US3186231A - Mechanical exerciser - Google Patents

Description

June 1, 1965 R. w. SEXE ETAL 3,186,231

MECHANICAL EXERCISER Filed Sept. 20, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet l y/wwm/T l Q 9 24/04/07 19/93 /0 9/ ATTORNEYS June 1, 1965 R. w. SEXE ETAL 3,186,231

MECHANICAL EXERCISER Filedsept, 20, 19 2 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 \I I l' I I 44 9M 44 13 3 216 37 3,2 34 36 1 VENT RICHARD 6 30:: I BYOL/VEI? 77 .BOGEN 5/ 5a ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,136,231 MECHANICAL EXERCISER Richard W. dexe, 5801 Vincent Ave. S., and Oliver T. Bogen, 303 Douglas Ave, both of Minneapolis, Minn. Filed Sept. 24), 1962, Ser. No. 224,931 4 Claims. (Cl. 73-381) This invention relates to exercisers.

More particularly, this invention relates to an isometric exerciser which employs a base, a lifting bar, and a pair of nonelastic, flexible members extending between the base and lifting bar, such flexible members being extendable and retractable with respect to the base.

It is a principal object of this invention to provide an isometric exerciser, that is, an exerciser which is adapted to exercise and develop muscles by isometric contraction.

It is another object of this invention to provide an exerciser which permits one to conveniently contract muscles against a large resistance thereby permitting the muscles to shorten very little. 7

It is another object of this invention to provide an exerciser in which a pair of nonelastic, fiexible members are extendablc and retractable fixed equal lengths between a base and a lifting bar.

It is another object of this invention to provide an isometric exerciser having a built-in measuring dial on the lifting bar indicating the units of force applied to the lifting bar, particularly adapted for purposes of showing progress in muscle development of one using the apparatus.

Other and further objects of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from a reading of the specification taken together with the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of an embodiment of an isometric exerciser of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view of the isometric exerciser of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, some parts thereof being broken away and some parts being shown in section;

EIG. 3 is aside View of the embodiment shown in PI .1;

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of FIGURE 1, some parts thereof being broken away and some parts being shown in section;

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of FIGURE 1, some parts thereof being broken away and some parts being shown in section;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view through the center region of the lifting bar taken along theline 66 of FIGURE 7, some parts thereof being broken away and some parts beingshown in section;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged vertical sectional view through the center region of the lifting bar taken along theline 77 of FIGURE 1; some parts thereof being broken away and some parts being shown in section;

FIG. 8 isan enlarged horizontal sectional view similar to FIGURE. 6 showing a modified lifting bar for use with the embodiment of FIGURE 1, some parts thereof being broken away and some parts being shown in section;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged vertical sectional view similar to FIGURE 7 showing a modified lifting bar for use with the embodiment of FIGURE 1, some parts thereof being broken away and some parts thereof being shown in section; and

FIG. 10 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken along the line Itl-1tl of FIGURE 8, some parts thereof being broken away and some parts being shown in section.

Turning to the drawings, there is seen atop plan view 7 ice has one end connected tobase 11 and the opposite end connected to thelifting bar 12.

Thebase 11 is in the form of a platform whosetop deck 16 has formed therein in its forward region arecessed area 17 which serves as a convenient positioning place for body portions of one using the exerciser.Horizontal areas 18 and 19 on top deck ofbase 11 serve as convenient foot rest points when one using the exerciser stands uponbase 11 in a vertical position. Thebase 11 is conveniently formed of any conventional material of construction such as cast aluminum, high strength molded plastic, or some combination of metal and plastic, or the like. Thetop deck 16 is spaced from the bottom deck by means ofside walls 53 and 54 andend wall 22. Thebottom deck 15 is conveniently held againstsides 53 and 54 and 22 by means ofscrews 88' and 89.

Thelifting bar 12 rests inrecess 20 intop deck 16 ofbase 11, which recess 2% in the embodiment shown conveniently extends horizontally near the top orrear edge 22 oftop deck 16 ofbase 11.Lifting bar 12 has mounted in its mid-region ameasuring dial 23 fitted with anindicator needle 24 and atension recording needle 25 for indicating the units of force exerted upon thelifting bar 12 totension cable members 13 and M with respect to thebase 11. Theindicator needle 24 and thetension recording needle 25 coact together so that when tension is applied to liftingbar 12 andindicator needle 24 rotates clockwise across thedial 23 responsive to a pressure or tension applied tobar 12, thetension recording needle 25 moves or rotates about the common axle 2.6 ofneedles 24 and- 25. When tension is released,indicator needle 24 returns to its null point buttension recording needle 25 remains positioned above that point on the dial showing the maximum tension exerted upon lifting bar I2.

