Year: 2009

Familiar with the TaylorMade Targa Tour Glove and its “patent pending micro-perforated leather construction to increase airflow throughout the hand and allow for 360 degree ventilation?” Nice looking glove, right. Check out the link, and these figures…… A patent application recently published directed to this perforated glove construction. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090313742 titled “Golf Glove Having Perforations,” which explains the breakthrough as….. For crying out loud, it’s a golf glove with needle holes throughout! Yes, funny ha-ha; but seriously, I truly believe that creating a well drafted patent application on a simple invention in a unique manner so that it has a shot at patentability is one of the most difficult documents to create. Unfortunately, no one will believe that statement unless they have actually done it. Oh well, such is life…..

Any chance this grip can help your putting?….. The grip is disclosed in a patent that issued last week as USPN 7635309 titled “Grip Arrangement for Golf Club.” The patent describes the invention as….. It may look ridiculous, but I am not too proud to give it a try.

Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t personally know a single golfer using swing trainer / swing exercise devices. However, I definitely would give one a try if I thought it had a shot at actually improving my game. Therein lies the problem, it is hard for me to look at these devices and think “that’s going to help my game, sold!” I had this same problem when reviewing a patent that recently issued as USPN 7,625,320 titled “Swing Training Apparatus and Method.” Now, I am sure it would give you a nice hip workout and all (if that’s what your looking for), but would it really help your swing? You be the judge….

Check out this beauty of a putter grip!….. Ahhh, the perfect marriage of a bowling glove and a golf grip; however, think there may be some trouble getting USGA approval on this grip?….

Familiar with the GolfNow tee time reservation system that seems to be pimped nonstop on The Golf Channel by the Billy Mays of golf instruction? Well, this week GolfNow was granted USPN 7,634,426 titled “Golf Reservation System,” which may surprise some people. The patent explains….

Brace yourself. I don’t want to get your hopes up right before Christmas, but this invention would likely change the way most of us play a round of golf. The invention is disclosed in a recently published Garmin patent application; namely, US Pub. No. 20090298605 titled “Methods and Devices for Analyzing Golf Swings.” The application explains…. Pull this off and it will be like printing money!….

This summer I was fortunate to attend a long drive / trick shot demonstration by “professional long driver and golf entertainer” Tom Roskos. The guy is amazing; just try hitting a ball like THIS someday. Much of his demonstration involves amazing feats of balance, including hitting long drives while balancing on top of an exercise ball. For those of use with more human skill levels, the following invention may help out. What do you think?….

What? That’s right, craters, not dimples, randomly arranged to produce excellent aerodynamic symmetry. Counterintuitive, right? Last week a golf ball aerodynamics related patent application became publically available and I could not put it down. The patent application published as US Pub. No. 20090298618 titled “Process for Designing Rugged Pattern on Golf Ball Surface.” I thought, “that’s an odd title,” but it was the first line of the Abstract section that set the hook. It reads “a golf ball has numerous craters on its surface.” Craters, really? The application starts off with a nice explanation of golf ball aerodynamics and an explanation of the USGA rules regarding the symmetry of a golf ball. I guarantee that you will learn something reading the following (unless you are a golf ball designer)….

Few things put a smile on a golfer’s face like the sound of a 300 yard drive. Sure, there are a handful of drivers out there that are characterized by a rather unique sound that some, myself
included, would say is hideous, but there is no doubt that the sound produced by a driver influences the purchasing decision. Every golf club manufacturer recognizes this fact. Acushnet has gone as
far as designing a driver that the golfer can tune to the frequency that they desire. The Acushnet driver is disclosed in a patent application that published this week….

That’s right, a combination sand wedge and putter. Not exactly the two clubs that most golfers would think of combining. Check out this club!…. Interested? I will have to pass on this golf invention….

DeLaCruz Golf Designs hopes not; after all, they have filed a patent application covering a putter design with a precision ground face and precision ground grooves. The application states that conventional face milling leaves many small imperfections in the metal surface that can affect the angle at which a golf ball bounces off of the putter. The patent application published this week as US Pub. No. 20090291773 titled “Precision Ground Putter Face,” which contains the following drawings and description….. Well, at least I now have another excuse for my putting…. those small milling imperfections must be negatively influencing my putting!….

