Hollow golf club head

• US 7,147,577 B2
• Filed: 04/26/2006
• Issued: 12/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Yokohama Rubber Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Yokohama Rubber Company Limited
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Shinji, Miyamoto, Masahiko, Nakahara, Norihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Passaniti, Sebastiano
• Application Number:
  US11/411,153
• Publication Number:
  US 20060189411A1
• Time in Patent Office: 230 Days
• Field of Search: 473/342, 473/345, 473/346, 473/347, 473/348, 473/349, 473/350
• US Class Current: 473/345
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2209/02 with reinforcing fibres, e.g. carbon, polyamide fibres
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0416 Heads having an impact surface provided by a face insert
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0437 with special crown configurations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0466 wood-type

Abstract

A hollow golf club head enables to increase the bonding strength of an outer shell member made of metal and an outer shell member made of fiber reinforced plastic. The hollow golf club head comprises a hollow golf club having a head body of a hollow structure formed by bonding the metallic outer shell member and the fiber reinforced plastic outer shell member, wherein the fiber reinforced plastic outer shell member is bonded to both faces of the bonding portion of the metallic outer shell member.

Claims

1. A hollow golf club head, comprising a head body having a hollow structure and formed by coupling together an outer shell member made of metal and an outer shell member made of fiber reinforced plastic at respective bonding portions of each, wherein the bonding portion of said fiber reinforced plastic outer shell member is bonded to the bonding portion of said metallic outer shell member, a through hole is provided in the bonding portion of said metallic outer shell member, a stitching member made of fiber reinforced plastic is passed through the through hole, and said metallic outer shell member and said fiber reinforced plastic outer shell member are coupled by the stitching member.

2. The hollow golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the bonding portion of the metallic outer shell member has a surface roughness Ra of 0.5 to 2.0.

3. The hollow golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the fiber of said fiber reinforced plastic is carbon fiber.

4. The hollow golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the bonding portion of the fiber reinforced plastic outer shell member is branched and the bonding portion of the metallic shell member contains a plurality of through holes through which is passed the stitching member.