JP4010486B2 - Golf club head - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a golf club head formed by joining one or more metal parts and having a hollow inside.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The face portion of a metal golf club head having a hollow portion is becoming thinner, and the face portion is slightly bent and repelled when a ball is hit, thereby increasing the flight distance of the ball.
The face portion of this golf club head is influenced by the head shape, and is formed longer in the left-right direction (toe-heel direction) than in the up-down direction (top / sole direction). For this reason, the deflection of the face portion at the time of hitting the ball is longer in the left-right direction than in the up-down direction, and the inclination toward the center position where the amount of deflection is maximum is gentler in the left-right direction than in the up-down direction of the face. For this reason, the ball cross section by the surface orthogonal to the striking direction (ball compression direction) is not compressed while maintaining a circular shape due to the impact at the time of hitting the ball, but the cross-sectional shape is uneven with distortion from the circular shape. Compression occurs and it is difficult to control the flight direction of the ball.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-346918 discloses a golf club head in which a metal face piece different from the face portion is welded to the central region of the face portion of the metal hollow head.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, since this face piece has a similar shape with a smaller face portion, the deflection of the face portion at the time of hitting the ball is more moderate in the left-right direction than in the up-down direction as in the prior art. Therefore, the cross section of the ball by the surface orthogonal to the striking direction (compression direction) is not compressed while maintaining a circular shape, but uneven compression with distortion occurs, making it difficult to control the flight direction of the ball.
Further, the face portion receives the ball at the time of hitting and compresses the ball to accumulate the repulsive energy in the ball, and also deforms itself to accumulate the repelling energy. Thus, the flying distance of the ball is secured by the force for returning the bending deformation of the face portion and the force for returning the compression deformation of the ball. However, if the face part is too hard, most of the impact energy is applied to the ball, not the face part, and the ball is compressed to have a repulsive force, and after the ball is deformed to its compression limit. In other words, wasteful energy such as heat and sound is wasted, and wastefulness such as heat and sound is generated, resulting in poor repulsion efficiency, and the result is that the distance of the ball does not increase.
Accordingly, a first object of the present invention is to provide a golf club head capable of compressing a ball into a more uniform shape that prevents the occurrence of directionality.
In addition to this, a second object is to provide a golf club head capable of improving the repulsive force at the time of hitting and improving the flight distance.
[0004]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to claim 1 of the present invention in view of the above object, in a metal golf club head having a hollow portion therein, and an opening communicating with the hollow portion in a region including the sweet spot of the face portion, the opening In a golf club head in which a metal face piece is welded to a portion, when the vertical length of the face piece is 1, the horizontal length is 0.7 to 1.3, and the face piece is made of metal. Yes, it is less elastic than the metal of the head main body face part, and the vertical length of the face piece is 70% or more and up to 100% with respect to the vertical length of the face part. A golf club head is provided.
[0005]
In the measurement of the length in the vertical direction or the length in the left-right direction according to the first aspect, the measurement is performed by the vertical line or the horizontal line passing through the geometric center of the face piece. Here, the geometric center of the face piece means an upper horizontal line that is in contact with the highest point of the face piece outline when a golf club head with the face piece fixed to the face part of the head is placed along the lie angle. And the horizontal line that bisects the distance from the lowest horizontal line that touches the lowest point, the length between the two points (the leftmost point and the rightmost point if there are more than two intersections) intersecting the outline of the face piece The point that bisects. However, on the horizontal line that bisects, if the contour shape of the face piece protrudes locally or is depressed, a virtual contour shape that smoothly connects the contour lines in the vicinity of the part is formed. Think and take the intersection of this and the horizontal line. Also, since the vertical length is 1 and the horizontal length is in the range of 0.7 to 1.3, it can be said that the vertical length and the horizontal length are substantially the same , preferably 0.9. to 1.1 is within the range of.
[0006]
The vertical length of the face portion means that the horizontal line that bisects the distance between the highest point and the lowest point of the face portion of the golf club head placed along the lie angle intersects the toe side edge and the heel side edge of the face portion. This is the distance between the top edge and the leading edge measured on the vertical line passing through the face center point, which is the midpoint between the two points.
The upper edge (top edge) and lower edge (leading edge) of the face part are divided by the opening, and are cut out to reach the top part and the sole part, and the face pieces are welded to each other here. In this case, it is assumed that the length is 100% with respect to the vertical length of the face portion.
[0007]
The boundary portion between the remaining face portion provided with the opening and the metal face piece welded to the face portion is harder than the other regions of the face portion. Are difficult to propagate to the outer and inner regions, respectively, and the deformation of the inner region, that is, the face piece region becomes independent accordingly. In addition, since the vertical length and the horizontal length of the face piece are substantially the same, the bending inclination in the vertical direction and the bending inclination in the horizontal direction are the same. Therefore, the ball can be compressed into a more uniform shape in which directionality is prevented, and the flight direction can be easily controlled.