Nike is at it again with another interesting iron design. They have definitely been challenging convention golf club design; click HERE and HERE to check out some recent posts on radical Nike designs. Today, a Nike patent application published as US Pub. No. 20090291772 titled “Golf Club and Golf Club Head with Interchangeable Body Component.” Check out this design….. So, do you think we will see these designs in the hands of any professionals?….

Recently a patent issued that takes on that nasty condition golfers refer to as the yips. The patent is USPN 7607990 titled “Yip Grip Squeeze Pressure-Indicating Golf Club Grip” and explains…. I wonder if this grip could have saved any careers on Tour?….

Every golfer knows that “adjustability” is a key aspect to Taylor Made’s recent marketing. There is the widely known movable weight technology (MWT) and flight control technology (FCT), as well as the lesser known adjustable grip technology (AGT) that I wrote about last month (see the post HERE). This week a patent application published that may give us a look at their next level of adjustability, namely an adjustable sole. The following drawings come from the Taylor Made patent application that published as US Pub. No. 20090286619 titled “Golf Club.”….. Click HERE to compare the Taylor Made design with Acushnet’s interchangeable sole that was reported on back in September. Which do you like better?….

I am sure that I am not the only golfer that assumed golf ball covers would be getting softer and softer as a result of the new groove regulations. Well, today an Acushnet patent application published revealing that the opposite may be true…..

Have you ever considered why a shaft connects to a hosel? Ever spend a sleepless night wondering if there was a better way? Me neither, but that is probably why I am not a golf club designer and inventor. The inventors of USPN 6514153 titled “Golf Club Head” have definitely questioned the wisdom of the traditional shaft – to hosel – to club head body attachment strategy. Check out this design….. What do you think? Pure, or shank? Birdie, or bogey?…..

There are way too many wild putter designs to ever cover them all, but this week we have started to scratch the surface. As you have seen, most have some rational basis but take it to an often irrational extreme. In fact, at first blush many putter patents appear ridiculous, but if you really read them they make you scratch your head and wonder if there it something to it. This post’s putter is just one of those head scratchers. Check out the drawings, but then read the explanation before jumping to any conclusions….. What do you think, any merit to this?….

Increase bite, minimize skid, improve roll,… good concepts, but is this the putter to do it?…. Slap “Cameron” on it with a few stampings and this putter would sell!…..

Your dreams have been answered. No more having to worry about the pesky slope, or grain, of a putting green. This putter does it all!….. Oh, really? Even one of the big OEM’s marketing consultants would have a hard time with that promise!….

Could this flatstick find a place in your bag?…. Now I am no Dave Stockton when it comes to putting, but I can’t imagine how this putter design could do anything other than hurt my game…..

Here comes a week made in heaven for putter enthusiasts. OK, that may be a stretch, but I am committing to a week of posts directed to unconventional putters. Yes, many will be entertaining, yet ridiculous, putters that never had a chance at making to the market, but there may be some containing interesting features that should have made it to the market.
Kicking off the Golf-Patents blog’s “Week of Wild Putter Designs” (that’s WWPD for all the golf “branding” experts that have to create an acronym for everything) is USPN 4846477 titled “Golf Putter.” Check out this beauty!….. I am willing to bet that a few hours of practice with this putter would improve my game.

Check out the beauty of a club found in USPN 5792002 titled “Golf Club.” Think it could help your game?…..

If you read the Golf-Patents blog then you are probably familiar with Mizuno’s Fast Track adjustable weight positioning system. Today Mizuno was granted a patent on this unique weight channel system. The patent is USPN 7611424 titled “Golf Club Head and Golf Club” and describes the invention as…..

Last week a patent application published that is directed to the PING’s Craz-D Optigraphic Alignment Aid (view HERE and HERE). I have never tried one of these putters but they look interesting, and with a fancy name like that there must be some cool science involved. Right?……

Isn’t that a large part of club fitting? Well, watch out club fitters because The Yokohama Rubber Co. is looking to automate this process. This week an interesting patent application published as US Pub. No. 20090270204 titled “Method for Golf Club Selection, and Golf Club,” which describes the invention as….. I am not sure that a system exists that could process all the movement in my swing, and I know that I would not want to see it illustrated on a screen. Nonetheless, wouldn’t it be great to have an automated system that recommends the best club for your swing regardless of the manufacturer, salesperson incentives, or what brand of clubs the winner in last week’s tournament played? Ah, a golfer can dream…..

