Abstract:
A rowing weight training machine includes: a frame; a seat assembly attached to the frame; a movement arm pivotally attached to the frame and movable along a generally longitudinal stroke path between a forward position and a rearward position; a resistance-imparting unit operatively connected with the movement arm to provide resistance to the movement arm as it moves from the forward position to the rearward position; a pair of handles to be grasped by an exerciser; and a pair of extension members, each of which is attached to a respective handle such that each handle is free to rotate about a longitudinal axis of the extension member. The extension members are attached to the movement arm (preferably via a universal ball joint) such that each extension member is free to at least partially rotate relative to the movement arm about vertical, longitudinal and transverse axes. Also, the extension members are of sufficient length and the extension members are attached to the movement arm so that the handles can be separated by a distance of at least 24 inches when the movement arm is in the rearward position. In this configuration, the exerciser has the option of performing the basic rowing motion with the hands in any orientation, and can pull the handles along multiple vertical planes to multiple positions in front of the chest and shoulders or outside the chest and shoulders.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority from co-assigned U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/296,775, filed Jun. 8, 2001, entitled Exercise Machines. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to exercise equipment, and relates more particularly to weight training equipment. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Exercise devices, and in particular weight training machines, typically include a mechanical member that the user repeatedly moves along a prescribed path for exercise. Conventionally, movement of the mechanical member is resisted in some fashion (often by weights) to render the movement more difficult and thereby intensify the exercise. The movement of the mechanical member determines what muscle or muscle groups are to be involved in the exercise. 
     One popular exercise movement, both for aerobic and weight training, is the rowing motion, in which a seated exerciser extends his arms to grasp a handle or other grasping device and pulls the handle toward his body. This exercise movement tends to work the muscles of the upper back (such as the middle trapezius, rear deltoids, teres major, latissimus dorsi, and rhomboids) and the biceps. 
     In one type of rowing weight training machines, the handles grasped by the exerciser are either attached at the end of a cable or belt (often it is a single handle that is grasped with both hands). This configuration enables the user to pull with both hands at once, and to orient the hands so that the palms are either vertical or horizontal. However, with a single handle the user must have both hands oriented in the same direction, and the placement of the hands on the handle defines the vertical plane in which the hands move during the exercise (i.e., the direction of movement of the cable or belt). 
     Another type of rowing weight training machine has pivoting movement arms to which the grasping handles are attached. This type of machine typically has only a single path of motion available for exercise, and is often limited to a single orientation of the hands during grasping. 
     In view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to provide a rowing weight training machine that can provide multiple orientations of the hands and multiple vertical planes of movement during exercise, as doing so can exercise different muscles or portions thereof. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention can provide a rowing weight training machine that has the capability of enabling the exerciser to employ multiple hand positions and multiple vertical planes of movement. In certain embodiments, the inventive rowing weight training machine comprises: a frame; a seat assembly attached to the frame; a movement arm pivotally attached to the frame and movable along a generally longitudinal stroke path between a forward position and a rearward position; a resistance-imparting unit operatively connected with the movement arm to provide resistance to the movement arm as it moves from the forward position to the rearward position; a pair of handles to be grasped by an exerciser; and a pair of extension members, each of which is attached to a respective handle such that each handle is free to rotate about a longitudinal axis of the extension member. The extension members are attached to the movement arm (preferably via a universal ball joint) such that each extension member is free to at least partially rotate relative to the movement arm about vertical, longitudinal and transverse axes. Also, the extension members are of sufficient length and the extension members are attached to the movement arm so that the handles can be separated by a distance of at least 24 inches when the movement arm is in the rearward position. In this configuration, the exerciser has the option of performing the basic rowing motion with the hands in any orientation, and can pull the handles along multiple vertical planes to multiple positions in front of the chest and shoulders or outside the chest and shoulders. 
     In other embodiments, the present invention is directed to an exercise machine that simulates a rowing motion, comprising: a frame; a seat assembly attached to the frame; a movement arm pivotally attached to the frame and movable along a generally longitudinal stroke path between a forward position and a rearward position; a resistance-imparting unit operatively connected with the movement arm to provide resistance to the movement arm as it moves from the forward position to the rearward position; a pair of handles to be grasped by an exerciser; and a pair of extension members, each of which is attached to a respective handle such that each handle is free to rotate about a longitudinal axis of the extension member. The extension members are attached to the movement arm such that each extension member is free to at least partially rotate relative to the movement arm about vertical, longitudinal and transverse axes. Also, a distance between the attachment of each extension member with the movement arm and the attachment of each extension member with its respective handle is between about 8 and 48 inches. In this configuration, the exercise machine can enjoy many of the advantages and benefits discussed above. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
     FIG. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the rowing weight training machine of the present invention, with the forward position of the movement being illustrated in solid line and the rearward position being illustrated in dotted line. 
