Patent Publication Number: US-2021162256-A1

Title: Multi-function resistance training apparatus

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to a resistance training apparatus and more specifically, but not exclusively, to a multi-function resistance training apparatus. 
     BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION 
     Strength training is important for maintaining a healthy lifestyle and is practiced by many people (including athletes) as part of a regular fitness routine. Weight training is a common form of strength training and includes exercises using free weights or weight machines. 
     Weight machines (with some variants also referred to as cable machines) are useful in that the machines are adjustable to allow for various loads to be used in a single machine as opposed to free weights which require a weight, or set of weights, for every discreet load a user may require. 
     One of the disadvantages of weight machines is that such machines are often targeted at a specific exercise aimed at a specific muscle group of the human body. A user will thus need access to many machines to practice a balanced weight training routine. These machines are often relatively large and occupy floor space which might have been used for other purposes. Further, any institution wishing to offer its user access to such machines, would have to purchase many machines requiring larger upfront investment. 
     Another disadvantage of weight machines is that they are frequently not adjustable to cater for users of different physical size. 
     OBJECT OF THE INVENTION 
     It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide resistance training apparatus which, at least partially, alleviates at least some of the disadvantages associated with the prior art. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with the invention there is a resistance training apparatus comprising:
         a primary unit including a resistance training member extending from the primary unit;   the resistance training member being movable longitudinally relative to the primary unit and securable at a position along the axis of longitudinal movement;   the resistance training member being rotatable about a two perpendicular axes, both which are transverse to the axis of longitudinal movement and rotationally settable to a desired position   such that, when the resistance training member is set to the desired position, it is mechanically connected to biasing means which resists rotation of the resistance training member.       

     The resistance training member is an arm which is movable and securable longitudinally along the height of the primary unit such that the arm may be secured at a desired height. 
     The arm includes two shafts one hollow shaft enclosing a solid shaft at one end thereof, where the arm extends transversely from the shaft and is rotatable about the shaft. 
     The arm includes an accessory attachment element at the other end thereof for attaching an accessory to the arm such that the accessory may be engaged by a user and resists rotation. 
     The arm may include a secondary accessory attachment element for attaching an accessory transverse to the arm. 
     The arm is rotationally settable through a frictional element such as a clutch. 
     The rotation and movement of the arm and the engagement of the clutch may be actuated and controlled through a control unit. The control unit may be an electronic control unit (ECU) and the actuation is performed through electric motors controlled by the ECU. 
     The shaft of the arm may include a mechanical connection to the biasing means wherein disengagement of the clutch mechanically disconnects the arm from the biasing means. 
     The apparatus may include a secondary resistance training member extending from the primary unit. The secondary resistance training member is mechanically connected to the biasing means to resist movement of the member. The secondary resistance training member may be in the form of a rope extending from the unit with a free end of the rope resisting further extension from the unit. 
     The free end of the rope may include an accessory attachment element for attaching an accessory to the free end of the rope. The accessory may be a handlebar wherein a user engages the handlebar which resists movement through the rope. 
     The mechanical connection between the resistance members and the biasing means may include ropes and pulleys. The biasing means may include stacked weights which are movable upward and provides downward resistance through its weight. The biasing means may alternatively include a resistance motor. 
     The arm has bidirectional rotational resistance through a mechanical connection which includes a shaft, a disk, and a tensioned rope pivotally attached to the periphery of the disk such that torsional resistance is created in the shaft whenever the shaft and disk is rotated from an equilibrium point in either direction. The arm is releasably connected to the shaft and disk through gears which may be disengaged. 
     The arm is attached to an intermediate plate within the primary unit. The intermediate plate is movable relative on linear guides. The linear guides may include a pair of rack and pinion gearsets which linearly move the intermediate plate up and down within the primary unit to adjust the height of the arm. 
     The biasing means includes compensation means to ensure that the tension in the rope is maintained as the plate and arm move upwards and downwards. The compensation means includes a spool, wherein one end of the tensioned rope is attached and wound to the spool. 
     The secondary resistance member may extend from a carriage with guide pulleys mounted on the carriage. The carriage may be movable upward and downward with respect to the primary unit such that the height of the exit point of the rope may be adjusted. The carriage is movable along a tubular guide with a rounded L-shape to allow the secondary resistance member to extend from the unit horizontally or vertically depending on the position of the carriage along the guide. 
     The primary unit may contain compensation means for maintaining rope tension as the carriage is moved upward, downward, or transversely along the horizontal part of the tubular guide. 
