KR101704948B1 - Reformer exercise apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A reformer exercise device having a substantially rectangular frame is disclosed. The rail portion of the frame has an upstanding outer wall, an integral downwardly sloping inner wall, and a hidden outwardly open slot inwardly between the outer and inner walls. A foot bar support assembly movably supported by each outward opening slot supports the foot bar. Each foot bar support assembly has a three-piece slide plate movably supported in the slot, a hook plate fixed to the slide plate, and a foot bar support arm rotatably and slidably secured to the hook plate. A pair of tubular risers, each having an upper roller at the head end of the frame, direct the arm cord end to the cord shrinkage assembly mounted on the carriage. The retraction assembly releases the cord by pivoting either of the shoulder stops toward the foot end of the frame.

Description

[0001] REFORMER EXERCISE APPARATUS [0002]

The present disclosure relates to an exercise device. Specifically, this disclosure is directed to a new and modern design of a reformer kinetic device with a number of unique innovations.

The movement of the physical movement initiated by Joseph Pilates is carried out in a fixed device called a reformer. The traditional reformer has a rectangular wood or metal frame that supports two parallel rails or tracks. Carriages with wheels are mounted on these tracks and are resiliently biased towards one or more elastic members, typically the foot end of the frame, by coil springs. The user sits or lays down on the carriage and pushes the foot support bar at the foot end to move the carriage away from the foot end and toward the foot end. Alternatively, the user can pass the pulley at the head end of the frame and grip the end of a pair of ropes or straps attached to the carriage, and similarly pull the carriage away from the foot end of the frame and toward the foot end.

One important aspect of pilates training is the stability of the core muscle tissue. Exercise that is ideally performed in the reformer is performed carefully by the user who is dedicated to body symmetry and symmetrical body movement and proper upper body alignment during exercise. Often, it is a little difficult for the user to distinguish precisely centered on the reformer and applying the same force to both arms or both legs during the required movement. Also, when it may be required for different movements, the user must either lower from the reformer or the assistant must change the position of the foot support bar. This is at least inconvenient to the user. Furthermore, the user must relocate the user's body on the carriage to restore correct alignment.

The ends of the arm cords are typically filled through the holes of the carriage platform to escape the user's course or onto the sides of the carriage. Thus, the end of the arm cord can be pulled from the bottom under the carriage. The user also has difficulty adjusting the length of the arm cord while lying on the reformer carriage. The user should generally sit upright, adjust the length of the arm cord in the stationary fixture, and then change their position on the carriage surface.

The rails on which the carriage rests are typically horizontal surfaces that collect dust and debris over time, so that the rollers and tracks often have to be cleaned. Furthermore, the user should be careful to ensure that his garments do not span over the rails to prevent the garment from interfering with the operation of the carriage rollers.

Thus, there is a need for a reformer device that is simple to use, easy to use, easy for the user to adjust without falling out of the reformer carriage, and overcomes the aforementioned drawbacks.

A reformer exercise device in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure includes a substantially rectangular frame having a pair of parallel and spaced side rails, a head end, and a foot end. A movable carriage is provided which is supported by the side rail for movement of the carriage between the head end and the foot end. A biasing member, such as one or more coil springs, is connected between the carriage and the foot end of the frame to bias the carriage toward the foot end of the frame. A foot support member such as a foot bar is supported by a side rail portion of the frame.

Each side rail portion of the frame has an upstanding outer wall and an integral horizontal top wall that merges into an inwardly and outwardly sloping inner wall. Each side rail portion has a downwardly extending intermediate wall between the outer and inner walls to support the foot support member. The intermediate wall has a longitudinally extending upper boss and a longitudinally extending lower boss that define between the outwardly opening slots facing the outer wall. Each side rail portion includes a horizontal wall between the inner wall and the intermediate wall.

The intermediate wall has a lower end forming a horizontal track for supporting the carriage. Moreover, this lower end of the intermediate wall also provides a lateral support for the guide rollers on the carriage to guide movement between the head end and the foot end of the frame.

One end of each foot support member is movably supported in an outwardly open slot between an upper boss and a lower boss of the intermediate wall. Furthermore, the intermediate wall comprises a plurality of features, preferably notches, for individual positioning of the foot support members along the length of the side rail members of the frame.

The foot support assembly preferably includes a foot bar. The foot bar is supported at each end by a foot bar support assembly movably supported by each of the outwardly opening slots of the side rail portion of the frame. Each foot bar support assembly includes a three-piece slide plate movably supported in the slot, a hook plate fixed to the slide plate, one end fixed to one foot bar end, And a foot bar support arm having a portion.

The slide plate is a elongated member having opposing ends and each end supports the roller so that it rests on the bottom surface of the outwardly opening slot in the intermediate wall of the side rail of the reformer frame. The slide plate also preferably has at least one roller so as to rest against the upright surface of the intermediate wall in the slot.

The foot bar support arm has a bottom end fixed to one foot bar end. The upper end of the foot bar support arm has an engagement member for selectively engaging the discontinuous features of the hook plate when the foot bar is slid upwardly to rotate about the hook plate. The hook plate has an upper edge and the upper edge has a plurality of discontinuous features in a spaced apart position to selectively engage a portion of the foot bar support arm to position the foot bar at a predetermined angle from the upper surface plane of the reformer frame.

Each discontinuous feature is preferably a notch having a unique shape. Each notch corresponds to a particular angular position of the foot bar relative to the frame. Each hook plate has an L-shaped slot for receiving the engaging member on the foot bar support arm. This L-shaped slot places the foot bar at the level below the top frame surface and provides the user with a convenient carrying handle bar at the foot end of the frame. Preferably, the foot bar support arm has one of the discontinuous features, i.e., a substantially cylindrical pin for detachably engaging one of the notches in the hook plate.

In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a foot bar assembly for use in a reformer exercise device having a generally rectangular frame with parallel sides, head end and foot end, each side having an outwardly open slot extending along at least a portion of the side . The foot bar assembly includes a substantially U-shaped foot bar having a first end and a second end, a elongated slide plate movably supported within each slot, a hook plate secured to each slide plate, And a foot bar support arm that is slidably secured and secured to one of the first and second ends of the foot bar.

In another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a method of forming a substantially rectangular frame for supporting a carriage for movement between a head end and a foot end of a frame on parallel spaced side rail portions of the frame, An apparatus is disclosed in which the head end of the frame has a pair of spaced apart vertical bores formed therein and an arm cord support riser disposed in each bore. Each core support riser includes a hollow cylindrical tube that supports the first roller in the vicinity of the bottom end of the tube, a second roller that is rotatably supported within the upper end of the tube, and a second roller that directs the arm cord about the second roller And includes a nearby guide.

Preferably, in one embodiment, the bottom end of the tube is open to receive a penetrating arm cord, and the top portion includes an upper portion having a dome shape with a through opening for passage of the arm cord out of the tube. The upper portion of the tube preferably has a pair of spaced guide portions adjacent the aperture and the second roller and may also have horizontal guides between the spaced guide portions. In some embodiments, these guides are rollers. The riser tube may further include an inner code guide plate on the first roller to guide the arm cord over the first roller. The riser top is detachable from the riser tube and can be rotatably secured to the riser tube. Moreover, the upper portion may include a pair of spaced guide portions near the opening for smooth passage of the arm cord. In another embodiment, the arm cord can pass through the side of the tube directly below the top roller or pulley wheel. The pair of guide rollers is preferably disposed adjacent the opening through which the arm cord exits the tube. The riser top may again be detached from the riser tube as a carriage assembly.

In another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a reformer motion apparatus including an arm cord shrinkage assembly mounted to a lower surface of a carriage. The shrinkage assembly includes a pair of cord retraction devices each having a stationary frame that supports a rotatable spring biased reel connected to the free end of one of the arm cords, each reel having a toothed lateral rim .

The shrinkage assembly also includes a pair of toothed latch members that are pivotally mounted on the lower surface of the carriage and mechanically coupled together to define one of the ratchet members that are to be engaged with one of the toothed lateral rims The rotation causes the other one of the latch members to be rotated to unengage the toothed rim of the other spring biased reel.

The retraction assembly further includes an actuator coupled to one of the latch members to rotate the latch member into an engaged state and a disengaged state with the teeth rim of the retractile reel. The actuator is preferably resiliently biased to disengage the latch member.

In one embodiment of the reformer exercise device according to the present disclosure, the actuator is incorporated in a pair of spaced apart shoulder stops extending from the upper surface of the carriage. Each shoulder stop is preferably rotatably mounted to the carriage to rotate about a horizontal axis. The actuator may be a elongated pin member extending downwardly from the shoulder stop through the aperture of the carriage and protruding to engage one of the latch members. A pivoting movement, or rotation, about its axis of a shoulder stop by the user towards the foot end of the frame engages the actuator with one of the latch members, which again causes the two latch members to be separated from the toothed lateral rim do. Advantageously, a spring biasing each latch member to engage one of the retraction reels is connected to each latch member.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an arm cord shrinkage kit for retrofitting a conventional reformer exercise device. The components of the kit are configured to attach to the reformer carriage. The kit has a stationary frame for mounting on the underside of the reformer carriage, each frame internally supporting a rotatable spring biased reel connectable to the free end of the arm cord, each reel having a toothed lateral rim , A pair of cord retraction devices; A pair of toothed latch members for pivotally mounting on the underside of the carriage, the latch members being mechanically coupled together such that rotation of one of the latch members that is toot-disengage one of the toothed lateral rims causes the other of the latch members A pair of toothed latch members adapted to be rotatably disengaged from a toothed lateral rim of a spring biased reel; And an actuator engaged with one of the latch members when the shoulder stop is mounted to the reformer carriage.

In another aspect of the reformer exercise device of the present disclosure, the carriage includes an integral adjustable headrest. The carriage includes a substantially rectangular frame, a substantially rectangular plate body portion fixed to the frame, and a substantially trapezoidal headrest plate portion hinged to the body portion.

