Communicating golf club head comprising instruments

Abstract

The invention relates to a golf club head (3), comprising: - a striking face (31); - an armature (32) secured to the striking face and comprising a housing (33); - an accelerometer (44) configured to determine the orientation of the striking face (31) with respect to three perpendicular axes and configured to determine the amplitude of an acceleration along at least one axis, the accelerometer (44) being secured to the armature and positioned in the housing (33);- a communication circuit (43) configured to wirelessly communicate the determined orientation and the determined acceleration to an external device (9).

Description

Description INSTRUMENTED AND COMMUNICATING GOLF CLUB HEAD

[0001] The invention relates to the practice of golf, and in particular the analysis of shots made with a golf club, typically a putter.

[0002] Playing golf requires many hours of practice to improve one's skill, especially for shots made in the final stages of the course. It's difficult for a golfer to truly identify flaws in their swing without the guidance of a coach. There are few objective indicators that allow golfers to pinpoint the shortcomings of their movements, from preparation to impact. Even a coach doesn't have completely objective information about a player's flaws in the entire preparatory movement.

[0003] The invention aims to resolve one or more of these drawbacks. The invention thus relates to a golf club head, as defined in claim 1.

[0004] The invention also relates to variations of the dependent claims and the description. Those skilled in the art will understand that each of the features of the dependent claims and the description can be combined independently with the features of claim 1, without constituting an intermediate generalization.

[0005] Other features and advantages of the invention will become clear from the description given below, by way of example and not limitation, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0006] [Fig.1] is an exploded perspective view of an example of a golf club with a head according to one embodiment of the invention;

[0007] [Fig.2] is a schematic representation of an electronic golf club card interacting with a portable communication terminal;

[0008] [Fig.3] is a schematic representation of an interface displayed on a terminal screen during a preparation phase;

[0009] [Fig.4] is a schematic representation of an interface displayed on a terminal screen after a keystroke.

[0010] Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of an example of a golf club 1 equipped with a head 3 according to the invention. The golf club head 3 comprises, in a manner known per se, a striking face 31 and a frame 32 integral with the striking face 31 and having a housing 33. The striking face 31 may, for example, have a substantially flat surface perpendicular to a lower wall. The head 3 illustrated here corresponds to a putter, intended for finishing the approach shot. However, its application to any other type of golf club can also be considered.

[0011] As illustrated in Figure 2, the head 3 includes an accelerometer 44 and a communication circuit 43. The accelerometer 44 and the communication circuit 43 are here fixed on an electronic board 41.

[0012] The accelerometer 44 is configured to determine the orientation of the striking face 31 with respect to three perpendicular axes. The accelerometer 44 is further configured to determine the magnitude of an acceleration along at least one axis, typically an axis perpendicular to the striking face 31. To obtain precise information regarding the orientation of the striking face 31 and the magnitude of its acceleration, the accelerometer 44 is fixed to the frame 32. To protect the accelerometer 44 from impacts, it is positioned in the housing 33.

[0013] The communication circuit 43 is configured to wirelessly transmit the determined orientation and acceleration to an external device 9. As illustrated in Figure 2, the external device 9 can be a communicating terminal, such as a smartphone, smartwatch, or tablet. Advantageously, the external device 9 includes a display screen to allow the user to view information from the accelerometer 44. The communication circuit 43 can be configured to communicate using one or more communication protocols, such as IEEE 802.11 or IEEE 802.15.1.

[0014] Although power could be supplied by an energy recovery system, the golf club head 3 advantageously includes a 42V battery power supply for accelerometer 44 and communication circuit 43. Battery 42 is positioned in housing 33.

[0015] The golf club head 3 includes a hermetically sealed housing containing the accelerometer 44. The electronic circuit board 41, along with the communication circuit 43 and the battery 42, is housed within this hermetically sealed housing. The hermetically sealed housing comprises a lower cover 52 and an upper cover 51, which fit together to form a watertight enclosure. The covers 51 and 52 are advantageously made of synthetic materials to facilitate wireless communication of the communication circuit 43. The hermetically sealed housing is attached to the frame in the housing 33. The battery 42 can be connected to a charging interface accessible from outside the housing.