     The apparatus may include one or more biasing units which are removably connected to the primary unit. The biasing unit may be connected to the primary unit through complementary interlocking attachment members. 
     The biasing unit may include biasing means in the form of stacked weights which may be selectively engaged to adjust the weight such that the bias may be transferred through a rope and pulleys. The free end of the rope may include one of the complementary interlocking attachment members which is attachable to its counterpart on the primary unit. 
     The biasing unit may include actuators which are moveable relative to the stacked weights and may selectively engage a number of stacked weights by inserting a locking member to lock a number of weights to the weighted end of the rope. The locking member may be a pin. 
     The actuator is moveable through a carriage which moves on linear guides in the form of a rack and pinion. The carriage may be actuated. The actuators may be electric motors which are operated by an electronic control unit. The carriage may move the actuator to a desired position, such that when the actuator is actuated in the desired position, a number of weights are locked to the weighted end of the rope. The carriage may include engaging members to engage the weighted end of the rope such that, when the free end of the rope is extended, the carriage moves upward along with the selectively engaged weights to resist extension of the free end. 
     The complementary interlocking attachment members may include a hollow frustoconical housing with a rope secured to the apex side of the housing. 
     The primary unit and biasing unit may have recesses formed therein which are shaped and sized to receive the housing such that the housing is self-centering and self-aligning. 
     The interlocking attachment members may include an actuation socket which, when engaged, actuates the interlocking mechanism to attach and interlock the members to each other. 
     The apparatus may include an accessory exchanger unit which detaches, stores, and attaches accessories to one of the accessory attachment elements of the arm. The accessory exchanger unit includes a stack of accessory units, each equipped with a number of actuators for unlocking, detaching, storing, changing, attaching and locking an accessory to the accessory attachment element of the arm. 
     The primary-, biasing-, and accessory exchanger units may include motorized wheels such that the units may be independently moved. The units may further include securing formations and mechanisms such that the units may be secured to a base or floor. 
     The actuators of the apparatus may be controlled through a number of electronic control units (ECUs) which include communication means for controlling the apparatus from a remote device. The ECUs may also measure movement of the various actuators. 
     The remote device may include a user interface which includes one or more controls for:
         moving each of the units;   engaging and disengaging a biasing unit to a primary unit by actuating the complementary interlocking members;   adjusting the rotational position and height of the arm;   disengaging the biasing means from the arm;   adjusting height of the carriage of the secondary resistance training member;   adjusting the weight to be engaged by a biasing unit; and   selecting and initiating the exchange of an accessory.       

     The user interface may include features for storing:
         a profile of a user including physical dimensions of the user;   a selected exercise, accessory, and weight;   number of repetitions completed for a selected exercise.       

    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       An embodiment of the invention is described below, by way of a non-limiting example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic perspective view of a resistance training apparatus; 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic perspective view of part of a primary unit; 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic exploded perspective view of part of a primary unit including a resistance member with related parts; 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic exploded perspective view of part of a primary unit including part of an intermediate plate and linear guides; 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic exploded perspective view of part of a primary unit including a drive gear, bidirectional pulley and part of an intermediate plate; 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic perspective view of part of a compensation mechanism; 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic perspective view of part of a primary unit showing the secondary resistance member and related parts; 
         FIG. 8  is a schematic perspective view of a carriage and related parts; 
         FIG. 9  is a schematic perspective view of a plurality of accessories; 
         FIG. 10  is a schematic perspective view of part of the internal parts of an accessory exchanger unit; 
         FIG. 11  is a schematic perspective view of part of the internal parts of an accessory exchanger unit; 
         FIG. 12  is a schematic perspective view of part of the internal parts of an accessory exchanger unit; 
         FIG. 13  is a schematic perspective view of part of the internal parts of an accessory exchanger unit; 
         FIG. 14  is a schematic perspective view of part of the internal parts of an accessory exchanger unit and a resistance member being engaged by the accessory exchanger unit, including a detail view showing the engagement of the resistance member; 
         FIG. 15  is a schematic perspective view of he internal parts of a biasing unit; 
         FIG. 16  is a schematic perspective view of the internal parts of a biasing unit; 
         FIG. 17  is a schematic perspective view of a weight and pulley; 
         FIG. 18  is a schematic side view of complementary interlocking attachment members in an interlocked configuration; 
         FIG. 19  is a schematic view of complementary interlocking attachment members which are disengaged 
         FIG. 20  is a schematic side view of complementary interlocking attachment members in an interlocked configuration; 
         FIG. 21  is a schematic perspective view of complementary interlocking attachment members in an interlocked configuration showing an actuator; 
         FIG. 22  is a schematic exploded side view of complementary interlocking attachment members; 
         FIG. 23  is a schematic perspective view of complementary interlocking attachment members in an interlocked configuration in use; 
         FIG. 24  is a schematic view of electronic devices which may be used to interact with a user interface of the apparatus; and 
         FIG. 25  is a schematic top view of a number of configurations of the primary, biasing, and accessory exchanger units. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     With reference to the drawings, in which like features are indicated by like numerals, a resistance training apparatus is generally indicated by reference numeral  1 . 
