GOLF PUTTER HEAD WITH ALIGNMENT AID

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/549,878, filed Feb. 5, 2024, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Putting is a critical aspect of golf, requiring precision and control to hit the ball into the hole. The design and performance of golf putters play a significant role in a golfer's ability to achieve accurate and consistent putts. Traditional putters have certain limitations that can hinder a golfer's performance and reduce their overall enjoyment of the game. Conventional putters typically consist of a shaft and a club head used to strike the golf ball. These putters often feature a flat clubface with varying degrees of loft and a straight or slightly curved shaft. While these designs have been widely used, they may not adequately address individual golfers' diverse needs and preferences.

Various alignment aids have been suggested for the head of a golf putter. Such aids are typically a visual or design feature that helps golfers align the putter correctly with the target line. These features are intended to assist golfers in setting up their putters to enhance their ability to aim accurately and improve their putting performance. While many of the known aids have met with success, none of the known alignment aids result in the eyes of the golfer being positioned in an optimum position behind the ball.

To this end, a need exists for a golf putter head that overcomes the drawbacks of prior art golf putter heads. To such a golf putter head, the inventive concepts disclosed herein are directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIVE CONCEPTS

A golf putter head is disclosed in accordance with an aspect of the inventive concepts. The golf putter head includes a club head body having at least a front face and a rear face, a lower longitudinal alignment aid extending rearwardly from the rear face of the club head body, a lower latitudinal alignment aid extending perpendicularly relative to the lower longitudinal alignment aid and spaced from the rear face of the club head body, an upper longitudinal alignment aid extending rearwardly from the rear face of the body and spaced above the lower longitudinal alignment aid, and an upper latitudinal alignment aid extending perpendicularly relative to the upper longitudinal alignment aid and spaced from the rear face of the club head body. The upper longitudinal alignment aid and the upper latitudinal alignment aid are vertically aligned with the lower longitudinal alignment aid and the lower latitudinal alignment aid when the front face of the club head body is aligned with a target and a user's eyes are positioned vertically above the intersection of the upper longitudinal alignment aid and the upper latitudinal alignment aid. The upper latitudinal alignment aid may be movable along the upper longitudinal alignment aid, and the lower latitudinal alignment aid may be movable along the lower longitudinal alignment aid. The lower latitudinal alignment aid may intersect and extend across the lower longitudinal alignment aid to cooperate with the lower longitudinal alignment aid to form a lower intersection. The upper latitudinal alignment aid may intersect and extend across the upper longitudinal alignment aid to cooperate with the upper longitudinal alignment aid to form an upper intersection. The golf putter head may include at least one vertical support extending between the upper latitudinal alignment aid and the lower latitudinal alignment aid.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a golf putter with a putter head constructed in accordance with the inventive concepts disclosed herein.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the putter head of FIG. 1 shown in an aligned position.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the putter head shown in a first non-aligned position.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the putter head shown in a second non-aligned position.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the putter head in a third non-aligned position.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the putter head shown in a fourth non-aligned position.

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of the putter head.

FIG. 8 is a front perspective view of the putter head.

FIG. 9 is an exploded, front perspective view of the putter head of FIG. 8

FIG. 10 is a rear perspective view of another embodiment of a putter head constructed in accordance with the inventive concepts disclosed herein.

FIG. 11 is an exploded, rear perspective view of the putter head of FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the inventive concepts disclosed, it is to be understood that the inventive concepts are not limited in their application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components or steps or methodologies in this description or illustrated in the drawings. The inventive concepts disclosed are capable of other embodiments or being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed are for description only and should not be regarded as limiting the inventive concepts disclosed and claimed herein.

In this detailed description of embodiments of the inventive concepts, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the inventive concepts. However, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the inventive concepts within the disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known features may not be described to avoid unnecessarily complicating the disclosure.

Further, unless stated to the contrary, “or” refers to an inclusive “or” and not to an exclusive “or.” For example, a condition A or B is satisfied by anyone of: A is true (or present) and B is false (or not present), A is false (or not present) and B is true (or present), and both A and B are true (or present).

