U.S. patent application number 10/356944 was filed with the patent office on 2003-07-31 for aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing, resonant golf putter head.
Invention is credited to Cullen, H. Leo.
Application Number | 20030144077 10/356944 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46281920 |
Filed Date | 2003-07-31 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030144077 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Cullen, H. Leo |
July 31, 2003 |
Aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing, resonant golf putter head
Abstract
An aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing, resonant golf putter head
with central striking element, torque-resisting stabilizer,
focusing element, and resonance-enhancing structure. A preferred
embodiment includes the torque-resisting side stabilizer comprised
as a single element, curved behind the central striking element and
connecting to both the left and right side thereof, differentially
massed with the majority of the mass being divided equally between
the right and left sides beyond the center of balance of the
central striking element. A preferred embodiment includes the
torque-resisting side stabilizer which does not stay within the
horizontal plane of the central striking element.
Inventors: |
Cullen, H. Leo; (Mountain
View, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
George S. Cole, Esq.
Suite 101
495 Seaport Court
Redwood City
CA
94063
US
|
Family ID: |
46281920 |
Appl. No.: |
10/356944 |
Filed: |
January 31, 2003 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
10356944 |
Jan 31, 2003 |
|
|
|
10062224 |
Jan 30, 2002 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
473/340 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 53/0433 20200801;
A63B 60/002 20200801; A63B 53/0487 20130101; A63B 53/0441
20200801 |
Class at
Publication: |
473/340 |
International
Class: |
A63B 053/04 |
Claims
I claim:
1. An aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing golf putter head comprising:
a central striking element; and, stabilizing means connected to the
central striking element.
2. A golf putter head as claimed in claim 1 wherein said
stabilizing means comprise: a left stabilizing element; and, a
right stabilizing element.
3. A golf putter head as claimed in claim 1 wherein said
stabilizing means comprise: a left stabilizing element; a right
stabilizing element; and, a rear stabilizing element.
4. A golf putter head as in claim 1, further comprising: a single
connecting element connecting the central striking element and the
stabilizing means.
5. A golf putter head as in claim 4, wherein said single connecting
element further comprises: triangulation-supportive means; and,
mass-distribution means.
6. A golf putter head as in claim 5, wherein said
triangulation-supportive means and mass-distribution means
comprise: at least one void in a rearward portion of said single
connecting element.
7. A golf putter head as in claim 5, wherein said
triangulation-suipportiv- e means and mass-distribution means
comprise: at least one ridge in a top surface of said single
connecting element extending longitudinally in relation to the Y
axis..
8. A golf putter head as in claim 4, wherein said single connecting
element is a base plate in the ground plane.
9. A golf putter head as in claim 8, wherein said base plate in the
ground plane has a leading edge which curves upward, to minimize
striking friction with the ground.
10. An aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing golf putter head
comprising: a central striking element; aim-enhancing means; and,
stabilizing means connected to the central striking element.
11. A golf putter head as in claim 10, wherein: said stabilizing
means comprise at least a left and a right stabilizing element
which are attached to said central striking element; and, said
aim-enhancing means comprise a rearward triangular extension of
said central striking element and an aiming pattern in a separate
connecting element joining the rear of said left and right
stabilizing elements, which triangular extension and aiming pattern
are aligned with the center of the Y axis.
12. A golf putter head as in claim 11, wherein said left and right
stabilizing element each further have: at least one and
three-quarters but no more than two and a half times the mass of
the central striking element.
13. An aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing, golf putter head as
claimed in claim 1 wherein: said stabilizing means comprises a
single element that is curved rearward and behind said central
striking element, connects to both the left and right side thereof,
and is differentially massed such that the majority of the mass of
the single element is divided equally between the right and left
sides and is placed more than a half-inch beyond the Y-axis center
of balance of the central striking element.
14. A golf putter head as claimed in claim 13 wherein said single
element is within the horizontal plane of the central striking
element.
15. A golf putter head as claimed in claim 13 further comprising an
aiming element.
16. A golf putter head as claimed in claim 1, wherein said
stabilizing means further comprise: extensions of said central
striking element along the Y axis to the side and then along the X
axis rearward, and along the X axis rearward at the Y axis center
of balance, such that at least eight-elevenths but no more than
twelve-thirteenths of the mass is distributed beyond a quarter-inch
on either side of the center of the Y axis of said central striking
element, and such that the majority of the mass is distributed
behind the center of the X axis of the central striking
element.
