Methods, apparatus, and systems to custom fit golf clubs

• US 9,675,862 B2
• Filed: 05/09/2008
• Issued: 06/13/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Karsten Manufacturing Corporation
• Original Assignee: Karsten Manufacturing Corporation
• Inventors: Solheim, John K., Jertson, Marty R., Wood, Paul D., Swartz, Gregory J.
• Primary Examiner(s): McCulloch, Jr., William H
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEICHLITER, CHASE E
• Application Number:
  US12/118,378
• Publication Number:
  US 20090088276A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,322 Days
• Field of Search: 473407, 473409
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0031 at the starting point
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0034 during flight
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/065 Visualisation of specific exercise parameters
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2102/32 Golf
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/05 Image processing for measuring physical parameters
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/35 Spin
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/89 Field sensors, e.g. radar systems
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/50 Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0003 Analysing the course of a movement or motion sequences during an exercise or trainings sequence, e.g. swing for golf or tennis
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0021 Tracking a path or terminating locations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/005 Club sets
• 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: A63B 69/3605 Golf club selection aids informing player of his average or expected shot distance for each club
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3608 Attachments on the body, e.g. for measuring, aligning, restraining A63B69/0059, A63B69/3673 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3623 for driving A63B69/3608, A63B69/3658, A63B69/3661, A63B69/3667 and A63B69/3691 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3632 Clubs or attachments on clubs, e.g. for measuring, aligning A63B69/3614 takes precedence; clubs for swinging exercises in general A63B15/00
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3658 Means associated with the ball for indicating or measuring, e.g. speed, direction

Abstract

Examples of methods, apparatus, and systems to custom fit golf clubs by providing gapping determination are generally described herein. Other examples may be described and claimed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining golf preferences of an individual, including one or more target gap distances;

receiving golf ball shot characteristic information of one or more golf shots of a club subset by the individual using a tracking device;

determining, with a gapping analyzer, a proposed golf club set exhibiting the one or more target gap distances between adjacent clubs of the proposed golf club set;

wherein;

the golf ball shot characteristic information comprises;

first golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a first subset club of the club subset; and

second golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a second subset club of the club subset;

the club subset comprises fewer golf clubs than the proposed golf club set; and

determining the proposed golf club set comprises;

providing the gapping analyzer with;

the golf preferences; and

the golf ball shot characteristic information;

accessing a database with the gapping analyzer, the database comprising a library of golf club parameters for a library of golf clubs; and

calculating with the gapping analyzer, based on the golf preferences, the first golf ball shot characteristic information, and the second golf ball shot characteristic information, a club set solution regarding which of the golf clubs of the library of golf clubs to select for the proposed golf club set to exhibit the one or more target gap distances; and

generating at least one display configured to present the one or more target gap distances as exhibited by at least a portion of the proposed golf club set, the display comprising at least one of a component option display or a gapping analysis display,

wherein a trajectory analyzer is coupled to the gapping analyzer and utilizes the tracking device to analyze initial golf ball shot characteristic information from golf ball launch data of one or more fitting shots by the individual to determine final shot characteristic information of the one or more fitting shots for a shot trajectory display.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

determining the proposed golf club set comprises;

identifying an option for a component of a golf club of the proposed golf club set to achieve at least one of the one or more target gap distances; and

the option for the component comprises at least one of;

a model option, a loft option, a shaft option, a length option, or a grip option.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

determining the proposed golf club set comprises;

identifying the proposed golf club set with the gapping analyzer to comprise substantially uniform gap distances between neighboring golf clubs, the one or more target gap distances comprising the substantially uniform gap distances.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

determining the proposed golf club set comprises;

identifying the proposed golf club set with the gapping analyzer to comprise a progression of gap distances, the one or more target gap distances comprising the progression of gap distances;

wherein the progression of gap distances includes at least a first gap distance and a second gap distance; and

wherein the first and second gap distances are different from each other.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more target gap distances are defined by differences in carry distances between adjacent clubs in the proposed golf club set.

6. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more target gap distances are defined by differences in total distances between adjacent clubs in the proposed golf club set.

7. The method of claim 1, in which the golf ball launch condition data is used to determine a golf ball flight pattern and a golf ball total distance traveled.