I don’t know what I would do if a playing partner pulled this invention out and started lining up shots. Well, yes I do. First, I would laugh and ridicule them a bit, and then I would probably end up trying it and asking to borrow it. This interesting alignment tool is found in a patent that issued today as USPN 7607988 titled “Golf Alignment and Targeting System.” The patent describes the invention as….. It’s just a matter of time before we see one of these used on tour…..

The following contraption is one of the few golf exercise devices that actually looks helpful. Check it out….. Balanced on one foot on top of a rolling platform, come on, give me a challenge!…..

You may recall a prior post that introduced you to golf inventor Dr. Frank D. Werner? He is the author of a handful of books (example 1, example 2) on golf club engineering, and was one of the early supporters of square drivers (see THIS prior post). Based upon his bio, it appears Frank is one smart guy. Well, Frank was recently granted USPN 7597634 titled “Plastic Golf Club Head.” The patent explains….. I would love to hear the sound of a plastic driver…..

Ahh, finally a club that will correct for all your swing flaws. Check out this club’s design….. So, does this club have any chance of improving your game?….

There is no doubt that adjustability is great for marketing hype, but I really don’t know anyone that uses it beyond the first few rounds played with their new adjustable toy. Taylor Made has led the adjustability movement with their movable weight technology (MWT) and flight control technology (FCT), and now they have another adjustability feature on the drawing board. The new technology is disclosed in a patent application that recently published as US Publication No. 20090253530 titled….. Interesting. So, what do you think the new acronym will be? Perhaps…..

You may recall a prior post regarding a “golf ball lubricant” that looked a lot like a tube of ChapStick. The idea was to rub it on the club face to temporarily make the face of your club slippery so that it did not impart as much spin on the golf ball. Well, this week’s bizarre golf club patent details a similar idea developed in the late 1990’s in which the face is impregnated with a lubricant…. I have to admit, it would be interesting to see real test data illustrating whether either of these approaches significantly reduces spin. If it worked I suspect there would be a lot more members of the ChapStick Fan Club (yes, there really is a fan club…. check out the link)….

The name alone sells this invention. I mean, whose game could benefit from a “high-precision golf club?” A patent application recently published as US Pub. No. 20090253528 titled “High-Precision Golf Club,” which explains this “high-precision” invention as…. Are you buying it?….

Regular readers of the Golf-Patents blog know that Bridgestone has not taken the new groove regulations laying down. In the past I have posted on their face texturing designs and groove designs. Recently Bridgestone has bolstered their spin-related IP portfolio even further with the issuance of a patent directed to the orientation of face striations and had a patent application publish related to score lines….. I wonder what the USGA has to say about these inventions….

This week’s bizarre club of the week is an oldie but goodie. Check out this awesome driver from 1927…. The drawings come from USPN 1,657,473 titled “Golf Club.” What was that inventor smoking?….

Golfers see the term “grain flow forged” in Mizuno advertisements all the time, but I suspect only a small portion really understand the concept. Fortunately, a recently published Mizuno patent application educates us on the subject. The application published last week as US Pub. No. 20090247317 titled “Golf Club and Manufacturing Method Thereof,” which explains….

Golf carts just don’t get any respect. Golfers largely ignore the beauty and the complex engineering that goes into the design of these wonderful machines. However, there is no doubt the manufacturers never forget about the sweat and tears, not to mention money, that go into designing a reliable golf cart. In fact, last week E-Z-GO sought to protect its investment and filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Club Car alleging that several of the Club Car products infringe E-Z-GO’s patent USPN 7,332,881 titled “AC Drive System for Electrically Operated Vehicle.”….

Having trouble with your grip? If so, this little device may be the answer. Check it out…. Simple enough, right? The drawing comes from USPN 7,591,733 titled “Device for Reducing Effect of Dominant Hand on Golf Swing,” which explains…. Now, the rest of the story….. Looks simple enough (and inexpensive enough) that I suspect most golfers would give it a try….

Cool golf glove inventions don’t come along every day. In fact, the last golf glove post on the Golf-Patents blog was over a year and a half ago. Well, that changes today with an Acushnet patent application that combines acupuncture and golf. The application published today as US Pub. No. 20090241238 titled “Golf Glove,” which describes the invention as…. That is one golf glove that I would love to try. I hope it makes it to the market….

