Golf club head and surface finishing tool and method for forming pattern thereon

Abstract

A surface finishing tool and a fabricating method for forming a pattern on a golf club head are provided. The surface finishing tool comprises a shank, a resilient cylinder, and a rubbing head. The shank has a center axis, and the resilient cylinder is disposed along the center axis and fixed on an end of the shank. The rubbing head has a rough surface and is disposed on the resilient cylinder. The fabricating method applies the surface finishing tool to form the pattern on the golf club head, wherein the surface finishing tool is driven to rotate along the center axis first. Then, the surface finishing tool is moved for keeping the rough surface of the rubbing head contacting with the golf club head, wherein the resilient cylinder is deformed along a profile of the golf club head as the rubbing head contacts with the golf club head.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the priority benefits of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 60/749,178, filed on Dec. 19, 2005. All disclosures are incorporated herewith by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention generally relates to a machine tool and a fabricating method of a golf club head. More particularly, the present invention relates to a surface finishing tool and a method for forming a pattern on a golf club head.

[0004] 2. Description of Related Art

[0005] Sports are becoming more and more popular, and golf has already become one of the most widely enjoyed sports. In addition, the number of participants in the sport of golf has risen rapidly. In which, the golf club used for playing golf, because of the varieties in purposes and course geographies, are categorized into different types such as wood club, iron club, and putter. However, an appearance design is also important for the success of the products, wherein surface finishing is usually conducted to form various patterns for aesthetic appeal on the surface of the golf club head.

[0006] Conventionally, such patterns always appear on the planar external surface of the golf club head such as the striking surface of a putter as shown in FIG. 1, wherein planar milling performed by a numerical control (NC) machine is applied on the striking surface of the putter to form the patterns. However, the conventional fabricating method for forming the patterns on the golf club head still has at least the following limitation and drawbacks. Firstly, the planar milling can be only applied on a planer surface, and thus the positions of the conventional patterns are limited on specific regions of the golf club, e.g. the striking surface of the putter. Secondly, application of the planar milling is restricted by the lifetime and the reliability of the machine tool, wherein high hardness or toughness material are excluded from being fabricated. Furthermore, the fabricating process of the planar milling performed by the NC machine is complex and takes a long time, which leads to a high production cost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] Accordingly, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a widely used surface finishing tool for forming patterns on any preferred region of the golf club in addition to the planar surface.

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a fabricating method having simple process and lower cost by using the surface finishing tool mentioned above.

[0009] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a golf club fabricated by the aforementioned method and surface finishing tool.

[0010] Based on the aforementioned and other purposes, the present invention proposes a surface finishing tool for forming a pattern on a golf club head. The surface finishing tool comprises a shank, a resilient cylinder, and a rubbing head. The shank has a center axis, and the resilient cylinder is disposed along the center axis and fixed on an end of the shank. In addition, the rubbing head has a rough surface and is disposed on the resilient cylinder.

[0011] In an embodiment of the present invention, the resilient cylinder is made of rubber.

[0012] In an embodiment of the present invention, the rubbing head comprises abrasive cloth.

[0013] The present invention also proposes a fabricating method for forming a pattern on a golf club head by using the aforementioned surface finishing tool. In the fabricating method, the surface finishing tool is driven to rotate along the center axis first. Then, the surface finishing tool is moved for keeping the rough surface of the rubbing head contacting with the golf club head to form the pattern on the golf club head, wherein the resilient cylinder is deformed along a profile of the golf club head as the rubbing head contacts with the golf club head.

[0014] In an embodiment of the present invention, the surface finishing tool is driven by a rotary machine, which may be a driller, a lathe, or a miller.

[0015] The present invention further proposes a golf club head having the pattern made by the fabricating method mentioned above.

[0016] In an embodiment of the present invention, the pattern formed on the golf club head is a whirlpool pattern.

[0017] With the elasticity of the resilient cylinder, it is assured that the rough surface of the rubbing head is kept contacting with the golf club head during the fabricating process, and thus the pattern can be formed on any preferred regions of the golf club head, even the one having curved surface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

[0019] FIG. 1 shows a conventional striking surface of a putter having a pattern.

[0020] FIG. 2 schematically shows a surface finishing tool according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] FIG. 3 schematically shows the fabricating method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] FIGS. 4-7 show different golf club heads having patterns according to embodiments of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0023] Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.

[0024] The present invention mainly provides a surface finishing tool and a fabricating method applying the same for forming a pattern on a golf club head. By the surface finishing tool and the fabricating method, the pattern can be easily formed even on a curved surface of the golf club head in a simpler and low-cost way. The surface finishing tool and the accompanying fabricating method will now be illustrated in more detailed by embodiments in the following paragraphs, wherein a work piece for being fabricated in the embodiments can be various portion of the golf club head, such as crown, sole, striking surface, or back surface.