17. A golf putter head as claimed in claim 16, further comprising:
a left resonance connecting element, connecting the left and
rearward, and rearward, extensions of the central striking element;
and, a right resonance connecting element, connecting the right and
rearward, and rearward, extensions of the central striking
element.
18. A golf putter head as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the central
striking element incorporates, on its top surface, aim-enhancing
lines parallel to the Y axis; and, the stabilizing means comprise:
at least one left stabilizing element; at least one right
stabilizing element; and, at least one rearward stabilizing
element; wherein said stabilizing elements attach solely to the
central striking element, and distribute the mass of the golf
putter head such that at least eight-elevenths but no more than
twelve-thirteenths of the mass is distributed beyond a quarter-inch
on either side of the center of the Y axis of said central striking
element, and such that the majority of the mass is distributed
behind the center of the X axis of the central striking
element.
19. A golf putter head as in claim 4, wherein the single connecting
element removably connects to the central striking element and the
stabilizing means.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This is a continuation in part of Ser. No. 10/062,224, filed
on Jan. 30, 2002.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0002] Not Applicable
DESCRIPTION OF ATTACHED APPENDIX
[0003] Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] 1. Field of the Invention
[0005] This invention relates generally to the field of golf
putters and more specifically to an aim-enhancing,
swing-stabilizing, resonant golf putter head.
[0006] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0007] The prior art, as described in the original application
(Ser. No. 10/062,224; "Aim-Visualization, Anti-Torque Stabilized,
and Resonant-Structured Golf Putter Head" filed Jan. 30, 2002, H.
Leo Cullen, Inventor), addressed only part of the need for any golf
putter head; that of meeting a golfer's need for accurate putting.
For the reasons and advantages listed in the prior application,
inventor created the invention described therein. The prior art
references, definitions, and description of the parent application
are hereby specficially incorporated into this
continuation-in-part.
[0008] Prior art's golf putter heads were for a long time
essentially flat, rectangular bars of metal, whose mass was
uniformly distributed according to their shape. These were simple
to manufacture, but little effort was made to devise and
incorporate elements that assisted the golfer through basic laws of
physics or human-factor engineering. Eventually external features
(lines and bumps) and varying structural curves were added; most
recently some attempts at structural and material differentiation
within the golf putter head have appeared. As described in the
parent application, various inventions began to consider individual
aspects of putter design that could assist each inventor's
perceived greatest problem in putting; but none presented a design
whose interactive synergy provided means for resolving multiple
putting needs until the parent application.
[0009] Further enhancements and improvements have been created by
the inventor since the parent application was filed, in response to
problems which were discovered during initial experimentation and
production. A chief problem with the original application's
invention, and with the prior art (to the extent that it
differentiated from the simplistic, essentially rectangular,
single-piece-of-metal clubhead), was that little or no attention
had been paid to the needs of manufacturability. In today's tough
competitive marketplace, it is not enough just to make a better
golf putter head; nowadays, commercial success may depend on the
ability of such a golf putter head to be both complex enough to
meet the goals of the parent invention, and yet simple enough that
the manufacturing is feasible without excessive cost or artisanal
alteration.
[0010] During prototyping of the previous application's invention,
a great deal of attention was paid to tolerances and materials.
Certain design limits that were strictly adhered to (for example,
keeping the best attainable resonance was deemed more important
than limiting the number of different pieces which were part of the
overall golf putter head) impeded production. Also, avoiding a high
initial tooling cost for a one-step production process was deemed
less important than retaining a particular design.
[0011] And so during the prototyping period a great deal of
discovery and examination of alternatives to the parent
application's invention were found, many of which were
improvements, though in a single and narrowed focus. Some of these
came through analysis of the grounds for rejecting particular
prototypes. For these reasons, and because different balances of
interest in the functional aspects of the prior invention are
feasible when the original invention's constraints were
re-examined, a number of improvements, changes, and new advances
have been made, which are the subject of this Continuation-In-Part
application.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[0012] The primary object of the invention is improved
manufacturability for an aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing, resonant
golf putter head, either by maximizing uniformity not of mass
distribution within the golf putter head but of material,
subordinate shapes, or external features, or by minimizing assembly
complications.
