[diagnostic golf club system]
AssigneeCallaway Golf Company
InventorsNathan J. Lee, Aaron Linsdau, Jan N. Houshar, Nigel Simmons, Peter Matthewson, Ian Ansell
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A diagnostic golf club system having a diagnostic golf club, an interface means and a computing means is disclosed herein. The diagnostic golf club includes a plurality of sensors, an internal power supply, and a non-volatile memory for capturing data relating to a golf swing. The interface means is capable of transferring data from the diagnostic golf club to the computing means for processing the data and presenting the data in a useful and informative format. The data may be used to determine a shaft flex profile for a particular golfer.
Claims16
A diagnostic golf club system comprising:
- a diagnostic golf club comprising a shaft and a club head, the shaft attached to the club head, a plurality of sensors attached to the shaft, each of the plurality of sensors capable of measuring data related to the golf club during a golf swing, an internal memory device capable of receiving and storing data from the plurality of sensors, the internal memory device disposed within the shaft;
- a computer for processing the data from the internal memory device;
- and
- an interface mechanism capable of providing communication between the diagnostic golf club and the computer.
A system for determining the shaft flex profile of the golfer, the system comprising:
- a golf club head;
- a shaft attached to the golf club head, the shaft having a wall defining a hollow interior, the wall having an exterior surface and an interior surface, the shaft having a tip end in proximity to the golf club head and a butt end opposite thereto, the shaft having an opening to the hollow interior at the butt end;
- a first plurality of strain gauges for providing strain measurements during a golf swing mounted on the exterior surface at the tip end of the shaft, and a second plurality of strain gauges for providing strain measurements during a golf swing mounted on the exterior surface at the butt end of the shaft;
- a circuit board positioned within the hollow interior of the shaft, the circuit board comprising a memory circuit for storing the strain measurements, a power control circuit, a first signal conditioning circuit for the first plurality of strain gauges, a second signal conditioning circuit for the second plurality of strain gauges, and a serial communication circuit;
- a power source positioned within the hollow interior of the shaft for providing power to the circuit board, the first plurality of strain gauges and the second plurality of strain gauges;
- a first plurality of wires connecting the first plurality of strain gauges to the circuit board, and a second plurality of wires connecting the second plurality of strain gauges to the circuit board;
- a grip mounted on the butt end of the shaft;
- a processor for processing the strain measurements from the first plurality of strain gauges and the second plurality of strain gauges to provide a shaft flex profile for a golfer;
- and
- an interface mechanism for transferring the measurement data from the memory circuit to the processor.
A system for determining the shaft flex profile of the golfer, the system comprising:
- a golf club head;
- a shaft attached to the club head;
- means for measuring the swing loads of a golfer during a golf swing, the load measuring means disposed on the shaft;
- means for storing swing load measurements generated by the load measuring means;
- means for generating a shaft flex profile for a golfer from the swing load measurements;
- and
- means for transferring the swing load measurements to the generating means.
A system for determining the shaft flex profile of the golfer, the system comprising:
- a golf club head;
- a shaft attached to the club head;
- means for measuring the axial force on a shaft during a golf swing, the axial force measuring means disposed on the shaft;
- means for measuring the transverse shear forces on a shaft during a golf swing, the transverse shear force measuring means disposed on the shaft;
- means for measuring the bending moments on a shaft during a golf swing, the bending moments measuring means disposed on the shaft;
- means for measuring the torsion on a shaft during a golf swing, the torsion measuring means disposed on the shaft;
- means for storing the measurements generated by the axial force measuring means, the transverse shear force measuring means, the bending moments measuring means, and the torsion measuring means;
- means for generating a shaft flex profile for a golfer from the measurements;
- and
- means for transferring the measurements to the generating means.
A method for determining a shaft flex profile for an individual golfer, the method comprising:
- activating a golf club having an on-board diagnostics comprising a plurality of sensors mounted on an exterior surface of a shaft of the golf club;
- swinging the golf club;
- measuring a plurality of strains on the shaft;
- downloading the strain measurements to a processor;
- calculating a plurality of forces and moments from the swing;
- and
- determining the shaft flex profile for an individual golfer based on the calculations.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.