Golf Club Head Crown Protrusion for Toe-Down Suppression
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional golf clubs face a tradeoff between suppressing the toe-down phenomenon and achieving increased flight distance, as designs that enhance flight distance often exacerbate toe-down, leading to inconsistent hit points and energy loss at impact.
Innovation Solution
A golf club head design featuring a protruding portion on the crown outer surface that increases aerodynamic drag and lifting force, canceling centrifugal forces and reducing toe-down without affecting head speed or impacting aerodynamics at the point of impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If the club is designed with upsized head and lengthened club to increase flight distance, then flight distance is improved, but the toe-down phenomenon is exacerbated
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies local quality by adding aerodynamic structures (protruding portions) only at specific locations on the crown portion of the club head, rather than redesigning the entire club. These localized features generate lifting force and aerodynamic drag specifically to counteract toe-down, while maintaining the overall oversized head design for flight distance
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces air flow as an intermediary force. The protruding portions on the crown interact with air flow during the swing to generate aerodynamic lifting force and drag, which mediate between the club's motion and the centrifugal forces causing toe-down, thereby suppressing toe-down without reducing flight distance
2Ease of operation
If the weight of the shaft is reduced to make the club easier to swing, then ease of operation is improved, but the head weight must be maintained which limits weight redistribution
Solution Approach 1:
The invention concentrates aerodynamic functional features locally on the crown portion through protruding portions, allowing the rest of the head to maintain optimized weight distribution. This local approach enables ease of swing through reduced shaft weight while preserving head weight for momentum, without requiring global redesign
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 effectively suppresses toe-down, stabilizes hit points and face angles, and enhances the smash factor by maintaining head speed and reducing variations in hit points and face angles, while optimizing flight distance performance.
Implementation Method 1
the protruding portion increases aerodynamic drag and lifting force, canceling centrifugal forces and reducing toe-down
Implementation Method 2
the protruding portion increases aerodynamic drag and lifting force, canceling centrifugal forces and reducing toe-down
Implementation Method 3
a so-called toe-down phenomenon (hereinafter also simply referred to as "toe down") is one of factors in reduction of flight distance
Data Source
AI summary
A head includes a face portion, a crown portion, a sole portion, and a hosel portion. The crown portion includes a protruding portion on a crown outer surface. The protruding portion does not form any part of an outer contour line of the head in a front view of the head as viewed from a face side. The protruding portion forms an outer contour line of the head in a heel projection figure in which the head that is placed on a ground plane such that a shaft axis line is perpendicular to the ground plane and a face angle is 0° is viewed from a heel side along the ground plane. In this head, aerodynamic drag and lifting force at a position at which the shaft axis line becomes parallel to the ground plane during downswing can be increased. In this head, air resistance at impact can be suppressed.