JP2011030836A - Golf club head - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a golf club head having strong rigidity on a heel side of a sole portion, outputting metallic hitting sound peculiar to a metal head, and capable of suppressing the vibration at a shot. <P>SOLUTION: A thick-wall part 3b is formed on the heel side of the sole portion 3, and the heel side is thicker than the other thin-wall part 3a. A recess 10 is formed in the thin-wall part 3a in the rear of the center in the toe-heel direction of the sole portion 3, and a vibration absorbing material 12 and a mounted member 13 are disposed within the recess 10. The mounted member 13 is put on the absorbing member 12, a bolt 14 is inserted into holes at the center of the members, and the bolt 14 is screwed into a female screw hole 11. In this way, the vibration absorbing material 12 is disposed within the recess 10 and the vibration absorbing material 12 is pressed and closely attached to the rear bottom face of the recess 10. NBR is suitable as the vibration absorbing material. Ribs 20-25 are disposed on the most toe side and heel side of the sole portion 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a hollow golf club head, and more particularly to a golf club head having a wood shape or a shape similar thereto.

  As a wood type golf club head such as a driver or a fairway wood, a metal member having a hollow shell structure is widely used. In general, a hollow wood-type golf club head includes a face portion for hitting a ball, a crown portion constituting an upper surface portion of the golf club head, a sole portion constituting a bottom surface portion of the golf club head, and a golf club. The head portion includes side portions constituting side portions on the toe side, rear side, and heel side of the head, and a hosel portion. 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 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 (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-88601).

  Generally, the sweet spot can be enlarged by increasing the volume of the hollow golf club head. Increasing the volume tends to increase the weight of the golf club head accordingly. In order to prevent this increase in weight, the thickness of the shell portion of the golf club head is reduced.

  In order to lower the center of gravity of the golf club head, a weight material is generally attached to the sole portion (for example, JP-A-2005-160947).

JP 2003-88601 A JP 2005-160947 A

  In recent years, large drivers with a volume exceeding 300 cc have become mainstream. When it enlarges in this way, it comes to thin in order to suppress an increase in weight. The sole part and the crown part are generally flat. For this reason, the vibration amplitude that occurs during shots tends to increase due to thinning, and because the area of the head increases due to the increase in the size of the head, the frequency of vibrations that occur during shots decreases. There is a disadvantage that the player does not feel the nice shot because the hitting sound is not generated and the hitting sound is low.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a golf club head that has high rigidity on the heel side of the sole portion, emits a metallic hitting sound peculiar to a metal head, and suppresses vibration during a shot.

  The golf club head according to claim 1 is a golf club head having a hollow shell structure, wherein at least the face part and the sole part are made of metal, and the sole part includes a thick part on the heel side. , Other thin wall portions, and a recess is provided in a part of the thin wall portion, and a vibration absorbing material made of rubber, elastomer or synthetic resin is disposed in the recess, on the bottom surface of the recess It is characterized by being in close contact.

  A golf club head according to a second aspect of the present invention is the golf club head according to the first aspect, wherein the vibration absorbing material is annular, an annular covering member is superimposed on the vibration absorbing member, and the covering member is screwed into the back bottom surface of the recess. The vibration absorbing material is pressed against the back bottom surface of the concave portion by being attached to the bottom.

  A golf club head according to a third aspect is the metal according to the second aspect, wherein the vibration absorbing member and the outer member have an outer diameter of 10 to 25 mm, and the outer member has a thickness of 0.2 to 0.4 mm. It is characterized by being.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the golf club head according to the third aspect is characterized in that the mounted member is manufactured by an electroforming method.

  A golf club head according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the golf club head according to the third aspect, wherein the mounted member is manufactured by press molding.

  A golf club head according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the golf club head according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the concave portion is disposed at a rear portion of the sole portion, and the sole portion is connected to the sole portion from the concave portion or its immediate vicinity. A rib extending toward the face portion through the toe side and the heel side is provided.

  The golf club head of the present invention is provided with a thick portion on the heel side of the sole portion, the rigidity on the heel side of the sole portion is high, and the amplitude of vibration generated in the sole portion during a shot is small. Further, since the area of the thin portion of the sole portion is small, the frequency of vibration at the time of shot is increased, and a metallic hitting sound peculiar to the metal head is emitted. Further, since the vibration absorbing material is provided in the thin wall portion, the vibration at the time of ball hit is absorbed, and the feel at impact is improved.

