Forged Iron Golf Club Head With Rear Cavity and Lower CG
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for manufacturing forged iron golf club heads with cavities are expensive and time-consuming, limiting the ability to create advanced geometries and variations in face plates.
Innovation Solution
A multi-stage forging process that forms a forged iron golf club head with a rear cavity from a single billet, using an intermediate forging step to create the cavity and precision forging to finalize the club head, allowing for the use of an elastomeric insert to enhance mass properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If traditional casting or co-casting methods are used to create cavities in iron golf club heads, then advanced geometries and cavity designs can be achieved, but the manufacturing cost increases and production time is extended
Solution Approach 1:
The forging process is divided into multiple stages: initial forging to create the basic club head shape, then a second forging operation to create the cavity by forming the rear surface. This segmentation allows the cavity to be created as part of the forging process rather than requiring separate casting operations, thereby reducing manufacturing complexity while achieving the desired geometry.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical state and forming parameters by using hot forging instead of casting. By heating the metal billet to a forgeable state and applying controlled pressure through forging dies, the process achieves cavity formation through plastic deformation rather than liquid pouring and solidification, thereby reducing cost and time while maintaining geometric flexibility.
2Stability of the object's composition
If milling techniques are used to create cavities from a single block of material, then a solid forged structure is maintained, but the process becomes expensive and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The cavity is created during the forging process itself rather than after the club head is formed. By incorporating cavity formation into the initial shaping operations, the metal is removed and shaped while in a soft, forgeable state, maintaining the integrity of the forged structure without requiring subsequent expensive and time-consuming milling operations.
3Productivity
If conventional forging techniques are used, then production is cheaper and quicker, but the ability to create cavities and face plate variations is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The forging process is made dynamic and adaptable through multiple stages and the use of different forging dies for different operations. The process can be adjusted to create various cavity shapes, sizes, and positions, as well as different face plate configurations, by changing the forging tooling rather than the fundamental process, thereby maintaining productivity while increasing design versatility.
Data Source
AI summary
An iron-type golf club head with a cavity formed via a multi-stage forging process. The forged iron-type golf club head is formed from a single billet of material. An intermediate step of the multi-stage forging process creates a cavity in the iron-type golf club head which can receive an insert. The resultant iron-type golf club head has a substantially lower center of gravity and higher moment of inertia when compared to a traditionally forged iron-type golf club head lacking a cavity. Additionally, the resultant iron-type golf club head has a more solid feel than a traditionally cast iron-type golf club head as a result of the tighter grain structure the forging process yields.