Patent Application
20200391071
This application claims priority to Swedish Application No. 1950694-8 filed on Jun. 11, 2019, and which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to couplings and more precisely to an adapter assembly for releasably connecting an accessory to an exercise rope, and a method for connecting the adapter assembly to the rope.
A person can improve his/her physical health and strength in many ways. One tool for improving both cardiovascular fitness and strength is an exercise rope, e.g. a battle rope. An exercise rope is typically between 8 and 15 meters long, 3 to 5 centimeters thick and weighs between 6 and 10 kg. Exercise ropes can be made from both natural fibers and various plastic materials and come in e.g. twisted or braided constructions. Exercise ropes usually have plastic or rubber end sections for use as handles.
In use, the rope may be folded at the center using a post/anchor point. A user holds on to the ends of the two equal lengths of the rope with either hand. Alternatively, one end of the rope is fastened in an anchoring device, and the practitioner use one single rope, or two ropes. The user swings the rope, or ropes, in various ways/directions, either synchronized or unsynchronized, to create waves in the rope. By repeating the movement, the practitioner trains the muscles and cardiovascular system.
The diameter of exercise ropes make exercising difficult for people with smaller hands, especially to hold the ropes for extended times. Accordingly, the diameter of existing exercise ropes limits their usefulness in workout routines. There is thus a need for an exercise rope which can be used for longer periods of time and which is gentler to smaller hands. In addition, there is a need to extend the workout possibilities provided by an exercise rope and to obtain a more ergonomic grip in order to increase effectivity for the practitioners, and potentially avoid injuries among the users.
A known type of exercise rope is disclosed in US20150283421A1, which shows an exercise rope intended to be suitable for persons with smaller hands. A problem with this exercise rope is that, in order to make the rope more comfortable to hold, the diameter is reduced, which means that the weight is reduced as well, meaning that people with smaller hands or weaker grips are limited in the potential intensity of their work out. Since also persons with smaller hands may want to exercise with greater intensity and/or heavier weights, this exercise rope is less effective in providing a challenging workout. It is thus understood that there is room for improvements.
An object of the present invention is to provide a new type of adapter assembly which is improved over prior art and which eliminates or at least mitigates the drawbacks discussed above. More specifically, an object of the invention is to provide an adapter assembly that is simple and easy to use, as well as provides the possibility of exchanging accessories connected to an exercise rope. These objects are achieved by the technique set forth in the appended independent claims with preferred embodiments defined in the dependent claims related thereto.
In a first aspect, an adapter assembly for connecting an accessory connector to an exercise rope is provided. The assembly comprises a connection part being formed by a first portion and a second portion, each having a bottom end and top end, wherein the first and the second portion of the connection part forms, at its bottom end, a cavity configured to receive an end portion of said rope, and a locking means arranged to connect the first portion and the second portion to each other, and wherein the top end of the connection part is configured to releasably connect the accessory connector. The adapter assembly is advantageous in that it provides a possibility to connect different handles or gears to the exercise rope, making it a more versatile exercising equipment.
The releasable connection between the accessory connector and the top end of the connection part may be provided by means of a bayonet clutch. Another word for bayonet clutch is a bayonet mount. The accessory connector is beneficial in that it is easy to exchange one accessory for another. A bayonet clutch is easily operated and it is at the same time an efficient attachment means. A bayonet clutch is an easy and fast solution that can be repeated almost indefinitely.
In an alternative embodiment the releasable connection between the accessory connector and the top end of the connection part is provided by means of a dovetails rails connection.
In one embodiment, the adapter assembly further comprising a sleeve configured to be arranged on the end portion of the rope and to be received in the cavity created by the connection part. When the sleeve is passed over the connection part, it provides further attachment against the rope.
The sleeve may comprise a shoulder portion configured to interact with an inner surface of the cavity. The cavity of the connection part may comprise an internal circumferential recess in which the shoulder portion on the sleeve is configured to be inserted.
