Dual-Material Putter Striking Surface for Ball Speed Consistency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Golfers face challenges in consistently impacting a golf ball with a putter-type golf club head due to variations in impact location, leading to inconsistent energy transfer and ball direction, as personal preference characteristics often prioritize feel and aesthetics over performance.
Innovation Solution
A putter-type golf club head with a dual-material striking surface, where the materials differ in concentration away from the geometric center, providing consistent ball speeds across the striking surface by combining softer, more flexible materials with harder, stiffer materials, creating a less responsive center region and more responsive heel and toe regions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a single-material striking surface is used, then the club head structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the ball speed consistency across different impact locations deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The striking surface is divided into different material zones with varying concentrations of first and second materials. The center region has a different material composition compared to the heel and toe regions, allowing each zone to be optimized for its specific function. This local differentiation improves ball speed consistency across impact locations while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The striking surface utilizes a composite material system comprising a first material and a second material with different properties. By combining these materials in varying concentrations across different regions of the striking surface, the design achieves both structural integrity and optimized performance characteristics for consistent ball speeds across the face.
2Device complexity
If the entire striking surface uses uniform material properties, then the manufacturing process is simple, but the energy transfer varies significantly at different impact locations
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the striking surface are assigned different material compositions tailored to their specific functional requirements. The center region, which is the primary impact zone, has optimized material properties for maximum energy transfer, while the heel and toe regions have different compositions to mitigate the effects of off-center impacts, ensuring consistent energy transfer across all impact locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The material composition parameters (concentration of first and second materials) are varied across different regions of the striking surface. This parameter differentiation allows each zone to have optimized mechanical properties for its specific location, improving energy transfer consistency without requiring a completely complex multi-component structure.
3Ease of operation
If softer materials are used across the entire striking surface, then the impact feel is improved, but the ball speed and responsiveness deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The striking surface incorporates different material compositions in different regions to balance feel and performance. Softer material zones are positioned in areas where improved impact feel is prioritized, while harder or more responsive material zones are placed in regions where ball speed and responsiveness are critical, achieving a compromise that satisfies both personal preference and performance requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The material hardness and flexibility parameters are varied across the striking surface rather than using a uniform composition. This allows the design to optimize the balance between impact feel and ball speed by adjusting material parameters in different zones, accommodating both golfer preference characteristics and performance demands.
4Speed
If harder materials are used across the entire striking surface, then the ball speed is improved, but the impact feel and personal preference characteristics deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The striking surface uses spatially varying material compositions where harder, more responsive materials are concentrated in regions that benefit from increased ball speed, while softer materials are positioned in areas where impact feel is prioritized. This local differentiation allows the club to deliver both speed and feel without compromising either characteristic.
Solution Approach 2:
The composite material system enables the striking surface to exhibit a range of mechanical properties across different zones. By strategically distributing harder and softer materials throughout the striking surface, the design achieves a balance between ball speed generation and impact feel, satisfying both performance and personal preference requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of putter-type golf club head comprising a striking surface capable of achieving consistent ball speeds across the striking surface to account for various ball impact locations are described herein. The striking surface has at least two materials that differs in concentration away from the geometric center of the striking surface to provide this consistency. Consistent (or uniform) ball speed is achieved throughout the striking surface as the portion of the golf ball that contacts the striking surface interacts with at least two materials having a differing material characteristic.