JP7164475B2 - golf club head - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a golf club head having a hollow structure, and more particularly to a golf club head having a structure suitable for golf clubs called fairway woods and utility golf clubs.

Conventionally, it has been known that by making the face portion of a hollow metal head flexible, it is possible to suppress the crushing of the ball at the time of hitting the ball. It is For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-200003 discloses a configuration in which a groove (inwardly protruding bending portion) is formed around the face side of a head body so that the face portion can easily bend when hitting a ball. That is, if grooves are formed on the face side of the head body over the entire circumference (in consideration of the rules of golf, the grooves may be formed on the crown portion and the sole portion excluding the side portions), the circumference of the face portion extends in the front-rear direction (face-back direction). direction), the center of the face portion flexes greatly when the ball is hit, and it can be expected that the flight distance will be improved.

Also, recently, the thickness of the face is made thinner toward the periphery than at the center to widen the range where the coefficient of restitution is high. In particular, by forming a groove on the face portion side of the head body as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-200312, the entire face portion can be easily bent, so that the effect can be enhanced.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-52099

By the way, among wood-type golf clubs, fairway woods and utility clubs, which are mainly shot from the ground (shot without teeing up), have a low face height and are easy to hit on the lower side of the face. be. As described above, by forming grooves on the face side of the head body, the entire face part can be easily flexed and an improvement in flight distance can be expected. As a result, the ball is hit at an angle smaller than the original loft angle of the head. That is, if the face portion has a structure that is easy to flex, when the ball is hit with the above type of golf club, the ball is hit with a loft angle that is smaller than the original loft angle, and the ball does not rise, or the deflection causes the ball to drop. This is a factor that lowers the initial velocity.

In addition, when the hitting point varies to the lower side of the toe and the lower side of the heel, as described above, if the entire face portion is easily flexed, the deformation of the face portion at the hitting position becomes large, and the face portion becomes deformed. A problem arises in that the ball is hit in a twisted state, resulting in poor directivity.

The present invention has been made with a focus on the above-described problems, and in particular, in golf club heads used for fairway woods and utility clubs, the face portion is made easy to bend when hitting a ball, and the directionality and height of the hit ball are improved. An object of the present invention is to provide a golf club head that can be stabilized.

In order to achieve the above object, a golf club head according to the present invention has a hollow metal head body having a face portion, a crown portion, and a sole portion. An elastically deformable portion provided at least in the sole portion and a high-rigidity portion provided closer to the face portion than the elastically deformable portion so that the entire face portion is easily displaced in the face-back direction when the ball is hit. characterized by having

According to the above-described head structure, the elastically deformable portion provided at least in the sole portion uniformly displaces the entire surface of the face portion in the face-back direction when the ball is hit, thereby improving the flight distance. In this case, when the hitting position on the face portion becomes lower (mis-hit), the conventional golf club head having a structure in which the face portion is easily displaced receives a pressing force in the face-back direction at the position of the mis-hit. become. This causes the face portion to bend in the direction in which the loft is raised, which prevents the ball from rising. By providing the portion, the deflection in the loft direction is suppressed, and a hit ball corresponding to the loft angle (a hit ball with high trajectory) can be obtained. Also, even if the hitting point varies below the toe and below the heel, the highly rigid portion suppresses deflection that locally deforms the face portion, so that directionality is also stabilized.

According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a golf club head in which the face portion can be easily bent when hitting a ball, and the directionality and the height of the hit ball can be stabilized.

