TREADMILL

Abstract

Provided is a treadmill, which includes a running belt, a running deck, a base frame assembly, and a cushioning means arranged between the running deck and the base frame of the base frame assembly. The running deck of the treadmill is only supported at its two ends, and the force exerted by the exerciser on the running belt and the running deck is reduced through the cushioning means, thereby providing effective training results.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) to Chinese Patent Application No. 2024100334576, filed on Jan. 9, 2024, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The disclosure relates to the technical field of exercise equipment, in particular to a treadmill.

BACKGROUND ART

Treadmills are commonly used exercise equipment in homes and gyms. It is also the simplest among today's home exercise equipment, making it one of the best choices for home exercise equipment. The treadmill generally includes a base frame, and a deck frame mounted on the base frame. The deck frame is used to install a running deck equipped with a running belt, and during use, the exerciser runs on the running belt. Due to the direct and unbuffered contact between the running deck and the deck frame, the exerciser experiences a significant reactive force during running, which can lead to potential injuries to joints, bones (especially the knees), and other areas.

Existing treadmills typically include a running belt, a base frame, and a running deck, wherein the running deck is directly fixed to the base frame. With the continuous development of treadmills, there is now a trend to incorporate a cushioning pad between the running deck and the base frame for enhanced shock absorption.

CN213432784U discloses a running deck shock absorption structure, and a treadmill incorporating the same. The shock absorption structure includes a shock-absorbing pad arranged between a running deck and a frame, wherein the shock-absorbing pad is provided with a central cavity to achieve effective cushioning and vibration isolation effects, and the shock-absorbing pad is provided with an engaging piece at its lower part, which engages with a support on the frame to achieve the installation of the shock-absorbing pad onto the support.

CN108245833A discloses a cushioning and shock-absorbing running deck for a treadmill, including a substrate and a running belt. The substrate is fixed on a base frame. The running belt is rotatably sleeved on the substrate by means of a front roller and a rear roller. The substrate includes a surface PP sheet layer, a middle EVA soft material sheet layer, and a bottom elastic bar layer, wherein the PP sheet layer is fixed on the base frame and the EVA soft material sheet layer is firmly pasted on the lower surface of the PP sheet layer.

In the treadmill disclosed in the above-mentioned patent documents, the running deck is actually directly fixed to the base frame on both sides. This design results in the pressure applied by the user during running being directly transmitted to the base frame fixed to the both sides of the running deck, without being mitigated by the cushioning pad that is positioned between the frame and the running deck. The central area of the running deck undergoes deformation due to force, but it is fixed at the ends and sides. This configuration prevents the cushioning pads located on both sides of the running deck from effectively providing cushioning, rendering these cushioning pads more of a decorative component.

Therefore, there is a need for a treadmill with enhanced cushioning effects.

SUMMARY

To overcome the above problems, the present disclosure provides a treadmill, which includes a running belt; a running deck; a base frame assembly including a base frame, an upright member extending upward from the base frame, a limiting member fixed to the upright member, and a plurality of fixing means; and a cushioning means arranged between the running deck and the base frame of the base frame assembly, wherein the plurality of fixing means includes a first set of fixing means and a second set of fixing means, wherein the first set of fixing means is located at a first end of the running deck, and the second set of fixing means is located at a second end of the running deck opposite the first end, and wherein the first set of fixing means and the second set of fixing means are spaced apart by a first predetermined distance.

In some embodiments, the first predetermined distance is 70%-95% of the length of the running deck.

In some embodiments, the running deck is inclined at a predetermined angle relative to the base frame of the base frame assembly, and the predetermined angle is in a range of 2 to 30 degrees.

In some embodiments, two limiting members on the same side are spaced apart by a second predetermined distance along a length direction of the treadmill, and the second predetermined distance is 50%-90% of the length of the running deck.

In some embodiments, the first set of fixing means includes a fixing means on a first side of the running deck and a fixing means on a second side of the running deck opposite the first side, and the second set of fixing means includes a fixing means on the first side of the running deck and a fixing means on the second side of the running deck opposite the first side.

In some embodiments, the fixing means are distributed near four corners of the treadmill.

In some embodiments, a central region of the running deck is unsupported when viewed along the length of the treadmill.

In some embodiments, the base frame assembly further includes a base plate, and the fixing means of the base frame assembly is secured to the base plate.

In some embodiments, the cushioning means includes a supporting surface and a plurality of positioning portions extending from the supporting surface.