[0013] Yet another object of the invention is requiring fewer
separate parts during manufacturing, and reducing the costs of
assembly.
[0014] Another object of the invention is reducing the risk of
grounding the putter during the stroke.
[0015] Another object of the invention is retaining resonance
within the structure.
[0016] Yet another object of the invention is a golf putter head
that facilitates easier and cost-efficient mass-customization
production.
[0017] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in
connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of
illustration and example, the present invention is disclosed. The
preferred embodiment of the invention is an aim-enhancing,
swing-stabilizing, resonant golf putter head comprising: a central
striking element, stabilizing means, aim-enhancing means, and a
single connecting element connecting all.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0018] An aim-enhancing, swing-stabilizing, resonant golf putter
head incorporating a central striking element and stabilizing means
is disclosed, which provides for ready manufacturability by
maximizing uniformity not of mass distribution but the combination
of shape, material, and external design, with the preferred and
alternative embodiments detailed herein.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0019] The drawings constitute a part of this specification and
include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be
embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that in some
instances various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated
or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention.
[0020] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention, wherein a
single base plate connects a central striking element and the
stabilizing means. In this drawing the stabilizing means are left,
right and rearward stabilizing elements, and the central striking
element is slightly advanced along the X axis from the front faces
of left and right stabilizing elements.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of
the invention, wherein a single base plate connects a central
striking element and the stabilizing means. In this drawing the
central striking element is slightly advanced along the X axis from
the front faces of left and right stabilizing elements; and the
single connecting base plate includes both triangulation-supportive
means in the form of voids towards the rear, and a slight upward
curvature at the front edge to minimize friction with the
ground.
[0022] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the
invention, wherein a single connecting element connects the the
central striking element and all stabilizing elements, through a
plane other than the ground plane.
[0023] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the
invention, wherein the stabilizing means:
[0024] (a) are `L` shaped forms;
[0025] (b) form at least one mass-balanced and reflexive-shaped
pair;
[0026] (c) connect to the sides of the central striking element so
as to distribute the majority of the mass outward and rearward from
the center of the Y axis of the central striking element; and,
[0027] (d) are connected by a separate connecting element rearward
and upward of the central striking element.
[0028] Additionally, aiming means are comprised of a rearward
triangular extension of the central striking element and an aiming
pattern formed in the separate connecting element, both such being
in center of the Y axis.
[0029] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the
invention, wherein the central striking element is oval shaped with
the long axis parallel to the Y vector and perpendicular to the
striking vector, and where the stabilizing means is a unitary
curved connecting element that forms an oval running from one side
of the central striking element behind and to the other side, with
the mass of the stabilizing means being differentially distributed
such that the majority of its mass is further outward on the Y axis
than the mass of the central striking element. A further aiming
means is provided by a rearward triangular extension of the central
striking element and a pair of aiming beads equidistant along the Y
axis therefrom on the unitary curved connecting element.
[0030] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the
invention, wherein the central striking element is extended to the
sides and rearward to incorporate in a unitary form the stabilizing
means and such that at least two-fifths and no more than
eleven-twelfths of the mass is more than a half inch outside of the
center of the Y axis of the central striking element, and the
majority of the mass of the golf putter head is found behind the
shaft vector connecting to the central striking element, whether
such is achieved by varying the density of material or the volume
of the extensions. Additionally, triangulation means are provided
by the shape and placement of the extensions.
[0031] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the
invention, wherein the rear extensions of the central striking
element are connected to improve the resonance and triangulation
effects within the golf putter head.
[0032] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the
invention, wherein the central striking element incorporates
perspective lines on its top face as an additional aim-enhancing
means, and wherein each stabilizer element is only attached to the
central striking element, to maximize ease of assembling
differently-weighted stabilizer elements from putter to putter.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED and ALTERNATIVE
EMBODIMENTS
[0033] Detailed descriptions of the preferred, and various
alternative, embodiments are provided herein. It is to be
understood, however, that the present invention may be embodied in
various forms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not
to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for the claims
and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art
to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately
detailed system, structure or manner. Also, different combinations
of the sub-elements of the various embodiments than those shown,
claimed or described should be understood to be included in the
invention as equivalent to one or more of the particular
embodiments detailed herein.
