LOAD APPLYING DEVICE

Abstract: A load applying device (8) comprises a rotating disc (25) and an electromagnet (27). Since a closed magnetic path is formed by the rotating disc (25) and the electromagnet (27) facing both sides of the rotating disc (25), eddy current is generated efficiently in the rotating disc (25). Since the rotation speed of a load shaft (12) is set to a value higher than a prescribed rotation speed, brake torque applied to the rotating disc (25) by the eddy current generated in the disc functions in a saturated region. Therefore, stable brake torque is applied irrespective of the rotation speed of the load shaft (12).

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for applying load magnetically to a rotating shaft in a pedal-operated exercise apparatus. It is necessary for a load applying device to apply continually an arbitrary load (brake torque) to a rotating shaft of an apparatus which receives the load and therefore an excellent durability is required for such a load applying device. Such a load applying device will be described in the following, which load applying device is used in an ergometer (a training apparatus of pedal type including a load applying device). One of the objects of the invention is that load to be applied to an object, namely, brake torque can be set to an arbitrary fixed value, irrespectively of the rotation speed of the object. One reason for this is that in the case of an ergometer, calculation of the kinetic amount of a person exercising using the ergometer cannot be made correctly as desired if the brake torque of a load applying device changes dependent on the rotation speed of the pedals, thus making the ergometer perform its function unsatisfactorily. US-A-4 358 105 discloses a device for applying load to a rotatable load shaft in a pedal-operated exercise apparatus, comprising a crank shaft through which pedal load applied by on exercising operator is transmitted, a speed increasing mechanism in association with the crankshaft and the load shaft, for causing the load shaft to rotate at a higher speed than the crankshaft, and means, constituted by an alternator, for applying brake torque to the load shaft. In use, the brake torque varies and a substantially constant work level, irrespective of the rotational speed of the crank shaft, is maintained. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a device for applying load to a load shaft in pedal-operated exercise apparatus, comprising: a crank shaft through which pedal load applied by an exercising operator is transmitted; and a speed increasing mechanism in association with said crank shaft and said load shaft for causing the load shaft to rotate at an increased speed relative to the crank shaft, characterized in that: the device further includes: a rotatable disc coupled to said load shaft for rotation therewith, and an electromagnet, main surfaces of said rotatable disc being positioned to rotate in said electromagnet but not in contact therewith, so that when the electromagnet is energized and the disc is rotating magnetic flux produced by the electromagnet traverses the surfaces of said rotating disc and generates eddy currents whereby brake torque is applied to said disc; and when the rotation speed of the crank shaft is within a predetermined range of speeds at which it is practical for the operator to rotate the crankshaft by means of the pedals the rotation speed of the load shaft is higher than a prescribed rotation speed and the brake torque applied to the disc remains substantially constant. Since, in use of the device when the disc rotates, a closed magnetic path is formed by the rotating disc and the electromagnet facing both sides of the rotating disc, eddy current is generated efficiently in the rotating disc. Further, since the rotation speed of the load shaft is set to a value higher than a prescribed rotation speed, brake torque applied to the rotating disc by the eddy current generated in the disc functions in a saturated region. Therefore, stable brake torque is applied irrespective of the rotation speed of the load shaft. As described in the foregoing, the present invention makes it possible to generate eddy current efficiently in the rotating disc and to obtain intense brake torque with the small-sized electromagnet since the electromagnet is disposed in a manner where the main surfaces of the rotating disc are inserted therein. Further, in a preferred structure, only one electromagnet, and therefore only one coil as the exciting coil are needed and accordingly, brake torque can be easily regulated by the current control. Brake torque is maintained constant with the rotation speed of the crankshaft by the pedals being in a practically applicable range in the speed increasing mechanism and as a result, the same load as if in the case of riding on a bicycle on the flat ground can be applied to the user and he will have a comfortable feeling at the time of using the exercise apparatus. Further, the kinetic amount (work amount) of the user, which is represented by the product of the revolutions per minutes of the crankshaft and the brake torque, can be calculated easily since the brake torque is constant. In addition, since the brake torque can be set to an arbitrary fixed value, the present invention makes it possible to provide a device by which the user can exercise according to his physical strength. The invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a structural view showing an essential part of an embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a view showing a total structure of an exercise apparatus in which said embodiment of the present invention is adopted; Fig. 3 is a detailed view of said embodiment; and Fig. 4 is a graph showing eddy current load characteristics of said embodiment. