US3032344A

US3032344A - Wall climber

Info

Publication number: US3032344A
Application number: US1194A
Authority: US
Inventors: Hjelte George
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1960-01-08
Filing date: 1960-01-08
Publication date: 1962-05-01
Anticipated expiration: 1979-05-01

Description

G. HJELTE WALL CLIMBER May 1, 1962 Filed Jan. 8, 1960 1 INVENTOR. 650,@65 #da 75 Cl??? Q-tarfze 5 Uited States This invention relates to gymnasium and playground equipment, and more particularly to a unique device to facilitate use of the arm, shoulder and trunk muscles.

' It is well known that one of the most effective ways to exercise arm and trunk muscles is climbing, wherein reliance is primarily on the hands and arms. In gymnasiums, a device often used for this purpose is a rope that is secured at one end in the ceiling.

' The rope device has several disadvantages. From the standpoint of the person doing the climbing, there is al- Waysthe danger of slipping, in which case his hands may be burned badly as he slides down the rope, and he may lose his grip and fall a considerable distance and be injured. And if he is somewhat fearful of heights, as is often the case for beginners, he is less likely to have a desire for this form of exercise.

In a physical education class wherein a number of students are to do a climbing exercise, the rope device has the disadvantage that it will accommodate only one person at a time. This results in time being lost by the others waiting to take their turns, so as to make it difficult for the instructor to schedule the climbing exercise for all the students in a class. This is unfortunate, because it is better for a student to perform such an exercise regularly.

It is an object of this invention to provide a unique device that overcomes the above and other disadvantages of the prior art.

It is another object of this invention to provide an exercise device that is useful as a climber, and which can accommodate several persons at a time.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a combined climber and slide to permit a person to slide from any height to which he climbs.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a combination climber and slide that extends at an angle from a wall and along a slant, so that one can climb along an incline to any desired point and slide to the floor from such point.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a combination climber and slide in accordance with the preceding paragraph, in which the device is pivotally mounted to swing against the wall when not in use, thereby to avoid obstructing activities conducted in that part of the gymnasium.

The above and other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing of illustrative embodiments thereof, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a corner portion of a room, wherein combined climber and slide devices are shown in perspective on one wall and in elevation on the other wall, showing how the panel of a device is slanted along a wall and held with the lower edge extending some distance from the wall;

FIGURE 2 is an end elevation view of a climber slide of the type shown in FIGURE l, showing the L-shaped angle member pivoted on the wall at its upper end, and a link element for engaging thte wall at different points to vary the angle at which the panel extends from the wall;

FIGURE 3 is an end elevation view of a modified panel and mounting means therefor, showing the upper portion of the panel pivoted on the wall, and telescopic type elements secured to the wall adjacent the oor for holding "atet Vrice the lower portion of the panel at a desired distance from the wall;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary end elevation view of a panel and a separate grip rod, showing the rod iixedly secured to the wall adjacent the upper edge of the panel;

FIGURE 5 is an end elevation of another form of panel having integral hand grip means, showing a triangular plate hinged to the wall so it can be swung outwardly to hold the panel at a desired angle; and

FIGURES 6 and 7 are enlarged fragmentary side elevation views of the cooperating portions of the link and stops of the modification of FIGURE 2.

Referring to FIGURE l, my invention comprises an elongated sheet 10 adapted for pivotal movement on a wall 11. The surface of the sheet 10 that faces the room is smooth, and free of interruptions that might cut ones skin or snag clothing. The sheet 10 may be made of any desired material, e.g., metal (such as stainless steel) or plastic (such as fibre-glass), reinforced where necessary to make it rigid. Y

Sheets 10 of generally rectangular shape are shown in FIGURE l. The sheets have their greater dimensions extending generally horizontally, and are pivotally held adjacent their upper edges or sides. In addition to the lower edges or sides of the sheets being held away from the walls 11, the upper edges of the sheets are canted along the Walls. This makes the lower edge of the rectangular sheet canted as well, so that the lower edge is lower at one end (the right hand end in FIGURE 1) than at the other end of the sheet.

I provide gripping elements substantially parallel with the upper edges of the sheets, such as rods 13 connected to the sheets by spaced ribs 14. Preferably, the lower end of the rod 13 is at a distance from the floor such that one must exert himself to reach it, e.g. by jumping or stretching, and the upper end of the rod is too high to be reached except by proceeding along the rod from its lower end.

It will be appreciated that my unique invention effectively forces a person to climb in order for him to reach the upper end of the rod 13. Once he starts moving along the rod to the left, his feet are oi the oor. Due to the smoothness of the outer surface of the sheet 10, he cannot readily use his legs or his feet to help him in his climb. Instead, climbing is accomplished by pulling oneself upwards and to the left by the arms, and advancing to the left by walking with the hands along the rod 13. Such pulling and accompanying movements will be .seen to exercise the arm, shoulder and trunk muscles considerably. When one reaches the upper end of .the rod 13, he slides down the sheet 10 to the floor. The distance between the floor and the upper end of the lower edge of the sheet is selected so that the drop to the floor is not great.

