Altair > Case Studies > Cleveland Golf's Product Innovation Through Simulation and Optimization Using HyperWorks

Cleveland Golf's Product Innovation Through Simulation and Optimization Using HyperWorks

Technology Category

Analytics & Modeling - Digital Twin / Simulation
Sensors - Acoustic Sensors

Applicable Functions

Product Research & Development
Quality Assurance

Use Cases

Virtual Prototyping & Product Testing
Virtual Reality

Services

Testing & Certification

About The Customer

Cleveland Golf, based in Huntington Beach, Calif., is a market-leading golf club manufacturer and a pioneer in the design and production of advanced clubs. The company is the developer of the number-one wedge in the golf industry. Cleveland Golf's engineering research team uses simulation to virtually assess and tune the performance of forward-looking designs to develop market-leading woods, irons, wedges, and putters. The company operates in a difficult regulatory and business environment, with the United States Golf Association (USGA) imposing limitations on golf club heads and consumers not buying as many clubs as they did in the past.

The Challenge

Cleveland Golf, a leading golf club manufacturer, faced the challenge of meeting changing regulations for golf club design while consistently introducing new products that are precisely engineered for shape, feel, balance, sound, and performance. The United States Golf Association (USGA) imposes limitations on golf club heads, including the size of the grooves in wedges and irons, the dimensions of the head, and the permitted coefficient of restitution (COR) – or springiness – that is allowed in clubs. As clubs have improved, they've reached these limits and have the capability to go beyond them. This posed a significant challenge as Cleveland Golf needed to figure out how to continue to improve clubs without exceeding these limits. Additionally, the USGA recently changed the rules specifying groove size, impacting how future clubs will be designed. From an economic standpoint, consumers were not buying as many clubs as they did in the past, so Cleveland Golf needed to create more new and innovative products, not just variations on existing clubs.

The Solution

Cleveland Golf employed the HyperWorks suite of software for CAE design simulation to address these challenges. The research team used this software to balance a variety of design variables, including materials, size, shape, weight placement, thickness patterns, and placement of internal ribs for durability, sound, and feel. They also used HyperStudy to optimize material properties, along with AcuSolve® to explore the club’s aerodynamics. In addition to evaluating the structural performance of prototypes, Cleveland Golf used simulation to predict the sound that the club head makes when striking the ball, employing modal analysis using the HyperWorks OptiStruct® solver. They compared new club designs with previous parts in running their sound analyses and used a robot that strikes golf balls consistently, enabling the engineers to test different design iterations and to measure the sound coming from the club. Player testing was also used for feedback on sound and feel and to compare Cleveland Golf clubs with others in the market.

Operational Impact

The use of HyperWorks has helped Cleveland Golf both accelerate its time to market and improve the quality of its clubs. For example, engineers were able to create a distinctive appearance for one club, which had a higher, more bulbous crown than the traditional club and felt and sounded softer than the previous model. The club also needed to deliver a lower spin, but raising club weight with a heavier crown would increase spin. Using HyperMesh and shape optimization to examine a variety of club shapes, as well as thickness locations to keep the center of gravity lower, the engineers were able to maintain the high crown and still achieve the performance parameters. The use of simulation has saved months of design time and improved the final design. Looking forward, the company plans to use simulation to cut the weight of clubs even further, while maintaining their traditional look.

Quantitative Benefit