[0034] Greater ease of manufacturability can result when a form can
be attained with a minimum of processing. That minimum may be
attained by increasing the uniformity of material (to the limit of
making an item all out of one single material), by increasing the
uniformity of form (by making an item in a single piece, or by
duplicating subordinate elements), or by increasing the uniformity
of surface and lines (by making an item with fewer corners, angles,
curves, or subordinate incorporated shapes). The parent application
paid little heed to this concern, but the present application has
increasing the ease of manufacturability as its principal object
and thus advantage, as described herein.
[0035] In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the golf
putter head is comprised of a central striking element, having a
front striking face, and side, top, bottom, and rear faces. The
central striking element's shape is that of a rectangular solid,
with the front striking face forming one of the long sides, in the
center of which is the strike point. Also, the edges, corners, and
the top face are slightly curved. A focusing design is inscribed on
the front striking face, and the putter's shaft will attach,
directly or through an off-setting hosel, through the center of the
central striking element's X and Y axes such that the shaft vector
intersects the center of the X and Y axes of the central striking
element.
[0036] The preferred embodiment is made of a unitary piece of metal
by any of milling, mold, sintering, or like processes.
[0037] This central striking element is connected to a single
connecting element which is a plate, at the center and slightly
leading the front edge thereof. This plate may connect the central
striking element and stabilizingmeans at the centers of the Z axis
thereof, or in another embodiment may be in a base plate, as is
shown in FIG. 1. This plate may either be entirely flat or, in
another embodiment when it is a base plate, curve slightly upwards
at the front, in order to minimize striking friction with the
ground, as is shown in FIG. 2.
[0038] The stabilizing means attached to the plate are left, right,
and rearward stabilizing elements. The left and right stabilizing
elements are of equal weight, each massing just under twice, but no
more than twice and a half, the mass of the central striking
element. In the preferred embodiment they are hexagonal cylinders
with their long axis oriented parallel to the X axis, though other
rectilinear or cylindrical forms also oriented with the long axis
parallel to the X axis and stroking vector are alternative
embodiments. The left and right stabilizing elements are at least
half a golf-ball's width to the side from the central striking
element, with their front faces no further forward than the central
striking element's front striking face.
[0039] The rear of the plate, and the rear of the rearward
stabilizing element, angle back from the side towards the center of
the Y axis of the golf putter head as a whole at 45.degree., and
the rearward stabilizing element comes to a point on the X axis
perpendicular to the center of the Y axis of the central striking
element. The surface of the rear stabilizing element, and its
forward angled faces, embody reflexive angles such that the lines
at the join with the the base plate's rearward extension are at
90.degree. thereto, while those lines then each join at a
45.degree. angle with the front face of the rear stabilizing
element, which front face is thus parallel to the rear face of the
central striking element. These angles are shown in FIG. 1.
[0040] In an alternative embodiment the plate is kept to the ground
plane and also incorporates voids to provide additional
mass-distribution, triangulation, and aim-enhancing means, as is
shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. These voids are trapezoids whose angles
between the forward and rearward extending edges of the voids
increase towards 90.degree. as each void edge is closer to the
center of the X axis. In alternative embodiments not shown, lines
are enscribed or ridges formed in or on the top surface of the base
place in the place of said voids. An advantage of said voids, or
said ridges, is the ability to affect the rearward and outward mass
distribution of the golf putter head as a whole relative to the
central striking element.
[0041] In yet another alternative embodiment, not shown, both a top
and a bottom plate join and cover the central striking element and
the stabilizing means. A further embodiment thereof allows the
voids to continue through a plate, either to the reflective surface
of the other plate, or through a partially or wholly matching void
in the other plate. Although it would decrease uniformity of
material, a yet further embodiment would fill a void with a
different material which may possess functional or aesthetic
qualities, such as differential mass, transparancy, or color.
