Patent Application
20200269120
The present invention is generally directed to fitness equipment, and more particularly to an attachment that may be used in association with existing fitness equipment to allow persons in wheelchairs to use the existing fitness equipment.
Fitness equipment is found in gyms, recreational rooms, and the like. Such equipment is well known and often used in the fitness industry. However, such fitness equipment, particularly weight training machines, does not cater to the exercise population that is bound to wheelchairs. Fitness enthusiasts or professionals in wheelchairs are generally unable to use common fitness equipment for several reasons.
For one, equipment is often designed for users that are able to stand. Bars and handles associated with a given piece of equipment are thus out of reach for people in wheelchairs. Additionally, it is a great challenge or even impossible for a user to get into the proper exercise position when he or she is in a wheelchair due to obstructions by the seat or other hardware that non-wheelchair users use when exercising. For example, cable pulls may be substantially behind a user so that he or she cannot reach the pulls without excessive reaching and straining. These limitations on use are an inconvenience at best, and at worst, can cause injury.
There is some fitness equipment on the market that is designed particularly for users restricted to wheelchairs. Such fitness equipment is not often included in fitness facilities because of its relative seldom use compared to its footprint in a workout facility. A solution is desired in the market that effectively and conveniently integrates with existing equipment so that weightlifters in wheelchairs are not limited to using ill-tailored equipment or forced to go to a gym for only users bound to wheelchairs.
The current invention provides an attachment that may be used to convert existing exercise equipment into exercise equipment that may be used by persons in wheelchairs. The attachment as described herein includes an upper frame member and a lower frame member that each may be releasably engaged to existing exercise equipment. The upper frame member includes a back pad, and may be used to stabilize an exerciser's upper body, while the lower frame member may include features to stabilize the wheelchair as well as the exerciser's lower body.
The back pad and the upper frame member may be attached to the existing equipment in a rotatable manner such that the back pad may be rotated upwardly or downwardly to a position desired by a user. The back pad also may be provided with an adjustable securing belt so that a user may secure himself or herself against the back pad and loosen or tighten the belt to snugly secure his or her torso to the back pad for subsequent exercise.
The lower frame member is preferably U-shaped so that a front portion of its base is unobstructed so that a wheelchair may easily roll in and out of the base. At its front, bottom portion, the lower frame member may include wheel locks that may be used to further secure a wheelchair within the base and reduce or prevent the wheelchair from moving during exercise.
Side frames of the lower frame member may extend upwardly from either side of the base. Fork members or other retaining structures may be located at the rear portion of the side frames. The fork members may receive and secure cables associated with the existing exercise equipment that are used to to facilitate exercise. More particularly, the fork members may retain cables associated with an exercise desired by a user such that handles associated with the cables are pulled outwardly away from the machine, and nearer to the user. This makes the handles and cables more accessible to a person in a wheelchair by preventing the person in the wheelchair from having to reach back to the original retracted location of the cables. This can be difficult to do and also cause injury.
An adjustable securing belt may also be provided on the base that is placed over the lap of a wearer when he or she is wheeled into the attachment and ready to exercise. The belt should be adjustable so that when it may be tightened or loosened to snugly secure the exerciser in his or her wheelchair.
When an exerciser in a wheelchair is ready to wheel into the lower attachment member for exercise, the wheel locks may be rotated upwardly and outwardly so that a wheelchair may be rolled into the attachment. The belts of the upper and lower attachment members should also each be unbuckled so that an exerciser may subsequently buckle them to secure himself or herself prior to commencing exercise.
Once a person in a wheelchair is in a position to use the equipment he or she should rotate the wheel locks downwardly and inwardly rotated so that they prevent wheels of the wheelchair from rolling rearwardly. The belts of the upper and lower attachment members should also each be buckled and adjusted appropriately to stabilize the exerciser.
With the handles and cables of the existing equipment already pulled outwardly, a user may grasp the handles and use the handles to push outwardly, upwardly, or otherwise to activate the cables which are in fluid communication with a weight stack. The action of lifting the weight stack via the cables provides weight resistance to the muscles in a known manner. When a user is finished his or her exercise, he or she may wheel away from the attachment by simply unbuckling and releasing the belts and rotating the wheel locks upwardly so that the path for wheeling out of the attachment is substantially clear.
