Year: 2007

This beauty of a golf club is disclosed in USPN D501,903 titled “Golf Club Head.”…(drawings)… Frankly, I was hoping to find a utility application listing the same inventor so that I could learn what was behind the accordion look. Perhaps, each layer has slightly different material properties for optimum deformation at impact with the ball? Maybe the design creates regions of engineered deformation? Perhaps both… Needless to say, I could not locate a related utility application (or patent), so we will never know the origins of the accordion design…

The “odd club of the week” award goes to the club found in USPN D539,861 titled “Golf Club Head.”…(figures)… While it may look ridiculous, I doubt that I would hit it any worse (or better) than my normal wedge.

The Golf-Patents blog has frequently tested your knowledge of
driver and wood designs in the past (here, here, here, and here). Well, here is another test… Recently a design patent issued on a fairly popular metal wood, however I suspect very few people will be able to identify the manufacturer of this club in light of the patenting strategy that was used. Do you recognize this club?

A prior post took a look at shaft related patents that issued in 2006. Needless to say it was a short post (very few shaft patents issued last year). This year is not shaping up to be much more active, but there has been some activity in the past month… Additionally, this week True Temper received its first patent in over 10 months. The True Temper patent that issued Tuesday is USPN 7255652 titled “Lightweight, Durable Golf Club
Shafts.” The patent describes the invention as… OK, that is nice… but it doesn’t really tell you anything about the legal scope of the invention. A quick review of the claims reveals that the patent is directed to…

The Golf-Patents blog has tested your knowledge of iron club
head design in the past. Today, let’s see if you can identify another set of irons. For frequent readers of this blog, I rate the level of difficulty of this one as easy. Good luck….. The figure below comes from a US golf club iron head design patent that recently issued to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand of irons?

Golf-Patents.com has repeatedly used putter design patents to test your knowledge of putter designs. If you can identify this one then you are a genius. I did not even know that they had a line of putters. The assignee does not even list any putters on their website and I could not locate this putter design anywhere online. The figure below comes from a US putter design patent that issued last week to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand of putter?

Not a week goes by in which I don’t receive a call from an
inventor that believes that filing a patent application is similar
to completing a driver’s license application (i.e. just a matter of
completing some forms). Such inventors are often disgusted and mad
that preparing a patent application is a lot of work, and therefore
not inexpensive. I frequently direct them to self-help legal books
on patent application drafting and tell them that if they read it
from cover-to-cover at least twice, and follow the directions
step-by-step, then they should be able to draft their own patent
application. This week a patent application published under the title “The Perfect Golf Tee.” The title alone peaked my interest. Unfortunately, the inventor decided to prepare the application himself and it will not result in a patent issuing (in other words he probably would have received more pleasure by flushing the $500 filing fee in cash down the toilet). Experienced inventors know…

You may recall a post from last month regarding Aldila’s first patent in 25 years. Since that post Aldila has had two patent applications publish. It looks like they may be getting more aggressive with their patenting strategy. The first published
application is US Pub. No. 20070173345 titled “Golf Club Shaft and Method of
Producing the Same.” Check out the following figure and description
from this published application……… The second published patent application is US Pub. No. 20070184914 titled “Method for Producing Golf Shafts of Like Flex.” Check out the following figure and description from this published application…

Golf-Patents.com has repeatedly used putter design patents to test your knowledge of putter designs. How good are you at identifying a particular brand of putter when
all the logos and trademarks are stripped off the club head? The
figure below comes from a US putter design patent that issued this
week to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand of putter?

Crazy… absolutely, but I like it better than the spatula. Check out this golf invention…(figure)… Interesting stuff (and a good illustration of inventors’ fascination with the toilet).

There are tons of online resources that do a good job of explaining the concept of golf club swing weights, so I won’t reproduce that information here. One of the best explanations can be reviewed here. Now, taking a look at the patent history of swing weight… back in 1934 R.W. Adams received a patent for the first swing weight scale (which looks remarkably similar to modern swing weight scales). The patent is USPN 1953916 titled “Apparatus for Measuring Moments of Golf Clubs and the Like,” which is an interesting piece of club fitting history. Check out this figure from the patent…(drawing)… All golfers owe R.W. Adams a big “thank you.”

