GB2617057A

GB2617057A - Reflective items

Info

Publication number: GB2617057A
Application number: GB2201664.6A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Muncey Felicity; Coxon Andrew
Original assignee: DF&G Ltd
Current assignee: DF&G Ltd
Priority date: 2022-02-09
Filing date: 2022-02-09
Publication date: 2023-10-04

Abstract

A golfing article is at least partially coated by a transparent reflective coating comprising transparent binder and diamond particles having a largest dimension of 1-60 μm. The article may be a ball, tee, or marker. The mass ratio of diamond particles to binder is typically 5-15:100. The diamond particles may be present in the coating in the range of 2-5 mg per cm2 of the outer surface of the article. Preferably, the binder is acrylic urethane, urethane, or ethylene-methacrylic acid copolymer. A method of coating the article comprises applying a liquid transparent binder and diamond particles to the article before allowing the binder to dry. A layer of binder may be applied before adding the diamond particles in the absence of a carrier. Alternatively, a liquid composition comprising the binder and diamond particles may be applied to the article. Liquid binder may also be applied on top of the coating.

Description

REFLECTIVE ITEMS

Field of the Invention

The invention relates to reflective golf equipment.

Background of the Invention

Golf equipment often gets lost on golf courses, often due to the small size of pieces of equipment. Golf balls and golf tees are notoriously difficult to see when the balls are hit during the sport of golf. Given the great distances and heights golf balls are hit, they are very difficult for a person to keep sight of firstly in the air to see roughly where it will land and secondly, it is also difficult to see where they have landed, particularly when the ball has landed in long grass or sandpits (bunkers). As a result, many golfers give up looking for their ball resulting in many lost and wasted balls. Tees often get hit with the ball and therefore suffer from the same problem, even if they do not travel as far as a ball, as the problem is exacerbated by their small size. Similarly, markers used to mark where the ball landed can easily be lost due to their small size.

Research teams at the Danish Golf Union have discovered it takes between 100 to 1,000 years for a golf ball to decompose naturally. It is also estimated that every year 300 million balls are lost or discarded in the United States alone, hence golf ball and tee litter is fast becoming a serious environmental concern on this planet.

Summary of the Invention

The present invention seeks to help reduce the problems associated with golf litter by providing equipment such as golf balls, tees and markers that are far more visible than the standard equipment available currently. Therefore the pieces of equipment are easier to find after, for example, striking the ball resulting in fewer lost and abandoned balls and tees. Further benefits to the invention are that the golf equipment will look far more visually appealing and will even sparkle in the natural daylight.

The first aspect of the invention provides an article at least partially coated by a transparent reflective coating, wherein the transparent reflective coating comprises diamond particles and a transparent binder, wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 1 to 60 pm and wherein the article is a piece of golf equipment.

The second aspect of the invention provides a method for applying a transparent reflective coating on an article, comprising the steps of: (i) applying a liquid transparent binder and diamond particles to an article; and (ii) allowing the binder to dry to form the transparent reflective coating, wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 1 to 60 pm and wherein the article is a piece of golf equipment.

Brief Description of the Figures

Figure 1 shows a golf ball with the reflective coating applied to its surface, the black dots represent the diamond particles.

Figure 2 shows a golf tee with the reflective coating applied to its surface, the black dots represent the diamond particles.

Detailed Description of the Invention

Golf equipment is typically made of plastic, rubber or wooden materials. For example, golf balls are made of plastic and rubber, and golf tees and markers of wood, which do not reflect light. So even though golf balls, tees and markers are traditionally coated using light colours, such as white and yellow, to try and help their visibility they are still incredibly difficult to see as they move away from a person. Contrary to the prior art, the transparent reflective coating in the present invention comprises diamond particles, which reflect light thus making the golf equipment far easier to see. Particularly important for golf, the diamond particles reflect light/sparkle in the natural daylight unlike some other materials, such as cubic zirconia. Surprisingly the inventor has found that the golf ball's aerodynamics and flight path/trajectory are not altered by the coating of the present invention. Furthermore, the diamond particles sparkle which makes them more visually appealing than traditional golf balls and tees. The invention applies to various pieces of golf equipment, considered as such if it is an item that is used whilst one plays golf. Preferred golf equipment in the present invention is a putter, golf ball, a golf tee or a golf marker, preferably a golf ball or a golf tee, more preferably a golf ball The coating is transparent to ensure that the diamond particles are visible and reflective and also so it does not change the colour of the article to which the coating is applied to.

