U.S. patent application number 10/643722 was filed with the patent office on 2005-02-24 for golf club head and method for manufacturing the golf club head.
Invention is credited to Lin, Chon-Chen.
Application Number | 20050043115 10/643722 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34193942 |
Filed Date | 2005-02-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050043115 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lin, Chon-Chen |
February 24, 2005 |
Golf club head and method for manufacturing the golf club head
Abstract
A composite golf club head includes a light-weight alloy strike
plate, a composite material body, a metal sole plate and a balance
weight. The strike plate has a rear, and a rim is formed around the
rear to form a hollow cup-like body. The body is bonded to the rim
and is composed of a crown and a sole made of fiber prepreg
material. A sole plate made of metal is mounted in the sole, and
has a seat formed in the sole plate and a hole defined through the
seat. A balance weight is mounted in the hole.
Inventors: |
Lin, Chon-Chen; (Kaohsiung,
TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DELLETT AND WALTERS
P. O. BOX 2786
PORTLAND
OR
97208-2786
US
|
Family ID: |
34193942 |
Appl. No.: |
10/643722 |
Filed: |
August 18, 2003 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
473/345 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 53/0416 20200801;
A63B 2053/0491 20130101; A63B 2209/023 20130101; A63B 53/0466
20130101; A63B 53/0437 20200801; A63B 60/02 20151001; A63B 53/0433
20200801 |
Class at
Publication: |
473/345 |
International
Class: |
A63B 053/04 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A composite golf club head comprising: a strike plate made of a
light-weight alloy, having a front, a rear, a toe, a heel, a shank
formed at the heel of the strike plate, and a rim formed around the
rear of the strike plate to form a hollow cup-like body; a body
bonded to the rim and being composed of a crown and a sole made of
fiber prepreg material; a sole plate made of metal, mounted in the
sole and having a seat formed in the sole plate and a hole defined
through the seat; and a balance weight mounted in the hole.
2. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
fiber prepreg material is carbon fiber impregnated with resin.
3. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
fiber prepreg material is glass fiber impregnated with resin.
4. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
fiber prepreg material is Kevlar.TM. fiber impregnated with
resin.
5. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
fiber prepreg material is boron fiber impregnated with resin.
6. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
fiber prepreg material is titanium fiber impregnated with
resin.
7. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
fiber prepreg material is copper fiber impregnated with resin.
8. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
fiber prepreg material is aluminum fiber impregnated with
resin.
9. The composite golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein an
opening is defined through the sole, and the sole plate is mounted
in the opening.
10. A method for manufacturing a golf club head as claimed in claim
1 comprising steps of: preparing the individual elements comprising
casting or forging the strike plate with the shank, the sole plate
and the balance weight; cutting and bonding the fiber prepreg
material based on the profiles of the crown and the sole; and
preparing adhesive sheets and an air bladder; pressing prepreg
material comprising pressing the fiber prepreg material pieces in
corresponding dies to form the crown and the sole; assembling the
golf club head comprising attaching the strike plate, the crown,
the sole and the sole plate together by the adhesive sheets; and
inserting the air bladder through the hole in the golf head with a
nozzle extending out of from the hole; shaping the golf club head
comprises pumping air into the air bladder to pre-shape the golf
club head; curing the prepreg materials comprising heating,
pressing and blowing the pre-shaped golf club head in a hot-press
molding die to cure the fiber prepreg materials of the body; and
the air bladder pressing the adhesive sheets to tightly abut the
inside wall of the golf head; removing the golf club head from the
die comprises removing the cured golf club head from the hot-press
molding die, and removing the air bladder through the hole from the
golf club head; and finishing the golf club head comprising
finishing the golf club head, installing the balance weight in the
hole in the sole plate and painting the golf club head.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a golf club head, and more
particularly to a golf club head made of composite materials and a
manufacturing method for the golf club head.
[0003] 2. Description of Related Art
[0004] Conventional golf club heads generally have two types of
structure and manufacturing methods. The first type of golf club
head is made of metal and is integrally formed by casting, or is
composed of multiple forged members welded together. The other type
of golf club head is made of composite materials and is composed of
a molded body including a faceplate, a shank and a sole plate and a
fiber crown attached to the body.
[0005] However, the metal golf club head fabricated by means of
casting or forging has some shortcomings, such as being
time-consuming to manufacture, difficult to position the center of
gravity, and having a small size.
[0006] With reference to FIG. 6, a conventional composite golf club
head has a hollow body (6) and a cover (63). The hollow body (6) is
made of metal and is composed of a strike plate (60), a shank (61)
and a sole (62). The strike plate (60) has a sweet spot (not shown)
covering a specific area, and the sole (62) is enlarged to increase
the area covered by the sweet spot. However, increasing the sweet
spot significantly may cause the weight of the golf club head to
exceed allowable golf club head standards.