FIG. 1 is a view showing a first embodiment of a golf club head according to the present invention, and is a front view showing a golf club to which the golf club head is attached; FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the golf club head shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the crown side; FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the golf club head shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the sole portion side; Sectional drawing along the IV-IV line of FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. 3; (a) is a diagram showing the state of hitting a ball with a golf club head having a sole portion formed with a high-rigidity portion, and (b) is a diagram showing the state of hitting a ball with a golf club head having no high-rigidity portion formed in the sole portion. illustration. FIG. 4 is a front view of the head body when the golf club is held; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of a golf club head according to the present invention, and is a front perspective view seen from the sole portion side; FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of the heel portion side of the golf club head shown in FIG. 8 ; FIG. 10 is a view showing a third embodiment of a golf club head according to the present invention, where (a) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the sole side, and (b) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the face side; figure. FIG. 10A is a diagram showing a golf club head according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, in which (a) is a diagram of the golf club head viewed from the sole portion side, and (b) is a diagram of the golf club head viewed from the face portion side; figure. FIG. 10 is a view showing a golf club head according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention, where (a) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the sole side, and (b) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the face side; figure. FIG. 2A is an enlarged view of the golf club head as seen from the sole side, and FIG. The figure seen from the heel part side. FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a sixth embodiment of the golf club head according to the present invention, and is a front perspective view seen from the sole portion side; FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of the face portion side of the golf club head shown in FIG. 14;

An embodiment of a golf club head according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1 to 5 are views showing a first embodiment of a golf club head, FIG. 1 is a front view showing a golf club to which the golf club head according to this embodiment is attached, and FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the golf club head shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the crown side, FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the golf club head shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the sole side, and FIG. and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view along line VV of FIG.

The golf club 1 according to this embodiment is constructed as a fairway wood type in which a shaft 50 is fixed to the head body 3 .
The head body 3 includes a face portion 5 having a ball hitting surface (face surface) 5a, a crown portion 6 extending rearward from the upper edge of the face portion 5, and a sole extending rearward from the lower edge of the face portion 5. It has a hollow structure including a portion 7 and side portions 8 connecting the edges of the crown portion 6 and the sole portion 7 . The side portion 8 includes a back portion 8a facing the face portion 5, and a toe portion 8b and a heel portion 8c extending from the face portion 5 via the back portion 8a. When the side portion 8 is defined by ridgelines between the crown portion 6 and the sole portion 7, the side portion 8 is defined by the area between the ridgelines. When it is formed flush with the sole portion 7 without being partitioned by a ridgeline, it is defined as an area rising from the sole portion 7 contacting the ground.

The head body 3 is constructed by joining a plurality of metal outer shell members divided at various positions by welding, bonding, or the like. For each outer shell member, for example, it is possible to integrally form a metal such as titanium alloy, stainless steel, iron, aluminum alloy, magnesium alloy, etc. by casting, press molding, etc., and each edge region is The head body 3 is produced by welding, bonding, brazing, screwing, or the like. In this case, each member (outer shell member) constituting the head main body 3 is formed by integrating the side portion 8 with the sole portion 7 or integrating with the crown portion 6, or by partially The components may be integrally formed by casting or the like, and then joined by welding, adhesion, or the like. Further, as shown in the figure, the side portion 8 may be integrated with the sole portion 7 without forming a ridge line, or may be configured to be flush with the crown portion 6. may be integrated in a flush manner without forming the .

The face portion 5 is formed by, for example, pressing, CNC processing, or forging a metal such as titanium, titanium alloy, stainless steel, or iron. It is attached to the openings formed in the front side of the crown portion, the sole portion and the side portions by attaching, gluing or the like. In this case, the face portion 5 may be formed in a plate shape and joined to another outer shell member, or may be formed in a cup shape and joined to the front edges of the crown portion, the side portions, and the sole portion. , may constitute a part of these.

A hosel portion 10 for fixing the tip of a shaft (not shown) is integrally formed in the head body 3 . The hosel portion 10 protrudes upward from the crown portion 6, and the tip portion of the shaft 50 is fitted and secured to the opening hole 10a.

A ball-hitting surface 5a of the face portion 5 is a portion where a ball is hit, and is an area surrounded by a top edge 5A, a sole edge 5B, and side edges 5C, which define both sides. ing. That is, the face surface 5a has ridge lines between the crown portion 6, the sole portion 7 and the side portions 8 (the top edge 5A, the sole edge 5B, and a boundary line by the side edge 5C). In addition, when the ridgeline is curved, the boundary line is defined by the curved apex. In this case, the boundary lines may be color-coded so that the face surface 5a is clearly visible. Further, score lines may be separately formed on the face surface 5a.

