Patents Examined by Alvin A. Hunter, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7510485
    Abstract: A golf club head comprises a main body and a crown cover disposed in a crown portion of the head, wherein the main body comprises a crown base made of a metal material and provided with a plurality of openings gradually decreasing in the opening area from the backside to the foreside of the head, and the crown cover is made of a material such as FRP whose specific gravity is lower than the metal material, and disposed on the crown base so as to cover the openings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2009
    Assignee: SRI Sports Limited
    Inventor: Akio Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 7448963
    Abstract: One embodiment of a golf club head having movable weights includes a body with a face plate positioned at a forward portion of the golf club head, a sole positioned at a bottom portion of the golf club head, a crown positioned at a top portion of the golf club head and a skirt positioned around a periphery of the golf club head between the sole and the crown. Two or more weight ports are formed in the body and at least two weights are configured to be retained at least partially within the weight ports.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2008
    Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.
    Inventors: Todd P. Beach, Thomas Olsavsky, Benoit Vincent, Ian Wright, Kraig Willett, Gery Mel Zimmerman, Joseph Hoffman
  • Patent number: 7416496
    Abstract: A golf club head (20) having optimized inertial properties and center of gravity is disclosed. The golf club head (20) preferably has a volume between 300 cubic centimeters and 500 cubic centimeters. The golf club head (20) has a center of gravity located less than 1.7 inches from an exterior surface of a front wall (30). The positioning of the center of gravity of the golf club head (20) and the optimized inertial properties provide the golf club with greater ball spin robustness and better performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 26, 2008
    Assignee: Callaway Golf Company
    Inventors: J. Andrew Galloway, Alan Hocknell, Matthew T. Cackett
  • Patent number: 7396296
    Abstract: A wood-type golf club head (20) with a main body (22) and a metal injection molded sole portion (26) is disclosed herein. The main body (26) has a face portion (30), a crown portion (24) a ribbon portion (28) and a bottom opening (31). The metal injection molded sole portion (26) is preferably brazed to the main body (22). The metal injection molded sole portion (26) preferably has a mass ranging from 45 grams to 110 grams. The metal injection molded sole portion (26) is preferably from 50 weight percent to 35 weight percent of the total mass of the wood-type golf club head (20).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: Callaway Golf Company
    Inventor: D. Clayton Evans
  • Patent number: 7396297
    Abstract: A hollow golf club head comprises a face portion whose front face defines a club face for striking a golf ball, a crown portion intersecting the club face at the upper edge thereof, and a sole portion intersecting the club face at the lower edge thereof, wherein at least one of the crown portion or the sole portion is made of a rolled steel at least partially, and a rolling direction of the rolled steel is in the range of from 0 to 20 degrees with respect to a front-back direction of the head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: SRI Sports Limited
    Inventor: Tomoya Hirano
  • Patent number: 7396293
    Abstract: A golf club with improved performance over a larger percentage of the strike face, including the lower extremities of the face, is disclosed and claimed. The club head has a coefficient of restitution that approaches substantial uniformity across the face. The golf club head includes a body having a face, a sole, a transition zone between the face and the sole. The transition zone has an internal surface and an external surface. Both the internal and external surfaces have radii of curvature greater than 0.2 inch. The transition zone transitions smoothly from the face, through the transition zone, to the sole. An extension may be provided adjacent the transition zone, cooperating with the transition zone to form a chamber. Dampening and/or weight inserts may be positioned within the chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: Acushnet Company
    Inventor: Peter L. Soracco
  • Patent number: 7396294
    Abstract: A golf putter including an elongated handle terminating in a three-dimensional shaped putter head exhibiting a substantially smooth ball striking face. A vibration inducing component being mounted to first and second locations associated with a surface of the putter head and located opposite the ball striking face. Upon impacting a golf ball offset from a center line associated with the striking face, the vibration inducing components counteract twisting of the putter head, thereby increasing an effective surface area of the striking face creating a perpendicular travel direction of the ball relative to the putting face.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Inventor: Joseph Consiglio
  • Patent number: 7396295
    Abstract: A putter head comprising a body having an open, frame-like structure having an improved mass distribution for optimizing the moment of inertia and placement of the center of gravity. The body includes a front portion, a rear portion, toe and heel portions extending between and interconnecting respective ends of the front and rear portions, and a central portion interconnecting the front and rear portions along the longitudinal axis of the body. A first main opening of the body is bounded by the toe portion, the central portion, and part of the front portion. A second main opening of the body is bounded by the heel portion, the central portion, and part of the front portion. The heel and toe portions desirably are formed with respective elongated openings extending substantially the entire lengths of the heel and toe portions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.