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT In the following, a concrete embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, taking an example of a load applying device used in a pedal-operated exercise apparatus. Fig. 2 is a view showing a total structure of the exercise apparatus where an embodiment of the present invention is adopted. A frame 1 made of a construction material comprises at least a base 2 and a front and a back stays 3 and 4 both having variable height. An upper end of the front stay comprises a handle 5 having a loop shape as a plane figure for example and a control panel 6. The control panel 6 is provided with a keyboard for regulating brake torque and the like to be applied to the load shaft, a display for displaying the running distance and other components, as described later. An upper end of the back stay 4 comprises a saddle 7. On the base 2, a load applying device 8 is provided The load applying device 8 comprises a crankshaft 10 attached to the back stay 4 having pedals 9 and a load shaft 12 supported by a support frame 11 on the base 2. The crankshaft 10 and the load shaft 12 are coupled by a speed increasing mechanism 13 having two speed increase stages. The construction of the load applying device 8 excluding the pedals is usually protected by a cover 14 shown by the chained line for the purpose of preventing clothes etc. of a user from being caught in the device or for the purpose of protection from dust. Fig. 1 and 3 are views showing an essential part of the load applying device 8. First referring to Fig. 3, the speed increasing mechanism 13 comprises: a first speed increase stage including a crank wheel 15 of a large diameter fixed to the crankshaft 10, a wheel 17 of a small diameter fixed to an intermediate shaft 16 rotatably held by the support frame 11 and a chain 18 set on the two wheels; and a second speed increase stage including a pulley 19 of a large diameter fixed to the intermediate shaft 16, a pulley 20 of a small diameter fixed to the load shaft 12 and a timing belt 21 set on the two pulleys. Thus, the speed increasing mechanism is so structured that a speed increase ratio of the mechanism 13, namely a speed increase ratio between the crankshaft 10 and the load shaft 12 can be set to a large value. In Fig. 3, the reference numeral 22 indicates a tension pulley for tightening the timing belt 21 and the reference numeral 23 indicates a derailer for tightening the chain 18. In this embodiment, the speed increase ratio is set to 16.6. Although in this embodiment, the speed increasing mechanism 13 is structured by the wheels and the chain set therebetween as well as by the pulleys and the timing belt set therebetween, it may be structured by combination of only the wheels and the chains or only the pulleys and the timing belts. In addition, the speed increasing mechanism 13 may be structured by combination of gears. Further, the speed increasing mechanism 13 may be structured with any number of speed increase stages, say, a single stage or three or more stages, the number being not limited to two as mentioned above, insofar as the rotation speed of the crankshaft 10 is increased and transmitted to the load shaft 12 and the rotation speed of the load shaft 12 can be made higher than a prescribed rotation speed (an example of a concrete value thereof being mentioned later) with the rotation speed of the crankshaft 10 being in the range of a practically applicable speed (an example of a concrete value thereof being mentioned later). Now referring to Figs. 1 and 3, around a wheel 24 fixed to the load shaft 12, a circular disk 25 made of a copper plate for example is fixed so that the disk 25 and the wheel 24 form one body to have an increased diameter. In addition, in order to make smooth the rotation of the disk 25 and the rotation of the wheel 24, a circular weight ring 26 functioning as a fly wheel is attached for example in a portion of coupling between the wheel 24 and the disk 25. As a result, the disk 25 and the load shaft 12 can rotate smoothly and the structure can be made simpler than in the case of providing a fly wheel for that purpose. In association with the disk 25, a single electromagnet 27 is provided in a manner fixed to the support frame 11. The electromagnet 27 comprises a core 28 and an exciting coil 29 wound onto the core 28 on a coil bobbin not shown. The core 28 in this embodiment have a form of the letter C opened at one point so that the two main surfaces of the disc are interposed in the opening between the end surfaces of the core, but are not in touch with the end surfaces. As the core 28, a cut core having a single cut on multiple turns of a band steel is preferably used. This is because a cut core,even if of a small size, has a high density of magnetic flux and is capable of generating a larger quantity of eddy current in the disc 25 as compared with an ordinary multi-layer core and accordingly brake