EXERCISE APPARATUS

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to an exercise apparatus.

BACKGROUND ART

Patients who have difficulty moving while lying down on bed, such as critically ill patients, use bed exercise equipment. Patients lying in bed use their upper bodies relatively freely but use their lower bodies less frequently. Thus, muscles of the lower bodies may be easily weakened. In particular, it is relatively easy to change postures of the ankles or move the ankles, but it is difficult to extend the knees while lying in bed. As a result, patients who spend long periods of time in bed may experience weakness in muscles of the lower bodies, especially around the knees.

Such related art is technical information that an inventor possessed for deriving the present disclosure or acquired in the process of deriving the present disclosure. However, related art is not necessarily the known art disclosed to the general public before filing the application for the present disclosure.

DISCLOSURE
Technical Problem

To solve the aforementioned problems, the present disclosure provides an exercise apparatus that allows a user to easily perform knee-extension movements while lying in bed and encourages the user to correctly perform the knee-extension movements.

However, these problems are illustrative and the problems to be solved by the present disclosure are not limited thereto.

Technical Solution

An exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure comprises a support, a cushion disposed on the support, containing fluid therein, and having a deformable shape, a rotating member arranged at one side of the support, and an actuator connecting the cushion to the rotating member and operating the rotating member in line with deformation of the cushion.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the cushion may contract and move the fluid therein toward the actuator when pressure applied from outside increases, and the cushion may expand and the fluid may be introduced from the actuator into the cushion when the pressure applied from the outside decreases, and the actuator may rotate the rotating member according to movement of the fluid.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the actuator may include a flow channel having one end connected to the cushion and through which the fluid moves, a valve connected to the other end of the flow channel, and an operating member connected to the valve and operating according to pressure of the valve to rotate the rotating member.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when the pressure of the valve increases while one end of the operating member is coupled to the valve, the operating member may rotate and come into contact with a protrusion connected to one end of the rotating member, thereby rotating the rotating member in one direction, and the operating member may rotate in an opposite direction when the pressure of the valve decreases.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, one or more seating grooves, in which an outer inclined surface is higher than an inner inclined surface, may be formed on an upper surface of the support.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, two cushions may be arranged separately from each other on top of the support, two rotating members may be arranged on one side and the other side of the support so as to be connected to the two cushions, respectively, and two actuators may be arranged to respectively operate the rotating members independently.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the rotating member may rotate with one end connected to the support and may have a ball at the other end.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the exercise apparatus may further include a pressure regulator connected to the cushion and controlling internal pressure of the cushion by controlling the amount of fluid contained inside the cushion.

In an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the exercise apparatus, which allows a user to perform knee-extension exercises while lying down, may include a support supporting both knees of the user, a pair of cushions arranged separately from each other on top of the support to correspond to both knees of the user and deformed according to pressure applied by the user's knees, a pair of rotating members arranged on both sides of the support and connected to the pair of cushions, and a pair of actuators respectively connected to the pair of cushions to independently operate the pair of rotating members in line with deformation of the pair of cushions when the pair of cushions are deformed by the pressure applied by the user's knees.

Other aspects, features, and advantages than those described above will become apparent from the detailed description, claims and drawings for carrying out the present disclosure below.

Advantageous Effects

An exercise apparatus, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, allows a user to easily exercise even while lying down.

The exercise apparatus, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, operates according to the pressure applied by the user, allowing the user to check the exercise intensity and exercise posture on his/her own.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a support according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 shows an operating state of a cushion and an actuator, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show an operating state of a rotating member, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show an operating state of an exercise apparatus, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

BEST MODE

An exercise apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a support, a cushion disposed on the support, containing fluid therein, and having a deformable shape, a rotating member arranged at one side of the support, and an actuator connecting the cushion to the rotating member operating the rotating member in line with deformation of the cushion.

MODE FOR INVENTION

Since the present disclosure can be modified in various ways and can have various embodiments, specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the description of the present disclosure. However, this is not intended to limit the present disclosure to specific embodiments and shall be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and technical scope of the present disclosure. In describing the present disclosure, the same identification numbers are used for the same components even though they are shown in different embodiments.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. When describing with reference to the drawings, identical or corresponding components are assigned the same reference numerals and redundant description thereof are omitted.

In the following embodiments, terms, such as first and second, are used not in a limiting sense but for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another component.