In one embodiment, the connection part is provided with at least one slot. The at least one slot may have a substantially L-shaped design.
The accessory connector may comprise a locking unit having at least one protrusion configured to engage with the connection part. The accessory connector may be connectable to the connection part by means of a bayonet mount formed by the at least one protrusion provided on the connecting portion and the at least one slot provided on the connection part.
The assembly may further comprise a cover configured to cover the interface between the rope and the locking ring.
The accessory and the accessory portion may be integrally formed.
In one embodiment, the exercise rope is a battle rope. It is preferred to exchange accessories to an exercise or battle rope such that the versatility of the rope as an exercise equipment is improved.
In yet a further embodiment a method for releasably connecting an adapter assembly according to the first aspect to an exercise rope is provided. The method comprises the steps of inserting a first end of the rope into a cavity formed by a first portion and a second portion of a connection part, arranging a locking means such that the locking means connects the first and second portions together, wherein the first end of the rope is inserted into a bottom end of the connection part, and releasably engaging an accessory connector to a top end of the connection part.
In one embodiment, the method comprising the steps of inserting a first end of the rope into a sleeve, engaging the sleeve in a connection part, and inserting an accessory connector into a first portion of the connection part such that at least one protrusion of a locking unit of the accessory connector releasably engages at least one slot in the first portion of the connection part.
In one embodiment the locking means is a locking ring. In such an embodiment, the method may comprise the step of passing a locking ring around the first portion and a second portion of the connection part such that locking ring connects the first and second portions together.
The method may further comprise the step of pressing the locking unit of the accessory connector towards the connection part such that the at least one protrusion provided on the locking unit is threaded through a recess of the accessory connector, and rotating the accessory connector such that the at least one protrusion engage with the at least one slot. In an alternative embodiment, the method comprises the step of pushing the locking unit of the accessory connector towards the connection part such that the at least one protrusion provided on the locking unit is advanced through a recess of the accessory connector.
In one embodiment, before the step of inserting the rope into the sleeve, a cover is threaded onto the rope and, subsequently after the rope has been inserted into the sleeve, is moved towards the top end of the sleeve to cover the interface between the rope and the bottom end of the sleeve.
Embodiments of the invention will be described in the following; references being made to the appended diagrammatical drawings which illustrate non-limiting examples of how the inventive concept can be reduced into practice.
Hereinafter, certain embodiments will be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. The invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention, such as it is defined in the appended claims, to those skilled in the art.
In
In order to facilitate a user to grip the rope 1, an adapter assembly 2 is provided, which is mountable on one end 1a, 1b of the rope 1. The adapter assembly 2 is disclosed in
As disclosed in
Furthermore, the adapter assembly 2 may comprise a cover 7 and a locking means 8. As shown in
The sleeve 4 is disclosed in
The diameter is such that the sleeve 4 can fit snugly over the rope 1. In one embodiment, the inner diameter of the sleeve 4 is constant throughout the sleeve body 4. In this situation, the sleeve 4 is thus linearly pressed onto the rope 1. In an alternative embodiment, the sleeve 4 has a tapered form, where the inner diameter of the sleeve is slightly larger at its first end portion 4a than the second end portion 4b. In this situation, the sleeve 4 is conically pressed onto the rope 1.
The sleeve 4 further comprises a shoulder portion 27 provided in the second end portion 4b. The shoulder portion 27 protrudes from the second end portion 4b and extends around the outer circumference of the sleeve 4.
The sleeve 4 is designed so that it will fit into the mounting part of the connection part 30. It is preferred if the dimensions are such that the sleeve 4 cannot move in the cavity formed when the first and second portions 30a, 20b are connected to each other.
In one embodiment, the sleeve is arranged with clearance holes (not shown). In such embodiment, the first and second portion 30a, 30b as well as the rope 1 are also provided with holes. These holes may be used by a through bolt, or similar, that is arranged into the holes in order to tighten the parts together.
