The present invention relates generally to an arm assembly for fitness equipment, and more particularly to an arm structure facilitating the users to select tension arm length, disposing angle and equipment to be mounted on, and specifically to a mountable arm assembly for various types of fitness equipment.
In conventional fitness equipment, especially those strength training apparatuses like rowing, pedaling, jogging, or lifting devices for users to exercise limbs or different muscle groups, arm members are commonly used as the force transmission component for the users to add applied force and load resistance force. One end of the arm member is used as the applied force end for the limb of the users to add a force, whereas the other end of the arm member is used as the resistance force end to load a resistance force source selected by the users. The resistance force end can be a load (such as a counterweight iron), or a resistance force device like a motor or a power-driven machine, or just the self-weight of the user. Such resistance force sources are used to generate a resistance force.
The above-mentioned fitness apparatuses are all customized to exercise specific muscle groups. Whether such apparatuses can be used to exercise muscle groups in one single part or in multiple parts of the body, generally the users can only choose from different resistance forces loaded on the resistance force end of the arm member, the length of the tension arm provided by the arm member is generally fixed and cannot be adjusted. Even if the length of the tension arm can be adjusted, the range of adjustment is limited. Therefore, such apparatuses are actually inconvenient for users to use.
Also, it is commonly seen that the arm member is usually in the form of a straight or bent arm body to form a disposing angle, and one arm member or multiple arm members connected to each other are pivoted on fitness equipment. However, the straight or bent disposing angle formed on one single arm member, or the disposing angle formed between multiple arm members pivoted to each other is determined by the designer, and the users cannot adjust the disposing angle as needed.
Therefore, the custom-made arm members mounted on fitness equipment for specific exercising purposes do not provide free adjustment of the tension arm length or the disposing angle. The fixed structure even affects the range of torque that can be generated by the arm member, as well as the range of applied forced needed for exercising the user’s limb, thus influencing the overall effectiveness of the fitness equipment. Moreover, it is usually not possible to change the position of installation for the arm member, particularly to install it on fitness equipment for different exercising purposes. Such arm members are generally lack of the versatility of modular installation and are therefore in need of improvement.
In view of the problems of the conventional arm members, one object of the present invention is to provide a solution to extend the range of applied force to exercise the muscle strength of the users on one single fitness apparatus based on different training intensities of different users, so that one single fitness apparatus can meet the exercising needs of different users, or for different muscle groups. Therefore, the present invention firstly puts aside the variation of load to be selected by the users on the resistance force end, and focuses on improving the arm member commonly installed on fitness equipment through a solution to enhance the adjustability of the arm member to generate different torques, so as to extend the range of applied force for the users to exercise muscle strength. The inventor has developed an arm assembly for fitness equipment offering adjustment of both the tension arm length and the disposing angle according to the need for different training intensity, thus overcoming the problem that the arm members of the conventional fitness apparatuses do not offer convenient change of the tension arm length or the disposing angle.
A further object of the present invention is to improve the modularity of the arm assembly for better convenience, and particularly to enable modular installation for creating fitness equipment for multiple purposes to exercise different limbs or muscle groups.
In order to realize the above objects in a united form, in one embodiment, the present invention provides a mountable arm assembly for fitness equipment, comprising two arm members and a connector; the arm bodies of the two arm members are respectively formed with a plurality of assembly portions distributed at intervals and having different tension arm lengths; the connector is formed with a center-positioned pivot connection portion and a plurality of eccentric positioning portions distributed at intervals around the pivot connection portion; specifically, the two arm members are interconnected via the connector, such that an adjustable disposing angle is formed between the two arm members, and at least one of the two arm members defines the disposing angle through at least one of the eccentric positioning portions. The arm assembly can be mounted on fitness equipment by the pivot connection portion and can swing back and forth. Users can select from different assembly portions on the two arm members for different tension arm lengths needed to add an applied force and a resistance force.
