Abstract:
Exercise apparatus has a rotary camming disc selectively configured to engage respective locking pins for engaging and disengaging selective numbers of force resistors for varying exercise resistance.

Description:
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY 
     The invention relates to exercise apparatus. 
     Exercise apparatus is known in the prior art having one or more force resistors, e.g. elastomeric bungees, coupled to a user engageable actuator to provide an opposing force resisting a given user exercise. A plurality of locking pins may selectively engage and disengage respective resistors to vary the resistance. 
     The present invention arose during continuing development efforts directed toward the noted exercise apparatus. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of exercise apparatus known in the prior art. 
         FIG. 2  is like  FIG. 1  and shows the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is an enlarged view of a portion of  FIG. 1  partially cut away. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view from a different angle of a portion of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a component of  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  is a plan view of the component of  FIG. 5 . 
         FIG. 7  is a plan view of a portion of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 8  is like  FIG. 7  and illustrates operation. 
         FIG. 9  is a sectional view taken along line  9 - 9  of  FIG. 7 . 
         FIG. 10  is like  FIG. 9  and shows a further operational condition. 
         FIG. 11  is a sectional view taken along line  11 - 11  of  FIG. 8 . 
         FIG. 12  is like  FIG. 11  and shows a further operational condition. 
         FIG. 13  is an enlarged view along line  13 - 13  of  FIG. 11 . 
         FIG. 14  is an exploded perspective view of a portion of  FIG. 3 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Prior Art 
       FIG. 1  shows exercise apparatus  20  known in the prior art, and  FIGS. 2-14  illustrate the present invention and use like reference numerals as  FIG. 1  where appropriate to facilitate understanding. The exercise apparatus includes a frame  22  supporting a user seat  24  and user backrest  26 , and an upper framework  28  having hand grips  30 ,  31  gripped by the user and pushed upwardly to rotate framework  28  about pivot  32  to pull cable  34  upwardly. Cable  34  is trained around pulley  36  on axle  38  which also has an eccentric cam  40  thereon,  FIG. 3 , which in turn has a belt or cable  42  trained therearound and connected at its upper end to a movable carriage  44  which is movable up and down by means of rollers  45 ,  46 ,  47 ,  48  rolling along tracks  50  and  52  supported by outer inverted U-shaped tower frame  53 . Upward movement of cable  34  causes counterclockwise rotation of pulley  36  and cam  40  which in turn pulls carriage  44  downwardly via cable belt  42 . The downward movement of carriage  44  is resisted by a plurality of force resistors  54 , as provided by elastomeric bungees or other force resistor, each force resistor having a first lower end  56  coupled at lower carriage crossbar  58  to a user engageable actuator as provided by the connection through cable belt  42 , eccentric cam  40 , pulley  36 , and cable  34 , for providing an opposing force resisting a given user exercise, i.e. stretching of bungees  54  provides the noted exercise resistance. The bungee force resistors  54  have a second upper end at  60  each connected to a respective stake  62  which may be selectively pinned to front and rear stationary crossbars  64  and  65  of tower frame  53 . A plurality of locking pins  66  are each moveable between first and second positions. The second position is a pushed-in position engaging and locking in place the upper end  60  at stake  62  of a respective bungee,  FIG. 11 , to enable the noted opposing force provided by the bungee upon movement of first end  56  downwardly, thus stretching the bungee and providing the noted exercise resistance. In some implementations, front and rear bungees  54  and  55 ,  FIG. 11 , are provided, each having a respective upper end  60 ,  61  connected to a common respective stake  62  which may be selectively pinned by a respective pin  66 , all as is known. When the upper ends of respective bungees are pinned at stake  62 , such upper ends of the bungees remain in place during downward movement of the carriage,  FIG. 12 , thus stretching the pinned bungees. Unpinned bungees,  FIGS. 9 ,  10 , do not remain in place, and stake  62  resting on carriage crossbar  80  moves downwardly therewith during downward movement of carriage  44 , without stretching the respective bungees, which bungees thus do not provide exercise resistance. In the prior art, the user pushes in or pulls out selected pins  66  to vary exercise resistance, namely by engaging or disengaging selective bungees at respective stakes  62  to thus provide a selected amount of exercise resistance. The noted second position of the locking pin,  FIGS. 11 ,  12 , engages and locks in place the second upper end of the respective bungee to enable the noted opposing force provided by such bungee upon movement of the lower end  56  of the bungee to stretch the bungee. The noted first position of the locking pin,  FIGS. 9 ,  10 , releases the upper end of the bungee at stake  62  to disable the noted opposing force. The plurality of locking pins  66  are selectively movable between the noted first and second positions such that selective ones of the locking pins may be in the noted first released position,  FIGS. 9 ,  10 , and selective others of the locking pins may be in the noted second locking position,  FIGS. 11 ,  12 . The greater the number of locking pins in the second locking position,  FIGS. 11 ,  12 , the greater the noted opposing force. 