In the treadmill of the present disclosure, the running deck is only supported at its two ends, and the force exerted by the exerciser on the running belt and the running deck is reduced through the cushioning means, thereby providing effective training results. This design avoids the difficulty of achieving effective cushioning in traditional treadmills where the running deck is directly secured to the base frame assembly on both sides.

The treadmill of the present disclosure also provides a running belt and running deck with a certain inclination angle, thereby enhancing the training effectiveness.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosure will be further explained with the attached drawings and embodiments.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a treadmill according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 shows a side sectional view of the treadmill in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a treadmill according to an embodiment, where one side cover is omitted;

FIG. 4 shows the treadmill in FIG. 3, where limiting members are omitted;

FIG. 5 shows a drive unit according to an embodiment;

FIG. 6 shows a top view of a treadmill according to an embodiment, where the running belt and the running deck are omitted; and

FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of the treadmill in FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following, the disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the disclosure can be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Specifically, these embodiments are provided to fully and completely convey the content of the present disclosure and to define the scope of the present disclosure for those skilled in the art. In the drawings, the same or similar numbers represent similar elements.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a treadmill 1 according to an embodiment. The treadmill 1 includes a pair of side covers 81, 82, which are used to cover some parts of the treadmill 1 (such as at least a portion of a base frame assembly 30), and are configured to contact an upper surface of a running deck 20.

FIG. 2 shows a side sectional view of the treadmill in FIG. 1. The treadmill 1 includes a running belt 10, a running deck 20 surrounded by the running belt 10, and a base frame assembly 30. In FIG. 2, the running deck 20 is inclined at a predetermined angle relative to the base frame assembly 30, especially to a base frame of the base frame assembly 30 (which will be described in detail later). The predetermined angle can be in the range of 2 to 30 degrees, preferably in the range of 2 to 15 degrees, more preferably in the range of 3 to 10 degrees. The inclined running deck 20, and the running belt 10 inclining along with the running deck 20, advantageously increase the resistance of the exercise, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of the workout. In some embodiments, the running deck 20 is substantially parallel to the base frame assembly 30.

FIG. 3 shows a treadmill according to an embodiment, where one side cover 81 is omitted to reveal more details of the base frame assembly 30. The base frame assembly 30 includes a base frame 310, upright members 331, 332 extending upward from the base frame 310, and limiting members 351, 352 fixed to the upright members.

Each limiting member 351, 352 (including the corresponding limiting member on the other side not shown) is used to restrict the movement of the running deck 20 along both the length direction of the treadmill (i.e., the direction of travel of the running belt 10) and the width direction of the treadmill (i.e., the direction perpendicular to the direction of travel of the running belt 10). The two limiting members 351, 352 on the same side are spaced apart by a predetermined distance along the length direction of the treadmill. The predetermined distance can be 50%-90%, preferably 60%-80%, more preferably 70% or 75%, of the length of the running deck 20.

FIG. 4 shows the treadmill in FIG. 3, where the limiting members 351, 352 are not shown. The base frame assembly 30 further includes a plurality of fixing means 361, 362 for securing the running deck 20. The plurality of fixing means is preferably distributed near four corners of the treadmill 1. In some embodiments, there are four fixing means distributed at four corners of the treadmill 1. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, there are two fixing means 361, 362 on one side of the treadmill and two fixing means (not shown) on the other side. In some embodiments, more fixing means are possible, such as six, eight, etc. In some embodiments, the fixing means are only arranged at a first end (near the limiting member 351) and a second end (near the limiting member 352) of the running deck 20, leaving a central region and two sides of the running deck 20 (the region between the first end and the second end) unsupported. In some embodiments, the distance between a first set of the fixing means located at the first end of the running deck 20 and a second set of the fixing means located at the second end is 70%-95% of the length of the running deck 20, preferably 80%-90%, more preferably 85%.

The fixing means of the base frame assembly 30 can be secured to a base plate 380 of the base frame assembly 30, or secured to the base frame 310 in other ways. The fixing means 361, 362 can be solid or hollow support blocks or support pillars. The running deck 20 is fixed to each of the plurality of fixing means, for example, by using pins that pass through holes 220 in the running deck 20 and into corresponding holes in the fixing means 361, or by using screws that go through threaded holes 240 in the running deck 20 and into corresponding threaded holes in the fixing means 362. Conventional fastening methods commonly used in this field are also possible.