In a further embodiment, the two arm members comprise an applied force arm and a resistance force arm with interchangeable installation positions.
Each of the plurality of assembly portions of the applied force arm is respectively defined as an applied force assembly portions, each of the plurality of different tension arm lengths is defined as an applied force arm length formed between the plurality of applied force assembly portions and the pivot connection portion, and each of the plurality of applied force assembly portions can be mounted with an applied force member, so as to add an applied force to the arm assembly.
Specifically, the applied force member is at least one of a handle, a pedal, a bar, a mat, a frame, or a rope for the users to touch and apply a force. The plurality of applied force assembly portions are in the form of holes. The applied force member is connected to any of the applied force assembly portions through any of a bolt, a pin, or a hook for an expected applied force arm length.
Each of the plurality of assembly portions on the resistance force arm is respectively defined as a resistance force assembly portions, each of the plurality of different tension arm lengths is defined as a resistance force arm length formed between the plurality of resistance force assembly portions and the pivot connection portion, and the plurality of resistance force assembly portions are provided for installation of a resistance force member to add a resistance force to the arm assembly.
Specifically, the resistance force member is at least one of a weight plate, a dumbbell, an elastic rope, a hydraulic cylinder, a pneumatic cylinder, a spring, a motor, the self-weight of the user, or a water bucket to generate a pulling force upon the resistance force arm. The plurality of resistance force assembly portions are in the form of holes. The resistance force member is connected to or touches any of the resistance force assembly portions of the required resistance force arm length through any of a bolt, a pin, a hook, a bar, a rope, or any part of the user’s body.
In a further embodiment, the connector is made in the form of a rotary disc, the rotary disc comprises a disk body and a first disc cap, the pivot connection portion and the plurality of eccentric positioning portions are all located on the disk body, the first disc cap is formed with a first supporting portion and a first limiting portion; specifically, the first supporting portion is located at the center of the first disc cap and corresponds to the pivot connection portion for interconnecting with each other, the first limiting portion is located on the periphery of the first supporting portion and can fit upon one of the plurality of eccentric positioning portions, so that the first disc cap can be configured on the rotary end face on one side of the disk body at a required disposing angle; and one end of the two arm members is respectively fixed on the disk body and the first disc cap, such that the two arm members are pivoted together through the disk body and the first disc cap and form a disposing angle.
Specifically, the first supporting portion and the first limiting portion are integrally formed with the end portion of the arm member that is fixed on the first disc cap. The pivot connection portion and the first supporting portion can be presented in the form of interconnected hole-to-hole, and the equipment provides a support shaft for pivot joint with the pivot connection portion. The first limiting portion and the eccentric positioning portions are configured in the form of matching holes, so that the first limiting portion and the eccentric positioning portions can be fixed together through a first pin going through the holes while defining the disposing angle. The first pin is accompanied with an elastic component when going through the holes of the first limiting portion and the eccentric positioning portions to fix them together.
Specifically, the connector also comprises a second disc cap, the second disc cap is formed with a second supporting portion and a second limiting portion, the second supporting portion is located at the center of the second disc cap and corresponds to the pivot connection portion for interconnecting with each other, the second limiting portion is located on the periphery of the second supporting portion and can fit upon one of the plurality of eccentric positioning portions, so that the second disc cap is configured on the rotary end face on the other side of the disk body in a manner enabling selection of the limiting point. The pivot connection portion and the second supporting portion can be presented in the form of interconnected hole-to-hole, and the equipment provides a support shaft for pivot joint with the pivot connection portion and the second supporting portion. The second limiting portion and the eccentric positioning portions are configured in the form of matching holes, so that the second limiting portion and the eccentric positioning portions are interconnected via a second pin to determine the limiting point. One end of the second pin extends outward to form a stopping column, so that the stopping column can swing along with the arm assembly. The equipment also provides a stopping portion that can limit the swing angle of the stopping column. The stopping portion is located at a close eccentric position on the support shaft.