T he mechanism by which the indicator needle operates will now be described. Referring to FIGURES 6 and 7, it will be appreciated that thelifting bar 12 is hollow.Cable 13 feeds in throughend 28 oflifting bar 12 and is conveniently anchored aroundpost 29 in the manner suggested, for example, in FIGURE 6.Cable member 14 enterslifting bar 12 throughend 30 and is anchored to an end ofshaft 31. Shaft 31 is mounted through acompression spring 32 to the free orcompressible end 33 ofcompression spring 32. Theother end 34 ofcompression spring 32. abuts against thebase flange 36 of U- shaped frame 37. Frame 37 is composed of base flange 36 (against the inside face of which is mounted compression spring 32)wall member 43 andtop flange 44.

v The other end of shaft 31 (i.e., the end opposite that to whichcable 14 is anchored) is adapted to be screw threaded into travelingnut 41. Travelingnut 41 is adapted to be telescopically received into thefree end 33 ofcompression spring 32. Arack 42 is integrally formed with thetraveling nut 41, therack teeth 45 being located on the inside edge as shown in FIGURE 6. Therack teeth 45 engagepinion 46. Pinion id is axially mounted onshaft 26, which shaft 26, as explainedabove, controls movements ofindicator needle 24 andtension recording needle 25 acrossdial 23. The assembly, including U-shaped frame 37,rack 42,pinion 46,-indicator needle 24,tension recording needle 25,shaft 26,compression spring 32 and the associatedshaft 31, is mounted in thehousing 47 ofdial 23. Into the ends ofhousing 47 are screwed therepresentative halves 48 and 49 which comprise, together withhousing 47, thelifting bar 12.

Thus, whenlifting bar 12 is completely assembled, the indicator needle mechanism functions as follows. When tension is applied tocable members 13 and 14, that force which is applied tocable 14 is exerted uponshaft 31, causingcompression spring 32 to compress. Asspring 32 compresses,rack 42 moves overpinion 46 causingpinion 46 to rotateaxle 26. Sinceindicator needle 24 is mounted onshaft 26,indicator needle 24 is caused to rotate acrossdial 23. Concurrent movement of bothindicator needle 24 andtension recording needle 25 is accomplished by aflange 27 on the bottom edge ofindicator needle 24 which extends outwardly therefrom to engage the edge oftension recording needle 25. Thus, asindicator needle 24 rotates,tension recording needle 25 also rotates,tension recording needle 25 being so arranged as to have the same axis of rotation asindicator needle 24. In other words,indicator needle 24 is fixed onaxle 26 buttension recording needle 25 only loosely journals thisaxle 26. Thus, when tension onshaft 31 is released (as when tension oncable 14 is released) thecompression spring 32 expands causingpinion 46 to rotate in the opposite direction and returningindicator needle 24 to its null point. Sincetension recording needle 25 onlyjournals axle 26, it remains fixed ondial 23, thereby recording the number of units of force applied tocable 14. To return tension recording needle to the null point or to otherwise change the position oftension recording needle 25, there is provided athumb screw 51 secured to the end region oftension recording needle 25 which looselyjournals axle 26. Observe that thedial 23 is covered with atransparent window 52 through whichthumb screw 51 extends in the manner shown, for example, in FIGURE 7.

In FIGURES 8, 9 and is shown an alternative construction for the means on the lifting bar responsive to lifting force applied to the lifting bar including a measuring dial to indicate units of lifting force. In this embodiment arectangular block 90 is provided having exterior dimensions permitting theblock 90 to sit in a frame formed by a housing 1 of alifting bar 92. (See FIG-URE 10.)Block 90 is so positioned in housing 91 as to be capable of lateral movements parallel to the axis of liftingbar 92.Block 90 is held in place in frame 91 by means ofchocks 110 and 111 each of which is conveniently held in place against housing 91 by means ofscrews 112 and 113.Block 90 has a rectangular area formed in it which serves as a chamber 94 forcompression spring 93.Compression spring 93 is so chosen as to fit in this inner chamber 94 inblock 90 and yet allow the coils ofcompression spring 93 to move lengthwise therein.Cable 14 is anchored as before to ashaft 95.Shaft 95 has its forward end 96 threaded for rigid mounting in anend 97 ofblock 90, for example, as in the manner shown in FIG- URE 8 where anintegral projection 98 extends out fromend 97 and threaded forward end 96 ofshaft 95 engages. Thus, when tension is applied againstcable 14, theblock 90 is pulled in the direction of the tension uponcable 14.