In another aspect of the reformer exercise device of the present disclosure, the frame preferably includes a replaceable leg located at a corner of the substantially rectangular frame. Each leg has an outer surface shape that is complementary to the shape of the corner. Each leg has a top shape configured to fit within the complementary recess of the bottom surface of the frame. Each leg is a protrusion that is secured to the frame by a single bolt passing vertically through the leg into the corresponding boss of the frame. The bottom end of each leg is a lamination of one device on top of the other device through the outer corner of the head end of the reformer and the engagement of each footpad at the outer corner of the upright platform at the foot end of the reformer into the foot pad recess And a foot pad for facilitating the operation.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, an elastic resisting member may be secured between the foot bar assembly and the head end of the reformer frame. When the foot bar assembly is free to move along the side rails of the frame, the foot bar assembly is resiliently biased toward the head end of the reformer frame. In this configuration, the foot bar assembly can be grasped by the user's hand while sitting on or lying on the carriage, and the foot bar assembly can be moved to the carriage < RTI ID = 0.0 >Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > a < / RTI > An elastic resisting member may alternatively be secured between the foot bar assembly and the foot end of the frame to facilitate similar movement from the foot end of the frame by pulling the foot bar assembly toward the carriage.

In light of the following detailed description, the present disclosure will be better understood and its objects will become apparent to those skilled in the art. The description refers to the accompanying drawings. In the drawing:
1 is a perspective view of a reformer exercise device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 2 is an individual perspective view of the frame of the reformer shown in Figure 1 in accordance with the present disclosure;
3 is a cross-sectional view of one side rail member of the frame taken along line 3-3 of FIG.
4 is a partial perspective view of the foot end of the reformer according to the present disclosure;
5 is an individual perspective view of a foot bar used in the reformer exercise device shown in Fig.
6 is an outer perspective view of a right rail member foot bar according to the present disclosure;
7 is an inner perspective view of the right rail member foot bar support assembly shown in FIG.
Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of the left rail member taken along line 3-3 of Figure 2 showing the arrangement of the internal foot bar support assembly.
Figure 9 is a cross-sectional view of the reformer exercise device shown in Figure 1 taken along line 9-9 in Figure 1;
10 is a partial perspective view of the head end of the reformer exercise device shown in Fig.
11 is an individual perspective view of the lower pulley wheel assembly for the riser of the head end of the apparatus shown in Fig.
12 is an exploded perspective view of the carriage of the reformer exercise device shown in Fig. 1 according to the present disclosure; Fig.
Figure 13 is a bottom view of the head end of the carriage shown in Figure 1 in accordance with the present disclosure showing a cord retraction mechanism latch member associated with a cord retraction reel.
Figure 14 is a bottom view of the head end of the carriage as in Figure 13 with the latch member separated from the cord retraction reel.
15 is a cross-sectional view of the carriage taken along line 15-15 in Fig.
16 is a bottom perspective view of a carriage having a cord retraction system in accordance with a variant of the present disclosure;
Figure 17 is a bottom view as in Figure 17 showing the cord retraction system in the unlocked position.
18 is a bottom perspective view of the head end of an alternative carriage in accordance with the present disclosure;
19 is a side view of the head end of the carriage shown in Fig. 18;
20 is a side view of the head end of the carriage shown in Fig. 18 with the headrest in the first raised position.
Figure 21 is a side view of the head end of the carriage shown in Figure 18 with the headrest in the second raised position.
22 is a head end perspective view of an alternative reformer in accordance with the present disclosure;
Figure 23 is an exploded, internal, exploded view of the head end assembly of the alternate reformer shown in Figure 22;
Figure 24 is an exploded perspective view of an alternative reformer foot end assembly shown in Figure 22;
25 is a cross-sectional view of one of the two frame side rails of the alternative reformer shown in FIG.
26 is an individual assembled perspective view of the risers used in the reformer shown in Fig.
27 is an exploded perspective view of the riser shown in Fig.
Figure 28 is a partial cross-sectional view of the riser shown in Figure 26 installed in the head end socket of the reformer shown in Figure 22;
29 is an inner perspective view of the foot bar support assembly used in the reformer shown in FIG.
Figure 30 is an outer perspective view of the foot bar support assembly shown in Figure 29;
31 is an individual bottom perspective view of the carriage frame assembly of the carriage shown in FIG.
32 is a bottom perspective view of the support pad removed from the carriage shown in FIG. 22;
33 is an individual perspective view of a shoulder rest used in the reformer shown in Fig.
Fig. 34 is an exploded top view of the carriage of the reformer shown in Fig. 22;
Fig. 35 is an inverted view of the carriage removed from the reformer shown in Fig. 22 showing a code shrink system according to a modification.
Figure 36 is a bottom plan view of the head end of the carriage shown in Figure 35 where the cord retraction system is in the cord lock position.
Figure 37 is a view as in Figure 36 where the cord retraction system is in the cord unlock position.
38 is a perspective view of the head end of the carriage in a position where the headrest is lowered.
Figure 39 is a perspective view of the pair of reformers shown in Figure 22 in a stacked form for storage.
40 is a perspective view of the lower surface of the head end of the carriage showing a riser and a shoulder stop ready to be installed in the storage position as shown in Fig.
Figure 41 is a perspective view of the reformer shown in Figure 22 including an optional vertical trapeze tower and mat conversion in accordance with the present disclosure;
42 is a perspective view of the trapezoidal tower socket aligned with respect to the end of one side rail of the reformer shown in Fig. 41 for connection to the head end protrusion;
Figure 43 is a cross-sectional view of the tower swinging tower socket shown in Figure 41;
Figure 44 is a partial cutaway view of one of the riser bosses at the head end of the reformer shown in Figure 41 showing an alternative lower pulley mount installed therein.
Figure 45 is a perspective view of the reformer as in Figure 22 with an alternative vertical trapeze tower and mat switch according to the present disclosure;
46 is a perspective view of a handgrip end of an arm cord for use in a reformer according to the present disclosure;
Figure 47 is a perspective view as in Figure 46 with the handle attached to the arm cord according to the present disclosure;
Fig. 48 is a perspective view of the reformer shown in Fig. 22 in which the jump board is provided at the foot end of the reformer frame.
49 is an enlarged vertical partial sectional view of one of the two posts supporting the jump board installed at the foot end of the reformer frame;

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a more thorough disclosure. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the disclosed technology can be practiced without these specific details. In some circumstances, well-known features may not be described in detail so as not to obscure the disclosed technology.

A perspective view of one embodiment of the reformer exercise device 100 is shown in FIG. Apparatus 100 includes a generally rectangular frame 102 having a head end 104 and a foot end 106. The ends 104, 106 are separated by a pair of rail members 108. The carriage 110 is movably supported on the rail member 108 for back and forth movement between the ends 104 and 106 of the frame 102. [

A foot bar (111) is positioned near the foot end (106) of the frame (102). The foot bar 111 is supported by a rail member 108 as will be described in detail below. The head end 104 of the frame 102 preferably supports a pair of spaced apart upright arm cord retention rails 112 that are removable. These risers 112 direct the arm cord 114 to the cord end loop 116 or grip for the user's hand to use for various motions from the carriage 110. When not in use, the end loop 116 is conveniently located at the shoulder stop 118, as shown in FIG. The carriage 110 is resiliently biased toward the foot end 116 of the frame 102 by one or more resilient members such as a spring 120.

An individual perspective view of the frame 102 is shown in Fig. The head end 104, the foot end 106 and the side rail member 108 each have a similar outer surface shape that smoothly merges together. This configuration includes an outer upright wall 122 that merges with a horizontal top wall 124 that merges with the downwardly and inwardly sloping inner walls 126. The inner wall 126 is incorporated into the vertical skirt portion 128. Thus, the entire frame 102 includes an upstanding outer wall 122, a downwardly and inwardly inclined inner wall 126, and a vertical skirt portion 128.

The head end 104 and foot end 106 have a curved outer end 107 curved to the side rail member 108 and smoothly mating with the side rail member. The head end 104 further includes a boss for receiving the riser 112. The foot end 106 includes an anchor support plate 121 that spans between the curved ends 107 to support the end of the biasing member or spring 120 to bias the carriage 110 as described above. .

Upper support legs 129 of a complementary form extend downwardly from each curved end 107. These support legs 129 can be removed to place the ends 104, 106 of the frame 102 on a flat surface, such as a floor. The support legs 129 can be interchanged with longer or shorter support legs to change the height of the apparatus 100 over the bottom support surface.

A cross-sectional view of the side rail member 108 is shown in Fig. Each rail member 108 is preferably an aluminum protrusion having the same cross-sectional shape. The rail member 108 has a horizontal upper wall 124 and then a downwardly sloping inner wall 126 and then an outer upright wall 122 which merges into the vertical skirt portion 128. The end members 104 and 106 have the same outer shape but are different internally from the side rail member 108.

3, each side rail member 108 has a vertical intermediate wall 130 between the slanted inner wall 126 and the upstanding outer wall 122. As shown in FIG. The intermediate wall 130 has an outwardly extending longitudinally extending boss 132 and a longitudinally extending boss 134 directed outwardly of the lower portion parallel to the upper boss 132. The intermediate wall 130, the upper boss 132, and the lower boss 134 together define a slot 136 that opens outwardly therebetween. The slot 136 accommodates and supports one of the foot bar support assemblies therein, as described in detail below. Between the intermediate wall 130 and the sloping inner wall 126 is an upper horizontal support wall 138. The support wall 138 extends the length of the rail member 108 and provides torsional stiffness to the structure of the rail member 108. The horizontal bottom 140 of the intermediate wall 130 serves as a support for a set of wheels supporting the carriage 110. The top wall 138 also serves as a top guide for the carriage support wheel on the rail member 108. The intermediate wall 130 between the top wall 138 and the bottom wall 140 and the skirt 128 serves as a side guide for the carriage 110. [

The upper boss 132 preferably has a vertical portion 142 extending downwardly parallel to the intermediate wall 130. This vertical portion 142 is used to provide a lateral support for the foot support assembly, which will be described in more detail below. Furthermore, the lower boss 134 may include a downwardly extending index rail 144. Alternatively, the index rail 144 may be installed along the length of the rail member 108 by an individually replaceable metal index rail supported within the boss 134.

4 is a perspective view of the foot end 106 of the frame 102. Fig. The foot end (106) supports an anchor plate (121) for receiving one or more free ends of the spring (120). A plurality of spaced hourglass spooled pins 148 are positioned to receive the loops on spring 120 to fasten springs 120 to foot end 106 of frame 102, respectively. Each of these fins 148 is preferably tapered upwardly and inwardly at a first angle from the center axis of the pin toward the waist from its base and is then tapered when the free end of the spring disposed on the pin 148 is under tension And is tapered outward at a second angle larger than the first angle so as to be reliably held at the waist of the pin 148. [

Each corner of the frame 102 defined by the end portions 104 and 106 includes a curved outer side wall 122, a top wall 124 and an inwardly sloping inner wall 126. Preferably, the inner wall 126 terminates in an upstanding lower skirt portion 128. The foot end 106 also includes two spaced apart tubular foot support bosses 146 formed therein. These foot support bosses 146 are used to support a flat, nearly rectangular foot platform (not shown), often referred to as a "jump board. &Quot; The jump board is a rectangular plate having two spaced parallel support posts that are removably fitted within the foot support bosses 146.

