Golf Club Head Composite Sole Insert Weight Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current golf club head designs face challenges in utilizing polymeric materials effectively due to their difficulty in withstanding high-speed impacts, leading to low first modal frequencies and limited discretionary weight distribution, which affects performance characteristics like forgiveness and ball flight.
Innovation Solution
The integration of a thermoplastic composite sole insert and weight track, overmolded with a thermoplastic composite head component, which includes ribs for reinforcement and weight ports, allows for strategic weight distribution and acoustic tuning, enhancing the club head's structural integrity and performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If polymeric materials are used in the club head, then weight is reduced and discretionary mass is increased, but the materials cannot withstand high-speed impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses composite materials, specifically carbon fiber reinforced polymers, to create a club head that combines the lightweight properties of polymeric materials with the strength and impact resistance of carbon fiber. This allows the club head to achieve reduced weight while maintaining the ability to withstand high-speed impacts.
Solution Approach 2:
The club head is divided into multiple components including a crown, sole, face, and bridge sections that can be separately manufactured and assembled. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function - the face and bridge for impact resistance and the crown and sole for weight reduction - while working together as an integrated structure.
2Strength
If titanium is used for weight track and reinforcing ribs, then strength and impact resistance are improved, but first modal frequencies become undesirably low
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional titanium weight tracks and reinforcing ribs with carbon fiber reinforced polymer components. These composite components provide the necessary structural strength and impact resistance while having lower density, which increases the club head's natural frequencies and avoids unwanted vibrations during impact.
Solution Approach 2:
The club head design incorporates localized reinforcement elements made of carbon fiber composite materials in specific areas where strength is needed, such as the bridge and sole regions, while maintaining lighter construction in other areas. This allows optimization of both strength and frequency characteristics in different locations.
3Reliability
If more discretionary weight is placed in strategic locations, then forgiveness and moment of inertia are improved, but the club head weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The use of carbon fiber reinforced polymer materials allows for the addition of discretionary weight in strategic locations without significantly increasing overall club head weight. The high strength-to-weight ratio of these composites enables weight redistribution to optimize moment of inertia and forgiveness while maintaining a lightweight overall construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the ability to precisely control material distribution and density in carbon fiber composite construction to adjust the center of gravity and moment of inertia parameters. By varying fiber orientation, layer thickness, and material placement, the design optimizes forgiveness and ball flight characteristics without adding excessive weight.
Data Source
AI summary
A golf club head includes a metal frame having a sole opening, a composite laminate crown joined to the frame, a composite laminate sole insert joined to the frame and overlying the sole opening, and a thermoplastic composite component overmolded on the sole insert. The composite component may include a weight track, ribs, supports or other features. The head may include a cast metal frame having a drop sole construction, polymeric crown insert and polymeric sole insert.