The present disclosure is directed to an attachment that may be used to convert existing exercise equipment into exercise equipment that may be used by persons in wheelchairs. Turning first to
As illustrated, the attachment 1 includes each of an upper frame member 10 and a lower frame member 15 that are each releasably engageable with the equipment 5. When a person in a wheelchair uses the attachment 1 with the equipment 5, the upper frame member 10 generally may act to stabilize the person's upper body, while the lower frame member 15 generally may act to stabilize the wheelchair as well as the person's lower body. The lower frame member 15 may further receive and retain handles used to operate the equipment 5, thus making the equipment 5 easier to use for a person in a wheelchair. The specific structure and function of each of the upper frame member 10 and the lower frame member 15 are set forth in greater detail below.
In the illustrated embodiments, the equipment 5 is the TuffStuff SPT-6X “Six-Pak Trainer.” As can be appreciated by one skilled in the art, the “Six-Pak Trainer” is a multi-purpose frontal work station that has three cable heights: low cable height 20, medium cable height 25, and high cable height 30 that generally correspond to initial hand positions that a user may have when initiating any particular exercise. The equipment 5 and its cable heights 20, 25, 30 may be used for a variety of exercises including, but not limited to, lat pulldowns, chest and shoulder presses, abdominal crunches, and leg curls.
When the attachment 1 is not used with the equipment 5, and in its “unmodified” form, the equipment 5 preferably includes handles (not illustrated) located where the upper frame member 10 is releasably engaged with the equipment 5. The handles may be grasped by someone using the equipment 5, for example, when performing a leg extension using cables 35 attached to his or her leg at the low cable height 20. A seat (not illustrated) is also provided with the equipment 5 in its “unmodified” configuration where the lower frame member 15 is releasably engaged with the equipment 5. A user may sit on the seat, for example, when using cables 40 at the high cable height 30 to perform a lat pulldown exercise.
The method attaching the attachment 1 to the equipment 5 set forth below is unique to the particular illustrated equipment 5, though as set forth above, the attachment 1 may be configured in alternative embodiments to be compatible with other types of exercise equipment. Turning first to the upper frame member 10, the upper frame member 10 preferably includes a handle assembly 45 which may include each of lower attachment members 50 and upper attachment members 55 at its rear portion. The lower attachment members 50 and the upper attachment members 55 may align with lower apertures 60 and upper apertures 65, respectively, of the exercise equipment 5. The attachment members 50, 55 and apertures 60, 65 may be releasably engageable with one another using a variety of known or foreseeable mechanisms. In a preferred embodiment, however, the upper frame member 10 is releasably engageable with the equipment 5 by attaching the attachment members 50, 55 to the apertures 60, 65 using nuts and bolts or a friction fit.
Turning now to the lower frame member 15, a rear portion 70 of the lower attachment member 15 is provided with an attachment member 75 projecting rearwardly from the lower attachment member 15, toward the equipment 5. The rearward extending attachment member 75 is preferably sized and shaped to be releasably engageable with a complementary attachment member 80 associated with the equipment 5. When the attachment 1 is not in use, the attachment member 80 of the equipment 5 may be releasably engaged with the seat of the equipment 5. While the attachment members 75, 80 may be releasably engaged with one another in a number of known or foreseeable ways, in a preferred embodiment, the attachment members 75, 80 are releasably engageable via a combined friction fit and nut and bolts attachment method. As set forth herein, the attachment 1 may be releasably engageable with the equipment 5 when a person in a wheelchair wishes to use the equipment 5 in a number of ways. Similarly, the attachment 1 may be compatible with a wide range of equipment other than the equipment 5.