The foot bar 111 shown in Fig. 1 will now be described in detail with reference to Figs. 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. Foot bar 111 is a portion of the foot support assembly that is not visible in FIG. This foot bar 111 is shown separately in Fig. The foot bar 111 has a central horizontal foot support 150 between two parallel leg portions 152. Each leg portion 152 terminates in a connection which is fastened to one of the two foot bar support assemblies 170.

6 and 7, the connection 154 is bolted or otherwise fastened to the bottom end 156 of the elongated foot bar support arm 158. The arms 158 best seen in FIG. 6 are elongated flat plate members having engaging pins 161 that protrude outwardly from the upper end 160 of the arm 158. The arm 158 extends radially parallel to the leg portion 152 of the foot bar 111 and is spaced apart from where the connecting portion 154 of the foot bar 111 is attached to the arm 158, (162).

The foot support assembly of the reformer 100 shown in FIG. 1 includes a left foot bar support assembly 170, a foot bar 111, and a right foot bar support assembly 170. 6 and 7 are opposite perspective views of the right assembly of the foot bar support assembly 170 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Each leg 152 of the foot bar 111 is supported by one of the foot bar support assemblies 170. 6, the assembly 170 includes a foot bar support arm 158 to which a foot bar 111 is attached, a slider portion 172 that rests within a slot 136 of the side rail member 108, And a hook plate 174 fixed to the slide portion 172 firmly. The hook plate 174 has a series of features, preferably slots or notches 176, 178, 180, 182, 184, which are spaced along the upper edge of the hook plate 174. The pins 161 protruding outwardly from the upper end 160 of the foot bar support arm 158 are fitted into the notch of one of these notches 176-184 to engage the foot bar 111 with the frame of the reformer 100 In particular at a desired angular position relative to the base 102.

The foot bar support arm 158 is slidably and pivotally attached to the hook plate 174 by bolts 186 and a square bushing 188. A bushing 188 rests between and parallel sides of the recess 190 of the arm 158 about the pivot slot 162. Since the foot bar 111 is fixed to the arm 158, when the user lifts the foot bar 111, the support arm 158 ascends or descends along the slot 162. Again, the pin 161 protruding outwardly from the upper end 160 of the support arm 158 is raised from one of the slots along the upper edge of the hook plate 174. When lifted in this manner, the user moves the foot bar 111 toward the other one of the slots 176, 178, 180, 182 or 184 to move the pivot bolt 186 to the center . When the foot bar 111 is lowered, the pin 161 slides down in one of the slots to fix the foot bar 111 in place.

The end slots or notches 176 and 184 have particular importance in this embodiment. The foot bar 111 is rotated below the top surface of the frame 102 and past the foot end of the frame 102 when the foot bar 111 has a pin 161 positioned in the slot 176. [ In this position, the foot bar 111 can be used as a handle for raising the foot end of the reformer 100. To ensure that the foot bar 111 is not separated from the slot 176, the distal end of the slot 176 is hooked upwards, as can be seen in Figure 6, (Not shown). To separate the foot bar 111 from this slot 176, the foot bar 111 is urged downward (away from the foot end) and pulled rearward to align the pin 161 with the widened slot entrance . The foot bar 111 may then be rotated up and lifted out of the slot 176 to be displaced in another slot of the slots 178, 180, 182, 184.

The forefoot slot 184 of the hook plate 174 is used to position the foot support assembly including the respective assembly 170 and the foot bar 111 together to translate along the rail member 108. 6, the arm 158 is positioned such that the pin 161 is positioned at a forward end (toward the head end 104) of the hook plate 174 And is rotated clockwise about the bolt 186 until it engages the projecting surface 192. In this position, a shoulder 194 on the support arm 158 engages a latch pin 196 that protrudes through the slot 198 of the hook plate 174. The latch pin 196 protrudes through the hook plate 174 from the latch arm 200 best seen in FIG. When the foot bar 111 is lowered, the shoulder 194 of the arm 158 urges the latch pin 196 downward.

The latch arm 200 is a elongated bar having one end rotatably fastened to the inner surface of the hook plate 174. [ The latch arm 200 can rotate in a plane parallel to the inner surface of the hook plate 174. The other end of the latch arm 200 has a latch portion 202 that engages an index feature of complementary shape in the rail member 108 to latch the assembly 170 at a selected position along the rail member 108 . The latch arm 200 is spring biased upward through the spring member 201 to hold the latch portion 202 of the latch arm 200 engaged with the index feature of the index rail 144 in the rail member 108. [ do.

The foot bar 111 is positioned by the pin 161 in the slot 184 and when the foot bar 111 is pushed downward to fully seat the pin 161 in the bottom of the slot 184, The pin 196 is also urged downward to move the latch arm 200 to rotate and disengage the latch portion 202 from the index feature of the index rail 144 of the rail member 108. The foot bar 111 can be moved toward or away from the foot end 106 of the frame 102 through the roller 206 when the latch portion 202 is separated from the rail member 108 . In fact, the foot bar 111 can be fully moved towards the opposite end of the rail member 108 if desired.

The side assembly 172 is best seen in the view of FIG. 7, which is an inner perspective view of the foot bar support assembly 170 shown in FIG. 6 supported within the right side rail member 108. The slide assembly 172 includes a three-piece slide plate 204 that is preferably bolted or otherwise secured to the hook plate 174. The slide plate 204 is slidably mounted on the rails 108 in a state in which the hook plate 174 and the adjacent foot bar support arm 158 are disposed within the free / open space between the outer wall 122 and the intermediate wall 130 of the rail member 108. [ Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > 108 < / RTI > It is understood that the other mirror foot support assembly 170 is disposed within the other (left) rail member 108.

A cross-sectional view of the left rail member 108, as in FIG. 3, is shown in FIG. 8 with the left footbar support assembly 170 resting within the slot 136. All components of the assembly 170 are disposed between the outer wall 122 of the rail 108 and the intermediate wall 130. Thus, the foot bar support assembly 170 is completely hidden from the view of the user sitting on the carriage 110. It is understood that the right foot bar support assembly 170 of the right rail member 108 is similarly configured. Thus, the components of the assembly 170 are interchangeable or mirror-like. For example, the foot bar support arm 158 and the hook plate 174 are similar. The rest of the components of assembly 170 may be interchangeable.

7, the slide plate 204 is supported within the slot 136 by front and rear support rollers 206 that roll along the bottom surface of the slot 136. As shown in FIG. A guide roller that rotates about a vertical axis through the slide plate 204 is preferably mounted adjacent each support roller 206. The guide rollers 208 are configured to guide the support assembly 170 and thus the foot bar 111 when the rail member 108 is translated (i.e., rolled) back and forth along the rail member 108 Rolling along the inner side.

The support roller 206 is preferably a bearing-holding polymer wheel that is rotatably supported on a vertical axis. The polymer wheel is sized to fit within the slot 136 and roll smoothly. The guide roller 208 may be a nylon or other polymer roller supported by a vertical axle within the slide plate 204.

An additional cross-sectional view of the left rail member 108 of the apparatus 100 as in FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. 9 taken along line 9-9 of FIG. This figure shows a wheeled support structure for the carriage 100 as well as a foot support assembly 170 that is supported within the rail member 108. Specifically, the substantially rectangular carriage 110 is positioned adjacent one of four support wheels 210, one at each corner, preferably along one side of the carriage 110, and includes an intermediate wall 130, a radial inner wall 126 The skirt portion 128 and the bottom portion 140 of the intermediate wall 130 of the rail member 108. The carriage guide wheel 212 has two carriage guide wheels 212, The support wheel 210 rolls at the bottom portion 140.

The guide wheel 212 is positioned between the skirt portion 128 of the intermediate wall 130 and the inner wall 126 to maintain tracing of the carriage 110 as it moves between the foot end 106 and the head end of the frame 102 Rolling. Because of the guiding form of the rail member 108, only two guide wheels 212 along a single side are required to guide the movement of the carriage 110. The guide wheel 212 is disposed in only one of the rail members 108. However, alternative forms of carriage 110 may be provided with three or four guide wheels 212.

1, the support for the carriage 110 and the support for the foot bar 111 are provided by the structure below the side rail member 108 and are supported in the side rail member, It is hidden from outer vision. This structure provides a clean, unobtrusive appearance to the reformer device 100 and minimizes the surface area over which dust can be collected over time. Furthermore, a "J" shaped indicator member 214 is fastened to one or both of the slide plates 172 to provide direct footbar position feedback to the user of the exercise device 100. The distal tip 216 of the indicator 214 extends upwardly around the bottom edge and outside the wall 122 of the side rail member 108 to provide an indication of the position of the foot support assembly to the user of the reformer 100 . Corresponding markings (not shown) may be provided along the outer wall 122 for the user to use to position the foot bar 111 at a preselected location along the frame 102.

The notch 178 of the hook plate 174 is used to place the foot bar 111 at the lowest position above the frame 102. [ The notch 180 places the foot bar 111 at a mid-height position above the frame 102. The notch 182 corresponds to the substantially vertical foot bar 111 and thus the highest position on the frame 102. An additional notch may alternatively be provided to facilitate additional footbar positions. However, low, medium, and high positions appear to be sufficient for most users of device 100.

A low friction layer 218 (shown in Figure 6) of polymer sheet material is secured to the outer surface of the hook plate 174 between the hook plate 174, 174 and the support arm 158. This low friction layer reduces any friction between the arm and the plate during rotation of the foot bar 111 between the notches 176, 178, 180, 182, 184. Alternatively, the low friction layer 218 may be attached to the inner surface of the arm 158. In addition, the low friction layer 218 may optionally be attached to both of these opposing surfaces.