In yet one embodiment, the sleeve 4 is not present. The first and second portions 30a, 30b are clamped directly onto the rope 1.
The length of the rope 1 that is inserted into the sleeve 4 may vary depending on the length of the sleeve 4 and/or the dimension of the connection part 30. The rope 1 may, for example, be inserted to the shoulder portion 27 or continue after the shoulder portion 27. Hence, the rope 1 may end in line with the shoulder portion 27 or extend from the shoulder portion 27.
During assembly, the first end 1a of the rope 1 is inserted into the first end portion 4a of the sleeve 4. Optionally, a cover 7 may be placed at least partly above the first end 1a of the rope 1 and the sleeve 4. The cover 7 comprises a first end 7a and a second end 7b. The shape of the cover 7 is preferably cylindrical with an inner diameter that increases towards the second end 7b. Once the adapter assembly 2 is assembled, the second end 7b of the cover 7 is configured to be placed towards the shoulder portion 27 of the sleeve 4. The cover 7 may be made of a flexible material such as rubber. The cover 7 may be a rubber gaiter. Preferably, the cover 7 is threaded onto the rope 1 before the sleeve 4 is attached, and the cover 7 is then moved upwards towards and partly above the sleeve 4.
One of the benefits of the cover 7 is that it can be used as a grip that provides a good and gentle grip during training. This is true even if the rope is used without the accessories 70. The length and the surface design of the grip 7 can therefore vary depending on which type of end user that will use the rope.
As previously stated, the adapter assembly 2 may further comprise a locking means 8 that further connects the connecting part 30 to the sleeve 4. The locking means 8 may be arranged with a company logo or name (as shown in
In one embodiment the locking means 8 is in the form of a locking ring. The locking ring 8 is preferably made of plastic, steel, aluminium and/or a composite material. The locking ring 8 is arranged to clamp the first and second portions 30a, 30b together.
In an alternative embodiment, the locking means 8 may be in the form of a hose clamp (can also be referred to as a hose clip, hose lock, a standard pipe clamp, or exhaust pipe clamp. This can also be seen as being a locking ring 8. Alternatively, the locking means 8 may be in the form of clearance holes for screw and nut or self-threaded screws and/or threaded holes in one of the portions 30a, 30b.
In yet one embodiment the locking means 8 is in the form of one or more screws that connects the first and second portions 30a, 30b to each other.
The first portion 30a of the connecting part 30 comprises a top, first, end 38a and a bottom, second, end 38b. When in a mounted state, first portion 30a of the connecting part 30 is arranged to receive the sleeve 4 such that the bottom end 38b is facing the outer envelope surface of the sleeve 4. In one embodiment, the bottom end 38b of the first portion 30a is facing the first end portion 4a of the sleeve 4. The top end 38a, in a mounted state, faces the accessory connector 70. The bottom end 38b may be arranged with a recess 37. The recess 37 extends around the outer circumference of the bottom end 38b of the first portion 30a, and can thus be seen as an outer recess 37. The recess 37 is preferably arranged to be connected to the cover 7. The cover 7 may for example have a protrusion on the inner side of the cover 7 arranged to be fixated into the recess 37. The protrusion of the cover 7 may preferably be extending along the inner circumference of the cover 7.
In one embodiment, the top end 38a of the first portion 30a is arranged with an opening 31. The opening has a shape and dimension being adapted to receive a lower potion 58 (as shown in
The top end 38a of the first portion 30a is arranged with a bayonet mount 33. The first portion 30a can be seen as a female part of the bayonet mount 33. The top end 38a of the first portion 30a is arranged with at least one slot 33. The slot is preferably L-shaped. More preferably, the slot(s) is shaped like a capital letter L with serif, hence having a short upward segment at the end of the horizontal arm. The at least one slot 33 is configured to receive a protrusion of a male part of a bayonet connection arranged on the locking unit 60 of the accessory connector 70, as will be described more with reference to
The first portion 30a of the connecting part 30 comprises an inner envelope surface 32 and an outer envelope surface. The inner envelope surface 32 is arranged with an internal recess 36. The internal recess 36 is extending along the inner circumference of the inner envelope surface 32. The internal recess 36 is preferably arranged to receive the shoulder portion 27 of the sleeve 4 when the connecting part 30 is in its mounted state.
