Golf club having impact sensor

Abstract

A golf club head includes a first impact sensor that is fixed to a toe-side interior surface of the golf club head opposite the curved strike face and located on a toeward side of the golf club head, and a second impact sensor that is fixed to a heel-side interior surface of the golf club head opposite the curved strike face and located on a heelward side of the golf club head. The golf club head further includes an electronic controller, fixed to the golf club head and electrically coupled with the first and second impact sensors, and a battery, fixed to the golf club head and electrically coupled with the electronic controller to supply electrical power to the electronic controller. The electronic controller is configured to communicate impact data received from the first and second impact sensors to an external computing device.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A golf club head comprising:
 an interior cavity that comprises interior surfaces, a crown portion having a peak crown height, a sole portion, a toe portion, a heel portion opposite the toe portion, a rearward portion, and a forward portion that comprises a curved strike face, where the curved strike face has a face area, a bulge curvature, and a roll curvature;   a hosel having a flight control technology (FCT) system adjustably joining the hosel and a shaft to control a position of the golf club head relative to the shaft;   a first impact sensor that is fixed to a toe-side interior surface of the golf club head opposite the curved strike face and located on a toeward side of the golf club head;   a second impact sensor that is fixed to a heel-side interior surface of the golf club head opposite the curved strike face and located on a heelward side of the golf club head;   an electronic controller fixed to the golf club head and electrically coupled with the first and second impact sensors, wherein the electronic controller comprises a processor, memory, one or more circuit boards, and input/output peripherals on the one or more circuit boards; and   a battery fixed to the golf club head and electrically coupled with the electronic controller to supply electrical power to the electronic controller;   wherein the electronic controller is configured to communicate impact data received from the first and second impact sensors to an external computing device that is external to the golf club head and is configured to provide a graphical representation of one or more impact locations on the curved strike face of the golf club head based on the impact data.   
     
     
         2 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , further comprising a power cable port accessible from an exterior of the golf club head, wherein:
 the battery comprises a rechargeable battery; and   the rechargeable battery receives electrical power via the power cable port.   
     
     
         3 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the battery comprises a non-rechargeable battery. 
     
     
         4 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the golf club head further comprises a rear power-source port and the battery is seated within the rear power-source port. 
     
     
         5 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the external computing device comprises one or more of a smartphone, a tablet, or a laptop. 
     
     
         6 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , further comprising a power cable port accessible from an exterior of the golf club head, wherein the electronic controller is configured to communicate the impact data to the external computing device through the power cable port via a wired connection. 
     
     
         7 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the electronic controller is configured to communicate the impact data to the external computing device via a wireless connection. 
     
     
         8 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the electronic controller and the battery are located in the rearward portion of the golf club head. 
     
     
         9 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 the curved strike face has a striking surface and a golf club head origin defined as a position on the striking surface at approximately a geometric center of the striking surface, the golf club head origin including a golf club head origin x-axis, a golf club head origin y-axis, and a golf club head origin z-axis;   the golf club head origin x-axis is tangential to the striking surface and generally parallel to a ground plane when the golf club head is an address position, and a positive x-axis extends from the golf club head origin towards the heel portion and a negative x-axis extends from the golf club head origin towards the toe portion;   the golf club head origin y-axis extends generally perpendicular to the golf club head origin x-axis and parallel to the ground plane when the golf club head is in the address position, and a positive y-axis extends from the golf club head origin towards the rear portion;   the golf club head origin z-axis extends perpendicular to the golf club head origin x-axis and perpendicular to the golf club head origin y-axis and having a positive z-axis that extends from the golf club head origin towards the crown portion and a negative z-axis that extends from the golf club head origin towards the sole portion of the golf club head;   the golf club head has a moment of inertia (Ixx) about a center of gravity x-axis (CG x-axis), wherein the CG x-axis is parallel to the golf club head origin x-axis and passes through the center of gravity of the golf club head;   the golf club head has a moment of inertia (Izz) about a center of gravity z-axis (CG z-axis), wherein the CG z-axis is parallel to the golf club head origin z-axis and passes through the center of gravity of the golf club head;   the Izz is at least 400 kg·mm 2  and no more than 590 kg·mm 2 ;   a ratio of Ixx to Izz is between 0.60 and 0.78;   a volume of the golf club head is between about 390 cm 3  and about 500 cm 3 ;   the face area is between 2,000 mm 2  and 5,000 mm 2 ; and   the golf club head further comprises a crown opening surrounded by a crown bonding ledge and a crown insert encloses the crown opening.   
     
     
         10 . The golf club head according to  claim 9 , wherein:
 the forward portion comprises a plate opening and a strike plate attached to the plate opening;   the strike plate defines at least a portion of the curved strike face;   the first impact sensor is at least partially fixed to a toe-side plate interior surface of the strike plate having a negative x-axis coordinate; and   the second impact sensor is at least partially fixed to a heel-side plate interior surface of the strike plate having a positive x-axis coordinate.   
     
     
         11 . The golf club head according to  claim 10 , wherein the battery has a battery mass and at least 70% of the battery mass is positioned below a Z-up plane. 
     
     
         12 . The golf club head according to  claim 11 , wherein:
 the golf club head has a golf club head length measured from a leading edge to a trailing edge of the golf club head along the golf club head origin y-axis; and   at least 80% of the battery mass is positioned at least 80 mm from a leading edge of the golf club head and at least 75% of the battery mass is positioned below the Z-up plane.   
     
     
         13 . The golf club head according to  claim 12 , wherein:
 the golf club head comprises at least five impact sensors; and   the face area is between 3,500 mm 2  and 5,000 mm 2 ; and   at least three of the impact sensors are located above an XY plane passing through the golf club head origin.   
     
     
         14 . The golf club head according to  claim 13 , wherein the strike plate is made of a fiber-reinforced polymeric material. 
     
     
         15 . The golf club head according to  claim 13 , wherein the strike plate is made of a metal material and is welded to the golf club head. 
     
     
         16 . The golf club head according to  claim 12 , wherein:
 the golf club head comprises at least three impact sensors; and   a third impact sensor of the at least three impact sensors is located above an XY plane passing through the golf club head origin.   
     
     
         17 . The golf club head according to  claim 16 , wherein the third impact sensor has a greater z-axis coordinate than at least one of the first impact sensor or the second impact sensor. 
     
     
         18 . The golf club head according to  claim 17 , wherein the electronic controller is configured to determine one or more impact locations of a golf ball on the curved strike face by triangulating the impact data received from the at least three impact sensors. 
     
     
         19 . The golf club head according to  claim 12 , further comprising an activation sensor fixed to the golf club head and configured to detect when use of the golf club head is desired, wherein the electronic controller is activated based on input from the activation sensor. 
     
     
         20 . The golf club head according to  claim 12 , further comprising a motion sensor fixed to the golf club head and configured to measure at least one swing characteristic associated with a swing that results in the impact of the curved strike face with a golf ball.