The structure of the foot support assembly may be different from those specifically illustrated and described. For example, the rollers 206, 208 may be replaced by a sheet of low friction material to allow the slide plate 204 to slide easily along the slot 136. [ The shape of the support arm 158, the hook plate 174, and the slide plate 172 may be different from those of the illustrated exemplary embodiment. Additional other mechanisms may be used to engage and disengage the assembly 170 with the features of the rail member 108 of the frame 102.

Referring again to Figure 1, at the head end 104 of the reformer device 100 there are two spaced apart arms 114 that direct the arm cord 114 from the carriage to the head end 104 and then to the arm cord end loop 116 Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > 112 < / RTI > Referring now to an enlarged perspective view of one of the risers 112 at the head end 104 shown in Figure 10, each of these risers 112 is adjacent to a respective curved end 107 of the head end 104 And a lower pulley wheel assembly 220 fastened within tubular riser boss 222 formed therein. Each riser 112 also includes a hollow tubular body 224 having a bottom end that fits within the tubular riser boss 222. The upper end portion 228 of the riser tubular body 224 has a circular roller head 230. The roller head 230 includes a tubular body 232 which is fitted to the tubular body 224 or formed integrally with the tubular body. The tubular body 232 has a elongated hole 234 through its side surface. A pair of guide rollers 236 aligned in the vertical direction is mounted on the head 230 at both sides of the hole 234. [ A horizontal cord pulley wheel or roller 238 is mounted in the tubular body 232 at the rear of the hole 234 and laterally across the tubular body.

The lower pulley wheel assembly 220 is shown separately in the perspective view of FIG. The lower pulley wheel assembly 220 has a flanged cylindrical body 240 which is fastened to the bottom of the boss 222. A pulley wheel 242 journalled in the horizontal direction and a tilted code guide disc 244 are supported in the cylindrical body 240. The guide disc 244 is positioned within the tubular body 240 on the wheel 242 at an angle of about 45 degrees. A hole 246 is provided in the disc 244 along its lower edge. This hole 246 is oriented just above the periphery of the pulley wheel 242 so that the free end of the arm cord 114, which is lowered into the riser 112 through the hole 234 of the head assembly 230, And through the tubular body 224 and through the hole 246 and past the pulley wheel 242. Thereafter, the user can grasp the free end of the cord 114 and secure the cord to the carriage 110 as will be described in detail below.

The head assembly 230 may be fixed to the tubular body 224 or may be a bearing supported on the top so as to be freely rotatable about a vertical axis via the riser 112. [ Each of the guide rollers adjacent to the hole 234 can be mounted on a supported bearing such that a stationary vertical pin or otherwise the cord 114 can be pulled through the hole 234 with minimal resistance or friction. The bottom or bottom pulley wheel 242 is oriented so that its axis is perpendicular to the rail member 108 since the movement of the carriage 110 is always toward or away from the head end 104 of the frame 102 .

An exploded perspective view of the carriage 110 is shown separately in Fig. The carriage 110 includes a generally rectangular frame 250, a rectangular support platform 252, a padded upper platform 254, and a pair of shoulder stops 118. The frame 250 has a resin side end plate 260 fixed to both the upright side support plate 258 and the side support plate 258 and a vertical spring support plate 262. Both of these plates 258, 260, 262 are also secured to the underside of the support platform 252 to provide a rigid carriage structure. The spring support plate 262 supports one end of each biasing spring 120. The other end of each spring 120 may be detachably fastened to the anchor pin 148 to alter the elastic bias, i.e., the spring tension, between the carriage 110 and the foot end 106 of the frame 102. The side support plates 258 support the platforms 252 and 254, respectively, to provide a mounting flange for the support wheel 210 and the guide wheel 212. The head end plate 260 has a pair of spaced apart through apertures 264 that serve as a guide for the arm cord (not shown in FIG. 12).

The support platform 252 has a pair of shoulder stop supports 266 that are fastened to its upper surface. Each of these supports 266 has a vertical bore 268 therethrough and supports therein a cross pin 270 (shown in Figure 15) for fastening the stem 272 of the shoulder stop 118 to the carriage 110 do. The bore 268 extends through the support 266 and through the support platform 252.

15 is a partial vertical cross-sectional view of the carriage 110 having a pad-type upper platform 254 not shown. As can be seen in this figure, the cross pin 270 acts as a pivot for the shoulder stop stem 272. A biasing device 274 such as a flexible rubber tube positioned against the stem 272 provides a spring force against the stem 272 so that the stem 272 is oriented vertically and coplanar with the left side of the bore 268 . However, when the user pulls the upper end of the shoulder stop 118 toward the foot end of the frame 102, the stop rotates about the cross pin 270 (as shown) to bias the bias device 274 And urges the bottom end 276 of the stem 272 toward the head end of the frame 102 (to the right in FIG. 15).

A bottom view of the head end of the carriage 110 is shown in Figs. 13 and 14. Fig. These two figures illustrate the structure of the cord retraction mechanism 280 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. The arm code 144 is not shown for clarity in this figure. The cord retraction mechanism 280 includes a spring biased reel housing 282 secured to the support plate 252 for each cord 114, a spring biased cord reel 282 rotatably supported within the housing 282, And a toothed plate latch arm 286 rotatably coupled to the underside of the support plate 252 adjacent the reel housing 282.

As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, two housings 282 of the cord retracting mechanism 280 are mounted side by side relative to the lower surface of the platform 252. The two latch arms 286 are preferably plate members fixed for rotation about the pivot pin 288 near the reel housing 282 so as to be rotatable in the plane of the lower surface of the support platform. Each latch arm 286 is a elongated plate-like body having preferably a toothed end 290 and an opposing connecting end 292. The latch arms 286 are preferably mirror images of one another so that the opposite connecting ends 292 of each latch arm plate 286 are movably engaged with one another to couple the latch arms 286 together under the platform 252 .

The toothed ends 290 of each latch arm 286 engage corresponding notches in the features in the rim of adjacent cord reels 284 of adjacent reel housings 282. [ The toothed end 290 of each latch arm 286 also has a hook 294 that engages the bottom end 276 of the stem 272 of the shoulder stop 118. Figure 13 shows the shoulder stop 118 in its normal position so that the bottom end 276 of the stem 272 is not engaged with the hook 194 of either latch arm 286. One or more springs (not shown) are used to bias both latch arms 286 into engagement with the reel 284. When the arm 286 is in this position, the arm cord 114 can not be retracted or extend from the reel 284. The arm cord is locked.

Figure 14 shows the configuration when the left bottom end 276 of the stem 272 of the right shoulder stop 118 engages the hook 294 of the left latch arm 286. [ This causes the latch arm 286 to be rotated clockwise about the pin 288 to pull the toothed end 290 to disengage the left reel 284 in Fig. At the same time, the clockwise rotation of the left latch arm 286 causes a counterclockwise rotation of the right latch arm 286 through the connected connection end 292. This rotation similarly causes the toothed end 290 of the right latch arm 286 to be rotated to disengage its adjacent reel 284. Thus, when a user pulls a shoulder stop 118 toward the foot end 106 of the frame 102, both latch arms 286 are disengaged from the reel 284, allowing the user to pull either one or both To adjust the arm cord length. Upon release of the shoulder stop 118, the latch arm 286 re-engages the reel 284 to lock the reel and thereby the arm cord 114 into the carriage 110. [

A retrofitted arm cord retraction mechanism kit for a conventional reformer is implemented in accordance with the present disclosure. Such a kit may include suitable installation instructions, two reel housings 282 with a closed arm cord reel 284, a pair of latch arms 286, a replacement shoulder stop 118, two shoulder stop supports 266, And a pair of pivot pins 288 for fixing the latch arms 286 to the carriage.

Figures 16 and 17 illustrate an alternative cord retraction mechanism 300 mounted under the carriage 110 in accordance with the present disclosure. The arm code 114 is not shown in this figure for clarity. The cord retracting mechanism 300 is mounted under the support plate 252 to rotate about the horizontal axle 304 supported from the support plate 252 between the bracket 306 and the carriage frame side support plate 258 in this embodiment A spring-biased cord reel 302 mounted on each cord 114. The spring- The cord reel 302 has a band bending portion 308 and a cord support portion 310. One end of the cord 114 (not shown) is fixed to the cord support 310 of the reel 302 and wound around it. As shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the two reels 302 of the cord retracting mechanism 300 are rotatably mounted side by side below the lower surface of the platform 252.

A cable 312 is wound around the band bending portion 308 of each reel 302 with one end fixed to the support plate 252 and the other end fixed to one end of the pair of transverse lever arms 314. The other end 320 of each lever arm 314 is positioned to engage the bottom end 276 of one of the shoulder stops 118, as in the previously described embodiment.

Similar to the previously described embodiment of the retraction mechanism 280, the two lever arms 314 are preferably separate members that are each fixed to rotate about a separate pivot pin 322, and a common pin 324, And rotated about pins 322 and 324 in a plane parallel to the underside of support platform 252. In this way,

During normal reformer operation, the end 318 of each lever arm 314 is under tension by a spring 326. This spring 326 pulls the lever 312 arm 314 toward the head end of the carriage 110 and thereby pulling the cable 312 around the band bending portion 308 of the reel 302 Thereby preventing the reel 302 from rotating. Both of the lever arms 314 are pivoted to the pivot pins 322 and 324 when the user on the reformer 100 is pulling (tilting) one of the shoulder stops 118 toward the foot end 106 of the reformer frame 102. [ So as to release the tension of the brake cable 312 as shown in Fig. Thus, when the braking is released, the user can withdraw more cords 114 or allow the inner spring of reel 302 to rotate reel 302 to wind elongated cords 114. When the user releases the shoulder stop 118 the spring 326 pulls the cable 312 again to stop the rotation of the reel 302 and thereby secure the cord 114 to the carriage 110. [

Again, a retrofitted arm cord retraction mechanism kit for a conventional reformer is also implemented in accordance with this disclosure for an alternative retraction system 300. Such a kit includes two shrink reels 302, an axle 304 and bracket 306, a band brake cable 312, a pair of transverse lever arms 314, a spring 326, a replacement shoulder stop 118, Two shoulder stop support portions 266 and a pair of pivot pins 322 for securing the lever arm 314 to the carriage 110 and appropriate installation instructions.

In an optional configuration of the reformer carriage 110 according to the present disclosure, an adjustable headrest can be incorporated into the structure. A partial bottom view of the head end portion of this modified example of the carriage 110 is shown in Figs. 18, 19, 20 and 21. Fig. In this embodiment, on top of the carriage frame 250, the support plate 252 has a trapezoidal extension 350 extending toward the head end of the frame 102. The padded top plate 254 has the same overall shape as the first embodiment shown in Fig. 12, but with the lateral hinge 356 below the padding near the shoulder stop 118, And is separated into a rest portion 354.

