Golf club measuring system and golf club measuring method

• US 9,155,949 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2012
• Issued: 10/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Inventors: Yataka, Koji
• Primary Examiner(s): Pandya, Sunit
• Application Number:
  US13/559,974
• Publication Number:
  US 20130035174A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,173 Days
• Field of Search: 473/131, 473/198, 473201-202, 473/219, 473221-226, 473231-233, 473407-409, 463/3
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2102/32 Golf
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/833 Sensors arranged on the exercise apparatus or sports implement
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 59/30 forming hand-held throwing or catching aids for use with rings, discs, wheels or cylindrical throwing-bodies, or for use with balls having a central bore
• 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

Abstract

A golf club measuring system is designed to dynamically measure physical values of a golf club shaft during its swinging motion. A sensor wiring substrate includes a flexible board (e.g. polyethylene terephthalate material), a connector, a plurality of couplers, and a plurality of wires. A plurality of sensors is connected to the sensor wiring substrate via a plurality of couplers. The sensor wiring substrate is helically wound about the golf club shaft such that the flexible board is slightly warped and closely attached to the curved surface of a golf club shaft, thus reducing air resistance occurring on the golf club shaft being swung. An external device (e.g. a strain measuring device) is connected to the connector of the sensor wiring substrate so as to receive signals representing physical values (e.g. strain values), occurring on the golf club shaft being swung, from a plurality of sensors.

Claims

1. A golf club measuring system for dynamically measuring physical qualities of a golf club shaft as it is being swung, comprising:

a sensor wiring substrate in the form of a flexible ribbon that can be helically wound externally about a predetermined length of the shaft, the sensor wiring substrate having a plurality of wires embedded therein;

a plurality of sensors, each sensor being electrically coupled to a respective set of the wires and sensing the physical qualities of the shaft as it is swung; and

a storage device electrically coupled to the wires and receiving and storing information about the output of the plurality of sensors when the sensors are placed at respective positions on the shaft and the shaft is swung so as to allow a determination of the physical qualities of the shaft to be determined based upon the stored information.

2. The golf club measuring system of claim 1, wherein the sensors are strain sensors and the storage device stores information about the strain on the golf club shaft as the golf club is swung.

3. The golf club measuring system of claim 1, wherein the storage device wirelessly transmits the stored information to an external device.

4. The golf club measuring system of claim 1, further including a plurality of couplers, each coupler coupling a respective sensor to a respective set of the wires.

5. The golf club measuring system of claim 1, wherein the sensor wiring substrate is coupled to the strain measuring device at one end and coupled to the sensors at different locations along the length of the sensor wiring substrate and the width of the sensor wiring substrate is largest at the one end and tapers along its length.

6. The golf club measuring system according to claim 5, further including a coupler located at the one end which electrically connects the wires to the strain measuring device.

7. The golf club measuring system according to claim 1, wherein in the sensor wiring substrate extends along an axis and includes one or more curved portions which extend away from the axis and allow at least one of the sensors to be located along the axis of the sensor wiring substrate.

8. The golf club measuring device according to claim 1, wherein the sensor wiring substrate is formed of a translucent material which has a color which is different than the color of the wires.

9. A golf club shaft having a strain measuring system for dynamically physical qualities of the shaft at multiple locations on the shaft as the shaft is swung, comprising:

a golf club shaft;

a sensor wiring substrate in the form of a flexible ribbon helically wound externally about a predetermined length of the shaft, the sensor wiring substrate having a plurality of wires embedded therein;

a plurality of sensors, each sensor being electrically coupled to a respective set of the wires and being located at a respective position on the shaft; and

a storing device electrically coupled to the wires and receiving electrical signals from the plurality of sensors so as to allow the physical qualities of the shaft to be determined based upon the stored information.

10. The golf club shaft claim 9, wherein the sensors are strain sensors and the storage device stores information about the strain on the golf club shaft as the golf club is swung.

11. The golf club shaft of claim 9, wherein the wires are juxtaposed to one another.

12. The golf club shaft of claim 9, wherein the wired are printed wires.

13. The golf club shaft of claim 9, further including a plurality of couplers, each coupler coupling a respective sensor to a respective set of the wires.

14. The golf club shaft of claim 9, wherein the width of the sensor wiring substrate is tapered along its length.

15. The golf club shaft of claim 14, wherein the sensor wiring substrate is coupled to the strain measuring device at one end and coupled to the sensors at different locations along the length of the sensor wiring substrate and the width of the sensor wiring substrate is largest at the one end and tapers along its length.

16. The golf club shaft according to claim 15, further including a coupler located at the one end which electrically connects the wires to the strain measuring device.

17. The golf club shaft according to claim 9, wherein in the sensor wiring substrate extends along an axis and includes one or more curved portions which extend away from the axis and allow at least one of the sensors to be located along the axis of the sensor wiring substrate.

18. The golf club shaft according to claim 17, wherein the one or more curved portions include an s-shaped portion.

19. The golf club shaft according to claim 17, wherein the one or more curved portions include an oval-shaped portion.

20. The golf club shaft according to claim 9, wherein the sensor wiring substrate is formed of a translucent material which has a color which is different than the color of the wires.