Artificial feather and shuttlecock for badminton

Abstract

The artificial shuttlecock feather of the present application comprises a feather blade and a feather stem (2), wherein the feather blade further comprises a film sheet (11) with a thickness of no more than 0.03 mm and a foamed sheet (12), and the whole or part of the feather stem (2) is wrapped between the film sheet (11) and the foamed sheet (12). The film sheet (11) is made of a high polymer by a blowing process or a calendering combined with a stretching process. The most preferred thickness of the film sheet (11) is between 0.008 mm and 0.016 mm. The thickness of the foamed sheet (12) is no less than 0.7 mm, and the most preferred thickness is between 0.8 mm and 1.6 mm. The present application also relates to a shuttlecock made of the artificial shuttlecock feather.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to an artificial feather and a shuttlecock specifically for badminton. Background Technology

[0002] Using artificial materials to replace natural goose and duck feathers in the production of badminton shuttlecocks is an ideal for both the industry and the badminton community. Goose and duck feather shuttlecocks are too fragile, forcing players to frequently replace them and significantly increasing the cost of playing. Furthermore, the production process for goose and duck feather shuttlecocks is complex, and the material itself is expensive. However, the technical difficulties hidden behind this material replacement are beyond the imagination of most people. Publicly available information shows that related patent applications for artificial shuttlecocks existed as early as the 1960s, such as Showa 36-19067, published on October 12, 1961. Slightly later, in the 1980s, patent applications for independent artificial feathers appeared, such as Showa 57-177782, published on November 1, 1982. The industry has been conducting related research for over 50 years, but to date, no artificial material used to replace goose and duck feathers has achieved the overall performance level of a high-quality goose feather shuttlecock. While existing nylon shuttlecocks with a one-piece skirt (also called plastic shuttlecocks) are extremely durable, their overall performance is far from meeting the technical requirements of even slightly skilled amateur players, and they have been abandoned by professional athletes. It wasn't until 2007 that practically viable technologies for using artificial feathers in badminton began to emerge; and it wasn't until after 2009 that shuttlecocks made with artificial feathers became available on the market. However, these artificial feather shuttlecocks still suffer from being too heavy and having insufficient spin speed, and they haven't fully reached the level of high-quality goose feather shuttlecocks.

[0003] Badminton is a product that demands a very high level of technical refinement in its use. Through long-term practice and competition, athletes have developed a highly refined hitting experience. This experience is based on high-quality natural goose feathers, encompassing factors such as weight, speed, spin, the trajectory and stability of high clears, the stability of drop shots, the roll of short shots, the feel of the shot, the reaction speed upon impact, the sound of the shot, the accuracy of the landing point, and durability. Artificial material badminton shuttlecocks aim to approximate these factors as closely as possible to natural goose feathers.

[0004] The conditions under which badminton is used are extremely harsh, requiring it to withstand impacts unimaginable to the average person. The speed of a badminton shuttlecock is the fastest of all ball sports, and the time it takes to accelerate from the moment it's hit to its top speed is often only a fraction of a second. During this process, the shuttlecock must withstand accelerations of tens or even hundreds of Gs. In comparison, the acceleration of aerospace rockets is generally below 20 Gs, and that of manned spacecraft rockets is generally below 10 Gs. The cantilevered feathers of a badminton shuttlecock must withstand such high accelerations and wind resistance; the structural strength required is beyond human comprehension. Natural goose feather shafts have a natural internal porous structure, are lightweight yet strong, and their specific strength (mechanical strength under the same weight conditions) surpasses that of almost all currently available artificial materials. It is precisely for this reason that the simulation of a badminton shuttlecock has been unsuccessful for decades.