An adjustable headrest support plate 358 is secured to the support plate 252 below the headrest portion 354. The extension 350 preferably has a perforated elongated vertical slot 357 that is centered between the sides of the extension 350. The support plate 358 includes therein a transverse channel 360 that supports an L-shaped headrest adjustment rod 362 sandwiched between the channel 360 and the extension 350. [ The rod 362 is attached with a cam block 364 extending through the slot 357. Rotation of the handle portion of the rod 362 causes the cam block 364 to rotate relative to the hinged head rest portion 354. [ When the cam block 364 is rotated by the rotation of the rod 362, the headrest portion 354 is moved between the positions shown in Figs. 19 to 21. In particular, Figure 19 shows the headrest portion 354 in the down position. Figure 20 shows the headrest portion 354 in a first raised position where the rod 362 is rotated about 90 degrees counterclockwise. Fig. 21 shows the headrest portion in a second raised position where the rod 362 is further rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise. In this embodiment, cam block 364 provides three stable postures. 16 and 17, the headrest adjusting rod (not numbered) is shown as having two handle ends, not just one, as in Figs. 18-21. Other configurations within the scope of this disclosure are also suitable. For example, the cam block 364 may be smoothly curved without a flat portion relative to a particular headrest height, and the rod 362 may be configured to provide a friction hold so that the headrest portion 354 can be maintained at any desired height Lt; / RTI > Alternatively, the cam block may be configured to have four or more flat zones, each corresponding to a different elevation height.

A perspective view of another embodiment of the reformer exercise device according to the present disclosure is shown in Fig. The reformer exercise device 400 has a substantially rectangular frame 402 with a head end 404 and a foot end 406. The ends 404, 406 are spaced apart by a pair of rail members 408. The carriage 410 is movably supported on the rail member 408 for back and forth movement between the ends 404,406 of the frame 402. [

A foot bar 411 is positioned near the foot end 406 of the frame 402. This foot bar 411 is supported by a rail member 408 as will be described in detail below. The head end 404 of the frame 402 preferably supports a pair of spaced apart upright arm cord retention rails 412 that are removable. These risers 412 direct the arm cord 414 to the cord end loop 416 or grip for the user's hand to use for various motions from the carriage 110. When not in use, end loop 416 may be conveniently located on shoulder stop 418, as shown in Fig. The carriage 410 is resiliently biased toward the foot end 416 of the frame 402 by one or more resilient members such as a spring 420 (see Figure 35).

The outside of the frame 402 has the same shape as the frame 102 shown in Fig. The head end 404, the foot end 406 and the side rail member 408 each have a similar outer surface shape that smoothly merges together.

An individual inner perspective view of the head end assembly 404 is shown in FIG. The head end assembly includes an end protrusion 500 having a leg portion 502 and a horizontal stepped support plate 421. As in the first embodiment, the outer shape of the protrusion 500 includes an outer upstanding wall 422 that merges with a horizontal top wall 424 that merges with the downwardly and inwardly inclined inner wall 426. The inner wall 426 is incorporated into the vertical skirt portion 428. The vertical skirt portion 428 engages the horizontal stepped support plate 421.

Both the head end 404 and the foot end 406 have an outer end plate 407 that mates with the side rail member 408 and is attached to the side rail member via an alignment pin 409 and a threaded connection (not shown) . The protrusion 500 of the head end 404 further includes a vertical tubular boss 506 adjacent the curved corner to receive the riser 412. [ A pair of threaded hand bolts 413 inserted from below secure the riser 412 within the bosses 506. An upright platform 415 is fixed on the support plate on the stepped support plate 421.

Upper support legs 429 of a complementary shape extending downwardly from each curved end of the protrusion 500 extend. These support legs 429 are used to place the ends 404, 406 of the frame 402 on a flat surface such as a floor. The support legs 429 can be interchanged with longer or shorter support legs to change the height of the device 400 on the bottom support surface. The gripping strip 417 is fixed to the outer lower edge of the outer wall 407 of the projection 500 to provide a round hand gripping edge for easily conveying the head end of the reformer 400. [

24 is a perspective view of the foot end assembly 406 of the frame 402. FIG. The foot end assembly 406 is another projection 500 having a leg portion 502, a boss 506 and a horizontal stepped support plate 421. Two rows of anchor pins 448 in the form of spools are secured to the plate 421. These pins 448 receive and retain the loops on one end of the spring 420 so that the spring 420 is engaged with the foot end of the frame 402 while the other end of the spring 420 is secured to the carriage 410. [ (406). Each of these fins 448 preferably tapers upwardly and inwardly at a first angle from the central axis of the pin toward the waist from its base and then tapers outwardly at a second angle greater than the first angle, 448 are securely held at the waist of the pin 448 when the free end of the spring is placed under tension. This second angle is preferably at least twice the first angle.

The foot support boss 506 is a vertical tube formed in the protrusion 500. Each boss 506 receives a yoke 508 that fits over the top of the boss 506. A rectangular upright platform plate 423 is pinned onto the yoke 508. Finally, the tubular receiving portion 510 is inserted through the hole of the plate 423 and fitted into the boss 506 to fix the plate 423 to the projection 500. [ A set of bolts 512 secure each receptacle 510, plate 423, and yoke 508 to the boss 506. The receiving portion 510 accommodates legs of a detachable flat jump board platform (not shown).

A cross-sectional view of the side rail member 408 is shown in Fig. Each rail member 408 is preferably an aluminum extrusion assembly having the same cross-sectional shape. In this particular reformer embodiment 400, the rail member 408 is a composite protrusion formed by two separate protruding portions: the interior 417 and the exterior 419, which are joined together by the rivets 514. This configuration of the side rail member 408 is particularly advantageous for at least two reasons. First, such a configuration is easy to extrude two distinct protrusions that are later to be combined. Second, the outer portion 419 may be closed differently from the inner portion 417. Thus, one version of the exterior 419 is powder coated and / or otherwise painted for durability and / or powder coated or otherwise closed for durability because the interior 417 is not visible. Moreover, because it includes an index rail feature for the rolling surface and the foot bar 411, the interior 417 can be detached and replaced as needed due to wear. The rail member 408 has an upstanding outer wall 422 that merges into the horizontal top wall 424 and then merges into the downwardly sloping inner wall 426 and merges into the vertical skirt portion 428. [ The end members 404 and 406 have the same outer shape, but the inside is different from the side rail member 408.

As shown in Figure 25, each side rail member 408 has a vertical intermediate wall 430 between the slanted inner wall 426 and the upright outer wall 422. The intermediate wall 430 has an outwardly directed longitudinal boss 432 at the top and an outwardly directed longitudinal extension boss 434 at the bottom parallel to the top boss 432. Along with the intermediate wall 430, the upper boss 432 and the lower boss 434 form an outward open slot 436 therebetween. This slot 436 accommodates and supports one of the foot bar support assemblies therein as will be described in detail below. Between intermediate wall 430 and sloping inner wall 426 is an upper horizontal support wall 438. The support wall 438 extends the length of the rail member 408 and provides torsional stiffness to the structure of the rail member 408. Furthermore, the support wall 438 facilitates engagement between the inner projection 417 and the outer projection 419. [ The horizontal bottom 440 of the intermediate wall 430 serves as a support for a set of wheels supporting the carriage 410. The top wall 438 also serves as a top guide for the carriage support wheel on the rail member 408. The intermediate wall 430 between the top wall 438 and the bottom wall 440 and the skirt portion 428 serve as a lateral guide for the carriage 410. [

The upper boss 432 preferably has a vertical portion 442 extending downwardly parallel to the intermediate wall 430. This vertical portion 442 is used to provide a lateral support for the foot support assembly, which is more fully described below. Further, the lower boss 434 may include a downwardly extending index rail 444. [ Alternatively, the index rail 444 can be installed along the length of the rail member 408 by an individually replaceable metal index rail supported within the boss 434.

Finally, the inside of the exterior 419 of the rail 408 includes three arrangement bosses 516, 518, 520. These three placement bosses align with the placement pins 409 projecting from the head and foot end assemblies 406, 408 shown in Figures 23 and 24 and accommodate the placement pins. These bosses help ensure precise alignment between the rail 408 and the ends 404, 406 so that a smooth outer frame surface is provided to the user of the apparatus 400.

The foot bar 411 shown in Fig. 22 is the same as that shown in Fig. The foot bar support assembly 470 is similar to but slightly different from the one specifically illustrated and described above with reference to Figures 6, 7, 8 and 9. The foot bar 411 is a part of the foot support assembly 470 that is not visible in FIG. Now, referring to the inner and outer views of the foot support assembly 470 shown in FIGS. 29 and 30, the connection 154 of the foot bar 411 extends from the bottom end 456 of the elongated foot bar support arm 458 Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > and / or < / RTI > 29 is an elongated flat plate member having an engaging pin 461 that protrudes outwardly from the upper end 460 of the arm 458. [ The arm 458 is a closed pivot that extends radially parallel to the leg portion 152 of the foot bar 411 and is spaced apart from where the connecting portion 154 of the foot bar 411 is attached to the arm 458. [ And further includes a slot 462.

The foot support assembly of the reformer 400 shown in FIG. 22 includes a left foot bar support assembly 470, a foot bar 411, and a right foot bar support assembly 470. 29 and 30 are cross-sectional perspective views of the right side of the foot bar support assembly 470 in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Each leg 152 of the foot bar 411 is supported by one of the foot bar support assemblies 470. As best seen in Figure 29, the assembly 470 includes a foot bar support arm 458 to which a foot bar 411 (not shown in Figures 29 and 30) is attached, a slot And a hook plate 474 fixed to the slide portion 472. The hook portion 474 is fixed to the slide portion 472, The hook plate 474 has a series of features, preferably slots or notches 476, 478, 480, 482, 484 spaced along the upper edge of the hook plate 474. The pins 461 protruding outwardly from the upper end 460 of the foot bar support arm 458 are fitted in the notches of one of these notches 476-484 so that the foot bar 411 is inserted into the frame 402 of the reformer 400 In particular, in a desired angle attitude.

