JP3519968B2 - Iron golf club head - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an iron golf club head capable of expanding the field of view of the face surface at the time of addressing, giving the player a psychological sense of security and reducing miss shots, and an iron using the same. Regarding golf clubs.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional general iron golf club head is illustrated in FIG. 6 and its BB cross section in FIG. As shown
The head a has a hitting portion c which is a substantially flat surface for hitting a ball on the face surface b and has vertical lines L1 and L2.
It is provided so as to occupy almost the entire area (shown in FIG. 1) ,
The upper end d of the hitting portion c is connected to an upper end surface e that intersects the hitting portion c at a substantially right angle (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-335).
No. 541).

FIG. 8 exemplifies a posture at the time of addressing an iron golf club f using such a head a. At this address, player g
The head a is visually recognized from above. At this time, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), in the short iron head a1 having a large loft angle α, the field of view θ of the face surface connecting the lower end i and the upper end j of the face surface to the player's viewpoint is relatively large, and conversely, the loft angle is large. In the long iron head a2 having a small α, the field of view θ of the face surface is relatively small.

As described above, in the conventional iron golf club head a, the field of view θ of the face surface is almost uniquely determined by the loft angle α of the face surface and the height of the face surface. The upper end surface e that is substantially orthogonal to the face surface b is clearly distinguished from the face surface b even from the viewpoint of the player g.

By the way, the field of view θ of such a face strongly influences the psychological aspect of the player at the time of addressing, and when the field of view θ of the face is large, it gives the player an impression of a club at the time of addressing. At the same time, it gives a sense of security or a good image to the shot, which actually stabilizes the swing, which leads to increase in flight distance and stable directionality. It is well known from the fact that golf is called a sport with a very strong mental element, and also from an empirical rule, that such psychological security affects the actual shot.

The present invention has been devised in view of the above situation, and the field of view of the face surface can be increased as compared with the conventional one, so that the player can feel a sense of security at the time of address and miss shots. It is an object of the present invention to provide an iron golf club head capable of reducing the amount of noise and the like, and a golf club using the same.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, a face surface has a substantially flat surface and a flat ball hitting portion for hitting a ball, and a flat ball hitting portion provided above the flat ball hitting portion and extending upward are provided. and a slanted portion after inclined to the face surface side, and the length of the rear slanted portion of the contact with the plane hitting portion in hitting portion center line bisecting the flat hitting portion in the width direction (h). 8 to 15 mm , the rearwardly inclined portion has a curved surface, and the upper end of the flat ball striking portion inclines upward from the heel side to the toe side in an address state in which the lie angles are matched, and the rearwardly inclined portion is Radius of curvature Ra
It consists of a curved surface formed by an arc of 20 to 40 mm.
And an iron golf club head .

In the iron golf club head of the present invention, the face surface includes not only the flat ball hitting portion but also a rearwardly inclined portion provided above the flat ball hitting portion and extending further upward and leaning toward the back face surface side with respect to the flat ball hitting portion. Therefore, the upper edge of the rearwardly inclined portion is closer to the back face surface side, and the field of view of the face surface can be increased. This is useful for making the club look gentle as described above, and makes it possible to give the player a great sense of security, which leads to a reduction in miss shots and an increase in flight distance.

Such a rearwardly inclined portion is in accordance with claim 1 of the present case.
In the invention, a curved surface, more preferably is contiguous and radius of curvature Ra in the smooth flat hitting portion you formed by an arc of 20 to 40 mm. As a result, at the time of addressing, the sense of unity between the flat hitting portion and the rearwardly inclined portion is further enhanced, and the effect of increasing the field of view of the face becomes more excellent, which can greatly contribute to the improvement of shot stability.

Further, the rearward inclination portion has a rearward inclination amount S which is the shortest distance from the upper edge of the rearward inclination portion to the center line of the hitting portion .
To be 8 to 15 mm . As a result, the effect of increasing the field of view of the face becomes more excellent. Further, in relation to such a backward tilt amount, it is preferable that the head has a head thickness t of 5 to 15 mm, which is the shortest distance from the upper end of the back face surface to the center line of the hitting portion.

[0011]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view of an iron golf club head (hereinafter, simply referred to as “head”) 1 of the present embodiment as seen from the face surface 2 side, and FIG.
The AA cross section (the cross section at the hitting ball center line X described later) is shown. In the head 1 of this embodiment, the face surface 2 is
It includes a flat ball hitting portion 3 which is substantially flat and hits a ball, and a rearwardly inclined portion 4 provided on the upper portion thereof.