     The structure and operation described thus far is known in the prior art. It has been found that the current method of selecting increasing resistance by pressing in each incremental pin in a specific sequence is not intuitive and not user friendly, and that the user may possibly index the pins incorrectly to achieve a total final resistance which is not what is desired. It has also been found that the indexing may create a high offset load in carriage  44 . 
     PRESENT INVENTION 
     In the present system, a cam is provided in the form of a rotational disc  100 , FIG.  2 +, which is user-engageable and movable in a first direction, e.g. counterclockwise about pivot axis  102  to increase the noted opposing force providing exercise resistance, and movable in a second direction, e.g. clockwise about pivot axis  102 , to decrease the noted opposing force. The camming disc has a plurality of camming surfaces  104 ,  FIGS. 5 ,  9 , respectively engaging and camming increasing numbers of locking pins  66  from the noted first position of  FIGS. 9 ,  10  to the noted second position of  FIGS. 11 ,  12  in response to movement of the cam in the noted first direction, e.g. rotation of disc  100  counterclockwise in  FIGS. 2 ,  3 , whereby to increase the noted opposing force thus increasing exercise resistance. Cam surfaces  104  respectively disengage and release increasing numbers of locking pins  66  from the noted second position of  FIGS. 11 ,  12  to the noted first position of  FIGS. 9 ,  10  in response to movement of the cam in the noted second direction, e.g. clockwise rotation of disc  100  in  FIGS. 2 ,  3 , whereby to decrease the noted opposing force thus decreasing exercise resistance. Disc  100  is rotationally mounted to stationary crossbar  64  to pivot about axis  102 . 
     Disc  100  has a plurality of cam steps  104  along a step pattern  106 ,  FIG. 5 , extending radially and arcuately in a spiral from the center of the disc. The disc has first and second sets  105  and  109  of cam steps  104  and  108  extending along respective first and second step patterns  106  and  110 , each step pattern extending radially and arcuately in a spiral from the center of the disc. First and second step patterns  106  and  110  are on diametrically opposite sides of the disc. Cam steps  104  of first set  105  are staggered relative to cam steps  108  of second set  109  such that upon rotation of disc  100 , a first cam step  104   a  of first set  105  engages a first locking pin  66   a ,  FIG. 7 , and upon continued counterclockwise rotation of disc  100 ,  FIG. 8 , a first cam step  108   a  of second set  109  engages a second locking pin  66   b , and upon continued counterclockwise rotation of disc  100 , a second cam step  104   b  of first set  105  engages a third locking pin  66   c , and upon continued counterclockwise rotation of disc  100 , a second cam step  108   b  of second set  109  engages a fourth locking pin  66   d , and so on. The force resistors are provided by the noted plurality of parallel elastomeric bungees  54 , or other force resistors, as in the prior art, extending longitudinally along a longitudinal direction  112  between the noted first and second ends  56  and  60 , the bungees being laterally spaced side by side along a lateral direction  114 . Longitudinal and lateral directions  112  and  114  define a plane, which is the plane of the page in  FIGS. 7 ,  8 . Disc  100  lies in such plane and is rotational about axis  102  extending along a transverse direction  116  which is into the page in  FIGS. 7 ,  8 . Transverse direction  116  is transverse to each of longitudinal and lateral directions  112  and  114 . Locking pins  66  translate in and out along transverse direction  116  between the noted first and second positions. Cam steps  104 ,  108  of the disc are provided by tapered ramps as shown at  104  in  FIG. 9 , which ramps extend obliquely relative to transverse direction  116 . The disc may be provided with small notches such as  118 ,  FIG. 13 , engaging a respective pin  66  for providing tactile feedback to the user. It is preferred that the noted camming step ramps be positioned so that one of the pins  66  is indexed approximately every 15° of rotation of disc  100 , and that at approximately 165° all pins are indexed, i.e. pushed into their noted second locking position,  FIGS. 11 ,  12 . In the next 15° increment, all pins  66  are un-indexed, i.e. released to their noted first unlocking position,  FIGS. 9 ,  10 . Disc  100  can be rotated in either direction to increase or decrease exercise resistance, except that at the start,  FIG. 7 , disc  100  can only be rotated in one direction, i.e. counterclockwise, to index the first pin  66   a . Locking pins  66  are preferably biased by respective springs  67  to the noted first unlocking position. 
     In further embodiments, the noted cam steps or ramps may be oriented so that the locking pins can be selectively engaged and actuated in any selected order. For example, the cam steps of the noted first and second sets may be oriented such that upon rotating the disc a first cam step of the first set engages a first locking pin, and upon continued rotation of the disc a second cam step of the first set engages a second locking pin, and upon continued rotation of the disc a first cam step of the second set engages a third locking pin, and upon continued rotation of the disc a second cam step of the second set engages a fourth locking pin, and so on. 
     In the foregoing description, certain terms have been used for brevity, clearness, and understanding. No unnecessary limitations are to be implied therefrom beyond the requirement of the prior art because such terms are used for descriptive purposes and are intended to be broadly construed. The different configurations, systems, and method steps described herein may be used alone or in combination with other configurations, systems and method steps. It is to be expected that various equivalents, alternatives and modifications are possible within the scope of the appended claims.