EP1967235A1

EP1967235A1 - Gymnastic apparatus for muscle training, particularly of the bench type

Info

Publication number: EP1967235A1
Application number: EP08152196A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Paolo Bisceglia
Original assignee: Carnielli Fitness SpA
Current assignee: Carnielli Fitness SpA
Priority date: 2007-03-07
Filing date: 2008-03-03
Publication date: 2008-09-10
Also published as: ITPD20070078A1

Abstract

A gymnastic apparatus (1) for muscle training, which comprises a bench (2) or the like to which at least one arm (3) is connected which can be connected to at least one contrast means (4) adapted to generate a resisting force to contrast the force generated by a user during training. The at least one arm (3) is orientable with respect to the bench (2) in order to allow to vary the direction of the resisting force generated by the contrast means (4) and transmitted to the user.

Description

The present invention relates to a gymnastic apparatus for muscle training, particularly of the bench type or the like.
In the description that follows, the expression "gymnastic apparatus" is used to reference any mechanism capable of providing a series of optionally adjustable resting elements for the body of the user which allow him/her to act on one or more masses, optionally by means of levers or cables, in order to train the set of muscles of the user used to move said masses.
Likewise, the expression "gymnastic exercise" or simply "exercise" is understood to reference the set of movements performed by the user in a precise posture, aimed at training the muscles involved in such movements.
The user can use a gymnastic apparatus in order to perform exercises intended to train muscles which are difficult to train with the unaided body, or simply in order to make their training easier.
The expression "training force", or simply "effort", is understood to reference the force that the user applies, optionally on a gymnastic apparatus which opposes thereto a resisting force which is opposite thereto, to perform gymnastic exercises.
Some models of gymnastic apparatus of the bench type are currently known, such as for example the abdominal muscle bench, which defines a resting surface for the body of the user which can optionally be tilted with respect to the horizontal plane and a retaining element for the feet.
A second bench model has a resting surface for the body of the user which is divided into two parts, a backrest and a seat.
In general, both the backrest and the seat can be oriented with different relative inclinations, allowing different resting modes of the body of the user.
This second bench model is usually used to train the muscles of the upper limbs and chest and requires the use of auxiliary equipment such as dumbbells and bars.
A third bench model, derived from the one that has just been described, comprises two supporting rods, known as uprights, which are provided with hooks for hanging a bar and are arranged at the sides of the backrest at the region where the shoulders of the user rest.
The posture assumed and the movements performed during a gymnastic exercise are correlated directly to the muscles that one wishes to train.
Particular importance is assumed by the direction in which the training force is applied to the gymnastic device or apparatus: it is related directly to the movements performed and, combined with the posture, defines the set of muscles that are trained during the exercise.
It is therefore clear that in order to train a given set of muscles, the user of the described benches, especially if he/she uses in combination equipment such as for example dumbbells and bars, must pay particular attention in maintaining the correct posture and correct direction of the training force.
Known types of gymnastic apparatus mentioned above have various drawbacks, including the fact that they require very often the use of auxiliary equipment such as dumbbells and bars.
Another drawback is that during the use of these auxiliary equipment the user may unintentionally modify his/her posture and thereby the direction of application of the training force; this modifies the gymnastic exercise and accordingly it is very likely that the muscles for the training of which the exercise is intended are not trained effectively.
The aim of the present invention is to provide a gymnastic apparatus, particularly of the type of a bench or the like, which allows to define precisely the direction of the force during the training exercises.
Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a gymnastic apparatus which allows to vary the direction of the training force as a function of the exercise to be performed, so as to achieve an optimum result in the training of specific muscles.
Another object of the invention is to provide a gymnastic apparatus which allows the training of abdominal muscles and of the muscles of the upper and lower limbs.
This aim and these and other objects, which will become better apparent hereinafter, are achieved by a gymnastic apparatus for muscle training, particularly of the type of a bench or the like, which comprises a bench or the like, characterized in that it comprises at least one arm which is connected to said bench and can be connected to at least one contrast means which is adapted to generate a resisting force which contrasts the training force that can be generated by a user, said at least one arm being orientable with respect to said bench in order to vary the direction of the resisting force generated by said contrast means and transmitted to the user.
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of an apparatus according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a gymnastic apparatus according to the invention;
Figure 2 is a top plan view of the gymnastic apparatus according to the invention;
Figure 3 is a side elevation view of the gymnastic apparatus according to the invention;
Figure 4 is an enlarged-scale perspective view of a detail of the apparatus according to the invention, related to the connection of the arm to the bench;
Figure 5 is a sectional view of the detail of Figure 4, taken along the line V-V shown in Figure 2.

