| Method of designing golf club and golf club head -> Monitor Keywords |
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Method of designing golf club and golf club headRelated Patent Categories: Games Using Tangible Projectile, Golf, Club Or Club Support, Head, Hollow Body, With Internal Support Rib Or Injected MaterialMethod of designing golf club and golf club head description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070015601, Method of designing golf club and golf club head. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
[0001] This nonprovisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 2005-202727 filed in Japan on Jul. 12, 2005, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention relates to a method of designing a golf club head by utilizing a computer. The present invention also relates to a golf club head. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of efficiently designing a golf club head having a sufficient strength and excellent restitution characteristics. To do so, a golf ball model and a golf club head model both composed of a plurality of finite elements are used. Further reinforcing ribs are formed on the rear surface of the face part of the golf club head model. By changing conditions of the reinforcing ribs, ball-hitting simulation is executed to make stresses generated at any hitting positions of the face part uniform. [0004] 2. Description of the Related Art [0005] Conventionally, a metal plate is disposed on the face part of a wood head of a golf club. To improve the restitution characteristic of the wood head at the time when a golf ball is hit with the wood head, it is effective to thin the metal plate disposed on the face part of the wood head to approximate the natural frequency of the face part to that of the golf ball, based on an impedance matching theory. [0006] Therefore in recent years, there is a tendency for the face part to be thinned. However, thinning the face part causes the strength of the wood head to be low. Thus as a method of thinning the face part and enhancing the strength of the face part, a method of providing the rear surface of the face part with a reinforcing rib is adopted. [0007] For example, in the golf club head disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-290396 (patent document 1), a plurality of reinforcing ribs is vertically mounted on the rear surface of the face part, with the reinforcing ribs becoming gradually lower toward the toe and the heel and longitudinally equal or gradually higher toward the bottom (sole) of the golf club head. [0008] Because all the reinforcing ribs extend vertically in the golf club head disclosed in the patent document 1, the reinforcing ribs disposed at the toe and the heel make the rigidity of the face part excessively high. Thus at the time of collision between a golf ball and the face part, the face part is excessively restrained from vibrating, thus having insufficient restitution performance. In addition, although the reinforcing ribs have a large volume (weight), they provide the face part with an insufficient reinforcing effect. [0009] In designing the golf club head, it is desirable to provide it with a high degree of strength and a possible highest restitution performance. The conventional method of designing the golf club head depends greatly on experience and perception and requires immense trial-and-error investigations. Thus it takes much time to design the golf club head. In addition, there is a variation in the guiding principle in designing the golf club head. Therefore various proposals for efficiently designing the golf club head excellent in various properties such as the restitution performance, strength, and the like have been made. [0010] For example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-149954 (patent document 2), the present applicant proposed the following method serviceable for designing the golf club head: The three-dimensional configuration of the golf club head is measured by using a three-dimensional configuration measuring apparatus. Based on the data of measured three-dimensional configuration, the golf club head model is formed by using a finite element method (FEM) and a construction-analyzing pre-program. By using an analyzing software commercially available, the inertial main shaft of the golf club head model and the main inertial moment thereof are computed. [0011] In the above-described designing method, the inertial main shaft and the main inertial moment of the golf club head model in the initial configuration thereof are computed to make them serviceable for designing the golf club head. However, the method has room for improvement in designing the golf club head having a high restitution characteristics and strength. [0012] Patent document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-290396 [0013] Patent document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-149954 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0014] The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. Therefore it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of efficiently designing a golf club head having a sufficient strength and a superior restitution characteristic. To achieve the above-described object, a golf ball model and a golf club head model are used. The rear surface of the face part of the golf club head model is provided with reinforcing ribs. In addition, a finite element method is used to make stresses generated at different hitting positions of the face part uniform. [0015] To achieve the above-described object, the present invention provides a method of designing a golf club head by using a computer. The designing method includes the steps of preparing a ball model and a club head model obtained by dividing a golf ball and a golf club head into a plurality of finite elements respectively. The club head model is provided with a central reinforcing rib formed at a central portion of a rear surface of a face part thereof and a plurality of belt-shaped reinforcing ribs extended radially from the central reinforcing rib toward a peripheral edge of the rear surface of the face part. The