GB2445923A

GB2445923A - Exercise apparatus

Info

Publication number: GB2445923A
Application number: GB0701447A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Hugh Scudamore
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2007-01-26
Filing date: 2007-01-26
Publication date: 2008-07-30
Also published as: GB0701447D0

Abstract

An exercise apparatus comprises a piston fixable to a structure, the piston comprising a piston head 14 and a tube 16 wherein the tube 16 contains a fluid therein and a fluid (preferably air) release opening 20. The apparatus further comprises an arm 2 with a handle 4 for enabling a user to move the piston head 14 through the tube 16. Adjusting the size of the fluid release opening 20 adjusts the force needed to push the piston head through the tube 16.

Description

Exercise Apparatus The present invention relates to an exercise

apparatus.

Over recent years the increased knowledge of the benefits of exercising together with its populanty have been highlighted by numerous studies and government policy. For this reason, more and more people attend exercise classes, are members of gyms, or buy exercise equipment for their own home. The present invention generally relates to an exercise apparatus that may be used for home use or alternatively be a feature of a gym and would tend to fall within the general field of steppers, cycling machines, rowing machines and the like, and provides aerobic and anaerobic exercise for a wide variety of muscle groups using a single apparatus.

According to the present invention there is an exercise apparatus comprising a piston fixable to a structure, said piston comprising a piston head and a tube wherein said tube contains a fluid therein and a fluid release opening, said apparatus further comprising means for enabling a user to move said piston head through said tube.

In use, the means for enabling a user to move the piston head is pushed away from and towards a user when the resistance to push the means for enabling a user to move the piston head away from the user is greater than the resistance to movement of the handle means towards the user. Thus, a user is able to maintain themselves upright depending on the effort they put in to pushing on the means for enabling a user to move the piston head.

The means for enabling a user to move the piston head through the tube preferably comprises an arm having a handle for grasping by said user.

The tube preferably comprises air therein which is the cheapest, simplest and most effective medium for enabling a user to exercise against. The fluid release opening is preferably adjustable such that varying amounts of air may be released from the tube as required by the user for the particular exercise. The release opening is preferably S adjustable via an electronic control means. The electronic control means is preferably located in or on the handle. This is particularly beneficial for a user as, when in use, the user can adjust the resistance on the fly therefore changing the difficulty of the exercise.

Opening the release opening to a greater degree increases the difficulty of the exercise as a user must push the handle at a greater speed to push themselves upright as a resistance against movement of the handle away from the body is reduced.

The piston is preferably pivotally mounted to a structure via a mounting means. The piston may be formed integrally with the mounting means, providing the advantage that the exercise apparatus is more compact and more aesthetically pleasing.

The structure preferably comprises a support for a user's feet. The structure is preferably movable relative to the ground, and even more preferably pivots relative to the ground.

The angle through which the supports pivots is beneficially approximately 9 0* Furthermore, the support may comprise a substantially semi-circular end profile.

The support preferably further comprises means to temporarily retain said support in a fixed configuration enabling a user to position themselves on the apparatus ready for use.

This is obviously beneficial for safety purposes as a user does not initially have to balance themselves on the apparatus until they are ready to perform the exercise. The means to retain the support in a fixed configuration is preferably controlled by the electronic control means. This is such that when a user is ready to perform the exercise they may be able to activate the apparatus accordingly.

The present invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic side view of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic side view of a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a schematic side view of a preferred exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

According to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention and as indicated in side view only, there are parallel arms 2 having a handle 4 at one end and being pivotally mounted relative to a surface 6 via a hinge means 8. Arrows 10 indicate the direction of movement of the arm 2 relative to the surface 6. Resistance means, generally designated 12 are provided to provide resistance to movement of arm 2 by a user. In a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the resistance means 12 comprises a piston head 14 and cylinder 16 wherein air pressure is used to provide resistance against movement of arm 2. The cylinder 16 is pivotally mounted to surface 6 or an alternative surface via hinge 18 and cylinder 16 first comprises an adjustable aperture therein 20 such that the force required to push the piston head 14 through the cylinder 16 is adjustable.

Increasing the size of the aperture 20 increases the resistance to movement of arm 2 in a direction wherein the piston head 14 is pushed in towards the depth of the cylinder 16.

However, in the opposite direction wherein the piston head 14 is drawn from the cylinder 16 resistance is provided by friction only and is thus relatively easy to move the arm 2. It will be appreciated that the size of the aperture 20 can be adjusted by a variety of mechanisms, such as electronically and in this embodiment a user can pre-progranime a desired exercise routine by controlling the resistance to movement of the arm 2 for example for pre-set time intervals.

In an alternative embodiment, the resistive means may be provided within the hinge 8, again functioning through air pressure and control thereof.

Figure 2 is alternative embodiment of the present invention and utilises an arrangement wherein an arm is pushed against a resistive means and withdrawn in order that the user may perform an exercise.

Like components have been identified with the same reference numerals. In this embodiment the apparatus can be mounted on a wall either pivotally or fixedly. The handle 4 is movable in a direction indicated by arrow 10 towards and away from the wall with a piston head 14 and cylinder 16 acting in the same manner as indicated with respect to the first embodiment of the present invention. Again, release valve 20 enables control of release of air from the cylinder 16.