The foot bar support arm 458 is slidably and pivotally attached to the hook plate 474 by bolts 486 and a square bushing 488. A flat washer 489 on the bolt 486 holds the support arm 458 on the bushing 488. The bushing 488 rests within the pivot slot 462. Since the foot bar 411 is fixed to the arm 458, when the user lifts the foot bar 411, the support arm 458 moves up and down along the slot 462. Again, a pin 461 projecting outwardly from the upper end 460 of the support arm 458 is lifted out of one of the slots along the upper edge of the hook plate 474. When lifting out of the slot in this manner, the user moves the foot bar 411 to the other of the slots 476, 478, 480, 482 or 484 to change the position of the foot bar 411 to the center of the pivot bolt 486 . When the foot bar 411 is lowered into the slot, the pin 461 slides down in one of the slots to fix the foot bar 411 in place.

The end slots or notches 476 and 484 have particular importance in this embodiment 400 as in the first embodiment 100. The foot bar 411 is positioned slightly above the top surface of the frame 402 and on the top surface of the frame 402 as shown in Figure 39, And is rotated. In this position, the foot bar 411 can be used as a handle to raise the foot end of the reformer 400. [ The distal end of the slot 476 may be bent upwardly into a hook shape as seen in Figure 29 so as to ensure that the foot bar 411 is not separated from this slot 476, Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > 461 < / RTI > To separate the foot bar 411 from the slot 476, the foot bar 411 is urged downward (away from the foot end) and pulled backward to align the pin 461 with the widened slot entrance . The foot bar 411 may then be rotated upward and lifted out of slot 476 to be repositioned in another slot of slots 478, 480, 482, 484.

The forefront slot 484 of the hook plate 474 is used to position the foot bar assembly including the foot assembly 411 together with the respective assembly 470 for translation along the rail member 408. When the foot bar 411 is lifted and rotated in the clockwise direction, the arm 458 is in a state in which the pin 461 is in contact with the front end (toward the head end 404) of the hook plate 474 Is rotated about the bolt 486 in a clockwise direction until it engages with the projecting surface 492 at the other end. In this position, the shoulder 494 on the support arm 458 engages the latch pin 496, which protrudes through the slot 498 of the hook plate 474. The latch pin 496 protrudes through the hook plate 474 from the latch arm 530 best seen in FIG. Then, when the foot bar 411 is lowered, the shoulder 494 of the arm 458 urges the latch pin 496 downward.

The latch arm 530 is a elongated bar having one end rotatably fixed to the inner surface of the hook plate 474. [ The latch arm 530 can rotate in a plane parallel to the inner surface of the hook plate 474. The other end of the latch arm 530 has an upwardly curved hook-shaped latch engaging the index feature of the complementary form of the rail member 408 to latch the assembly 470 to a selected position along the rail member 408. [ 532 < / RTI > The latch arm 530 is urged upward by a flat spring member 534 to maintain the latch portion 532 of the latch arm 530 in engagement with the index feature of the index rail 444 of the rail member 408 Biased.

When the foot bar 411 is positioned by the pin 461 in the slot 484 and the foot bar 411 is pressed downwardly to fully seat the pin 461 on the bottom of the slot 484, The latch member 530 is also pressed downward to move the latch arm 530 to disengage the index feature of the index rail 444 of the rail member 408. [ When the latch portion 532 is separated from the rail member 408, the foot bar 411 can be moved toward the foot end 406 of the frame 402 or away from the foot end through the roller 536 . In fact, the foot bar 411 can be fully moved to the opposite end of the rail member 408 if desired.

The slide assembly 472 is best seen in the view of FIG. 30, which is an opposite perspective view of the foot bar support assembly 470 shown in FIG. 29 supported in the right side rail member 408. The slide assembly 472 includes a elongated slide plate 538 that is preferably bolted or otherwise secured to the hook plate 474. The slide plate 538 rests within the slot 436 of the rail member 408 and the hook plate 474 and the adjacent foot bar support arm 458 are spaced apart from the outer wall 422 of the rail member 408, 430 in the free / open space. It is understood that the other mirror foot support assembly 470 is disposed on the other (left) rail member 408.

Referring again to FIG. 30, slide plate 538 is supported within slot 436 by front and rear support rollers 536 rolling along the bottom surface of slot 436. The guide roller 540, which rotates about the vertical axis through the slide plate 538, is preferably mounted adjacent each support roller 536. The guide rollers 540 roll along the inner side of the slot 436 of the rail member 408 to translate the support assembly 470 and thus the foot bar 411 back and forth along the rail member 408 Rolling).

The support roller 536 is preferably a bearing-supported polymer wheel that is rotatably supported on the horizontal axle. The size of the polymer wheel fits in the slot 436 and is adapted to roll smoothly within the slot. The guide roller 540 may be a nylon or other polymer roller supported by the vertical axle of the slide plate 538. In this embodiment 400, the guide roller 540 may be a roller bearing that is mounted in the recess along the upper edge of the slide plate 538.

The slide plate 538 also has a spring-loaded placement ball 542 that is mounted within a recess in the rear of the index member of the j-shape used as described above with reference to the first embodiment. The spring-loaded placement balls 542 project into the corresponding recesses, which may optionally be provided along the rails 408, to move the foot bars 411 back and forth along the rails 408 between the various predetermined positions Provide tactile feedback to the user.

A low friction layer 546 (shown in FIG. 29) of the polymer sheet material is secured to the outer surface of the hook plate 474 between the hook plate 474 and the support arm 458. This layer reduces any friction between the arm 458 and the plate during rotation of the foot bar 411 between the notches 476, 478, 480, 482, 484, as in the first embodiment 100. Alternatively, the low friction layer 546 may be attached to the opposing face of the arm 458. To further reduce friction, the low friction layer 546 may optionally be attached to both of these opposing surfaces.

Pull pins 548 can be selectively inserted through the bores aligned with the arm 458 and the plate 474 when the foot bar 411 is in the high position, i.e., within the slot 480. The insertion of the pull pin 548 locks the foot bar 411 in place to prevent the foot bar from being displaced. This object is to allow the foot bar 411 to act as a support brace when the reformer 400 is positioned vertically on its foot end 406. This facilitates vertical storage of multiple reformers 400 in a relatively limited space.

The entire foot bar assembly 411 can slide back and forth along the slide rail 408 when the foot bar 411 is securely positioned by the pin 461 seated in the slot 484. [ The plate 474 preferably has a hole 549 therein. This hole 549 can be used to store the pull pin 548 when not in use. This hole 549 also provides an elastic or spring resistant member (not shown) between the carriage 410 and the support plate 474 of the foot bar 411 or between the foot end 404 and the support plate 474 Can be used to attach. Such a resisting member may provide resistance to translational movement of the support assembly 470 of the foot bar 411 by the user when the foot support arm 458 engages in the slot 484. [ In this configuration, the foot bar 411 can be used to provide additional resistance experienced by the user during the execution of various movements while being supported on the carriage 410. [ Such a spring or other resistance member, such as an elastic cord, may be attached to the footbar 411 itself or between the carriage 410 and the appropriate feature at different points on the assembly 470 for this purpose. For example, such a resistance member may be attached to the connecting portion 154 of the foot bar leg portion 152.

22, at the head end 404 of the reformer device 400, an arm cord 414 is directed from the carriage 410 to the head end 404 and then to the arm cord end loop 416 There are two spaced apart arm code risers 412 for the < / RTI > An individual view of the riser 412 is shown in Fig. In this embodiment 400, the riser 412 does not have a bottom pulley configuration as used in the riser 112. Instead, a pulley and roller assembly 550 is preferably inserted into the upper end of the riser tube 552. The pulley and roller assembly includes a support housing 554 supporting a laterally spaced vertical roller 556 that rotates about a parallel vertical axle secured to the housing 554 and a roller 554 on the horizontal axle 560 556 and a pulley 558 mounted therebetween. Each roller and pulley 558 is supported on a respective axle between a pair of ball bearings mounted within a support housing 554.

Each of these riser tubes 552 preferably includes two vertically aligned elongate openings 562, 564 adjacent an upper end through which the arm cord 414 passes. The pulley and roller assembly 550 slides into the upper end of the riser tube 552 and is secured in place by two screws 566. When properly positioned within the tube 552, the vertical roller 556 is next to the top opening 562. The pulley wheel 558 is centered between the two openings. The arm cord 414 is inserted through the upper opening as shown in FIG. 26 and is directed downwardly around the pulley wheel 558 and out through the lower opening 564 toward the carriage 410.

An annular collar 568 is secured around the lower end of the tube 552 via a screw 570. The size of this collar 568 is adapted to fit within the open top end of the boss 506 of the head end protrusion 500 as shown in the cut-away view of FIG. A threaded expansion plug 572 is press fit into the bottom end of the riser tube 552. The screw-type expansion plug 572 is engaged with the threaded hand bolt 413 (Fig. 23, Fig. 28). When tightening the hand bolt 413, the riser 412 is pulled down into the boss 506 to secure the riser 412 in place. The riser tube 552 may alternatively be manufactured to a different length so that different lengths of riser 412 may be selected for different users. Finally, the lower opening 564 of the riser tube 552 may be configured to allow the riser 412 to be removable under the head end of the carriage 410 during storage, as shown in Figure 39, To hold a portion of the bracket 700 (an example of which is shown in FIG. 31).

The carriage 410 is shown separately in Figures 31 and 32. Individual perspective views of the lower surface of a portion of the carriage 410 are shown separately in Fig. A bottom view of the top platform 574 covering the cover is shown separately in Fig. The carriage 410 includes a generally rectangular frame 576, a rectangular support platform 578, a top platform 574 overlaid with a cover, and a pair of shoulder stops 418. The frame 576 has an upstanding side support plate 580 and a vertical head end plate 582 and a vertical spring support plate 584 that are both secured to the upright side support plate 580. Both of these plates 580, 582, 584 are also secured to the lower surface of the support platform 578 to provide a rigid carriage structure. The upper surface of the platform 578 includes a shoulder stop support 594 (see FIG. 34) as in the first embodiment of the carriage 110, as shown in FIG.

The spring support plate 584 supports one end of each biasing spring 420. The other end of each spring 420 may be removably secured to the anchor pin 448 to alter the elastic bias, i.e., the spring tension, between the carriage 410 and the foot end 406 of the frame 402. The side support plate 580 supports the platforms 574 and 578 and provides a mounting flange for the support wheel 586 and the guide wheel 588. The head end plate 582 has a pair of spaced apart through apertures 590 that serve as a guide for the arm cord 414 (not shown in FIG. 31). A pair of elongate slots 592 are also formed in the head end plate 582. These slots 592 are formed to receive the stem of the shoulder stop 418 when the shoulder stop 418 is detached for storage and attached to the carriage 410 as shown in Fig.