     The apparatus  1  includes three major parts: a primary unit  3 , a biasing unit  2 , and an accessory exchanger unit (AXU)  4  which is shown in one configuration in  FIG. 1 . The primary unit  3  includes a resistance training member  5  extending from the primary unit  3 . The resistance training member  5  is movable longitudinally relative to the primary unit  3  and is securable at a position along the axis of longitudinal movement. In this example the resistance training member is in the form of an arm  5  which is movable and securable longitudinally along the height (along direction  6 ) of the primary unit such that the arm may be secured at a desired height. For this purpose, the housing of the primary unit  3  includes a rectangular aperture  7  to facilitate the upward and downward movement of the arm  5 . The arm  5  is rotatable about an axis  8  which is perpendicular to the axis of longitudinal movement  6  and rotationally settable to a desired position. Arm  5  can also be rotatable around an axis perpendicular to axis  8  by means of a bevel gear (not shown). The arm  5  may be rotated clockwise  9  or counter clockwise  10  in order to reach the desired position and when the arm  5  is set to the desired position, it is mechanically connected to biasing means which resists rotation thereof. This allows the arm  5  (or accessories  11  attached thereto as described further below) to be engaged by a user and used for resistance training exercises. 
     The arm  5  includes a hollow shaft  12  which encloses an inner solid shaft and is connected to the arm by means of a bevel gear at one end thereof and the main portion of the arm  5  extends transversely from the shaft such that the arm  5  may rotate about the shaft  12  and rotate around an axis perpendicular to the shaft by means of a bevel gear. The arm  5  includes an accessory attachment element  13  at the other end thereof for attaching an accessory  11  to the arm  5 . The arm  5  may include an alternative accessory attachment element  13   b  for attaching an accessory  11  transverse to the arm  5 . Alternatively, a single accessory attachment element  13  may be mounted on a ball and socket, universal, or gimballed connection which can rotate axially and transversely at the free end of arm  5 . 
     Another version of the arm  5  rotation may include one shaft  12 , where arm  5  rotates around shaft  12  only. 
     When the arm  5  is set, it is mechanically connected to biasing means, which in the current example is provided by the biasing unit  2  through rope  14  which is attached to rope  15  through complementary interlocking attachment members  16 . The tension in rope  15  is transferred to pulley  17  through pulley  18 . Pulley  17 , in turn, engages rope  19  which connects the compensation means  38  through pulleys ( 17 ,  20 ,  21 , and  22 ) to the bidirectional rotational resistance element  23  (which is in turn mechanically connected to the arm  5 ). 
     In order to set the arm  5  to a desired rotational position without having the rotation resisted, the rotational movement of the arm  5  may be disconnected from the biasing means through a clutch. The clutch may be a traditional frictionally engaged clutch or a dog clutch  24  as shown in  FIG. 3 . The dog clutch  24  is engaged and disengaged by linear actuator  25  which drives the dog clutch into or out of a complementary receptacle in the shaft  12 . Once the clutch  24  is engaged, the rotational position of the arm  5  may be adjusted by making use of motor  26  to adjust the rotational position in an automated fashion. Once the position is set, the clutch  24  will remain engaged until gear  27  engages with gear  28  after which the clutch can disengage so that arm  5  will resist rotational movement. This ensures that when the clutch  24  is engaged, the arm  5  is locked to the motor  26  allowing the arm  5  to be rotated to a desired position and when the clutch  24  is disengaged, the arm  5  is unlocked from motor  26  and at the same time engaged to the biasing means, allowing the user to exercise. The resistance is transferred from the bidirectional rotational resistance disk  23  through gears  27  and  28  to the shaft  12  and consequently the arm  5 . Gear  27  may be moved to engage gear  28  through an engaging mechanism  29 , driven by motor  30 , to move gear  27  into position to mesh with gear  28  such that resistance may be transferred to the arm  5 . 