The flat ball hitting portion 3 is formed substantially flat from the lower end 3a to the upper end 3b. Since it is “substantially”, its surface may be interrupted by the recesses 7 such as grooves (score lines) and punch marks. Further, since the flat surface hitting portion 3 is a surface which hits the golf ball substantially in the face surface 2, a portion which is not directly intended to contact the ball, that is, the toe portion 9 of the head 1,
The heel portion 10 and the like are not included, and in this example, it is defined as between the vertical lines L1 and L2.

The rearward tilting portion 4 is provided above the flat ball striking portion 3, extends upward, and is tilted toward the back face surface B side with respect to the flat ball striking portion 3. The terms "upper" and "upper" mean "upper" and "upper" when the head 1 is left stationary in the address state. The rearwardly inclined portion 4 is smoothly connected to the upper end 3b of the flat ball hitting portion 3, extends upward, and is formed as a curved surface. As this curved surface, a curved surface that is convex toward the face surface 2 side and is formed by a single arc is exemplified in this example. Further, the rearwardly inclined portion 4 is in contact with the flat ball striking portion 3 and bisects the flat ball striking portion 3 in the width direction. The length h of 4 is 8 to 15 mm. The address
The state means the vertical in the previous stage ([0012]).
Immediately when the lines L1 and L2 are vertical (vertical)
The state in which the head 1 is adjusted to the specified lie angle .

With respect to the face surface 2 having such a flat ball hitting portion 3 and the rearwardly inclined portion 4, from the player's point of view at the time of addressing, even the rearwardly inclined portion 4 looks as if it were the hitting portion 3. In addition to receiving the target image, the field of view θ of the face surface described above can be increased, which makes the club look gentle, gives a great sense of security to the player, and is useful for reducing miss shots and increasing flight distance.
In particular, it can exert a great effect in reducing miss shots with a long iron or the like.

As a result of various experiments conducted by the inventors, when the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion is less than 5 mm, the visual field which substantially increases the field of view of the face surface 2 due to the rearwardly inclined portion 4 at the time of addressing. It was found that the desired effect could not be obtained. On the contrary, when the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion 4 exceeds 20 mm, the general head 1
With a sufficient size, the flat ball striking surface 3
Cannot be secured, or the head 1 needs to be remarkably increased in size, which is difficult to employ. From this point of view, the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion is set to a suitable value of 8 to 15 mm.
It is In this example, the upper end 2b and the lower end 2 of the face surface 2 are
The height H of the face along the center line X of the hit ball between a and
Is about 50 mm. Therefore, the hit ball flat portion 3 can secure a sufficient height of about 35 to 42 mm on the hit ball center line X.

Further, in the present embodiment, the rearwardly inclined portion 4 has a substantially uniform length in the rearwardly inclined portion over at least the range of the plane hitting portion 3 in the width direction of the head 1.
That is, the length h1 of the rearward inclined portion 4 on the vertical line L2 on the heel portion 10 side, the length h2 of the rearward inclined portion 4 on the vertical line L1 on the toe portion 9 side, and the center line X of the hitting portion. The length h of the rearwardly inclined portion is substantially the same. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, as shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C, h1>h> h2 h1 <h <h2 h1 <h> h2 may be different. At this time, the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion on the center line X of the hitting portion is set in the range of at least 5 to 20 mm, but the lengths h1 and h2 of the rearwardly inclined portion are not necessarily limited to the above range. However, it is desirable to set it to 5 to 20 mm. As clearly shown in FIGS.
The length h1 of the rearwardly inclined portion 4 on the vertical line L2,
The length h of the rearwardly inclined portion 4 at the vertical line L1 on the side of the c portion 9
At each lower end position of 2 and 2, the lower end position of length h2 is clear
Is above the lower end position of the length h1, that is,
The upper end 3b of the flat ball hitting portion 3 faces from the heel side to the toe side.
Once tilted up.

Since the rearwardly inclined portion 4 is formed by a curved surface and is smoothly connected to the flat surface hitting portion 3, the rearward inclined portion 4 and the flat surface hitting portion 3 have a better sense of unity, and the visual feeling is improved. The effect can be further improved. This makes the effect of increasing the field of view of the face surface 2 more excellent, and can greatly contribute to the improvement of shot stability. This radius of curvature is
For example, it is specified by a cross-sectional position passing through the center line X of the hitting portion.

