Multi-Material Golf Club Head Face with Composite Backing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing golf club heads face challenges in achieving a balance between weight reduction, improved Coefficient of Restitution (COR), increased Moment of Inertia (MOI), and maintaining durability and sound quality, as previous designs either compromise on durability or alter the feel and sound of the club.
Innovation Solution
A golf club head design featuring a striking face with a perimeter made of a high-density material and a central pocket filled with a lower-density material, such as aluminum or composite, which enhances weight distribution, COR, and MOI while maintaining the structural integrity and acoustic characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the striking face is made thinner to improve COR, then ball travel distance increases, but the durability and structural integrity of the club head deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The striking face is constructed as a composite structure with a thin metallic face layer (providing high COR) bonded to a composite backing layer (providing durability). This allows the face to be thinner for improved energy transfer while the composite backing maintains structural integrity and resists damage from repeated impacts.
Solution Approach 2:
The striking face is divided into functionally distinct layers: a thin metallic face portion optimized for COR and a separate composite backing portion optimized for durability. This segmentation allows each layer to be independently optimized for its specific function, resolving the contradiction between thinness for COR and thickness for durability.
2Weight of moving object
If weight is removed from the striking face to improve COR and increase MOI, then ball flight distance improves, but the structural integrity and sound quality of the club head deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
A composite backing layer is used to replace removed metallic weight. This composite material provides sufficient structural support to maintain club head integrity while being lighter than the removed metal, thereby improving MOI without sacrificing durability or sound quality.
Solution Approach 2:
Weight removal is applied locally and selectively from the striking face area, while the composite backing provides localized support only where needed. This allows maximum weight reduction for MOI improvement while maintaining structural integrity only in the specific regions where it is required for function.
3Use of energy by moving object
If a thin striking face is used to improve COR, then energy transfer to the ball improves, but the ability to resist rotational twisting on off-center hits deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The composite backing layer has higher stiffness and strength properties than the thin metallic face. This composite structure provides the necessary rigidity to resist rotational twisting and torques generated during off-center impacts, while the thin face layer maintains high COR for efficient energy transfer on center hits.
Solution Approach 2:
The club head is segmented into a thin face portion for energy transfer and a thick composite backing portion for stability. The backing portion acts as a rigid support structure that resists twisting, while the thin face portion flexes efficiently to transfer energy to the ball on center hits.
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 weight savings, improved ball flight distance, and maintains the desirable sound and feel of a traditional metallic golf club head, enhancing the overall performance without sacrificing durability.
Implementation Method 1
a lighter second material having a second density to fill in the pocket created by the striking face, while the remainder of the striking face utilizes a heavier first material that has a first density
Implementation Method 2
The COR between a golf club and a golf ball may generally relate to a fractional value representing the ratio of velocities of the objects before and after they impact each other
Implementation Method 3
U.S. Pat. No. 5,058,895 to Igarashi goes into more detail on this concept by discussing the advantages of creating a golf club with a higher Moment of Inertia (MOI), which is a way to quantify the ability of a golf club to resist rotational twisting when it strikes a golf ball at a location that is offset from the geometric center of the golf club head
Data Source
AI summary
A golf club with a multi-material face is disclosed herein. More specifically, the golf club head in accordance with the present invention has a striking face portion that is backed by a composite layer. The multi-material face disclosed in accordance with the present invention may generally be manufactured via a bladder molding process that applies hydrostatic forces to the composite layer to create a more consistent bond between the composite material and the metallic material.