Patent Application
20250186856
Not applicable to this application.
Not applicable to this application.
The described example embodiments in general relate to workout apparatus that can be used to provide access to sensory objects used for rehabilitation, education, exercise, therapy, or other similar uses.
Some of the various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a sensory rack that can be transitioned between a stored configuration and a deployed configuration. The sensory rack includes two anchor posts that are coupled to a supporting surface; spanning arms, each pivotally coupled to one of the two anchor posts, the spanning arms each pivot to be perpendicular the two anchor posts when in the deployed configuration; two support posts that can each be placed proximate to the supporting surface when in the stored configuration and detached and coupled to the two anchor posts when in the deployed configuration, the spanning arms extending between the two support posts and the two anchor posts when in the deployed configuration and supported by mounting brackets; and a first brace that couples the two support posts using the mounting brackets.
In one embodiment, the mounting brackets include a first pair of mounting brackets associated with one of the two support posts and a second pair of mounting brackets associated with another of the two support posts. In one or more embodiments, the first pair of mounting brackets are installed on one of the two support posts such that a first support lip of the first pair of mounting brackets engages with the spanning arm and a second support lip of the first pair of mounting brackets engages with the brace.
A mounting bracket includes a support lip that is configured to support either a support post or the first brace. The mounting brackets can be coupled to the supporting surface using hangars when in the stored configuration. A foot plate can be associated with each of the two anchor posts and each of the two support posts. A second brace can couple the two anchor posts.
The first brace is placed in a stacked arrangement with one of the two support posts when in the stored configuration. The anchor posts are held in spaced apart relationship to the supporting surface.
A first pair of offsetting brackets is included that each connects to the supporting surface and to one of the two anchor posts, and a second pair of offsetting brackets that each connects to the supporting surface and another of the two anchor posts. Fasteners can lock the spanning arms in a perpendicular orientation relative to the two anchor posts.
Another embodiment includes a sensory rack that can be transitioned between a stored configuration and a deployed configuration. The sensory rack comprises two anchor posts, where a first anchor post is attached a first supporting surface and a second anchor post is attached a second supporting surface, the first supporting surface and the second supporting surface form a corner; spanning arms, each pivotally coupled one of the two anchor posts, the spanning arms each pivot so as to be perpendicular the two anchor posts when in the deployed configuration; two support posts where a first support post is located in the corner and the second support post is located diagonally from the first support post, the spanning arms extending between the two support posts and the two anchor posts when in the deployed configuration and supported by mounting brackets; and a first brace that couples the first anchor post to the first support post and a second brace that couples the second anchor post to the second support post.
In some embodiments, the first anchor post and the second anchor post are located diagonally from one another. The first anchor post is attached to the first supporting surface with a first bracket and the second anchor post is attached to the second supporting surface with a second bracket.
There have thus been outlined, rather broadly, some of the embodiments of the present disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional embodiments that will be described hereinafter and that will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment in detail, it is to be understood that the various embodiments are not limited in their application to the details of construction or to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.
To better understand the nature and advantages of the present disclosure, reference should be made to the following description and the accompanying figures. It is to be understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the scope of the present disclosure. Also, as a general rule, and unless it is evidence to the contrary from the description, where elements in different figures use identical reference numbers, the elements are generally either identical or at least similar in function or purpose.
Some of the various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a sensory rack that can be deployed and then partially disassembled and placed in a stored configuration when not in use. Advantageously, the sensory rack can be mounted to a wall, or in a corner configuration. The sensory rack can be configured such that a single user can deploy and/or collapse the sensory rack. In some instances, various sensory objects can be connected to the sensory rack and utilized by one or more users. The collapsible nature of the sensory rack allows for its placement in a room where dedicated space may not be available. In this way, the sensory rack can be deployed and used, then collapsed against a wall when the user is finished using the sensory rack, thereby reclaiming the space used when the sensory rack is deployed.
The sensory rack has two main configurations, a standard, four-post configuration, and a corner configuration. Also, some embodiments can use only two posts, rather than four. In some embodiments, two of the posts (referred to as anchor posts) can be anchored to the wall or other supporting surface. These anchor posts can be spaced away from the wall with spacer brackets.
Spanning arms can pivotally connect to each of these anchor posts. When extended and locked into a cantilevered configuration, these spanning arms can then be connected to support posts. The anchor posts and support posts are vertically oriented elements that can each have a base plate that provides a footing. The anchor posts and support posts are configured similarly to one another; however, the support posts can be stored against the wall using wall brackets. When deployed, the support posts can be removed from the wall brackets and coupled to the spanning arms.
A brace can be attached to and span between the support posts to provide structural rigidity to the sensory rack. A similar brace can be used to couple the anchor posts. In this way, the braces and spanning arms interlock with the posts to enhance the structural rigidity of the sensory rack.
In one embodiment, the spanning arms can connect to the support posts with coupling brackets. When in the stored configuration, the coupling brackets can be placed in hangars that are located on the wall. When deployed, the coupling brackets have support lips that receive the ends of the spanning arms and brace. According to some embodiments, the sensory objects such as ladders, swings, foam rollers, hammocks, and so forth, can be attached to the sensory rack.
In general, the sensory rack 10 includes two anchor posts, namely a first anchor post 12 and a second anchor post 13. The sensory rack 10 also includes two support posts, namely a first support post 14 and a second support post 15. In some embodiments, the sensory rack 10 includes a first brace 16 and a second brace 17.