Cable 13 is anchored as before to ashaft 99.Shaft 99 extends through the opposite end ofblock 90 to a travelingblock 101. Travelingblock 101 has a diameter permitting it to fit into chamber 94 and aprojection 102 which is smaller than the inside diameter ofcompression spring 93. The surfaces of travelingblock 101adjacent projection 102 are adapted to engage an end of thecompression spring 93. Thus, when the travelingblock 101 is mounted in the chamber 94 ofblock 90 adjacent the inside wall ofend 97 ofblock 90,shaft 99 can be mounted therein usingprojection 102 as a sort of holder or anchor forshaft 99. As in the case ofshaft 95,shaft 99 has itsforward end 103 threaded. Thus, tension uponcable 13 tends to cause the compression ofcompression spring 93 and to cause the coils ofcompression spring 93 to move sidewards towardcable 13.

To housing 91 is positioned asupport 104 for theaxle 107 upon whichindicator needle 24 and tension recording needle rotate. Apinion gear 105 is secured upon theaxle 107. To one edge ofblock 90 is secured arack gear 108 which is adapted to engage thepinion gear 105. Preferably, block 90 is positioned near one end of the space provided for it inhousing 90 so that whencable 14 is tensionedblock 90 has maximum space in which to travel sideways in housing 91. Asblock 90 moves sideways when pinion gear is in engagement withrack 108, the pinion gear is caused to rotate which in turn causesindicator needle 24 to pursue an arcuate path as desired in order to record on an indicator dial the tension applied. Parallel to rack 108 and mounted on an edge of travelingblock 101 is asecond rack 109 which is adapted to engage the side ofpinion gear 105opposite rack 108 as shown for example in FIGURE 8. Thus, tension applied tocable 13 causes rack 109 to move againstpinion gear 105 causing it to rotate and moveneedle 24. Thus, theneedle 24 is made sensitive to tension applied separately tocables 14 and 13, whereas in the embodiment earlier described, theneedle 24 is responsive only to tension applied tocable 13. Observe that while the assembly involving needles 24 and 25 is as described above the embodiment shown in FIGURES 8-10 employs aspring brake 114 for theneedle 25 so as to better induce theneedle 25 to remain in a fixed indicating position upon thedial 115 whenneedle 24 returns to the null point following release of tension uponcables 13 and 14.

Thecables 13 and 14 extend from opposite ends of liftingbar 12 toopposite sides 53 and 54, respectively, ofbase 11. Inbase 11 is means for extending and retracting each nonelastic flexible member a fixed equal length with respect to said base. The means disclosed in the embodiment shown in the drawings will now be described.

Thecables 13 and 14 pass fromopposite sides 53 and 54, respectively, intoconduits 56 and 57 to the center region of the underside ofbase 11. One end of eachconduit 56 and 57 is secured tosides 53 and 54 ofbase 11. Near the other end of each conduit is positioned a clamp (in the center region of the underside oftop deck 16 of base 11) serving to position therespective conduits 56 and 57 in the desired relationship to spindle 58 (to be described). In this region, the respective cable ends are wound onseparate reels 64 and 65 of aspindle 58. Note thatreels 64 and 65 have a singlecommon wall 66.Spindle 58 has atoothed wheel 59.T oothed wheel 59 is separately formed but immovably axially mounted against a side ofspindle 58 as by means ofbolts 60 which pass throughtoothed wheel 59 to seat inspindle 58. The whole assembly is mounted on ashaft 61. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that thereels 64 and 65 andtoothed wheel 59 could be separately formed and separately mounted on their respective axes upon ashaft 61. As viewed in FIGURE 2, the base portion of combined spindle and toothed wheel 58-59, adjacent the inside of the bottom oftop deck 16 ofbase 11, is continuous except for the axial hole ofshaft 61. The interior region ofspindle 58 above the bottom region formed by the side wall oftoothed wheel 59 is hollow and serves as achamber 63 for a spirally wound recoil spring band 62. One end of recoil spring band 62 is mounted throughshaft 61 while the other end engages an inside edge of thecenter chamber 63 within the spindle and toothed wheel 58-59.Chamber 63 is closed bydisc 72 which is conveniently held in place by means ofbolts 88.

Therespective cables 13 and 14 are each wound in reverse or opposite directions upon therespective reels 64 and 65 ofspindle 58 so that in effect when viewed in the bottom plan view shown in FIGURE 2, both cables are wound in a clockwise direction upon eachreel 64 and 65 ofspindle 58. Usually, it is preferred to wind sufiicient length of cable upon eachreel 64 and 65 to extend the lifting bar 12 a considerable distance from thebase 11, say, perhaps, up to 10 or more feet, so as to enable a user to perform a number of different types of exercises.

