Golf Club Striking Face Thickness Layout for Stress Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing golf club heads with thinned faces and thickened perimeter regions do not optimize weight distribution and stress reduction effectively, leading to localized benefits and potential manufacturing challenges.
Innovation Solution
A golf club head design featuring a thickened central region, a central transition region, a thinned intermediate region, a thickened stress reducing region, and a thinned perimeter region, with the thickened stress reducing region forming a ring protruding rearward from the striking face, optimizing weight distribution and stress reduction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If the striking face is thinned out to allow elastic deformation and increase ball speed, then ball speed is improved, but structural strength and durability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The striking face is designed with non-uniform thickness distribution, featuring a thickened central region (first thickness) and thinned intermediate region (second thickness), where the fourth thickness of the thickened stress reducing region is greater than the first thickness of the thickened central region. This localized variation in thickness allows different regions to serve different functions: the thinned regions enable elastic deformation for ball speed enhancement, while the thickened regions maintain structural strength and reduce stress concentrations.
2Reliability
If a thickened perimeter region is added to improve durability and increase characteristic time, then durability is improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of uniformly thickening the entire perimeter region, the invention strategically places a thickened stress reducing region (forming a ring protruding rearward) at specific locations where stress concentrations occur. This localized thickening provides durability enhancement only where needed, rather than adding weight across the entire perimeter.
Solution Approach 2:
The striking face is segmented into multiple functional regions with different thickness characteristics: thickened central region, thinned intermediate region, and thickened stress reducing region. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each region's thickness to achieve the desired balance between durability and weight.
3Speed
If the striking face is made thinner to improve performance, then ball speed increases, but stress concentrations increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention addresses stress concentrations by strategically placing a thickened stress reducing region with fourth thickness greater than the first thickness of the thickened central region. This localized thickening specifically targets areas prone to stress concentrations, allowing the rest of the face to remain thinner for performance while reducing stress at critical locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The thickened stress reducing region acts as an intermediary structural element between the thinned intermediate region and the body portion, providing stress relief and distributing loads more evenly across the striking face assembly, thereby reducing stress concentrations without compromising overall performance.
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 design achieves improved performance by reducing unnecessary mass while enhancing structural rigidity and stress resistance, allowing for a thinner face insert and increased ball speed without adding excessive weight.
Implementation Method 1
allowing the striking face to elastically deform when impacting a golf ball
Data Source
AI summary
A golf club head with improved striking face is disclosed. More specifically, the present invention relates to a golf club head wherein the striking face is further comprised out of a thickened central region, located near a geometric center of the striking face portion, a central transition region extending outward radially from the thickened central region, a thinned intermediate region, extending outward radially from the central transition region, a thickened stress reducing region, extending outward radially from the thinned intermediate region, and a thinned perimeter region, extending outward radially from the thickened stress reducing region, all of which combine to form the improved striking face.