designing method further includes the step of executing simulation of collision between the ball model and the club head model at a plurality of positions of a front surface of the face part thereof to determine a Mises stress generated at each of the collision positions; and the step of changing setting conditions of the central reinforcing rib and the belt-shaped reinforcing ribs to set a maximum value of Mises stresses generated at off-center positions of the front surface of the face part to less than 1.3 times a maximum value of a Mises stress generated at a center of the front surface of the face part. [0016] In the above-described construction, by using the golf ball model and the golf club head model divided into a plurality of finite elements respectively, conditions including the positions of the reinforcing ribs, and the configurations thereof including the sectional areas and heights are inputted to the computer to execute ball-hitting simulation. Approximation of the stress generated by the collision between the ball model and the golf club head model at an arbitrary off-center position of the front surface of the face part to the stress generated by the collision therebetween at the center of the front surface thereof is set as the objective function. The positions of the reinforcing ribs and the sectional areas and heights thereof are set as the design variables. Thereby the maximum Mises stress generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at the center of the front surface of the face part thereof and the maximum Mises stress generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at the arbitrary off-center position of the front surface of the face part are compared with each other. [0017] Owing to the comparison, the conditions of the positions of the reinforcing ribs and the configurations thereof including the sectional areas and heights are adjusted to set the maximum value of the Mises stresses generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at any off-center positions to less than 1.3 times the maximum value of the Mises stress generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at the center. [0018] As described above, as the reinforcing rib to be formed on the rear surface of the face part, there are formed the central reinforcing rib and a plurality of the belt-shaped reinforcing ribs extended from the central reinforcing rib toward the peripheral edge of the rear surface of the face part. Therefore the center of the face part subjected to a highest degree of shock has an enhanced rigidity. Further since the belt-shaped reinforcing ribs are extended radially from the central reinforcing rib toward the peripheral edge of the rear surface of the face part, the rigidity of the face part can be prevented from being excessively increased, and the stress acting on the face part can be uniformly dispersed. [0019] The maximum value of the Mises stress generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at the off-center positions of the front surface of the face part thereof is set to less than 1.3 times the maximum value of the Mises stress generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at the center of the front surface of the face part thereof. Therefore the restitution performance of the golf club head model generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at the off-center positions of the front surface of the face part thereof is similar to that of the golf club head model generated by the collision between the golf ball model and the golf club head model at the center (sweet area) of the front surface of the face part thereof. [0020] The ratio of the maximum Mises stress generated at the off-center position of the face part to that generated at the center thereof is set to less than 1.3. But it is preferable to approximate the above-described ratio to one. Thus it is preferable to set the above-described ratio to not less than 1 and less than 1.3. [0021] The golf club-designing method of the present invention is carried out based on the stress value computed by using the finite element method. Thus it is very easy to design the golf club head without performing steps of making actual golf club heads on an experimental basis or measuring the stress value. Further because the computer is used, the configuration and material of the golf club head can be changed by merely altering input data. Thus it is easy to design the face part of the golf club head having various patterns in an imaginary space by using the computer. [0022] More specifically, the club head model is a wood club head model. When the maximum value of the Mises stress generated when the ball model collides with the golf club head model at the off-center positions of the face part thereof is more than 1.3 times the maximum value of the Mises stress generated when the golf ball collides with the golf club head model at the off-center positions of the face part thereof, the sectional areas of the reinforcing ribs, disposed on the rear surface of the face part, which correspond to the collision positions, the width or/and the height thereof are set large, whereas when the above-described ratio is less than 1.0 time, the sectional areas of the reinforcing ribs, disposed on the rear surface of the face part, which correspond to the collision positions, the width or/and the height thereof are set small. Continue reading about Method of designing golf club and golf club head... Full patent description for Method of designing golf club and golf club head Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Method of designing golf club and golf club head 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. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Method of designing golf club and golf club head or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Metal wood golf club head Next Patent Application: Extrusion method for making golf balls Industry Class: Games using tangible projectile ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Method of designing golf club and golf club head patent info. 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