[0007] The cover (63) is made of a fiber prepreg (pre-impregnated)
material bonded directly to the strike plate (60) and will
repeatedly be subjected to a great impact force from the strike
plate (60). After a period of such treatment, cracks may develop in
the golf head at the joint between the cover (63) and the strike
plate (60). Therefore, multiple reinforcing layers and strips must
be fabricated inside and outside the golf club head to protect weak
spots, so manufacturing the golf club head is very
inconvenient.
[0008] Therefore, the invention provides a composite golf club head
to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The main objective of the present invention is to provide a
composite golf club head that can absorb a strike force on a strike
plate, has an enlarged sweet spot on the strike plate and is easy
to manufacture.
[0010] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a
method to manufacture the composite golf club head as described
above.
[0011] Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the
invention will become more apparent from the following detailed
description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a golf club head
in accordance with the invention;
[0013] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a manufacturing process for the
golf club head in accordance with the invention;
[0014] FIG. 3 is a cross sectional side plan view of the golf club
head in FIG. 1;
[0015] FIG. 4 is a cross sectional side plan view of the golf club
head in FIG. 1 positioned in a hot-press mold;
[0016] FIG. 5 is an operational cross sectional side plan view of
the golf club head in FIG. 4; and
[0017] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a conventional composite
golf club head.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0018] With reference to FIG. 1, a golf club head in accordance
with the present invention is composed of a strike plate (10), a
body (20), a sole plate (30) and a balance weight (33).
[0019] The strike plate (10) is made up of a light-weight alloy,
has a front (not numbered), a rear (not numbered), a heel (not
numbered), a toe (not numbered), a shank (11) and a rim (12). The
shank (11) is formed at the heel of the strike plate (10), and the
rim (12) is formed around the rear of the strike plate (10) to form
a hollow cup-like body (not numbered).
[0020] The body (20) is bonded to the rim (12) and is composed of a
crown (21) and a sole (22) bonded together. The crown (21) and the
sole (22) are made of multiple layers of fiber prepreg
(pre-impregnated) material such as carbon fiber, glass fiber,
Kevlar.TM. fiber, boron fiber, titanium fiber, copper fiber,
aluminum fiber, etc. impregnated with resin previously. The sole
(22) has an opening (23).
[0021] The sole plate (30) is metal, is mounted in the opening (23)
and has a seat (31). A hole (32) is defined through the seat
(31).
[0022] The balance weight (33) is mounted in the hole (32).
[0023] With reference to FIGS. 2-5, a process to manufacture the
golf club head includes the steps of preparing the individual
elements (A), pressing prepreg materials (B), assembling the golf
club head (C), shaping the golf club head (D), curing the prepreg
materials (E), removing the golf club head from the die (50) (F)
and finishing the golf club head (G).
[0024] Preparing the individual elements (A) comprises casting or
forging the strike plate (10) with the shank (11), the sole plate
(30) and the balance weight (33), cutting and bonding the prepreg
material based on the profiles of the crown (21) and the sole (22)
and preparing adhesive sheets (34) and an air bladder (40).
[0025] Pressing prepreg material (B) comprises pressing the prepreg
material pieces in corresponding dies (not shown) to form the crown
(21) and the sole (22).
[0026] Assembling the golf club head (C) comprises attaching the
strike plate (10), the crown (21), the sole (22) and the sole plate
(30) to each other by the adhesive sheets (34) to form the golf
head with an inner cavity (not numbered), and inserting the air
bladder (40) into the cavity through the hole (32) in the golf head
with a nozzle (not numbered) that extends out of the hole (32).
[0027] Shaping the golf club head (D) comprises pumping air into
the air bladder (40) to pre-shape the golf club head.
[0028] Curing the prepreg materials (E) comprises heating, pressing
and blowing the pre-shaped golf club head in a hot-press molding
die (50) to cure the prepreg materials of the body (20). The
adhesive sheets (34) are pressed by the air bladder (40) to tightly
abut the inside wall of the golf head.
[0029] Removing the golf club head from the die (50) (F) comprises
removing the cured golf club head from the hot-press molding die
(50), and the air bladder (40) from the cavity in the golf club
head through the hole (32).
[0030] Finishing the golf club head (G) comprises finishing the
golf club head, installing the balance weight (33) in the hole (32)
in the sole plate (30) and painting the golf club head.
[0031] The invention has the following advantages.
[0032] 1. The strike plate (10) has a rim (12) to absorb the impact
force, so only a small force is transmitted to the body (20) made
of the fiber prepreg material, and a user can easily handle the
golf club head.
[0033] 2. Because the strike plate (10) is made of a light-weight
alloy and is separated from the sole plate (30), an area of the
strike plate (10) can be increased moderately to enlarge the sweet
spot without increasing the sole plate (30), and the golf club head
weight can be kept under the standard weight.
[0034] 3. Manufacturing the body (20) of the fiber prepreg material
by means of the automatic pressing procedure is very easy.
[0035] 4. Balancing the center of gravity by installing a balance
weight (33) in the golf club head is simple.
[0036] Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the
present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description,
together with details of the structure and function of the
invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be
made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and
arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the
full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in
which the appended claims are expressed.
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