The support platform 578 has a pair of shoulder stop support portions 594 that are secured to its upper surface (as shown in Figure 34). Each of these supports 594 has a pair of through bores 596,598. The vertical bore 596 has an elliptical cross section that supports the cross pin 600 on the stem 602 of the shoulder stop 418. The operation of the shoulder stop 418 is the same as the operation of the shoulder stop 118 of the first embodiment 100, as shown in Fig.

33 is a perspective view of the shoulder stopper 418. Fig. Note that the stem 600 is offset from the axial centerline through the shoulder stop 418. Referring now to Figure 34, a partial top view of the upper platform of the carriage 410 is shown. Each shoulder stop support protrudes through the top of the upper platform 574 and has the same height as its top. The inner bore 598 has a circular cross section. Thus, when the stem 600 of the shoulder stop 418 is disposed in these bores 598, the shoulder stop 418 is shown in the case of the first embodiment 100 described above with reference to Figure 15 Can not be rotated together. However, when one or both of the shoulder stops 418 are disposed in the outer bore 596, the shoulder stops may be directed toward the foot end 406 as described with reference to Figure 15 in the first embodiment 100 It can be tilted.

In this embodiment of the reformer 400, the user not only has the option to rotate the shoulder stop 418 when inserting the shoulder stop into the bore 596 to fit a different shoulder width, but also has the option of rotating one or both of the shoulder stops & The portion 418 can be inserted into the inner bore 598 to provide additional width adjustment. When both shoulder stops 418 are disposed in the inner bore 598, adjustment of the arm cord 414 can not be made. This is called the lock position. However, when either or both of the shoulder stops 418 are disposed within the outer bore 596, adjustment of the arm cords 414 may be made at the corresponding shoulder stops within the outer bore 596.

A partial perspective view of the bottom of the carriage 410 removed from the reformer 400 is shown in FIG. In this figure, the spring 420 is shown attached to the spring support plate 584. An exemplary arm cord 414 is shown threaded through the guide hole 590 and directed into the cord retracting mechanism 610.

A bottom view of the head end portion of the carriage 410 is shown in Figs. 36 and 37. Fig. These two figures illustrate the shape and operation of the cord retraction mechanism 610 according to this embodiment of the present disclosure. The arm code 414 is not shown in this figure for the sake of clarity. The cord retraction mechanism 610 includes a spring biased cord reel 612 mounted below the support plate 578 for rotation about a horizontal axis and supported from the carriage frame side support plate 580, . The cord reel 612 has a coil spring portion 614 and a cord support portion 616. One end of the cord 414 (not shown) is fixed to the cord support 616 of the reel 612 and wound around the cord support. 35, 36 and 37, the two reels 612 of the cord retraction mechanism 610 are rotatably mounted side by side below the lower surface of the platform 578.

The coil spring portion 614 is bolted or integrated to the cord support 616 to provide a cold preload tension on the cord 414 when the end is preferably secured to the cord support 616 of the reel 612 A coil spring (not shown) is supported inside. The shrink-under-load body 610 also includes a unique spring-loaded cord clamp assembly 618 that is secured to a support platform 578 that when mounted within the appropriate bore 596, And is operatively connected to an actuator coupling device 620 driven by one.

The actuator linkage 620 is supported on a elongated flat plate 622 that is secured to the support plate 578 through a fastener 624 and is located directly beneath the shoulder stop 418, And between the two side support plates 580 on the support posts 596, Each end of the flat plate 622 has a elongate opening 626 that is aligned with the bore 596 and a circular opening 628 that is aligned with the bore 598. A pair of T-shaped links 630 are pivotally supported on the connecting plate 622 side by side. Each T-shaped link 630 pivots in the plane of the support plate 578 about the center of the head 632 of the link 630 on the pin 634 which fixes the link 630 to the plate 622. [ One end 636 of the head 632 of each link 630 is positioned to engage the stem 600 of the shoulder stop 418 which is inserted into the bore 596. The other end 638 of the head 632 of the T-shaped link 630 is connected to the corresponding end 638 of the other link 630. The ends 638 of the two links 630 are preferably connected together by a coil spring 640. Each T-shaped link 630 includes elongate legs 642. The ends of the elongate legs 642 are adjacent to one of the clamp assemblies 618.

The clamp assembly 618 includes a pair of clamp members 650 and the outer clamp member of the clamp members is secured to the support plate 578 by two fasteners 652 and 654. The inner clamp member 650 is rotatably secured to the support plate 578 by a fastener 652 in a laterally spaced relationship relative to the stationary member 65. Each clamp member has a cord grip portion 656 and opposed elongated arm portions 658. The arm portion 658 of the inner clamping member 650 is positioned adjacent to the leg 642 of the link 630. The cord spring 660 fixes the grip portion 656 of the inner clamp member 650 to the fixed outer clamp member 650 so that the grip portion of the inner clamp member 650 is directed toward the grip portion of the fixed outer clamp member Biased. A flat plate 662 is selectively secured over the clamp member 650 of each assembly between the fastener 652 and the clamp member 650. Finally, a pair of cord guides 664 are preferably fixed to the support plate 578 and positioned between the link assembly 620 and the reel 612 so that the cord 414 can be positioned between the link assembly 620 and the reel 612, Through the hole 590 of the head end plate 582 and through the cord guide 664 and between the clamp members 650 and through the other cord guide 664 towards the cord retracting reel 612 I must go ahead.

Shrinkage assembly 610 is shown in a cord lock condition in Fig. 37, the shrinkage assembly 610 is shown in an unlocked condition in which one of the shoulder stops 418 (the left shoulder stop in Figure 37) is tilted toward the foot end of the reformer frame 402. 37, the stem 600 of the left shoulder stop 418 presses the end 636 of the link 630 upward. This motion causes the opposite end 638 of the link 630 to rotate in a downward clockwise direction. Simultaneously, the leg 642 also rotates clockwise to rotate the arm portion 658 of the inner clamp member 650 counterclockwise. This operation releases the arm cord 414 from the clamping member 650 so that the tension on the left cord reel is felt in the cord 414.

At the same time another link 630 is rotated counterclockwise about its pin 632 which causes its legs 642 to rotate about the arm portions 658 of the inner clamp member 650 of the other clamp assembly 618 So that the inner clamp member 650 is rotated in the clockwise direction. This clockwise rotation of the inner clamping member 650 separates the clamping member 650 from the other arm cord 414 so that tension on the right cord reel 612 pulls the other cord 414. Thus, any tilting of one of shoulder stops 418 in outer bore 596 can result in the same result, i.e., release of both clamp assemblies 618 in both arm cords 414, Can be controlled independently.

Again, a retrofitted arm cord retraction mechanism kit for a conventional reformer is also implemented in accordance with this disclosure for this alternative retraction system 610. Such a kit includes two shrink reels 612 and mounting hardware, two clamp assemblies 618, a link assembly 630, a replacement shoulder stop 418, two shoulder stop support posts 594, .

In the reformer carriage 410 according to the present disclosure, an adjustable headrest can be integrated into the structure. A bottom view of the top support platform 574 with the cover is shown in FIG. The rigid base of the upper support plate has two separate sections 672, 674 that are spaced apart and joined by a hinge 676. Each section 672, 674 may be made of plastic, composite or wood. The section 672 also has a hole 678 for receiving a shoulder stop support 594 penetrating therethrough as described above. Sections 672 and 674 are spaced about an inch apart to provide a margin for bending the head end of the covered platform 574 as shown with reference to the first embodiment of Figures 19-21 have. However, in this reformer 400, the cam block 364 does not exist. Instead, the elongated adjustment lever 680 is fixed to the lower surface of the head end section 674, as shown in Fig. The lever 680 rotates about the fastener 682 fixed to the lower surface of the head end section 674. The lever 680 has one end curved at 90 degrees from the plane of the platform 574. The curved end 684 protrudes through the slot 686 of the support plate 578 as shown in Fig. The curved end 684 has a series of notches 688 for adjusting the height of the head end section 674. The opposite end of the lever 680 has a knob 690 fixed to the opposite end to rotate the lever 680 into the engaged state of the notch 688 and the corresponding flange of the head end support plate 582, Lt; / RTI >

Such a reformer 400 of the present disclosure can be configured to be easily stacked for laminate storage. Each foot 429 includes a recess that is designed to fit over the outer corner rim of the reformer 400 below. The bottom of each foot 429, which facilitates the stacking of one device on top of the other, has a recess. As shown in Fig. 39, the lamination is facilitated through the engagement at the outer corner of the head end of the reformer and at the foot end of the reformer into the recess at each foot of the outer corner of the upright platform. When two or more reformers 400 are stacked so that the reformer is reliably held laterally in place by these pawls 429.

The riser 412 is removed from the head end 404 and secured to one of the brackets 700 (see Figure 31 and below Figure 40). Each shoulder stop 418 is removed and the stem 600 passes through the shoulder stop slot opening 592 and then rotated 90 degrees to engage the pin 602 with the head end support plate 582. [

A bottom perspective view of the head end of the carriage 410 is shown in FIG. 40, showing that riser 412 and shoulder stop 418 are spaced apart from the retaining feature. These retention features are the head end plate 582 and the slot 592 of the spring bracket 700. The spring bracket 700 is resiliently snapped into the lower opening 564 to hold and hold the riser 412 in place without scratching or otherwise damaging the outer finish of the riser 412. [

When the riser 412 and the shoulder stop 418 are mounted under the carriage 410 as shown in Figures 39 and 40 the carriage 410 can be fully positioned at the head end of the frame 402 , An optional matting switch pad 702 may be disposed between the carriage 410 and the upright platform 423 to provide a completely flat mat surface.

This mat switch places the carriage 410 at a fixed position at the head end 404 and provides the user with a completely flat surface.

The reformer 400 may also optionally include a swing tower assembly 800 as shown in FIG. The tower assembly 800 basically includes a U-shaped tower 802, a trapezoid 804, and a pair of tower sockets 806. The tower socket 806 is fixed between the rail member 408 and the head end protrusion 500 of the head end 404 to become an integral part of the frame 402. The bottom end of the tower 802 is inserted into the socket 806 and pulled into the socket 806 as shown in more detail in FIG.