As used in the description herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having,” or any other variations thereof are intended to cover a nonexclusive inclusion. For example, unless otherwise noted, a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements, but may also include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

In addition, the use of the “a” or “an” is employed to describe elements and components of the embodiments herein. This is done merely for convenience and to give a general sense of the inventive concepts disclosed. This description should be read to include one or at least one and the singular also includes the plural unless it is obvious that it is meant otherwise.

As used herein, qualifiers like “substantially,” “about,” “approximately,” and combinations and variations thereof are intended to include not only the exact amount or value that they qualify but also some slight deviations therefrom, which may be due to computing tolerances, computing error, manufacturing tolerances, measurement error, wear and tear, stresses exerted on various parts, and combinations thereof, for example.

As used herein, any reference to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular element, feature, structure, or characteristic described in the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment.

The use of ordinal number terminology (i.e., “first,” “second,” “third,” “fourth,” etc.) is solely to differentiate between two or more items and, unless explicitly stated otherwise, is not meant to imply any sequence or order or importance to one item over another or any order of addition.

The use of the term “at least one” or “one or more” will be understood to include one as well as any quantity more than one. In addition, the use of the phrase “at least one of X, V, and Z” will be understood to include X alone, V alone, and Z alone, as well as any combination of X, V, and Z.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1-9, a putter head 10 is shown. The putter head 10 includes a club head body 12, a lower longitudinal alignment aid 14, a lower latitudinal alignment aid 16, an upper longitudinal alignment aid 18, and an upper latitudinal alignment aid 20. In practice, the putter head 10 may be connected to a golf putter shaft 22 having a grip 23 secured thereto and used to play the game of golf. The inventive concepts disclosed herein are not limited to a golf putter shaft or any mechanical connection.

In one embodiment, the club head body 12 may have a generally square or rectangular shape, including at least a front face 24 and a rear face 26. However, the inventive concepts disclosed herein are not limited by the shape or size of the club head body 12 or the number or shape of the faces of the club head body 12. Putter club head bodies are generally understood by those with ordinary skill in the art and may be configured in various shapes and sizes.

The club head body 12 may be constructed from various materials, including, but not limited to, steel, graphite, plastic, or a combination thereof so that the club head body 12 is rigid, balanced, impact-resistant, and corrosive-resistant. The materials used to construct club head bodies are generally understood by those with skill in the art, and the inventive concepts disclosed herein are not limited to a particular material.

Referring now to FIG. 7, the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 is positioned rearwardly from the rear face 26 of the club head body 12. The lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 extends perpendicularly relative to the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14. The lower latitudinal alignment 16 aid is spaced from the rear face 26 of the club head body 12. In one embodiment, each of the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 has a linear configuration. The lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 intersects and extends across the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 to cooperate with the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 to form a lower intersection 28. In one embodiment, the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 may be printed, etched, or otherwise formed on a surface 25. In another embodiment, the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 may be formed as separate members extending from the rear face 26 of the club head body 12, as illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11.

The upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 extends rearwardly from the rear face 26 of the club head body 12. The upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 is spaced above the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14. The upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 extends perpendicularly relative to the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18. The upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 is spaced from the rear face 26 of the club head body 12. In one embodiment, each of the upper longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 16 has a linear configuration. The upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 intersects and extends across the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 to cooperate with the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 to form an upper intersection 30.

The lower longitudinal alignment aid 14, the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16, the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18, and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 may be constructed from a variety of materials including, but not limited to, steel, graphite, plastic, or a combination thereof, so that they are rigid, impact resistant, lightweight, and corrosive resistant. The materials used to construct the alignment aids are generally understood by those with skill in the art, and the inventive concepts disclosed herein are not limited to a particular material.

FIG. 2 illustrates the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 vertically aligned with the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 to create a focal point 31 when the front face 24 of the club head body 12 is aligned with a target (e.g., a golf hole) and a user's (not shown) eyes are positioned vertically above the focal point 31. Total loss of sight of the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 indicates that the front face 24 is correctly aligned to a selected target.