torque applied to the disc 25 can be substantially increased. Although in this embodiment, only one electromagnet 27 is used, it goes without saying that a structure having two or more electromagnets may be adopted in cases where more intense brake torque is required. The structure of the electromagnet 27 is not limited to that in this embodiment. For example, the following structure may be adopted. A set of two electromagnets each comprising a column-like core and an exciting coil wound on the core may be used so that the electromagnets may be disposed on both sides of the disc 25. In sum, as far as both surfaces of the disc 25 are placed in an intermediate space provided in one or more electromagnets in the state where the surfaces of the disc 25 are not in contact with the electromagnets, any form or any structure may be adopted for the electromagnets. One end of the exciting coil 29 is connected to a DC power source V D and the other end thereof is grounded through a control transistor 30 and a resistor 31. To the base of the control transistor 30, an output of a comparator 32 is supplied. These control transistor 30, control resistor 31 and comparator 32 form an current control circuit whereby the set current is made to flow in the exciting coil 29. Setting of the current flowing in the exciting coil 29 is made in the below described manner by means of a keyboard 33, a CPU 34, a display 35 and a D/A converter 36 provided in the control panel 6 (see Fig. 2). The user enters desired brake torque (namely, load of the ergometer according to his own physical strength) by means of the keyboard 33. The entered brake torque is displayed on the display 35 through the CPU 34 to be ascertained by the user. When the brake torque is determined, the CPU 34 calculates exciting current necessary for applying the brake torque. This calculation of the exciting current value is performed based on the relation: brake torque = k₂ + f(I) where k₂ is a prescribed load value independent of current and f(I) is a load value changing dependent on current. Then, the CPU 34 applies a control signal to the comparator 32 through the D/A converter 36 so that the calculated current may flow in the exciting coil 28. More preferably, the CPU 34 has a further function of calculating the kinetic amount of the user so that the kinetic amount is represented on the display 35. An example of the eddy current load characteristics in a relation between the disc 25 and the exciting coil 28 is as shown in Fig. 4. The characteristic curve in Fig. 4 is obtained as a result of measurement under the conditions set as follows: Number of turns of the exciting coil: 1000 t Opening or gap between the opposed end surfaces of the C shaped core: 1.7 mm Thickness t of the disc: 1.0 mm Diameter D of the disc: 215 mm Speed increase ratio: 16.6 Surface temperature of the disc at the time of measurement: 15 to 18°C In this embodiment, the number of revolutions per minute of the crankshaft 10 is in the range of 50 to 100 as a practically applicable range in the ergometer and the speed increase ratio of the speed increasing mechanism 13 is set to 16.6 as previously described so that the number of revolutions per minutes of the load shaft 12, namely, that of the disc 25 may be in the range of 830 to 1660 with the number of revolutions per minutes of the crankshaft being in the above stated range. Thus, by setting the rotation speed of the load shaft 12 to a value higher than the prescribed rotation speed, the brake torque applied to the disc 25 can be made almost stable as is clear from Fig. 4. This is because, with the revolution speed of the disc 25 higher than a prescribed value, generated eddy current can be utilized in a saturated region and influence by the rotation speed of the disc 25 as in the non saturated region (in the region of the rotation speed of the disc lower than 830 rpm in Fig. 4) can be avoided. Accordingly, in this embodiment, brake torque can be set to an arbitrary fixed value by making regulation finely or without grades in the range of the rotation speed of the disc 25 of 830 to 1660 rpm, in other words, in the range for practically using pedals. Thus, the kinetic amount of the user can easily be calculated. Further, in this embodiment, a plurality of sheets of fins 37 are formed in positions on the main surface of the disc 25, not interfering with the electromagnet 27, namely, on the main surface of the disc near the circumference of the wheel 24. The fins 37 may be formed radially in circles on the main surface of the disc 25, each in a curved shape (a concave shape as viewed from one side and a convex shape as viewed from the other side) or may be in the form in which metallic materials are soldered or attached by any other means onto the surface of the disc 25. Otherwise, the fins 37 may be structured as slits partially provided in the disc 25, or as rectangular projections diametrically provided on the main surface of the disc 25, each being cut and raised from the disc 25 except one side. These fins 37 serve for ventilation of the disc 25 or for radiation of joule heat caused by the eddy current transmitted from the disc 25 so that the temperature on the surfaces of the disc 25 may be maintained in the vicinity of the normal temperature (15 to 18°C in the embodiment) to prevent the brake torque from being lowered by increase of the temperature.