  Since the vibration absorbing material is disposed in the recess, it is prevented from falling off the golf club head due to an external force.

  According to the second aspect, since the vibration absorbing material is strongly pressed against the back bottom surface of the recess, the vibration absorbing effect is high.

  According to the third aspect, the outer diameter of the vibration absorbing material is relatively large and the vibration absorbing effect is high. Moreover, although a to-be-mounted member is thin, since rigidity is high, a vibrational absorbing material can be pressed down strongly.

  In the fourth and fifth aspects, the mounted member can be easily manufactured.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, ribs extending toward the face portion are provided on the toe side and the heel side of the sole portion, and the sole portion has high rigidity in combination with the thick portion provided on the sole portion. Therefore, the deflection of the sole portion at the time of shot is reduced, and the deflection of the crown portion is increased accordingly. This increases the launch angle of the ball.

1 is a perspective view of a golf club head according to an embodiment. (A) The figure is a cross-sectional perspective view which follows the AA line of FIG. 1, (B) The figure is a cross-sectional perspective view which follows the BB line of FIG. It is a perspective view from the sole part side of the golf club head of FIG. It is sectional drawing of a vibration absorption material installation site | part. It is an expanded sectional view which shows another shape of a to-be-mounted member.

  Hereinafter, the golf club head 1 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

  The golf club head 1 is a wood-type golf club head (in this embodiment, a driver) having a hollow shell structure having a face portion 2, a sole portion 3, a crown portion 5 and a hosel portion 6. Reference numeral 4 denotes a toe portion.

  The face portion 2 is a surface that hits the ball, and is provided with a groove (score line) (not shown). 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. As shown in FIG. 3, a shaft 7 is inserted into the hosel portion 6, and the shaft 7 is fixed by an adhesive. A ferrule 8 is attached so as to be continuous with the upper end of the hosel part.

  When the golf club head according to this embodiment is viewed from the front (face portion 2) side, the sole portion 3 is curved in a substantially downward arc from the toe side 4 to the heel side. In the center portion at the center in the toe-heel direction, the sole surface is facing downward so as to contact the ground with the golf club sole. The sole surface gradually rises from the center portion to the toe side 4 and the heel side, and continues to the toe side and the heel side of the crown portion 5.

  A thick portion 3b is formed on the heel side of the sole portion 3, and the thickness is larger than the other thin portions 3a. As will be described later, this golf club head is preferably made of a titanium alloy, and the thickness of the thick portion 3b is preferably about 1.0 to 4.0 mm, particularly about 1.5 to 2.5 mm. The thickness is preferably about 0.6 to 1.0 mm, particularly about 0.8 to 0.9 mm.

  The thick part 3b is located on the heel side from the middle in the toe-heel direction. The thick part 3b is slightly separated from the face part 2 (preferably about 5 to 15 mm, particularly about 8 to 12 mm).

  A recessed portion 10 is provided in a thin portion 3 a at the rear portion in the center of the sole portion 3 in the toe-heel direction, and a vibration absorbing material 12 and a mounted member 13 are disposed in the recessed portion 10. The recess 10 is substantially circular, and a female screw hole 11 is provided at the center. The bottom surface of the recess 10 is thicker than the thin portion 3a. The vibration absorber 12 and the mounted member 13 have an annular shape (ring shape). The vibration absorbing material 12 is made of a viscoelastic material such as rubber, elastomer or soft resin. Preferred materials for the vibration absorber 12 include rubbers such as natural rubber blended with butyl bromide rubber or chlorobutyl rubber, NBR (acrylonitrile butadiene rubber), silicon rubber, styrene elastomer, olefin elastomer, urethane elastomer, ester elastomer. An amide-based elastomer is exemplified, and NBR is preferable among them.

  The diameter (outer diameter) of the vibration absorber 12 is preferably about 10 to 25 mm, particularly about 15 to 22 mm. The inner diameter of the vibration absorber 12 is preferably about 6 to 12 mm, particularly about 7 to 10 mm. In this embodiment, the cross-sectional shape in the diameter direction of the vibration absorbing material 12 is a trapezoid, and the diameter is different between the upper surface side and the lower surface side. The above outer diameter and inner diameter represent the outer diameter and inner diameter in the middle of the thickness direction, respectively. The thickness of the vibration absorbing material 12 is preferably about 1 to 4 mm, particularly about 2 to 2.5 mm.