The Golf-Patents blog has tested your knowledge of iron club head design many times in the past (here, here, here, here, and here). Today, let’s see if you can identify another set of irons. I rate the level of difficulty of this one as moderate. Good luck. The figure below comes from a US golf club iron head design patent that issued this week to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand of irons?…(drawing)… Click here for the answer, and click here to check out USPN D547409 titled “Iron Golf Club Cavity,” which issued this week…

Callaway (owner of Odyssey Putters) was recently granted a design patent on a putter grip incorporating the Odyssey logo. The patent is USPN D547406 titled “Golf Club Grip.” Check out this design…(figures)… As you may recall, a few weeks ago Karsten (Ping) received a putter grip design patent for a Ping putter grip design (see this post)… Which grip do you like better?…

Cheap shot, I know. Sergio is obviously a much better putter (and golfer) than I am. He was just the easy target. Last month a pretty unique putter patent application published as US Pub. No. 20070149306 titled “Golf Clubs.” This figure says it all…(drawing)… I have to admit, I have never seen anything like it and would love to give it a try…

Recently an interesting patent application published directed to a device that virtually every golfer has touched in the pro shop, yet would never consider purchasing. What could it be? The application published as US Pub. No. 20070158283 titled “…(secret(…” You should recognize the device from this figure..

Last week a fascinating putter utility patent issued. The design will definitely make you think. The patent is USPN 7244190 titled “Golf Putter,” and the following figures say it all…(figures)… The patent describes the invention as…

Four months ago I posted a comment on an interesting golf ball design patent. Well, leave it to a golfer to take it to the next level and obtain a design patent on a particular dimple design. This week a Mr. Niwa of Japan was granted USPN D546910 titled “Dimple for a Golf Ball.” Oddly, the patent is not listed to be owned by a golf ball manufacturer. Perhaps this is some hopeful speculation on the part of Mr. Niwa, which might not be a bad idea. Check out these figures from …

I must admit that I am not a big fan of plastic tees, but a recent design patent illustrates an innovative new way to package and sell them. The patent is USPN D546197 titled “Assembly of Golf Tees with Hanging Hook.” The design looks like a molded assembly that allows the user to break off a tee when needed. Check out this figure…(image)… Not a bad idea…

Readers of this blog know that I am amazed by the lack of golf shaft related patents, especially in light of the technology that goes into the design and manufacturing of shafts (see this post). This week Aldila was granted their first patent in over 25 years! This is hard to imagine… an industry leading innovative publicly traded company that only has 2 patents. Amazing! They must know how to keep trade secrets. The patent that was granted this week is USPN 7243531 titled “Method and Apparatus for Dynamically Locating Neutral Shaft Plane.” The patent describes the invention as…

I was surprised to learn that the USGA owns the OPEN trademark in the US for “educational and entertainment services; namely, conducting a golf tournament.” Interestingly there are only 4 distinct live US trademarks associated with the British Open. There are 2 word marks, namely BRITISH OPEN GOLF, and BRITISH OPEN; and two trophy logo US trademarks, seen below… Looks like they need to play catch up! Compare this to the US Open trademark portfolio and the Masters’ trademark portfolio… So why does The Golf Channel keep calling it The Open Championship?

The USPTO database contains millions of amazing inventions. One recent example is USPN 7238115 titled “Roadway-Transportable Artificial Golf Practice Green Apparatus.” The patent describes the invention as… Would you buy one of these?

This week UpLink was granted USPN 7239965 titled “Method and System for Golf Cart Control.” The ‘965 patent is incredibly broad and will undoubtedly be a valuable contribution to the UpLink patent portfolio. The patent describes the invention as… Easy to describe in words, but I am sure it took some computer geniuses to efficiently implement. Check out these figures from the patent… I was amazed the first time that I played a course that implemented this technology. Congratulations UpLink!

This week a simple collapsible alignment device was granted USPN 7241228 titled “Golf Swing Alignment Device.” The patent describes the invention as… The invention is so simple and convenient that I could see this selling. It would be convenient for the range, as well as for illustrating my poor alignment on those dreaded angled tee boxes.