It should be appreciated that when the running deck 20 is supported only by the fixing means at its two ends (or when the central region along the length direction of the running deck 20 is unsupported or not directly supported), the force exerted by the user on the running belt 10 and the running deck 20 will mainly be transmitted to the base frame assembly 30 through a cushioning means (which will be described later).

FIG. 4 also shows rollers 41, 43, which are located at the first end and the second end of the treadmill 1. Through the rotation of the rollers, the running belt 10, at least partially wound around the rollers 41, 43, is able to move along an approximately circular path.

FIG. 5 shows a drive unit according to an embodiment. The treadmill 1 further includes a main cover 50 that houses the drive unit 60, such as an electric motor, used to drive the roller 41. The drive unit 60 may have an output shaft 612, such as the output shaft of an electric motor, or the drive unit 60 may have a sleeve attached to the output shaft of the electric motor. The output shaft 612 can be power-coupled to the roller 41. In some embodiments, the output shaft 612 is connected to an additional sleeve 414 sleeved on a central shaft 412 of the roller 41 by means of belt connection or gear connection. The transmission ratio between the output shaft 612 and the roller 41 is adjustable, for example, by changing the outer diameter of the additional sleeve 414 and/or the outer diameter of the output shaft 612.

FIG. 6 shows a top view of a treadmill according to an embodiment, where the running belt and the running deck are omitted. FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of the treadmill in FIG. 6. The base frame 310 of the base frame assembly 30 is provided with a cushioning means 70, which can be made of elastic materials such as silicone, rubber, PVC, etc. In some embodiments, the cushioning means 70 includes a supporting surface 720 and a plurality of positioning portions 710 extending from the supporting surface 720. For example, the positioning portions 710 take the form of columns or pins to engage with corresponding holes on the running deck 20. In some embodiments, the cushioning means 70 further includes a stopper portion 730 extending from the supporting surface 720, which can be used to laterally cover the positioning portions 710.

The contour of the cushioning means 70 is designed to complement the running deck 20 and the base frame of the base frame assembly 30. When the running deck 20 is inclined at a predetermined angle relative to the base frame assembly 30, the cushioning means 70 is configured with an inclined upper surface. It should be appreciated that the arrangement of the rollers 41, 43, upright members 331, 332, and limiting members 351, 352 of the treadmill 1 is adapted to the running deck 20 inclined at a predetermined angle relative to the base frame assembly 30.

The above merely describes specific embodiments of the present disclosure, which is not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present disclosure. Any modifications, equivalent variations or substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principle of the present disclosure by those skilled in the art according to the disclosed technical scope should be included in the protection scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A treadmill, comprising: a running belt;a running deck;a base frame assembly including a base frame, an upright member extending upward from the base frame, a limiting member fixed to the upright member, and a plurality of fixing means; anda cushioning means arranged between the running deck and the base frame of the base frame assembly,wherein the plurality of fixing means includes a first set of fixing means and a second set of fixing means, wherein the first set of fixing means is located at a first end of the running deck, and the second set of fixing means is located at a second end of the running deck opposite the first end, and wherein the first set of fixing means and the second set of fixing means are spaced apart by a first predetermined distance.

2. The treadmill according to claim 1, wherein the first predetermined distance is 70%-95% of the length of the running deck.

3. The treadmill according to claim 1, wherein the running deck is inclined at a predetermined angle relative to the base frame of the base frame assembly, and the predetermined angle is in a range of 2 to 30 degrees.

4. The treadmill according to claim 1, wherein two limiting members on the same side are spaced apart by a second predetermined distance along a length direction of the treadmill, and the second predetermined distance is 50%-90% of the length of the running deck.

5. The treadmill according to claim 1, wherein the first set of fixing means includes a fixing means on a first side of the running deck and a fixing means on a second side of the running deck opposite the first side, and the second set of fixing means includes a fixing means on the first side of the running deck and a fixing means on the second side of the running deck opposite the first side.

6. The treadmill according to claim 5, wherein the fixing means are distributed near four corners of the treadmill.

7. The treadmill according to claim 5, wherein a central region of the running deck is unsupported when viewed along the length of the treadmill.

8. The treadmill according to claim 1, wherein the base frame assembly further includes a base plate, and the fixing means of the base frame assembly is secured to the base plate.

9. The treadmill according to claim 1, wherein the cushioning means includes a supporting surface and a plurality of positioning portions extending from the supporting surface.