US20230062381A1

US20230062381A1 - Hitch trainer

Info

Publication number: US20230062381A1
Application number: US17/884,395
Authority: US
Inventors: Dan Murray; Ray Murray
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2021-08-24
Filing date: 2022-08-09
Publication date: 2023-03-02
Also published as: CA3128874A1

Abstract

There is provided a hitch trainer. The hitch trainer may include a base member that can be removably connected to a trailer hitch or wall mounted receptacle, and a top member with an integrated pull-up bar. The vertical length of the shaft of the hitch trainer may be extended by the insertion of one or more mid-members. Pairs of band pegs may be attached to either side of each of the base, top and mid-members, allowing the hitch trainer to anchor exercise bands for use in resistance training. The integrated pull-up bar may be used for body weight exercises such as pull-ups or dips. As the top, base, and mid-members are slidably attached to one another, they can be unattached such that the entire hitch trainer can be stored in a compact manner.

Description

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

This patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of this patent document as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Any and all priority claims identified in the Application Data Sheet, or any correction thereto, are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1.57.
This application claims the benefit of Canadian Patent Application No. 3,128,874, filed on 24 Aug. 2021, and which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, and is hereby expressly made a part of this specification.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to the field of exercise equipment, and in particular, to a fitness training apparatus that can be affixed to a trailer hitch or the like and be used in conjunction with exercise bands or as a rack for doing dips or pullups.

BACKGROUND

Current exercise racks are generally designed for use with lifting bars and weighted plates that are held on points of a weight rack defined by hooks. Such racks are static in their design and as a result are large, cumbersome, and take up a large amount of space. Furthermore, such exercise racks require the use of traditional lifting bars and plates in order to perform resistance exercises.
The use of body weight exercises and exercise bands is becoming a more popular mode of at home workout; however, such workouts currently have limitations. Individuals looking to use exercise bands must find places to anchor the exercise bands in order to increase the scope of exercises that can be completed and muscle groups that can be engaged by the exercise bands. Such anchoring points must be secure enough to ensure that the band, when at full tension, will not suddenly release from the anchoring point or lose tension throughout the exercise. The angle of the band with respect to the anchoring point influences which muscles are engaged when a pulling force is applied to the band to create tension in the exercise band.
At home body weight exercises are limited to those exercises that can be completed without a point from which the individual can suspend their body in order to move the body up and down in the vertical plane. For example, without the ability to suspend the body from the arms perpendicular to the floor, an individual may be limited to push-ups and squats and could not complete dips or pull-ups.
Accordingly, a need exists for a piece of exercise equipment that can be used to increase the scope of body weight exercises available to an individual and to secure exercise bands while can be secured while also having the ability to be stored in a compact manner. Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the description that follows.

SUMMARY

According to the present invention there is provided a hitch trainer which may include a vertical shaft that can include a base member and a top member. The length of the hitch trainer's vertical shaft may be increased by inserting one or more mid-members between the base member and the top member.
The top member may include a shaft top member for attaching it to either the base member or mid-members and an integrated pull-up bar. The pull-up bar may be used to complete pull-ups when the mid-members are inserted, or dips when no mid-members are inserted.
The base member may be removably attached to a wall mounted receptacle or to a trailer hitch such that it provides stability and a leverage point for the vertical shaft created by the top, base, and mid-members, to form the hitch trainer's vertical shaft.
Each of the top, base, or mid-members may contain at least one set of band pegs for anchoring exercise bands to the vertical shaft. Exercise bands may be anchored to the vertical shaft by looping the exercise bands around the band pegs. The band pegs may anchor the exercise band by capping each band peg with a retention member.
Other aspects of the invention will be appreciated by reference to the detailed description of the preferred embodiment and to the claims that follow.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference is now made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

The preferred embodiment of the invention will be described by reference to the drawings thereof in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a hitch trainer assembled in a manner that utilizes both mid-members connected between a base member and a top member;

FIG. 2 . is a front view of the hitch trainer assembled in a manner that utilizes both mid-members connected between the base member and the top member;

FIG. 3 . is a side view of the hitch trainer with a zoomed in view of a band peg to display a peg member and a retention member;

FIG. 4 . is an exploded side view of the hitch trainer demonstrating how the mid members are slidably attached to each other as well as the top member and the base member by a shaft member;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the base member demonstrating an elongate arm, the shaft member, and a band peg;

FIG. 6 is a side view of the hitch trainer wherein the top member is connected directly to the base member;

FIG. 7 is a side view of the hitch trainer wherein the top member is connected to the base member by one mid-member;

FIG. 8 is a top view of an integrated pullup bar that comprises part of the top member;

FIG. 9 is a front view of the integrated pullup bar that comprises part of the top member; and

