JP6592963B2 - Golf club head - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a golf club head, and more particularly to a hollow golf club head.

  Hollow metal golf club heads such as drivers and fairway woods are widely used. In general, a hollow wood-type golf club head includes a face portion for hitting a ball, a crown portion constituting the upper surface portion of the golf club head, a sole portion constituting the bottom surface portion of the golf club head, and a golf club. It has a side part constituting a side part on the toe side, back side and heel side of the head, and a hosel part. A shaft is inserted into the hosel part and fixed with an adhesive or the like. Recently, many golf clubs referred to as utility clubs are also commercially available, and one type of utility golf club is similar to the wood-type golf club head (that is, the face portion, the sole portion, the side portion, and the like). Various golf clubs having a hollow head (having a crown portion and a hosel portion) are also commercially available.

  As a metal constituting the hollow golf club head, an aluminum alloy, stainless steel, or titanium alloy is used, but in recent years, a titanium alloy is particularly widely used.

  As described in Patent Documents 1 to 3, by reducing the rigidity of the crown part, the rigidity of the sole part of the hollow golf club head is increased, and the crown part is relatively easily bent when hitting a golf ball. This increases the launch angle of the golf ball.

  In order to reduce the rigidity of the crown portion, Patent Document 1 describes that a thin low rigidity region and a thick high rigidity region are provided in the crown portion of the hollow golf club head. Patent Document 2 describes a hollow golf club head having a crown portion provided with a first thin portion and a second thin portion. Patent Document 3 describes a golf club head in which the front part of the crown part is thinner than the rear part to reduce the rigidity.

  Patent Documents 4 and 5 describe that the stress of a golf club head is analyzed by simulation using a finite element method.

JP 2007-151758 A JP2013-240404A JP 2005-137788 A JP 2006-181189 A Japanese Patent No. 5009525

  The first invention provides a golf club head in which the crown portion is provided with a low-rigidity portion so that the crown portion is relatively easily bent when the golf ball is hit, and the launch angle of the hit golf ball can be increased. The purpose is to do.

  A second object of the present invention is to provide a golf club head that can minimize the strength of the crown portion.

  A golf club head according to a first aspect of the present invention is a hollow golf club head having a face portion, a sole portion, a crown portion, and a hosel portion. The crown portion includes a first rigid portion having a first rigidity, a material, and a thickness. Is the same as the first rigid portion, but has at least two different portions of rigidity from the second rigid portion which is lower in rigidity than the first rigid portion.

  In one aspect of the first invention, the crown portion is press-worked.

  In one aspect of the first invention, the crown portion is constituted by a single member having no joints.

  In one aspect of the first aspect of the present invention, the golf club head is composed of a single member that is seamless.

  In one aspect of the first invention, the second rigid portion has a porous shape.

  In one aspect of the first invention, the second rigid portion has a hollow shape.

  In one aspect of the first invention, the second rigid portion has a stiffness of 60 to 90% of the first rigid portion.

  A golf club head according to a second aspect of the present invention is a hollow golf club head having a face portion, a sole portion, a side portion, a crown portion, and a hosel portion, wherein the crown portion has a first thickness portion having a first thickness; The second thickness portion having a second thickness different from the first thickness and at least two different thickness portions, and the first thickness portion and the second thickness portion have the same rigidity. It is characterized by being.

  In one aspect of the second invention, the rigidity of the entire crown portion is the same. In one aspect of the second invention, the strengths of the first and second thickness portions are the minimum necessary.

In the present invention, that the rigidity is the same means that it is substantially the same. Specifically, when the rigidity of a certain part is K ₁ and the rigidity of another part is K ₂ , the difference in rigidity (K ₁ −K ₂ ) is the average rigidity value of both (K ₁ + K ₂ ) K ₁ and K ₂ are defined to be the same if they are 10% or less of ₂ ) / 2. As for the thickness, if the difference (T ₁ −T ₂ ) between the thickness T _{1 of one} part and the thickness T ₂ of another part is 10% or less of (T ₁ + T ₂ ) / 2, T ₁ the a T ₂ is defined as the same.

