Golf ball dimple plan shape
AssigneeAcushnet Company
InventorsMichael R. Madson, Nicholas M. Nardacci
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention is directed to golf balls having improved aerodynamic performance due, at least in part, to the selection of the plan shapes of the dimples thereon. In particular, the present invention is directed to a golf ball that includes at least a portion of its dimples having a plan shape defined by low frequency periodic functions along a closed simple path. In addition, the present invention provides methods for designing dimples having a plan shape defined by a low frequency periodic function along a closed simple path.
Claims20
A golf ball having a generally spherical surface and comprising from 250 to 400 dimples on the spherical surface, wherein at least 80% of the dimples are non-circular plan shape dimples having a plan shape defined by a periodic function mapped along a simple closed path, wherein:
- the periodic function is selected from sine, cosine, sawtooth wave, triangle wave, and square wave functions;
- the periodic function has a period of 15 or less;
- the simple closed path is selected from a circle, an ellipse, and a square;
- and
- the non-circular plan shape dimples include dimples having at least three different plan shape areas.
A golf ball having a generally spherical surface and comprising a plurality of dimples on the spherical surface, wherein at least a portion of the plurality of dimples have a non-circular plan shape defined by a periodic sawtooth function mapped along a circular simple closed path, wherein:
- the periodic sawtooth function is defined by the equation:
- f
-
- (
- x
- )
- =
- s
- -
- a
- π
-
- (
- sin
-
- (
- π
-
-
- px
- )
- +
- 1
- 2
-
- sin
-
- (
- 2
-
- π
-
-
- px
- )
- +
- 1
- 3
-
- sin
-
- (
- 3
-
- π
-
-
- px
- )
- +
- 1
- 4
-
- sin
-
- (
- 4
-
- π
-
-
- px
- )
- )
- where s is the sharpness factor of the periodic sawtooth function and is defined by a constant value of from 10 to 60;
- a is the amplitude of the periodic sawtooth function and is a value from 0.1 to 1;
- and p is the period of the periodic sawtooth function and is from 3 to 6;
- and
- the non-circular plan shape dimples include dimples having at least three different plan shape areas.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.