Turning now to
In order to facilitate pivoting of the back pad 90, near the handle assembly 45, the shaft 85 may be provided with a pin member 95. The pin member 95 preferably includes a spring (not illustrated) that allows the pin member 95 to be pulled outwardly but returned to its compressed form when released. The pin member 95 is preferably of a size and shape that allows it to be releasably secured within apertures 100 located around a circumference of a guide bracket 105 that attaches the handle assembly 45 to the shaft 85. While only one aperture 100 is shown and illustrated in
The ability of the back pad 90 to be raised and lowered serves a useful purpose. More particularly, when a user in a wheelchair with a taller torso is exercising using the attachment 1 and the equipment 5, the back pad 90 may need to be in a higher, taller position to provide appropriate back support. However, when a wheelchair user that has a shorter torso is using the attachment 1 and the equipment 5, the back pad 90 may need to be in a lower, shorter position. The ability to raise and lower the back pad 90 relative to the equipment 5 allows the user to customize the relative position of the attachment 1 to meet his or her particular preferred dimensions.
Also as shown in
Turning now to the lower frame member 15, a base 150 thereof is preferably U-shaped. The base 150 may be substantially U-shaped so that near a rear portion 155 of the lower frame member, a rear crossbar 157 of the base 150 may prevent a wheelchair that has been rolled into the base 150 from rolling into the equipment 5. Side crossbars 160 extending outwardly from the rear crossbar 157 of the base 150 may further prevent a wheelchair from moving side to side when the wheelchair is within the base 150. A front portion 165 of the base 150 is preferably open and unobstructed so that a wheelchair may easily roll in and out of the base 150 and thus the lower frame member 15.
At the front portion 165 of the base 150, the lower frame member 15 is provided with wheel locks 170 that may be used to further secure a wheelchair within the base 150 when it has been rolled into the base 150 and a user is preparing to and subsequently is exercising. The lock members 170 are discussed in greater detail hereinbelow.
Side frames 175 of the lower frame member 15 preferably extend upwardly from the side crossbars 160 of the base 150. At the rear portion 155 of the side frames 175, an upper portion 180 of the side frames 175 may be provided with fork members 185 that extend upwardly therefrom. The fork members 185 may receive cables 190 at the cable height 25 or cables 40 at the cable height 30, as described below, to facilitate exercise.
At the front portion 165 of the lower frame member 115, and more particularly on a right side thereof, the side frame 175 may be provided with a utility attachment member 195 for storing and/or containing personal items, for example those belonging to the person in the wheelchair using the equipment 5. In the illustrated embodiment, the utility attachment member 195 is provided on the right side of the side frame 175, but in alternative embodiments, it may be provided on either of the side frames 175. In the illustrated embodiment, the utility attachment member 195 includes each of a cup holder 200, phone (or other accessory) holder 205 and a rod member 210 on which a towel may be placed.
At a lower portion 215 of the lower frame member 15, a belt 220 may be fixably attached to the base 150. Like the belt 110, the belt 220 preferably includes each of a right portion (or strap) 225 and a left portion 230. The right portion 225 may include a pad 235 and a female buckle 240, while the left portion may include a male buckle 245. The right portion 225 and the left portion 230 may be releasably attached to one another using the female buckle 240 and the male buckle 245 in a known and understood manner. The belt 230 is preferably placed over the lap of a wearer when he or she is wheeled into the attachment 1 and ready to exercise. The belt 230 may be adjustable so that when it is tightened or loosened, a user may be more or less snugly secured in his or her wheelchair.
A front upwardly extending bar 250 of each of the side frames 175 may include two pin members 255 that extend outwardly toward the front portion 165 of the base 150. As shown and illustrated in
Furthermore, in the embodiment illustrated in
It should also be noted that in
Furthermore, in
When the user 265 is finished using the equipment 5 and has completed his or her exercise, he or she may wheel away from the attachment 1 by simply unbuckling and releasing the belts 110, 230, and rotating the wheel locks 170 upwardly so that the path to wheeling out of the attachment 1 is substantially clear.
As is evident from the foregoing description, certain aspects of the present invention are not limited by the particular details of the examples illustrated herein, and it is therefore contemplated that other modifications and applications, or equivalents thereof, will occur to those skilled in the art. Many changes, modifications, variations and other uses and applications of the present construction will, however, become apparent to those skilled in the art after considering the specification and the accompanying drawings. All such changes, modifications, variations and other uses and applications which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention are deemed to be covered by the invention which is limited only by the claims which follow.