With reference to the figures, a gymnastic apparatus according to the invention is generally designated by the reference numeral 1 and comprises a bench 2 or the like.
The bench 2 can comprise, in a per se known manner, a supporting structure 20, preferably shaped like a straight beam, and feet 23 for resting on the ground, which are advantageously connected to the opposite front and rear ends of the supporting structure 20.
Further, the supporting structure 20 supports in an upper region a seat 22, which forms a surface 21 for the resting of the user on the bench.
A backrest 24 is pivoted, in a per se known manner, to the supporting structure 20, to the rear of the seat, about a pivoting axis B which lies substantially transversely with respect to the supporting structure 20.
At least one of the supporting feet 23, for example one, is pivoted, in a per se known manner, to the supporting structure 20 about a pivoting axis C which lies substantially transversely to the supporting structure 20, in order to vary the inclination of the resting surface 21 with respect to a horizontal reference plane.
At least one of the resting feet 23 is provided with an extension means 230; for example, such foot comprises two coaxial tubes which are coupled so as to form a telescopic structure, which can be locked in various preset extension configurations in order to vary the inclination of the resting surface 21 with respect to a horizontal reference plane.
According to the invention, the bench 2 comprises at least one arm 3, which is connected, for example at a first end, by means of a hinge-type joint 5, to the bench 2.
Preferably, the bench 2 comprises two arms 3 which are connected thereto, by means of joints 5, for example on the opposite sides of the supporting structure 20.
The hinge-like joints 5 advantageously comprise means 50 for locking the arms 3 in preset angular positions about the pivoting axis A with respect to the bench 2.
The joints 5 comprise for example pivots 51, the axes of which define the pivoting axes A, which are supported by parallel and facing brackets 54 which are conveniently connected to the supporting structure 20.
Preferably, the pivoting axes A are perpendicular to the surface 21 for the resting of the user on the bench.
The pivots 51 engage coaxial holes 55 formed in one end 31 of the arms 3 and comprise means 510 for locking the axial translational motion of the pivots 51 with respect to the brackets 54, for example split pins.
The locking means 50 is provided for example by means of a substantially cylindrical key 56, which engages a pair 57 of coaxial holes provided in the brackets 54 and a hole provided in the ends 31 of the arms 3.
Advantageously, the brackets 54 have a plurality of coaxial holes 57, providing several seats for the keys 56 which form, together with the pivots 51, the angular positions for orientation of the arms 3 with respect to the bench 2 about the corresponding pivoting axis A.
The arms 3 can in turn be connected, in per se known manners, for example at the second end, which lies opposite the one connected to the bench, to at least one contrast means 4, advantageously one for each arm, which is adapted to generate a force which contrasts the training force applied by the user during given gymnastic exercises.
Conveniently, the contrast means 4 are connected, at one end, to the second ends 32 of the arms 3 and are connected, at the other end, to grip means 6 provided for example by means of bracket-like knobs.
The contrast means 4 are advantageously elastically extensible wirelike tension elements.
Advantageously, a locking means 25 for the legs of the user and a locking means 26 for the feet of the user is connected to the bench.
Figure 2 illustrates in broken lines, by way of example, two different angular positions of orientation of an arm 3 about the pivoting axis A with respect to the bench 2.
Optionally, the seat 22 can be pivoted, by way of per se known means, to the supporting structure 20 of the bench about a pivoting axis which lies substantially transversely to the longitudinal extension of the supporting structure 20, in order to vary its angular position with respect to the bench 2.
In this case, the surface 21 for the resting of the user on the bench is formed conventionally by the seat, in a chosen angular position, with respect to the bench 2.
The operation of the apparatus of the invention is as follows.
The bench 2 is prepared by adjusting the orientation of the backrest 24 with respect to the resting surface 21.
The orientation of the arms 3 is adjusted by fixing them by virtue of the locking means 50 in preset angular positions about the corresponding pivoting axes A with respect to the bench 2.
The contrast means 4 are connected to the arms 3 by way of the engagement means 33.
The user engages the bench, optionally by using the means 25 for locking the legs and means 26 for locking the feet, as required by the workout that he/she intends to perform, engages the grip means 6 and performs the exercise.
During the execution of the exercise, the arms 3 orient the resisting force generated by the contrast means 4, which contrasts the training force applied by the user to the contrast means 4.
In practice it has been found that the gymnastic apparatus according to the invention achieves the intended aim and objects, since thanks to the possibility to vary the orientation of the arms with respect to the bench it allows to vary the direction of the forces which contrast the training forces applied by the user to the contrast means, in order to involve precisely the muscles for which the gymnastic exercises are dedicated.
Another advantage of the gymnastic apparatus according to the invention is that it allows to perform a wide variety of exercises for training the muscles of the abdomen and of the chest or of the upper and lower limbs, without requiring the use of auxiliary apparatuses such as dumbbells and bars.
The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims; all the details may further be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.
In practice, the materials used, as well as the contingent shapes and dimensions, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art.
The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. PD2007A000078 from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.
Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.