Golf-Patents.com has repeatedly used putter design patents to test your knowledge of putter designs. Well here is a relatively easy one… How good are you at identifying a particular brand of putter when all the logos and trademarks are stripped off the club head? The figure below comes from a US putter design patent that issued this week to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand?…

Karsten Manufacturing was recently awarded USPN D545388 titled “Golf Putter Grip,” which is the first golf grip design patent to issue in over 3 months. Check it out…

Recently Tour Edge has been receiving some pretty positive press on their Exotics line of clubs. Well now they have a design patent on the sole of their Exotics driver to go along with all the hype. Recently Tour Edge was granted USPN D545389 titled “Golf Club Head.”..(figure).. It appears that Tour Edge now has 7 patents. Keep it up!… PS – You have to respect their money back guarantee that purchasers will hit the ball further …

Wilson was recently granted USPN D545504 titled “Finger Stalls of a Golf Glove.” As you can see from the figures below, the patent protects the star shaped design aimed at ensuring a nice flex of the glove’s finger over the hand’s finger joint. Congratulations Wilson, interesting design patent…

Last week an interesting utility patent issued on a pretty popular putter design. The patent was USPN 7235021 titled “Golf Putter Head with a Visual Alignment Aid and an Increased Moment of Inertia.” Do you recognize the putter brand?… If you don’t recognize it, order more golf magazines (and click here). This patent is a good illustration of a putter utility patent (as most are putters are protected by design patents, see this post)…

Will golf shoes and spikes become more expensive? On June 14, 2007 Greenkeepers sued Acushnet and Softspikes for patent infringement of USPN 6530162 titled “Sports Shoe Cleats.” What is this lawsuit all about? Well, basically an angled arrangement of flexible teeth extending from the base of the cleat to enhance lateral stability. Perhaps these figures will help…. This is not the first patent litigation action regarding the ‘162 patent. In fact, Greenkeepers sued Nike and MacNeill Engineering (maker of Champ spikes) back in August of 2004… I suspect that there is a fair amount of money at stake in these cases!…

Yet another swing plane training device patent issued this week, namely USPN 7238116 titled “Golf Swing Training Apparatus and Method of Using the Same.” A quick look at the patent made me think… this can’t be the first patent for this type of device. In fact, USPN 1567530 titled “Golf Swing Device” was filed in 1924 for a remarkably similar device. Just compare these figures from the two patents and you will recognize that the ‘166 patent is fairly narrow (i.e. limited, or specific)(even without having to review the claims). Can you identify which of these designs is from 1924?…

We have all seen them. It seems to be the first commercially successful non-conventional green repair tool in decades. Now, not only does GreenFix have a cool product, but they also have a utility patent to back it up. This week a patent issued directed to the unique GreenFix ballmark elimination system. The patent is USPN 7238126 titled “Golf Green Repair Device, Method, and Apparatus.” Check out these figures… A little more innovative than the traditional tool (seen below)…

Isn’t the game hard enough? Well, the inventors of USPN 6691887 titled “Underground Rake Storage Apparatus and Method” must not think so. The ‘877 patent discloses a unique underground storage system and keeps rakes out of the way and nicely presents them when needed. Check out this device… The device looks a little complex (i.e. costly). Interesting idea nonetheless, and I could see the USGA using these devices at big tournaments.

Very few inventors appreciate how important it is to closely review a patent application before it is filed. After all, an inventor should not want to notice errors for the first time when they are attempting to enforce it against a competitor. The attorney that drafted this patent application tried to educate his clients on the importance of a thorough application review prior to filing, yet something slipped through the cracks. Check out this claim that remained in the application when it was filed. Funny!…

My wedge struggles have led me to looking at a lot of wedge patents lately. One patent in particular really caught my attention. I have no doubt that the club disclosed in USPN 6224496 titled “Golf Club Head with Removable Head Insert” would produce some incredible spin, but it looks like it would absolutely tear up golf balls. Check out this club!… This patent is assigned to The Spin Doctor Ltd. and it appears that a version of this club is actually available for purchase!…

Inventors have been trying to develop shank resistant wedges for years. I am sure that everyone has seen the advertisements for F2 Golf’s face forward wedges. Let’s look a few of the early innovators in shank resistant clubs, as well as one design that would seem to promote hosel rockets…

When I think of a keel it always involves the fin on the bottom of sailboat. Critical to stability, yet easy to run aground in shallow water. Therefore I was a little surprised to stumble across a patent titled “Metal Shell Golf Club Head With Keel.” Check out these figures!… Frankly, this looks like a club that most golfers would be running aground a lot!

