US3819189A

US3819189A - Golf training aids

Info

Publication number: US3819189A
Application number: US00403558A
Authority: US
Inventors: R Goode
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1973-10-04
Filing date: 1973-10-04
Publication date: 1974-06-25
Anticipated expiration: 1991-06-25

Abstract

This application discloses a golfer''s training aid wherein a pair of opaque shutters are pivotally secured to a frame for a pair of eyeglasses. A resilient member is provided to provide a force for moving the shutters to a position obscuring the user''s normal line of sight. A pivotal plumb bob coacts with one shutter and the frame to maintain both shutters above the user''s normal line of sight. A ratchet-like mechanism on one shutter coacts with the plumb bob and allows both shutters to be moved downward, edgewise, in successive stages, in response to successive relative movements of the plumb bob, caused by movements of the golfer''s head and frame during a putting stroke.

Description

United States Patent [191 Goode GOLF TRAINING AIDS [76] Inventor: Rexford Fenton Goode, 901 A: N.W.

18th St., Oklahoma City, Okla. 73106 [22] Filed: Oct. 4, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 403,558

[52] US. Cl. 273/183 B, 351/45, 273/183 E, 2/14 XS, 2/13 [51] Int. Cl A63b 69/36 [58] Field of Search 273/183, 188, 190,54 B; 351/45; 2/14 XS, 13

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,980,101 11/1934 Schneider 273/190 A 2,440,878 5/1948 Schneider 273/183 B June 25, 1974 Primary ExaminerGeorge J. Mlarlo [57] ABSTRACT This application discloses a golfers training aid wherein a pair of opaque shutters are pivotally secured to a frame for a pair of eyeglasses. A resilient member is provided to provide a force for moving the shutters to a position obscuring the users normal line of sight. A pivotal plumb bob coacts with one shutter and the frame to maintain both shutters above the users normal line of sight. A ratchet-like mechanism on one shutter coacts with the plumb bob and allows both shutters to be moved downward, edgewise, in successive stages, in response to successive relative movements of the plumb bob, caused by movements of the golfers head and frame during a putting stroke.

3 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures GOLF TRAINING AIDS The Synchronous Putting Stroke Trainer is mechanized to be worn on the head during putting practice. In order to permit the device to be used in a natural way, without any precautions or special procedures, the mechanism which controls the vision impairment shutters of the device is configured such as to permit the user to follow a good putting practice routine such as used by most good golfers. Thus, time and head motion derivatives of what is considered to be good putting practice procedure have been integrated into the design to the extent that it may well be termed synchronous. As worn by the student of golf in putting practice, the vision impairment shutters can not be caused to close except under the following conditions:

movement of wearers head toward the hole;

movement of head toward hole only if wearers head is in putting position;

only from this said position if two looks have been taken toward the practice hole by the wearer subsequent to reset of the device; and,

only if said two looks were taken with wearers head in normal putting position. Accidental or false closures are thereby either precluded or minimized. The wearer is able to line up a putt normally, and from a normal putting position rotate his head toward the hole and back to the golf ball a total of two times, whereupon the device is set, with hair-trigger sensitivity, to close and impair the forward vision of the wearer if there is the slightest head movement in the direction of the hole, during or after stroking the putt. If, however, the wearer keeps his head perfectly still, the shutters will not close and the wearer can rotate his head; slowly and smoothly, and watch his ball roll toward the hole.

The object of this invention is to facilitate the development of correct technique and execution of the golf putting stroke through repeated use in a conditioned reflex manner of learning. Such use will supress and gradually eliminate the effect of the strong subconscious desire, common to all golfers, to see the result of a putt while still in the process of stroking it.

A further object of the device is to provide the necessary visual control while maintaining operational harmony with accepted putting technique and procedures. Patterned after the routine used by most good golfers, this involves choosing a ball and a hole to putt to on the green and placing the putter back of the ball and taking the putting stance with eyes over the ball and perpendicular to the putting surface. The golfer will then ro tate his head toward the hole and back to the ball two times to check and re-check the line and distance to the hole and then, after making final adjustment as necessary, stroke the putt.

A further object of this invention is that is simplicity and non-criticality. The subject invention is esentially self-adaptive to its intended environment and can be cooked or re-set at any time following practice strokes, with the golfers head either in the putting or in the upright position, ready for the next stroke as the device cannot close due to routine head movements which are not part of the golfers planned practice routing.

It is also the object of this invention to provide the student of golf with an instrument which is not only of great utility in the development of the putting phase of golf but which with minor modification can be used for practice in iron play as well. Such modification merely involves substitution of the plumb bob used for putting for a light weight plumb bob and blocking out all of the teeth in the control shutter slot except one.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide a choice of shutter closure parameters to suit the individual user. The device as described provides selective impairment of vision only if the wearer looked up" with a jerky movement of the head at a critical time during the execution of the putting stroke. Altematively, the device can be made sensitive to the point where the shutters will close on every putt once the ball has been contacted whether the wearer has looked up or not. This action places further emphasis on hitting through the ball, particularly in iron play, because the player cant see the ball for some short period of time following execution of the shot at any rate.

Yet another object of the device is that of providing the capability of variation in the number of looks required by the user for activation of the control system for the shutters. The device as described is capable of from zero to two, by means of blocking out teeth in the control slot of one of the shutters; by means of adding teeth, three or four looks would be required.

Another important object of the device is that of compatibility of design with integration into eyeglass frames such as to become an integral part thereof, independent of other mounting means.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from consideration of the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the device connected with a pair of eyeglass frames and illustrating, by dotted lines, the vision interrupting position of the shutters; and,

FIG. 2 is a top view of FIG. 1.