Claims

A gymnastic apparatus (1) for muscle training, particularly of the type of a bench or the like, comprising a bench (2) or the like, characterized in that it comprises at least one arm (3) which is connected to said bench (2) and can be connected to at least one contrast means (4) which is adapted to generate a resisting force which contrasts the training force that can be generated by a user, said at least one arm (3) being orientable with respect to said bench (2) in order to vary the direction of the resisting force generated by said contrast means (4) and transmitted to the user.
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that said at least one arm (3) comprises two arms (3) which are connected to opposite sides of said bench (2).
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to the preceding claims, characterized in that said two arms (3) are connected to the sides of said bench (2).
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said arms (3) are pivoted to said bench (2) about corresponding pivoting axes (A), means (50) being provided for locking the rotation of said arms (3) in preset angular positions about the corresponding pivoting axes (A), with respect to said bench (2).
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said arms (3) form engagement regions for said at least one contrast means (4).
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said at least one contrast means (4) comprises elastically extensible elements which can engage, at one of their ends, a corresponding engagement region which is formed by one of said arms and can be engaged by the user at their opposite end.
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said pivoting axis (A) is substantially perpendicular to the surface (21) on which the user rests on said bench.
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said bench (2) comprises a supporting structure (20) which is provided with feet (23) for resting on the ground and supports a seat (22) which forms said user resting surface (21).
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that a backrest (24) is associated with said supporting structure (20) and is pivoted to said supporting structure (20) about an axis (B) which is substantially horizontal and oriented transversely to the anteroposterior extension of said bench (2), in order to vary the inclination of said backrest (24) with respect to said resting surface (21).
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one of said feet (23) is pivoted to said supporting structure (20) about corresponding pivoting axes (C), in order to vary the inclination of said resting surface (21) with respect to a horizontal reference plane.
The gymnastic apparatus (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one of said feet (23) is adjustable in its extension in order to vary the inclination of said resting surface with respect to a horizontal reference plane.