1. A solid golf ball comprising a solid core and a cover layer that encases the core and has an outermost layer on an outside surface of which are formed a plurality of dimples, wherein the solid core is formed of a rubber composition composed of 100 parts by weight of a base rubber that includes from 60 to 100 parts by weight of a polybutadiene rubber having a cis-1,4 bond content of at least 60% and synthesized using a rare-earth catalyst, from 0.1 to 5 parts by weight of an organosulfur compound, an unsaturated carboxylic acid or a metal salt thereof, an inorganic filler, and an antioxidant; the solid core has a deformation, when compressed under a final load of 130 kgf from an initial load is of 10 kgf, of from 2.0 to 4.0 mm, and has the hardness distribution shown in the table below; the cover layer has a thickness of from 0.5 to 1.9 mm and a Shore D hardness at the surface of from 50 to 70; the ball has at least one intermediate layer between the core and the cover, any one of which intermediate layer or layers has a surface hardness in Shore D units of from 40 to 60, the intermediate layer or layers having a total thickness of from 0.9 to 7.0 mm; and the golf ball has a deformation, when compressed under a final load of 130 kgf from an initial load of 10 kgf, of from 2.0 to 3.8 mm.
Hardness Distribution in Solid Core
Shore D hardness
Center
30 to 48
Region located 4 mm from center
34 to 52
Region located 8 mm from center
40 to 58
Region located 12 mm from center (Q)
43 to 61
Region located 2 to 3 mm inside of surface (R)
36 to 54
Surface (S)
41 to 59
Hardness difference (Q) \u2212 (S)
\u20021 to 10
Hardness difference (S) \u2212 (R)
\u20023 to 10
2. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the surface hardness of the solid core is lower than the surface hardness of the cover layer, the difference therebetween in Shore D hardness units being from 5 to 20, and at least one intermediate layer has a surface hardness difference with the core, in Shore D hardness units, of 5 or less.
3. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the difference between the surface hardness of the solid core and the center hardness of the solid core, in Shore D hardness units, is from 7 to 17.
4. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the solid core has a diameter of from 31 to 40 mm and the golf ball has a diameter of from 42.67 to 44.0 mm.
5. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the solid core contains from 33 to 45 parts by weight of the unsaturated carboxylic acid or a metal salt thereof, from 0.1 to 1.0 part by weight of the organic peroxide, from 5 to 80 parts by weight of the inorganic filler, and from 0.2 to 1.0 part by weight of the antioxidant per 100 parts by weight of the base rubber.
6. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the dimples total in number from 250 to 420, have an average depth of from 0.125 to 0.150 mm and an average diameter of from 3.7 to 5.0 mm for all dimples, and are configured from at least four dimple types.
7. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein one or more intermediate layer is composed of a resin which is a mixture obtained by blending as essential ingredients:
100 parts by weight of a resin component composed of, in admixture,
a base resin of (a) an olefin-unsaturated carboxylic acid random copolymer andor a metal ion neutralization product of an olefin-unsaturated carboxylic acid random copolymer mixed with (b) an olefin-unsaturated carboxylic acid-unsaturated carboxylic acid ester random terpolymer andor a metal ion neutralization product of an olefin-unsaturated carboxylic acid-unsaturated carboxylic acid ester random terpolymer in a weight ratio between 1000 and 0100, and
(e) a non-ionomeric thermoplastic elastomer in a weight ratio between 100:0 and 50:50;
(c) 5 to 80 parts by weight of a fatty acid andor fatty acid derivative having a molecular weight of from 228 to 1500; and
(d) 0.1 to 17 parts by weight of a basic inorganic metal compound capable of neutralizing un-neutralized acid groups in the base resin and component (c).
8. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the cover layer is formed by injection molding a single resin blend composed primarily of (A) a thermoplastic polyurethane and (B) a polyisocyanate compound, which resin blend contains a polyisocyanate compound in at least some portion of which all the isocyanate groups on the molecule remain in an unreacted state.
9. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the resin blend further includes (C) a thermoplastic elastomer other than a thermoplastic polyurethane.
10. The solid golf ball of claim 9 wherein, in the resin blend, some portion of the isocyanate groups in component B form bonds with active hydrogens in component A andor component C, and all other isocyanate groups remain within the resin blend in an unreacted state.
11. The solid golf ball of claim 9, wherein the ingredients in the resin blend have a weight ratio therebetween, expressed as A:B:C, of from 100:{2 to 50}:{0 to 50}.
12. The solid golf ball of claim 9, wherein the ingredients in the resin blend have a weight ratio therebetween, expressed as A:B:C, of from 100:{2 to 30}:{8 to 50}.
13. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein components A and B have a combined weight which is at most 90 wt % of the weight of the cover layer as a whole.
14. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein the resin blend has a melt mass flow rate (MFR) at 210\xb0 C. of at least 5 g10 min.
15. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein component B is one or more polyisocyanate compound selected from the group consisting of 4,4\u2032-diphenylmethane diisocyanate, 2,4-toluene diisocyanate, 2,6-toluene diisocyanate, p-phenylene diisocyanate, xylylene diisocyanate, naphthylene 1,5-diisocyanate, tetramethylxylene diisocyanate, hydrogenated xylylene diisocyanate, dicyclohexylmethane diisocyanate, tetramethylene diisocyanate, hexamethylene diisocyanate, isophorone diisocyanate, norbornene diisocyanate, trimethylhexamethylene diisocyanate and dimer acid diisocyanate.
16. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein component B is one or more polyisocyanate compound selected from the group consisting of 4,4\u2032-diphenylmethane diisocyanate, dicyclohexylmethane diisocyanate and isophorone diisocyanate.
17. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein component C is one or more thermoplastic elastomer selected from the group consisting of polyester elastomers, polyamide elastomers, ionomer resins, styrene block elastomers, hydrogenated styrene-butadiene rubbers, styrene-ethylenebutylene-ethylene block copolymers and modified forms thereof, ethylene-ethylenebutylene-ethylene block copolymers and modified forms thereof, styrene-ethylenebutylene-styrene block copolymers and modified forms thereof, ABS resins, polyacetals, polyethylenes and nylon resins.
18. The solid golf ball of claim 1, wherein component C is one or more thermoplastic elastomer selected from the group consisting of polyester elastomers, polyamide elastomers and polyacetals.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A biopsy instrument, comprising:
a handle;
a shaft extending from the handle and defining a longitudinal axis, the shaft including proximal and distal ends, the proximal end coupled to the handle;
a ring clamp assembly operatively supported on the distal end of the shaft, the ring clamp assembly including first and second ring structures, at least one of the first and second ring structures movable to allow the first and second ring structures to open and close with respect to each other, the first and second ring structures forming a ring-shaped blade slot when in a closed position; and
a movable cutting blade configured to move along the ring-shaped blade slot.
2. The biopsy instrument of claim 1, wherein the blade slot is in between an inside edge and an outside edge of the closed position of the first and second ring structures.
3. The biopsy instrument of claim 2, wherein the outside edge of the closed position of the first and second ring structures is configured to clamp tissue that traverses the blade slot.
4. The biopsy instrument of claim 3, wherein the outside edge of the closed position of the first and second ring structures is configured to apply radio frequency (RE) energy to the clamped tissue.
5. The biopsy instrument of claim 1, wherein the blade slot extends from the shaft and encircles the closed position of the first and second ring structures such that the blade slot includes a junction comprised of first and second ring structure blade slot portions at the distal end of the shaft.
6. The biopsy instrument of claim 5, further comprising a directing component at the junction that is configured to direct the movable cutting blade to enter the first ring structure blade slot portion.
7. The biopsy instrument of claim 6, wherein the directing component is further configured to block movement of the cutting blade from the shaft to the second ring structure blade slot portion, and to allow movement of the cutting blade from the second ring structure blade slot portion to the shaft.
8. The biopsy instrument of claim 7, wherein the directing component is a hinged door.
9. The biopsy instrument of claim 7, wherein the directing component is an extension of an inside edge of the closed position of the first and second ring structures.
10. The biopsy instrument of claim 7, wherein the directing component is a spring.
11. A method of removing a node within a patient, comprising:
clamping the node within a ring-shaped instrument; and
causing a cutting blade to move along a ring-shaped blade slot in the ring-shaped instrument, whereby the node is detached from connecting tissue via the cutting blade.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein causing the cutting blade to move along the ring-shaped blade slot comprises moving the cutting blade between an inside edge and an outside edge of the ring-shaped instrument.
13. The method of claim 12, further comprising using the outside edge of the ring-shaped instrument to clamp tissue that traverses the blade slot.
14. The method of claim 13, further comprising applying radio frequency (RF) energy to the clamped tissue via the outside edge of the ring-shaped instrument.
15. The method of claim 11, wherein causing the cutting blade to move along the ring-shaped blade slot comprises causing the cutting blade to move in a closed circular path in the ring-shaped instrument.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein causing the cutting blade to move in a closed circular path in the ring-shaped instrument comprises causing the cutting blade to move in a first direction around the ring-shaped instrument, the first direction resulting from a directing component located in the blade slot.
17. The method of claim 16, further comprising moving the cutting blade in the first direction, past a first side of the directing component and around the ring-shaped instrument until the cutting blade returns to and passes through a second side of the directing component.
18. The method of claim 11, wherein the removed node is a lymph node.
19. A biopsy instrument, comprising:
a ring clamp assembly including first and second ring structures, at least one of the first and second ring structures movable to allow the first and second ring structures to open and close with respect to each other, the first and second ring structures forming a ring-shaped blade slot when in a closed position;
a movable cutting blade configured to move along the ring-shaped blade slot; and
a radio frequency (RE) emitter configured to apply RF energy to tissue clamped by the ring clamp.
20. The biopsy instrument of claim 19, wherein the RF emitter includes a at least a portion of an outside edge of the closed position of the first and second ring structure.