[0005] At least seven factors influence the overall performance of a badminton shuttlecock: weight, weight distribution, center of gravity position, shuttlecock support strength (radial support rigidity), frontal wind resistance (or axial wind resistance), around-axis wind resistance, and impact resistance. Correspondingly, three major technical challenges arise: material challenges, structural challenges, and manufacturing challenges. If any of these seven factors or three technical challenges fails to meet standards, the badminton shuttlecock will not be accepted by athletes and will be unlikely to achieve commercial success. Therefore, when evaluating the practicality of a new badminton technology, a comprehensive assessment of the seven factors and three challenges mentioned above is necessary. In other words, the small badminton shuttlecock is actually a systems engineering project, containing multiple subsystems that are closely interconnected, mutually restrictive, and mutually influential. Even a small adjustment to any subsystem will change the overall performance of the entire system. Looking at patent specifications spanning over 20 years, the vast majority focus on individual modifications to a single subsystem, and most are based on theoretical assumptions without practical verification. Therefore, almost all of them lack practicality or are impossible to implement. It is precisely for this reason that, after more than 50 years, as of 2007, no new type of badminton shuttlecock with practical value has emerged, except for goose and duck shuttlecocks and plastic shuttlecocks with defective performance.

[0006] The contradiction between weight, weight distribution and sphere strength is the most difficult factor to solve in the process of artificializing sphere materials. Furthermore, the sphere strength must simultaneously meet the contradictory indicators of rigidity and impact resistance.

[0007] A standard natural badminton shuttlecock consists of 16 feathers, and the total weight is generally between 4.74 grams and 5.50 grams. This weight range is not a tolerance for error, but rather a variation in weight requirements depending on altitude or atmospheric pressure. The center of gravity is approximately located near the junction of the shuttlecock's head and body. The weight of a single feather should be below 0.13 grams, with high-quality goose feathers weighing around 0.10 grams per feather. The total weight of the 16 feathers should ideally be below 2.00 grams, with the weight of the vane area (including the upper part of the shaft) forming the skirt (which contributes to wind resistance) generally controlled within 1.1 grams, ideally between 0.90 and 1.0 grams. If the skirt weight exceeds this limit, the shuttlecock's flight performance will rapidly decline.

[0008] Badminton shuttlecocks are extremely sensitive to weight changes, with a sensitivity on the order of 0.1 grams. This means that in some critical areas, a weight change of just 0.1 grams can significantly alter the overall performance of the shuttlecock. For the vane area of ​​a single feather, the sensitivity reaches 0.01 grams. This means that if each feather increases by 0.01 grams, the entire shuttlecock's skirt will increase by at least 0.15 grams, severely impacting its flight performance. Currently, the skirts of most plastic and artificial feather shuttlecocks are excessively heavy. Ideally, the shuttlecock's center of gravity should fall near the junction of the shuttlecock head and the skirt. If the skirt is too heavy, the center of gravity shifts upwards, making the shuttlecock prone to tumbling. The closer to the top of the skirt, the more sensitive it is to excessive weight, as this is where the moment of force is greatest. From an engineering perspective, the lighter the shuttlecock's skirt, the better. Making a lighter product while maintaining sufficient support strength is a highly challenging technical problem. However, once ultra-lightweight skirt manufacturing technology is mastered, weight distribution becomes much easier. Some engineered badminton shuttlecocks, in an effort to reduce weight, have very thin skirts and shafts. While this achieves the desired weight, it compromises strength, causing the shuttlecock to lose spin. Stable spin is crucial for a shuttlecock's overall performance. Axial drag is what propels the shuttlecock's rotation around its axis. This rotation not only stabilizes the shuttlecock's flight but also effectively dissipates some of its kinetic energy. Furthermore, it acts as a decelerator when the shuttlecock is powerfully smashed, allowing it to travel at a speed more suited to the demands of the sport.

[0009] Another often overlooked but crucial factor affecting badminton flight performance is the phenomenon of sudden changes in wind resistance. If the skirt's support rigidity is insufficient, the skirt will deform drastically upon impact, then quickly return to normal. This contraction and expansion causes a dramatic change in wind resistance, resulting in a sudden shift in the shuttlecock's flight speed, as if the force has been released. While casual players may not perceive this speed change, they can clearly feel a difference in the shuttlecock's flight compared to a standard shuttlecock—the feel of the shot becomes strange, and the landing point becomes inaccurate. This is one of the main reasons why artificial material shuttlecocks are not accepted by athletes.

