Patents Examined by Alvin A. Hunter
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Patent number: 12257484Abstract: A method of making a golf club head includes interposing bonding tape between a first piece and a second piece of the golf club head such that the first piece is temporarily adhered to the second piece via a tackiness of the bonding tape. The method additionally includes positioning the first piece, the second piece, and the bonding tape, interposed between the first piece and the second piece, in a vacuum bag, and reducing a pressure within the vacuum bag, relative to a pressure external to the vacuum bag, such that the vacuum bag collapses onto the first piece and the second piece and compresses the bonding tape between the first piece and the second piece. The method also includes heating the bonding tape, at least to a curing temperature of the bonding tape, when the pressure within the vacuum bag is reduced.Type: GrantFiled: May 25, 2023Date of Patent: March 25, 2025Assignee: TAYLOR MADE GOLF COMPANY, INC.Inventors: Charles Chou, Mark Greaney, Stephen Kraus, Bryan Cheng, Kevin Cheng, Matthew Greensmith, Christopher Harbert, Todd Beach, Matthew D. Johnson
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Patent number: 12246227Abstract: A golf club head includes: a body including: a striking face having a lower edge and an opposite upper edge; a sole extending from the lower edge; and a crown extending from the upper edge, wherein the striking face, the sole, and the crown, define at least part of an outer surface of the body; a recessed channel formed in the outer surface; and a weight assembly including: a weight; a cover extending at least partially over the recessed channel; and a threaded fastener configured to engage with the cover and to move the cover between a locked position and an unlocked position, wherein the weight is slidably engaged with the cover such that the weight moves with the cover between the locked position and the unlocked position, and wherein the weight assembly is configured such that the weight is slidable relative to the cover when the cover is in the unlocked position.Type: GrantFiled: May 17, 2023Date of Patent: March 11, 2025Assignee: ACUSHNET COMPANYInventors: Thomas Orrin Bennett, Mitchell E. Bac, Tyrone Northcutt, Takeshi Casey Funaki
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Patent number: 12239891Abstract: A golf club head with a face component having a variable thickness and a coating on a rear surface of the face component that provides a flat surface to which a medallion can be affixed, and methods of manufacturing such golf club heads, are disclosed herein. The coating is made from a fill material comprising a polymer and a plurality of microscopic bubbles, which preferably constitute 5-70% of the volume of the fill material. The polymer material preferably is a polyurethane having a Poisson's ratio of 0.40-0.50.Type: GrantFiled: September 28, 2023Date of Patent: March 4, 2025Assignee: Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp.Inventors: Joshua D. Westrum, Hong G. Jeon, Scott Manwaring, Kenneth E. Meacham, Brooks Roche
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Patent number: 12239922Abstract: A children's toy includes a user input panel having a first surface and a second surface, the first surface forming a plurality of switches and the second surface forming a plurality of sockets; each one of the plurality of switches being operable between at least a first position and a second position; a plurality of light bulbs, each one of the plurality of light bulbs including a bulb and a base having a magnetic element; each one of the plurality of sockets including an inner facing surface forming a channel that is sized and configured for congruent receipt of one of the plurality of light bulbs; wherein a currently sensed user input value is defined by the switch being in a first position or a second position; and wherein the magnetic coupling generates an output when the currently sensed user input value is the switch being in the second position.Type: GrantFiled: July 11, 2024Date of Patent: March 4, 2025Inventor: Chase Joliet
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Patent number: 12239888Abstract: Aspects of the invention are directed to golf club having a crown, a sole, a face, and a primary alignment feature hard tooled into the golf club head. In some embodiments the golf club has a primary alignment feature comprising a line delineating a transition between at least a portion of the crown having an area of contrasting shade or color with a shade or color of the face. The primary alignment feature is hard tooled into the golf club head with the face of the golf club body.Type: GrantFiled: April 18, 2023Date of Patent: March 4, 2025Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.Inventors: Mark Vincent Greaney, Andrew Kickertz, Todd P. Beach, Craig Richard Slyfield, Christopher John Harbert
