Golf club head

• US 8,348,782 B2
• Filed: 05/07/2009
• Issued: 01/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SRI Sports Limited (Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited)
• Original Assignee: SRI Sports Limited (Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited)
• Inventors: Park, Sharon J., Tassistro, Kevin R., Van Der Heyden, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): DENNIS, MICHAEL DAVID
• Application Number:
  US12/436,998
• Publication Number:
  US 20090280923A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,342 Days
• Field of Search: 473/291
• US Class Current: 473/291
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2209/00 Characteristics of used materials
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/047 iron-type

Abstract

At least two golf clubs of a set, according to one or more aspects of the present invention, may include a strike face and a perimeter weighting element disposed behind the strike face. The perimeter weighting element may include an inner peripheral wall having a sole surface, a top surface, a heel surface, and a toe surface. A cavity, having a base surface, may be delimited by the inner peripheral wall and may include an insert disposed therein. The insert may comprise a primary element passively flexurally associated with one or more secondary elements and may be substantially identical for each head within the set. The primary element may be associated with the base surface and the at least one secondary element may be associated with at least one of the sole surface, the top surface, the toe surface, and the heel surface.

Claims

1. A correlated set of golf club heads comprising:

a first golf club head having a first loft angle and a second golf club head having a second loft angle that is different from the first loft angle, each of the first golf club head and the second golf club head including;

a strike face;

a perimeter-weighting element behind the strike face, the perimeter weighting element including an inner peripheral wall having at least one of a top surface, a sole surface, a heel surface, and a toe surface, the inner peripheral wall delimiting a cavity having a base surface; and

a first insert in the cavity the first insert comprising;

a primary element associated with the base surface, and at least one secondary element pivotably coupled with the primary element, by a passive flexural coupling configured to exert a negligible biasing force on the primary and secondary elements as the primary and secondary elements are pivoted relative to each other, the flexural coupling comprising a recessed region, and the at least one secondary element associated with at least one of the top surface, the sole surface, the toe surface, and the heel surface.

2. The set of claim 1, wherein the primary element and the at least one secondary element are the same material.

3. The set of claim 2, wherein the first insert comprises a polymeric material.

4. The set of claim 1, wherein a first secondary element is associated with the top surface, a second secondary element is associated with the sole surface, a third secondary element is associated with the toe surface, and a fourth secondary element is associated with the heel surface.

5. The set of claim 1, wherein the base surfaces of each of the first golf club head and the second golf club head are substantially congruent.

6. The set of claim 1, wherein the primary element and the at least one secondary element are different materials.

7. The set of claim 6, wherein the primary element comprises a metallic material and the at least one secondary element comprises a non-metallic material.

8. The set of claim 1, wherein a first secondary element is associated with the sole surface and a second secondary element is associated with the top surface.

9. The set of claim 1, wherein a first secondary element is associated with the toe surface and a second secondary element is associated with the heel surface.

10. The set of claim 1, wherein each of the first golf club head and the second golf club head comprises a second insert associated with the first insert.

11. The set of claim 1, wherein the base surface comprises a first perimetric area and the primary element comprises a second perimetric area, the first perimetric area being greater than the second perimetric area.

12. The set of claim 1, wherein the at least one secondary element is associated with the toe surface and the top surface.

13. A golf club head comprising:

a strike face;

a perimeter-weighting element behind the strike face, the perimeter weighting element including an inner peripheral wall having at least one of a top surface, a sole surface, a heel surface, and a toe surface, the inner peripheral wall delimiting a cavity having a base surface; and

a first insert in the cavity, the first insert comprising;

a primary element associated with the base surface; and

at least one secondary element associated with at least one of the sole surface, the top surface, the toe surface, and the heel surface; and

a passive flexural coupling configured to exert a negligible biasing force between the primary element and the secondary element as the primary and secondary elements are pivoted relative to each other, such that the first primary element is pivotably associated with the at least one secondary element, the flexural coupling comprising a recessed region.

14. The golf club head of claim 13, wherein the primary element is the same material as the at least one secondary element.

15. The golf club head of claim 14, wherein the insert is a polymeric material.

16. The golf club head of claim 13, wherein the primary element and the at least one secondary element are different materials.

17. The golf club head of claim 16, wherein the primary element comprises a metallic material and the at least one secondary element comprises a non-metallic material.

18. The golf club head of claim 13, wherein a first secondary element is associated with the heel surface and a second secondary element is associated with the toe surface.

19. The golf club head of claim 13, wherein a first secondary element is associated with the top surface and a second secondary element is associated with the sole surface.

20. The golf club head of claim 13, wherein a first secondary element is associated with the top surface, a second secondary element is associated with the sole surface, a third secondary element is associated with the toe surface, and a fourth secondary element is associated with the heel surface.

21. The golf club head of claim 13, wherein a second insert is associated with the first insert.

22. The golf club head of claim 21, wherein the second insert is comolded with the first insert.

23. The golf club head of claim 13, wherein the base surface comprises a first perimetric area and the primary element comprises a second perimetric area, the first perimetric area being greater than the second perimetric area.