8. The method of claim 1, in which the golf ball shot characteristic information includes golf ball flight information.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first subset club of the club subset comprises a low-lofted subset club of a first golf club type;

the second subset club of the club subset comprises a high-lofted subset club of a second golf club type;

the first golf club type comprises one of;

an iron/wedge-type, a hybrid-type, a fairway-wood-type, or a driver type; and

the second golf club type comprises a different one of;

the iron/wedge-type, the hybrid-type, the fairway-wood-type, or the driver type.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein:

the club subset further comprises;

a third subset club comprising a mid-lofted subset club.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein:

the gapping analyzer is configured to propose, as part of the proposed golf club set, a proposed golf club of a third golf club type even when the one or more golf shots of the club subset by the individual for the golf ball shot characteristic information comprises no golf shot with a subset club of the third golf club type.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the gapping analyzer is configured to identify for the proposed golf club set;

first and second proposed golf clubs of first and second golf club types and comprising a first-second gap distance between themselves;

the first-second gap distance corresponding to at least one of the one or more target gap distances;

the first golf club type comprises one of;

an iron/wedge-type, a hybrid-type, a fairway-wood-type, or a driver type; and

the second golf club type comprises a different one of;

the iron/wedge-type, the hybrid-type, the fairway-wood-type, or the driver type.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein:

the gapping analyzer is configured to propose, in the club set solution for the proposed golf club set, a club type transition between a first type of golf club to a second type of golf club to achieve one of the one or more target gap distances, the club type transition comprising at least one of;

an iron-to-hybrid transition;

or

a hybrid-to-fairway-wood transition.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the club subset comprises at least three clubs.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the one or more target gap distances are received by the gapping analyzer from the individual prior to, and as an input for, calculating the club set solution for the proposed golf club set.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein the shot trajectory display is three dimensional; and

wherein the trajectory analyzer generates a plurality of traces associated with golf ball flights for the one or more fitting shots, the plurality of traces indicating at least a height and an angle of a golf ball shot.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the traces represent an average number of golf shots.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the shot trajectory display comprises a first display of gapping determination based upon initial contact on landing and a second display of gapping determination based upon final contact or roll to determine gaps between clubs.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the golf ball shot characteristic information comprises an angle of a golf ball'"'"'s trajectory in response to impact with a golf club, a horizontal launch angle, carry distance, and total distance.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising

utilizing a shot dispersion analyzer to determine deviation of golf shots from a predetermined center line;

and

generating a shot dispersion display to indicate one or more slice shots or fade shots of the golf shots.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the tracking device comprises at least one of a ball launch monitor, ball flight monitor, photographic device, or radar tracking device, for tracking a plurality of data points associated with a flight of a golf ball.

22. A system comprising:

a processing device comprising a gapping analyzer; and

a tracking device coupled to the processing device;

wherein;

the gapping analyzer is configured to;

receive golf preferences of an individual, the golf preferences comprising information regarding one or more target gap distances between adjacent clubs for a proposed golf club set;

receive, from the tracking device, golf ball shot characteristic information of one or more golf shots of a club subset by the individual;

access a database comprising a library of library golf club parameters for library golf clubs; and

calculate a club set solution regarding which of the library golf clubs to select for the proposed golf club set to exhibit the one or more target gap distances;

the golf ball shot characteristic information comprises;

first golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a first subset club of the club subset; and

second golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a second subset club of the club subset;

the club subset comprises fewer golf clubs than the proposed golf club set; and

the club set solution is calculated by the gapping analyzer based on the golf preferences, the first golf ball shot characteristic information, and the second golf ball shot characteristic information,

wherein the processing device comprises

a trajectory analyzer coupled to the gapping analyzer that utilizes the tracking device to analyze initial shot characteristic information from golf ball launch data of one or more fitting shots by the individual to determine final shot characteristic information of the one or more fitting shots for a shot trajectory display.

23. The system of claim 22, further comprising:

a display device configured to present at least one of;

a component option display;

or

gapping analysis display.

24. The system of claim 22, in which the gapping analyzer is configured to receive physical characteristic information and performance characteristic information about the individual.

25. The system of claim 22, in which the tracking device couples the golf ball shot characteristic information to the processing device.

26. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the first subset club of the club subset comprises a low-lofted subset club of a first golf club type;

the second subset club of the club subset comprises a high-lofted subset club of a second golf club type;

the first golf club type comprises one of;

an iron/wedge-type, a hybrid-type, a fairway-wood-type, or a driver type; and

the second golf club type comprises a different one of;

the iron/wedge-type, the hybrid-type, the fairway-wood-type, or the driver type.

27. The system of claim 26, in which:

the gapping analyzer is configured to propose, as part of the proposed golf club set, a proposed golf club of a third golf club type even when the one or more golf shots of the club subset by the individual for the golf ball shot characteristic information comprises no golf shot with a subset club of the third golf club type.

28. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the proposed golf club set comprises;

a first proposed golf club of a first type; and

a second proposed golf club of a second type different than the first type;

the first and second proposed golf clubs comprising a first-second gap distance between themselves;

the gapping analyzer is configured to identify the first and second proposed golf clubs, based on the first-second gap distance, to achieve at least one of the one or more target gap distances;

the first type of the first proposed golf club comprises one of;

an iron/wedge-type, a hybrid-type, a fairway-wood-type, or a driver type; and

the second type of the second proposed golf club comprises a different one of;

the iron/wedge-type, the hybrid-type, the fairway-wood-type, or the driver type.

29. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the processing device comprises;

a shot dispersion analyzer coupled to the gapping analyzer and configured to analyze shot characteristic information of one or more fitting shots by the individual to generate shot dispersion information for a shot dispersion display.

30. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the processing device comprises;

a component option analyzer coupled to the gapping analyzer and configured to;

analyze one or more of;

physical characteristic information of an individual;

performance characteristic information of the individual;

or

the shot characteristic information of the set of one or more fitting shots by the individual; and

identify one or more golf club component options for one or more proposed clubs of the proposed golf club set.

31. The system of claim 22, in which:

the one or more target gap distances are received by the gapping analyzer prior to, and as an input for, calculating the club set solution for the proposed golf club set.

32. The system of claim 22, in which:

the gapping analyzer is configured to propose, in the club set solution for the proposed golf club set, a club type transition between a first type of golf club to a second type of golf club to achieve one of the one or more target gap distances, the club type transition comprising at least one of;

an iron-to-hybrid transition;

or

a hybrid-to-fairway-wood transition.

33. A method for displaying information, comprising:

calculating, with a computerized gapping processor, a club set solution with respect to one or more target gap distances between neighbor golf clubs of a plurality of golf clubs for a proposed golf club set;

displaying a component option display showing the one or more target gap distances between the neighbor golf clubs of the plurality of golf clubs; and

displaying a gapping determination display showing a gapping between two or more of the neighbor golf clubs of the plurality of golf clubs;

wherein;

the component option display and the gapping determination display are calculated by the computerized gapping processor based on shot characteristic information of one or more golf shots of a club subset by the individual;

the shot characteristic information comprises;

first golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a first subset club of the club subset; and

second golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a second subset club of the club subset;

the club subset comprises fewer golf clubs than the proposed golf club set;

the club set solution is calculated by the computerized gapping processor based on the one or more target gap distances, the first golf ball shot characteristic information, and the second ball shot characteristic information of the individual;

for each of the plurality of golf clubs, the component option display presents a club type, a club model, and at least one of a shot carry distance or a shot total distance calculated for the individual; and

the gapping determination display presents shot trajectories calculated by the computerized gapping processor for the two or more of the neighbor golf clubs and a graphical representation of the gapping therebetween.

34. The method for displaying information of claim 33, in which the gapping is based on ball flight distance.

35. The method for displaying information of claim 33, in which the gapping is based on ball flight distance and ball roll distance.

36. The method for displaying information of claim 33, further comprising:

displaying a dispersion display illustrating two or more dispersion perimeters for a plurality of golf shots by the individual relative to a target centerline and based on the shot characteristic information.

37. The method for displaying information of claim 36, wherein:

a first dispersion perimeter of the two or more dispersion perimeters is correlated to a first set of golf shots of the plurality of golf shots made with a first golf club of the plurality of golf clubs; and

a second dispersion perimeter of the one or more dispersion perimeters is correlated to a second set of golf shots of the plurality of golf shots made with a second golf club of the plurality of golf clubs.