  The mounted member 13 is an annular member that covers the outer peripheral surface, the lower surface, and the inner peripheral surface of the vibration absorbing material 12 and that has a hook-shaped portion that protrudes from the inner peripheral edge in the direction of diameter reduction.

  The vibration absorber 12 is placed in the recess 10 by covering the vibration absorber 12 with the mounting member 13, passing the bolt 14 through the central hole, and screwing the bolt 14 into the female screw hole 11. The vibration absorbing material 12 is pressed against and closely adheres to the bottom surface of the recess 10. As shown in FIG. 4, the outer peripheral surface, the lower surface and the inner peripheral surface of the vibration absorbing material 12 are in close contact with the mounted member 13, and the upper surface is in close contact with the inner bottom surface of the recess 10.

  The mounted member 13 is preferably made of a metal material having a thickness of about 0.2 to 0.4 mm, particularly about 0.3 mm.

  This mounted member 13 is preferably manufactured by electroforming, which is a molding method applying a plating technique, or by press molding.

  Copper, nickel, chromium, zinc, gold, silver, rhodium, nickel-phosphorus alloy, etc. are suitable as the metal when manufacturing the covering member 13 by the electroforming method, and nickel is particularly suitable. When manufacturing the covering member 13 by this electroforming method, it is preferable to perform plating with a metal harder than the metal used for the base material on the surface of the base material made of these metals. It is preferable to perform chromium plating on the surface of the substrate made of nickel. By performing this plating process, the mounted member 13 is hardly damaged. Moreover, you may change the color of a base material by performing a plating process with respect to a base material partially.

  As the metal for producing the member 13 by press molding, ductile aluminum, aluminum alloy, titanium, titanium alloy, and rust-resistant stainless steel are suitable. It is preferable to anodize aluminum, aluminum alloy, titanium, and titanium alloy.

  The bolt 14 for attaching the vibration absorbing material 12 to the golf club head 1 together with the mounted member 13 is preferably made of a light metal such as aluminum, aluminum alloy, magnesium alloy, etc., but other metals having corrosion resistance such as stainless steel. It may be made of a material. Moreover, you may comprise with resin, such as nylon.

  Ribs 20 and 21 are provided so as to go to the face portion 2 through the toe side 4 of the sole portion 3 from the concave portion 10 or in the vicinity thereof (for example, within 5 mm from the concave portion 10). Each of the ribs 20 and 21 and each of the ribs 22 to 26 described later includes a groove portion having a shape in which the sole portion 3 is recessed toward the inside of the golf club head 1. The depth of the groove is preferably about 0.5 to 2 mm, particularly about 0.8 to 1.2 mm.

  On the heel side of the sole portion 3, ribs 22 and 25 are provided so as to go from the concave portion 10 or in the vicinity thereof toward the face portion 2 through the heel side of the thick portion 3 b. The rib 22 is branched into ribs 23 and 24 from the middle. The rib 23 extends toward the face part 2 along the thick part 3b. The rib 24 extends toward the hosel 6. The leading end side of the rib 23 continues to the rib 25. On the rear side of the recess 10, a rib 26 is provided so as to make a half turn around the recess 10. The toe side and the heel side of the rib 26 are connected to the ribs 20 and 22, respectively.

  In the golf club head 1 configured as described above, the thick portion 3b is provided in the sole portion 3, and the thickness of the thick portion 3b is high. It becomes. Further, since the portion other than the thick portion 3b of the sole portion 3 is a thin portion 3a and is lightweight, even if the golf club head 1 is enlarged (about 400 to 460 cc in the case of a driver), the golf club head 1 Weight can be reduced. In addition, the weight of the thin portion 3a of the sole portion 3 can be reduced, and the weight reduction can be distributed to the toe side, the heel side, and the back side, so that the sweet area can be increased.

  Further, in this golf club head 1, since the thick portion 3 b is formed on the sole portion 3 from the vicinity of the face portion 2 to the vicinity of the recess 10 on the heel side, the rigidity on the heel side of the sole portion 3 is high. For this reason, when the ball is hit at the center of the face surface 2 or slightly on the heel side, the deflection of the crown portion 5 becomes relatively large, and the launch angle of the hit ball becomes high. In this embodiment, the thick portion 3b is not provided on the toe side 4 from the center of the sole portion 3, and the toe side 4 of the sole portion 3 is constituted by the thin portion 3a. When the ball is hit on the toe side of the portion 2, the toe side 4 of the sole portion 3 is easily bent in the front-rear direction when the ball hits, thereby increasing the initial velocity of the hit ball.

