JP4293531B2 - Golf club head - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a golf club head using a fiber reinforced resin plate component for a crown portion of a hollow wood head including a fairway wood and a utility.

  Conventionally, hollow wood heads that replace conventional wood heads have been made of metal mainly composed of stainless steel, titanium alloy, aluminum, or the like. For this reason, the crown part is also made of metal, and it can be said that the center of gravity is high accordingly. In order to lower the center of gravity, golf club heads using a fiber reinforced resin plate part for the crown are on the market. Such a golf club head is also disclosed in a gazette shown in Patent Document 1 below.

However, as a result of performing a hit test of a golf club head having at least the crown part of these fiber reinforced resin plate parts (the crown part is repeatedly bent upward by hitting the face part), the durability range It was found that a peeling crack occurred at the joint between the component and the head body at a time when it should be within.
JP 2003-111874 A

  The problem to be solved is to improve the durability of the golf club head having at least the crown part of the fiber reinforced resin plate part, particularly the durability of the joint part.

In Reference Example 1 of the present invention, the hollow wood head has a metal head main body provided with an opening in the crown portion, and a stepped receiving portion is provided around the opening of the head main body. In a golf club head in which a fiber-reinforced resin plate component is placed and bonded to the plate by an adhesive to close the opening, is the thickness of the plate component gradually reduced toward the outer surface of the plate component? Alternatively, the golf club head has a region where the thickness is gradually reduced, and an adhesive is provided between the end surface of the plate part and the step end surface of the receiving portion.
The step shape is apparent from the following examples, but includes not only a step due to a vertical wall but also an inclined step.
The term “stepwise” includes a case where the main body portion other than the peripheral portion has a step portion that is lowered by one step.

In Reference Example 2 , the hollow wood head has a metal head main body provided with an opening in the crown portion, and a step-shaped receiving portion is provided around the opening of the head main body, and an adhesive is provided on the receiving portion. In the golf club head in which the fiber-reinforced resin plate part is placed and joined via the plug to close the opening, the gap between the outer edge of the end face of the plate part and the outer edge of the step end face of the receiving part is 0.3 mm or more Provided is a golf club head having a separated range, and a layer of an adhesive that is softer than a plate part provided in the range.
The separation of 0.3 mm or more is preferably a separation of 0.5 mm or more, or a separation of 1 mm or more. Also, these numbers can have manufacturing tolerances. The upper limit of the separation is preferably up to 5 mm from the viewpoint of strength, rigidity, etc. from the role as the crown portion of the head. If it exceeds 5 mm, the receiving part structure of the main body part becomes large, which hinders the lowering of the center of gravity. The most preferred range is 0.5-1 mm. Further, these separation values are average values obtained by dividing the gap area due to separation by the total length of both lines in the range from the line along the face part of the plate part to the line from the hosel part side toward the rear. This is a separation value in a typical sense.

In Reference Example 3 , the hollow wood head has a metal head main body provided with an opening in the crown portion, and a step-shaped receiving portion is provided around the opening of the head main body, and an adhesive is provided on the receiving portion. In the golf club head in which the fiber-reinforced resin plate part is placed and joined via the opening, the opening is closed, and the outline of the plate part has a front line along the face part and a face on the side near the hosel part of the line part. A lateral line extending in a direction away from the portion, and in the vicinity of the intersection of the two lines, the separation distance between the outer edge of the end surface of the plate part and the outer edge of the step end surface of the receiving portion is the intersection. Longer than the distance in any of the lines excluding the vicinity of the part, and a layer of adhesive that is more flexible than the plate part is provided between the end face of the plate part along the two lines and the step end face of the receiving part. To provide a golf club head which is characterized the door.

According to a first aspect of the present invention , the hollow wood head has a metal head main body provided with an opening in the crown portion, and the head main body has a stepped receiving portion in the periphery of the opening. In a golf club head in which a fiber reinforced resin plate part is placed and bonded to an adhesive to close the opening, the edge part of the plate part has a ratio of reinforcing fiber, orientation direction, elastic modulus as a whole. There is provided a golf club head characterized in that at least any one of them is different from a main body portion excluding an edge portion, so that the flexural rigidity is lower than that of the main body portion.