The rearwardly inclined portion 4 is formed by an arc having a curvature deformation Ra.
By doing so , when the radius of curvature Ra is too small or too large, the effect of improving the field of view of the face surface 2 tends to be relatively decreased. Than this point of view, the radius of curvature Ra is formed by an arc of 20 to 40 mm. Further, the curvature deformation Ra of the rearwardly inclined portion 4 may be uniform or different over the width direction of the head 1.

Further, it is desirable that the rearward tilting portion 4 has a rearward tilting amount S of 5 to 15 mm, which is the shortest distance from the upper edge 4U of the rearward tilting portion 4 to the center line X of the hitting portion. Such a backward tilt amount S
By defining the above, in combination with the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion,
The degree of inclination of the rearwardly inclined portion 4 can be adjusted variously. When the rearward tilt amount S is less than 5 mm, the effect of increasing the field of view of the face surface tends to be relatively decreased.
When the value exceeds 15 mm, the balance of the center of gravity of the head tends to be relatively impaired.

Similarly, in relation to such backward tilt amount S,
The head 1 preferably has a head thickness t of 5 to 15 mm, which is the shortest distance from the upper end BU of the back face surface B to the hitting ball center line X. In this example, the one having a diameter of 5 mm is illustrated. In the present embodiment, an example in which the backward tilt amount S and the head thickness t are made equal is illustrated. However, when the head thickness t is less than 5 mm, the strength is likely to be lowered, and conversely 15 mm. If it exceeds the range, the balance of the center of gravity of the head 1 tends to be relatively impaired.

In the case of this example, when the radius of curvature Ra of the rearwardly inclined portion 4 is 20 mm, the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion is about 13.2 mm and the curvature deformation Ra is 40 mm,
It is possible to obtain a good head 1 in which the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion is about 19.4 mm. In addition, for example, when the present embodiment is applied to a third iron having a loft angle of 20 ° as a long iron, the upper edge 4U of the rearward tilting portion 4 and the lower end 2 of the face surface 2 are used.
The image loft angle αV (shown in FIG. 2), which is the angle of the plane connecting a and a with respect to the vertical plane, is about 25.7 °,
Images similar to the 4-5 iron were obtained.
In the present embodiment, the upper end 2b of the face surface 2 does not have the upper end surface orthogonal to the flat ball striking portion 3 of the face surface 2 as in the related art, but the present invention is not limited to this. It is also possible to provide such an upper end surface.

Since such a head 1 is characterized by the face surface 2, it is needless to say that a conventional one can be used for the other structures without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, as the material of the head 1, a single metal material such as soft iron or stainless steel is used according to the customary practice, or titanium or a titanium alloy having a small specific gravity is combined with the flat ball striking portion 3, and a metal material such as stainless steel is used for the other portions. The composite material used may be variously configured. The head 1 can be easily manufactured by various manufacturing methods including forging and casting.

The shape of the back face surface B is a so-called flat back type in this example, but it may be a cavity type in which the back face surface B as shown in FIG. 4 is removed. In this case, on the back face B side of the rearwardly inclined portion 4, a rib portion 13 extending around the periphery of the back face surface B may be attached, and at this time, the rib portion 13 is a flat ball hitting the face surface 2. The upper end surface 12 orthogonal to the part 3 may be formed. In addition, such an upper end surface 12 is, in the flat back type,
For example, the rearward inclination amount S of the rearward inclined portion 4 may be formed by making it smaller than the head thickness t.

FIG. 5 merely illustrates an iron head .
It In this example, the face surface 2 includes the flat ball striking portion 3 and the rearwardly inclined portion 4 connected to the upper end thereof.
It includes a rearwardly inclined plane portion 4a which is inclined substantially linearly to the back face surface B side with respect to the hitting plane portion 3 and an arc portion 4b which smoothly connects the backward inclined plane portion 4a and the hitting plane portion. I 'm out .

Although some embodiments have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments and can be carried out in various ways within the scope not departing from the object of the present invention, and the head 1 The hosel portion 15 can be easily applied as an iron golf club by attaching the other end of a shaft (not shown) having a grip attached to one end.