Suitably the diamond particles are visible and/or reflective. The diamond particles used in the present invention may be non-spherical or irregular in shape and therefore do not have a defined particle diameter. In the present application the particle sizes are characterised by identifying a 'largest dimension' which means the longest measurable span of a particle (whether it is irregular or not). For a spherical particle this will be the diameter. For a cubic or rectilinear particle this will be an internal diagonal (corner to opposite corner). For an elongate shard or wedge this will be the length from apex to the blunt end. For a flake this will be the longest span of the flake. These sizes correspond to the size which may pass through a sieve to obtain a particle size upper limit.

The diamond particles can vary in size, however, they must be small enough so as to produce a smooth coating that will not alter the aerodynamics of the flight of the ball. As such, the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 1 to 60pm, preferably 3 to 55 pm, more preferably 5 to 50 pm, yet more preferably 8 to 45 pm, even more preferably 10 to 40 pm, such as 12 to 35 pm. For the avoidance of doubt, any of the aforementioned lower ranges can be combined with any of the aforementioned upper ranges.

In order to obtain the diamond particles, natural diamonds may be crushed using conventional (ball) milling techniques. Synthetic diamonds could also be used, and would be provided in small sizes, followed by crushing/milling and then optionally sieving to the target sizes (for which see below).

A particularly preferred diamond particle source for the present invention is white diamond powder which is obtained from crushing bits and pieces of high quality polished left avers from gemstone cutting and polishing.

The obtained diamond particles will typically have a size distribution including for example micron scale particles (or dust) up to larger micron size flakes and shards. A desired size distribution may be obtained by sieving to remove particles that are too small, and separately sieving to remove particles that are too large.

The largest particle dimension typically dictates whether a particle will be sieved or not, although sieving is not of course completely effective and accurate so some variability in particle size will be evident outside of the target upper and lower parameters. Repeated sieving steps can be used to decrease the variability.

The diamond particles are preferably (for best optical results) obtained by crushing larger particles. This means that they have a morphology consistent with having been crushed, which means that they have cleaved planes revealed which reflect incident light.

Preferably 2 to 5 mg and more preferably 2 to 3 mg of diamond particles are applied per square centimetre of the outer surface of the article. This provides a desirable visual appearance.

As well as the diamond particles, the transparent reflective coating also comprises a binder. Binders are well-known in the field referring to a substance used to make other substances or materials stick or mix together. In the present invention the binder is being used to stick the diamond particles onto the outer surface of the golf equipment. The binder is a transparent substance when it dries to ensure that the diamond particles are visible and reflective and also so it does not change the colour of the article to which the binder and diamond particles are applied to.

Suitably the binder is applied in the liquid form which hardens upon drying to become solid. Liquid is a well-known term in the field referring to a substance that is not solid or a gas and is free-flowing.

Suitably the binder may be a range of resin based finishes selected from the group of acrylic urethane, urethane, polyester, melamine, acrylic, alkyd melamine, polyurethane, nitrocellulose, cab acrylic, a copolymer of ethylene and methacrylic acid, preferably selected from acrylic urethane, urethane, and a copolymer of ethylene and methacrylic acid. Products sold as 'Surlyn', 'Clear Coat', 'Top Coat', 'Gelcoat' and varnish may be used as the binder, preferably 'Surlyn'.

The transparent reflective coating may be applied to the article in different ways in accordance with the second aspect of the invention. It is important that the coating is flush with the surface of the article so as to not distort the article's shape. All features described above are also applicable to the second aspect of the invention and specific embodiments thereof described below.

One specific embodiment of the invention provides a method for applying a transparent reflective coating on an article comprising the steps of; i) applying a layer of the liquid transparent binder to the article, ii) applying diamond particles, in the absence of a liquid carrier, to the binder so that the diamond particles adhere to the binder and allowing the binder to dry to form the transparent reflective coating; wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 1 to 60 pm and wherein the article is a piece of golf equipment.

The diamond particles may be applied to the binder by spraying. This provides a way of easily controlling the distribution of diamond particles on an article and applying large amounts of diamond particles quickly. For example, the diamond particles may be applied to the binder using an airbrush.

Alternatively there is provided a method for applying a transparent reflective coating on an article, comprising the steps of: (i) applying a liquid composition comprising, such as consisting of, diamond particles and a transparent binder to the article; and (ii) allowing the composition to dry to form the transparent reflective coating, wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 1 to 60 pm and wherein the article is a piece of golf equipment.