As will be seen by inspection of my invention, several persons can do the climbin-g exercise at one time. As soon as one person moves upward a sufficient distance, another can begin his climb. Also, since my invention effectively forces one to climb while on an incline, it has the advantage that one cannot suddenly drop to lthe floor, ie., if ones hands slip off the rod 13, he moves toward the floor at an angle (along the inclined surface of the sheet 10), and has only a very short drop from the lower edge of the sheet to the floor. And it will be apparent that the measure of safety inherent in my invention gives encouragement to many who are fearful of injury from climbing ropes and the like.

Referring now to FIGURE 2 along with FIGURE l, one means for supporting the combined climber and slide of my invention comprises spaced L-shaped members 15 secured to the rear surface of the sheet 10 and extending substantially the width thereof. The upper ends of .the members t into vertical channel members 16 that are secured to the wall 11. The members 15 Iare supported for pivotal movement, as on pins 17 extending through the channel members 16.

To hold the lower edge of the sheet 10 a desired distance away from the wall, I provide link members 13 ythat are hinged to the lower ends of the L-shaped members 15, as indicated at 19.

The free end of each link is positioned so as to be releasably locked against vertical movement. To this end, the channel 16 is provided with a pair of

spaced stops

21, 22. When the link 13 is substantially horizontal, the free end thereof rests on top of the lower stop 2-1, whereby the link cannot move downwardly. To prevent the link from moving upwardly from the horizontal position, a small button-like protrusion 23 is provided in the channel immediately above the free end of the link. Thus, to remove the link from its position requires that the sheet 19 be swung ont enough so that the link clears the stop 21 and the protrusion 23.

To hold the sheet 10 on a steeper incline, the links 13 have their free ends moved upwardly in the channels 16 until they engage the stops 22, as' indicated in dotted positions of the elements in FIGURE 2.

When the sheet is not to' be used, it is lowered lto a position substantially parallel to the wall. This position is achieved by freeing the links 18 to ride in the channels 16 above the stops 22.. Thus, my invention provides an item of gymnasium equipment that can be permanently installed, but which takes up substantially no space when it is desired to use the gymnasium for other activities.

FIGURE 3 shows an arrangement wherein the gripping element constitutes the upper edge of the sheet 3). This provision is made by means of a tubular element 31 substantially encircled by the material of the sheet. The upper end of the sheet is pivotally mounted, as on ribs 32 on pins 33 in wall brackets 34.

The lower edge of the sheet 3) is held outwardly by rods 35 that are slidably mounted in sleeves 36. rThe sleeve 36 is held at one end in a wall bracket 37, and the rod is held at one end in a bracket 3S that is secured to the sheet 30. As will be apparent, the rod may be selectively positioned and held in the sleeve 36 where desired, as by la pin (not shown) extending through aligned openings in the sleeve and the rod.

FIGURE 4 illustrates an arrangement of my invention wherein the gripping means comprises a rod 4t) secured to the wall by brace elements 41. The rod 40 is spaced slightly above the upper edge portion of a sheet 4t2; that is mounted on the L-shaped members 15.

In FIGURE 5, a sheet 50 is shown pivotally mounted at S1 on the wall 11. To hold the sheet 50 out from the wall, I provide spaced positioning elements 52 that are shaped substantially as right triangles. The elements 52 are supported on wall hinges 53. The hinges 53 permit the positioning elements 52 to be turned to lie flat against the wall, in which case the sheet 50 hangs vertically.

When the sheet is to be used for exercise, the lower edge is pulled away from the wall, and the ,positioning elements 52 are swung outwardly. The sheet is then allowed to rest on the edges of the hypotenuse portions of the positioning elements.

While I have illustrated and described certain embodiments of my invention, it will be apparent that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. Accordingly, I do not intend that my invention shall be limited, except as by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In gymnasium apparatus to be secured to a wall a short distance above the floor, a climber device comprising: an elongated sheet of material having a smooth front surface to be oriented with one edge uppermost; hinge means spaced along the upper edge of said sheet for hingedly connecting said sheet to the wall so that said sheet is oriented with said smooth surface facing away from the wall; brace means spaced along the rear surface of said sheet for interconnecting the wall and the adjacent surface of said sheet to hold said sheet in a plane inclined to both the vertical and the horizontal; and a hand-hold member parallel to the upper edge of said sheet, whereby to permit one to climb with his hands, while sliding on said yfront surface, from a lower level to a higher level.

2. The combination delined in claim l, wherein said brace means includes elements having portions to be fixed to the wall and other portions removably engageable with said sheet.

3. The combination dened in claim 1, wherein said brace means includes spaced elements having portions fixed to said sheet and other portions for removably engaging the wall.

4. The combination defined in claim 1, wherein said hinge means supports said one edge on aline inclined to the horizontal.

5. Exercise apparatus comprising: a substantially rectangular sheet of material having a smooth surface to be oriented with one edge uppermost; a plurality of elements spaced along the upper edge of said sheet, said elements being secured to said sheet on the surface opposite said smooth surface; means for connecting said elements to a Wall for pivotal movement thereon, whereby the opposite edge of said sheet can be swung toward and away from the wall; and a plurality of spaced brace elements spaced along said sheet intermediate the wall and said sheet for releasably holding said sheet in a position wherein said opposite edge is a predetermined distance from the wail, said connecting elements and brace elements being cooperatively related with said sheet to hold said sheet so it is inclined to both the vertical and the horizontal.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,915,371 Lowman June 27, 1933 1,993,409 Leech Mar. 5, 1935 2,372,164 Woodhams Mar. 20, 1945