In a further embodiment, the arm assembly is a pair, and is symmetrically installed on the two sides of the equipment.
In a further embodiment, the equipment is one of a fitness apparatus, a support frame, or a door frame.
Based on the descriptions above, the present invention offers the following technical features and effects:
1. The two tension arms provide a full 360-degree, equal-circumference area as the range of adjustment for the disposing angle, so that the users can freely select a required disposing angle between the two tension arms according to different training targets and exercising purposes. An appropriate applied force angle or resistance force angle, or an appropriate range of angles can be selected to improve the exercising efficiency for the specific limbs.
2. The connector for pivot joint of the two arm members provides a plurality of eccentric positioning portions, so that the users can easily position (i.e. lock) and release (i.e. unlock) the above selected disposing angle.
3. Through the plurality of assembly portions of different tension arm lengths provided by the two tension arms, which particularly comprises a plurality of applied force assembly portions and a plurality of resistance force assembly portions, the users can select the tension arm lengths of the applied force and the resistance force. Thus, the range of adjustment for the tension arm length is extended.
4. The users can easily select an applied force member suitable for the applied force assembly portion of the required applied force arm length, and select a resistance force member suitable for the resistance force assembly portion of the required resistance force arm length to create a required load for different body building purposes or to match a specific fitness apparatus.
5. Based on the pivot connection portion provided by the connector, and the technical feature of adjustability of both disposing angle and tension arm length of the arm assembly, the arm assembly of the present invention can be easily modularized to create fitness apparatuses for multiple purposes, and users can freely define the part of body to be exercises or the intensity of exercise by themselves.
The features and technical effects of the embodiments disclosed above will be further detailed in the subsequent descriptions with reference to the accompanying drawings.
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The applied force arm 10 and resistance force arm 20 can be made of metal or non-metal materials with appropriate tension strengths to resist pressing or pulling, and preferably light-weight materials, and can be made in the form of a hollow or solid arm body.
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Specifically, the first disc cap 34 is integrally formed with a first supporting portion 35 and a first limiting portion 36; the first supporting portion 35 is located at the center of the first disc cap 34, and matches one end of the pivot connection portion 31 concentrically so that they can be interconnected.
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Specifically, the second limiting portion 360 is located at an eccentric position beyond the second supporting portion 350, and can match the plurality of eccentric positioning portions 32 on the disk body 33 one by one along a rotation path of equal circumference. Thus, the second limiting portion 360 has the same positioning (locking) function as the first limiting portion 36 when selecting the required eccentric positioning portion 32. Further, the plurality of eccentric positioning portions 32 and the second limiting portion 360 can also be implemented in the form of holes, so that a second pin 370 can go through the holes of the second limiting portion 360 and the selected eccentric positioning portion 32 to interconnect them. One end of the second pin 370 can be formed with a stopping column 371, used to position (i.e. lock) the limiting point P when the stopping column 371 on the second limiting portion 360 is aligned to a required eccentric positioning portion 32. The second disc cap 340 is configured on the other side of the disk body 33 in a manner that the limiting point P can be selected. Based on such an implementation, the limiting point P provided by the stopping column 371 can control the swing angle of the arm assembly installed on fitness equipment so as to avoid collision of the arm assembly against the equipment or the body of the user. Further, the second pin 370 can also be implemented in a form similar to the first pin 37, i.e. the second pin 370 is also configured with an elastic component 390 and a grip 380.
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Based on the embodiments described above as example, it can be easily understood that, apart from the equipment 40 shown in
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The above descriptions of the present invention are for illustrative purpose only and are not intending to limit the scope of the invention. Technical professionals skilled in the art can make modifications, changes or equivalent designs without departing from the spirit and scope defined by the claims. All such modifications, changes or equivalent designs shall be covered by the scope of patent protection of the present invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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202111062316X | Sep 2021 | CN | national |