Check out this nice looking training device….. The figures come from the recently issued patent USPN 7,585,228 titled “Golf Swing Plane Training Device and Method,” which describes the invention as…. Pretty cool. I would like to have one of these in the basement (or office)….

Probably not, but I sure don’t recognize this iron. Do you?…. I don’t know…. the shape and location of the product tag leads me to believe that this might be the new iron in the AP1/AP2 family. Definitely looks like an iron from the “players’ club” category of irons…..

An interesting Taylor Made patent application published this week that may give us a look at their next step in adjustability; which means a new acronym! The application published as US Pub. No. 20090239677 titled “Golf Club Shafts Having Selectable-Stiffness Tip Regions, and Golf Clubs Comprising Same” and describes the application as…. Is this an adjustability feature that you would pay a premium for?….

A few months ago I authored a post titled “PING’s New Golf Tee Designed to Minimize a Tee’s Effect on Flight Trajectory and Spin” and expressed my surprise that a big golf club OEM would have any interest in the golf tee market. Well, apparently PING does enough testing to believe that the effect of a tee on golf ball flight is more significant than most golfers believe. Just yesterday Karsten had another golf tee related patent application publish as US Pub. No. 20090233734 titled “Set of Golf Tees.” The application describes the invention as….. They just need one guy on Tour utilizing different shaped tees for different shot shapes and then amateurs around the world will be doing it…..

Check out this club….. What can you say about this club other than it would be a blast to try to hit!….

Yes, hard to believe. I know. Check out these flip flops…. I’ll take mine in a size 10….

This week a fascinating golf club shaft patent application published disclosing a smart shaft aimed at reducing shaft vibrations. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090233729 titled “Vibration Reducing Golf Club” and describes the invention as…. Interesting concept but, as I have said before, aside from the occasional shank, I just do not notice these undesirable vibrations that so many inventions seek to minimize. It seems like this shaft may be difficult to manufacture so that the shaft is similar in size and weight to conventional shafts, but it sure would be cool to see one in action…..

I would love to give this practice putter a try because it looks virtually impossible. Check it out…..

Perhaps I jumped the gun a bit with my prior post titled “Would These Shoes Have Saved Tiger’s Knee,” because recently a patent was granted on a pair of golf shoes that would have surely prevented the injury! Maybe? OK, I doubt it!….. Some day I am going to run these ideas by Dr. Lanny over at Golfer’sKnee to see if these type of shoes are more likely reduce injury or cause injury…..

In the past the Golf-Patents blog has published many posts regarding the potential look of future golf balls (here, here, here, here, and here). It has gotten to the point that I am starting to believe that the day will come when I will tell young golfers that I remember playing golf with a ball that had dimples (round dimples at that) and they won’t believe me. Supporting this belief is a patent that was granted to Acushnet today titled “Golf Ball Surface Textures.” The patent (USPN 7,588,505) describes the invention as….. So, how long do you think it will be before traditional circular dimples are obsolete?

Check out this club….. The drawings come from USPN 4,850,593 titled “Reduced Drag Club Head for a Wood Type Golf Club,” which provides a nice explanation for the unusual design….

Having your own golf cart would be nice, but having one with a lift would be awesome! Check out this sweet looking golf cart….. OK, sweet may be a stretch. The drawing comes from USPN 7,581,740 titled “Golf Cart Front Suspension Lift System.” The patent describes the invention as…. Nice invention, but is there a market for golf cart lift kits?

Over the years I have only covered a couple of Scotty Cameron’s inventions; check out the posts titled “Am I the Only Golfer That Thinks Scented Golf Grips are Unnecessary?” and “Would You Play A Scented Golf Grip That Feels Like Jelly? Scotty Cameron Thinks So.” Well, recently Scotty had a patent application publish that isn’t directed to a putter or grip design, but rather to a system for analyzing a putting stroke. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090221379 titled “Method and Apparatus for Determining Golf Ball Performance Versus Golf Club Configuration in Accordance with a Golfer’s Individual Swing Characteristics” and includes the following description and drawings….. It seems that the novelty of the system is that it includes a force plate that the golfer stands on during the stroke so that weight distribution information may be included in the swing analysis…..

The following golf ball design was granted a patent last week and I bet it is going to gobble up market share!……

A fascinating golf club patent issued last week. The club appears to be part golf club, part weapon. Ahh, perhaps the origin of the hybrid. The patent is USPN D599422 titled “Golf Club.” Check out this design….. Pretty crazy, but it would be fun to try to hit a ball with it…..

