US20070287617A1

US20070287617A1 - Portable exercising apparatus

Info

Publication number: US20070287617A1
Application number: US11/450,378
Authority: US
Inventors: Judy Teng
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2006-06-12
Filing date: 2006-06-12
Publication date: 2007-12-13

Abstract

A portable exercising apparatus includes a first frame member, a second frame member, a first tube perpendicularly and fixedly connected to the first frame member, a second tube perpendicularly and fixedly connected to the second frame member and slidably inserted into the first tube and defining with the first tube an air chamber, an air valve mounted in the first tube in communication with the air chamber and the atmosphere, and two elastic members connected between the first frame member and the second frame member at two sides of the first tube and the second tube.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to exercising apparatus and more particularly, to a simple and portable exercising apparatus that is practical for exercising the muscles of the arms and the abdomen.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various exercising apparatus, such as dumbbells chest developers, spring bars, and etc., are commercially available for exercising the muscles of the arms. These exercising apparatus use the designed mechanical structure for enabling the hands to make a reciprocating action, thereby exercising the muscles of the arms.
When a user is operating one of the aforesaid conventional exercising apparatus, the user can only exercise the body with a fixed weight or by means of one single operation mode, i.e., the user has no choice to change the damping resistance on one same exercising apparatus. The tendons and muscles may be injured easily when exercising the body with an improper damping resistance. It is insignificant to exercise the body without safety.
Further, because conventional exercising apparatus for exercising the arms are not adjustable to provide different damping resistance subject to different exercising requirements, a user may have to prepare various different weights or different exercising apparatus. There are commercially available heavy exercising machines that are adjustable to provide different exercising pressure subject to different users or subject to different exercising requirements. These heavy exercising machines, such as scissors-action machines or chest weights, are commonly expensive and require much floor space. Therefore, either using a heavy exercising machine or multiple small exercising apparatus, the user will encounter a storage problem when receiving the heavy exercising machine or the multiple small exercising apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been accomplished under the circumstances in view. It is one objective of the present invention to provide a portable exercising apparatus, which is safe in use for moderate exercises and convenient for carrying and storage.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide a portable exercising apparatus, which provides a damping resistance by means of compressing air when operated by the user.
It is still another objective of the present invention to provide a portable exercising apparatus, which has simple structure and is inexpensive to manufacture.
To achieve these objectives of the present invention, the portable exercising apparatus comprises a first frame member, a second frame member, a first tube, a second tube, an air valve, and at least one elastic member. The first tube has a first end perpendicularly and fixedly connected to the first frame member, a second end, and an opening at the second end. The second tube has a first end perpendicularly and fixedly connected to the second frame member and a second end inserted through the opening of the first tube into the inside of the first tube such that an air chamber is defined inside the first tube. The air valve is mounted in the first tube in communication with the air chamber and the atmosphere. The at least one elastic member is respectively fixedly connected between the first frame member and the second frame member. The elastically deformable material property of the at least one elastic member provides not only a resisting force to the user when the user is operating the exercising apparatus but also a rebounding force to return the two tubes to the former position during operation of the exercising apparatus.
According to the present invention, the air contained in the air chamber is compressed to impart a damping resistance when the user moves the first frame member and the second frame member toward each other. By means of adjusting the air valve to regulate the air discharging speed, the damping force is relatively adjusted. Therefore, the user can adjust the air valve to further adjust the damping force as desired.
The user can operate the exercising apparatus in any of a variety of operation modes to exercise the muscles of the arms. In additional to exercising the muscles of the arms, the exercising apparatus can also be operated to exercise the muscles of the abdomen.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of a portable exercising apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken in an enlarged scale along line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a part of the exercising apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic drawing showing a first operation mode of the exercising apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention in action.

FIG. 5 is another schematic drawing showing a first operation mode of the exercising apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention in action.

FIG. 6 is a schematic drawing showing a second operation mode of the exercising apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention in action.

FIG. 7 is a schematic drawing showing a third operation mode of the exercising apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention in action.