FIG. 10 is a side view of the integrated pullup bar that comprises part of the top member.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 , a hitch trainer 2 includes a top member 4 and a base member 6. The length of the hitch trainer 2 can be increased by slidably attaching one or more two mid-members 8 between the base member 6 and top member 4. All of the components of the hitch trainer 2 are slidably attached to one another along each member's shaft member 11, 12, 13. The hitch trainer 2 is attached to a trailer hitch of a car (not shown) or a receptacle mounted to a wall (not shown) by an elongate arm 14 of the base member 6.
Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 7 , the top member 4 includes of a top shaft member 13 and an integrated pull-up bar 16. The top member 4 is slidably attached by the top shaft member 13 to one of either the mid-members 8 or the base member 6.
Referring to FIG. 5 , the base member 6 includes an elongated arm 14 for attachment to a receptacle or trailer hitch at one end and attached to the opposite end of the elongated arm 14 is a base shaft member 11. The base member 6 also has a pair of band pegs 10 attached to either side of the base shaft member 13.
Referring to FIG. 1, 2, 3 , or 4, the mid-members 8 include a shaft member 12 with two pairs of band pegs 10 situated on either side of the shaft member 12 and spaced apart vertically along the shaft member 12. One end of the shaft member 12 is narrower than the remainder of the shaft member to allow the shaft members 12 to slidably attach both mid-members 8 together, and to slidably attach the top shaft member 13 to the shaft member 12 of one of the mid-members 8.
Referring to FIG. 1,2,3 , or 4, six pairs of band pegs 10 are spaced along the vertical length of the hitch trainer 2, each pair of band pegs being affixed to a shaft member 12, top shaft member 13, or base shaft member 11. Each band peg 10 is comprised of a peg member 26 and retention member 24.
FIGS. 8-10 generally show a handle bar.
Referring to FIGS. 8, 9, and 10 , the integrated pull-up bar 16 includes a pull-up bar frame 22, the side facing handle 18 and the forward-facing handle 20.

Operation

The base member 6 is attached to a receptacle on a wall or the trailer hitch of a car (not shown) by the elongated arm 14. One of either the mid-members 8 or the top member 4 is then slidably attached to the base shaft member 11 of the base member 4. Depending on the users desired angle of use for exercise bands, or desire of use for dips or pull-ups, the user will slidably attach a combination of mid-members 8 and the top member 4 to the base member 6 to achieve the desired result.
Once the hitch trainer 2 is assembled in a manner that achieves the users desired result, an exercise band (not shown) can be secured around a band peg 10 such that the band is looped around the band peg 10 or the shaft members 11, 12, 13. The user can then pull the exercise band such that tension forms in the exercise band. The retention member 24 prevents the exercise band from sliding off the end of the peg member 26 not attached to the shaft member 12, base shaft member 11, or top shaft member 13, thus ensuring that tension in the band is not suddenly released.
Depending on the height of the individual, the top member 4 may be slidably attached with the base member 6 to allow the individual to use the integrated pull-up bar 16 as a dip bar, wherein the individual can grip the forward-facing handles 20 and suspend their body vertically within the u-shaped pull-up bar frame 22. In bracing the elbows so that the biceps muscles of the individual are lengthened, and the triceps muscles are flexed, the individual can then lower the body by slowly relaxing the triceps muscle and raise the body by flexing the triceps muscle. If additional vertical length is required for the individual to complete such an exercise, a mid-member 8 can be slidably attached to the base shaft member 11 of the base member 6 prior to the top-member 4 being slidably attached to the shaft member 12 of the mid-member 8.
Depending on the height of the individual, one of the mid-members 8 may be slidably attached to the base shaft member 11 of the base member 6. The top member 4 is then slidably attached to the shaft member 12 of the mid-member 8 to allow the individual to use the integrated pull-up bar 16 as a pull-up bar. The individual can grip the side-facing handles 18 or front-facing handles 20 and suspend their body from the integrated pull-up bar 16, such that the biceps are relaxed and the triceps are contracted. The individual can then move the body up and down in the vertical plane by contracting the biceps muscles and anterior head of the deltoid muscle to move the body up and relaxing the bicep muscle and anterior head of the deltoid muscle to move the body down. Should the individual require increased space between the ground and the integrated pull-up bar 16, a second mid-member 8 can be slidably attached between the first mid-member 8 and top member 4. The hitch trainer 2 can be used for a wide range of body weight exercises beyond pull ups and dips, The primary muscle groups used for a pull up is the Latissimus dorsi, the rhomboids, teres major and minor, and spinal erectus.
When the individual is finished using the hitch trainer 2, the top member 4, mid-members 8, and base member 6 can be slidably unattached by pulling the base shaft member 11, shaft members 12, and top shaft member 13 apart from one another. The base-member 6 can be unattached from the receptacle or trailer hitch by disconnecting the elongate arm 14 from either the receptacle or trailer hitch. The top member 4, mid-members 8, and base member 6 can now be stored as a compact unit.
While embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated, such embodiments should be considered illustrative of the invention only. The invention may include variants not described or illustrated herein in detail. Thus, the embodiments described and illustrated herein should not be considered to limit the invention as construed in accordance with the accompanying claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A hitch trainer for a hitch, comprising:

a base member configured to be received by a receiver of the hitch, said base member comprising:

an elongated arm member having first and second ends, said first end configured for reception into said receiver; and

a shaft base member connected to and extending away from said second end of said elongated arm; and

a top member configured to slidably engage with the said shaft base member, said top member comprising a shaft top member and an integrated pull-up bar.

2. The hitch trainer of claim 1, further comprising a mid-member configured to slidably engage between said shaft base member and said shaft top member.

3. The hitch trainer of claim 1, further comprising a band peg affixed to said base member.

4. The hitch trainer of claim 2, further comprising a band peg affixed to said mid-member.

5. The hitch trainer of claim 1, further comprising a band peg affixed to said top member.

6. The hitch trainer of claim 1, wherein said shaft base member extends away from said elongated arm at an interior angle of 96°.