Patent Publication Number: US-7713137-B2

Title: Club grip

Description:
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   Not applicable. 
   STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH 
   Not Applicable 
   TECHNICAL FIELD 
   This invention relates to grips, in particular grips fixed to a shaft, such as a golf grip. 
   DESCRIPTION OF THE BACKGROUND ART 
   Golf clubs typically include a shaft having an upper end and a lower end. A head fixed to the lower end is used to strike a gold ball. A grip fixed to the upper end provides a surface and geometry that allows the user to control the head and accurately hit the ball. 
   Golf club grips are typically fixed to a shaft using adhesives. As a result, improper initial placement of the grip on the shaft is important because once the adhesive sets, repositioning of the grip is impossible. In order to correct an improperly installed grip, the existing grip must be completely removed. If the improperly installed grip is damaged during removal, it must be discarded and a new grip must be provided. Moreover, replacing worn out grips is also difficult because the adhesive must be removed from the shaft prior to attaching a new grip. Accordingly, a need exists for a grip that can be easily fixed to and removed from a shaft. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   One embodiment of the present invention provides a club grip that can be easily fixed to and removed from a shaft. The club grip includes an elongated body having an upper end and a lower end. The lower end has a hollow portion for receiving a shaft therein. A clamp is fixed in said hollow portion for clamping onto the shaft received therein to fix the shaft relative to the elongated body. 
   A general objective of the present invention is to provide a grip that is easily fixed to and removed from a shaft. This objective is accomplished by providing the grip with a body having a clamp fixed thereto. The clamp fixes the shaft relative to the body. 
   The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description. In the description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which there is shown by way of illustration a preferred embodiment of the invention. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a golf club including a grip incorporating the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a side view of the grip of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the grip of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective cut away end view of the grip of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 5  is a side view of the cut away grip of  FIG. 4 ; 
       FIG. 6  is a sectional view along line  6 - 6  of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the shelf of  FIG. 5 ; and 
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view of an alternate grip with the cover removed. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   A club grip  10 , shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , attaches to a shaft  14  with a head  16  fixed to a distal end  18  forms a golf club  12 . The grip  10  is fixed to a proximal end  22  of the shaft  14  for grasping of a user. The golf club  12  disclosed herein is a conventional putter except for the grip constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention. Although a putter is disclosed, the grip can be used with any type golf club including irons and drivers without departing from the scope of the invention. Moreover, the grip can also be used with other devices having shafts requiring a grip, such as racquets, mallets, and the like, without departing from the scope of the invention. 
   The head  16  may be any commercially available golf club head formed from aluminum, brass, or any other material commonly used in putter heads. As is conventional, the head includes a front toe  24 , a rear heel  26 , a flat striking face  28  designed to engage the ball, and a top surface  32 . 
   The shaft  14  is also conventional and may be formed from a steel tube, graphite or any other material commonly used in shafts. The shaft  14  has the proximal, or upper, end  22  which is covered by the grip  10  and the distal, or lower, end  18  which is attached to the head  16 . The shaft  14  is generally cylindrical and, therefore, has a longitudinal axis  34 . 
   A preferred embodiment of the grip  10  includes an elongated tubular molded body  36 . The body  36  may be molded from a single material such as natural rubber, silicon rubber, plastic, or any other material commonly used in putter grips. The body  36  has an upper end  38  which is fully or partially closed either by an end portion molded integrally with the remainder of the body  36  or by a cap or plug capable of fitting onto or into the upper end of the shaft  14 . The body  36  further includes a lower end  42  having a hollow portion  44  which is open so as to be capable of receiving the proximal end  22  of the shaft  14  therein. 