In the following embodiments, singular terms include plural terms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

In the following embodiments, terms, such as “include” or “have”, mean the presence of features or components described in the specification and do not exclude in advance the possibility of adding one or more other features or components.

In the drawings, the sizes of components may be exaggerated or reduced for convenience of explanation. For example, since the size and thickness of each component shown in the drawings are shown arbitrarily for convenience of explanation, the present disclosure is not necessarily limited to what is shown.

In the following embodiments, the x-axis, y-axis, and z-axis are not limited to the three axes in the Cartesian coordinate system but are interpreted in a broad sense including the same. For example, the x-axis, y-axis, and z-axis may be orthogonal to each other but may also refer to different directions that are not orthogonal to each other.

When an embodiment can be implemented differently, a specific process sequence may be performed differently from the described sequence. For example, two processes described in succession may be performed substantially at the same time or may be performed in an order opposite to the order in which they are described.

The terms used in this application are only used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. In this application, terms, such as “include” or “have”, are intended to designate the presence of features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification and shall be understood to not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 2 is a diagram of a support 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 3 shows an operating state of a cushion 200 and an actuator 400, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, FIGS. 4 and 5 show an operating state of a rotating member 300, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and FIGS. 6 and 7 show an operating state of an exercise apparatus 10, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes an apparatus to assist a user's exercise. For example, using the exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a user lying in bed may easily extend his/her knees. However, the present disclosure may not limit an exercise target to the lower body or knees and may be used to exercise various body parts, such as shoulders, wrists, and elbows. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the description focuses on the case where the exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure assists the knee exercise of the user lying in bed.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 7, the exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include a support 100, a cushion 200, a rotating member 300, and an actuator 400.

The support 100 supports the user's body parts, for example, both knees of the user. The support 100 may have a flat bottom surface to be placed on the floor or bed. The user's body may be seated on one side of the support 100, for example, on the upper part thereof.

The shape and material of the support 100 are not particularly limited and may have an appropriate shape and material to allow the user to easily move his or her body parts while seated on the support 100. For example, the support 100 may have the shape of a parallelepiped or square pyramid which is vertically long. Additionally, the support 100 may include wood, plastic, metal, rubber, and the like. In an embodiment, the support 100 may include different materials. For example, the upper part of the support 100, which is in contact with the user's body, may include a soft material, such as rubber or silicone, and the other parts thereof may include a hard material, such as metal or wood.

In an embodiment, the support 100 may include seating grooves 110. As shown in FIG. 2, one or more, e.g., two, seating grooves 110 may be formed on the upper surface of the support 100 on which the user's body rests. The seating groove 110 formed concave downward on the upper surface of the support 100 may stably support the user's body parts, such as the knees.

In an embodiment, a plurality of seating grooves 110 may be formed. For example, two seating grooves 110 may be formed on the upper surface of the support 100 and may be spaced apart from each other so that the user's body parts do not interfere with each other when exercising. A partition wall 120 may be formed to protrude between the seating grooves 110 which are spaced apart from each other.

In an embodiment, an outer inclined surface 111 of the seating groove 110 may be higher than an inner inclined surface 112 thereof. As shown in FIG. 2, based on the bottom of the seating groove 110, the outer inclined surface 111 of the seating groove 110 may have a height H1 and the inner inclined surface 112 of the seating groove 110 may have a height H2, wherein H1 may be greater than H2. As such, since the outer inclined surface 111 of the seating groove 110 is formed higher than the inner inclined surface 112 thereof, the external rotation of the user's body parts, especially the knees, while seated in the seating groove 110 may be prevented.

In an embodiment, the slope of the outer inclined surface 111 of the seating groove 110 may be greater than the slope of the inner inclined surface 112 thereof. As shown in FIG. 2, centered around an axis perpendicular to the bottom of the seating groove 110, the outer inclined surface 111 of the seating groove 110 may have a slope θ1 and the inner inclined surface 112 of the seating groove 110 may have a slope θ2, wherein θ1 may be greater than θ2. As such, since the outer inclined surface 111 of the seating groove 110 has a greater slope than the slope of the inner inclined surface 112, the user's body parts, especially the knees, may be internally rotated while seated in the seating groove 110.

The number of seating grooves 110 is not particularly limited. For example, two seating grooves 110 may be formed on the support 100 with two seating grooves spaced apart from each other to correspond to both knees of the user. Alternatively, one or three or more seating grooves 110 may be formed.

