Patent Application
20130035214
1. Fields of the Invention
The invention relates to a cushioning mechanism of a treadmill, and more particularly, to a structure employing the excellent restoring ability of a flexible elastic element in conjunction with a synchronous swing of a hanging device adapted to the flexible elastic element to compensate the expansion displacement for achieving an excellent cushioning effect.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is well-known that the cushioning effect of the conventional treadmills is mostly created by a plurality of rubber pads between the running board and the treadmill's base frame. In this way, these rubber pads provide a certain cushioning effect to properly withstand all reactive forces acting on the treadmill's operator when the running board is subject to an external force.
These rubber pads may produce the cushioning effect to some extent. However, it is an indisputable fact that they can be qualitatively changed due to the environmental and time factors. In particular, their durability tends to be different according to forces acting thereon. That is, their service life will be significantly impaired in case of the prolonged exposure to large pressure.
Moreover, the rubber pads are positioned in a hidden place. When they are repaired or replaced, the running belt and the running board have to be removed. Therefore, it is not easy for the general users to conduct the above-mentioned complicated steps. This requires further improvements.
An object of the invention is to provide a cushioning mechanism for a treadmill that employs a flexible elastic element with an excellent responsiveness, a great restoring ability, and a high tolerance to replace most of the rubber pads. Moreover, a hanging device movable with the flexible elastic element is used to absorb the displacement of the flexible elastic element when subject to an external force. In this way, an excellent cushioning effect is achieved. In addition, when the flexible elastic element is required to be replaced, it is only necessary to remove the continuous moving belt for conducting the replacement work. As a result, a convenient replacement is ensured.
According to the invention, at least one set of the cushioning mechanism of a treadmill is interposed with an auxiliary plate between a base frame and the running board. The cushioning mechanism 20 includes two hanging support pieces, two hanging swing pieces, and a flexible elastic element. When the running board is subject to a downward force and sinks, the flexible elastic element will be pulled and expanded externally. When the external force is eliminated, the running board will be returned back to its original position by the self-restoring ability of the flexible elastic element. In this way, an expected and optimal cushioning effect is achieved.
The accomplishment of this and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following description and its accompanying drawings of which:
The present invention will now be described in more detail hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings that show various embodiments of the invention.
Referring to
As shown in
The hanging support pieces 22 each have one end pivotably coupled to the auxiliary plate 13 and the other end pivotably connected to the hanging swing pieces 24.
The hanging swing pieces 24 are pivotably coupled in a hanging way to the base frame 16 with the bottom end pivotably connected to the flexible elastic element 26.
Both sides of the flexible elastic element 26 are connected to the hanging swing pieces 24, respectively.
Based on the assembly of the above-mentioned components, when the running board 12 is subject to a downward force and sinks, the flexible elastic element 26 mounted below will be pulled and expanded externally. The expansion displacement of the flexible elastic element 26 will be compensated by the swing effect of the hanging support pieces 22 and the hanging swing pieces 24. When the external force is eliminated, the running board 12 will be returned back to its original position by the self-restoring ability of the flexible elastic element 26. In this way, an expected and optimal cushioning effect is achieved.
As shown in
As shown in
Many changes and modifications in the above-described embodiments of the invention can, of course, be carried out without departing from the scope thereof. Accordingly, to promote the progress in science and the useful arts, the invention is disclosed and is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.