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Patent number: 12233318Abstract: Golf club heads are provided for selectively increasing or optimizing the coefficient of restitution (COR) at likely impact locations on the striking face of the golf club heads, while simultaneously maintaining characteristic time (CT) below a threshold value in those likely impact locations. By analyzing historical impact locations of a large cross-section of golfers, golf club head COR values can be increased or optimized in preferential locations on the striking face, such as using weighting factors for a predefined set of locations on the striking face. Therefore, instead of increasing COR uniformly across the face and/or increasing COR at impact locations on the face where golfers are unlikely to strike the golf ball, the sweet spot of the golf club head can be increased at the impact locations where golfers typically strike the golf ball.Type: GrantFiled: April 20, 2023Date of Patent: February 25, 2025Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.Inventors: Robert Story, Matthew Greensmith, Christopher John Harbert, Matthew David Johnson
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Patent number: 12233319Abstract: Embodiments of golf club heads and methods to manufacture golf club heads are generally described herein. In one example, a golf club head may include a hollow body portion having a toe portion, a heel portion, a top portion, a bottom portion, a rear portion, and a front portion having a face portion. A first interior cavity is separated from a second interior cavity by a cavity wall portion. The cavity wall portion includes a forward wall section, a rearward wall section positioned further from the face portion that the forward wall section, and an intermediate portion positioned between the forward wall section and the rearward wall section. At least one of the forward wall section or the rearward wall section of the cavity wall portion is non-parallel to the face portion. Other examples and embodiments may be described and claimed.Type: GrantFiled: August 3, 2023Date of Patent: February 25, 2025Assignee: PARSONS XTREME GOLF, LLCInventors: Robert R. Parsons, Bradley D. Schweigert, Michael R. Nicolette
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Patent number: 12226678Abstract: Disclosed herein are various embodiments of a golf club head having improved mass distribution characteristics. The golf club head includes a body and a face positioned at a forward portion of the body. The golf club head also includes one or more mass elements positioned at predetermined locations about the head. The mass elements assist in achieving a desired relationship between the moment of inertia about a center of gravity x-axis and the moment of inertia about a center of gravity z-axis.Type: GrantFiled: May 25, 2023Date of Patent: February 18, 2025Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.Inventors: Todd P. Beach, Peter L. Larsen, Joseph Henry Hoffman
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Patent number: 12220618Abstract: A golf club head including a club face defined by a toe end, a heel end, a top rail and a sole. The golf club head including a plurality of grooves disposed on the club face between the top rail and the sole. Each groove extends between the toe end and the heel end. Depths of the grooves vary in a direction extending between the top rail and the sole and in a direction extending between the heel end and the toe end. Widths of each of the plurality of grooves vary in a direction extending between the heel end and the toe end.Type: GrantFiled: January 24, 2023Date of Patent: February 11, 2025Assignee: Karsten Manufacturing CorporationInventors: Anthony D. Serrano, Paul D. Wood, Bradley D. Schweigert, Calvin S. Wang, John A. Solheim
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Patent number: 12220616Abstract: An object of the present disclosure is to provide a golf ball having good shot feeling and excellent durability while having non-lowered resilience. The present disclosure provides a golf ball comprising a spherical core and one or more cover layers disposed outside the spherical core, wherein at least one layer of the cover layers contains (A) a base resin and (B) a polyethylene oxide.Type: GrantFiled: April 21, 2023Date of Patent: February 11, 2025Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.Inventors: Ayaka Shindo, Takahiro Shigemitsu, Kazuyoshi Shiga, Toshiyuki Tarao, Takanobu Kawamura