The user may use the putter head 10 to strike an object 33 (e.g., a golf ball) against the front face 24 of the club head body 12. In one embodiment, when the user has positioned the user's eyes vertically above the upper focal 31 and visually aligned the user's desired combination of the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14, the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16, the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18, and/or the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20, the user may be able to strike an object 33 against the front face 24 of the club head body 12 such that the object 33 then moves along a desired path towards the target. Similarly, in one embodiment, when the user has positioned the user's eyes vertically above the focal point 31 and visually aligned the upper intersection 30 with the lower intersection 28, the user may be able to strike an object 33 against the front face 24 of the club head body 12 such that the object 33 then moves along a desired path towards the target.

FIGS. 3-6 illustrate examples of the front face 24 of the putter head 10 being misaligned. This is evidenced by at least a portion of at least one of the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 being visible to the user.

As best shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the position of the upper latitudinal alignment 20 aid may be adjusted along the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18. The upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 may be configured to connect to or otherwise cooperate with the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18, which is moveable along the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18. In this way, the focal point 31 may be customized to a user's preference. For example, the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 may be configured to mate with the upper longitudinal alignment aide 18 and be connected to the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 with a suitable fastener 34, such as a screw, nut and bolt, press fit, clips, couplings, or pins. It will be understood that there are various types of mechanical connections, and the inventive concepts disclosed herein are not limited to a particular kind of connection.

Similarly, the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 may be adjusted along the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14. Again, the focal point 31 may be customized to a user's preference.

In one embodiment, the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 are spaced approximately 1.75 inches from the front face 24 of the club head body 12. Positioning the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 from the front face 24 of the club head body 12 at 1.75 inches creates a focal point that may permit a user to align one of the user's eyes vertically above the upper intersection 30 while aligning the front face 24 of the club head body 12 vertically between the user's eyes. It will be understood that the distance between the user's eyes may vary. Thus, a user may desire to position the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 more or less than 1.75 inches apart from the front face 24 of the club head body 12. For example, various users may desire to position the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 in a range of about 1 inch to about 3 inches from the front face 24 of the club head body 12.

Referring now to FIGS. 10 and 11, another embodiment of a putter head 10a is illustrated. The putter head 10a is similar in construction to the putter head 10, except as described below. The putter head 10a includes at least one vertical support 32 extending between the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20. The vertical support 32 connects the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20. The vertical support 32 extends between the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 and is configured such that the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20 are moveable along the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 as a unit. The vertical support 32 permits visual alignment of the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 and the upper latitudinal alignment aid 20.

The lower longitudinal alignment aid 14, the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16, the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18, and the latitudinal alignment aid 20 may include features to be visually distinguishable from the rest of the club head body 12 or otherwise enhance the effectiveness of the alignment aids. For example, the lower longitudinal alignment aid 14 and the lower latitudinal alignment aid 16 may a first color, and the upper longitudinal alignment aid 18 and the latitudinal alignment aid 20 may be a second color that is color-contrasted to the first color to improve visibility and alignment accuracy.

In one embodiment, the putter heads 10 and 10a may include additional features to optimize performance as known and understood by those with ordinary skill in the art. For example, a weighting system can be integrated into the putter head 10 to achieve optimal balance and stability during the putting stroke. The weight distribution within the putter head 10 can be adjusted to suit a user's preferences or enhance the overall performance characteristics.

The unique features of the putter head 10 and 10a enable the user's eyes to be positioned in an optimum position behind the ball. Hence, the eyes of the user are not too far forward or too far rearward from the perpendicular target line and all planes surrounding the target line.

From the above description and examples, it is clear that the inventive concepts disclosed and claimed herein are well adapted to attain the advantages mentioned herein. While exemplary embodiments of the inventive concepts have been described for purposes of this disclosure, it will be understood that numerous changes may be made that will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and which are accomplished within the spirit of the inventive concepts disclosed and claimed herein.