Since the face piece is less elastic than the metal of the head body face part, the resilience is improved compared to the case where the area (face piece area) closing the opening is made of the same metal as the head body face part, In addition, since the vertical length of the face piece is 70% or more of the vertical length of the face portion, it is substantially the same as the vertical length of the face portion. The repulsive force can be maximized by utilizing the size of Accordingly, the flight direction can be easily controlled and the repulsive force at the time of hitting is improved, so that the flight distance is improved.
[0008]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail based on an embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings.
2 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a golf club head 10 according to the present invention, FIG. 1 is an exploded view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a plane including a vertical line indicated by L1 in FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along a plane including a horizontal line indicated by L2 in FIG. A head main body 12 having a hollow portion inside and having an opening K in the face portion is formed at the tip of the shaft fixing portion SS. The golf club head 10 includes a top portion T on the upper surface portion of the head body, a sole portion S on the bottom surface portion, a toe portion TU on the front surface portion, a heel portion H on the front surface portion of the hand, and a face portion F having a striking surface. And a back portion B opposite to the face portion.
[0009]
The face portion is a region portion surrounded by a top edge E1 that is a boundary line with the top portion, a leading edge E2 that is a boundary line with the sole portion, and the like. An intermediate between two points where a horizontal line that bisects between the highest point and the lowest point of the face part F of the golf club head 10 placed along the lie angle crosses the toe side edge and the heel side edge of the face part F. An opening K is provided in a region including a face center point, which is a point, or a sweet spot. In this example, the opening has a substantially rectangular shape having upper and lower sides KE1 and KE2 along the top edge E1 and the leading edge E2, and is close to a square. The head body 12 is integrally formed by precision casting using a titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V.
[0010]
On the other hand, a metal face piece 14 is prepared which enters the opening and has a small dimensional shape with a gap from the opening edge. In this case, a rolled material of Ti-15Mo-5Zr-3Al of β titanium alloy is used as the metal. Other β titanium alloys such as Ti-15Mo-5Zr-4V-4Al may be used. In a state where the face pieces are fitted in the openings, they are joined by welding such as laser welding, electron beam welding, TIG welding, etc., to form a golf club head. YB in the cross-sectional view indicates a welded portion. In consideration of workability at the time of welding, a plurality of receiving portions 16 projecting into the opening region are integrally formed on the inner surface of the edge of the opening of the head body. The presence of this makes it possible to place and hold the face piece 14 and simplify the welding operation.
[0011]
The face portion F of the golf club head 10 has a face portion F ′ in a region excluding the opening of the head main body 12 and a face portion F ″ composed of a face piece 14. The center of the face of the golf club head 10 Based on the distance between the top edge E1 and the leading edge E2 measured on the vertical line passing through the point P1 ′, the vertical direction of the face piece measured on the vertical line L1 passing through the geometric center P1 of the face piece 14 is used. The direction dimension is formed to be 70% or more, and the horizontal dimension of the face piece measured on the horizontal line L2 passing through the geometric center P1 of the face piece is the vertical dimension of the face piece. The face center point P1 ′ and the geometric center P1 of the face piece may be manufactured so as to coincide with each other. It may not be allowed.
The metal of the face piece described above is a lower elastic material than the metal of the head body, and is more elastic than the ball and microscopically more easily bent than the face portion F ′. Therefore, when the ball is hit, it is easy to control the flight direction by compressing the ball evenly, reducing waste energy, improving the repulsive force, and improving the flight distance.
[0012]
The reference top edge E1 and leading edge E2 are used when there is a parting line at the time of casting formation, or when the line formed by these edges is clear, and when the line is unknown The former is an intersection line between the extension of the surface of the top portion and the extension of the face portion, and the latter is an intersection line of the extension of the surface of the sole portion and the extension of the face portion.
[0013]
In the above embodiment, the vertical length of the face piece is formed to be 70% or more of the vertical length of the face portion of the golf club head, but this requirement is not necessary from the viewpoint of the first purpose. The face piece may be smaller than 70%. Further, the metal material of the face piece does not need to be less elastic than the metal of the remaining head body face portion F ′.
[0014]
As described above, the face pieces 14 are formed by rolling. The final rolling direction may be directed in the direction of the line L1, that is, in the vertical direction. This is because a golf club head usually tends to crack along the left-right direction by striking, but if the rolling direction is set to the up-down direction, it becomes strong against this crack. The direction may be within a range of ± 30 degrees with respect to the line L1.
[0015]
The thickness of the face piece is preferably equal to or greater than the thickness of the remaining head body face portion F ′. In the above embodiment, the volume of the hollow portion of the golf club head is 270 cm ³ or more, and the golf club head is formed relatively large. Further, the sweet spot may be located above the geometric center P1 of the face piece 14, but if they are matched, the directionality of the hit ball when hitting at the geometric center P1 of the face piece is improved. .