  In the golf club head according to the first aspect of the present invention, since the crown portion is provided with the second rigid portion which is the same in material and thickness as the first rigid portion but has a lower rigidity than that, the golf ball When the golf ball is hit, the crown portion is relatively easily bent, and the launch angle of the golf ball is increased.

  In the golf club head of the second invention, the first thickness portion and the second thickness portion of the crown portion have the same rigidity, so the strength of the first thickness portion and the second thickness portion is the minimum necessary. Limit.

(A) is a perspective view of a golf club head according to an embodiment of the first invention, and (b) is a plan view thereof. It is sectional drawing which follows the II-II line of FIG. It is sectional drawing which follows the III-III line of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the crown part base plate before a press work. It is sectional drawing of the crown part base plate before a press work. 1 is a plan view of a golf club head according to an embodiment of the first invention. 1 is a plan view of a golf club head according to an embodiment of the first invention. 1 is a plan view of a golf club head according to an embodiment of the first invention. 1 is a plan view of a golf club head according to an embodiment of the first invention. It is sectional drawing of the golf club head which concerns on embodiment of 2nd invention. FIG. 11 is a plan view of the golf club head of FIG. 10.

  Hereinafter, golf club heads according to embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.

  A golf club head 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is a hollow driver head having a face portion 2, a sole portion 3, a side portion 4, a crown portion 5, and a hosel portion 6. The golf club head 1 is integrally formed of metal. Examples of the metal include titanium, a titanium alloy, an aluminum alloy, and stainless steel. A titanium alloy is preferable. A decorative material or nameplate made of synthetic resin, rubber, elastomer, or the like may be provided on a part of the golf club head 1, for example, a sole portion or a side portion.

  The face portion 2 is a surface for hitting a ball. The sole portion 3 constitutes the bottom surface portion of the golf club head, and the crown portion 5 constitutes the top surface portion of the golf club head. The side portion 4 connects the sole portion 3 and the crown portion 5 and extends from the toe side to the heel side via the back side. A shaft is fixed to the hosel portion 6.

  In this embodiment, the crown part 5 has a crown part front 5f on the face side with respect to substantially the middle in the face / back direction, and a crown part rear 5r on the back side with respect to the crown part front 5f. Low crown portions (second rigid portions) 11, 12, 13 are provided on the crown front 5f. The crown front 5 f other than the low rigidity portions 11 to 13 is a high rigidity portion (first rigidity portion) 15.

  The thickness t of the crown portion front 5 f is the same in any of the low rigidity portions 11 to 13 and the high rigidity portion 15. In this embodiment, the thickness of the crown portion rear 5r is the same as the thickness of the crown portion front 5f, and the thickness t is the same throughout the crown portion, but at least a part of the crown portion rear 5r is used. The thickness may be different from the crown portion front 5f. Also, the toe side, the back side and the heel side peripheral part 5c of the crown part 5 may be different in thickness from the crown part front 5f, for example, may be thicker than the crown part front 5f. .

  Crown part 5 consists of the same material (for example, titanium alloy) as a whole. The low-rigidity portions 11 to 13 have the same thickness as the high-rigidity portion 15, but have a smaller rigidity than the high-rigidity portion 15 by having the vacant portion 10. The rigidity of the low-rigidity parts 11 to 13 is preferably 60 to 90%, particularly 65 to 85% of the rigidity of the high-rigidity part 15.

  In this embodiment, the vacant portion 10 has a flat disk shape. The diameter of the vacant part 10 in a state where the crown part 5 is viewed in plan is preferably 0.5 mm or more, particularly 1 mm or more, and 10 mm or less, particularly 5 mm or less. The height of the vacant part 10, that is, the dimension in the thickness t direction of the crown part 5 is preferably 10% or more, particularly 20% or more, and 50% or less, particularly 30% or less, of the thickness t of the crown part front 5f.

  The plurality of vacant portions 10 are arranged at intervals in the toe-heel direction, whereby the low rigidity portions 11 to 13 are formed. The arrangement pitch a in the toe-heel direction between the vacant chambers 10, 10 is preferably 1 mm or more, particularly 3 mm or more, and 20 mm or less, particularly 10 mm or less.