    Inventors: Nick Frame, Maresala Milo, Jose Miraflor, Marni Ines
  • Patent number: 7371189
    Abstract: A configuration of an iron golf-club head is defined as follows in order to offer ease of addressing a ball with face open. In a projected figure of the head focused on a projection plane including a sweet spot and normal to a perpendicular from a center of gravity of the head to a face thereof, a maximum transversal is defined by a straight line cutting across a face contour over the greatest length as passing through an intersection of a leading edge and a straight line drawn from a heel-side end point of a face line in a predetermined direction of the projected figure, and forms an angle of 39° to 50° (inclusive) relative to a horizontal line. The face contour has a radius of curvature of 10 mm to 22 mm (inclusive) in the vicinity of a toe-side intersection of the face contour and the maximum transversal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2008
    Assignee: SRI Sports Limited
    Inventor: Akio Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 7367900
    Abstract: A hollow golf club head containing a face component made of a metal material and including a face plate forming a face portion of the head and a turnback extending backward from the face plate; a FRP component made of a fiber reinforced resin; and an elastomeric insert made of an elastomeric material disposed between the turnback and the FRP component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2008
    Assignee: SRI Sports Limited
    Inventor: Tomio Kumamoto
  • Patent number: 7364514
    Abstract: The present invention is a golf putter head wherein the second moment among the three inertial moments described below shows a maximum value in a state in which the head is placed on a horizontal plane at a specified lie angle and loft angle: First moment: inertial moment about a first axis which passes through the center of gravity of the head, and which is parallel to the face surface and said horizontal plane; Second moment: inertial moment about a second axis which is an axis in the vertical direction that passes through the center of gravity of the head; and Third moment: inertial moment about a third axis which passes through the center of gravity of the head, and which is perpendicular to said first axis and perpendicular to said second axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2008
    Assignee: SRI Sports Limited
    Inventors: Tetsuo Yamaguchi, Masayoshi Nishio
  • Patent number: 7357733
    Abstract: A golf ball with at least one moisture vapor barrier layer is disclosed. The moisture vapor barrier layer is formed from a composition comprising a filler dispersed in a liquid or solven-born polymer of multi-olefin, iso-olefin, or a combination thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2008
    Assignee: Acushnet Company
    Inventors: Matthew F Hogge, Mitchell E Lutz, Michael J Sullivan
  • Patent number: 7347796
    Abstract: There is provided a golf club in which the repulsion area of a face portion is enlarged. The same face in each component of the crown portion, sole portion and the like in the body portion is welded to the face portion having a strike surface by combining metal plates having different rigidity or strength. For example, the face portion on the crown portion or the sole portion is formed of a titan alloy having high rigidity or strength, and other components are formed of pure titan. By disposing such metal plates having different rigidity or strength in one component in this manner, the repulsion area on the face portion can be enlarged, and the traveling distance obtained by hitting a ball can be increased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2008
    Assignee: K.K. Endo Seisakusho
    Inventor: Hitoshi Takeda
  • Patent number: 7338388
    Abstract: A a golf club head with a variable thickness face plate having a central thickened region surrounded by a transition region tapering from the central thickened region to a thinner peripheral region. The golf club head is made by locating a ball end mill revolving about an axis generally normal to the inner surface of the face plate at an initial location on a circumferential intersection between the outer edge of the central thickened region and a transition region. The inner surface of the face plate is machined by moving the revolving ball end mill in a radial direction outwardly toward and through the transition region and the peripheral region to machine the inner surface of the face plate creating a tool channel having a width as the ball end mill traverses the transition region and thereby vary the thickness of the face plate in the tool path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2008