[0010] In terms of shuttlecock strength, there is always a difficult contradiction to reconcile rigidity, toughness, and weight—this is determined by the inherent properties of the materials themselves. In most cases, when the rigidity of a material increases, its toughness decreases accordingly, making the material brittle and less impact-resistant. For example, with feather shafts, increasing rigidity results in decreased toughness and increased weight, making them prone to breakage and causing excessive weight. If thinner shafts are used to reduce weight, the support of the shafts becomes insufficient, leading to the aforementioned abrupt change in wind resistance. Similarly, for the vanes, the wings require good support rigidity. Increasing the thickness of the vanes can improve the support rigidity and durability of the wings, but it will increase weight, causing a sharp decline in shuttlecock performance. Conversely, reducing thickness to reduce weight results in insufficient support rigidity and durability of the wings, and insufficient support rigidity of the wings will severely affect the shuttlecock's flight performance. For existing artificial feather vanes, weight reduction can be achieved by increasing the foaming ratio without changing the thickness, but this will also lead to a decrease in both the rigidity and impact resistance of the vane's wing support. The rigidity and strength of existing artificial feather shafts do not yet reach the level of natural goose and duck feather shafts, while their weight is slightly heavier. The weight of existing artificial feather vanes is much greater than that of natural goose and duck feather fibers. And a sufficiently strong yet lighter alternative material for the vane has not yet emerged. It can be said that every milligram of weight reduction achieved in artificial feathers, especially in the vane area, is invaluable.

[0011] Therefore, the development of artificial badminton shuttlecocks is always constrained by seven key factors and three major challenges; focusing solely on one aspect of performance is insufficient. More importantly and with greater difficulty, no component of an artificial badminton shuttlecock is a simple engineering structure. It must withstand high speeds and impacts while simultaneously fulfilling the aforementioned functional requirements for the hitting experience—including weight, weight distribution, center of gravity position, shuttlecock speed, spin, high clear trajectory, high clear stability, drop shot stability, drop shot roll, hitting feel, hitting sound, rebound speed, landing accuracy, and durability, among more than ten other functional factors. Furthermore, the relationships between these functional factors and the structure are largely implicit. Therefore, any structural improvements to artificial badminton shuttlecocks cannot and should not be judged simply based on static or macroscopic mechanical support structures or mechanical linkages.

[0012] In its invention patent application No. 2007100544123 (Publication No.: CN101306244A, Publication Date: November 19, 2008), filed on May 16, 2007, the inventor first proposed a two-piece feather reinforcement component scheme, making artificial feathers truly practical. Subsequently, relevant manufacturers successively launched artificial badminton shuttlecocks based on this patented technology, using plastic material feather shafts or carbon fiber composite material feather shafts combined with two foam feather shafts, achieving good application results. However, in the more than ten years since the above-mentioned patented technology became practical, there is still a certain performance gap between the above-mentioned artificial badminton shuttlecocks and natural goose / duck feather shuttlecocks. Therefore, user acceptance is not high, and market performance is poor. One of the main problems is that the feather shaft part of the artificial feathers is too heavy, resulting in an overall heavy skirt. Another problem is that when the shuttlecock is subjected to strong impact, the foam is prone to cracking due to the strong impact of the feather shaft, affecting its service life.

[0013] For artificial feathers specifically designed for badminton, any subtle improvement requires a series of steps for evaluation, including feather production (which is generally not supported by readily available equipment), shuttlecock production (which is often impossible with existing equipment), testing, and further refinement. Furthermore, each person's evaluation experience often differs. Therefore, any subtle improvement to artificial feathers for badminton cannot be simply assumed to be obvious. Summary of the Invention

[0014] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide high-performance artificial feathers for badminton shuttlecocks. Another technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide badminton shuttlecocks made of high-performance artificial feathers.

[0015] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present invention provides an artificial feather for badminton, comprising a vane and a quill, wherein the vane comprises a thin film with a thickness of no more than 0.03 mm and a foam sheet, and all or part of the quill is covered between the thin film and the foam sheet.