The infamous foot wedge. Accuracy has always been a problem. The ball is too small to hit it off the laces and the shoe tip is just too rounded to catch one square. One inventor feels he has the solution. Check out USPN 5472200 titled “Golf Ball Kicking Device.” I am surprised that FootJoy hasn’t licensed this patent…

Patent Attorney: Of course not! Protect it all.
Golf Equipment Manufacturer: We spend $__ millions in R and D every year, we must protect our intellectual property or we would just be giving it to the competition. Plus, all of our competitors are trying to protect everything!
Golfer: I wish the equipment manufacturers would just save the legal fees and reduce the price of the products.
Who is correct? Well, at one point or another I could see myself taking all three positions. But… this week a design patent issued that made me look at …

If you can identify the manufacturer of this wedge then pat yourself on the back… you know your wedges. The figure below comes from a US wedge design patent that issued yesterday to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand?

The Golf-Patents blog has tested your knowledge of iron club head design in the past. Today, let’s see if you can identify another set of irons. This is a tougher test than usual. Good luck. The figure below comes from a US golf club iron head design patent that issued yesterday to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand of irons?

A prior post discussed an interesting Callaway patent application regarding their liquid filled golf ball technology. This week Callaway was granted USPN 7232382 based on the previously discussed patent application. Check out these figures… Congratulations Callaway! One question… how much would these balls cost?

Ever want to strap your bag to your bike and cruise to the course? If so then this invention may be for you. A patent application published last week as US Pub. No. 20070138223 with the title “Golf Bag for Motorcycles.” The figures tell the story… Interesting invention, but will we see these as a Harley factory option?

Do you understand why average golfers should not play the same equipment as the pros? Probably, but I know that a lot of average golfers do not. How many times have you seen a 20+ handicapper playing “pro” or “tour” forged irons while hitting the most expensive balls they can find? An Acushnet (aka Titleist) patent issued this week that does a nice job of explaining why golfers should select balls based upon the golf balls spin characteristics… The Acushnet patent that issued this week is USPN 7232384 titled “Perimeter Weighted Golf Ball.” The patent describes the invention as…

Several tour players use this driver… the manufacturer has plenty of advertising in the golf magazines and on TV… so you should be able to identify this unique driver design…(drawings)… I trust that at least 75% of you quickly identified this driver, for those of you that don’t read golf magazines or watch The Golf Channel…

This week an interesting driver design patent issued that may give us a glimpse into new product development at Cleveland Golf. The driver design patent is USPN D544938 titled “Portion of a Golf Club Head.” Check out these figures from the patent… Will we see a square HiBore XL?

What’s the difference! An interesting patent application published last week as US Pub. No. 20070135226 titled “Golf Teaching Aid.” The application describes the invention as… Check out these drawings of the device… Must have been invented by a lefty. Congratulations nonetheless.

Last week an interesting putter utility patent application published as US Pub. No. 20070135230 titled “Impact Force Dampening System for Use with a Golf Putter Head.” The application describes the invention as… So what does all that mean? Well, check out the figures below and then form your opinion regarding this unique design concept.

The following product line may have the honor of being the product line protected by the greatest number of design patents. There is little doubt that the manufacturer greatly values the product line. Check out these five design patents that issued this week… I trust that you can identify the brand.

As you may recall, a prior post during the Masters looked at the trademark portfolio of Augusta National. Let’s see how Oakmont stacks up. Actually it is not fair to blindly compare Oakmont’s trademark portfolio with Augusta’s trademark portfolio because Augusta owns the trademarks associated with the Masters, while the USGA owns the trademarks associated with the US Open (a future post). Oakmont has two federally registered trademarks. Check them out…

It is not very often that I look at an iron design and it takes my breath away. I actually said “what the heck” when I saw the drawings from a patent application that published yesterday. The application published as US Pub. No. 20070135233 titled “Golf Iron Club.” The application describes the invention as:… An iron with three rounded modules and an oblong island… what? Check out these figures from the application…

It seems that there is a fascination with pedal powered golf carts. Recently a patent application published that takes the concept to a new level. The application published as US Pub. No. 20070123363 titled “Bicycle-Mounted Golf Club Carrying System, Combination With a Bicycle Having Extra-Wide Tires and Method of Use Thereof.” The application describes the invention as: A system for carrying golf clubs on the front end of a bicycle by dividing the clubs between two enclosures: one to the left of the bicycle’s front fork and one to the …