    Assignee: Karsten Manufacturing Corporation
    Inventors: Bradley D. Schweigert, John A. Solheim
  • Patent number: 7326127
    Abstract: A golf club head includes a body, a striking plate engaged with the body and including a front side for striking a golf ball, and at least one gas cushion mounted in the body and behind the striking plate. The gas cushion includes a bladder defining a gas chamber. The bladder is made of an elastomeric material. The gas chamber is filled with at least a gas to provide said at least one gas cushion with compressibility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2008
    Assignee: Fu Sheng Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Wen-Ching Hou, Yu-Hong Chen
  • Patent number: 7318781
    Abstract: A golf club head (20) having a body (22) with a front wall (30) with an opening (32) and a striking plate insert (40) is disclosed herein. The striking plate insert (40) has a substrate base layer (40a) and a second layer (40b). The second layer (40b) is preferably composed of a nickel-iron alloy material. The golf club head (20) preferably has a volume between 200 cubic centimeters and 600 cubic centimeters. The golf club head (20) preferably has a mass between 140 grams and 215 grams.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 4, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2008
    Assignee: Callaway Golf Company
    Inventor: Uday V. Deshmukh
  • Patent number: 7314418
    Abstract: A golf club head (20) having optimized inertial properties and center of gravity is disclosed. The golf club head (20) preferably has a volume between 300 cubic centimeters and 500 cubic centimeters. The golf club head (20) has a center of gravity located less than 1.7 inches from an exterior surface of a front wall (30). The positioning of the center of gravity of the golf club head (20) and the optimized inertial properties provide the golf club with greater ball spin robustness and better performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2008
    Assignee: Callaway Golf Company
    Inventors: J. Andrew Galloway, Alan Hocknell, Matthew T. Cackett
  • Patent number: 7273419
    Abstract: A wood-type golf club head (40) preferably having a major body (50), a striking plate insert (55) and a minor body (60) is disclosed herein. The major body (50) is preferably composed of a metal material and has a front wall section (72), a return section (74), a sole section (76), a ribbon section (78) and a ledge portion (80). The minor body (50) is preferably composed of a low density material and has a crown section (62) and a ribbon section (64). The striking plate insert (55) is preferably composed of a metal material. The wood-type golf club head (40) preferably has a sole section 76 with a first keel (400) and a second keel (405).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 25, 2007
    Assignee: Callaway Golf Company
    Inventors: D. Clayton Evans, Evan D. Gibbs, Matthew J. Erickson
  • Patent number: 7261644
    Abstract: A golf club putter head includes a faceplate groove pattern configured to provide the putter head with an elevated center of gravity. In one preferred form, a club head body defines a faceplate having at least one and preferably multiple elongated grooves formed therein to extend generally in a heel-to-toe direction, with at least one groove positioned above a vertical mid-point of the club head body. The groove depths progressively increase in a top-to-bottom direction so that the putter head center of gravity is elevated to a position spaced above the vertical mid-point of the club head body. When striking a golf ball, the elevated center of gravity functions to minimize initial ball skidding and to promote early smooth ball roll toward a target such as a cup on a golf green.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2007
    Assignee: BGI Acquisition, LLC
    Inventor: Bruce D. Burrows
  • Patent number: 7258630
    Abstract: A wood-type golf club head (40) having a major body (50), a striking plate insert (55) and a minor body (60) is disclosed herein. The major body (50) is composed of a metal material and has a front wall section (72), a return section (74), a sole section (76), a ribbon section (78) and a ledge portion (80). The minor body (50) is preferably composed of a low density material and has a crown section (62) and a ribbon section (64). The striking plate insert (55) is composed of a metal material. An epoxy-based composition (200) is placed at a face-sole junction (205) to lower the amplitude of the sound of the golf club head (40) during impact with a golf ball.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 21, 2007
    Assignee: Callaway Golf Company
    Inventors: Matthew J. Erickson, Bradley C. Rice, D. Clayton Evans, Evan D. Gibbs