Dimple patterns for golf balls
View Patent ↗The present invention provides a method for arranging dimples on a golf ball surface in which the dimples are arranged in a pattern derived from at least one irregular domain generated from a regular or non-regular polyhedron. The method includes choosing control points of a polyhedron, generating an irregular domain based on those control points, packing the irregular domain with dimples, and tessellating the irregular domain to cover the surface of the golf ball. The control points include the center of a polyhedral face, a vertex of the polyhedron, a midpoint or other point on an edge of the polyhedron and others. The method ensures that the symmetry of the underlying polyhedron is preserved while minimizing or eliminating great circles due to parting lines.
1. A golf ball having an outer surface comprising a plurality of dimples disposed thereon, wherein the dimples are arranged in multiple copies of a first domain and a second domain, the first domain and the second domain being tessellated to cover the outer surface of the golf ball in a uniform pattern having no great circles and consisting of four first domains and four second domains, and wherein:
the dimple pattern within the first domain is different from the dimple pattern within the second domain;
the plurality of dimples comprises dimples having five or more different diameters including a maximum dimple diameter, a minimum dimple diameter, and three or more additional dimple diameters; and
for the minimum dimple diameter and at least four different diameters selected from the maximum dimple diameter and the additional dimple diameters, SD1>0 and SD2>0, where SD1 is the number of dimples positioned within the first domain having a given diameter, and SD2 is the number of dimples positioned within the second domain having said given diameter.
2. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein, for each of the different diameters where SD1>0 and SD2>0, either
SD1≥½(SD2)
or
SD1≤2(SD2).
3. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of dimples comprises dimple having six or more different diameters, including the maximum dimple diameter, the minimum dimple diameter, and four or more additional dimple diameters; and wherein for the minimum dimple diameter and at least five different diameters selected from the maximum dimple diameter and the additional dimple diameters, SD1>0 and SD2>0.
4. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of dimples comprises dimple having seven or more different diameters, including the maximum dimple diameter, the minimum dimple diameter, and five or more additional dimple diameters; and wherein for the minimum dimple diameter and at least six different diameters selected from the maximum dimple diameter and the additional dimple diameters, SD1>0 and SD2>0.
5. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein SD1=SD2 for the maximum dimple diameter.
6. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein SD1=SD2 for the minimum dimple diameter.
7. The golf ball of claim 6 , wherein SD1=SD2 for the maximum dimple diameter.
8. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein SD1=SD2 for at least three of the five or more different diameters.
9. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein SD1=0 or SD2=0 for at least one of the three or more additional dimple diameters.
10. A golf ball having an outer surface comprising a plurality of dimples disposed thereon, wherein the dimples are arranged in multiple copies of a first domain and a second domain, the first domain and the second domain being tessellated to cover the outer surface of the golf ball in a uniform pattern having no great circles and consisting of four first domains and four second domains, and wherein:
the dimple pattern within the first domain is different from the dimple pattern within the second domain;
the plurality of dimples comprises dimples having six or more different diameters including a maximum dimple diameter, a minimum dimple diameter, and four or more additional dimple diameters; and
for at least six of the six or more different diameters, SD1>0 and SD2>0, where SD1 is the number of dimples positioned within the first domain having a given diameter, and SD2 is the number of dimples positioned within the second domain having said given diameter.
11. The golf ball of claim 10 , wherein, for each of the different diameters where SD1>0 and SD2>0, either
SD1≥½(SD2)
or
SD1≤2(SD2).
12. The golf ball of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of dimples comprises dimples having seven or more different diameters; and wherein, for at least seven of the seven or more different diameters, SD1>0 and SD2>0.
13. The golf ball of claim 10 , wherein, for the minimum dimple diameter, SD1>0 and SD2>0.
14. The golf ball of claim 10 , wherein SD1=SD2 for the maximum dimple diameter.
15. The golf ball of claim 10 , wherein SD1=SD2 for the minimum dimple diameter.
16. The golf ball of claim 15 , wherein SD1=SD2 for the maximum dimple diameter.
17. The golf ball of claim 10 , wherein SD1=SD2 for at least three of the six or more different diameters.
18. The golf ball of claim 10 , wherein SD1=0 or SD2=0 for at least one of the four or more additional dimple diameters.