Ahousing 67 is provided circumferentially aboutreels 64 and 65 as a device to avoid entanglement ofrespective cables 13 and 14 with one another and with thetoothed wheel 59.Housing 67 is separately formed but secured to thebottom deck 15 ofbase 11. Bottom deck .15 hashousing 67 secured to it bybolts 68.Housing 67 is so positioned onbottom deck 15 as to circumscribe spingroove between-a pair-of. teeth oftoothed wheel 59.

Latch dog 69 is jou-rnaled for oscillatory movements in bearing member 71-which is mounted in the Wall of one of the pairs ofbraces 73 which are provided to supporttop deck 16 of base 11-. Whenlatch dog '69 is engaged withtoothed wheel 59, rotation oftheshaft 61 is prevented and, hence, the cables '13 and 14 can be neither extended nor retracted. However, whenlatch dog 69 is disengaged from the teeth oftoothed wheel 59, thecables 13 and 14 can be extendedandretracted because then, when liftingbar 12 is extended,shaft 61 iscaused to rotate in a counterclockwise direction and an equal respective length ofcables 13 and 14 is paid out from eachreel 64 and 65 against the bias of recoil spring band 62. After thecables 13 and 14 have been extended to a desired respective length, thelatch dog 69 is engaged withtoothed wheel 59. The movement ofreels 64 and 65 is promptly stopped and further extension ofcables 13 and 14 is prevented as is any retraction.

Oscillatory movements oflatch dog 69 in bearingmember 71 into and away fromtoothed wheel 59 is controlled as follows. To the rear end oflatch dog 69 is mounted for oscillatory movements, an end oflever arm 74. The opposite end oflever arm 74 is mounted for oscillatory movements upon an end of one arm ofbellcrank 75.Bellcrank 75 is journaled for rotation upon anaxle 76. To the other arm ofbellcrank 75 is positioned alever arm 77,such lever arm 77 being mounted for oscillatory movements.Lever arm 77 andlever arm 74 are each positioned approximately at right angles to their respective arms ofbellcrank 75 in the manner shown, for example, in FIGURE 2.Lever arm 77 is jo-urnaled at its opposite ends for oscillatory movements at the end ofleg 78. The other end ofleg 78 is rigidly secured toshaft 79.Shaft 79 is journaled inbearings 80 and 82. One end ofshaft 79 is rigidly connected to an end of aleg 84. The other end ofleg 84 joins avertical rod 85 which extends throughtop deck 16 ofbase 11. Conveniently, the end ofrod 85 which extends throughtop deck 16 has a button shapedend 86. Thus, whenrod 85 is depressed movingleg 84 downwards away from thetop deck 16,shaft 79 is caused to rotate through an arc. Such rotational movement causesleg 78 to move through an arc and forceslever arm 77 to movebellcrank 7 which in turn, throughlever arm 74, causes latchdog 69 to move to and fro in bearingmember 71, thereby achieving the desired control of engagement and disengagement oflatch dog 69 with the teeth oftoothed wheel 59. Observe that in the embodiment shown, aspecial mounting pad 83 is provided in bottom face oftop deck 16 within whichrod 85 is mounted. Also observe thatlatch dog 69 is locked in place againsttoothed wheel 59 by means of a tensioning spring means 87 which continuously exerts a yielding bias fromshaft 79 upon the end of the arm ofbellcrank 75 which is controlled bylever arm 77.

Thecables 13 and 14 are conveniently formed of steel, though nylon cord or glass cord could also be used. Similarly, the liftingbar 12 is also conveniently formed of steel. Other parts are conveniently fabricated of plastics and/or metals in ways familiar to those skilled in the mechanical arts.

As those familiar with the mechanical arts will appreciate, the isometric exerciser of this invention can be constructed using a single cable extending from a mid-region of the base directly to the mid-region of the lifting bar. The various parts above described can be adapted for use with the single cable modification.

In summary, the present invention relates to an isometric exerciser comprising a base, a lifting bar, a nonelastic flexible member having one end operatively connected to said lifting bar, means operatively connecting the other end of said member to said 'base for extending 6 and retracting movements of said member relative to said base, and means for releasably locking said member in different desired positions of said movements thereof.

