Compositions for use in golf balls

• US 7,402,649 B2
• Filed: 10/05/2005
• Issued: 07/22/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Kuntimaddi, Manjari
• Primary Examiner(s): BUTTNER, DAVID J
• Application Number:
  US11/243,851
• Publication Number:
  US 20060030680A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,021 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 528/64
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0003 Golf balls
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0043 Hardness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0045 Thickness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0049 Flexural modulus; Bending stiffness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0051 Materials other than polybutadienes; Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0061 Coefficient of restitution
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0065 Deflection or compression
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/10 Prepolymer processes involving reaction of isocyanates or isothiocyanates with compounds having active hydrogen in a first reaction step
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/12 using two or more compounds having active hydrogen in the first polymerisation step
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/3234 cycloaliphatic
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/324 containing only one aromatic ring
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/62 Polymers of compounds having carbon-to-carbon double bonds
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/6208 Hydrogenated polymers of conjugated dienes
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/758 containing two or more cycloaliphatic rings
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 18/7657 containing two or more aromatic rings

Abstract

A golf ball having a core and at least one layer disposed about the core is disclosed. The core may further include a center and an outer core layer disposed about the center. The layer is formed from a composition having a prepolymer and a curative, the prepolymer being formed from an isocyanate and a blend of two or more telechelic polyahls, wherein a first telechelic polyahl has a first functionality of 3 or greater, which is greater than a second functionality of a second telechelic polyahl in the blend. The layer displays an enhanced shear resistance.

Claims

1. A golf ball, comprising:

a core; and

at least one layer disposed about the core, the layer comprising a composition formed from a prepolymer and a curative, the prepolymer being formed from an isocyanate and a blend of two or more telechelic polyahls, wherein a first telechelic polyahl has a first functionality of 3 or greater and a first polydispersity, a second telechelic polyahl has a second functionality of 1.6 to 2.3 and a second polydispersity, wherein at least one of the first and second telechelic polyahls is a telechelic polyhydrocarbon polyahl or a hydrogenated telechelic polyhydrocarbon polyahl, and wherein the layer displays an enhanced shear resistance.

2. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the first and second functionalities are independently chosen from hydroxyl functionality and amine functionality.

3. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the second functionality is 1.8 to 2.0.

4. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the first functionality is 4 or greater.

5. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the first and second functionalities are both hydroxyl functionalities.

6. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the first telechelic polyahl comprises 10% or less by weight of the blend.

7. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the first telechelic polyahl comprises 5% or less by weight of the blend.

8. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the first polydispersity and the second polydispersity are both 1.35 or less.

9. The golf ball of claim 8, wherein the first polydispersity is less than the second polydispersity.

10. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the blend further comprises a third telechelic polyahl having a third functionality and a third polydispersity.

11. The golf ball of claim 10, wherein the third functionality is less than the first functionality but greater than the second functionality.

12. The golf ball of claim 11, wherein third functionality is 2.4 to 2.9.

13. The golf ball of claim 10, wherein the third polydispersity is greater than the second polydispersity.

14. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the prepolymer has a % NCO of 6% to 15%.

15. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core has a diameter of 1.65 inches or less, a compression of 100 or less, and a coefficient of restitution of 0.77 or greater.

16. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the at least one layer has a Shore D hardness of 25 to 70 and a flexural modulus of 2,000 psi to 100,000 psi.

17. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the at least one layer has a thickness of 0.005 inches to 0.125 inches.

18. A golf ball, comprising:

a core; and

at least one layer disposed about the core, the layer comprising a composition formed from a prepolymer and a curative, the prepolymer being formed from an isocyanate and a blend of two or more telechelic polyahls, wherein a first telechelic polyahl has a first functionality of 3 or greater and a first polydispersity, a second telechelic polyahi has a second functionality of 1.6 to 2.3 and a second polydispersity, wherein the second telechelic polyahl is a telechelic polyhydrocarbon polyahl, and the first telechelic polyahl is a telechelic polyoxypropylene polyahl or a telechelic polyoxytetramethylene polyahl, and wherein the layer displays an enhanced shear resistance.