Check out the driver design found in USPN D599421 simply titled “Golf Club Head,” which issued last week….. Could it find a home in your bag? I bet that if it came with a TaylorMade, Titleist, Callaway, (fill in the blank), name on it that a lot of people would give it a try, despite the nontraditional look….

Acushnet had two interesting patent applications publish addressing another yet another degree of adjustability; namely, the ability to switch out a driver’s sole plate to change the club head’s characteristics. The applications published as US Pub. No. 20090221380 and 20090221381 titled “Golf Club Having Removable Sole Weight Using Custom and Interchangeable Panels” and describe the invention as…. Check out these designs….

I come across so many bizarre patents directed to golf clubs that I have decided to feature one such patent every week or two. The Golf-Patents blog is generally dedicated to current happenings in the world of golf intellectual property, but this new category allows me to cover some wonderfully interesting designs from the past. The crazy patent of the week is USPN 5224702 titled “Offset Hosel Golf Club.” Check out this design….. Think you could hit this club?….

This week a putter patent caught my eye just from the title alone. The patent is USPN 7048643 and the title is “Do-Drop Golf Putter.” Where in the world did that name come from! Check out this design keeping in mind that the handle is free to rotate…… I don’t think we will be seeing this one on tour anytime soon…..

Frankly, I had never even considered the shape of the inside of a golf club shaft until today. Naturally, the inside of a shaft must be round, right? Not true. This week an interesting patent application published that is directed specifically to non-circular bores of a golf shaft. The application published as USPN 20090215550 titled “Matrix Composite Golf Club Shaft and Mandrel” and describes the invention as….

This week Acushnet had an interesting putter patent application publish. Check out this design…. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090215551 titled “Weight Adjusting Structure Of Golf Club Head” and describes the invention as…. I am torn and can’t decide whether it would be fun to play with or if it is a tad too gimmicky…..

Golf shaft technology is as interesting as any golf technology. In fact, I suspect the popularity of golf shaft technology will grow each week as major tournament broadcasts increase the number of slow motion SwingVision videos showing the gyrations of a shaft as a Tour player hacks their ball out of deep rough. This week the Nippon Shaft Company was granted an interesting golf shaft patent. The patent is USPN 7578750 titled “Golf Shaft, Golf Club, and Production Method for Golf Shaft” and explains….. Got that? Time to brush up on your metallurgy! It seems that golf shaft patenting is picking up…..

I didn’t say “new” irons in the title because I always assume that when I can’t recognize irons it must be because they are a junior, or ladies, set. Plus, whenever I even suggest that something might be “new” someone will undoubtedly email me and point out that they are in fact not new, but rather that there have been at least 2 prototype sets bouncing around on tour for at least a couple of weeks! But heck, dealing with overzealous golfers is half the fun of having this blog.
Well, even after some poking around I can’t identify this iron design as a junior, or ladies, set. Thus, I suppose it is possible that this is a first look at something new (but I have my doubts, and I am sure the readers will confirm these doubts). Nonetheless, check out this iron design….. It appears that the design has a face insert, which generally implies a multi-material, or premium, club. Do you recognize it?…..

Readers of the Golf-Patents blog know that I love inventions intended to reduce the number of lost golf balls… primarily because I can’t help asking myself the question… “how many golf balls would this device have to prevent me from losing just to pay for itself?” Not to mention, what would it do to a billion dollar industry that lives on the fact that golfers lose a lot of golf balls. Check out the following past posts on the subject to give you a flavor for what inventors have come up with in the past to eliminate lost golf balls…. Today a patent issued on the subject that actually seems a little more feasible than most of the prior attempts. The patent issued as USPN 7578603 titled “Acoustic Wave Induced Light Emitting Golf Ball” and describes the invention as….. How about the profile of that zero loft hybrid!
….. Interesting, but I would still need to see one work to believe it…..

There has been no shortage of interesting groove inventions lately. For instance, HERE is a post regarding Acushnet grooves, HERE is a post regarding Karsten Manufacturing (aka PING) grooves, and HERE is a post regarding Bridgestone grooves. This week another Karsten patent application published related to grooves. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090209361 titled “Golf Club Heads with Grooves and Methods of Manufacture.” The following figures illustrates the concept nicely….