[0025] FIG. 2 schematically shows a surface finishing tool according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the surface finishing tool 300 comprises a shank 310, a resilient cylinder 320 and a rubbing head 330. The shank 310 has a center axis 310a, and the resilient cylinder 320 is disposed along the center axis 310a and fixed on an end of the shank 310. The rubbing head 330 has a rough surface 330a and is disposed on the resilient cylinder 320.

[0026] In the present invention, the shank 310 can be mounted on a rotary machine (not shown) and driven by the same for rotating along the center axis 310a. Moreover, the resilient cylinder 320 is made of rubber or other applicable elastic materials, which is suitable for being deformed along a profile of a workpiece in the fabricating process. The rubbing head 330 may comprise abrasive cloth and rub against the workpiece through the rough surface 330a to form the pattern thereon.

[0027] FIG. 3 schematically shows the fabricating method according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 3, the fabricating method is suitable for forming a pattern on a finished surface 400a of a workpiece 400 by using the aforementioned surface finishing tool 300: First, the surface finishing tool 300 is driven to rotate along the center axis 31Oa. In order to drive the surface finishing tool 300, the shank 310 of the surface finishing tool 300 may be mounted on a rotary machine (not shown), such as a driller, a lathe, or a miller.

[0028] Then, the surface finishing tool 300 is moved to contact with the finished surface 400a of the workpiece 400 and makes the rubbing head 330 rub against the finished surface 400a of the workpiece 400 through the rough surface 330a. Since the resilient cylinder 320 is elastic and can be deformed along the profile of the workpiece 400, the rough surface 330a of the rubbing head 330 can be kept contacting with the finished surface 400a of the workpiece 400 even if the surface is a curved surface and thus forms the pattern on the finished surface 400a of the workpiece 400.

[0029] Specifically, the dimensions and resolution of the pattern depend on the size of the resilient cylinder 320 and the roughness of the rough surface 330a, e.g. the mesh of abrasive cloth. In one case, the pattern can be a whirlpool pattern if the surface finishing tool 300 is kept rotating and staying at one point on the workpiece 400. However, the surface finishing tool 300 can further be driven in different dynamic modes and then forms various patterns on the workpiece 400. For example, a striped pattern can be attained by driven the surface finishing tool 300 to move along a path, and a stacked whirlpool pattern can be formed by repeating the fabricating process.

[0030] In a practical application, the fabricating method can be applied to a surface color paint of a golf club head to form a novel and brilliant pattern thereon. By the effect of various reflecting light from the brilliant pattern, the aesthetic appeal of the golf club head can be improved. FIG. 4 shows an iron club head, wherein several whirlpool patterns are formed on a striking surface thereof. FIG. 5 shows another iron club head having whirlpool patterns on its back surface. In addition, FIG. 6 shows a crown of a. wood club head, wherein multiple whirlpool patterns are formed on the surface color paint and covered by varnish. Moreover, FIG. 7 shows another wood club head, wherein whirlpool patterns are formed on a sole of the wood club head.

[0031] Accordingly, the present invention provides a useful surface finishing tool for forming patterns on any preferred regions of the golf club head, for.example on a planar surface or a curved surface. By using the surface finishing tool, a fabricating method having simple process and lower cost is also provided. Therefore, the production yield and the aesthetic appeal can be improved and the success in the market is expected.

[0032] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A surface finishing tool for forming a pattern on a golf club head, the surface finishing tool comprising: a shank, having a center axis; a resilient cylinder, disposed along the center axis and fixed on an end of the shank; and a rubbing head, having a rough surface and is disposed on the resilient cylinder.

2. The surface finishing tool according to claim 1, wherein the resilient cylinder is made of rubber.

3. The surface finishing tool according to claim 1, wherein the rubbing head comprises abrasive cloth.

4. A fabricating method for forming a pattern on a golf club head by using the surface finishing tool recited in claim 1, the fabricating method comprising: driving the surface finishing tool to rotate along the center axis; and moving the surface finishing tool for keeping the rough surface of the rubbing head contacting with the golf club head to form the pattern on the golf club head, wherein the resilient cylinder is deformed along a profile of the golf club head as the rubbing head contacts with the golf club head.

5. The fabricating method according to claim 4, wherein the surface finishing tool is driven by a rotary machine.

6. The fabricating method according to claim 5, wherein the rotary machine comprises a driller, a lathe, or a miller.

7. A golf club head having the pattern made by the fabricating method recited in claim 4.

8. The golf club head according to claim 7, wherein the pattern is a whirlpool pattern.