[0016] A preferred embodiment is that the thickness of the thin film is between 0.005 mm and 0.02 mm. Further, the thickness of the thin film is between 0.008 mm and 0.016 mm. For the foaming sheet, a preferred embodiment is that the thickness of the foaming sheet is not less than 0.5 mm. Further, the thickness of the foaming sheet is between 0.7 mm and 2.0 mm. Further, the thickness of the foaming sheet is 1.2 mm ± 0.2 mm. Due to the use of a single foaming sheet, the overall weight of the feather is reduced. Even a slight reduction in the weight of the first milligram in the feather area is invaluable for improving the performance of the shuttlecock.

[0017] Preferably, the film is made of a polymer. Further, the film is made from the polymer using a blow molding process. Alternatively, the film is made from the polymer using a calendering and stretching process. After a certain degree of stretching, the tensile strength and tear resistance of the film-type polymer material are improved. The blow molding process itself involves a stretching effect; therefore, both processes include a stretching effect, resulting in artificial feathers with significantly improved tear resistance. Further, the polymer is polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polyimide (PI).

[0018] The present invention also relates to a badminton shuttlecock made using the aforementioned artificial feathers specifically designed for badminton.

[0019] In summary, the present invention improves both weight reduction and tear resistance in the artificial feather vanes, thereby enhancing the overall performance of the shuttlecock and extending its service life. The artificial feathers for shuttlecocks of this invention are simple to manufacture, have a reasonable weight distribution, provide good wing support rigidity, and are made from readily available and inexpensive materials. Attached Figure Description

[0020] The present invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an artificial feather for badminton according to the present invention. Detailed Implementation Example 1

[0022] like Figure 1As shown, the artificial feather for badminton of the present invention includes a vane and a shaft 2. The vane further includes a thin film 11 with a thickness of no more than 0.03 mm and a foam sheet 12, and all or part of the shaft 2 is covered between the thin film 11 and the foam sheet 12. The thickness of the thin film 11 is 0.015 mm; the thickness of the foam sheet 12 is 1.0 mm. The thin film 11 is made of a polymer through a blow molding process or a combination of calendering and stretching process. The polymer can be polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polyimide (PI). Example 2

[0023] The artificial feather for badminton of the present invention, referring to Example 1, includes a vane and a shaft 2. The vane further includes a thin film 11 with a thickness of no more than 0.03 mm and a foam sheet 12, and all or part of the shaft 2 is covered between the thin film 11 and the foam sheet 12. The thickness of the thin film 11 is 0.01 mm; the thickness of the foam sheet 12 is 1.3 mm. The thin film 11 is made of a polymer through a blow molding process or a combination of calendering and stretching process. The polymer can be polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polyimide (PI). Compared with Example 1, the artificial feather of this embodiment has better rigid support strength on both wings of the vane while keeping the overall weight under control.

[0024] The artificial feathers used in the above two embodiments can be used to make badminton shuttlecocks with excellent performance.

Claims

1. An artificial feather for badminton, comprising a vane and a quill (2), characterized in that, The feather also includes a thin film (11) with a thickness of no more than 0.03 mm and a foam sheet (12), and all or part of the feather shaft (2) is covered between the thin film (11) and the foam sheet (12).

2. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The thickness of the thin film (11) is between 0.005 mm and 0.02 mm.

3. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The thickness of the thin film (11) is between 0.008 mm and 0.016 mm.

4. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claim 1, 2, or 3, characterized in that, The thickness of the foam sheet (12) is not less than 0.5 mm.

5. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The thickness of the foam sheet (12) is between 0.7 mm and 2.0 mm.

6. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claim 5, characterized in that, The thickness of the foam sheet (12) is 1.2mm ± 0.2mm.

7. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claims 1, 2, 3, 5, or 6, characterized in that, The film (11) is made of a polymer.

8. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The film (11) is made of polymer through blow molding or calendering combined with stretching.

9. The artificial feathers for badminton as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The polymer is polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polyimide (PI).

10. A badminton shuttlecock, comprising artificial feathers and a head, characterized in that, The artificial feathers used are the badminton-specific artificial feathers as described in claims 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8 or 9.

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