patent: 5358249 (1994-10-01), Mendralla
patent: 5403007 (1995-04-01), Chen
patent: 5405136 (1995-04-01), Hardman
patent: 5407196 (1995-04-01), Busnardo
patent: 5445386 (1995-08-01), Marshall
patent: 5447311 (1995-09-01), Viollaz et al.
patent: 5458332 (1995-10-01), Fisher
patent: 5482282 (1996-01-01), Willis
patent: 5505450 (1996-04-01), Stuff
patent: 5524331 (1996-06-01), Pond
patent: 5531439 (1996-07-01), Azzarella
patent: 5542675 (1996-08-01), Micciche et al.
patent: 5573469 (1996-11-01), Dekura
patent: 5575472 (1996-11-01), Magerman et al.
patent: 5620381 (1997-04-01), Spalding
patent: 5674132 (1997-10-01), Fisher
patent: 5688190 (1997-11-01), Rowland et al.
patent: 5690562 (1997-11-01), Sturm
patent: 5704850 (1998-01-01), Shieh
patent: 5716290 (1998-02-01), Baker et al.
patent: 5766093 (1998-06-01), Rohrer
patent: 5807190 (1998-09-01), Krumme et al.
patent: 5879243 (1999-03-01), Hackman
patent: 5921871 (1999-07-01), Fisher
patent: 5924939 (1999-07-01), Grace et al.
patent: 6089993 (2000-07-01), Woodward et al.
patent: 0 710 493 (1996-05-01), None
patent: 2185891 A (1987-08-01), None
patent: 55-34835 (1980-03-01), None
patent: 60-47564 (1985-03-01), None
patent: 3-23877 (1991-01-01), None
patent: 4-47468 (1992-02-01), None
Dickinson Frank C.
Krumme John F.
Burns Doane Swecker & Mathis L.L.P.
Pierce William M.
Pixl Golf Technologies, Inc.
LandOfFree
Golf club head or face does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Golf club head or face, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Golf club head or face will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2438961