In an embodiment, the support 100 may include an internal space 130 that accommodates the cushion 200. As shown in FIG. 2, the internal space 130 may be formed inside the upper part of the support 100 and may be physically separated from other spaces inside the lower part of the support 100. Accordingly, the cushion 200 placed in the internal space 130 may be pressed by the user's body to prevent the cushion 200 from deviating from the designated position.

The cushion 200 may be placed on the support 100 and may contain fluid inside. For example, the cushion 200 may be placed on top of the support 100 so as to be in contact with the user's body. The cushion 200 may be placed on the upper surface of the support 100 to be exposed to the outside or may be placed inside the upper part of the support 100. When the cushion 200 is placed inside the support 100, the cushion 200 may be placed at the top of the support 100 to sufficiently receive external pressure, for example, pressure from the user's body, wherein the upper part of the support 100, which corresponds to the cushion 200, may include a soft material, such as rubber or silicone. For example, the cushion 200 may be placed in the internal space 130 of the support 100.

In an embodiment, the cushion 200 may include a soft material so that the cushion can be deformed when in contact with the user's body. For example, the cushion 200 may include rubber or silicon and may contain a fluid, such as water, air, or nitrogen. When the cushion 200 comes in contact with the user's body parts, especially the user's knees, the cushion 200 may be deformed according to the pressure and the fluid contained inside the cushion 200 may move to the actuator 400 or the fluid from the actuator 400 may move to the cushion 200. That is, when the pressure applied by the user's body increases, the cushion 200 contracts and moves the fluid to the actuator 400. When the pressure applied by the user's body decreases, the cushion 200 expands and moves the fluid from the actuator 400 to flow into the cushion 200.

In an embodiment, a plurality of cushions 200 may be provided. For example, two cushions 200 may be vertically spaced apart from each other as shown in FIG. 1. The plurality of cushions 200 may be disposed on the upper part of the support 100, and more specifically, on the upper part of the seating groove 110. Alternatively, the plurality of cushions 200 may be arranged in a plurality of internal spaces 130, respectively, wherein the plurality of internal spaces 130 may be physically separated from each other.

The rotating member 300 may be placed on one side of the support 100 and may be operated by the cushion 200 and the actuator 400, which will be described later. For example, one or more rotating members 300 may be placed on both sides of the support 100 and may rotate according to the pressure applied from the outside. More specifically, when the pressure applied to the cushion 200 increases, the fluid inside the cushion 200 may move to the actuator 400 and the rotating member 300 may rotate in one direction. When the pressure applied to the cushion 200 decreases, the fluid inside the actuator 400 may move into the cushion 200 and the rotating member 300 may rotate in the opposite direction. For example, when the user's knees are seated on the support 100 and the pressure applied by the user's knees to the cushion 200 increases, the rotating member 300 may rotate toward the user's toes. Accordingly, as the user's legs spread, the rotating member 300 may approach or contact the user's lower body. Thereafter, when the pressure applied by the user's knees to the cushion 200 decreases, the rotating member 300 may rotate back toward the user's original position.

The number of rotating members 300 is not particularly limited. The number of rotating members 300 may be the same as the number of cushions 200 and actuators 400. For example, a total of two rotating members 300 may be placed on both sides of the support 100, respectively. The rotating members 300 may be connected to the cushion 200 and the actuator 400, respectively, and may operate independently of each other.

In an embodiment, the rotating member 300 may include a holder 310, a support rod 320, a protrusion 330, and a ball 340.

The holder 310 may be placed on the side of the support 100 to connect the rotating member 300 to the support 100. The holder 310 may be rotatably connected to the support 100. In an embodiment, the holder 310 may have a cylindrical shape with an empty interior and the support rod 320 may be inserted and fixed into the inside of the holder 310.

One end of the support rod 320 is inserted into the holder 310 and rotates in the same direction as the holder 310 is rotated by the actuator 400. In an embodiment, the other end of the support rod 320 may be bent in an L-shape.

The protrusion 330 may be placed on one side of the rotating member 300 and may be selectively connected to the actuator 400. For example, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, when the operating member 430 of the actuator 400 operates as the cushion 200 is deformed, the protrusion 330 may come into contact with the operating member 430 to rotate the holder 310. The protrusion 330 may be placed at one end of the holder 310 adjacent to the support 100 and may protrude toward the inside of the support 100.