   In the embodiment disclosed herein, the body  36  is longitudinally split into halves  46 ,  48  to simplify fabrication. The halves  46 ,  48  are fixed to each other by mechanical fasteners (not shown) extending through apertures  52  formed in one half  46  and threadably engaging bosses in the other half  48 . One of the halves  46  is split into two pieces, a body portion  54  and a detachable cover  56 . The detachable cover  56  covers the hollow portion  44  and provides access thereto. Although mechanical fasteners fixing the body halves  46 ,  48  to each other is preferred, the body halves  46 ,  48  can be formed as an integral piece, joined using adhesives, snap-fit together, and the like without departing from the scope of the invention. 
   In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 4-7 , an anchor  58  disposed in the hollow portion  44  of one of the body halves  48  is fixed to the body  36 . In a preferred embodiment, the anchor  58  includes a shelf  62  spaced from an interior radially inwardly facing surface  64  of the body  36  to define a gap  66  between the shelf  62  and body  36 . Preferably, a radially inner surface  68  of the shelf  62  is concave for securely engaging a convex longitudinal surface of the proximal end  22  of the cylindrical shaft  14  and preventing transverse movement of the shaft  14  relative to the anchor  58 . Although a shelf  62  having a concave inner radial surface  68  for engaging the shaft  14  is preferred, the shelf  62  can have any surface or surfaces engaging the shaft  14  without departing from the scope of the invention. 
   The shelf  62  extends longitudinally in the hollow portion  44 . Each end of the shelf  62  is supported on feet  72  extending radially outwardly toward the interior surface  64  of the body  36 . Preferably, the anchor  58  is fixed to the body  36  using mechanical fasteners  74 , such as screws, extending through opposing ends  76 ,  78  of the shelf  62  and the feet  72  to engage the body  36 . Although mechanical fasteners  74  securing the anchor  58  to the body  36  are preferred, other means for fixing the anchor  58  relative to the body  36  can be used, such as adhesives, integrally forming the anchor with the body, clamping the anchor in the hollow portion, and the like, without departing from the scope of the claims. 
   A clamp  82  fixed to the body  36  by the anchor  58  clamps onto the shaft proximal end  22  to fix the grip  10  to the shaft  14 . Preferably, the clamp  82  is a hose clamp having a slotted band  84  wrapping around the shelf  62  through the gap  66  and a worm drive  86 . The worm drive  86  engages slots  88  in the band  84  to move ends of the band  84  relative to each other and tighten the band  84  around the shaft  14  and clamp onto the shaft  14 . Although a hose clamp is preferred, other clamps, such as a bar clamp, tube clamp, and the like, can be used without departing from the scope of the invention. 
   In a preferred embodiment, a stretchable skin  90  slips over the exterior surface  92  of the body  36  to provide a replaceable soft covering over the body  36 . The skin covers the mechanical fasteners securing the body halves  46 ,  48  together and provides a tactile feel for the user. 
   In another embodiment shown in  FIG. 8 , the concave surface  68  of the shelf  62  extends longitudinally in the hollow portion  44 . Wings  94  extending transversely relative to the shelf  62  extend over bosses  96  forming part of the body  36 . A mechanical fastener  98  extends through each wing  94  and threadably engages the underlying boss  96  to fix the anchor  58  to the body  36 . 
   The golf grip  10  is assembled by slipping the shelf  62  through the center of the band  84  having the band ends fixed relative to each other by the worm drive  86 . The shelf  62  is then fixed to the body half  48  by the mechanical fasteners  74 . The halves  46 ,  48  of the body  36  are then joined together and the shaft upper end  22  is slipped into the body  36  through the center of the band  84 . The band  84  is then tightened around the shaft  14  by turning the worm drive  86  which moves the band ends relative to each other. Once the band  84  is securely tightened around the shaft  14  fixing the shaft  14  to the body  36 , the cover  56  is placed over the hollow portion  44  and the skin  90  is slipped over the body  36 . 
   Of course, many modifications could be made to the invention as described and illustrated without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, two or more clamps can be provided to more securely fix the grip to the shaft. The scope of such changes will become apparent from the appended claims.