  In this golf club head 1, the vibration absorbing material 12 is provided in the concave portion 10, and the vibration absorbing material 12 is closely attached to the deep bottom surface of the concave portion 10, so that vibration at the time of shot is absorbed and the hit feeling is good. Become. In particular, in this embodiment, the mounted member 13 covers the entire inner peripheral surface, outer peripheral surface, and lower surface of the annular vibration absorbing material 12, and the upper surface of the vibration absorbing material 12 is covered by the bottom of the recess 10 by screwing in the bolt 14. Because it is strongly pressed against the surface, the vibration absorption effect is high. In addition, by using the electroforming method, it is possible to make a mounting member having a complicated three-dimensional shape as compared with press molding.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, since the vibration absorbing material 12, the mounted member 13, and the bolt 14 are all disposed in the recess 10, even if the sole 3 hits the ground when the golf club is swung. Further, the vibration absorbing material 12, the mounted member 13 and the bolt 14 are not directly impacted, and their attachment is not loosened.

  In this embodiment, the ribs 20, 21, 22 to 25 are provided from the concave portion 10 through the most toe side and the most heel side of the sole portion 3, and the rigidity in the vicinity of the rib is high. Therefore, even when the ball is hit from the center of the face portion 2 on the toe side or the heel side, the ball can be firmly played by the face portion 2. Further, since the rib 26 is provided so as to surround the back side of the recess 10 in a substantially semicircular arc, and this rib 26 is connected to the ribs 20 and 22, stress or heel from the toe side that propagates through the rib 20 or 22. The stress from the side is also distributed to the heel side or the toe side via the ribs 26. As a result, the impact when the core is removed and shots are made on the toe side or the heel side is widely dispersed, and the ball hit feeling is improved.

  The golf club head according to this embodiment can be manufactured by, for example, forming the sole part and the crown part separately from the face part and joining them together by welding or the like. There is no particular limitation.

  In the above embodiment, the entire body of the golf club head is made of metal, but a part (for example, the crown) may be made of FRP. The mounted member and the vibration absorbing material may have shapes other than those described above. For example, the mounted member and the vibration absorbing material had a three-dimensional shape with excellent decorative properties such as the mounted member 13A and the vibration absorbing material 12A shown in FIG. It may be a thing. In the vibration absorbing material 12, the vibration absorbing material 12 is provided with a flange portion in the inner hole and pressed against the flange portion by the bolt 14. The mounted member 13A has a three-dimensional shape following the outer surface of the vibration absorbing material 12A.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Golf club head 2 Face part 3 Sole part 4 Toe side 5 Crown part 6 Hosel part 7 Shaft 8 Ferrule 10 Recessed part 11 Female screw hole 12, 12A Vibration absorber 13, 13A Covered member 14 Bolt 20-26 Rib

Claims (6)

A golf club head having a hollow shell structure, wherein at least the face portion and the sole portion are made of metal.
The sole part is composed of a thick part on the heel side and a thin part other than that,
A concave portion is provided in a part of the thin portion,
A golf club head, wherein a vibration absorbing material made of rubber, elastomer or synthetic resin is disposed in the recess, and is in close contact with the back bottom surface of the recess.   2. The vibration absorbing material according to claim 1, wherein the vibration absorbing material has an annular shape, an annular mounted member is superimposed on the vibration absorbing material, and the mounted member is attached to the back bottom surface of the recess by a screw member. Is pressed against the back bottom surface of the recess. In Claim 2, the vibration absorber and the outer diameter of the mounted member is 10 to 25 mm,
The golf club head, wherein the covering member is a metal having a thickness of 0.2 to 0.4 mm.   4. The golf club head according to claim 3, wherein the mounted member is manufactured by an electroforming method.   4. The golf club head according to claim 3, wherein the mounted member is manufactured by press molding. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 5, the said recessed part is arrange | positioned in the rear part of the said sole part,
The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein a rib is provided on the sole portion so as to extend toward the face portion through the toe side and the heel side of the sole portion from the concave portion or its immediate vicinity.

Images