In FIG. 1 it is seen that when the

shutters

2 and 3 are open, the vision of the wearer is unimparied but will be interrupted when

shutters

2 and 3 are closed, as shown by the dotted lines. FIG. 2 shows the mounting base 1 attached to the frame of a pair of eyeglasses 8. The

shutters

2 and 3 are caused to move in unison by the wire linkage 4. The dotted lines in FIG. 1 show the

shutters

2 and 3 closed against the lower limit stop 6 by action of resilient member 5.

A plumb bob 7 is seen in FIG. 1 to be pivotally mounted to base 1 such as to provide a vertical reference when the wearers head is in putting position as shown in FIG. 2. The stem of plumb bob 7 is shown in FIG. 1 in the fully cocked or re-set position, engaging the innermost tooth of the control slot of shutter 2, thereby restraining

shutters

2 and 3 from moving.

Considering the device in greater detail, FIG. 1 shows the reset condition where

shutters

2 and 3 are in the fully open position and linked together by the link 4, being biassed in the downward direction by resilient member 5. It is seen that the control shutter 2 includes an open slot remote from its pivotal connection containing laterally spaced-apart confronting rows of ratchet-like teeth such that the sloping angular edge of the teeth face the entrance. It will also be seen in FIG. 1 that the stem of plumb bob 7 is in the position of engaging the innermost tooth of the inside set of teeth with respect to the pivotal point, thereby restraining

shutters

2 and 3 from moving toward the closed position.

Further consideration of FIG. 1 will show that in order for the resilient member 5 to move the

shutters

2 and 3, the stem of plumb bob 7 must be moved in a lateral direction relative to base 1 or else base 1 must be rotated relative to the plumb bob 7, since the plumb bob remains relatively fixed in space. It is to be further seen that the

shutters

2 and 3 cannot move very far in either case, due to the fact that lateral movement of the plumb bob 7 which is of a magnitude to release the last tooth from a position of engagement thereto moves plumb bob 7 into position to engage the last tooth on the other side of the control slot of shutter 2, again restraining

shutters

2 and 3.

Consideration of what actually happens in practice will show that it is the base 1 of the device which rotates with the users head movements and the plumb bob '7 remains relatively fixed in space being always oriented in the downward direction when the golfer is in putting position. Thus, if the action during a putting sequence is considered from the putting position, rotation of the users head toward the hole results in the action just described. The plumb bob 7 releases the last tooth which is located on the inner side of the control slot of shutter 2 and immediately engages the last tooth on the outer side of the control slot. When the golfer counter-rotates his head to look back at the ball, the base 1 of the device rotates in a like manner and causes plumb bob 7 to release the outer tooth of the control slot, permitting

shutters

2 and 3 to rotate a few degrees until the intermediate tooth of the inner set of teeth of the control slot is engaged by the stem of plumb bob 7.

This action completes one cycle of control shutterplumb bob interaction. Upon completion of another cycle (another look at the ball) the device will have taken another full step toward final release and

shutters

2 and 3 will be engaged and restrained at the first or exit stop and the shutters are then in a position of hairtrigger sensitivity such that the slightest motion of the golfers head toward the hole will release

shutters

2 and 3 and resilient member will cause the shutters to close.

Following closure of the shutters, the device can be quickly reset, with the wearers head either in a putting position or an upright position, by actuation of a lever extension of shutter 3. in this procedure the stem of plumb bob 7 is caused to traverse the control slot of shutter 2 in a reverse direction, said traversal being simple and rapid due to the fact that all of the teeth in the control slot slope inward and offer little resistance.

I claim:

1. A device for use, in combination with a frame for a pair of eyeglasses, by a student of golf to develop correct technique and execution of the golf putting stroke, comprising:

a base having means for attachment to said frame;

a pair of opaque plate-like shutters pivotally connected with said base for vertical edgewise movement into and out of a users normal line of sight through said frame;

a link interconnecting said pair of shutters;

a resilient member connected with said base and normally biassing said pair of shutters toward the users normal line of sight; and,

means releasably maintaining said pair of shutters away from the users line of sight.

2. The device as claimed in claim 1 in which said shutter release includes a plumb bob having a stem pivotally connected with said base and frictionally engaging at least one said shutter of said pair of shutters.

3. The device as claimed in claim 1 in which one said shutter is provided with a vertically open slot remote from its pivotal connection and in which said shutter release means includes:

a plumb bob having a stem pivotally connected with said base and a length adapted to project beyond the forward limit of said frame opposite the user; and,

a plurality of vertically spaced projections formed on the edge surfaces of said one shutter defining the slot forming laterally spaced-apart confronting rows of ratchet-like teeth successively engaging and releasing said plumb bob stem in response to to-and-fro lateral movement of said frame.

Claims

1. A device for use, in combination with a frame for a pair of eyeglasses, by a student of golf to develop correct technique and execution of the golf putting stroke, comprising: a base having means for attachment to said frame; a pair of opaque plate-like shutters pivotally connected with said base for vertical edgewise movement into and out of a user''s normal line of sight through said frame; a link interconnecting said pair of shutters; a resilient member connected with said base and normally biassing said pair of shutters toward the user''s normal line of sight; and, means releasably maintaining said pair of shutters away from the user''s line of sight.

3. The device as claimed in claim 1 in which one said shutter is provided with a vertically open slot remote from its pivotal connection and in which said shutter release means includes: a plumb bob having a stem pivotally connected with said base and a length adapted to project beyond the forward limit of said frame opposite the user; and, a plurality of vertically spaced projections formed on the edge surfaces of said one shutter definiNg the slot forming laterally spaced-apart confronting rows of ratchet-like teeth successively engaging and releasing said plumb bob stem in response to to-and-fro lateral movement of said frame.