38. The method for displaying information of claim 33, wherein:

the computerized gapping processor is configurable as a gapping analyzer to process one or more of physical characteristic information of the individual, performance characteristic information of the individual, or the shot characteristic information of the individual to identify the plurality of golf clubs out of a database of library golf clubs and library golf club parameters to achieve one or more target gap distances between the plurality of golf clubs; and

the computerized gapping processor is configurable as a component option analyzer to process one or more of the physical characteristic information of the individual, the performance characteristic information of the individual, or the shot characteristic information of the individual to;

identify one or more options for one or more golf club components of the proposed golf club set to achieve at least one of the one or more target gap distances.

39. The method for displaying information of claim 33, in which the one or more target gap distances are received by the computerized gapping processor prior to, and as an input for, calculating the club set solution for the proposed golf club set.

40. The method for displaying information of claim 33, in which:

the computerized gapping processor is configured to propose, in the club set solution for the proposed golf club set, a club type transition between a first type of golf club to a second type of golf club to achieve one of the one or more target gap distances, the club type transition comprising at least one of;

an iron-to-hybrid transition;

or

a hybrid-to-fairway-wood transition.

41. A computer program product having a gapping analyzer processor and instructions for causing the gapping analyzer processor to calculate a club set solution, the computer program product configured for:

determining golf preferences associated with an individual, the golf preferences comprising one or more target gap distances;

receiving golf ball shot characteristic information of one or more golf shots of a club subset by the individual using a tracking device;

utilizing a trajectory analyzer coupled to the gapping analyzer and the tracking device to analyze initial shot characteristic information from golf ball launch data of one or more fitting shots by the individual to determine final shot characteristic information of the one or more fitting shots for a shot trajectory display

determining the club set solution for a proposed golf club set with the gapping analyzer processor, the proposed golf club set exhibiting the one or more target gap distances between neighboring golf clubs of the proposed golf club set, the proposed golf club set determined by the gapping analyzer processor based on;

the one or more target gap distances; and

the golf ball shot characteristic information; and

generating a display to communicate the club set solution;

wherein;

the golf ball shot characteristic information comprises;

first golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a first subset club of the club subset; and

second golf ball shot characteristic information comprising golf ball launch condition data from one or more golf shots with a second subset club of the club subset;

the club subset comprises fewer golf clubs than the proposed golf club set; and

determining the proposed golf club set with the gapping analyzer processor comprises;

accessing a database with the gapping analyzer processor, the database comprising a library of golf club parameters for a library of golf clubs; and

identifying with the gapping analyzer processor the proposed golf club set from the library of golf clubs to exhibit the one or more target gap distances.

42. The computer program product of claim 41, further configured for:

identifying the proposed golf club set such that the one or more target gap distances comprise substantially uniform gap distances relative to each other.

43. The computer program product of claim 41, further configured for:

identifying the proposed golf club set such that the one or more target gap distances comprise a progression of gap distances, wherein the progression of gap distances includes at least a first gap distance and a second gap distance, and wherein the first and second gap distances are different from each other.

44. The computer program product of claim 41, in which determining the golf preferences further comprises:

receiving physical characteristic information of the individual; and

receiving performance characteristic information of the individual.

45. The computer program product of claim 41, in which the golf ball shot characteristic information comprises initial ball launch information including vertical launch angle and spin rate.

46. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein:

the gapping analyzer processor is configured to identify for the proposed golf club set;

first and second proposed golf clubs of first and second golf club types and comprising a first-second gap distance between themselves;

the first-second gap distance corresponding to at least one of the one or more target gap distances;

the first golf club type comprises one of;

an iron/wedge-type, a hybrid-type, a fairway-wood-type, or a driver type; and

the second golf club type comprises a different one of;

the iron/wedge-type, the hybrid-type, the fairway-wood-type, or the driver type.

47. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein:

the one or more target gap distances are received by the gapping analyzer processor prior to, and as an input for, calculating the club set solution for the proposed golf club set.

48. The computer program product of claim 41, wherein:

the gapping analyzer processor is configured to propose, in the club set solution for the proposed golf club set, a club type transition between a first type of golf club to a second type of golf club to achieve one of the one or more target gap distances, the club type transition comprising at least one of;

an iron-to-hybrid transition;

or

a hybrid-to-fairway-wood transition.