     The bidirectional rotational resistance element  23  allows resistance to be transferred to the arm  5  regardless of the direction of rotation. The element  23  includes a shaft and a circular disk  31  with the end of rope  19  is pivotally attached to the periphery of the disk  31  through a pivot  32 . The periphery of the disk includes a groove (similar to that of a pulley, which engages the rope  19  as the disk is rotated. Torsional resistance is created in the element  23  whenever disk  31  is rotated from an equilibrium point (which would be where the pivot is aligned with guide pulleys  33 ) in either direction. This torsional resistance may be applied over almost a full revolution of the disk  31  in either direction of rotation. 
     The arm  5  is attached to an intermediate plate  34  within the primary unit  3 . The intermediate plate  34  is movable on linear guides, in the form of dual rack  35  and pinion  36  gearsets, which linearly move the intermediate plate  34  up and down within the primary unit to adjust the height of the arm  5 . Movement of the plate  34  is facilitated by motors  37  which drive the pinions  36  to move the plate  34 . The compensation means  38  ensures that the tension in the rope  19  is maintained as the plate  34  and arm  5  move upwards and downwards and includes a spool  39 , wherein one end of the tensioned rope  19  is attached and wound to the spool  39 . The spool is driven and held in place by an electric motor  40 . 
     The rotation and movement of the arm  5 , engagement of the clutch, and all other motorized and actuatable parts described above are controlled through an electronic control unit (ECU) which may perform these actions in an automated fashion according to a stored program or in accordance with instructions provided by a user. 
     The apparatus  1  may include a secondary resistance training member  41  extending from the primary unit  3 . The secondary resistance training member  41  is in the form of a traditional cable/rope which may be used for resistance training and is mechanically connected to the biasing means to resist extension thereof. The rope  41  extends from the unit  3  through two guide pulleys  42  located inside a carriage  43 . The free end of the rope may include an accessory attachment element  44  for attaching any one of a number of accessories  44  (as can be seen in  FIG. 9 ) thereto. The accessory  44  may be a handlebar wherein a user engages the handlebar which resists movement through the rope which is useful for traditional cable machine exercises. The carriage  43  is vertically movable along guide rod  45 , which includes a horizontal part  46  which extends outside of the primary unit  3 . The carriage  43  travels along the guide pole  45  on rollers  47  which may be spring-loaded to engage the pole  45 . The biasing means for the secondary member  41  is similar to that used for the arm  5 . Rope  48  is attached through attachment members  16  to rope  49  through a series of pulleys to interact with compensation means  50  which compensates for the vertical position of the carriage  43 . Since there is no need to convert the bias to a rotational movement, the secondary member  43  is essentially directly mechanically connected to the biasing means through the series of pulleys. 
     Biasing units  2  are removably connected to a primary unit  3  through complementary interlocking attachment members  16 . The biasing units have an output rope which attaches to an input rope on the primary unit  3  in order to provide the necessary resistance for exercises on the primary unit. Whilst this bias may be produced in many ways, for example, using electric servo motors or spring banks to bias the output, the example described herein makes use of a traditional weight stack and ropes which are controlled in an automated fashion. The internal parts of the biasing unit  2  described in this example is shown in  FIG. 15 . The output from the biasing unit  2  is a rope  14  which terminates in an attachment member  16  which may be attached to a complementary member  16  on the input side of the primary unit  3  as described above. Rope  14  engages central pulley  51  such that the rope  14  extends through the stacked pallet weights  52  towards the balancing pulley  53  which balances the tension in rope  14  between the two sides of rope  54  (the left side of the rope  54  referred to herein as  54   l  and the ride side referred to as  54   r ). The weights are stacked along linear guides  55  on either side of the weights  52  on top of base  56 . A carriage  56  may traverse the guides  55  through a rack  58  located adjacent to one of the guides  55  which is engaged by a pinion  59  driven by motor  60 . Two gripping actuators  61 , located about the rope on either side ( 54   l  and  54   r ) may selectively engage the rope to prohibit the rope from moving without the carriage being lifted along with the ropes. 
     In order to set the required weight on the biasing unit, the gripping actuators  61  disengage the rope and the carriage may move into the correct position to engage the required number of weights. Once the correct position is reached, an actuator engages the required number of weights by inserting a locking member, in the form of a pin  62 , therein. The rope  54  is engaged with gripping actuators  61  to secure the carriage to the weighted ends of the rope  54 . When rope  14  is moved, the carriage, along with all engaged weights, move upward such that the output rope  14  resists movement or extension. The stacked weights may include a central aperture which is shaped and sized such that the pulley  53  may move through the weights  52 . This allows the overall design of the biasing unit to be greatly reduced. 