The ball 340 may be placed on the other end of the support rod 320. The ball 340 may be connected to the support rod 320 through a thread-like connection member and may be placed vertically downward. The ball 340 may induce desirable exercise movements in the user. For example, when the pressure applied by the user's knees to the cushion 200 does not reach a preset value, the rotating member 300 may not rotate sufficiently and therefore the ball 340 may not move down sufficiently. Through this configuration, the user may visually confirm that the user's body and the ball 340 are not in contact with each other or the gap therebetween has increased and may increase the pressure applied to the cushion 200. As a result, the user may control the intensity of exercise or perform the exercise with desirable movements.

In an embodiment, the rotating member 300 may further include stoppers 350. The stopper 350 may be arranged on one side of the rotating member 300 and may limit the rotation angle of the holder 310. For example, the stoppers 350 may be placed on both sides of the support 100 to contact the holder 310 when the holder 310 rotates by a certain angle.

In an embodiment, the rotating member 300 may further include a return spring 350. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, one end of the return spring 350 may be connected to the protrusion 330. The other end of the return spring 350 may be connected to the inside or the outside of the support 100. In a state where the holder 310 or the support rod 320 does not rotate, the return spring 350 may be in an equilibrium state without being contracted or expanded. Afterwards, when the user's body presses the cushion 200 and the rotating member 300 rotates, the return spring 350 expands and generates a restoring force to rotate in the opposite direction. When the pressure applied by the user's body decreases, the rotating member 300 returns to its original position by the restoring force of the return spring 350.

The actuator 400 connects the cushion 200 to the rotating member 300 and operates the rotating member 300 in line with the deformation of the cushion 200. For example, when the pressure applied by the user's body to the cushion 200 increases, the cushion 200 is deformed and the fluid contained inside moves toward the actuator 400. When the amount and/or pressure of the moved fluid exceeds a preset value, the actuator 400 operates the rotating member 300 to rotate the same. Afterwards, when the pressure applied to the cushion 200 decreases, the fluid that moved to the actuator 400 flows back into the cushion 200. Accordingly, the rotating member 300 returns to its original position.

In an embodiment, two actuators 400 may be provided. For example, a total of two actuators 400 may be provided on both sides of the support 100, respectively. Each of the actuators 400 may connect one cushion 200 to one rotating member 300 and may operate independently of each other. The number of actuators 400 is not limited to two and may be provided in the same number as the number of cushions 200 and rotating members 300. For example, the number of actuators 400 may include one or three or more.

In an embodiment, the actuator 400 may include a flow channel 410, a valve 420, and an operating member 430.

One end of the flow channel 410 may be connected to the cushion 200 and the flow channel 410 may function as a passage through which the fluid flows from the cushion 200 or the fluid from the actuator 400 flows into the cushion 200. The other end of the flow channel 410 is connected to the valve 420. The flow channel 410 may include a flexible tube.

The valve 420 is arranged at the end of the flow channel 410. For example, the valve 420 is placed at the other end opposite to the end of the flow channel 410 connected to the cushion 200 and is connected to the operating member 430. When the amount and/or pressure of the fluid flowing from the cushion 200 exceeds a preset value, the valve 420 operates to move the operating member 430. In addition, when the amount and/or pressure of the fluid falls below a preset value, the valve 420 returns the operating member 430 to its original position.

The operating member 430 is connected to the valve 420 and operates according to the amount and/or pressure of the fluid within the valve 420. The operating member 430 including a member in the shape of a rod or a plate may be arranged to face the flow channel 410 with the valve 420 in between. The operating member 430 may extend toward the protrusion 330 and may be rotated by the valve 420. For example, one end of the operating member 430 may be rotatably connected to the valve 420. When the valve 420 is opened, the operating member 430 may rotate downward and pressurize the protrusion 330, thereby rotating the rotating member 300. Afterwards, when the valve 420 is closed, the operating member 430 returns to its original position.

The operating principle of the operating member 430 may be the same or similar to that of the needle of the known pressure gauge. For example, a tube (e.g., a Bourdon tube) that expands as pressure increases is arranged at one side of the operating member 430 and the operating member 430 connected thereto may rotate.

Referring to FIG. 1, the exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may further include a pressure regulator 500.