Moreover, the first portion 30a of the connecting part 30 comprises an internal edge 35 and an annular socket 34.
The first portion 30a of the connecting part 30 further comprises at least one receiving means 43. The receiving means 43 is preferably arranged on the annular socket 34. The receiving means 43 are configured to receive at least one elevated element 69 (as shown in
The elevated element 69 may be in the form of a spring plunger. The spring plunger may be made of metal, plastic or composite.
In one alternative embodiment, the elevated element 69 is arranged on the connecting part 30 and the receiving means 43 is arranged on the locking unit 60. Hence, the parts are reversed.
The first and the second portion 30a, 30b further comprises a beveled edge 41 and a locking edge 42. The beveled edge 41 and the locking edge 42 both extend around the outer circumference of the first and second portions 30a, 30b.
Both the beveled edge 41 and the locking edge 42 are arranged slightly above the recess 37. The locking edge 42 can be seen as an elevated circular edge to which the locking ring 8 can be pressed above. Hence, the locking edge 42 is arranged to keep the locking ring 8 in position.
When mounted, the first portion 30a and the second portion 30b creates a cylindrical connecting part 30 creating a cavity into which the sleeve 4 is clamped. Hence, the connecting part 30 is, when mounted, in the form of a, at least partly, hollow cylinder. When the first portion 30a and the second portion 30b are connected to each other, the inner envelope surfaces 32 of the two portions create a cavity. The cavity is arranged to receive the sleeve 4. The diameter of the cavity created by the inner envelope surface 32 of the first and second portion 30a, 30b is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the sleeve 4.
The cavity is enclosed by the first and second portions 30a, 30b at its sides. Moreover, optionally, the cavity may be enclosed by the internal edge 35 of the first end portion 30a at its top. Hence, the cavity can be seen as a recess of the connecting portion 30 extending from its bottom end 38b arranged to receive the rope and the sleeve 4. The cavity extends along the vertical axis A.
To summarize, in the embodiment shown in
The accessory connector 70 comprises a connector device 50 and a locking device 60 (as described more in detail with reference to
The accessory portion 51 of the accessory connector 70 is in this embodiment a cylindrical elongated handle, but it should be understood that other accessories could be used as well. Another example is shown in
The accessories connector 70 may be a sled for pulling weights where the connecting portion 52 shown in
The connecting portion 52 is seen in an enlarged view in
In
It is understood that the locking unit 60 may comprise at least one protrusion 66 as well as several protrusions 66, such as for instance two, three, four or five protrusions 66. In such case, the first portion 30a of the connecting part 30 comprises the same number of slots 33 and the connecting portion 52 comprises the same number of recesses 57.
In one embodiment, no protrusion(s) are present in the locking unit 60. Instead, the protrusion(s) 66 are replaced by openings (not shown). The openings may be threaded holes or clearance holes. The openings are suitable to receive a bolt, spring cotter, clevis pin, steel ball lock hitch pin or pin with drop cam. In this embodiment, this is used to connect the locking unit 60 to the top end 38a of the connecting device 30
The locking unit 60 also comprises a bottom edge 67. The bottom edge 67 is preferably arranged with at least one elevated element 69. The bottom edge 67 may comprise one or a plurality of elevated element 69, however the number of elevated element 69 is preferably the same as the number of receiving means 43. If the number of elevated element 69 are more than one, they may be arranged symmetrically along the bottom edge 67 or asymmetrically arranged. In
An assembled accessory connector 70 is shown in
With reference to
The assembly of the adaptor assembly 2 will now be described in more detail. The first end 1a of the rope 1 is inserted into the first end portion 4a of the sleeve 4. Preferably, if a cover 7 is to be used, it is threaded onto the rope 1 before inserting the first end 1a into the sleeve 4.