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Patent number: 12214266Abstract: Embodiments of golf club heads and methods to manufacture golf club heads are generally described herein. In one example, a golf club head may include a body portion having a front portion, a rear portion, a toe portion, a heel portion, a bottom portion, a top portion, and a crown portion covering an opening in the top portion. The crown portion may include an inner composite layer, an outer composite layer, and a toe-side integral rib disposed between the inner composite layer and the outer composite layer. The toe-side integral rib may extend rearward from a toe-side integral rib starting location between a vertical plane of the golf club and a toe-side golf ball plane and terminate at a toe-side integral rib ending location between a toe-side bounding plane and the toe-side golf ball plane. Other examples and embodiments may be described and claimed.Type: GrantFiled: April 6, 2023Date of Patent: February 4, 2025Assignee: PARSONS XTREME GOLF, LLCInventors: Robert R. Parsons, Bradley D. Schweigert, Michael R. Nicolette
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Patent number: 12208318Abstract: Disclosed herein are various embodiments of a golf club head having improved mass distribution characteristics. The golf club head includes a body and a face positioned at a forward portion of the body. The golf club head also includes one or more mass elements positioned at predetermined locations about the head. The mass elements assist in achieving a desired relationship between the moment of inertia about a center of gravity x-axis and the moment of inertia about a center of gravity z-axis.Type: GrantFiled: August 30, 2024Date of Patent: January 28, 2025Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.Inventors: Todd P. Beach, Peter L. Larsen, Joseph Henry Hoffman
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Patent number: 12208315Abstract: In a golf ball having a core and a cover of one or more layer, the core is formed of a material molded under heat from a rubber composition containing (a) a base rubber, (b) water and/or a lower alcohol having a specific molecular weight, (c) an ?,?-unsaturated carboxylic acid and/or a metal salt thereof, and (d) an organic peroxide. The base rubber (a) is a rubber obtained by mixing together (a-1) a polybutadiene and (a-2) an unneutralized ethylene-unsaturated carboxylic acid copolymer, and subsequently neutralizing the copolymer with (a-3) a metal oxide. Component (a-2) has a specific acid content and accounts for a specific portion of the combined amount of components (a-1) and (a-2). The core surface and center have a specific JIS-C hardness difference therebetween. This ball achieves both a lower spin rate and excellent durability while maintaining a high rebound.Type: GrantFiled: December 19, 2022Date of Patent: January 28, 2025Assignee: BRIDGESTONE SPORTS CO., LTD.Inventors: Katsunobu Mochizuki, Jun Shindo
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Patent number: 12208316Abstract: A multi-piece, multi-material golf club head is disclosed herein. More specifically, the golf club head in accordance with the present invention utilizes multiple pieces of different materials to form a frontal portion of a golf club head, allowing more of the frontal portion of the golf club head to be made out of a lightweight material to match the lightweight material of the aft body of the golf club head.Type: GrantFiled: December 6, 2022Date of Patent: January 28, 2025Assignee: Acushnet CompanyInventors: Richard Sanchez, Richard L. Cleghorn, Ryuichi Sugimae, Peter Larsen, Stephen Murphy, Hiroshi Kawaguchi, Kyle A. Carr
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Patent number: 12201884Abstract: A golf club head includes a club body having a crown opposite a sole, a toe end opposite a heel end, a back end, and a hosel. A first magnet is coupled to the club body. A second magnet selectively engages the first magnet, such that in a first configuration the first and second magnets attract, and in a second configuration the first and second magnets do not attract, wherein the second magnet is configured to rotate relative to the first magnet between the first configuration and the second configuration.Type: GrantFiled: November 29, 2022Date of Patent: January 21, 2025Assignee: Karsten Manufacturing CorporationInventors: Erik M. Henrikson, Samuel Pendred