A long iron having a smaller loft angle of the head 1 has an iron golf club headset or an iron golf club set which adopts a so-called flow design concept in which the length h of the rearwardly inclined portion is increased so that a short iron is obtained. Not to mention, especially for beginners, the ease of hitting with a long iron can be further improved. Further, the rearwardly inclined portion 4 makes it possible to reduce the weight of the upper portion of the head 1, and it is also possible to perform a weight distribution design in which the weight is arranged on the sole side, improving not only the image but also the ease of striking due to the low center of gravity. Can further contribute to.

[0027]

EXAMPLE A club (Example) having an iron golf club head (3 iron) having the structure shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 was experimentally manufactured and its performance was confirmed. For comparison,
Clubs equipped with the conventional iron golf club head shown in FIG. 6 (conventional example 1: 3 iron, conventional example 2: 5 iron) were also tested and their performances were compared.
Table 1 shows the specifications of each club.

[0028]

[Table 1]

With respect to these test clubs, first, the field of view of the face surface was measured. As shown in FIG. 9A or 9B, the field of view of the face surface is a vertical surface where the lie angle of the head is aligned and the shaft is perpendicular to the ground.
And upper and lower ends of the face in a cross section passing through the hitting portion centerline in a state placed on, it is measured as the angle θ between the straight line connecting the view point of the player from the address location. The height of the viewpoint was 160 cm above the ground. The results are shown in Table 2, and it can be confirmed that the club of the embodiment secures a larger field of view than the conventional example 2 which is the fifth iron.

[0030]

[Table 2]

Next, the test club is handicapped 15
20 golfers from ~ 25 actually set it up,
The ranking was performed according to the level of security received from the head at that time. The test results are shown in Table 3. From these results, it is shown that the club of the embodiment has a sense of security comparable to that of the iron with a large loft angle, although it is a third iron. Particularly, in the conventional example 2, the remarkable result that the example gives a comparable sense of security despite the condition that it is easy to give a sense of security that the length of the shaft is shorter than the example and is upright. Became.

[0032]

[Table 3]

Finally, using these test clubs,
The 20 golfers actually tried hitting 20 golf balls for each club, and the average flight distance of each club and the variation in the amount of lateral deviation with respect to the target position were examined. The results of the test are shown in Table 4. As is clear from these results, the club of the embodiment gives the player a sense of security at the time of addressing, resulting in a psychologically stable swing, and thus an excellent flight distance and stability. It was confirmed that the desired direction was achieved.

[0034]

[Table 4]

[0035]

As described above, in the iron golf club head of the present invention, the face surface is provided not only on the flat ball hitting portion but also on the upper portion thereof so as to extend further upward and to the back face surface rather than the flat ball hitting portion. Since it includes a rearwardly inclined portion that has a certain length that inclines to the side, it is possible to increase the field of view of the face surface, which in turn gives the player a sense of security during addressing, resulting in a psychologically stable swing. Thereby, an excellent flight distance and a stable directivity can be realized.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the rearwardly inclined portion is formed of an arc having a constant curvature half period which is smoothly connected to the flat surface hitting portion, so that the rearward inclination portion and the flat surface hitting portion can be integrally formed. It is possible to further improve the effect of increasing the field of view of the face surface.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of an iron golf club head showing an embodiment of the present invention as seen from the face side.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA.

FIG. 3A to FIG. 3C are front views showing another embodiment in which the length of the rearwardly inclined portion is different in the width direction of the face surface.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the head corresponding to the AA sectional position of FIG. 1 showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view merely illustrating an iron club head.
is there.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a conventional iron golf club head as seen from the face surface side.

FIG. 7 is a BB cross-sectional view thereof.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an address attitude.

9A is a cross-sectional view of a long iron and FIG. 9B is a cross-sectional view of a short iron.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Iron Golf Club Head 2 face 3 Plane hitting section 4 Backward tilt C Hit ball center line h Length of backward tilt S Rearward tilt amount t head thickness

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A face striking portion having a substantially flat surface for striking a ball, and a rearwardly inclined portion provided above the flat striking portion and extending upward and leaning toward the back face surface side with respect to the flat striking portion. And the length (h) of the rearwardly inclined portion on the center line of the ball striking part which is in contact with the flat ball striking part and bisects the flat ball striking part in the width direction.
8 to 15 mm , the rearwardly inclined portion has a curved surface, and the upper end of the flat ball striking portion inclines upward from the heel side to the toe side in the address state in which the lie angles are aligned, and the rearwardly inclined portion is formed. Is an arc with a radius of curvature Ra of 20-40 mm.
An iron golf club head characterized by having a curved surface formed by 2. An iron golf club comprising the iron golf club head according to claim 1 .