Multilayer golf ball and composition

• US 6,838,519 B2
• Filed: 08/20/2002
• Issued: 01/04/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Cavallaro, Christopher, Rajagopalan, Murali, Harris, Kevin M., Dalton, Jeffrey L
• Primary Examiner(s): Buttner, David J.
• Application Number:
  US10/223,618
• Publication Number:
  US 20030050396A1
• Time in Patent Office: 868 Days
• Field of Search: 525/130, 473/371, 473/373, 473/374
• US Class Current: 525/130
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0003 Golf balls
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0031 Hardness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0033 Thickness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0043 Hardness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0046 Deflection or compression
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0047 Density; Specific gravity
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0049 Flexural modulus; Bending stiffness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0062 Hardness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0065 Deflection or compression
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0066 Density; Specific gravity
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0082 Density; Specific gravity
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 2043/3644 Vacuum bags; Details thereof, e.g. fixing or clamping
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 43/305 Making multilayered articles
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2105/256 Sheets, plates, blanks or films
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 27/30 comprising vinyl (co)polymers; comprising acrylic (co)polymers
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 27/36 comprising polyesters
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 27/40 comprising polyurethanes
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 210/02 Ethene
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 220/06 Acrylic acid; Methacrylic acid; Metal salts or ammonium salts thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08K 3/22 of metals
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 21/00 : Compositions of unspecified rubbers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2205/02 : containing two or more polymers of the same C08L -group
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2205/03 : containing three or more polymers in a blend
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 23/08 : Copolymers of ethene C08L23/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 23/0869 : Acids or derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 23/0876 : Neutralised polymers, i.e. ionomers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/02 : Organic macromolecular compounds, natural resins, waxes or and bituminous materials
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/04 : Macromolecular compounds according to groups C08L7/00 - C08L49/00, or C08L55/00 - C08L57/00; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/06 : Homopolymers or copolymers of unsaturated hydrocarbons; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/08 : Homopolymers or copolymers according to C08L7/00 - C08L21/00; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/14 : Macromolecular compounds according to C08L59/00 - C08L87/00; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/18 : Polyesters or polycarbonates according to C08L67/00 - C08L69/00; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/20 : Macromolecular compounds having nitrogen in the main chain according to C08L75/00 - C08L79/00; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/24 : Graft or block copolymers according to groups C08L51/00, C08L53/00 or C08L55/02; Derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 51/00 : Compositions of graft polymers in which the grafted component is obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds for ABS polymers C08L55/02; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 53/00 : Compositions of block copolymers containing at least one sequence of a polymer obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 53/02 : of vinyl-aromatic monomers and conjugated dienes
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 53/025 : modified
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 67/00 : Compositions of polyesters obtained by reactions forming a carboxylic ester link in the main chain of polyester-amides C08L77/12; of polyester-imides C08L79/08; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 67/025 : containing polyether sequences
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 75/04 : Polyurethanes
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 75/06 : from polyesters
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 9/00 : Compositions of homopolymers or copolymers of conjugated diene hydrocarbons

Abstract

A golf ball comprising a core, a cover, and at least one intermediate layer disposed between the core and the cover, wherein the core has a compression of less than about 60 and the intermediate layer is formed from a blend comprising a polyurethane material, wherein the golf ball has a compression of about 75 to about 85.

Claims

1. A golf ball comprising:

a core having a compression of about 60 or less;

an intermediate layer disposed about the core, wherein the intermediate layer is formed from a composition comprising at least one thermoplastic or thermoset polyurethane material and an ethylene methacrylic/acrylic acid copolymer; and

a cover disposed about the intermediate layer,

wherein the golf ball has a coefficient of restitution of about 0.795 to about 0.815 at an inbound speed of 125 ft/s.

2. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the coefficient of restitution is from about 0.8 to about 0.81.

3. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core has a compression of about 45 to about 60.

4. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core has a hardness of less than about 80 Shore C.

5. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core has a hardness of about 65 to about 80 Shore C.

6. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the intermediate layer has at least one of a hardness of about 78 Shore D or less, a flexural modulus of about 10,000 psi or less, a thickness of about 0.035 inches to about 0.085 inches, or a combination thereof.

7. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the cover has a hardness of about 60 to about 72 Shore D.

8. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises at least one additional thermoplastic material selected from the group consisting of polyesterester block copolymers, polyetherester block copolymers, polyetheramide block copolymers, ionomer resins, dynamically vulcanized thermoplastic elastomers, styrene-butadiene elastomers with functional groups comprising maleic anhydride or sulfonic acid, thermoplastic polyesters, polymers formed using a metallocene catalyst, and mixtures thereof.

9. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises at least one density-adjusting filler.

10. The golf ball of claim 9, wherein the at least one density-adjusting filler comprises zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, or mixtures thereof.

11. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the cover comprises at least one of an ionomer, a thermoset polyurethane, a thermoplastic polyurethane, or a combination thereof.

12. A golf ball comprising:

a core, an intermediate layer disposed about the core, and a cover disposed about the intermediate layer, wherein the core has a compression of about 60 or less,

wherein the intermediate layer comprises an ethylene methacrylic/acrylic acid copolymer, wherein the cover is formed from a composition comprising at least one thermoplastic or thermoset polyurethane material, and wherein the golf ball has a coefficient of restitution of about 0.795 to about 0.815 at an inbound speed of 125 ft/s.

13. The golf ball of claim 12, wherein the intermediate layer has a hardness of about 78 Shore D or less.

14. The golf ball of claim 12, wherein the intermediate layer has a flexural modulus of about 10,000 psi or less.

15. The golf ball of claim 12, wherein the intermediate layer further comprises at least one additional thermoplastic material selected from the group consisting of polyesterester block copolymers, polyetherester block copolymers, polyetheramide block copolymers, ionomer resins, dynamically vulcanized thermoplastic elastomers, styrene-butadiene elastomers with functional groups comprising maleic anhydride or sulfonic acid, thermoplastic polyesters, polymers formed using a metallocene catalyst, and mixtures thereof.

16. The golf ball of claim 12, wherein the cover comprises a thermoset polyurethane material.

17. The golf ball of claim 12, wherein the cover has a hardness of about 60 to about 72 Shore D.

18. A golf ball comprising:

a core having a hardness of about 80 Shore C or less;

an intermediate layer having a hardness of about 78 Shore D or less and comprising an ethylene methacrylic/acrylic acid copolymer; and

a cover,

wherein at least one of the intermediate layer or cover comprises at least one thermoplastic or thermoset polyurethane, and wherein the golf ball has a coefficient of restitution of about 0.795 to about 0.815 at an inbound speed of 125 ft/s.

19. The golf ball of claim 18, wherein the core has a compression of about 60 or less.

20. The golf ball of claim 19, wherein the core has a compression of about 45 to about 60.

21. The golf ball of claim 18, wherein the intermediate layer further comprises at least one density-adjusting filler comprising zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, or mixtures thereof.

22. The golf ball of claim 18, wherein the intermediate layer further comprises at least one additional thermoplastic material selected from the group consisting of polyesterester block copolymers, polyetherester block copolymers, polyetheramide block copolymers, ionomer resins, dynamically vulcanized thermoplastic elastomers, styrene-butadiene elastomers with functional groups comprising maleic anhydride or sulfonic acid, thermoplastic polyurethanes, thermoplastic polyesters, polymers formed using a metallocene catalyst, and mixtures thereof.

23. The golf ball of claim 18, wherein the cover has a hardness of about 60 to about 72 Shore D.

24. The golf ball of claim 18, wherein the intermediate layer has a flexural modulus of about 10,000 psi or less.

25. The golf ball of claim 18, wherein the intermediate layer hardness is from about 35 to about 60 Shore D.