FIG. 8 is a schematic drawing showing a fourth operation mode of the exercising apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention in action.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As shown in FIGS. 1-3, a portable exercising apparatus 10 in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a first frame member 20, a second frame member 30, a first tube 40, a second tube 50, and two elastic members 60.
The first frame member 20 is injection-molded from plastics, having a bearing wall 22, two grips 24, a locating hole 26, and two mounting holes 28. The bearing wall 22 is disposed at one side, namely, the outer side of the first frame member 20, having a corrugated or embossed surface that enhances the friction force upon contact of the bearing wall 22 with an external body. The two grips 24 are respectively horizontally extending from two distal ends of the bearing wall 22 to expand the grasping area so that the user can hold the first frame member 20 positively and employ a pressure to the exercising apparatus 10 against an external object. The locating hole 26 is disposed at the other side, namely, the inner side of the first frame member 20 opposite to the bearing wall 22. The two mounting holes 28 are arranged in parallel at two sides of the locating hole 26.
The second frame member 30 is injection-molded from plastics, having a bearing wall 32, a locating hole 34, and two mounting holes 36. The bearing wall 32 is disposed at one side, namely, the outer side of the second frame member 30, having a corrugated or embossed surface. The locating hole 34 is disposed at the other side, namely, the inner side of the second frame member 30 opposite to the bearing wall 32. The two mounting holes 36 are arranged in parallel at two sides of the locating hole 34.
The first tube 40 is made of metal having a transverse through hole 42 and an air valve 44 mounted in the transverse through hole 42. The first tube 40 has an opening 41 at one end through which the second tube 50 is inserted. The other end of the first tube 40 is firmly inserted into the locating hole 26 of the first frame member 20 so that the first tube 40 is firmly fastened to the first frame member 20.
The second tube 50 is made of metal, having one end firmly inserted into the locating hole 34 of the second frame member 30 and the other end slidably inserted through the opening 41 into the first tube 40. Therefore, the first tube 40 and the second tube 50 define an air chamber 52, which is in communication with the atmosphere through the air valve 44 of the first tube 40.
The elastic members 60 are carbon fiber rod members respectively axially mounted with a respective a cylindrical sponge grip 62 on the middle for holding by the user when operating the elastic members 60 of the exercising apparatus 10. Further, the elastic members 60 each have one end respectively firmly inserted into the mounting holes 28 of the first frame member 20 and the other end respectively firmly inserted into the mounting holes 36 of the second frame member 30. When assembled, the two elastic members 60 are kept in parallel to the tubes 40 and 50.
When operating the exercising apparatus through different operation modes to shorten the length of the exercising apparatus 10, i.e., to move the tubes 40 and 50 toward each other, the elastic members 60 are deformed to give a resistance, and at the same time the internal air inside the air chamber 52 is compressed to impart a damping force. When increasing the internal pressure of the air chamber 52, the damping force is relatively increased, and the inside air is force to pass out of the air valve 44 to the atmosphere. By means of adjusting the air valve 44 to regulate the air discharging speed, the damping force is relatively adjusted. When the inside pressure of the air chamber 52 and the atmospheric pressure are balanced, the damping force is disappeared. When the user released the external pressure from the exercising apparatus, the two elastic members 60 immediately return to their former shape, and therefore the first frame member 20 and the second frame member 30 are returned to their former position.
The exercising apparatus 10 can be operated in any of a variety of operation modes, for example, one of the following four operation examples.
According to the first operation mode shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the user can hold the cylindrical sponge grips 62 of the elastic members 60 with both hands and then alternatively stretch and release the elastic members 60 in transverse direction to exercise the muscles of the arms.
According to the second operation mode shown in FIG. 6, the user can hold the first frame member 20 and the second frame member 30 with both hands and then alternatively move the first frame member 20 and the second frame member 30 inwards and outwards relative to each other to exercise the muscles of the arms.
According to the third operation mode as shown in FIG. 7, the user can hold the grips 24 of the first frame member 20 with both hands and stop the bearing wall 32 of the second frame member 30 against the abdomen, and then alternatively impart a pressure to the first frame member 20 to force the first frame member 20 toward the second frame member 30 and then release the pressure so as to exercise the muscles of the arms and the abdomen.
According to the fourth operation mode as shown in FIG. 8, the user can stop the second frame member 30 against the floor and hold the first frame member 20 with both hands, and then alternatively move the first frame member 20 up and down relative to the second frame member 30 to exercise the muscles of the arms and the abdomen.
As indicated above, the exercising apparatus 10 of the present invention has a simple structure and is convenient for carrying and storage.
Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A portable exercising apparatus comprising:

a first frame member;

a second frame member;

a first tube having a first end fixedly connected to said first frame member and an opening at a second end thereof;

a second tube having a first end fixedly connected to said second frame member and a second end inserted through the opening of said first tube into the inside of said first tube such that an air chamber is defined inside said first tube;

an air valve mounted in said first tube in communication with said air chamber and the atmosphere; and

at least one elastic member fixedly connected between said first frame member and said second frame member.

2. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first frame member has a locating hole, which receives the first end of said first tube.

3. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second frame member has a locating hole, which receives the first end of said second tube.

4. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first tube has a transverse through hole, which accommodates said air valve.

5. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one elastic member is formed of a carbon fiber rod member.

6. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein said first frame member has a mounting hole for receiving a first end of the carbon fiber rod member.

7. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein said second frame member has a mounting hole for receiving a second end of the carbon fiber rod member.

8. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least one grip respectively mounted on said at least one elastic member.

9. The portable exercising apparatus as claimed in claim 1, the portable exercising apparatus has two said elastic members, which are connected between said first frame member and said second frame member at two sides of and in parallel to said first tube and said second tube.