Are you familiar with the ImpactStik swing exerciser? I was not until the patent application published a few weeks ago. The patent application describes the invention as: Components of a golf exerciser are contained within a tube that can be swung in a simulated golf swing independently of a golf club. Within the tube is an extension spring connected to a weight so that centrifugal force developed during swinging the tube can move the weight toward a distal end of the tube. There, a …

USPN D543,597 titled “Golf Tee” issued on May 29th for a unique tee design… It looks as if it includes some type of alignment device that would sit on the turf…

On July 6, 2006 Nike filed US trademark application Serial Number 78919236. The description of the trademark is “The mark consists of the color yellow appearing on the sole of the golf club head opposite the clubface. The matter that is shown in broken lines is for placement purposes only and is not part of the mark.” The application contained the following figure:… On September 16, 2006 the trademark examining attorney refused the application stating:… Nike responded on March 19, 2007 with a 57 page response. The response is very well written and must have persuaded the trademark examining attorney, as the USPTO issued a Notice of Publication on June 6, 2007. The mark will be published for opposition on June 26, 2007…

When you bend down to pick your ball up out of the hole do you ever wonder about the intellectual property associated with the cup design? I don’t… and I am a patent attorney and golf nut. This is why I was so intrigued to see USPN 7226361 issue this week. The ‘361 patent is titled “Golf Cup Sleeve” and is assigned to Par Aide Products (a major producer of golf course maintenance products). I have to admit… I spend a lot of time thinking about golf, yet I have never given the cup a single thought. The background of the invention explains the problems that the invention of the ‘361 patent tries to solve… In preparing a golf green, a hole is cored into the ground which receives the golf ball therein. Various cups have been inserted into the ground to preserve the shape of the hold and to hold a flag. One example of a cup inserted into the hole is a plastic cup. The plastic cup has several drawbacks…

Several driver design patents have issued in the past few weeks (see prior posts one and two). This week another driver related design patent issued that should be immediately recognizable to every golfer. The patent is USPN D544,058 titled “Portion of a Golf Club Head.” Do you recognize the driver shown in the design patent drawing below? The ‘588 patent is directed to the scalloped regions in the sole of the club…

On Tuesday Acushnet was granted a fascinating patent for a ball that the patent describes as: A golf ball is provided that has improved aerodynamic efficiency, resulting in increased flight distance for golfers of all swing speeds, and more particularly for golfers possessing very high swing speeds, such as those who can launch the balls at an initial speed greater than 160 miles per hour and more particularly at initial ball speed of about 170 miles per hour or higher. The golf ball of the present invention combines lower … Basically, the design focuses on a dimple arrangement and dimple profile that improves aerodynamic efficiency at high ball speeds. The design combines the lower dimple counts (less than 370 dimples) of earlier golf balls with higher dimple coverage and multiple dimples sizes of more modern golf balls…

I expected to see Al Czervik listed as an inventor on a patent that issued yesterday. For those of you that don’t know Al Czervik… he is the character played by Rodney Dangerfield in the classic 1980 movie Caddyshack. The patent that issued is USPN 7,225,951 titled “Portable Fluid Delivery System.” The patent describes the invention as: A dispenser is located within a golf bag and remotely controlled and coupled to a linear actuator, which extends the fluid dispenser outside of the golf bag upon actuation …

The Golf-Patents blog has tested your knowledge of iron club head design several times in the past. Today, let’s see if you can identify another set of irons. A hint… this test may be easier for the low handicap golfer. The figure below comes from a US golf club iron head design patent that issued yesterday to a major producer of clubs. Can you identify the brand of irons?…

Are you “that guy?” You know, the one that gets to the tee box and tees up on the far right edge, takes a practice swing, decides that the ball is too low, raises the tee, then tries to tilt the tee slightly forward to gain that extra six inches on the drive, the ball falls off the tee, tees up again, takes another practice swing, and then decides that the tee box is not level on the right side and proceeds to repeat the process on the left side of the tee box. If you are the golfer that I just described then perhaps you (or the other three people in your group) should be excited about the issuance of USPN 7,223,184 titled “Golf Tee Setting Device and Method.” …

Last week SRI Sports was granted USPN 7,223,183 titled “Golf Ball” directed to an interesting two-tiered dimple design. It’s all about aerodynamic symmetry…