PADEL RACKETS
Impact Response and Energy Dissipation Analysis
One of the most recent applications of VESevo technology includes the evaluation of padel rackets to support design and quality control through non-destructive and repeatable measurement of performance-related parameters.
The study focuses on the Coefficient of Restitution (COR), a key indicator of a racket’s ability to return energy to the ball during passive contact.
VESevo maps COR across the racket surface, generating color maps that highlight local variations caused by differences in material composition and construction methods.
Tests were conducted on several commercially available rackets, providing valuable insights for product development and post-production quality control.
The coefficient of restitution (COR) strongly depends on the properties of the two interacting bodies (the VESevo indenter and the surface it bounces on). Therefore, the COR can potentially serve as a useful preliminary indicator for quickly assessing differences between various mats based on their constituent materials.
COR = 1
PERFECTLY ELASTIC IMPACT
The impacting object (the VESevo indenter) rebounds from the test surface with a velocity equal to the impact velocity.
NO ENERGY DISSIPATION
0 < COR < 1
INELASTIC IMPACT
Part of the kinetic energy of the impacting object is dissipated as heat and/or deformation due to the viscoelastic properties of the material.
DISSIPATIVE BEHAVIOR
The COR is more or less uniformly distributed across the entire racket.
A degree of non-uniformity in the distribution of the coefficient of restitution (COR) is observed. The upper region seems to exhibit a lower COR, indicating increased energy dissipation.
The area with lower COR, and therefore greater dissipation, is more extensive compared to the other two rackets.
- Data analysis has been carried out on two kind of rackets:
- Pickleball rackets
- Padel rackets
- Center zone of rackets has been tested, as marked in the figure below
- The Coefficient of Restitution (COR) has been used for data analysis
It is interesting to note that Padel rackets generally have a lower COR value compared to Pickleball ones.
Therefore, Padel rackets seems to have a lower elastic response with respect to Pickleball rackets.