The face portion 5 is formed with a roll curved along the crown-sole direction (vertical direction) and formed with a bulge curved along the toe-heel direction (horizontal direction). A central position (face center) C of the face portion 5 exists in the top region of the portion. This face center C is the geometric center position of the face surface 5a defined as described above. That is, in FIG. 1, when the face surface 5a is viewed from the front with the golf club held at a specified lie angle with respect to the reference horizontal plane P, the center of the maximum width of the face surface 5a is perpendicular to the reference horizontal plane P. , the face center C is the center position of the face height on the vertical plane.
The face center C tends to be a region of the face portion 5 where the amount of deflection (the amount of deflection in the face-back direction) is the largest.

The head body 3 is provided with an elastically deforming portion so that the entire face portion 5 can easily be displaced in the face-back direction (the central portion can easily bend) when hitting a ball with the face portion. The elastically deformable portion of this embodiment is provided on the face portion side of the head body 3 and is constituted by a groove 20 formed along the circumferential direction. The groove 20 of the present embodiment is formed so as to extend in the toe-heel direction (groove 20A on the crown side) in a region excluding the toe-side end and the heel-side end of the crown portion 6, and In the side region rising from the portion 7, the region excluding the toe side end portion and the heel side end portion is formed so as to extend in the toe-heel direction of the sole portion 7 (sole side groove 20B). That is, the groove 20 is not formed continuously in an annular shape on the face portion side of the head body 3, but terminates at the toe-side end portion and the heel-side end portion of the crown portion 6 and the sole portion 7, respectively. is formed to

By forming the grooves 20 (20A, 20B) on the face portion side of the head body in this manner, the flexibility of the face portion 5 can be improved. The cross-sectional shape of the groove 20 is not particularly limited, and the groove 20A formed in the crown portion 6 in FIG. Any configuration that can improve the flexibility of the face portion 5, such as a V-shaped cross-section, may be employed.

When the elastically deformable portion is formed by the grooves 20 (20A, 20B), the grooves are not formed continuously along the circumferential direction, but rather are formed on the face portion side of the head body if the flexibility of the face portion can be improved. , may be formed discontinuously. Further, such a groove (elastic deformation portion) may be provided at least on the sole portion side.

The head body 3 is provided with a high-rigidity portion closer to the face portion than the groove 20B formed on the sole side as described above. This high-rigidity portion is provided in a structure in which the entire face portion 5 is easily displaced in the face-back direction by the elastic deformation portion so as to suppress the deflection of the sole portion side when the hitting point is shifted toward the sole portion side. In this embodiment, it is formed by changing the surface shape of the sole portion 7 on the face portion side. Specifically, a plurality of concave-convex shapes (toe-heels at predetermined intervals) are formed on the face portion side at intervals in the toe-heel direction with respect to the grooves 20 (20B) configured as described above. It consists of a recess 30) arranged along the heel direction. The recesses 30 have a substantially circular or semicircular shape, and are formed at four locations at approximately equal intervals along the toe-heel direction. and the sole edge 5B (leading edge) of the face portion 5, and even if the face portion 5 is flexed when hitting a ball, it is possible to make it difficult to crush in the compression direction (face-back direction). .

In order to increase the rigidity of the front side of the groove 20B, the concave portion 30 (uneven shape) described above is preferably formed over the width direction of the groove 20B, but is formed in the central region where it is easy to bend in the toe-heel direction. You can Further, the size, shape and depth of the recess 30 are not particularly limited, but it is preferable to form it from the vicinity of the sole edge 5B to the back side so as to effectively prevent the recess from being crushed.

According to the head structure described above, since the groove 20 constituting the elastically deformable portion is formed on the face portion side of the head body 3, the entire face portion 5 can be easily displaced (easily flexed) in the face-back direction when hitting a ball. can do. In addition, since the concave portion (uneven shape) 30 that constitutes a high-rigidity portion is formed between the groove 20B formed in the sole portion and the face portion, even if the hitting point varies toward the sole portion side when hitting a ball, the The deflection of the side is suppressed, and hitting a ball with a loft standing or with the face surface twisted is suppressed.

