Fitting system for a golf club

• US 8,821,306 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2013
• Issued: 09/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Margoles, Ryan, Johnson, Gregory D.
• Primary Examiner(s): CUFF, MICHAEL A
• Application Number:
  US13/863,596
• Publication Number:
  US 20130344973A1
• Time in Patent Office: 504 Days
• Field of Search: 473/223, 473/221, 473/131
• US Class Current: 473/223
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0694 Visual indication, e.g. Indicia
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/42 Devices for measuring, verifying, correcting or customising the inherent characteristics of golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like, e.g. measuring the maximum torque a batting shaft can withstand
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/23 Recognition of whole body movements, e.g. for sport training

Abstract

A method relating to an improved swing characteristic capturing system that can be used for a golf club shaft fitting system is disclosed herein. More specifically, the present invention utilizes specific data gathered from the golfer'"'"'s golf swing itself to determine the best performing golf club shaft for this particular golf swing. Even more specifically, the present invention relates to the utilization of cameras to record the location data of a plurality of markers located on a golf club shaft throughout a swing. The current inventive fitting methodology is preferred to the archaic fitting method of using data gathered from the result orientated ball flight data together with a tedious process of having to try numerous different shafts.

Claims

1. A golf club comprising:

a grip at a proximal end of said golf club;

a club head at a terminal end of said golf club;

a shaft, connecting said grip and said club head, juxtaposed between said grip and said club head; and

a camera, placed at a distance of between about 6 inches to about 14 inches from a grip end of said golf club;

wherein said camera is aimed at said club head, wherein said camera has a frame rate of greater than about 125 frames/second,

wherein said club head further comprises of a plurality of two or more markers located on said club head, and

Wherein said camera is adapted to gather a relative distance between said plurality of two or more markers throughout a golf swing.

2. The golf club of claim 1, wherein said camera is placed at a distance of between about 8 inches to about 12 inches from said grip end of said golf club.

3. The golf club of claim 2, wherein said camera is placed at a distance of about 10 inches from said grip end of said golf club.

4. The golf club of claim 1, further comprising a sensor, placed on or near said camera.

5. The golf club of claim 4, wherein said sensor further comprises;

an accelerometer and a gyroscope.

6. The golf club of claim 1, wherein said accelerometer has a measurement range of about ±

8 g'"'"'s.

7. The golf club of claim 1, wherein said plurality of markers are placed on a crown portion of said club head.