The pressure regulator 500 may be connected to the cushion 200 and may control the amount of the fluid contained in the cushion 200. For example, the cushion 200 may contain air and the pressure regulator 500 may control the amount of air in the cushion 200 through a control valve (not shown) so that the cushion 200 maintains a certain internal pressure. When the amount of air contained in the cushion 200 is large, the amount of moving air is large even though the pressure applied by the user is small, thereby reducing the intensity of exercise. On the contrary, when the amount of air contained in the cushion 200 is small, the user must apply greater pressure to move the same amount of air, which increases the exercise intensity. As such, through the pressure regulator 500, the user may control the pressure of the air within the cushion 200 to appropriately select the suitable exercise intensity.

The operation of the exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7.

As shown in FIG. 6, the user puts both legs on the exercise apparatus 10. For example, the back of the knees of both legs may be located on the upper surface of the support 100, more specifically, the seating groove 110. In this state, since the user's foot F is located on the ground, the pressure applied by the user to the cushion 200 is extremely small and the rotating member 300 may be maintained perpendicular to the ground.

As shown in FIG. 7, when the user lifts the foot F, the pressure P applied by the user to the cushion 200 increases. As the pressure P applied to the cushion 200 increases, the rotating member 300 rotates toward the user's foot F, for example, clockwise as shown in FIG. 7.

More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, when the user applies pressure to the cushion 200, the cushion 200 is deformed and the fluid inside the cushion 200, e.g., air, moves toward the actuator 400. The air in the cushion 200 moves to the valve 420 through the flow channel 410. As the pressure P increases, the cushion 200 is further deformed and the amount of the fluid moving to the valve 420 increases. When the amount and/or pressure of the fluid exceeds a preset value, the valve 420 opens to rotate the operating member 430 downward. As the protrusion 330 of the rotating member 300 rotates downward by the operating member 430, the entire rotating member 300 rotates in the same direction.

When the rotating member 300 rotates at a sufficient angle, the end of the user's foot F comes into contact with the ball 340. Accordingly, the user may easily determine whether the exercise intensity or posture is appropriate. In addition, although the pressure applied by the user increases, the user may exercise in a state where the rotation angle of the rotating member 300 is maintained within a certain range as one or more stoppers 350 placed on both sides of the support 100 limit the rotation angle of the rotating member 300.

Thereafter, when the user bends the knees again, the pressure applied to the cushion 200 decreases and the fluid in the actuator 400 flows into the cushion 200 again. Accordingly, when the amount and/or pressure of the fluid falls below a preset value, the valve 420 is closed and the operating member 430 returns to its original position. Accordingly, as the operating member 430 is separated from the protrusion 330, the rotating member 300 may return to its original position. In this process, the restoring force of the return spring 350 intervenes, allowing the rotating member 300 to return to its original position more quickly.

Through this configuration, the exercise apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may allow the user to easily perform lower body exercises even when the user has limitations in movement, such as while lying in bed.

Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, these are merely examples. Those skilled in the art may fully understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible from the embodiments. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present disclosure shall be determined based on the attached claims.

The specific technical content described with reference to the embodiments is one embodiment and does not limit the technical scope of the embodiment. To describe the present disclosure concisely and clearly, conventional general techniques and configurations may be omitted. In addition, the connection or the connection member between the components shown in the drawings illustratively represent functional connection and/or physical or circuit connections. In an actual device, the connection or the connection member may be represented by a variety of alternative or additional functional, physical, or circuit connections. In addition, when a component is not mentioned with terms, such as “essential,” and “important,” the component may not be a necessary component for the application of the present disclosure.

The term “the” or similar referents used in the description and claims may refer to both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise specified. In addition, when a range is described in an embodiment, it is the same as describing each individual value constituting the range in the present disclosure, to which individual values within the range are applied, unless otherwise specified. In addition, unless there is an explicit order or description to the contrary regarding the steps constituting the method according to an embodiment, the steps may be performed in an appropriate order. The embodiments are not necessarily limited by the order of description of the steps above. The use of any examples or exemplary terms (e.g., and the like) in the embodiments are merely for the purpose of describing the embodiments in detail. Unless limited by the claims, the scope of the embodiments is not limited by the examples or exemplary terms. In addition, those skilled in the art may understand that various modifications, combinations, and changes may be made according to design conditions and factors within the scope of the appended claims or their equivalents.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present disclosure is industrially applicable to an exercise apparatus.

EXERCISE APPARATUS

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Description

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