Patent Grant
7695410
This is a continuation of application Ser. Nr. KR/10-2008-0026004, Filed Mar. 20, 2008, now pending 1-1-2008-0203600-14, in Rep. of Korea.
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
1. Field
This application generally relates to exercise device, specifically to a seat mountable exercise device with alternative lower body exercise variations for use on any type of seat or chair.
2. Prior Art
Extended period of time of active hours is being increasingly required to be spent sedentarily, whether working in an office, watching television, using computer or playing videogames. Prolonged immobilization or sedentary position may not only generate discomfort, especially on the lower-body, but increasing medical studies are reporting the close connection with health risks such as blood circulatory difficulties, obesity, deep-vein thrombosis, varicose vein, mental state decrease and/or other problems. Most physical activity is available in a location or area away from office or desk, requiring additional time investment and the trouble to prepare for exercise. Considering modern day environment, it demands extra effort and time which is difficult for most people to keep up with over long period of time, whereas exercising while working at the office is being introduced as the new alternative for an efficient and convenient physical exercise.
Numerous exercise devices which provide exercise function while sitting at an office chair or simultaneous performance of physical exercises and office work have been introduced, usually by attachment of the device to either a desk or a chair, or a seat with a built-in exercising function. The following examples are of typical prior art to this field of endeavor.
However, most prior art describe devices that have rather limited range of movement, exercise capacity, or is applicable only for a limited type of chair or are too bulky to use under conventional office desks. Moreover, considering that the majority users would use these devices in the office where the furniture belong to the company, easy installation and removal without damaging the office furniture is important while requiring small space for diverse office circumstances. Prior arts which satisfy such requirements either have weak resistance on the pedal bearing or require the user to replace the whole chair itself, as the chair has built-in exercise system. Otherwise, some prior art describe devices that may be used in offices but require additional time for exercise, instead of simultaneous exercise with conventional office work such as computer or phone conversation.
Health related studies show that exercising the lower body, such as thighs where large amount of muscles are formed, burns more calories while it also prevents deep-vein thrombosis, varicose vein and other blood circulatory troubles, thus is especially recommended for people with extended stationary or sedentary work. Efforts to solve such exercise deficiency issue with more efficient and effective lower body movements for office workers have lead to the following prior art examples.
Although above-noted prior art propose most efficient and effective calorie-burning exercise system that could be performed in the office, few concerns are raised. One is the eyesight failure which might occur when performing computer or desk work while walking, since minor but consistent motion would disturb and fatigue the eyes. Another concern is the budget, since the mentioned prior art require the user to purchase a new desk, system or work station which is rather costly. It also may attract undesired attention from colleagues, since the system consumes much space and requires the user to work while walking. For companies that wish to install such exercise work station system for the employees' health and benefits, the noise that the treadmill may produce is a negative aspect since it could disturb other employees. The fact that mentioned prior art are power consuming is also another aspect which needs to be addressed for eco-friendly environment.
Advantages of this application of one or more aspects are to provide a convenient mountable lower body exercise device without damaging the existing furniture, and which could be mounted to any form of chair including conventional chairs and couch. Other advantages of one or more aspects are to provide variations of lower body exercise, such as aerobic exercise and muscle training, which may be practiced simultaneously while performing other activities such as conventional office work, doing simple works at a table or desk, watching television or video games, without requiring much movement of the upper body to prevent eyesight fatigue. This application describe device which also does not require electric power and is quiet enough to exercise in the office without disturbing others. These and other advantages of one or more aspects will become apparent from a consideration of the ensuing description and accompanying drawings.
In accordance with one embodiment a seat mountable exercise device comprises a cushion lever seat attachable equipment, and a leg exercise device with one or more alterable functions, which can be attached to the cushion, allowing the user to exercise while working, reading or performing other sedentary activities simultaneously.
In the drawings, closely related figures have the same number but different alphabetic suffixes.
