Releasable and interchangeable connections for golf club heads and shafts

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9050506-B2
Application number	US-201213593058-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 23, 2012
Priority date	Aug 23, 2011
Publication date	Jun 9, 2015
Grant date	Jun 9, 2015

Abstract

Golf club heads are releasably engaged with shafts so that the club heads and shafts can be readily interchanged and/or so that the shaft position with respect to the club head can be readily changed. Assemblies for connecting the club head and shaft may include: a shaft adapter, a collet, a ferrule, and a club head having an interior chamber. The club head and shaft may be changed by releasing the securing system and exchanging the original parts with different parts.

First claim

We claim:

1. A golf club, comprising:
a golf club head having a hosel area that provides access to a club head chamber defined in the club head, wherein the club head chamber extends completely through the club head and includes a first opening for receiving a securing member;
a shaft adapter being generally cylindrical in shape having a first end and an opposite second end, wherein the first end includes a second opening providing access to a cylindrical interior chamber, wherein an exterior surface of the shaft adapter includes a first rotation-inhibiting structure, wherein the first rotation-inhibiting structure is not uniform around the circumference of the exterior surface of the shaft adapter, and wherein the second end includes a securing structure;
a hosel adapter being generally cylindrical in shape, wherein an internal bore on a first end of the hosel adapter includes a second rotation-inhibiting structure that engages the first rotation-inhibiting structure and a second end of the hosel adapter includes a first opening for receiving a securing member, wherein the second rotation-inhibiting structure is not uniform around the circumference of the internal bore on the first end of the hosel adapter, and further wherein an exterior surface of the hosel adapter includes a third rotation-inhibiting structure, and wherein the third rotation-inhibiting structure is not uniform around the circumference of the exterior surface of the hosel adapter;
a hosel ring being generally cylindrical in shape and located within the club head chamber, wherein an internal bore of the hosel ring includes a fourth rotation-inhibiting structure that engages the third rotation-inhibiting structure, wherein the fourth rotation-inhibiting structure is not uniform around the circumference of the internal bore of the hosel ring;
a shaft engaged in the cylindrical interior chamber of the shaft adapter; and
a securing system for releasably engaging the securing structure,
wherein the engagement between the first rotation-inhibiting structure and the second rotation-inhibiting structure limits the adjustment of one of a face angle or a loft angle of a club head and the engagement between the third rotation-inhibiting structure and the fourth rotation-inhibiting structure limits the adjustment of the other of the face angle or the loft angle of the club head, and adjusting the face angle is effectively independent of the adjustment of the loft angle, and adjusting the loft angle is effectively independent of the adjustment of the face angle.

2. The golf club of claim 1 , wherein the first rotation-inhibiting structure includes a first spline configuration, the second rotation-inhibiting structure includes a second spline configuration, the third rotation-inhibiting structure includes a third spline configuration, and the fourth rotation-inhibiting structure includes a fourth spline configuration.

3. The golf club of claim 2 , wherein the engagement of the first spline configuration and the second spline configuration limits the adjustability of the loft angle to five different loft angles.

4. The golf club of claim 3 , wherein the five loft angles are 8.5 degrees, 9.5 degrees, 10.5 degrees, 11.5 degrees, and 12.5 degrees.

5. The golf club of claim 2 , wherein the engagement of the third spline configuration and the fourth spline configuration limits the adjustability of the face angle to three different face angle configurations.

6. The golf club of claim 5 , wherein the three face angle configurations are open, neutral, and closed.

7. A golf club having a coupled head and shaft comprising:
a connection mechanism to couple the head to the shaft, said connection mechanism including a hosel adapter having an outer wall insertable into a hosel of the head and rotatable inside the hosel between a first plurality of rotational positions, said hosel adapter having a first internal inclined bore, and a shaft adapter coupled to the shaft at a distal end and having an outer wall configured to fit into said first internal inclined bore, said shaft adapter being rotatable inside said first internal inclined bore between a second plurality of rotational positions, said shaft adapter having a second internal inclined bore receiving said distal end of said shaft, and
further wherein the first plurality of rotational positions is limited by a first spline configuration between the hosel adapter and the hosel of the head and the second plurality of rotational positions is limited by a second spline configuration between the hosel adapter and the shaft adapter, the first plurality of rotational positions changes a first angular relationship between the head and the shaft and the second plurality of rotational positions changes a second angular relationship between the head and the shaft, wherein the first angular relationship and the second angular relationship are adjusted effectively independently of each other and the first angular relationship is one of a face angle or a loft angle and the second angular relationship is the other of the face angle or the loft angle,
wherein the first spline configuration is defined by a first non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of the outer wall of the hosel adapter and a second non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of an interior bore of the hosel, and the second spline configuration is defined by a third non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of the outer wall of the shaft adapter and a fourth non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of the first internal inclined bore of the hosel adapter.

8. The golf club of claim 7 , wherein the first and the second inclined bores are inclined with respect to a longitudinal axis of the outer wall of that part.

9. The golf club of claim 7 , wherein at least one of the shaft adapter or hosel adapter is releasably connected to either the shaft or the head.

10. The golf club of claim 7 , wherein the first angular relationship is the face angle of the head and the second angular relationship is the loft angle of the head.

11. A golf club having a coupled head and shaft comprising a connection mechanism to couple the head to the shaft, said connection mechanism including a pair of radially nested mutually independently rotatable members, one of said members having an outer wall configured to fit inside said club head and the other of said members having a bore for receiving said shaft, both members having inclined bores whereby two angular relationship parameters between said head and said shaft are able to be adjusted effectively independently of each other, wherein the two angular relationships are a loft angle of the head and a face angle of the head, and
further wherein the rotation of a first member and the head is limited by a first spline configuration between the first member and the head and the rotation of a second member and the first member is limited by a second spline configuration between the first member and the second member,
wherein the first spline configuration is defined by a first non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of the outer wall of the first member and a second non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of an interior bore of the club head, and the second spline configuration is defined by a third non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of the outer wall of the second member and a fourth non-uniform rotation-inhibiting structure around the circumference of the internal inclined bore of the first member.

12. The golf club of claim 11 ,

Assignees

• Boyd Robert
• Sander Raymond J
• Boggs Joshua Michael
• Rubal Matthew P
• Nike Inc

Inventors

• Boyd Robert
• Sander Raymond J
• Boggs Joshua Michael
• Rubal Matthew P

Classifications

• A63B2053/023

  Human Necessities · mapped topic

• A63B53/02 Primary

  Joint structures between the head and the shaft · CPC title

• A63B53/023

  adjustable angular orientation · CPC title

• A63B60/22

  Adjustable handles · CPC title

• A63B53/026

  loft angle only, i.e. relative angular adjustment between the shaft and the club head about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the intended line of play when the club is in its normal address position · CPC title