Tennis Racket Essay

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The science behind tennis rackets

The tennis racket is the most fundamental tool needed by an individual to play a game of tennis. When choosing a racquet there are many factors to take into consideration such as the frame of the racket and the tension of the strings on the racket. There are many other factors to consider, however for the purpose of this report only the two factors listed above will be discussed.
The strings of a tennis racket
The strings on a tennis racket are set to the player’s desired tension depending on whether they prefer fast paced games with little control over the ball or slower games with increased control over the ball. The tension of the strings therefore affects the control a player has on the ball and the speed …show more content…

This meant that the deformation of the racket’s frame when it came into contact with the ball was significantly less allowing for some of the stored energy in the racket to be returned to the ball. This reduced the amount of energy lost from the racket allowing for faster game play. Because steel was much stronger than wood and it deformed less, the rackets had a longer life span as they were less prone to break, thus being more economically viable for the average player.
Composite Frames
The biggest advance to date regarding tennis racket design is the production of composite rackets. Composite rackets can be produced from a range of materials including graphite, aluminium, and carbon fibre. These rackets are 35% to 40% lighter than their wooden counterparts. (USC; Quest for Perfect Racket)
Due to the significant decrease in weight the rackets have become more comfortable to play with and easier to control. These new composite materials have also drastically increased the stiffness of the racket so that its deformation during game play is significantly less. This means that a larger portion of the stored energy within the racket is returned to the ball, which is an improvement to the earlier steel and wooden …show more content…

Every player wants an economically viable racket that is light and can meet their playing style whether it be for increased power or better control. That is why engineers are constantly researching new ways and ideas to combine different materials to design the perfect racket. However the question is can there ever be ‘the perfect racket’ as everyone has different playing styles and some might find this ‘perfect racket’ to be too heavy, too long or just uncomfortable to play with. I think the ultimate goal for an engineer is to be able to design the perfect racket that deforms less during game play for that specific player. The introduction of composite frames has pushed engineers in the right

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