Construction of the finite-element models of golf balls and simulations of their collisions

The purpose of this study is to construct a finite-element (FE) model of golf balls with hyperelasticity and viscoelasticity and to devise a method for construction of FE ball models by investigating the relationship between the material properties and the behaviour of the golf ball during and after impact. As for the material model of the FE ball model, the Mooney–Rivlin model and the three-element viscoelastic model were used. In the FE analysis (FEA), normal and oblique impacts with a rigid body were simulated with these models. The impact load, deformation of the ball, rebound velocity, angle, and spin rate were investigated, and their effects on the behaviour of the ball were analysed by varying the individual material constants which make up the ball models. Then, a method for the construction of an FE ball model was proposed, based on these relationships. Impact experiments were also conducted to obtain the dynamic properties of the golf ball. The solutions of the FEA of the ball model, as constructed by the proposed method, closely matched with the experimental results, and the method was verified by applying the process to other types of golf balls.