Commonly, a pair of nonelastic flexible members are 1 employed, one end .of each such member being operatively longitudinally-shaped regions of said lifting barJ Means is provided on the lifting bar responsive to lifting force applied to said lifting bar against resistance of said members in alocked condition and including a measuring dial to indicate units of said lifting force. Also, the means for extending and retracting movements of the flexible members relative to the base comprises reel means journalled in said base and having said other ends of said members attached thereto for winding thereon, said reel means having a plurality of circumferentially-spaced teeth, a latch member movable into and out of engagement with said teeth to releas'ably lock said reel means against rotation, said flexible members being wound on said reel means each in a direction opposite to the other thereof, and yielding means urging said reel means in a direction of rotation thereof to retract and wind said members thereon. Observe that spring means is used to bias the latch member toward engagement with the teeth and that there is a latch release element provided which extends outwardly from the base for moving the latch member out of locking engagement with the teeth against the bias of the aforementioned spring means.

Our invention has been thoroughly tested and found to be completely satisfactory for the accomplishment of the above objects, and while we have shown and described a preferred embodiment, we wish it to be specifically understood that the same is capable of modification without departure from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

The claims are:

-1. An isometric exerciser comprising (a) a base,

(b) a lifting bar,

(c) a pair of elongated, non-elastic flexible members connected at their inner ends to said base extending outwardly from opposite sides thereof and connected at their outer ends to said lifting bar at longitudinally spaced regions thereof effective so that equal and oppositely directed forces applied along each of said members to said base and bar cause substantially no increase in the distance therebetween along the line of said forces,

(d) means operatively connecting the inner ends of said members to said base for equal extending and retracting movements of said members relative to said base,

(e) means for releas ably locking said members in different desired positions of said movements thereof, and

(f) means on said lifting bar responsive to lifting force applied to said lifting bar against resistance of said members in a locked condition and including a measuring dial to indicate units of said lifting force.

2. The structure defined in claim 1 in which said means on the lifting bar includes a yielding element, the outer end of one of said flexible members being operatively connected to said yielding element.

3. The structure defined in claim 1 in which said means for connecting said inner ends of said members to said base and for releasably locking said members in different desired positions of said movements thereof comprises (a) reel means journalled in said base and having said other ends of said members attached thereto for 7 8 winding thereon, said reel means having a plurality References Cited by the Examiner Of eircumferentially spaced teeth, UNITED STATES PATENTS (b) a latch member movabl into and out of engagement with said teeth to releasably lock said reel E23 2; g; means against rotatmn, 535 053 3/95Day 73 379 (C) said flexible members being woundo Sa reel 90 045 /0 i I E 4::) :107 13 X means @301] in a direction OPPOSitS t0 the other there- 12 73; 143 of, and

(d) yielding means urging said reel means in direction References Cited by the APPllcant of rotation thereof to retract and wind said mem- 10 UNITED STATES PATENTS bers thereon. 3,068,001 12/62 Portrn-an.

4. The structure defined in claim 3 in further combina- 3,068,002 12/62 Bal tion with spring means biasing said latch member toward 3,068,003 '12/62 Po t a et a1,

engagement with said teeth, and means including alatch 15 3,117,781 1/64 Vargo.

release element extending outwardly from said base for moving said latch member out of locking engagement with RICHARD QUEISSER Primary Examinersaid teeth against bias of said spring means. J p, I Examiner

Claims (1)

1. AN ISOMETRIC EXERCISER COMPRISING (A) A BASE, (B) A LIFTING BAR, (C) A PAIR OF ELONGATED, NON-ELASTIC FLEXIBLE MEMBERS CONNECTED AT THEIR INNER ENDS TO SAID BASE EXTENDING OUTWARDLY FROM OPPOSITE SIDES THEREOF AND CONNECTED AT THEIR OUTER ENDS TO SAID LIFTING BAR AT LONGITUDINALLY SPACED REGIONS THEREOF EFFECTIVE SO THAT EQUAL AND OPPOSITELY DIRECTED FORCES APPLIED ALONG EACH OF SAID MEMBERS TO SAID BASE AND BAR CAUSE SUBSTANTIALLY NO INCEASE IN THE DISTANCE THEREBETWEEN ALONG THE LINE OF SAID FORCES, (D) MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTING THE INNER ENDS OF SAID MEMERS TO SAID BASE FOR EQUAL EXTENDING AND RETRACTING MOVEMENTS OF SAID MEMBERS RELATIVE TO SAID BASE, (E) MEANS FOR RELEASABLY LOCKING SAID MEMBERS IN DIFFERENT DESIRED POSITIONS OF SAID MOVEMENTS THEREOF, AND (F) MEANS ON SAID LIFTING BAR RESPONSIVE TO LIFTING FORCE APPLIED TO SAID LIFTING BAR AGAINST RESISTANCE OF SAID

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