The sensory rack 10 also includes a first pair of mounting brackets, namely a first mounting bracket 18 and a second mounting bracket 19. The sensory rack 10 also includes a second pair of mounting brackets, namely a third mounting bracket 20 and a fourth mounting bracket 21. In general, these brackets can be stored on hangars 67A-67D that are installed on the supporting surface 11. When used, the first pair of mounting brackets can be installed on the first support post 14. Also, the second pair of mounting brackets can be installed on the second support post 15.
In some instances, each of the anchor posts can be associated with a pair of offsetting brackets. For example, the first anchor post 12 can be coupled to the supporting surface 11 with a first offsetting bracket 22 and a second offsetting bracket 23. Similarly, the second anchor post 13 can be coupled to the supporting surface 11 with a third offsetting bracket 24 and a fourth offsetting bracket 25. In general, the offsetting brackets provide anchoring points that couple the anchor posts to the supporting surface 11, while at the same time setting the anchoring points away from the supporting surface 11 at a distance. Referring briefly to
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The sensory rack 10 includes two spanning arms, namely a first spanning arm 36 and a second spanning arm 37. Each of the spanning arms is pivotally connected to the anchor posts and releasably connected to the support posts via mounting brackets. In more detail, the first spanning arm 36 is pivotally coupled to the first anchor post 12 by way of a pivot bracket 38. The pivot bracket 38 is comprised of two plates that are connected to the first anchor post 12. This pivot bracket 38 offsets the first spanning arm 36 from the first anchor post 12, thereby allowing the first spanning arm 36 to pivot downwardly when in the stored position. When deployed, the first spanning arm 36 can be pivoted upwardly so as to be oriented perpendicularly to the first anchor post 12. To lock the first spanning arm 36 in place, fasteners can be inserted through both of the plates of the pivot bracket 38, as well as the first spanning arm 36. A similar configuration and deployment for the second spanning arm 37 is used relative to the second anchor post 13, and thus this description has been omitted for the purpose of brevity and clarity. Once both of the spanning arms have been pivoted into their deployed configurations, the support posts can be removed from their stored locations and joined to the spanning arms by way of the mounting brackets.
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In general, fasteners can be used to join a component to its respective support lip. For example, fasteners can be used to join the first spanning arm 36 to the support lip 41 of the first mounting bracket 18. Fasteners can be inserted from below the support lip 41, through the first spanning arm 36. In a similar way, fasteners can be used to secure the respective mounting bracket to the second spanning arm 37 (see
In more detail, and referring to the collective drawings, the first pair of mounting brackets can be coupled to the first support post 14 and the second pair of mounting brackets can be coupled to the second support post 15. When the first spanning arm 36 is connected to the first support post 14 and the second spanning arm 37 is connected to the second support post 15, the first brace can be installed between the first support post 14 and the second support post 15 (resting on the respective support lips of each of the mounting brackets). Fasteners can be used to secure the first brace to the first support post 14 and the second support post 15. Fasteners can likewise be used to secure the first spanning arm 36 to the first support post 14 and the second spanning arm 37 to the second support post 15.
In some instances, the second brace 17 is permanently connected and spans between the first anchor post 12 and the second anchor post 13 regardless of whether the sensory rack is in the stored or deployed configuration. The second brace 17 is coupled to the first anchor post 12 and the second anchor post 13 using mounting plates that are similar to the mounting plates disclosed in detail above. The second brace 17 can likewise rest on the support lips of these mounting brackets.
Also, in general, the sensory rack and specifically its framing components (anchor posts, support posts, and braces) can include tubular stock that includes apertures located at intervals along the tubular stock. Apertures can be provided on all surfaces of the tubular stock.
In some embodiments, the first anchor post 12 is attached the supporting surface 45 and the 13 second anchor post is attached the supporting surface 46, where the first supporting surface and the second supporting surface form a corner. The first support post is located in the corner and the second support post is located diagonally from the first support post. In some instances, the spanning arms extend between the two support posts and the two anchor posts when in the deployed configuration and are supported by mounting brackets. The first brace 16 couples the first anchor post 12 to the first support post 14 and a second brace 17 couples the second anchor post 13 to the first support post 14. The spanning arm 36 can extend between the first anchor post 12 and the second support post 15, whereas the second spanning arm 37 can extend between the second anchor post 13 and the second support post 15. To be sure, in the stored configuration, a portion of the sensory rack can be stored on the supporting surface 45 and a remainder on the supporting surface 46.
Also, while many of the embodiments disclosed have four posts, two anchor posts, and two support posts, some configurations allow for the two support posts to be omitted. Thus, the pivoting support arms can be locked into a cantilevered configuration. Sensory attachments can be attached to the pivoting support arms. These two post configurations can be used in locations that do not permit the use of four posts.
In operation, the sensory rack 10 can be transitioned from the stored configuration to the deployed configuration (see
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While various embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. The descriptions are not intended to limit the scope of the technology to the particular forms set forth herein. To the contrary, the present descriptions are intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the technology as defined by the appended claims and otherwise appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art. The various embodiments of the present disclosure may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof, and it is therefore desired that the various embodiments in the present disclosure be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Thus, the breadth and scope of a preferred embodiment should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. All patent applications, patents, and printed publications cited herein are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, except for any definitions, subject matter disclaimers or disavowals, and except to the extent that the incorporated material is inconsistent with the express disclosure herein, in which case the language in this disclosure controls. Any headings utilized within the description are for convenience only and have no legal or limiting effect.