Most preferred embodiment of a seat mountable exercise device is shown in
The seat pad (12) may be composed of a cushion, preferably with shock-absorbing materials such as air-gel or airbags inside the seat for comfort support material (12a), to produce a cushioning effect to assist a user's pelvic movements as a result of exercising the user's legs, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
The lower connecting arm (21a) is connected to the pivotal connecting arm (22) with a fixing screw (21aa) and multiple length adjustable holes (22aa), to adjust the length between the seat composition (10) and the exercising device body (21). Pivotal connecting arm (22) can be attached or detached to the seat composition (10) by locking the pivotal joint (22a) to the engagement point (11b) with the joint screw (11c). A Pedal axle (21b) which the pedal composition (23) is connected, is installed in both sides of the exercise device body (21). The end of each pedal axle (21b) is connected to a conventional gearbox or a drum magnetic type exercise system inside the exercise device body (21). As a result, when the pedal compositions (23) are revolving, pedal axles (21b) also revolve along.
A pedal arm (23a) is composed of a frame structure arm which has space in the center to allow a bearing pedal (23b) to slide for length adjustment by fixing with pedal length control screw (23d) as illustrated in
As illustrated in
Although not illustrated, a gearbox is installed in the exercise device body (21). This multi-level, preferably 8 level, gearbox is connected to the pedal arms (23a) and is made to increase the intensity of rotation of the pedal compositions (23) through the control of the resistance controller (25). The gearbox can be substituted with the said drum magnetic type system which has advantages of semi-permanent use with the least noise generation.
The support composition (24) shown in
One or more wheels (24c) may be installed at the bottom of the support composition (24) for mobility convenience.
A pedal adjustment composition (30) is used for the exercises illustrated in
The pressure given to the bearing pedal (23b) by the user will rotate the steel drum (27). However, the weight of the steel drum (27) and the magnetic force formed between the magnet (26a) planted magnetic belt (26) and the steel drum (27) creates basic cycle resistance for exercise. The direct resistance controller (25″) may be set around the single wheel drum body (21″) as many as the number of desired resistance level. Each direct resistance controller (25″) will give exercise resistance through stronger magnetic force which is created when the magnetic belt (26) is drawn closer to the steel drum (27) through the space controlled by the resistance controller (25″) attached directly to the magnetic belt belt (26).
Thus the reader will see that, according to one embodiment of the invention, a convenient seat mountable lower body exercise device without damaging the existing furniture is provided, and which could be mounted to various forms of chair or seat including conventional chairs and couch. The embodiment also provides variations of lower body exercise, such as aerobic exercise and muscle training, which may be practiced simultaneously while performing other activities such as conventional office work or video games, without requiring much movement of the upper body to prevent eyesight fatigue. In addition, the embodiment is also eco-friendly since it does not require electric power and is semi-permanent. Furthermore, the reader will also see that the embodiment will help playing a role in preventing obesity and promoting public health through promotion of constant movement of the lower body, stimulating blood circulation for most busy sedentary users.
While the above description contains much specificity, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of any embodiment, but as exemplifications of the presently preferred embodiments thereof. Many other ramifications and variations are possible within the teachings of the various embodiments. For example, the seat mountable exercise device may have various designs, colors, sizes and shapes, such as various shapes or material of cushion; various forms of pedal parallelization methods, adjusting with screw, button, clip, etc.; various designs of exercise body support composition, which may contain only one wheel, many wheels or no wheel at all; various forms of attaching systems may be applied for exercise composition connection method with the seat composition, such as clip method, hook method or belt method, etc; it may have one or more support pole compositions; other elastic methods may be applied for the support pole, such as strong elastic belt or air resistance system; methods of fixing and releasing the elastic pole may be replaced with other methods than pin, such as tightening lid, fixing button or screw, etc.; various shapes of bearing pedal; any appropriate materials may be used for said device including the steel wheel, which may be substituted for iron or any other magnetic material; various forms of intensity control, such as simple button system instead of screw type, belt resistance instead of magnetic force, etc.; magnetic belt may not be consecutive but fragmented into multiple sections or it may be placed vertically rather than horizontally, etc.; various cycle systems such as belt system, semi-magnetic cycle system, drum magnetic system, etc.; it may also have a different mode or function of operation, such as addition or exclusion of alternative exercises other than cycle exercise function, a lever of the embodiment may or may not be attach/detachable, or the exercise component may have an additional joint to move sideways for altered muscle exercise, etc.
Thus the scope of the embodiments should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2008-0026004 | Mar 2008 | KR | national |
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| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20090239717 A1 | Sep 2009 | US |
