Golf ball dimple pattern

• US 6,358,161 B1
• Filed: 09/27/1999
• Issued: 03/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Aoyama, Steven
• Primary Examiner(s): Graham, Mark S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gorden, Raeann
• Application Number:
  US09/404,164
• Time in Patent Office: 904 Days
• Field of Search: 473/377-384
• US Class Current: 473/383
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0004 Surface depressions or protrusions
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0006 Arrangement or layout of dimples
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0018 Specified number of dimples
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/002 Specified dimple diameter
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0021 Occupation ratio, i.e. percentage surface occupied by dimples

Abstract

A golf ball having an outside surface with a plurality of dimples formed thereon, wherein at least about 80% of the dimples have a diameter of about 0.11 inches or greater and the dimples cover more than 80% of the outer-surface.

Claims

1. A golf ball having an outside surface with a plurality of round dimples formed thereon having a plurality of dimple diameters, wherein

at least about 80% of the dimples have a diameter of about 0.11 inches or greater and

the dimples cover more than 80% of the outer surface, the dimples comprising a first set of dimples that form a triangle having three point dimples forming points on the triangle and side dimples forming sides of the triangle, wherein all of the side dimples have diameters larger than diameters of the point dimples.

2. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein at least about 90% of the dimples have a diameter of about 0.11 inches or greater.

3. The golf ball of claim 2, wherein at least about 95% of the dimples have a diameter of about 0.11 inches or greater.

4. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the total number of dimples is between about 300 and about 500.

5. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein at least 75% of the dimples have 6 adjacent dimples.

6. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the dimples have adjacent dimples and spaces between adjacent dimples and less than 30% of the spaces between adjacent dimples are greater than 0.01 inches.

7. A golf ball having an outside surface with a plurality of round dimples formed thereon having at least three different dimple diameters, wherein at least about 80% of the dimples have a diameter of about 0.11 inches or greater and the dimples cover more than 80% of the outer surface, wherein the total number of dimples is between about 350 and about 450, wherein the dimples have adjacent dimples and spaces between adjacent dimples and less than 30% of the spaces between adjacent dimples are greater than 0.01 inches.

8. The golf ball of claim 7, wherein at least about 90% of the dimples have a diameter of about 0.11 inches or greater.

9. The golf ball of claim 8, wherein at least about 95% of the dimples have a diameter of about 0.11 inches or greater.

10. The golf ball of claim 7, wherein at least 75% of the dimples have 6 adjacent dimples.

11. The golf ball of claim 7, wherein no two dimples overlap.

12. The golf ball of claim 7, further including at least four different dimple diameters.

13. The golf ball of claim 7, wherein the dimples cover more than 85% of the outer surface.

14. The golf ball of claim 7, wherein the dimples form a plurality of spherical-triangular regions, wherein each region has a set of dimples formed in a large triangle having three sides and three points, the first dimples at the points having a first diameter, the second dimples at the mid-point of each of the sides having a second diameter, and at least one third dimple between each second and first dimple having a third diameter, and the second diameter is greater than the first and third diameters, the golf ball further includes a center dimple within the large triangle having a fourth diameter equal to the second diameter.

15. The golf ball of claim 14, wherein the second dimples and the center dimple are not adjacent one another.

16. The golf ball of claim 7, wherein the dimples form a plurality of spherical-triangular regions, wherein each region has a set of dimples formed in a large triangle having three sides and three points, each of the dimples at the points is surrounded by less than six other dimples.

17. The golf ball of claim 7, said dimples being arranged so that there are less than four great circle paths that do not intersect any dimples.

18. The golf ball of claim 7, said dimples being arranged so that there is only one great circle path at the equator of the ball that does not intersect any dimples.

19. The golf ball of claim 7, further including at least five different dimple diameters.