     FIG. 2 is a partial top view of the machine of FIG. 1 showing the handles being pulled to the chest and oriented vertically. 
     FIG. 3 is a partial top view of the machine of FIG. 1 showing the handles being pulled to the chest and oriented horizontally. 
     FIG. 4 is a partial top view of the machine of FIG. 1 showing the handles being pulled outside the shoulders and oriented vertically. 
     FIG. 5 is a partial top view of the machine of FIG. 1 showing the handles being pulled outside the shoulders and oriented horizontally. 
     FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the frame, seat assembly, movement arm assembly, and pulleys of the exercise machine of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 7 is a partial perspective view of the belt/pulley system of the machine of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 8 is a partial exploded perspective view of the weight stack of the machine of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 9 is a graph plotting resistance as a function of movement arm displacement for the machine of FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, like numbers refer to like elements throughout. Thicknesses and dimensions of some components may be exaggerated for clarity. 
     A rowing machine, designated broadly at  10 , is illustrated in FIGS. 1-8. The rowing machine  10  includes a frame  12 , a weight stack  40 , a rowing assembly  50 , and a belt-pulley system  80 . These structures are described in greater detail below. 
     In describing the rowing machine  10 , it will be assumed for the purposes of description that the terms “front”, “forward”, and derivatives thereof refer to the horizontal direction a seated exerciser faces (i.e., to the left as shown in FIG.  1 ). The term “rear” and derivatives thereof refer to the horizontal direction that is opposite the “forward” direction (i.e., to the right as shown in FIG.  1 ). Together, the “forward” and “rear” directions comprise the “longitudinal” dimension of the rowing machine  10 . The terms “outward”, “outer” and derivatives thereof refer to the horizontal direction defined by a vector beginning at the center of the machine  10  and extending perpendicularly to the longitudinal dimension; conversely, the terms “inner”, “inward” and derivatives thereof refer to the horizontal direction opposite the “outward” direction. Together, the “inward” and “outward” directions comprise the “transverse” dimension of the machine  10 . 
     Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 6, the frame  12  includes an elongate, longitudinally-extending base member  14 . A seat  18  is positioned above the base member  14  and is supported by two seat supports  16   a ,  16   b . A pair of foot pads  22  are positioned forwardly of the seat  18  and are supported from beneath by foot supports  20   a ,  20   b . The foot pads  22  are positioned relative to the seat  18  such that a seated exerciser can comfortably place his feet on the foot pads  22  with his knees in a slightly bent condition. Typically, the seat  18  will be positioned between about 10 and 24 inches above the underlying surface and the foot pads  22  will positioned between about 16 and 24 inches in front of the seat  18  at a height of between about 4 and 20 inches above the underlying surface and at an angle of between about 45 and 75 degrees to the underlying surface. 
     Still referring to FIGS. 1 and 6, the frame  12  also includes a base cross member  24  that extends generally perpendicularly to the base member  14  and attaches to the forward end thereof. A slightly asymmetric arch  26  rises from either end of the base cross member  24 . A vertical support  28  rises from an intermediate portion of the base cross member  24  and curves to meet a sloped portion  27  of the arch  26 . Also, a cross member  30  extends generally horizontally between the arch  26  and the vertical support  28  at a height of approximately 15 inches above the base cross member  24 . 
     Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 6, the frame  12  also includes a longitudinal support  32  which attaches at one end to the foot support  20   a  and rises to attach at its opposite end to a longitudinal support bracket  34  that is mounted on the vertical support  28  just above the cross member  30 . The frame  12  also includes an upper pulley bracket  36  that is mounted to and just below the uppermost portion  27   a  of the arch  26 . In addition, the frame  12  includes a pair of mounting brackets  38   a ,  38   b  that are mounted to the base member  14  forwardly of the foot supports  20   a ,  20   b  and a pair of mounting brackets  39   a ,  39   b  that are mounted to the base member  14  forwardly of the mounting brackets  38   a ,  38   b . The mounting brackets  38   a ,  38   b ,  39   a ,  39   b  serve as mounting points for the rowing assembly  50 . 
     Those skilled in this art will recognize that the frame  12  illustrated herein is exemplary and can take many configurations that would be suitable for use with the present invention. The frame  12  provides a strong, rigid foundation to which other components can be attached at desired locations, and other frame forms able to serve this purpose may also be acceptable for use with this invention. 
     Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 8, the weight stack  40  includes a set of weights  42  arranged in a vertical stack just above the base cross member  24 . A lifting rod  43  extends vertically through apertures in the weights  42  and is configured to receive a pin inserted between individual weights  42  that enables the user to select the number of weights to be used in the exercise. The weight stack  40  also includes guide rods  44  that extend vertically through the weights  42  to guide the weights  42  along a vertical path during exercise. Weight stacks of this variety are well known to those skilled in this art and need not be described in detailed herein. In addition, the rowing machine  10  includes a set of auxiliary weights  46  that slide along a vertical guide rod  48  and that can be temporarily connected with the selected weights  42  to provide incremental weight during exercise. Again, auxiliary weight systems of this type are well known to those skilled in this art and need not be described in detail herein. An exemplary machine having such a weight stack is a leg extension machine available from Nautilus HPS, Inc. (Independence, Va.) under the trade name NITRO™. 
     Those skilled in this art will recognize that, although a weight stack is the preferred structure for providing resistance to the exerciser, other resistance-imparting structures, such as friction-imparting devices, variable viscosity devices, air drag-based resistance devices, and the like, may also be employed with a rowing machine of the present invention. Exemplary resistance devices include those illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,810,096, 4,708,338; 4,720,093; 5,033,733; 4,542,897; 4,298,893; 4,805,901; 4,790,528; 4,786,049; 5,031,900; 4,775,145; 4,589,656;and 4,659,074, the disclosures of each of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. 
     Referring back to FIGS. 1 and 6, the rowing assembly  50  includes a movement arm  52 , a swing link  56 , connecting link  60 , and main handles  74 . The movement arm  52  is attached to the mounting brackets  38   a ,  38   b  via a transversely extending pivot posts  53   a ,  53   b  located on each side thereof to form a pivot  54 . The movement arm  52  extends first upwardly, then curves upwardly and forwardly at an angle of approximately 10 degrees to the underlying surface. A pivot post  55  extends transversely from the lower vertical portion of the movement arm  52 . The movement arm  52  also includes a pair of stops  66  that extend transversely from the upper end thereof. In addition, a pair of handle mounting posts  68  extend transversely from the upper end portion of the movement arm  52 . 
     Still referring to FIGS. 1 and 6, the swing link  56  is a straight link that is attached to the mounting brackets  39   a ,  39   b  at a pivot  59  via pivot posts  56   a ,  56   b . A pivot bracket  57  is located at an intermediate point on the swing link  56 . Also, the upper end of the swing link  56  includes a pulley pin  58  that extends transversely therefrom. 
     Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 6, the connecting link  60  extends between and is pivotally connected to the pivot post  55  of the movement arm  52  and the pivot bracket  57  of the swing link  56  to form, respectively, pivots  62 ,  64 . Thus, the movement arm  52 , swing link  56 , connecting link  60  and base member  14  form a four-bar linkage that controls their relative movement. 
     Referring yet again to FIGS. 1 and 6, the main handles  74  are attached to the movement arm  52  via respective universal ball joints  70 . More specifically, each ball joint  70  is attached to a handle mounting post  68 , and an extension rod  72  is attached at one end to the ball joint  70 . Attachment via the ball joint  70  enables the extension rod  72  to rotate at least to a certain extent about vertical, longitudinal and transverse axes. Typically, the extension rod  72  can rotate about 270 degrees about the transverse axis, about 50 to 120 degrees about the longitudinal axis, and about 50 to 120 degrees about the vertical axis. At its opposite end, the extension rod  72  is attached to a rotary bearing  75  (such as a sleeve or ball bearing) on the end of the main handle  74  such that the handle  74  is free to rotate 360 degrees about the longitudinal axis of the extension rod  72 . Preferably, the extension rod  72  is of sufficient length (between about 8 and 48 inches, and more preferably between about 20 and 24 inches) to enable the handles  74  to be separated by between about 0 and 36 inches, and preferably at least 24 inches, when pulled by the exerciser to a longitudinal position approximately equal to that of the front of the seat  34 . 
     Referring now to FIGS. 1,  6  and  7 , the belt/pulley system  80  includes upper pulleys  82  and  84  that are mounted to the upper pulley bracket  36 ; the upper pulley  82  is mounted substantially directly above the center of the weight stack  40 , and the upper pulley  84  is mounted near the vertical support  28 . An intermediate pulley  86  is mounted on the longitudinal support bracket  34  just below and forward of longitudinal support  32 . A swing link pulley  88  is attached to the pulley pin  58  located at the upper end of the swing link  56 . 
