System of equipment for physical exercise

A modular system of equipment for physical exercise includes various devices designed for the exercising of different muscles. The system includes a number of separate frame modules, each having an essentially rectangular form and provided with coupling elements enabling the modules to be linked together, or mounted individually on a wall. In addition, the frame modules are provided with mounting elements enabling separate exercising devices without frame structures to be mounted on and supported by the modules.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a system of equipment for physical 
exercise. 
At present, there are separate devices designed for the exercising of 
almost every muscle or group of muscles in the human body. Such devices 
have been specifically designed for the exercising of a given group of 
muscles and are therefore hardly usable for any other purposes in physical 
exercise. If an establishment for physical exercise is to be provided with 
a good variety of equipment, then it is necessary to acquire dozens of 
these separate devices, requiring large investments and plenty of room. 
The object of the invention is to eliminate the drawbacks referred to. A 
specific object of the invention is to achieve a new system of equipment 
for physical exercise, allowing the use of modular exercising devices 
consisting of the same kind of parts as far as possible, simplifying the 
structural solutions employed in the exercising devices and reducing their 
space requirement. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
According to the invention, the system of equipment for physical exercise 
consists of a number of separate frame modules having an essentially 
rectangular form and provided with suitable coupling elements enabling the 
modules to be detachably connected to each other when mounted side by side 
in a vertical position. In addition, these wall-like frame modules of the 
invention have no separate legs or equivalent supports and are provided 
with mounting elements permitting the attachment of separate exercising 
devices without frame structures, said devices only consisting of suitable 
benches, supports, levers and equivalent elements which, when mounted on 
and supported by the frame structure, form a usable assembly of equipment 
for physical exercise. 
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the wall-like frame modules are 
linked together by means of the coupling elements to form a freestanding 
ring-type upright assembly consisting of three or more frame modules, 
depending on the space available and the desired number of devices. This 
ring-type assembly may preferably have a circular or elliptical form or a 
form freely selectable according to the space available. 
In another embodiment of the invention, the frame modules are connected to 
each other by means of the coupling elements to form an essentially 
straight wall, which can be attached to the walls of the room or held 
upright by means of separate supports. It is also possible to use separate 
brackets by means of which the frame modules are fastened to the walls 
either separately or as an assembly of modules coupled together. 
The coupling elements provided on the frame modules preferably consist of 
suitable hinges or links enabling the angle between adjacent wall-like 
frame modules to be freely selected as required in each case. 
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the rectangular frame module is 
provided with a counterforce device, e.g. a pack of weight plates movable 
along guide rails and provided with a power transmission belt, said device 
being placed within the space delimited by the module walls, so that, 
using the mounting elements, suitable structures of levers and bars 
designed to actuate this pack of weights can be attached to the frame 
module. 
A preferred embodiment of the invention comprises frame modules of two 
different widths but of the same height and depth, so that, when coupled 
together side by side, they will form an even wall structure. In this 
case, the wider frame modules, which are provided with weight plates, can 
be equipped with various exercising devices requiring a counterweight, 
while the narrower frame modules, which are simpler in construction, can 
be equipped with various benches and bars which do not require the use of 
a counterweight. The frame modules, regardless of width, are provided with 
suitable mounting elements placed at different locations and different 
heights, and the exercising devices to be attached to them are provided 
with corresponding fixtures matching the mounting elements, so that each 
exercising device can be mounted on an appropriate frame module at the 
required height and in the required position. The mounting elements on the 
frame modules and the corresponding fixtures on the exercising devices may 
consist of suitable mounting flanges and holes, and of bolts or other 
tightening means adapted to them, but it is also possible to use various 
latches or other quickaction fastening elements enabling the devices to be 
secured and released without the aid of tools. 
Compared to previously known techniques, the invention provides the 
advantages of significant reductions in the space requirement and costs of 
physical exercise establishments, because the system of the invention 
allows the costs per exercising device to be considerably reduced. 
Moreover, since the frame modules of the invention have a wall-like 
construction and can be erected independently, the modules can be arranged 
so as to divide the exercising halls into quite different compartments and 
areas, thus obviating the need for erecting partitions in large halls 
while still offering the user more pleasure and privacy in exercising than 
is possible in large halls where all the equipment and activities are 
simultaneously exposed to the sight of all those present. A further 
advantage is that frame modules and execrsing devices can be so combined 
as to produce an assembly that suits the user's individual needs and 
resources as well as the space available.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the system of exercising equipment of the 
invention, the body of which consists of eight rectangular frame modules 1 
linked together so as to form an octagonal ring-like assembly. The 
embodiment illustrated uses two different types of frame module arranged 
alternately, so that the system comprises four wide frame modules 8 and 
four narrow frame modules 9. 
