IP Library Granted Patent US 9,155,943
Granted Patent B2
US 9,155,943 · App. 14/320,930 · Granted Oct 13, 2015

Adjustable golf club shaft and hosel assembly

Inventors: James A. Seluga (Carlsbad, CA); Homer E. Aguinaldo (Chula Vista, CA)
Assignee: CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY
A63B53/02A63B53/06A63B59/0074A63B2053/022A63B2053/023
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,155,943
App. No.
14/320,930
Granted
Oct 13, 2015
Kind
B2
Abstract

An adjustable golf club including a shaft and hosel assembly allows for dependent and independent adjustment of a golf club's face angle, loft angle, and lie angle. The adjustable shaft and hosel assembly comprises a shaft sleeve, a hosel portion, and at least one tubular adjustment piece having non-parallel upper and lower surfaces, wherein the shaft sleeve, hosel, and tubular adjustment piece each include markings that combine to form a code that correlates to a unique angular setting and is readable by an electronic device. The adjustable golf club may also comprise an audible feedback system including an indexing ring that interacts with indexing features in the tubular adjustment piece.

Claims (36)

1. An adjustable golf club comprising:

a shaft sleeve comprising a shaft-receiving bore and an external surface having a first reference marking;

a tubular adjustment piece comprising an external surface having a positional marking and non-parallel upper and lower surfaces, the tubular adjustment piece encircling at least a portion of the shaft sleeve; and

a golf club head comprising a hosel, the hosel comprising a hosel bore and an external surface having a second reference marking, at least part of the hosel bore having a diameter sized to receive at least a part of the shaft sleeve,

wherein when at least part of the shaft sleeve is disposed within the hosel bore, rotating the tubular adjustment piece around the shaft sleeve changes an angle of the shaft sleeve with respect to the hosel, creating a plurality of different angular settings,

wherein the first reference marking and the second reference marking create a reference frame readable by an electronic device,

wherein each angular setting correlates to a unique readable code formed by the first reference marking, the positional marking, and the second reference marking when viewed within the reference frame, and

wherein the electronic device is configured to analyze the readable code, associate the readable code with its correlated angular setting, and display the loft and lie angle of the golf club head.

2. The adjustable golf club of claim 1 , wherein the positional marking is a diagonal line that extends completely around the circumference of the tubular adjustment piece.

3. The adjustable golf club of claim 1 , wherein rotating the tubular adjustment piece around the shaft sleeve changes a first distance between the first reference marking and the positional marking within the reference frame and a second distance between the positional marking and the second reference frame, and wherein each unique readable code has a different combination of first and second distances.

4. The adjustable golf club of claim 1 , further comprising a fastener, wherein the fastener removably fixes the shaft sleeve within the hosel, and wherein tightening the fastener prevents the tubular adjustment piece from moving around the shaft sleeve.

5. The adjustable golf club of claim 1 , further comprising an indexing ring comprising a ring portion and a tang portion, wherein the ring portion encircles at least a portion of the shaft sleeve, wherein the tang portion extends away from the ring portion, wherein the tubular adjustment piece comprises an indexing feature, and wherein rotating the tubular adjustment piece causes the tang portion to make contact with the indexing feature and create a sound audible to the human ear as it moves across the indexing feature.

6. The adjustable golf club of claim 5 , wherein the indexing feature comprises a plurality of ridges and valleys, and wherein friction between the tang portion and the ridges creates the audible sound.

7. The adjustable golf club of claim 5 , wherein the indexing feature comprises a plurality of teeth and gaps, and wherein friction between the tang portion and the teeth creates the audible sound.

8. The adjustable golf club of claim 5 , wherein the indexing ring is disposed below the tubular adjustment piece.

9. The adjustable golf club of claim 8 , wherein the tang portion extends underneath the indexing feature and retains the tubular adjustment piece on the shaft sleeve when the shaft sleeve is disengaged from the hosel.

10. The adjustable golf club of claim 5 , wherein the indexing ring is permanently and non-rotatably affixed to the shaft sleeve.

11. The adjustable golf club of claim 5 , wherein the indexing ring is composed of a lightweight material.

12. The adjustable golf club of claim 11 , wherein the lightweight material is selected from the group consisting of composite, plastic, and aluminum alloy.