Check out the intimidating golf shoes disclosed in USPN D597733 titled “Golf Shoe.”…. I am fairly confident that I would get laughed off the tee box if I showed up in these…..

The Nike Golf R&D department appears to have been busy lately. Just consider the shape shifting design that I posted about last month (click HERE to read). This week two more interesting Nike patent applications published disclosing some rather radical designs…..

Today a patent application published that makes me wonder whether the inventor has ever actually played golf. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090203466 titled “Golf Club Head” and describes the invention as….. Check out these driver designs! I want to meet the golfer that can hit this first design…..

Today a design patent issued on a fairway wood that I did not recognize and I immediately thought that I had uncovered something great. Unfortunately, not so. Is your knowledge of fairway woods better than mine? Can you identify the model of this club (not just the manufacturer)?….. Click HERE for the answer. I always fall for that rookie gender-related mistake. Nice looking club, but obviously I could never play one. The drawings come from USPN D598062 titled “Wood-Type Golf Club Head.”….

Recently I have posted about some interesting groove patent applications by Karsten Manufacturing (aka PING) and Bridgestone. Well, don’t count Acushnet out, as they had an interesting groove patent issue this week. The patent is USPN 7568983 titled “Golf Club Head Groove Configuration.”…. Are you curious as to whose patent application discloses grooves that Acushnet believes to be “poorly engineered?” The Acushnet patent is referring to the grooves disclosed in….

Back in January I authored a post titled “Grooves of the Future?” in which an interesting patent application by Karsten Manufacturing (aka PING) was examined. Check it out if you aren’t familiar with it because it provides some context to the groove designs disclosed in this post. Today Bridgestone had a patent application publish addressing the same issues. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090197700 titled “Golf Club Head,” and explains the invention as…. It is amazing how over 8000 miles can separate golf club designers and yet they can develop, and claim, such similar inventions; although it looks like PING beat Bridgestone to the punch (a July 5, 2007 priority date compared to a January 31, 2008 priority date)! I guess the Golf-Patents blog doesn’t have a large following in Chichibu-shi, Japan.

Familiar with that fish out of water feeling when trying to get your left arm through that second carry strap? (and how it typically occurs when a cute beer cart girl is driving past) Well, Ogio recently received a patent on a device that may eliminate the fish out of water feeling and the odd glances of passersby as it appears that you are practicing your swimming stroke or swinging at flies…..

There definitely seems to be a trend toward more “senior friendly” golf products hitting the market, just see THIS prior post. Today an interesting putter design patent issued that may warrant consideration by all those golfers with aching backs. The patent is USPN D597615 titled “Golf Putter.” Check out this putter design…..

Would you ever think one of the big golf club OEM’s would get into the golf tee market? Not me, but that is just what Karsten seems to be considering. Yesterday Karsten had an interesting patent application publish as US Pub. No. 20090181806 titled “Golf Tee and Methods to Manufacture Golf Tees.” The application explains….

Today a patent application published that made me scratch my head. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090191984 titled “Tee Dispenser” and describes the invention as…. I would have to consider relinquishing my registration as a patent attorney if the following claim issues in a patent!….

Do you recognize the irons disclosed in design patent USPN D597,157 titled “Iron Type Golf Club Head” that issued today?….

An interesting golf bag patent application recently published directed to Sun Mountain’s hip belt system. The application published as US Publication No. 20090179058 titled “Hip Belt System,” which describes the invention as….

Just when you start to think that nothing will surprise you…. something always does. Today a Nike patent application caught me off guard with talk of adjustments to “change the overall exterior shape.” Do what?
The application published as US Pub. No. 20090186717 titled “Golf Clubs and Golf Club Heads with Adjustable Center of Gravity and Moment of Inertia Characteristics,” and describes the invention as…. Check out these designs…. Amazing ideas, but will any of them make it to market? I suggest they call this line the Transformer, or possibly just SS (for shape shifter)….

An interesting swing training invention is disclosed in a patent application that published this week, but I can’t decide if this is a really good idea or just another toy to collect dust in the basement. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090181785 titled “Golf Swing Training Apparatus” and describes the invention as…. Got that? Me neither. Fortunately the inventor has a website that includes a paper explaining the dual swing concept, as well as a video. Check it out! Could this help your swing?….

This has been a good week for interesting golf ball IP. Just yesterday an Acushnet patent application was published as US Publication No. 20090181805 titled “Golf Ball Surface Patterns Comprising Variable Width/Depth Multiple Channels,” and it will blow your mind. Will we see one of these on Tour soon?….