Claims: A device (8) for applying load to a load shaft in pedal-operated exercise apparatus, comprising: a crank shaft (10) through which pedal load applied by an exercising operator is transmitted; and a speed increasing mechanism (13) in association with said crankshaft and said load shaft for causing the load shaft to rotate at an increased speed relative to the crankshaft, characterized in that: the device further includes: a rotatable disc (25) coupled to said load shaft for rotation therewith, and an electromagnet (27), main surfaces of said rotatable disc being positioned to rotate in said electromagnet but not in contact therewith, so that when the electromagnet is energized and the disc is rotating magnetic flux produced by the electromagnet traverses the surfaces of said rotating disc and generates eddy currents whereby brake torque is applied to said disc; and when the rotation speed of the crank shaft is within a predetermined range of speeds at which it is practical for the operator to rotate the crankshaft by means of the pedals the rotation speed of the load shaft is higher than a prescribed rotation speed and the brake torque applied to the disc remains substantially constant. A device (8) in accordance with claim 1, wherein said electromagnet (27) comprises a core (28) and an exciting coil (29) wound on said core. A device (8) in accordance with claim 2, wherein said core (28) is in the form of the letter C and is disposed in a manner whereby said main surfaces of said rotatable disc (25) are interposed in an opening formed between opposed end surfaces of said core. A device (8) in accordance with claim 3, wherein a cut core is used as said core (28) of said electromagnet. A device (8) in accordance with any of claims 2 to 4, wherein said electromagnet (27) comprises: a main body comprising the core (28) and control means (30, 32, 33, 34) for controlling current applied to said exciting coil (29), whereby quantity of current to be applied to said coil is regulated by said control means to change brake torque applied to said disc (25). A device (8) in accordance with claim 5, wherein said control means (30, 32, 33, 34) comprises: torque setting means (33) and calculating means (34) for calculating necessary quantity of current to apply as control torque the torque set by said setting means, said calculation being based on the relation: torque = k₁ + f(I) wherein k₁ is a prescribed load value independent of current and f(I) is a load value changing dependent on current. A device (8) in accordance with any preceding claim wherein said rotatable disc (25) is provided with fins (37) for dissipating of heat. A device (8) in accordance with any preceding claim wherein said rotatable disc (25) is provided with a weight ring so that said disc rotates with inertia. A device (8) in accordance with any preceding claim wherein said speed increasing mechanism is so structured that increase of speed is made at a plurality of stages. A device (8) in accordance with claim 9, wherein a motion transmitting mechanism comprising a chain and a gear is adopted in said speed increasing mechanism. A device (8) in accordance with claim 9, wherein a motion transmitting mechanism comprising a belt and a rotating body is adopted in said speed increasing mechanism. A device (8) in accordance with claim 9, wherein combination of a motion transmitting mechanism comprising a chain and a gear and a motion transmitting mechanism comprising a belt and a rotating body is adopted in said speed increasing mechanism.

Inventors: TSUYAMA SADAHARU, TSUYAMA, SADAHARU
Applicants: CATEYE CO LTD, CATEYE CO., LTD.
Application year: 1986
Main classification: H02K49
IPC codes: A63B23, A63B21, A61B5, A63B22, H02K49