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Exterior coatings for golf ballsRelated Patent Categories: Games Using Tangible Projectile, Golf, BallExterior coatings for golf balls description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070213143, Exterior coatings for golf balls. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
[0001] This application is related to a series of patent applications pertaining to the application of thin film coatings on various substrates, particularly including U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/862,047, filed Jun. 4, 2004, and entitled "Controlled Deposition of Silicon-Containing Coatings Adhered by an Oxide Layer"; and, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/996,520, filed Nov. 19, 2004, and entitled "Controlled Vapor Deposition of Multilayered Coatings Adhered by an Oxide Layer". Both of these applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention pertains to golf balls coated with exterior thin film coatings which affect the performance of the golf ball during play. [0004] 2. Brief Description of the Background Art [0005] This section describes background subject matter related to the invention, with the purpose of aiding one skilled in the art to better understand the disclosure of the invention. There is no intention, either express or implied, that the background art discussed in this section legally constitutes prior art. [0006] A multitude of studies have been conducted with respect to aspects of the composition and shape of the golf ball which affect it's performance. One of the more interesting is an article entitled "A St. Mary's Project: The Aerodynamics of Golf Ball Flight", by Kevin E. Warring, Department of Physics, St. Mary's College of Maryland, St. Mary's City, Md., published in the Spring of 2003. This article provides an introduction to Fluid Dynamics which affect golf ball flight; the dimpled golf ball and drag; the Magnus force (a major force acting on the golf ball due to its spin); and, the modeling of golf ball flight in general. The author explains how to predict the trajectory of a golf ball give its initial launch angle, velocity and spin rate. The article discusses applications of the principles discussed to golf ball design. [0007] A web site at www.indoindians.com/golfbcore.htm, in January 2006 contained an article titled "Dimples Drive Drag Out of Golf Balls", this article explains that at airspeed, sticky air slows a ball down substantially. The ball is said to get wet as it travels through air, so that the surface of the ball is referred to as a "wetted surface". The use of dimples on the ball surface is said to make air molecules in the boundary layer adjacent the golf ball surface tumble, so that the boundary layer becomes turbulent. The article teaches that when the boundary layer is turbulent and thin, the ball loses less energy to the free stream air and the drag on the ball is lower. In addition to the discussion of the golf ball in flight, there is a presentation about what happens to a golf ball after it sits at the bottom of a pond. A study was conducted with respect to balls which were permitted to sit in water at temperatures ranging from 36 to 70.degree. F. for a period of six months. The balls were tested using a robotic hitting machine. The average carry, and roll for the new balls was about 251 yards. The average carry and roll for balls that had been in the water for eight days was about 236 yards. After three months, the average carry and roll had decreased to about 226 yards, and after six months, the average carry and roll was about 225 yards. This may be viewed as a six yard loss of distance after eight days, a 12 yard loss after three months, and a 15 yard loss after six months. [0008] U.S. Pat. No. 6,509,410 to Ohira et al., issued Jan. 21, 2003, describes an aqueous coating composition for a golf ball. The aqueous coating composition is said to form a high crosslink density owing to the high hydroxyl value, to contain. The coating produced is said to have high impact resistance, abrasion resistance, contamination resistance, etc. which are equivalent to films produced from organic solvent type coatings. The coating formed is said to be free from cracking or film peeling when hit by a golf club; is said to be low in scratch, abrasion and contamination with grass sap, and is said to provide a coated golf ball which retains gloss and fine appearance. [0009] U.S. Pat. No. 6,806,347 to Hogge et al., issued Oct. 19, 2004, describes golf balls with a thin moisture vapor barrier layer. The golf ball comprises a core, a cover, and at least one water vapor barrier layer, where the water vapor barrier layer comprises at least one layer formed from poly-para-xylene and its derivatives. The patent discusses WVB (water vapor barrier) layers and WVT (water vapor transmission) rates. The thin moisture vapor barrier layer described, which is formed from poly-para-xylene, and its derivatives. Parylenes are selected as materials of choice to form the thin WVB layers, particularly when the parylene is halogenated to include a group VIIA element. The group VIIA element may be fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, or astatine. The preferred element is chlorine. The WVB layer comprising parylenes is typically formed using vapor deposition polymerization at a steady rate. The thickness of the parylene-based WVB layer is said to be controllable at any desired nominal thickness because the WVB layer is formed via vapor deposition polymerization at a steady rate. Thickness of the layer commonly ranges from about 0.025 .mu.m to about 75 .mu.m. The thickness is preferably from about 1 .mu.m to about 25 .mu.m, and most preferably from about 3 .mu.m to about 10 .mu.m. One or more of the thin WVB layers may be disposed between the golf ball core and the cover. Substrates such as golf ball cores and golf ball sub-assemblies are prepared for parylene coating by cleaning off oils and other surface contaminants. The substrate may then be pre-treated by application of a "multi-molecular" layer of organosilane to promote