U.S. patent application number 14/250600 was filed with the patent office on 2015-10-15 for top crown of a golf club head.
The applicant listed for this patent is Chi-Hung Su. Invention is credited to Chi-Hung Su.
Application Number | 20150290503 14/250600 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 54264238 |
Filed Date | 2015-10-15 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150290503 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Su; Chi-Hung |
October 15, 2015 |
TOP CROWN OF A GOLF CLUB HEAD
Abstract
A top crown of a golf club head has a crown body and multiple
reinforcing ribs formed on at least one of an inner surface and an
outer surface of the crown body. The reinforcing ribs are arranged
as a mesh including multiple grids. The top crown can be hot forged
to form the meshed reinforcing ribs. With the meshed reinforcing
ribs on the top crown, a thickness of the crown body of the top
crown can be appropriately reduced and the strength of the crown
body is enhanced by the reinforcing ribs. Accordingly, elasticity
of the top crown of the golf club head is increased and the top
crown has low center of gravity.
Inventors: |
Su; Chi-Hung; (Tainan City,
TW) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Su; Chi-Hung |
Tainan City |
|
TW |
|
|
Family ID: |
54264238 |
Appl. No.: |
14/250600 |
Filed: |
April 11, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
473/324 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 53/0408 20200801;
A63B 53/045 20200801; A63B 53/0437 20200801; A63B 53/0466
20130101 |
International
Class: |
A63B 53/04 20060101
A63B053/04 |
Claims
1. A top crown of a golf club head comprising: a crown body having
an inner surface and an outer surface; and multiple reinforcing
ribs formed on at least one of the inner and outer surfaces of the
crown body, and the reinforcing ribs arranged as a mesh including
multiple grids.
2. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reinforcing
ribs of the top crown are formed on the inner surface of the crown
body.
3. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reinforcing
ribs of the top crown are formed on the outer surface of the crown
body.
4. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reinforcing
ribs of the top crown are formed on the inner surface and the outer
surface of the crown body.
5. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein the top crown is
formed by hot processing.
6. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein a thickness of the
crown body is 0.2 millimeter (mm) to 1.0 mm; and a thickness of
each of the reinforcing ribs is 0.1 mm to 1.8 mm.
7. The top crown as claimed in claim 2, wherein a thickness of the
crown body is 0.2 mm to 1.0 mm; and a thickness of each of the
reinforcing ribs is 0.1 mm to 1.8 mm.
8. The top crown as claimed in claim 3, wherein a thickness of the
crown body is 0.2 mm to 1.0 mm; and a thickness of each of the
reinforcing ribs is 0.1 mm to 1.8 mm.
9. The top crown as claimed in claim 4, wherein a thickness of the
crown body is 0.2 mm to 1.0 mm; and a thickness of each of the
reinforcing ribs is 0.1 mm to 1.8 mm.
10. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is circular.
11. The top crown as claimed in claim 6, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is circular.
12. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is elliptical.
13. The top crown as claimed in claim 6, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is elliptical.
14. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is polygonal.
15. The top crown as claimed in claim 6, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is polygonal.
16. The top crown as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is triangular, quadrilateral,
or hexagonal.
17. The top crown as claimed in claim 6, wherein each of the grids
of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs is triangular, quadrilateral,
or hexagonal.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a top crown of a golf club
head, especially to a top crown of a golf club head that has light
weight and low center of gravity.
[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art(s)
[0004] Since golf wood club heads have very specific shapes, the
golf wood club heads are difficult to be formed as one piece.
Therefore, the golf wood club head is usually manufactured by
attaching four pieces, i.e. a top crown, a base, a strike face, and
a hosel. For a conventional top crown made of titanium alloy,
multiple cavities are formed on an inner surface of the
conventional top crown by acidic etching to reduce weight and
enhance elasticity of the golf club head. Thus, the conventional
top crown of the golf club head, which has an average thickness of
1 millimeter (mm), has some portions with thickness of 0.5 mm to
0.9 mm.
[0005] When the cavities on the conventional titanium alloy top
crown are formed by acidic etching, tapes should be manually
adhered on the surface of the conventional titanium alloy top crown
to cover portions that do not need acidic etching. Then,
hydrofluoric acid is applied to other portions of the conventional
titanium alloy top crown that are not covered by the tapes to form
the cavities. Afterwards, the conventional top crown of the golf
club head is cleaned and is formed into a predetermined shape.
[0006] However, during the acidic etching process to reduce the
weight of the conventional top crown of the golf club head, it
takes time and efforts to adhere the tapes on the portions of the
conventional top crown that do not need acidic etching. Moreover,
the hydrofluoric acid used during the acidic etching is toxic and
pollutes the environment. Hydrogen ion in the hydrofluoric acid
infiltrates into the titanium alloy easily to embrittle the
conventional top crown. Thus, strength of the conventional top
crown is weakened and the conventional top crown breaks easily. On
the other hand, during the acidic etching process to reduce the
weight of the conventional titanium alloy top crown, time for
acidic etching and concentration of the hydrofluoric acid influence
the thickness of the conventional top crown such that the thickness
of the top crown is hard to be kept under control as desired. In
addition, the conventional top crown being acidic etched is still
too thick, so the elasticity the conventional top crown is not good
enough for striking golf balls far. Furthermore, shapes of the
cavities formed by the acidic etching are irregular and cannot be
molded and controlled according to a required striking performance
of the golf club head.
[0007] To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides
a top crown of a golf club head to mitigate or obviate the
aforementioned problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The main objective of the present invention is to provide a
top crown of a golf club head.