The narrower frame module 9 is constructed as depicted in FIGS. 4a and 4b 
consisting of an enlongated rectangular wall with approximate dimensions 
of 2 m in height, 30 cm in width and 10 cm in depth. The front surface of 
this solid wall is provided with mounting elements 3, in this case 
suitable reinforcements with mounting holes placed at certain locations, 
permitting different exercising devices 4 to be mounted on the frame 
module at different heights as required in view of the practical purpose 
of the device in question. The rear side 10 of the narrower frame module 9 
is an essentially straight and even surface. Attached to the rear corners 
of the module, close to the upper and lower ends of it, are socket-type 
coupling elements 2, by means of which the frame modules can be linked 
together by placing them so that the coupling elements of adjacent modules 
are aligned one on top of the other and inserting a hinge pin or 
equivalent through the coupling elements. 
FIGS. 3a, 3b and 3c present a more detailed view of the wider frame module 
8 used in the system. It consists of a skeleton which has the same height 
and depth as the narrower module but is about twice as wide, and whose 
side edges are provided with coupling elements 2 corresponding to those of 
frame module 9. In addition, the module skeleton is provided with various 
mounting elements 3, such as holes 11 in the front surface and openings 
and holes 12 of different sizes in the upper and lower end members. 
Various exercising devices, benches, bars and levers can be installed in 
these mounting elements 3. In the interior space delimited by the skeleton 
of the frame module are guides 12 carrying a pile of weight plates 13 
constituting a counterforce device 6, which can be connected with a 
pulling means 14 to exercising devices installed in the mounting elements 
3 of the frame module. 
Like frame module 9, frame module 8, too, has an essentially straight rear 
surface 10. Thus, when linked together to form a larger wall, the frame 
modules form an essentially even surface. As shown in FIG. 1, the front 
surface of the wider frame module 8 can be provided with suitable boards 
15, e.g. transparent plastic boards, hiding most of the counterforce 
device inside the module and leaving only a narrow gap 16 between them to 
provide access to the counterforce control means. 
FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate an exercising device 4 which can be mounted on a 
narrow or a wide frame module 9,8. It consists of a padded bench 17 and 
padded bolsters 18 for backing the user's thighs. In addition, the device 
is provided with fixtures 7, i.e. plates provided with holes, enabling the 
device to be attached to the frame module 9 by means of bolts inserted 
through the appropriate holes in the mounting elements 3 and the fixtures. 
If such a bench structure is mounted on the lower part of a wide frame 
module 8 and a suitable lever or bar connected to the counterweight is 
mounted on the upper part of the module, the resulting combination allows 
a person sitting on the bench to exercise by operating the counterweight 
in a manner known in itself. 
FIGS. 9 and 10 illustrate another exercising device 4 designed for use in 
connection with the frame modules of the invention. In this case, too, the 
device 4 cannot be used independently, but when attached by means of 
fixtures 7 to the mounting elements 3 of a narrow frame module 9, it can 
be used in a known manner for the exercising of the dorsal extensors, with 
the user's pelvis resting on the cushion 19 and his legs pressed against 
the padded stopper 20. In the same way, various exercising devices which 
have no frame of their own and therefore cannot be used independently can 
be mounted on suitable frame modules of either width to form usable 
exercising devices. 
FIG. 2 shows a diagrammatic top view of a system of exercising equipment 
similar to that in FIG. 1. This embodiment comprises three wide frame 
modules 8 and three narrow frame modules 9 linked together alternately to 
form a hexagonal frame in which each module accommodates a different 
exercising device. 
FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate an embodiment of the invention which enables the 
frame modules to be mounted separately on a wall. A frame module can be 
attached directly to a wall by using a mounting bracket as shown in FIGS. 
7 and 8. The bracket consists of a plate 21 provided with two studs 22 
with a socket 23 at the end, the studs being placed at a distance between 
them corresponding to the distance between the coupling elements 2 of the 
frame module. Thus, by means of the coupling elements 2 and corresponding 
sockets 23, the frame module can be installed on mounting brackets 5 
fastened to the wall. In this way, a given exercising hall space can be 
utilized very effectively by using only modular structures as provided by 
the invention and arranging part of the equipment in ring-type assemblies 
as illustrated by FIGS. 1 and 2 and mounting the rest on the walls. 
In the foregoing, the invention has been described in detail by referring 
to some of its structural solutions. However, its embodiments may vary 
within the scope of the idea of the invention as defined in the following 
claims.