adhesion of the parylene coating. The parylene precursor, a granular white powder, is vaporized at about 150.degree. and 1.0 Torr vacuum in a vaporizer chamber. The resulting gaseous form of stable dimeric di-para-xylene is further heated in a pyrolysis chamber to about 680.degree. C. at about 0.5 Torr vacuum, to directly break the two methylene-methylene bonds and yield stable monomeric diradicals, para-xylene, also in gaseous form. The monomer is then sent to the deposition chamber at ambient temperature and about 0.1 torr vacuum. The resulting parylene coating is said to be very stable and extremely resistant to moisture vapor permeation, chemical attacks and hydrolytic breakdown. [0010] U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2005/0009638, of Wu et al., published Jan. 13, 2005, describes golf ball layers formed of polyurethane-based and polyurea-based compositions incorporating block copolymers. The golf balls typically comprise three layers. The core layer is typically formed from a thermoset material or a thermoplastic material. When the cores are formed from a thermoset material, compression molding is typically used to form the core. When the core is thermoplastic, the cores may be injection molded. The intermediate layer may be formed from any suitable method known to those of ordinary skill in the art, and may be formed by blow molding. The outer layer is generally a dimpled cover layer formed by injection molding, compression molding, casting, vacuum forming, powder coating, and the like. [0011] The published application discusses a large amount of material, however, based on the claims, the focus appears to be a golf ball comprising a core and a cover, where the cover is formed from a composition comprising a prepolymer and a curing agent, where the prepolymer includes a first prepolymer and a block copolymer having functional groups at each terminal end, where the composition comprises a hydrophobic A.sub.x-B.sub.y-A.sub.z block capped between iso-cyanate groups, wherein x, y, and z are independently 1 or greater. The block is typically a styrene-butadiene block. The functional groups at the terminal ends of the block are selected from groups such as hydroxy groups, amino groups, thiol groups, epoxy groups, anhydride groups and combinations of these. The terminal groups are designed to provide a cover which is water resistant. The cover material was molded onto wound cores, and a "conventional coating" was applied over the cover. The golf balls were incubated in a 50% relative humidity and 72.degree. F. environmental chamber and then were removed, weighed and measured. Subsequently the balls were subjected to 100 percent relative humidity at 72.degree. F. and then weighed and measured. Balls with the water resistant cover were shown to have picked up much less weight and to have incurred less size gain due to the exposure to the high relative humidity than a control ball. [0012] When the layer or coating of material applied to the golf ball is an exterior coating, which will experience wear due to mechanical contact or will experience fluid flow over the coated surface, it is helpful to have the coating chemically bonded directly to the substrate surface via chemical reaction of active species which are present in the coating reactants/materials with active species on the underlying substrate surface. [0013] For purposes of illustrating methods of coating formation where vaporous and liquid precursors are used to deposit a coating on a substrate, applicants would like to mention the following publications and patents which relate to methods of coating formation, for purposes of illustration. Most of the background information provided is with respect to various chlorosilane-based precursors; however it is not intended that the present invention be limited to this class of precursor materials. [0014] In an article by Barry Arkles entitled "Tailoring surfaces with silanes", published in CHEMTECH, in December of 1977, pages 766-777, the author describes the use of organo silanes to form coatings which impart desired functional characteristics to an underlying oxide-containing surface. In particular, the organo silane is represented as R.sub.nSiX.sub.(4-n) where X is a hydrolyzable group, typically halogen, alkoxy, acyloxy, or amine. Following hydrolysis, a reactive silanol group is said to be formed which can condense with other silanol groups, for example, those on the surface of siliceous fillers, to form siloxane linkages. Stable condensation products are said to be formed with other oxides in addition to silicon oxide, such as oxides of aluminum, zirconium, tin, titanium, and nickel. The R group is said to be a nonhydrolyzable organic radical that may possess functionality that imparts desired characteristics. The article also discusses reactive tetra-substituted silanes which can be fully substituted by hydrolyzable groups and how the silicic acid which is formed from such substituted silanes readily forms polymers such as silica gel, quartz, or silicates by condensation of the silanol groups or reaction of silicate ions. Tetrachlorosilane is mentioned as being of commercial importance since it can be hydrolyzed in the vapor phase to form amorphous fumed silica. [0015] The article by Dr. Arkles shows how a substrate with hydroxyl groups on its surface can be reacted with a condensation product of an organosilane to provide chemical bonding to the substrate surface. The reactions are generally discussed and, with the exception of the formation of amorphous fumed silica, the reactions are between a liquid precursor and a substrate having hydroxyl groups on its surface. A number of different applications and potential applications are discussed. [0016] In an article entitled "Organized Monolayers by Adsorption. 