The binder and diamond particles may be mixed together and then applied to the article in liquid form via spraying (such as airbrushing) or by submerging the article into the liquid composition and removing it. The article coated by the liquid composition is then left to let the coating dry to become solid.

A layer of binder not comprising diamond particles may be applied on top of the transparent reflective coating. It is applied in the liquid form and left to dry and harden.

This adds further protection to the coating to help ensure it remains applied to the article when hit. The additional layer can also increase the smoothness of the coating. The term 'coating' or 'coated' does not necessarily imply a complete coating which completely encapsulates an article to which it is applied. Only a portion of an article, might be covered with a 'coating'. In one particular aspect the transparent reflective coating coats at least half of the outer surface of the article, such as coats all of the outer surface of the article.

The ratio between the mass of diamond particles and the mass of binder is preferably between 5:100 and 15:100, and is more preferably between 6:100 and 12:100, more preferably between 7:100 and 10:100. This provides a high enough concentration of diamond particles (especially for the size ranges mentioned above) to provide an enhanced appearance.

Examples

Example 1:

Diamond particles (with a size distribution between 1 and 60 pm) were premixed in a transparent liquid binder and sprayed onto the surface of a golf ball and separately a golf tee. The golf ball and tee were left to allow the binder to dry and form the transparent reflective coating. The resultant coating was smooth and added negligible weight, so the ball's aerodynamics and flight path were not altered versus a ball without the coating when hit.

Example 2:

A golf ball and a golf tee were provided. A liquid transparent binder was sprayed onto the surface of the golf ball and tee. Whilst the binder was still wet, diamond particles (with a size distribution between 1 and 60 pm) were sprayed evenly onto the binder and then left to allow the binder to dry to form the transparent reflective coating. When dried, an additional binder layer was sprayed onto the transparent reflective coating. The resultant coating was smooth and added negligible weight, so the ball's aerodynamics and flight path were not altered versus a ball without the coating when hit.

Claims

Claims 1. An article at least partially coated by a transparent reflective coating, wherein the transparent reflective coating comprises diamond particles and a transparent binder, wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 1 to 60 pm and wherein the article is a piece of golf equipment.
2. The article according to claim 1, wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 5 to 50 pm.
3. The article according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 10 to 40 pm.
4. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the transparent reflective coating coats at least half of the article.
5. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the transparent reflective coating coats all of the article.
6. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the diamond particles are natural diamond particles.
7. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the ratio between the mass of the diamond particles and the mass of the binder is between 5:100 and 15:100, preferably 7:100 and 10:100.
8. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the article is a golf ball, golf tee or golf marker, preferably a golf ball or golf tee, more preferably a golf ball.
9. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the diamond particles have a morphology consistent with having been obtained by crushing larger particles.
10. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the diamond particles are present in the reflective coating between 2 to 5 mg per square centimetre of the outer surface of the article, preferably between 2 to 3 mg per square centimetre of the outer surface of the article.
11. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the transparent binder is applied to the article in liquid form and hardens upon drying to form the transparent reflective coating.
12. The article according to any preceding claim, wherein the transparent binder is selected from the group of acrylic urethane, urethane, polyester, melamine, acrylic, alkyd melamine, polyurethane, nitrocellulose, cab acrylic, a copolymer of ethylene and methacrylic acid, preferably selected from acrylic urethane, urethane, and a copolymer of ethylene and methacrylic acid.
13. A method for applying a transparent reflective coating on an article, comprising the steps: (i) applying a liquid transparent binder and diamond particles to an article; and (ii) allowing the binder to dry to form the transparent reflective coating, wherein the diamond particles have a largest dimension in the range of 1 to 60 pm and wherein the article is a piece of golf equipment.
14. The method of claim 13 having any of the additional features of claims 1 to 12.
15. The method of either claim 13 or 14, wherein step (i) comprises the steps: a) applying a layer of the liquid transparent binder to the article, b) applying diamond particles, in the absence of a liquid carrier, to the binder so that the diamond particles adhere to the binder.
16. The method of either claim 13 or 14, wherein step (i) comprises the step: a) applying a liquid composition comprising the diamond particles and the liquid transparent binder to the article.
17. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 16, wherein the method further comprises the step of applying a layer of liquid transparent binder on top of the transparent reflective coating and allowing it to dry and harden.