In Claim 2 , it has the metal head main body which provided the opening in the crown part of the hollow wood head, and the opening peripheral part of this head main body is equipped with the step-shaped receiving part, and adhesive agent in this receiving part In the golf club head in which the fiber reinforced resin plate parts are placed and joined via the plug, the opening is closed, and the plate parts have a structure in which a plurality of layers of prepregs are stacked in the thickness direction at least at the edge thereof. Provided is a golf club head characterized in that the bending rigidity per unit thickness at the time of bending along the front-rear direction is lower as the outer layer is allowed to be partly the same.
Decreasing the flexural rigidity per unit thickness depends on whether the direction of the reinforcing fiber is angled (inclined) with respect to the flexing direction, or the reinforcing fiber has a low elastic modulus. Either smaller or a combination of two or more of these.
Further, the present invention may be a form in which the forms of claims 1 and 2 and reference examples are mixed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the end surface of the plate component is inclined so that it can be seen from above the outer surface of the plate component, and a layer of adhesive softer than the plate component covers the inclined end surface of the plate component. A golf club head according to claim 1 is provided.

At the time of striking, the crown part bends in the direction from the face part to the back part. At that time, the tensile force acts more strongly on the outside of the plate part, and between the plate part end face and the step end face of the receiving part. Tensile force acts, and peeling cracks may occur at the boundary between the adhesive layer and the adhesive layer, respectively. In Reference Example 1 of the present invention, the peripheral part of the plate part gradually becomes thinner toward the outer surface, Or since it has the area | region which became thin-walled in steps, the outer part of the thin plate component is easy to extend, the stress based on the tension | tensile_strength by bending deformation can be relieve | moderated, and the said peeling crack can be prevented. In addition, since the end face of the plate part is inclined or stepped, the bonding area between the end face of the plate part and the stepped end face of the receiving part is large, and the adhesive force is increased accordingly, and it is easy to withstand the tension. Therefore, the durability of the golf club head, particularly the durability of the joint can be improved.

In Reference Example 2 , since a layer of adhesive that is more flexible than the plate component is provided in a range in which the outer edge of the end surface of the plate component and the outer edge of the stepped end surface of the receiving portion are separated by 0.3 mm or more, The stress generated at the joint between the component and the head main body by the impact can be relieved, and the occurrence of peeling cracks can be prevented. Therefore, the durability of the golf club head, particularly the durability of the joint can be improved.

In the problem of peeling cracks at the joint portion of the crown plate component due to impact, there is a fact that cracks are likely to occur particularly in the vicinity of the intersection between the front line and the side line as described in Reference Example 3 . In Reference Example 3 , the separation distance between the outer edge of the end face of the plate part near the intersection and the outer edge of the step end face of the receiving part is longer than the distance in the other area of the line, and between them is larger than the plate part. Since the flexible adhesive layer is provided, the stress at the time of hitting near the intersection is more relaxed than in other regions, and it is possible to prevent the occurrence of peeling cracks. Therefore, the durability of the golf club head, particularly the durability of the joint can be improved.

In the first aspect of the present invention, the edge of the plate part has a lower bending rigidity than the main body by making at least one of the ratio of the main body and the reinforcing fiber, the directing direction, and the elastic modulus different from each other. The joint stress due to the tension is relaxed, and it is possible to prevent the occurrence of peeling cracks. Therefore, the durability of the golf club head, particularly the durability of the joint can be improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the outer layer of the edge of the plate part where peeling cracks easily occur is more easily bent than the inner layer, and the inner layer is configured to be less likely to be bent. It is possible to relieve the stress generated in the surface layer portion and improve the durability of the golf club head, particularly the durability of the joint portion.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the end surface is inclined and the adhesive layer covers the inclined end surface, even if it is deformed by impact, a peeling crack is hardly generated.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
1 is an exploded perspective view of a golf club head according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the golf club head after the components of FIG. 1 are assembled, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC in FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD in FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a portion E in FIG. A metal head main body 10 mainly composed of stainless steel, titanium alloy, aluminum or the like has a front face portion 10F, a heel portion 10H, a toe portion 10T, a back portion 10B, a sole portion 10S, and a hosel for a shaft S. Part 10HS.