The tower 802 is preferably a tubular metal body, such as aluminum or steel, and may be curved in the form as shown in Figure 41, or may be formed from a straight section joined by a conventional 90 degree elbow. The tower 802 has a plurality of spaced eye bolts 808 to attach a spring, step or pulley 810 as may be required for a particular motion. Alternatively, the vertical legs of the tower 802 may have a vertical slot and an adjustable clamping fitting provided internally to secure the spring, pulley 810, or eyebolts 808 to the legs.

In addition, a riser 412 may be used or replaced with a U-shaped connector assembly 818 to lock the pulley 810. This U-shaped connector assembly 818 fits within the boss 506 of the head end protrusion 500 and is bolted in place as shown in Fig. 44 or alternatively, as shown in Fig. 28, the riser 412 May be configured to be secured by the same hand bolt 413 when used to secure the workpiece in place. A second pulley 810 (not shown) is secured to the assembly 818 when the connector assembly 818 is used in place of the riser 412 so that it can be used in the embodiments 100, 400 shown in FIGS. 1 and 22 As well as a lower arm cord guide that directs the arm cord from the carriage 410 to the lower pulley and through the upper pulley 810 to the handloop.

42, tower sockets 806 are shown mounted to the head end of one of the side rail members 408. In Fig. The tower socket 806 is a metal, preferably an aluminum extrusion, having a tube portion 820 and an axially extending radial flange portion 822. The flange portion 822 has a thick edge 824 and a plate portion 826 that are identically formed to fit against the end plate 407 of the head end protrusion 500 and against the end of the side rail member 408 . The placement pin 409 directs the flange portion 822 relative to the rail member 408 and the end plate 407 and securely secures the head end 404 and socket 806 to the side rail member 408 A nut (not shown) is used for the bolt 828.

43 is a cut-away view of an assembled tower 802 secured within a socket 806. Fig. The bottom end of the tower 802 is fitted into the threaded expansion plug 830 in a manner similar to that described above with reference to the riser 412 secured within the boss 506. [ The hand bolt 832 extending to the bottom of the tube portion 820 is screwed into the plug 830. [ The bottom surface of the tube portion 920 pulls the bottom end of the tower 802 tightly down into the socket 806 to complete the assembly of the tower 800 with respect to the frame 402. [

Alternatively, the bottom end 850 of the tower 820 may be tapered and telescopically fit within the boss 506 of the head end protrusion 500 as shown in the perspective view of the variant of Figure 45 . This configuration precludes the need for a tower socket 806. 45, the hand bolt 832 tightens the bottom end 850 of the tower 820 back into the boss 506 when the riser 412 is secured within the boss 506 described above It is used to draw. In such an alternative configuration, of course, the riser 412 is not used. Instead, an arm cord 414 is attached to the pulley 810, respectively.

Referring now to FIG. 46, an exemplary handle end 880 of the arm cord 114, 414 is shown attached to the hand strap 900. The end portion 880 itself is turned upside down to form a flexible eye 882. The free end 884 of the end portion 880 is sewn to or otherwise permanently secured to the end portion 880 to form a child 882. This child 882 replaces the need for a conventional metal or plastic snap clip with a connection to a conventional hand grip.

The hand strap 900 has an annular strap portion 902 that is sewn to the short length end of the arm cord material to form a flexible cord ring 904 attached to the strap portion 902. The flexible cord ring 904 is attached to the eye 882 by threading the strap portion 902 through the ring 904 after allowing the ring 904 to pass over the eye 882. As a result, a hand strap 900 is secured to the arm cords 114, 414 in an essentially non-rectangular form, as shown in Fig. The arm cords 114 and 414 with the hand strap 900 attached in this manner can be used in the reformers 100 and 400 of this disclosure as well as any conventional reformer or other athletic apparatus utilizing an arm / foot cord .

A hand grip 910 with a tubular handle 912 is shown in Fig. This hand grip 910 can be used in place of the hand strap 900. Again, the hand grip 910 preferably has a flexible cord ring 904 as described above to secure the hand grip 910 to the end 880. Alternatively, a standard hand grip including a metal D-ring fixed to the hand grip 910 may be used instead of the cord ring 904. [

The reformer 100 or 400 may be configured to have a jump board 950 as shown in FIG. The jump board 950 is a generally rectangular plate structure having two parallel posts 952 that fit down into the insert 510 in the bosses 506 of the foot ends 106, 406. These posts 952 each have a rectangular or rectangular cross-sectional shape, as shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG.

Each post 952 includes a pair of spaced apart leaf springs 954 biasing the posts 952 counterclockwise within the insert 510 so that the jump boards 954 substantially away from the carriages 110, 950). ≪ / RTI > This preload prevents rattling and rotational movement of the jump board in response to the force of the user applied to the jump board during movement. This configuration provides a solid fullness to the user of the jump board when installed and used.

Note that in Fig. 48, the foot bar 411 is shown positioned adjacent to the head end 404 of the frame 402. Fig. Furthermore, the foot bar 411 support assembly 470 is shown in a free-rotational position in which the pin 461 engages within the slot 484, as described with reference to Figures 29 and 30. [ Thus, when the foot bar 411 is positioned so as to be movable between the head end 404 and the foot end 406 of the frame 402, the elastic resisting member 956, as shown in Fig. 48, May be secured to the connection 154 of the leg portion 156 of the frame 411 and may extend around the head end 404 of the frame 402. When the foot bar 411 is configured in this manner, the user sits or lays on the carriage 410 to grip the leg portion 156 of the foot bar 411 and to resist the resistance provided by the resistance member 956 And pull the foot bar 411 toward the carriage 410. [

Alternatively, the user may rotate the foot bar 411 to a vertical position and lower the foot bar 411 to engage the pin 461 in the notch 482, Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > 408 < / RTI > The user can then use the arm to pull the carriage 410 toward the head end 404. It is understood that the resistive member 956 may be two separate members, each individually connected to the head end 404, or it may be a single resistive member, as shown in Fig. Furthermore, the above description applies equally to the reformer apparatus 100 of the first embodiment described above with reference to Figs.

These embodiments are merely illustrative embodiments and variations. The reformer exercise device according to the present disclosure may incorporate one or more of the features described herein or any feature. Other modifications will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. For a simple example, any of the coil springs shown in the figures can be replaced by an extendable elastic member and vice versa. For another example, the retaining features that accommodate the riser 412 and the shoulder stop in a storage position below the upper surface of the reformer carriage 410 may be different from the clip 700 and the slot 592. The riser 412 can be fitted in a corresponding opening (not shown) of the plate 582 or on a pin that protrudes from the plate 582. The reformers 100, 400 may be configured to have short legs as shown in FIG. 48, or at least as shown in FIGS. 1 and 22. FIG. Accordingly, it is intended that all such variations, modifications and variations be included within the scope of the following claims and as defined by the claims.

Claims (19)

A substantially rectangular frame supporting the carriage for movement between a head end and a foot end of the frame on parallel and spaced side rails of the frame and a foot bar supported by the frame near the foot end As an arm cord support riser,
A cylindrical hollow tube having a central axis and adapted to be mounted upright on the head end of the frame, the cylindrical tube supporting a first pulley wheel disposed in the vicinity of an upper end of the tube adjacent the exit opening from the cylindrical tube, Wherein the pulley wheel rotates about a horizontal axle supported within the tube; a hollow elongated cylindrical tube; And
A guide in the tube on each side of the exit opening adjacent to the first pulley wheel for directing the arm cord out of the tube,
Wherein each guide is rotated about an axis in a tube parallel to the central axis. The arm cord retention riser of claim 1, wherein each guide is a roller that is rotatable about a vertical axis. 2. The arm cord retention riser of claim 1, wherein the exit opening is elongated to receive an arm cord passing about and around the first pulley wheel. The method of claim 3,
Further comprising a second pulley wheel disposed within the tube near the bottom end of the tube for routing the arm cord into the tube, through the tube, around the first pulley wheel, and out through the opening. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising another elongated opening aligned below the exit opening for entry of the arm cord into the tube. A substantially rectangular frame supporting the carriage for movement between a head end and a foot end of the frame on parallel, spaced apart side rails of the frame, and a foot bar supported by the frame, In a reformer exercise device having a pair of spaced apart vertical bores formed therein and an arm cord support riser disposed in each bore,
A tube having a central axis;
A first pulley wheel rotatably supported within the upper end of the tube;
A second pulley wheel in the tube near the bottom end of the tube; And
And a guide located near the first roller to guide the arm cord while the arm cord passes around the first pulley wheel and through the opening through the tube,
Wherein the guide is rotated about an axis in a tube parallel to the central axis. 7. The arm cord retention riser of claim 6 wherein the bottom end of the tube is open to receive an arm cord. 7. The arm cord retention riser of claim 6, wherein the upper end of the tube comprises an upper portion having a dome shape. 7. The arm cord retention riser of claim 6, wherein the upper portion of the tube has a pair of guiding portions adjacent the opening through the first pulley wheel. delete As a reformer exercise device,
A substantially rectangular frame supporting the carriage for movement between a head end and a foot end of the frame on parallel, spaced apart side rails of the frame;
And a biasing member configured to couple between the carriage and the foot end for urging the carriage toward the foot end of the frame,
Wherein the head end of the frame has a pair of spaced apart vertical bores each supporting a cord retention riser,
A hollow cylindrical tube having a central axis and supporting a first pulley wheel disposed internally near an upper end of the tube, the first pulley wheel being rotated about a horizontal axle supported within the tube; And
A guide in the tube on each side of the exit opening adjacent to the first pulley wheel for directing the arm cord out of the tube,
Each guide being rotated about an axis in a tube parallel to the central axis. 12. The reformer exercise device according to claim 11, wherein each guide portion is a three-elongated cylindrical roller rotatable about an axis parallel to the central axis. 12. A reformer exercise device as claimed in claim 11, wherein the exit opening is elongated to receive an arm cord passing around and outside the first pulley wheel. 14. The method of claim 13,
Further comprising a second pulley wheel disposed within the tube near the bottom end of the tube for routing the arm cord into the tube, through the tube, around the first pulley wheel, and out through the opening. 12. The method of claim 11,
Further comprising another elongated opening aligned under the exit opening for entry of the arm cord into the tube. delete delete delete delete

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