  The low-rigidity portions 11, 12, and 13 are provided in a total of three rows in this embodiment, but may be one or two rows, or four or more rows. When providing a plurality of rows of low rigidity portions, the arrangement pitch b of the low rigidity portions in the face-back direction is preferably 3 mm or more, particularly 5 mm or more, and 30 mm or less, particularly 20 mm or less. The low rigidity portion may also be provided in the crown portion rear 5r.

  The distance between the face-side low-rigidity portion 11 and the edge portion of the crown portion 5 on the face portion 2 side is preferably 1 mm or more, particularly 5 mm or more, and 30 mm or less, particularly 20 mm or less.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the vacant space portion 10 presses the crown portion base plate 5 </ b> P or 5 </ b> P ′ having an arbitrarily shaped hole 9 or 9 ′ (including rolling and forging). It is formed by. The holes 9 of the crown part base plate 5P have a uniform diameter, but the diameters of the holes 9 'of the crown part base plate 5P' are distributed in large and small. When the crown part base plate 5P is pressed, the vacant part 10 has a uniform size. When the crown part base plate 5P 'is pressed, the size of the vacant part 10 has a large and small distribution. In addition, the thickness is reduced by pressing, and the strength is increased by work hardening in the solid portion (high rigidity portion 15). Since the thickness can be reduced by the increase in strength, the weight can be reduced as a result.

  In the golf club head 1 configured as described above, the low rigidity portions 11 to 13 are provided in the crown portion 5, and the crown portion 5 is easily bent when a golf ball is hit. Therefore, when a golf ball is hit with this golf club head 1, the launch angle of the golf ball is increased and the flight distance is increased.

  In the above embodiment, the shape, size, and distribution of the vacant portion 10 can be arbitrarily determined by using the crown portion base plates 5P, 5P ′ having holes 9 or 9 ′ having a desired shape or size. Thus, various golf club heads having the desired ease of bending of the crown portion 5 can be easily manufactured.

  In the above-described embodiment, all of the low-rigidity portions 11 to 13 extend in the toe / heel direction, but may extend in another direction. An example is shown in FIGS.

  In the golf club head 1 </ b> A of FIG. 6, the low rigidity portions 21 and 22 that are oblique to the face / back direction are arranged on the toe side of the crown portion 5 so that the back side becomes the toe side. Further, low rigidity portions 23 and 24 that are oblique to the face / back direction are arranged on the heel side of the crown portion 5 so that the heel side is closer to the back side. The intersection angle θ between the extending direction of the low-rigidity portions 21 to 24 and the face-back direction is preferably 30 ° or more, particularly 45 ° or more, and 90 ° or less, particularly 60 ° or less. Note that the number of the low-rigidity portions 21 to 24 is two on the toe side and the heel side as illustrated, but may be one or three or more.

  In the golf club head 1B of FIG. 7, low rigidity portions 31 to 34 extending in the face-back direction are provided. The low rigidity portions 31 and 32 are disposed on the toe side, and the low rigidity portions 33 and 34 are disposed on the heel side. Note that the number of the low-rigidity portions 31 to 34 is two on the toe side and the heel side as shown in the figure, but may be one or three or more.

  In the golf club head 1 </ b> C of FIG. 8, a spiral low rigidity portion 40 is provided. The center of the spiral is near the center (near the center) of the crown portion 5 in the toe-heel direction and the face-back direction.

  In the golf club head 1D of FIG. 9, concentric low-rigidity portions 41 to 43 are provided. The center of each concentric circle is near the center (near the center) of the crown portion 5 in the toe / heel direction and the face / back direction. The number of the low rigidity portions 41 to 43 may be 2 or 4 or more.

  The other configurations of the golf club heads 1A to 1D are the same as those of the golf club head 1, and the same reference numerals indicate the same parts.

  10 and 11 show a golf club head 1E having a first thickness portion and a second thickness portion according to an embodiment of the second invention. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG.

  This golf club head 1E also has a face portion 2, a sole portion 3, a side portion 4, a crown portion 5 and a hosel portion 6, and is integrally formed of metal as a whole.

Crown portion 5 includes a first thickness portion 51 thickness t ₁ is greater, and a second thickness portion 52 which thickness t ₂ is less than. In this embodiment, the first thickness portion 51 occupies the face side of the crown portion 5, but may be on the toe side, on the heel side, on the back side, It may be near the center of the part 5. Moreover, the 1st thickness part 51 may be provided in multiple places.