This will be described with reference to FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b). Note that FIG. 6 shows that the ball is hit on the lawn, and the ball is shown in a slightly floating state with respect to the mounting surface P of the sole portion 7 .
As described above, the fairway wood hits the ball without teing it up, so the hitting point tends to be below the face center C as shown in the figure. When the ball is hit at such a position, the head body is provided with the above-described elastically deformable portion (groove 20), so that the ball is hit with the entire face portion 5 bent.

In this case, if the high-rigidity portion (recessed portion 30) as described above is not formed, the sole side of the face portion 5 is bent toward the back side as indicated by the arrow in FIG. Although the ball is hit at the corner (line indicated by L), the deflection causes the ball to be hit with a high loft angle (line indicated by L1'). That is, although the face portion 5 is flexed by the elastically deformable portion (groove 20), if the hitting position shifts toward the sole portion side, the flexure of the sole portion side becomes greater, and the launch direction becomes D1 (perpendicular to L1′). direction), and it is not the launch angle due to the normal loft angle.

On the other hand, when the high-rigidity portion (recess 30) is formed on the sole side of the groove 20B as in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. Since the deflection is suppressed, it is possible to hit a ball at a loft angle (line indicated by L1) in a state of bending substantially parallel to the normal loft angle (line indicated by L). That is, the face portion 5 bends due to the function of the elastically deforming portion, and its launch direction becomes D (the direction perpendicular to L1), so that the ball can be hit at a launch angle based on a normal loft angle.

According to the above-described head structure, the grooves 20 constituting the elastically deformable portion flex the face portion 5 when hitting the ball, so that the flight distance can be improved, and the face portion is more flexible than the grooves 20B provided in the sole portion 5. By providing the concave portion 30 that constitutes a high-rigidity portion on the side, the deflection in the direction in which the loft stands is suppressed, and a hit ball corresponding to the loft angle (a hit ball with a high trajectory) can be obtained.

In addition, even if the hit point varies below the toe and below the heel, the concave portion 30 suppresses the deformation (twisting deformation of the face surface) at the lower side of the face portion 5, thereby improving the directionality of the hit ball. stabilizes. Furthermore, since the formation of the concave portion 30 increases the rigidity and makes it difficult for the sole portion to deform, the energy loss due to the deformation of the head body side when the ball is hit is reduced, and the deflection of the face portion 5 can be effectively received. (The initial velocity of the ball is improved, the trajectory is increased, and the flight distance can be improved.)

Further, as described above, by forming a plurality of concave portions (uneven shapes) near the sole edge 5B of the face portion 5, as shown in FIG. It becomes a golf club head that is easy to swing through even in a rough or the like.

Furthermore, the high-rigidity portion formed by the concave portion 30 described above is merely an uneven shape and does not have a structure that increases the weight by providing a reinforcing member or increasing the wall thickness. Depth is never shallow.
The grooves 20 and recesses 30 configured as described above are integrally formed together with the outer shell members in consideration of the joining points of the respective outer shell members when the outer shell members constituting the head main body are formed by casting or press molding. It is possible.

Next, another embodiment of the golf club head according to the present invention will be described.
In addition, in the embodiment described below, the same reference numerals are given to the same configurations as in the above-described embodiment, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

8 and 9 are views showing a second embodiment of a golf club head, FIG. 8 being a front perspective view seen from the sole portion side, and FIG. 9 being a heel portion side view of the golf club head shown in FIG. It is a sectional view showing an internal structure.
The high-rigidity portion of this embodiment is formed by changing the surface shape of the sole portion 7 on the face portion side, as in the first embodiment. Specifically, it is composed of long grooves (recesses) 31 formed at regular intervals in the toe-heel direction, and each long groove 31 extends in the face-back direction so as not to be crushed in the compression direction. is formed as

In this way, if the rigidity in the compression direction in which the face portion 5 bends is increased (if the structure is resistant to compression), the shape of the high-rigidity portion can be changed as appropriate. Configurations as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12 are possible.