  A cylindrical portion 10TB for fastening the shaft is formed from the hosel portion to the sole portion through the inside. In this example, the crown portion is formed by leaving only the region close to the hosel portion and the face portion, and lowering the other range from the remaining crown portion 10C to a stepped shape, and receiving the peripheral portion of the step portion as a receiving portion 10U. The opening 10K is provided in the remaining central region. A well-known socket SK is also provided. As shown in many cross-sectional views, the inner side (back side) of the receiving part is formed along the step shape of the outer side (front side), so that the weight of this area does not need to be increased, and the center of gravity is lowered. Easy to make. Even if the inner side surface is not provided with a step like the outer side and is formed in a concave shape only on the outer side, if the receiving portion is formed thin, the weight does not have to be increased.

  On the other hand, the plate component 12 is formed in a dimensional shape that can be placed on the receiving portion to close the opening 10K. This is a fiber reinforced resin plate, which is made of fiber reinforced resin using an epoxy resin as a matrix and carbon fiber as a reinforced fiber. An adhesive is used to join the component 12 to the head body 10. An adhesive layer 14 'is interposed between the bottom surface of the component 12 and the receiving portion 10U, and the outer edge of the end surface 12E in the spreading direction of the component (the edge on the outer surface side of the component) and the step end surface of the receiving portion of the head body Between the outer edges is the range of ΔL in FIG. 5, and the adhesive layer 14 is interposed between both end faces. The two adhesive layers 14, 14 'may be the same or different. However, in the present application, for example, an epoxy resin adhesive is used so that at least the adhesive layer 14 is a (flexible) layer having a lower flexural rigidity per unit thickness than the component 12. In addition, various polymer adhesives such as acrylic resin, silicon resin, and urethane resin can be used. It is also effective to use an adhesive having a high elongation at break such as an adhesive containing no filler.

  The plate component 12 has a front line LM along the face portion 10F, and a side line LS that is continuous with the hosel portion side of the line and faces the head rearward from the face portion. In FIG. 2, the hatched area is the area where the adhesive layer 14 is provided. That is, the range in the left-right direction along the face portion (the range of the interval ΔL ′ between the front line LM and the outer edge of the step portion edge) and the front-rear direction range on the hosel portion side (the side line LS and the receiving portion of the head body). It is not always necessary to provide the entire boundary with the remaining crown portion 10C. However, providing near the hosel is highly effective. The width ΔL of the adhesive layer 14 is 0.3 mm or more, but other preferable ranges are as described above. This is a separation width value in an average sense obtained by dividing the gap area due to separation by the total length of both lines in the range extending from the front line LM and the side line LS along the face portion. If this adhesive layer 14 is present, it is possible to prevent cracks from occurring between the end surface 12E of the component 12 and the head body.

  Although the widths ΔL and ΔL ′ in FIG. 2 are almost constant examples along the lines LM and LS, the imaginary line LMS is an example of another contour shape of the plate part 12. It is drawn exaggeratedly, and the gap between the receiving part of the head body and the outer edge of the step part end face is formed non-uniformly. That is, the distance ΔL ′ between the front line LM and the outer edge of the edge of the stepped portion edge and the distance ΔL between the side line LS and the outer edge of the stepped end surface of the receiving portion of the head body are close to the hosel portion where both lines intersect. It is getting bigger. If comprised in this way, the peeling crack which arises in the boundary part of a component and a head main body near the hosel part which becomes a problem especially at the time of a hit | damage can be prevented effectively.

FIG. 6 is a modified example in place of FIG. 5, and is also an example according to claim 3 . The difference from the case of FIG. 5 is that the end surface 12E of the component is inclined, and the distance from the head body toward the outer surface (surface) side is longer in the ΔL direction, and the adhesive layer 14 is here. It is in the form of covering. Cracks are less likely to occur.

