Golf club head with impact response modulator

Abstract

Golf club heads have an Impact Response Modulator disposed in the sole to improve ball flight characteristics. The Impact Response Modulator includes a casing with a plurality of casing walls that form an aperture therebetween. The club head further comprises a faceplate with a sole return that integrally forms the entire casing. The faceplate structurally reinforces the IRM by forming the casing walls out of high-strength material, thereby improving faceplate deflection while maintaining sufficient durability.

1 . A golf club head, comprising:
 a body forming at least portions of a crown, a sole, a heel, and a toe;   a 3D printed faceplate coupled to the body to enclose an interior cavity, the 3D printed faceplate at least partially forming a strike face and including a crown return forming at least a portion of a crown, a sole return forming at least a portion of a toe, a heel return forming at least a portion of a heel, and a leading edge between the strike face and the sole return;   the 3D printed faceplate formed by Selective Laser Melting a C300 metallic powder comprising between 0.02% and 0.15% Al;   the C300 powder further comprising a sphericity greater than or equal to 95%;   an Impact Response Modulator (IRM) disposed in the sole, the IRM comprising;
 a casing entirely integral with the sole return and spaced rearward from the strike face by a forward sole region, the casing including:
 a front wall extending upward from the sole into the interior cavity, the front wall comprising a front wall front surface, a front wall rear surface, a front wall base, a front wall top surface, and a front wall thickness; 
 a rear wall spaced rearward from the front wall and extending upward from the sole into the interior cavity, the rear wall comprising a rear wall front surface, a rear wall rear surface, a rear wall base, and a rear wall top surface; 
 a toe wall extending between the front wall and the rear wall at a toe end of the casing; 
 a heel wall extending between the front wall and the rear wall at a heel end of the casing; and 
 wherein the front wall, the rear wall, the toe wall, and the heel wall border an aperture. 
 
   
     
     
         2 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the faceplate further comprises a faceplate perimeter that is continuously attached to the body. 
     
     
         3 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the crown return further comprises a crown return interior surface and a crown return indent recessed into the interior surface. 
     
     
         4 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the crown return comprises a crown return thickness and the crown return indent comprises an indent thickness of 0.005 to 0.020 inch. 
     
     
         5 . The golf club head of  claim 4 , wherein the crown return comprises an indent thickness ratio defined as the indent thickness divided by the crown thickness, and wherein the indent thickness ratio is less than 0.5. 
     
     
         6 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the casing comprises a toe end reinforcement near the toe wall and having a toe end reinforcement thickness that is at least 50% greater than the front wall thickness. 
     
     
         7 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the casing comprises an offset distance, measured between the leading edge and the front wall base in a front-to-rear direction, of 0.075 to 0.5 inch. 
     
     
         8 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the body is formed of a body material having a body material yield strength and the faceplate is formed of a faceplate material having a faceplate material yield strength greater than the body material yield strength. 
     
     
         9 . The golf club head of  claim 8 , wherein the faceplate material yield strength greater than 175 ksi. 
     
     
         10 . The golf club head of  claim 8 , further comprising a faceplate strength ratio, defined as the ratio of the faceplate material yield strength divided by the body material yield strength, greater than 1.25. 
     
     
         11 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the C300 powder further comprises less than or equal to 0.03% C, less than or equal to 0.1% Si, less than or equal to 0.01% S, less than or equal to 0.01% P, less than or equal to 0.1% Mn, 
     
     
         12 . The golf club head of  claim 11 , wherein the C300 powder further comprises between 18-19% Ni, between 4.6-5.2% Mo, between 0.5% and 0.8% Ti, and between 8.5% and 9.5% Co. 
     
     
         13 . The golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein the C300 powder comprises between 0.02-0.04% Al. 
     
     
         14 . The golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein the C300 powder comprises between 0.05-0.15% Al. 
     
     
         15 . The golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein the C300 powder comprises a fluidity that is less than or equal to 20s/50 g. 
     
     
         16 . The golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein the C300 powder further comprises a fluidity that is greater than or equal to 25s/50 g. 
     
     
         17 . The golf club head of  claim 13 , wherein the C300 powder further comprises a D10 grain size ranging from 16-23 μm, a D50 grain size ranging from 30-40 μm, a D90 grain size ranging from 50-60 μm. 
     
     
         18 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , further comprising an insert disposed within the aperture. 
     
     
         19 . A golf club head, comprising:
 a body forming at least portions of a crown, a sole, a heel, and a toe;   a 3D printed faceplate coupled to the body to enclose an interior cavity, the 3D printed faceplate at least partially forming a strike face and including a crown return forming at least a portion of a crown, a sole return forming at least a portion of a toe, a heel return forming at least a portion of a heel, and a leading edge between the strike face and the sole return;   the 3D printed faceplate formed by Selective Laser Melting a C300 metallic powder comprising between 0.02% and 0.15% Al;   the C300 powder further comprising a sphericity greater than or equal to 95%;   an Impact Response Modulator (IRM) disposed in the sole, the IRM comprising;
 a casing entirely integral with the sole return and spaced rearward from the strike face by a forward sole region, the casing including:
 a front wall extending upward from the sole into the interior cavity, the front wall comprising a front wall front surface, a front wall rear surface, a front wall base, a front wall top surface, and a front wall thickness;
 wherein the strike face, the forward sole region, and the front wall combine to collectively define a U-shaped trough disposed toward and in fluid communication with the interior cavity; 
 
 a rear wall spaced rearward from the front wall and extending upward from the sole into the interior cavity, the rear wall comprising a rear wall front surface, a rear wall rear surface, a rear wall base, and a rear wall top surface; 
 a toe wall extending between the front wall and the rear wall at a toe end of the casing; 
 a heel wall extending between the front wall and the rear wall at a heel end of the casing; and 
 wherein the front wall, the rear wall, the toe wall, and the heel wall border an aperture. 
 
   
     
     
         20 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the front wall further comprises a geometry selected from the group consisting of: a front wall step at or near the front wall top surface, a front wall undercut recessed into the front wall front surface, a front wall cavity encapsulated within the front wall, and a front wall crossbeam forming the front wall top surface.