FIG. 10 shows a third embodiment, in which (a) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the sole side, and (b) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the face side.
The high-rigidity portion of this embodiment is a wavy portion (uneven portion) 32 in which unevenness having a U-shaped cross section is continuously repeated along the toe-heel direction between the groove 20B and the face portion 5. consists of

FIG. 11 shows a fourth embodiment, where (a) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the sole side, and (b) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the face side.
The high-rigidity portion of this embodiment is composed of a plurality of approximately triangular concave portions 33 intermittently along the toe-heel direction between the groove 20B and the face portion 5 . Each concave portion 33 has a substantially V-shaped cross section, and is formed so that the width gradually narrows toward the back side and the depth also becomes shallower, which makes it difficult to collapse in the face-back direction. there is

FIG. 12 shows a fifth embodiment, where (a) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the sole side, and (b) is a view of the golf club head viewed from the face side.
The high-rigidity portion of this embodiment is composed of a plurality of substantially semicircular concave portions 34 intermittently along the toe-heel direction between the groove 20B and the face portion 5. Each concave portion 34 is , the cross section of which is substantially U-shaped.

As described above, when the high-rigidity portion is formed by changing the surface shape of the sole portion 7, various shapes, cross-sectional shapes, and the like can be used as long as the shape is resistant to compression in the face-back direction that occurs when the ball is hit. , can be transformed. The high-rigidity portion formed as described above may be formed in the vicinity of the sole edge 5B of the face portion as shown in FIGS. ), and if the sole edge 5B is not uneven (a state in which the uneven shape cannot be visually recognized at address), the formation position can be appropriately changed.

14 and 15 are diagrams showing a sixth embodiment of a golf club head, FIG. 14 being a front perspective view seen from the sole portion side, and FIG. 15 being a face portion side view of the golf club head shown in FIG. It is a sectional view showing an internal structure.
The high-rigidity portion of this embodiment is composed of reinforcing ribs 37 protruding from the inner surface of the sole portion 7 on the face portion side. Specifically, a plurality of ribs 37 are formed to protrude at regular intervals in the toe-heel direction, and each rib 37 extends in the face-back direction so as not to be crushed in the compression direction. is formed in

In this way, if the rigidity in the compression direction in which the face portion 5 bends is increased, the high-rigidity portion can be composed of ribs, and the shape of the ribs may be elliptical, circular, waterdrop-shaped, or the like. , can be modified as appropriate. Further, the number of ribs to be formed is not limited, and the ribs are formed on the inner surface of the head main body, so that the uneven surface of the sole portion can be eliminated and made flush.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be modified in various ways.

For example, the groove width, depth, formation position, shape, etc. of the groove 20 for improving the flexibility of the face portion 5 can be appropriately modified. Also, the elastically deformable portion may be formed so that the entire face portion is easily flexed, and the high-rigidity portion may have a structure that prevents the sole portion side from collapsing when the face portion is flexed. For example, it can be modified as appropriate.

Also, the present invention is preferably a wood-type golf club (fairway wood, utility) in which the ball is not teed up and hit. With such a club, the ball is often hit on the sole side of the face surface, so the structure described above makes it possible to hit the ball with a high trajectory and less variation. Specifically, if the loft angle is less than 13°, it is often assumed that the ball will be hit with a tee up.

1 golf club 3 head body 5 face portion 5B sole edge 6 crown portion 7 sole portions 20, 20A, 20B grooves (elastic deformation portions)
30, 31, 33, 34 recessed portion (high rigidity portion)
32 wavy portion (high rigidity portion)
37 rib (high rigidity part)
C face center

Claims (3)

A golf club head having a hollow metal head body including a face portion, a crown portion, and a sole portion,
grooves provided at least in the sole portion and extending in the toe-heel direction so that the entire face portion is easily displaced in the face-back direction when hitting a ball with the face portion;
a plurality of concave-convex high-rigidity portions formed by changing the surface shape without increasing the thickness in the toe-heel direction on the face portion side of the groove ;
A golf club head comprising: 2. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the high-rigidity portion is composed of a plurality of concave portions continuously formed at intervals in the toe-heel direction. 2. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the high-rigidity portion is composed of uneven portions that are continuously and repeatedly formed in the toe-heel direction.

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