[0016] The head 3 is attached to an elongated shaft 22 of a golf club 1. The shaft 22 is equipped, in a manner known per se, with a grip portion 21 at its upper end and a connecting portion 23 at its lower end. The head 3 is attached to the lower end of the shaft 22 via the connecting portion 23.

[0017] The accelerometer 44 and the communication circuit 43 can be put into standby mode after a certain time delay. The accelerometer 44 and the communication circuit 43 can be activated by any suitable means, for example, motion detection, pressing a button, or disconnecting a cable from the battery charging interface.

[0018] The external device 9 has a wireless communication interface 92 compatible with the communication circuit 43. The external device 9 also includes a storage device 91 storing software means configured to communicate with the communication circuit 43 of the head 3 and configured to perform digital processing of the determined orientation and the determined acceleration amplitude.

[0019] Typically, the device 9 may include a display screen managed by an application communicating with the head 3. Figure 3 illustrates an example of the display on the device 9 depending on the orientation determined prior to a keystroke. A processing device may control the display of the battery charge level 42. The processing device (housed either in the head 3 either in a software application of the device 9) can also display the real-time orientation of the head 3 with respect to certain axes, and thus display a view of the head 3 from different points of view, in order to allow the user to visualize in real time his influence on the attitude of the head 3.

[0020] The processing unit can also be configured to identify a keystroke based on the determined acceleration amplitude. Figure 4 illustrates an example of the display on the device 9 after the keystroke, allowing the user to see that the keystroke has been successfully registered. The processing unit can also be configured to determine the attitude of the key face 31 at the moment of impact. This attitude can be displayed graphically and / or as numerical values ​​from different viewpoints, as illustrated in Figure 4. The numerical values ​​can, for example, be given in degrees in the direct counterclockwise direction with respect to each reference axis.

[0021] The processing device can also be configured to calculate the trajectory of the clubhead 3 prior to impact based on the determined orientation of the striking face 31. This trajectory calculation allows the user, for example, to identify any club 3 guidance defects prior to impact.

Claims

Demands

1. Golf club head (3), characterized in that it comprises: -a striking face (31); -a frame (32) attached to the striking face and comprising a housing (33); -an accelerometer (44) configured to determine the orientation of the striking face (31) with respect to three perpendicular axes and configured to determine the amplitude of an acceleration along at least one axis, the accelerometer (44) being fixed to the armature and positioned in the housing (33); -a communication circuit (43) configured to wirelessly communicate the determined orientation and acceleration to an external device (9).

2. Golf club head (3) according to claim 1, further comprising a battery (42) for powering the accelerometer and the communication circuit, the battery being positioned in said housing (33).

3. Golf club head (3) according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a hermetically sealed housing (51, 52) in which said accelerometer (44) is housed, the hermetically sealed housing (51, 52) being positioned in said housing (33).

4. Golf club (1) comprising: -an elongated handle (22); -a golf club head (3) according to any one of the preceding claims, fixed to one end of the extended handle (22).

5. Assembly comprising a communicating device (9) and a golf club head according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the device (9) is configured to communicate with the communication circuit (43) of the head and configured to perform digital processing of the determined orientation and the determined acceleration amplitude.

6. Assembly according to claim 5, wherein the device or golf club head includes a processing circuit configured to identify a strike based on the determined acceleration amplitude.

7. Assembly according to claim 6, wherein said processing circuit is further configured to determine the attitude of the striking face at the time of striking as a function of the determined orientation of the striking face.

8. Assembly according to claim 6 or 7, wherein said processing circuit is further configured to calculate the trajectory of the golf head prior to the strike as a function of the determined striking face orientation.

Images