Each explanation item described above is applied also to the following other embodiments unless there is a particular contradiction. In addition, items described in each of the following embodiments, except for those specific to the embodiments, are also applied to other embodiments other than the embodiments.
[0016]
FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment, and shows a golf club head in which a circular face piece 14 is welded to a head body 12 having a circular opening. In this case, the vertical length L1 and the horizontal length L2 have the same dimensions, and the length L1 is also 70% or more of the vertical length of the face portion. Accordingly, the same operational effects as in the case of the first embodiment can be obtained. Furthermore, since the face piece is circular, it is uniform from any direction with respect to the ball, and the ball is more evenly compressed.
[0017]
6 to 9 show a third embodiment. The upper side KE1 of the opening K reaches the top portion T, and the lower side KE2 reaches the sole portion S. In this case, the vertical length L1 of the face piece 14 is the same as the vertical length of the face portion F. In this embodiment, the receiving portion 16 as in the first embodiment may be omitted, but may be present.
[0018]
10 to 13 show a fourth embodiment. Characteristically, the head main body 12 includes a fixing portion SS, a top portion T, a sole portion S, a toe portion TU, a heel portion H, a back portion B, a main body portion 12 ', and a remaining face portion. The main body portion 12 ′ is integrally formed by precision casting, and the remaining main body portion 12 ″ is formed by forging or rolling and welded to each other to form the main body portion 12 ′. Become. This weld is indicated by YB ′ in FIG.
[0019]
The head body 12 formed in this way is provided with an opening K, that is, the remaining body 12 '' is originally provided with an opening K, and a face piece 14 is welded to the opening to play golf. A club head is formed.
[0020]
Finally, it is proved by the experimental data shown in FIG. 14 and FIG. 15 that the premise of the present invention, that is, it is preferable that the vertical length and the horizontal length of the face piece are the same. The face piece has a rectangular shape, and a golf club head welded thereto is fixed with a jig. A ball is ejected at a speed of 43 m / s using a ball ejection device. The direction of injection is directed toward the geometric center of the face piece, causing the ball to impact perpendicularly to the face surface. Since pressure sensitive paper was stuck to this face piece, the dent was recognized, and the vertical and horizontal lengths (diameters) of the dent were measured. The result is shown in FIG. As the face piece test body, the vertical length is 70% of the vertical length of the face part, the vertical (vertical direction) dimension is 50 mm, and the horizontal (horizontal direction) dimension is in the range of 25 mm to 80 mm. It is changing.
[0021]
FIG. 15 is a graph of the data of FIG. 14. However, when the aspect ratio of the face piece is 1, it can be said that the aspect ratio of the ball dent is 100%. Be the same. It can be seen that as the aspect ratio of the face piece deviates from 1, the aspect ratio of the ball dent deviates up and down from 100%. However, it can also be seen that the range of the aspect ratio of the face piece where the aspect ratio of the ball dent is approximately 100% is 0.7 to 1.3. It can also be seen that 0.9 to 1.1 can be given as the range of the aspect ratio of the face piece in which the aspect ratio of the ball dent approaches 100%.
[0022]
【The invention's effect】
As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a golf club head capable of compressing a ball into a more uniform shape that prevents the occurrence of directionality.
In addition to this, it is possible to provide a golf club head capable of improving the flight distance by improving the repulsive force at the time of hitting.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a first embodiment of a golf club head according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a golf club head according to a first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the vertical plane of FIG.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the horizontal plane of FIG.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a golf club head according to a second embodiment.
FIG. 6 is an exploded view of the golf club head of the third embodiment. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the golf club head of the third embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along a vertical plane of FIG.
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along the horizontal plane of FIG.
FIG. 10 is an exploded view of the golf club head of the fourth embodiment. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the golf club head of the fourth embodiment.
12 is a cross-sectional view taken along the vertical plane of FIG.
FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along the horizontal plane of FIG.
FIG. 14 is a table showing experimental data.
FIG. 15 is a graph of experimental data.
[Explanation of symbols]
12 Head body part 14 Face piece F Face part F 'Face part of head body part F "Face part by face piece K Opening part

Claims (1)

In a metal golf club head having a hollow portion inside, a golf club in which an opening communicating with the hollow portion is provided in a region including a sweet spot on the face portion, and a metal face piece is welded to the opening portion In the head, when the vertical length of the face piece is 1, the horizontal length is 0.7 to 1.3,
The face piece is made of metal and has lower elasticity than the metal of the head main body face portion, and the vertical length of the face piece is 70% or more and up to 100% with respect to the vertical length of the face portion. Is length
A golf club head characterized by that.

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