13. The adjustable golf club of claim 1 , wherein the electronic device is a mobile phone.

14. An adjustable consumer product comprising:

a first, movable part comprising a first line marking;

a second, movable part comprising a second line marking; and

a third, non-movable part comprising a third line marking,

wherein the first and second movable parts can be moved to adjust a setting of the consumer product,

wherein the consumer product has a plurality of different settings,

wherein adjustment of the first and second movable parts changes the configuration of the first, second, and third line markings with respect to one another,

wherein each configuration of the first, second, and third line markings forms a readable code,

wherein each of the plurality of different settings has a unique code that is readable by an electronic device, and

wherein the electronic device is configured to analyze the unique code, associate the unique code with its correlated setting, and display the setting of the consumer product.

15. The adjustable consumer product of claim 14 , wherein at least one of the first and second line marking is a diagonal line that extends completely around the circumference of the first or second movable part.

16. The adjustable consumer product of claim 14 , wherein the electronic device is a mobile phone.

17. The adjustable consumer product of claim 14 , wherein the consumer product further comprises at least one audible feedback feature.

18. The adjustable consumer product of claim 17 , wherein the at least one audible feedback feature comprises an indexing ring and at least one indexing feature.

19. The adjustable consumer product of claim 17 , wherein the at least one audible feedback feature is composed of a lightweight material.

20. The adjustable consumer product of claim 19 , wherein the lightweight material is selected from the group consisting of composite, plastic, and aluminum alloy.

Assignments (8)
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST AT REEL/FRAME 063665/0176 Recorded Jun 1, 2026
From: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., AS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT
To: CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY (F/K/A TOPGOLF CALLAWAY BRANDS CORP.); TRAVISMATHEW, LLC; OGIO INTERNATIONAL, INC.; WORLD GOLF TOUR, LLC
Reel/Frame 075834/0150 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 17, 2023
From: TOPGOLF CALLAWAY BRANDS CORP.; OGIO INTERNATIONAL, INC.; TOPGOLF INTERNATIONAL, INC.; TRAVISMATHEW, LLC; WORLD GOLF TOUR, LLC
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
Reel/Frame 063692/0009 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded May 16, 2023
From: TOPGOLF CALLAWAY BRANDS CORP. (FORMERLY CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY); OGIO INTERNATIONAL, INC.; TOPGOLF INTERNATIONAL, INC.; TRAVISMATHEW, LLC; WORLD GOLF TOUR, LLC
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 063665/0176 →
RELEASE (REEL 048172 / FRAME 0001) Recorded Mar 17, 2023
From: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
To: TOPGOLF CALLAWAY BRANDS CORP. (F/K/A CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY); OGIO INTERNATIONAL, INC.
Reel/Frame 063622/0187 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jan 23, 2019
From: CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY; CALLAWAY GOLF SALES COMPANY; CALLAWAY GOLF BALL OPERATIONS, INC.; OGIO INTERNATIONAL, INC.; CALLAWAY GOLF INTERACTIVE, INC.; CALLAWAY GOLF INTERNATIONAL SALES COMPANY; TRAVISMATHEW, LLC
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
Reel/Frame 048110/0352 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Jan 4, 2019
From: CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY; OGIO INTERNATIONAL, INC.
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., AS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT
Reel/Frame 048172/0001 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Feb 16, 2018
From: CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY; CALLAWAY GOLF SALES COMPANY; CALLAWAY GOLF BALL OPERATIONS, INC.; OGIO INTERNATIONAL, INC.; CALLAWAY GOLF INTERACTIVE, INC.; CALLAWAY GOLF INTERNATIONAL SALES COMPANY
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
Reel/Frame 045350/0741 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 1, 2014
From: SELUGA, JAMES A.; AGUINALDO, HOMER E.
To: CALLAWAY GOLF COMPANY
Reel/Frame 033220/0628 →
Continuity (9)
Division 13660882 · Oct 25, 2012
Continuation In Part 13544037 · Jul 9, 2012
Continuation In Part 13408018 · Feb 29, 2012
Continuation In Part 13332846 · Dec 21, 2011
Continuation In Part 13326156 · Dec 14, 2011
Continuation In Part 13311319 · Dec 5, 2011
Provisional Application 61451523 · Mar 10, 2011
Provisional Application 61452521 · Mar 14, 2011
Related Publication 20140315654A1 · Oct 23, 2014