Golf Club Head Sole Compliance Zone for Low-Face Impact
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Solution Overview
Problem
Golfers with a swing that results in low impact locations on the club face experience reduced ball speed and non-optimal launch angles due to the stiffness of conventional fairway wood heads, especially when hitting from tight lies.
Innovation Solution
A fairway wood golf club head with a sole compliance zone featuring through-openings filled with low-density plugs or a secondary filler piece to reduce stiffness, allowing for controlled deflection and improved launch conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the sole section is made stiff to maintain structural integrity, then the club head maintains stability during swing, but shots low on the face result in reduced ball speed and non-optimal launch angles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating a compliance zone in the sole section with different stiffness characteristics. The compliance zone includes through-openings filled with plugs of lower stiffness material, making only the specific area near the face less stiff while maintaining the overall structural integrity of the sole section. This localized modification allows the face to deflect downward during impact with low-speed balls, improving ball speed and launch angle without compromising the club head's stability during the swing.
2Reliability
If the face is made stiff to maintain accuracy, then the club head provides consistent impact, but shots low on the face produce extremely low launch angles
Solution Approach 1:
The compliance zone is strategically positioned in the sole section proximate to the face, creating a localized area of reduced stiffness. This allows the face to have controlled downward deflection during impact with low-speed balls, which improves launch angle and backspin while maintaining overall impact consistency through the structured design of the compliance zone with multiple through-openings and plugs.
3Ease of manufacture
If the club head is designed with traditional sole structure, then manufacturing is simpler, but shots from tight lies result in low impact location and poor launch conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The compliance zone is segmented into multiple through-openings filled with separate plugs or a secondary filler piece. This segmentation allows for controlled creation of the low-stiffness zone while maintaining overall structural integrity. The segmented approach can be manufactured using standard molding techniques with insert molds, making the process feasible for mass production while achieving the desired shot performance improvement for tight lie conditions.
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
Enhances ball speed and launch angle by promoting downward face deflection and recovery, resulting in higher launch angles and lower backspin.
Implementation Method 1
an area in the sole proximate the face with a lower stiffness than prior art golf club heads so as to change the launch conditions (ball speed, launch angle, backspin) for shots low on the face
Implementation Method 2
promoting downward face deflection and recovery, resulting in higher launch angles and lower backspin
Data Source
AI summary
A golf club head with a sole having a low stiffness compliance zone, which allows the face to deflect downward upon impact with a golf ball, is disclosed herein. The compliance zone comprises a plurality of through openings that are filled with one or more filler pieces comprising a low modulus material, all of which are located within three inches of a face section measured along a front-to-back axis of the golf club head.