  The first thickness portion 51 is provided so that the vacant portions 10 are distributed substantially uniformly, whereby the first thickness portion 51 and the second thickness portion 52 have substantially the same rigidity. It has become. The thickness of the second thickness portion 52 is preferably about 60 to 80% of the thickness of the first thickness portion 51.

  In this golf club head 1E, the strength of the crown portion 5 can be designed to be a necessary minimum. The required minimum strength of the golf club head 1, particularly the crown portion 5, can be obtained by a finite element method (FEM) analysis described in Patent Documents 4 and 5 and the like. That is, the minimum required rigidity can be realized by designing the part where the stress is small to be low rigidity by FEM analysis.

  For example, for a model of a golf club head 1E having no vacant part, the rigidity difference between the first thickness part and the second thickness part due to the thickness and the shape (curvature) of the crown part is obtained by FEM analysis. A design is made in which the vacant portion 10 is arranged in the first thick portion 51 having a large thickness so as to disappear.

  When the entire crown portion has the same rigidity, the crown portion is easily bent. In addition, the stress at the time of impact is simulated, and a design is made in which the vacant portion 10 is arranged so as to be a crown portion having a necessary minimum rigidity capable of withstanding this stress.

  Although at least the crown portion 5 of the golf club heads 1 to 1E is obtained by pressing the crown portion base plates 5P and 5P ', the pressing may be omitted.

  The crown portion base plates 5P and 5P '(or the crown portion 5 in the case of no press work) can be manufactured as a seamless member, preferably by a metal powder molding method. According to this metal powder shaping method, a desired three-dimensional shape can be produced by irradiating a metal powder with a high energy beam such as an electron beam or a laser beam to sinter the metal powder.

  In the above description, the vacant portion 10 has a flat disk shape, but is not limited thereto. According to the metal powder molding method, it is possible to easily form a crown part base plate or a crown part having vacant parts of any shape, size and number. Other than the crown portion, the metal powder molding method may be used. When press working is not performed, the entire golf club head can be integrally formed by a metal powder molding method. In this case, the molded golf club head is composed of a single seamless member as a whole.

  The molded product formed by the forming process including the metal powder molding method is then processed into a golf club head product through heat treatment and surface grinding / polishing as well as finish processing such as painting and plating.

  The above description represents an example of the present invention, and the present invention may have a configuration other than the above.

  In the present invention, as in the golf club heads 1 to 1E, instead of reducing the rigidity of the crown portion by providing a large number of minute vacant portions 10 and making them porous, a single or a few large vacant portions By providing a hollow crown portion, the rigidity of the crown portion may be partially reduced.

  The present invention can also be applied to fairway woods and utility club heads other than drivers.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,1A-1E Golf club head 2 Face part 3 Sole part 4 Side part 5 Crown part 5P, 5P 'Crown part base plate 6 Hosel part 9, 9' Hole 10 Vacant part 11-13, 21-24, 31- 34,41-43 Low rigidity part (2nd rigidity part)
15 Highly rigid part (first rigid part)
51 1st thickness part 52 2nd thickness part

Claims (9)

In a hollow golf club head having a face portion, a sole portion, a crown portion and a hosel portion,
The crown portion includes a first rigid portion having a first stiffness,
Materials, wall thickness is identical to the first rigid portion, and have a different portions of at least two rigid and second rigid portion is less rigid than the first rigid portion,
The golf club head according to claim 2, wherein the second rigid portion has a flat disk-shaped vacant space .   The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the crown portion is pressed.   3. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the crown portion is constituted by a single member having no joint.   4. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the golf club head is constituted by a single member having no joints. 5.   5. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the second rigid portion has a porous shape. 6. 5. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein in the second rigid portion , the plurality of vacant portions are arranged at intervals in a toe-heel direction . In any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the second rigid part component is a golf club head, characterized in that 60 to 90% of the stiffness of the first rigid part minute. 7. The golf club head according to claim 6, wherein the second rigid portion extending in the toe-heel direction is provided in a plurality of rows at intervals in the face-back direction . 5. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the single vacancy portion is provided . 6.

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