Ever heard of the Nickel Putter company? Well this week they were granted a patent on a pretty slick combination putter and ball marker. The patent is USPN 7559848 titled “Golf Club” and describes the invention as…. Check out this putter….

Golf technology, and the associated research and development, never cease to amaze me. Today Bridgestone had a golf ball patent issue on a dimple pattern designed specifically to maximize distance under low spin conditions. The Bridgestone patent issued as USPN 7559857 titled “Golf Ball,” which describes the invention as…. Check out these dimples…. Fascinating stuff! Finally, a ball for all the golfers fortunate to hit low-spinning drives.

Well, I have no idea…. but I will tell you how Japanese club maker K.K. Endo Seisakusho says they can do it; namely, by going against conventional thinking regarding the location of a club head’s center of gravity (CG). Would you ever think that raising the center of gravity of a wedge head would result in more spin? Well, a recently published patent application indicates that increasing the CG height of the wedge above the center of the ball can increase the resulting spin on the ball. The application published as US Pub. No. 20090176596 titled “Wedge Type Golf Club Including Pitching Wedge, Approach Wedge, and Sand Wedge,” and the following drawings nicely illustrate the height of the club head CG versus the center of the golf ball…. The application explains…. Are you a believer?

What’s a trace you ask? Take a look at these figures from a Bridgestone patent application that published today and it will become clear…. Starting to see a trend? There is a lot of real estate between those grooves to capitalize on. Recall my post titled “Does Your Club Face Need Some Engineered Texturing? Taylor Made Thinks So!”….

Recently a patent application published disclosing an interesting adjustable putter face. The application originates from Korea, so it is not the easiest to read but the drawings help fill the holes. The application published as US Publication No. 20090170628 titled “Head for Golf Putter” and describes the invention as….

There aren’t too many interesting golf shoe inventions, but this is one. Check out the golf shoe design disclosed in a patent application that recently published as 20090165336 titled “Magnetic Swivel Sports Shoes.”…. Interesting invention, but I am not sure those shoes would help my game (and how much would they weigh)…..

Vibration dampening of golf irons has been a popular subject in golf club patents for the past decade. Recently Karsten Manufacturing, maker of PING brand clubs, had a patent application publish disclosing a club head design that they have been working on to reduce club head vibration. The patent application published as US Pub. No. 20090156324 titled “Golf Club with Cavity, and Method of Manufacture.” Check out this design…. Frankly, I go to as many demo days as I can and I hit as many irons as possible, yet….

I don’t know what to think about this recently published patent application. It there really a need for metal golf tees?…. Are you sold? Not me!….

Regulars of the Golf-Patents.com blog may recall a post titled “Is This Callaway Driver Radical Enough for You?”, as well as the follow-up post titled “Callaway Received a Patent on the ‘C-Shaped Golf Club Head’; Will This Club Actually Make it to the Market?”.
Well, when it comes to the giant golf companies it is easy to dismiss a real radical club design that is only seen in a single patent application as a design that was dreamt up in R&D and will likely never make it to the masses. However, once I start to see multiple patent applications on similar technology, then I begin to wonder…. “Are they are serious about this design? Heck, they have already made a significant investment in protecting the intellectual property. Perhaps this will actually make it to market!” Those are the thoughts that fired through my head yesterday when another interesting Callaway patent application published as US Pub. No. 20090163294 titled “Driver with Deep Aft Cavity.” Check out this design!…. Perhaps this club may actually see the inside of a golf shop!

Last week I reported on some possible designs of the next PING driver. Well, this week another design patent issued that may give us an even better idea of what the next generation of PING drivers may look like. The patent that issued this week is USPN D594919 titled “Golf Club Head.” Check out these figures…. Combine those drawings with some of the figures last week and you can start to get a sense of what PING may have in mind…..

I have to admit that I purposely avoid reading all the hype regarding “stack and tilt;” after all, my game has bigger issues (like the inability to hit a decent wedge shot). However, I do know that some golfers swear by “stack and tilt” and say that it has changed their games. Well, this week an invention was granted a patent that is designed just for all you “stack and tilt” lovers. The patent is USPN 7547257 titled “Stack and Tilt Footwork and Body Pivot Training Aid.” Check out this training aid….