The sleeve 4 is then arranged in the cavity created by the first or second portion 30a, 30b of the connection part 30. The sleeve 4 is preferably arranged in the space forming the cavity when the two portions 30a, 30b are separated from each other. The shoulder portion 27 of the sleeve 4 is engaged in the first internal recess 36 of the first and second portions 30a, 30b of the connection part 30. If a locking ring 8 is used, it is placed beneath the first and second portions 30a, 30b and is preferably also threaded on top of the cover 7 of onto the rope 1 before arranging the sleeve 4 in the first and second portions 30a, 30b. When the sleeve 4 is arranged correctly in the first and second portions 30a, 30b, the locking ring 8 is moved towards the connection part 30 and is forced into engagement with the locking edge 42 extending around the outer circumference of the connection part 30.
Subsequently, the connecting portion 52 at the lower part 54 of the connector device 50 is inserted into the opening 31 of the connection part 30. The lower portion 58 has dimensions corresponding to fit into the opening 31 of the first portion 30a. The protrusions 66 on the internal surface 65 of the locking unit 60 covering the connecting portion 52 (as shown in
When this is completed, the adaptor assembly 2 will have the appearance as shown in
In
The groove 93 is preferably a dovetail rail. The dimensions of the groove 93 can be adapted using the adjustment means 94 arranged on the connection part 30. In one embodiment, the male of the dovetails rails 93 are preferably placed at the top of connecting part 30.
In this embodiment, the connector device 50 is arranged with a protruding part 92 corresponding to the groove 93. The grove 93 preferably has a design and dimension that is arranged to receive the lower portion of the connecting portion 52. The protruding part 92 can be seen as a female dovetail rail 92. In one embodiment, the groove 93 and the protruding part 92 are connected as a dovetail joint. In this way, the top end 38a of the connection portion 30 is arranged with a quick release clamp for a fast and secure connection to the accessory connector 70.
The locking unit 60 is applied to the connection portion 30 from one of the sides of the dovetails rails and the adjustment means 94 are arranged to tighten the protruding part 92 so that a solid attachment is achieved. The locking unit 60 may be a single part or may be included in in a single accessory as is shown in
In one embodiment, the dovetails rails are combined with additional fastening means. The fastening means may for example be a spring cotter, a clevis pin or a pin with a drop cam. The fastening means may be arranged into clearance holes in the groove 93, or male dovetails rails part, and may be attached on or two sides of the dovetails rails.
Although not shown, it should be understood that the groove 93 could also be for example a T-shaped groove or any similar technical solution allowing for a quick mount.
In one embodiment, not shown, yet another connection method is provided in order to releasably connect the accessory connector 70 to the rope 1. In this embodiment, the top end 38a of the first portion 30a is arranged with a shoulder portion that extends around the outer circumference. Moreover, the bottom end 67 of the locking unit 60 comprises a shoulder portion, that extends around the outer circumference. In this embodiment, these two shoulder portions are arranged to be connected by a pipe clamp. The pipe clamp allows for a quick release connection. The pipe clamp is preferably arranged so that the two shoulder portions meet. The pipe clamp is threaded over either of the connecting portion 30 or the accessory connector, and is tightened by the quick release handle on the pipe clamp. The pipe clamp may be a fixated part on either the connecting portion 30 or the locking unit 60. Alternatively, the pipe clamp is a separate part.
Hence, the present invention can be achieved with different kinds of releasably connections between the accessory connector 70 and the adapter assembly, such as a bayonet mount, a dovetails rail connection or with the use of a pipe clamp.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950694-8 | Jun 2019 | SE | national |