FIG. 7 shows a form of Reference Example 1 of the present invention, and the end surface of the plate component 12 is formed in an inclined shape so as to gradually become thinner toward the outer surface, contrary to FIG. The width ΔS of the portion 12S is preferably equal to or greater than the thickness of the plate component. Further, an adhesive layer 14 ′ is interposed between the end surface of the step portion of the head main body (and between the receiving portion). The planar view range in which the inclined portion exists is the same as the content referred to the existing range of the adhesive layer 14 with reference to FIG. Matters other than those specifically mentioned here are the same as those described in the description example described with reference to FIGS. Due to the presence of the inclined portion, the outer portion of the plate component can be easily extended, and stress based on tension due to bending deformation can be relieved to prevent peeling cracks. In addition, since the end face of the plate part is inclined, the adhesion area between the end face of the plate part and the stepped end face of the receiving part is large, and the adhesive force is increased accordingly, so that it is easy to withstand the tension. Therefore, the durability of the golf club head, particularly the durability of the joint can be improved.

  FIG. 8 shows another embodiment instead of FIG. 5 and can be said to be a modification of FIG. The difference from the case of FIG. 7 is that the peripheral portion 12S is not gradually changed but is thinly formed in a step shape. However, the same effect is obtained as in the case of FIG. 7, and the other items are also the same.

  FIG. 9 is an example related to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, but can also be applied to the examples of FIGS. 6 to 8. By providing a range Δ (finite value) from the front surface side step start position of the receiving portion 10U to the end position on the back surface of the receiving portion far from the opening 10K, it is possible to prevent cracks on the metal receiving portion side. In this example, the strength of the head main body is improved.

  FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 3 when the sole portion 10 is placed in contact with the horizontal ground with the lie angle and loft angle of other golf clubs set as set values. It is preferable that the end portion, particularly the end of the joint portion close to the face portion 10F, be provided at a position lower than the apex of the crown portion by a predetermined distance δ1 because the joint portion is not easily deformed by the bending of the crown portion. δ1 is preferably 3 mm or more. Further, it is preferable that the end portion of the plate component 12 be positioned closer to the face portion 10F by a predetermined distance δ2 from the position of the central axis of the shaft S because it is difficult to be deformed by the bending of the crown portion. δ2 is preferably 2 mm or more.

  FIG. 11 is also a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 3 when the sole portion 10 is placed in contact with the horizontal ground with the lie angle and loft angle of other golf clubs set as set values. The back portion side end portion position is lower by a predetermined amount δ3 than the intermediate position of the face portion 10F in the height direction width. This is preferable because it is not easily deformed by the bending of the crown portion. δ3 is preferably 3 mm or more.

Hereinafter, an embodiment according to claim 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 12 is a view corresponding to FIG. 5 of another golf club head, and is an enlarged view corresponding to part E of FIG. A fiber reinforced resin plate component 12 is bonded on the receiving portion 10U via an adhesive 14 ', and an edge portion 12P of this component shows a small flexural rigidity unlike other component regions. FIG. 13 shows an enlargement of the region O in FIG. The component 12 is formed by laminating five prepregs, but the prepreg corresponding to the outermost layer 12E is small, and the edge portion 12P is formed from the edge layers of the other four layers 12A, 12B, 12C, and 12D. Thus, it is configured by four layers of layers 12AP, 12BP, 12CP, and 12DP sequentially from the inner side surface (back surface) side by heat and pressure molding.

  Each prepreg used had a uniform thickness. In the region of the edge portion 12P, the prepreg corresponding to the layer 12E was not reached, so that there was a step gap there when the prepreg was laminated. However, the outer mold shape for pressurization at the time of molding is made a shape that does not fill the gap in the peripheral part, and a lot of resin flows to this edge due to the resin flow at the time of molding, and the edge is about the same as other areas It becomes the wall thickness. As a result, in the edge portion 12P, the ratio (density) of the reinforcing fibers is reduced, and only the edge portion 12P is bent to reduce the rigidity. Although the ratio of the resin increases, the resin hardly contributes to the bending rigidity.