     Referring still to FIGS. 1 and 7, a belt  90  engages the aforementioned pulleys  82 ,  84 ,  86 ,  88  to connect the weight stack  40  to the movement arm  52 . More specifically, the belt  90  is attached at one end to a belt mounting bracket  92  that is mounted to the lifting member  43 , and at its opposite end to a belt mounting bracket  94  that is mounted to the cross member  30 . The belt  90  traces a path from the belt mounting bracket  92  upwardly to the upper pulley  82 , horizontally to the upper pulley  84 , downwardly to the intermediate pulley  86 , rearwardly to the swing link pulley  88 , and forwardly back to the belt mounting bracket  94 . 
     In operation, the user first selects a desired resistance from the weight stack  40 . He then is seated on the seat  18  facing the arch  26  with his feet placed on the foot pads  22 , at which point the movement arm  52  is in the forward position illustrated in FIG. 1 in solid line. He grasps the main handles  74  in front of his body and pulls the main handles  74  toward him. Doing so causes the movement arm  52  and, in turn, the swing link  56 , to pivot about, respectively, pivots  54  and  59 , such that the movement arm moves to the rearward position illustrated in FIG. 1 in dotted line and the upper end of the swing link  56  moves rearwardly. This movement draws the swing link pulley  88  rearwardly, which pulls the belt  90  rearwardly. This movement of the belt  90  causes the remainder of the belt to slide along the path between the pulleys  82 ,  84 ,  86 ,  88  described above and away from the weight stack  40 . As such, the selected weights rise with the belt  90  and provide resistance to the user. 
     Notably, the ball joints  70  enable the user to hold the main handles  74  in a variety of different positions that can exercise different portions of the body. For example, the main handles  74  can be rotated about the axes defined by their respective extension rods  72  and therefore may be oriented vertically, horizontally, or some intermediate position, each of which will cause different muscle groups to be exercised. For example, if the handles are held vertically (see FIGS.  2  and  4 ), more emphasis is placed on exercise of the brachioradialis, while a horizontal orientation of the handles (see FIGS. 3 and 5) causes exercise of the pronator teres to be more intense. 
     In addition, the presence of the ball joints  70  enables the main handles  74  to be drawn outwardly (away from the center of the body) during exercise, again providing exercise to different muscle groups in the body. In particular, the inclusion of the extension rod  72  between the ball joints  70  and the main handle  74  allows the exerciser to position the handles further apart than the typical width of a human body (for example, the handles may be separated by between 0 and 36 inches, and preferably at least 24 inches) while still enabling the main handle  74  to be turned and/or raised during exercise. Thus, with the handles  74  drawn to a position adjacent the shoulders or chest (see FIGS.  2  and  3 ), exercise of the latissimus dorsi may be emphasized, while drawing the handles  74  to a position 2 inches outside the shoulders (see FIGS. 4 and 5) can exercise the posterior deltoid and rhomboids more intensely. 
     Moreover, the ball joints  70  enable the exerciser to pull the handles  74  to different elevations on the body. For example, although FIGS. 2-5 demonstrate the pulling motion of the exerciser drawing the handles  74  to the chest level of the exerciser, the exerciser may bring the handles  74  to a lower or higher elevation and exercise different muscles. 
     Those skilled in this art will appreciate that other structures, such as rubber joints, cable joints, universal joints, hook and loop joints, chain links, and dual axis joints, may be used in place of the ball joints  70 . The replacement structures should be capable of allowing the extension rods  72  to rotate at least partially about vertical, longitudinal and transverse axes. 
     Further, the configuration of the aforementioned four-bar linkage controls the resistance curve experienced by the exerciser during exercise. Fundamentally, it is desirable to vary the resistance experienced by the exerciser at different points during movement; otherwise, the magnitude of resistance necessary to provide a strengthening workout to a muscle or muscle group may be too high to enable the user to move the movement arm through positions in the full range of motion in which the user enjoys a lower mechanical advantage. In the illustrated embodiment, the movement of the pulley  88  with the swing link  56  causes the resistance experienced by the exerciser to follow the resistance curve illustrated in FIG.  9 . Those skilled in this art will recognize that, although a four-bar linkage is preferred to provide a varying resistance curve to the machine  10 , other structures, such as cams and the like, can also be employed to vary the resistance of the machine during exercise. 
     The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the claims. The invention is defined by the following claims, with equivalents of the claims to be included therein.