Construction of a finite element model for collisions of a golf ball with a club during swing

Abstract

The objective of this study was to construct a finite element model for simulating the mechanical behaviour of a golf club and ball from swing to impact. An experiment using a golf robot was conducted to obtain the motion of the shaft grip during the swing, and the behaviour of the club and ball during the swing and impact. The swing model was developed by inputting the positional coordinate data of the grip, which was obtained from an experiment, into the grip model. The simulation results generally matched the experimental results for the swing motion, the behaviour of the shaft during the swing and the clubhead velocity and orientation at impact. The modelling of the grip contributed to the accuracy of the simulation results by precisely representing swing motion and suppressing the generation of vibration in the shaft grip. This indicates that the components of the proposed modelling method may also be suitable for representing the swing using data obtained from the robot test, and that the model and the approach for modelling may have potential to be used as a predictable tool to supplement robot tests, reducing the dependency on prototypes.