1. Formation and Structure of Oleophobic Mixed Monolayers on Solid Surfaces", published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, Jan. 2, 1980, pp. 92-98, Jacob Sagiv discussed the possibility of producing oleophobic monolayers containing more than one component (mixed monolayers). The article is said to show that homogeneous mixed monolayers containing components which are very different in their properties and molecular shape may be easily formed on various solid polar substrates by adsorption from organic solutions. Irreversible adsorption is said to be achieved through covalent bonding of active silane molecules to the surface of the substrate. [0017] In June of 1991, D. J. Ehrlich and J. Melngailis published an article entitled "Fast room-temperature growth of SiO.sub.2 films by molecular-layer dosing" in Applied Physics Letters 58 (23), pp. 2675-2677. The authors describe a molecular-layer dosing technique for room-temperature growth of .alpha.-SiO.sub.2 thin films, which growth is based on the reaction of H.sub.2O and SiCl.sub.4 adsorbates. The reaction is catalyzed by the hydrated SiO.sub.2 growth surface, and requires a specific surface phase of hydrogen-bonded water. Thicknesses of the films is said to be controlled to molecular-layer precision; alternatively, fast conformal growth to rates exceeding 100 nm/min is said to be achieved by slight depression of the substrate temperature below room temperature. Potential applications such as trench filling for integrated circuits and hermetic ultrathin layers for multilayer photoresists are mentioned. Excimer-laser-induced surface modification is said to permit projection-patterned selective-area growth on silicon. [0018] An article entitled "Atomic Layer Growth of SiO.sub.2 on Si(100) Using The Sequential Deposition of SiCl.sub.4 and H.sub.2O" by Sneh et al. in Mat. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. Vol 334, 1994, pp. 25-30, describes a study in which SiO.sub.2 thin films were said to be deposited on Si(100) with atomic layer control at 600.degree. K. (.apprxeq.327.degree. C.) and at pressures in the range of 1 to 50 Torr using chemical vapor deposition (CVD). [0019] In U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,851, issued to Ogawa et al. on Dec. 13, 1995, a method of manufacturing a chemically adsorbed film is described. In particular a chemically adsorbed film is said to be formed on any type of substrate in a short time by chemically adsorbing a chlorosilane based surface active-agent in a gas phase on the surface of a substrate having active hydrogen groups. The basic reaction by which a chlorosilane is attached to a surface with hydroxyl groups present on the surface is basically the same as described in other articles discussed above. In a preferred embodiment, a chlorosilane based adsorbent or an alkoxyl-silane based adsorbent is used as the silane-based surface adsorbent, where the silane-based adsorbent has a reactive silyl group at one end and a condensation reaction is initiated in the gas phase atmosphere. A dehydrochlorination reaction or a de-alcohol reaction is carried out as the condensation reaction. After the dehydrochlorination reaction, the unreacted chlorosilane-based adsorbent on the surface of the substrate is washed with a non-aqueous solution and then the adsorbed material is reacted with aqueous solution to form a monomolecular adsorbed film. [0020] In an article entitled "SiO.sub.2 Chemical Vapor Deposition at Room Temperature Using SiCl.sub.4 and H.sub.2O with an NH.sub.3 Catalyst", by J. W. Klaus and S. M. George in the Journal of the Electrochemical Society, 147 (7) 2658-2664, 2000, the authors describe the deposition of silicon dioxide films at room temperature using a catalyzed chemical vapor deposition reaction. The NH.sub.3 (ammonia) catalyst is said to lower the required temperature for SiO.sub.2 CVD from greater than 900.degree. K. to about 313-333.degree. K. [0021] U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2002/0065663 A1, published on May 30, 2002, and titled "Highly Durable Hydrophobic Coatings And Methods", describes substrates which have a hydrophobic surface coating comprised of the reaction products of a chlorosilyl group containing compound and an alkylsilane. The substrate over which the coating is applied is preferably glass. In one embodiment, a silicon oxide anchor layer or hybrid organo-silicon oxide anchor layer is formed from a humidified reaction product of silicon tetrachloride or trichloromethylsilane vapors at atmospheric pressure. Application of the oxide anchor layer is, followed by the vapor-deposition of a chloroalkylsilane. The silicon oxide anchor layer is said to advantageously have a root mean square surface (RMS) roughness of less than about 6.0 nm, preferably less than about 5.0 nm and a low haze value of less than about 3.0%. The RMS surface roughness of the silicon oxide layer is preferably said to be greater than about 4 nm, to improve adhesion. However, too great an RMS surface area is said to result in large surface peaks, widely spaced apart, which begins to diminish the desirable surface area for subsequent reaction with the chloroalkylsilane by vapor deposition. Too small an RMS surface is said to result in the surface being too smooth, that is to say an insufficient increase in the surface area/or insufficient depth of the surface peaks and valleys on the surface. [0022] Simultaneous vapor deposition of silicon tetrachloride and dimethyldichlorosilane onto a glass substrate is said to result in a hydrophobic coating comprised of cross-linked polydimethylsiloxane which may then be capped with a fluoroalkylsilane (to provide hydrophobicity). The substrate is said to be glass or a silicon oxide anchor layer deposited on a surface prior to deposition of the cross-linked polydimethylsiloxane. The substrates are cleaned thoroughly and rinsed prior to being placed in the reaction chamber. [0023] U.S. Pat. No. 5,576,247 to Yano et al., issued Nov. 19, 1996, entitled: "Thin layer forming method where hydrophobic molecular layers preventing a BPSG layer from absorbing moisture". Continue reading about Exterior coatings for golf balls... Full patent description for Exterior coatings for golf balls Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Exterior coatings for golf balls patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. 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