Figure 3 is a schematic side view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Again, like numerical references have been maintained and this embodiment again comprises an arm 2 having handle 4 at one end, the opposing end being connected to a body via a hinge means 8. The hinge means enables rotation of the arm and handle 4 about the hinge means. In this embodiment of the present invention, the hinge means further comprises a resistive means thereby providing resistance against movement of the arm 2 on the rest position as indicated in Figure 3 to a first configuration as indicated in dashed lines 22. A force must be applied to handle 4 to cause movement from the rest configuration to the first configuration 22 and a further lesser force is required to bring the arm 2 and handle 4 back to the rest position. Additionally provided in this embodiment of the present invention is a pivotable support 24 having a surface 26 onto which a user stands. The support 24 is arranged and configured to pivot such that the user must use the balance to maintain the support 24 in an upright configuration. It is envisaged that such a support 24 may be provided in a large number of alternative configurations and these will be described in detail in due course. The resistive means 12 incorporated into the hinge means 8 may also be of any configuration provided that movement of the arm 2 between the rest and first configuration is more difficult (i.e. there is more resistance) than in moving the arm 2 from the first configuration back to the rest position. However, the use of air pressure is deemed to be the most suitable and this provides an arrangement that is simple and reliable whilst being cheap to manufacture. In this embodiment of the present invention, a control may be provided to enable selective opening of the valve 20 located within the hinge means 8. This control 28 could, in one embodiment, be linked to the handle 4 such that the user can control the resistance to movement of the arm 2 in directions indicted by arrow 10. Alternatively, the control 28 could be remote from the handle 4 which would enable a personal trainer, for example, to control the resistance to movement of the arm 2 in the direction indicated 10. It is also envisaged that the control 28 can be set to a predetermined programme wherein the resistance to movement in direction 10 changes at predetermined periods of time.

When in use, as previously indicated, the user stands on support 24 on surface 26. The user stands between the arms 2 such that a user grasps each handle 4 with one hand. In a third embodiment of the present invention, the arms 2 are connected by hinge means 8 such that the arms 2 move in combination. The user must initially balance such that the support 24 does not rotate uncontrollably, however a means to prevent rotation of the support 24 may be provided and can be removed when a user is ready to begin performing exercises. The means to carry this out could be a wedge or similar and can be physically removed by a user or alternatively could be linked to the control 28 which is arranged to remove such a wedge when a user is ready to begin the exercise. Initially, a user tips their weight forwards on the support 24 such that rotation of the support 24 begins and the user's weight is shifted towards the left side as indicated in Figure 3. In order to prevent the user over rotating and falling off the front of the arrangement, they must push against handles 4 and the associated resistance provided by the resistance means 8. Carrying this action out will result in the weight of the user being pushed back towards the rest position and accordingly the support 24 will also rotate back to that position. As a resistance to movement of the arm 2 from the rest to the first configuration is greater than the resistance to movement of the arm from the first configuration to the rest configuration, exercising in this manner will be enabled. If the resistance to movement of the arm 2 from the rest to the first configuration is relatively strong, the user will find no difficulty in pushing him/herself back to the rest position and completing the exercise easily. However, if the resistance to movement between the rest and first configuration is low, a user will find it necessary to pump the handle between the rest and first configurations in order that the user does not overbalance. It will be appreciated that the same action will be taken with a user behind their body and will exercise an alternative muscle group. The control 28, as previously suggested, can be set at a specific programme such that the resistance to movement from the rest to the first configuration is altered thereby increasing or decreasing the difficulty of the exercise accordingly. This can be controlled by the user when they are exercising and/or be controlled, for example, by a personal trainer. This adds to the enjoyment of the exercise plus increases the workout that may be required for a specific user.

As previously indicated, the support 24 can be applied to a variety of alternative arrangements such as the bottom surface of the support having a plurality of protrusions thereon arranged to connect with a variety of protrusions on the floor such that the support cannot move anywhere except for to and fro relative to the ground. Alternative embodiments are envisaged whereby a seesaw arrangement is utilised or similar.

Additionally, it should be noted that there may be one arm only that branches into an arm for each hand of the user.

The present invention has been described by way of example only and it will be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that there are modifications and variations made to the present invention without departing from the scope of protection afforded by the amended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. An exercise apparatus comprising a piston fixable to a

structure, said piston comprising a piston head and a tube wherein said tube contains a fluid therein and a fluid release opening, said apparatus further comprising means for enabling a user to move said piston head through said tube.
2. An exercise apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said means for enabling a user to move the piston head through the tube comprises an arm having a handle.
3. An exercise apparatus according to any of claims 1 or 2, wherein said tube comprises air therein.
4. An exercise apparatus according to any of claims 1 or 2, wherein said fluid release opening is adjustable such that varying amounts of fluid may be released from the tube as required by the user for the particular exercise.
5. An exercise apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said release opening is adjustable via an electronic control means.
6. An exercise apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said electronic control means is located in or on the handle.
7. An exercise apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein said piston is pivotally mounted to a structure via a mounting means.
8. An exercise apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said piston is formed integrally with said mounting means.
9. An exercise apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein said structure comprises a support for a user's feet.
10. An exercise apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein said structure is movable relative to the ground.
11. An exercise apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said support pivots relative to the ground.
12. An exercise apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said support may comprise a substantially semi-circular end profile.
13. An exercise apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein said support further comprises means to temporarily retain said support in a fixed configuration enabling a user to position themselves on the apparatus ready for use.
14. An exercise apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the means to retain the support in a fixed configuration is controlled by electronic control means.
15. An exercise apparatus as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.