[0042] In another alternative embodiment, shown in FIG. 4, the
central striking element has joined to it a left stabilizing
element and right stabilizing element which distribute the mass
both outward and rearward in the proportions described above and in
the parent application. While shown in FIG. 4 as equal pairs, to
promote manufacturing and use alterability, these stabilizer
elements both can be differentially weighted (either from putter to
putter, or from each other), and can be removably attached to the
central striking element. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 the
connection is through means which are more fixably attached (thus
meeting the USGA restriction against alterations during play). Such
more fixably attached means include a screw-end requiring a tool
such as an allen wrench or torx wrench not commonly available on a
golf course, a non-water-soluble but readily dissolvable fixative,
a heat-reactive metal alloy, or equivalents thereof. Also, the
central striking element incorporates an aim-enhancing and
triangulation supporting means in a rearward triangular extension
of the rear face, wherein the rearward triangular extension is
centered on the center of the Y axis of the central striking
element. To improve resonance, and to provide additional
aim-enhancement, a separate connecting element connects the rear
half of the left and right stabilizing elements, said separate
connecting element itself including an aiming pattern on the line
perpendicular to the center of the Y axis of the central striking
element.
[0043] In another alternative embodiment, shown in FIG. 5, the
central striking element and the golf putter head as a whole are
oval-shaped with the long axis along the Y axis. The central
striking element incorporates an aim-enhancing and triangulation
supporting means in a rearward triangular extension, similar to
that described above. The stabilizing means comprise a single,
curved, connecting element which connects rearward of the rearward
triangular extension from the left face of the central striking
element to the right face of the central striking element. The mass
of the stabilizing means is differentially distributed such that
the majority of its mass is further outward on the Y axis than the
mass of the central striking element. A further aiming means is
provided by a rearward triangular extension of the central striking
element and a pair of aiming beads equidistant along the Y axis
therefrom on the single, curved, connecting element.
[0044] In another alternative embodiment the central striking
element incorporates the rearward stabilizing and mass-distributing
means. At the left, center, and right of the Y axis the central
striking element extends rearward, with the central rearward
extension ending in an equilateral triangle whose point is along
the center of the Y axis. The mass of the rearward and sideward
extensions are such that at least eight-elevenths but no more than
twelve-thirteenths of the mass is distributed beyond a quarter-inch
on either side of the center of the Y axis of said central striking
element, and such that the majority of the mass is distributed
behind the center of the shaft vector. As shown in FIG. 6, the
rearward extensions may use an essential rectilinear planar form
(or other alternatives). They also may incorporate an upward curve
or slant on their forward and rearward lower edges to minimize
ground contact during the initial and follow-through portions of
the stroke.
[0045] In another embodiment, modifying that described immediately
above, and shown in FIG. 7, a left connecting element joins the
left and rearward and rearward extensions of the central striking
element at a 45.degree. angle to the X axis and rearward of the
shaft vector, and a right connecting element joins the right and
rearward and rearward extensions in reflexive form thereto, to
increase the resonance of the golf putter head as a whole.
[0046] And in another alternative embodiment, the stabilizing means
comprise a left stabilizing element, a right stabilizing element,
and a rearward stabilizing element, each of which directly connects
to the central stiking element, as shown in FIG. 8, The mass of
these stabilizing elements are such that at least eight-elevenths
but no more than twelve-thirteenths of the mass of the golf putter
head is distributed beyond a quarter-inch on either side of the
center of the Y axis of said central striking element, and such
that the majority of the mass is distributed behind the center of
the shaft vector. While shown in FIG. 9 as equal pairs, to promote
manufacturing and use alterability, the left and right stabilizer
elements can be differentially weighted (either from putter to
putter, or from each other). Also, at least one stabilizing element
can be removably attached to the central striking element. In the
embodiment shown in FIG. 8 the connection is through means which
are more fixably attached (thus meeting the USGA restriction
against alterations during play). Such more fixably attached means
include a screw-end requiring a tool such as an allen wrench or
torx wrench not commonly available on a golf course, a
non-water-soluble but readily dissolvable fixative, a heat-reactive
metal alloy, or equivalents thereof. Also, the central striking
element incorporates an aim-enhancing means by having on its top
face at least one line or ridge that is parallel to the X axis and
visible to the golfer.
[0047] While the invention has been described in connection with a
preferred and various alternative embodiments, it is not intended
to limit the scope of the invention to the particular forms set
forth, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such
alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included
within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the
appended claims.
* * * * *