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Patent number: 12201879Abstract: A golf club head formed of an alloy of steel that is capable of improving the center of gravity (CG) location while maintaining traditional external dimensions of the golf club head. More specifically, the golf club head in accordance with the present invention achieves a relatively low CG while maintaining traditional external dimensions by reducing the amount of mass contributed by the crown, the striking face, and the hosel, and strategically reallocating this mass within and/or proximate the sole of the golf club head.Type: GrantFiled: May 5, 2023Date of Patent: January 21, 2025Assignee: Acushnet CompanyInventors: Thomas Orrin Bennett, Mitchell E. Bac
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Patent number: 12194350Abstract: A golf club head includes a striking face having a face center and a virtual striking face plane generally parallel to the striking face. The golf club head further includes a sole portion, a top portion, a rear portion, and a loft L no less than 40°. A virtual vertical plane perpendicular to the striking face plane passes through the face center. A club head center of gravity is spaced from the virtual vertical plane in the heel-to-toe direction by a distance D1 that is no greater than 6.0 mm. The golf club head further includes a hosel including an internal bore configured to receive a golf shaft. The internal bore includes a peripheral side wall and a shaft abutment surface configured to abut a tip end of the golf club shaft. The hosel further comprises an auxiliary recess extending sole-ward from the abutment surface of the internal bore.Type: GrantFiled: February 17, 2023Date of Patent: January 14, 2025Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.Inventors: Patrick Ripp, Brian Herr, Mika Becktor, Keith Dolezel
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Patent number: 12186634Abstract: Disclosed herein is an iron-type golf club head. The iron-type golf club head comprises a body, having a density of less than 8 grams-per-cubic-centimeter (g/cc). The body comprises a heel portion, a toe portion, a sole portion, a top portion, and a front portion. The body also comprises a rear portion, comprising an insert shelf, adjacent the sole portion and extending from the toe portion to the heel portion, and a retention bar, integrally formed with a portion of the insert shelf and circumferentially closing the portion of the insert shelf to define a first insert channel. The iron-type golf club head also comprises a high-density insert, having a density of greater than 7.5 g/cc, supported by the insert shelf, and retained within the first insert channel by the retention bar.Type: GrantFiled: October 11, 2022Date of Patent: January 7, 2025Assignee: TAYLOR MADE GOLF COMPANY, INC.Inventors: Brian Hill, Bret H. Wahl, Scott Taylor
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Patent number: 12179072Abstract: Embodiments of golf club heads and methods to manufacture golf club heads are generally described herein. In one example, a golf club head includes a body portion and a face portion attached to the body portion that comprises a center portion having a first thickness, a perimeter portion having a second thickness greater than the first thickness, spoke portions extending radially from the center portion to the perimeter portion, and recessed portions. Each recessed portion is located between two spoke portions, and each recessed portion extends from the center portion to the perimeter portion. The thickness of each spoke portion increases from the first thickness to the second thickness in a direction from the center portion to the perimeter portion, and each recessed portion has the first thickness from the center portion to the perimeter portion. Other examples and embodiments may be described and claimed.Type: GrantFiled: December 1, 2023Date of Patent: December 31, 2024Assignee: PARSONS EXTREME GOLF, LLCInventors: Michael R. Nicolette, Bradley D. Schweigert, Caleb S. Kroloff
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Patent number: 12172060Abstract: Embodiments of golf club heads and methods to manufacture golf club heads are generally described herein. In one example, a golf club head includes a body portion having a toe portion, a heel portion, a front portion, a rear portion, a top portion, and a sole portion. A retention cavity is located at the sole portion and includes an opening and a plurality of interior side walls connected to the opening. The plurality of interior side walls define two or more ball retention areas configured to frictionally engage at least a portion of a golf ball within the retention cavity. The two or more ball retention areas are located at or proximate the opening and frictionally engage the golf ball along a ball circumference located above an equator of the golf ball. Other examples and embodiments may be described and claimed.Type: GrantFiled: July 19, 2024Date of Patent: December 24, 2024Assignee: PARSONS XTREME GOLF, LLCInventors: Matthew T. Andrews, Robert R. Parsons