Golf Ball Dimple Volume and Core Composition for Flight Height Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Golfers with fast head speeds often experience golf balls flying high on driver shots, leading to increased chances of the ball going out-of-bounds due to deviations in the intended direction.
Innovation Solution
A golf ball design featuring a spherical core made from a rubber composition containing natural rubber, methacrylic acid, and/or its metal salt, combined with a specific dimple pattern on the outermost cover, which has a total dimple volume of 365 mm3 or more and an occupation ratio of 75% or more.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If a golfer uses a fast head speed on driver shots, then the golf ball achieves high initial velocity and long flight distance, but the golf ball flies high and easily goes out-of-bounds due to horizontal deviation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the golf ball by incorporating natural rubber in the spherical core and designing dimples with specific volume (365 mm³ or more) and occupation ratio (75% or more). These parameter changes modify the ball's aerodynamic properties and response to impact, resulting in suppressed lift force and lowered maximum height while maintaining initial velocity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite structure combining natural rubber in the spherical core with a cover featuring optimized dimple patterns. This composite design integrates the benefits of natural rubber's elasticity with aerodynamic dimple geometry to control flight characteristics, specifically reducing excessive height on fast driver shots
2Speed
If the golf ball is hit with fast head speed, then the backspin rate increases, but the lift force increases causing the ball to fly high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the golf ball's physical parameters including the incorporation of natural rubber and specific dimple geometry (volume ≥365 mm³, occupation ratio ≥75%). These changes alter the ball's interaction with air during flight, reducing the lift force generated by high backspin while maintaining the backspin rate itself
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The golf ball achieves a lowered initial velocity and suppressed lift force on driver shots, resulting in a reduced maximum height and decreased likelihood of going out-of-bounds, even with deviations in the hit direction.
Implementation Method 1
an outermost cover positioned outside the intermediate layer and having a plurality of dimples formed thereon... shows a lowered initial velocity on driver shots, and a suppressed lift force due to the dimples
Implementation Method 2
the spherical core is formed from a rubber composition containing a base rubber, a co-crosslinking agent, and a crosslinking initiator, the base rubber contains a natural rubber
Data Source
AI summary
An object of the present disclosure is to provide a golf ball that can fly in a lowered maximum height on driver shots by a golfer with a fast head speed. The present disclosure provides a golf ball comprising a spherical core, an intermediate layer, and an outermost cover having a plurality of dimples formed thereon, wherein the spherical core is formed from a rubber composition containing a base rubber, a co-crosslinking agent, and a crosslinking initiator, the base rubber contains a natural rubber, the co-crosslinking agent contains methacrylic acid and/or a metal salt thereof, a total lower volume of the plurality of dimples is 365 mm3 or more, and an occupation ratio of a total area of the plurality of dimples in a surface area of a phantom sphere that is assumed to have no dimples on the outermost cover is 75% or more.