[0009] The top crown has a crown body and multiple reinforcing
ribs. The crown body has an inner surface and an outer surface. The
reinforcing ribs are formed on at least one of the inner and outer
surfaces of the crown body. The reinforcing ribs are arranged as a
mesh including multiple grids.
[0010] In the above-mentioned top crown, the reinforcing ribs of
the top crown are formed on the inner surface of the crown
body.
[0011] In the above-mentioned top crown, the reinforcing ribs of
the top crown are formed on the outer surface of the crown
body.
[0012] In the above-mentioned top crown, the reinforcing ribs of
the top crown are formed on the inner surface and the outer surface
of the crown body.
[0013] In the above-mentioned top crown, the top crown is formed by
hot processing.
[0014] In the above-mentioned top crown, a thickness of the crown
body is 0.2 millimeter (mm) to 1.0 mm, and a thickness of each of
the reinforcing ribs is 0.1 mm to 1.8 mm.
[0015] In the above-mentioned top crown, each of the grids of the
mesh of the reinforcing ribs is circular, elliptical, or
polygonal.
[0016] In the above-mentioned top crown, each of the grids of the
mesh of the reinforcing ribs is triangular, quadrilateral, or
hexagonal.
[0017] The top crown can be hot forged to form the meshed
reinforcing ribs. With the meshed reinforcing ribs on the top
crown, a thickness of the crown body of the top crown can be
appropriately reduced and the strength of the crown body is
enhanced by the reinforcing ribs. Accordingly, elasticity of the
top crown of the golf club head is increased and the top crown has
low center of gravity.
[0018] 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
[0019] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a top
crown of a golf club head in accordance with the present
invention;
[0020] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of the top crown in
FIG. 1;
[0021] FIG. 3 is an operational exploded perspective view of the
top crown in FIG. 1, showing the top crown is attached to a base, a
strike face, and a hosel to form the golf club head;
[0022] FIG. 4 is an operational cross-sectional side view of the
top crown in FIG. 1, showing the top crown is attached to the base,
the strike face, and the hosel to form the golf club head;
[0023] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a top
crown of a golf club head in accordance with the present
invention;
[0024] FIG. 6 is a front view of a third embodiment of a top crown
of a golf club head in accordance with the present invention;
[0025] FIG. 7 is a front view of a fourth embodiment of a top crown
of a golf club head in accordance with the present invention;
[0026] FIG. 8 is a front view of a fifth embodiment of a top crown
of a golf club head in accordance with the present invention;
and
[0027] FIG. 9 is an operational perspective view of the golf club
head having the top crown of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0028] With reference to FIG. 1, a top crown 1 of a golf club head
in accordance with the present invention is hot forged and has a
crown body 10 and multiple reinforcing ribs 20.
[0029] With further reference to FIG. 2, the crown body 10 is made
of titanium alloy, and has an inner surface 11 and an outer surface
12. A thickness d1 of the crown body 10 is 0.2 millimeter (mm) to
1.0 mm. The reinforcing ribs 20 are foamed on at least one of the
inner and outer surfaces 11, 12 of the crown body 10 and are
arranged as a mesh. The mesh includes multiple grids 21. Each of
the grids 21 of the mesh may be circular, elliptical, or
polygonal.
[0030] With further reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the top crown 1 is
welded with a base 2, a strike face 3, and a hosel 4 to form the
golf club head. Then the golf club head is surface treated and the
hosel 4 is attached securely to a shaft to accomplish the golf
club. The meshed reinforcing ribs 20 enhance a strength of the
crown body 10 and allow the top crown 1 to have a required striking
performance when the golf club head strikes golf balls.
[0031] As shown in FIG. 2, in the first preferred embodiment, the
reinforcing ribs 20 are formed on the inner surface 11 of the crown
body 10. Alternatively, the reinforcing ribs 20 may be formed on
the outer surface 12 of the crown body 10. A thickness d2 of the
reinforcing rib 20 that is formed on and protrudes from the inner
surface 11 or the outer surface 12 of the crown body 10 is 0.1 mm
to 1.8 mm. Each of the grids 21 of the mesh of the reinforcing ribs
20 is hexagonal.
[0032] With further reference to FIG. 5, in the second preferred
embodiment, the reinforcing ribs 20, 20' are formed on the inner
surface 11 and the outer surface 12 of the crown body 10. A
thickness d3 of the reinforcing rib 20' that is formed on and
protrudes from the outer surface 12 of the crown body 10 is 0.1 mm
to 1.8 mm.
[0033] With further reference to FIG. 6, in the third preferred
embodiment, each of the grids 21A of the mesh of the reinforcing
ribs 20A is quadrilateral.
[0034] With further reference to FIG. 7, in the fourth preferred
embodiment, each of the grids 21B of the mesh of the reinforcing
ribs 20B is circular.
[0035] With further reference to FIG. 8, in the fifth preferred
embodiment, each of the grids 21C of the mesh of the reinforcing
ribs 20C is triangular.
[0036] The top crown 1 of the golf club head as described has the
following advantages. The top crown 1 is hot forged to form the
meshed reinforcing ribs 20. With the meshed reinforcing ribs 20,
20', 20A, 20B, 20C on the top crown 1, a thickness of the crown
body 10 of the top crown 1 can be appropriately reduced and the
strength of the crown body 10 is enhanced by the reinforcing ribs
20, 20', 20A, 20B, 20C. Accordingly, elasticity of the top crown 1
of the golf club head is increased and the top crown 1 has low
center of gravity.
[0037] With reference to FIG. 9, when the golf club head having the
top crown 1 of the present invention strikes the golf ball 5, the
top crown 1 with high strength and high elasticity increases the
striking distance. Consequently, the striking stability of the golf
club head can be utilized thoroughly.
[0038] 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 features of the
invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made
in the details, 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.
* * * * *