  An example of the prepreg of each layer will be described with the CC cross-sectional direction in FIG. The matrix resin is an epoxy resin, and the carbon fibers are aligned in the +45 degrees, −45 degrees, −45 degrees, and +45 degrees directions in the order of the layers 12A, 12B, 12C, and 12D (12AP, 12BP, 12CP, and 12DP). The alignment sheet is used, and the layer 12E is a carbon fiber woven fabric in the direction of ± 45 degrees. The elastic modulus of all carbon fibers is the same. The woven fabric is considered to be excluded because it is originally balanced from the weaving method. However, in the laminated structure, the fiber direction is symmetric with respect to the center in the structure in which the laminated structure is laminated vertically with respect to the center position of the laminated material. When laminated in this manner, residual stress due to heat is suppressed and the strength is stabilized. Further, deformation can be prevented.

FIG. 14 shows an embodiment according to claim 2 and is an enlarged view corresponding to the region O of FIG. Here, the component 12 is composed of four layers, which are the layers 12A ′, 12B ′, 12C ′, and 12D ′ from the inner side surface (rear surface) side, and the same applies to the edges. Similarly to the case of FIG. 13, the prepreg using the matrix resin as the epoxy resin is an alignment sheet in which the carbon fibers are aligned in the +45 degrees, −45 degrees, −45 degrees, and +45 degrees directions in this order. For example, the elastic modulus of the carbon fibers, the layer 12A ', 12B' those of ^{30ton / mm 2 (294000N / mm} 2), the layer 12C ', 12D' ones is a ^{24ton / mm 2 (235200N / mm} 2) .

  As a result, the outermost layer 12D ′ has a smaller flexural rigidity than the innermost layer 12A ′, relieves stress generated in the surface layer portion of the joint portion between the component and the head body, and improves the durability of the golf club head, particularly the joint portion. Durability can be improved. In the invention according to claim 5, it is preferable that the bending rigidity per unit thickness is smaller toward the outer side, but the intermediate layers 12B 'and 12C' may have the same rigidity as in this example. Moreover, it is good also as a structure which provided not only the whole components but the change of such bending rigidity only in the edge part.

  Each explanation item in each embodiment described above may be arbitrarily combined unless there is a particular contradiction. Moreover, although the joint part in question has been described in the range extending over the front line LM and the side line LS of the plate part, in addition, in the case where a step part is provided on the head body side on the back side, also in this region A similar structure can be applied.

  The present invention can be applied to a hollow wood head including a fairway wood.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a golf club head according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the golf club head after assembling the components of FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD in FIG. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a portion E in FIG. FIG. 6 is a modified example in place of FIG. FIG. 7 shows another embodiment instead of FIG. FIG. 8 shows another example in place of FIG. 5 and also a modification of FIG. FIG. 9 shows an example related to the reference embodiment shown in FIGS. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of another golf club head corresponding to FIG. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of another golf club head corresponding to FIG. FIG. 12 is a schematic view of an embodiment according to claim 1 of the present invention instead of FIG. FIG. 13 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. FIG. 14 shows an embodiment according to claim 2 of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Metal head main body 10K Opening 10U Receiving part 12 Plate part 12S Inclined part, level | step difference part 14 Adhesive layer

Claims (3)

It has a metal head body with an opening in the crown of the hollow wood head, and has a stepped receiving part around the opening of the head body, and fiber reinforced via an adhesive in the receiving part. In a golf club head in which a resin plate component is placed and joined to close the opening,
The edge part of the plate part is characterized by having a lower flexural rigidity than the main body part because the overall thickness of the plate part is different from the main body part excluding the edge part in at least one of the ratio of reinforcing fibers, the directing direction, and the elastic modulus. And golf club head. It has a metal head body with an opening in the crown of the hollow wood head, and has a stepped receiving part around the opening of the head body, and fiber reinforced via an adhesive in the receiving part. In a golf club head in which a resin plate component is placed and joined to close the opening,
Plate parts shall have a structure in which multiple layers of prepreg are laminated in the thickness direction at least at the edge, and the bending rigidity per unit thickness when bending along the longitudinal direction of the head of each layer is partially the same. A golf club head characterized in that the outer layer is lower while allowing The end face of the plate part is inclined to look from above of the outer side surface of the plate part, claim 1 the layer of flexible adhesive than the plate part is covering the inclined end surface of the plate part The described golf club head.

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