     The complementary interlocking attachment members  16  include a hollow frustoconical housing with a rope secured to the apex side of the housing. In this example, the biasing unit  2  has a recess formed therein which is shaped and sized to receive the conical member  16  and serves to self-center and the attachment member  16 . This allows attachment between respective units ( 2  and  3 ) to be easily achieved and allows such attachment to occur in an automated fashion. One of the interlocking attachment members  16   b  include an actuation socket  64  which, when engaged, actuates the interlocking mechanism  65  to attach and interlock the members to each other. Each attachment member  16  may have magnets embedded in a rim  66  thereof to allow for easy alignment. Inside the housing, one side of the rope may include a ball  67  which fits into and is engaged by a socket  68  on its counterpart. The interlocking mechanism  65  is a semicircular disk with an annular lip  69  which, when actuated through the socket  64 , engages a protrusion (not shown) inside the housing of the complementary attachment member  16   a  to interlock the members  16 . 
     The internal components of the AXU  4  is shown in  FIGS. 10 to 14 . The purpose of the AXU  4  is to detaches, stores, and re-attach accessories to one of the accessory attachment elements  13  of the arm  5 . The AXU includes a stack of exchanger slots  70 , each equipped with a number of actuators for unlocking, detaching, storing, changing, attaching and locking an accessory  11  to the accessory attachment element  13  of the arm  5 . The stack moves upward and downward on dual rack  71  and pinion  72  sets which are driven by motors  73 . This allows the stack to be collectively moved and individual slots to be aligned to the arm  5  for attachment. 
     To attach an accessory to the arm, a motor  73 A drives a rack  74  and pinion  75  set to drive the accessory selector  76  into the accessory holder  77  to push the accessory  11  into the accessory attachment element  13 . A selector engagement slot  78  is provided to lock the accessory selector pins  79 . This allows the accessory selector  76  to engage the accessory  11  with its slot from the arm  5  to detach and retrieve an accessory  11  and store it in the PAU  4 . 
     When an accessory is aligned to the attachment element  13  of the arm  5  a linear actuator  82  drives a tool  83 , herein shown as a square key, into a corresponding socket on the attachment element  13 . Once engaged, the tool is rotated by motor  81  through gear assembly  80  to fasten and unlock an accessory  11  to and from the arm. 
     Each of the primary  3 , biasing  2 , and accessory exchanger  4  units include motorized wheels to allow the units to be independently moved and steered. This is useful to allow the apparatus to be arranged into any of the configurations shown in  FIG. 25 . The units may further include securing formations and mechanisms such that the units may be secured to a base or floor. The units may also be joined with a frame which secures the units in a chosen configuration and such frame may be v-shaped to secure the units in a v-shaped arrangement. 
     The actuators of the apparatus  1  as described above, including all linear actuators, motors, and related components are controlled through a number of electronic control units (ECUs) which include communication means for controlling the apparatus  1  from a remote device. 
     The ECUs may also be connected to sensors which measure movement of the various actuators and parts of the apparatus  1 . This is useful to keep track of exercises performed. The apparatus may be controlled through a user interface which may be accessed from a number of devices such as, a tablet  84 , smartphone  85 , laptop  86 , or desktop computer  87 . 
     Each of these devices will be able to access a database  88  which may store details of exercises performed by users and the configuration of the apparatus  1 . 
     The user interface will typically include controls which allow the user to control and actuate the automated aspects of the apparatus described above. For example, the user may control the apparatus by moving each of the units, through their motorized wheels, to position the apparatus  1 . Where the attachment of units is automated, a user may engage and disengage a biasing unit to a primary unit by actuating the complementary interlocking members. The user may adjust the rotational position and height of the arm, adjust the weight for the biasing unit, and initiate an exchange of an accessory. Whilst it is possible for a user to perform these actions manually, it is also desirable that the actions be performed in an automated fashion by running a program to configure the apparatus  1  for a specific exercise which is set up for a specific user. 
     In use, a user will use their device to access the features of the apparatus  1 . The user will create a profile which may include the name of the user along with dimensions such as weight and height. The user will select a specific exercise to perform on the apparatus  1 . 
     The AXU will move into position to remove a previous accessory  11  and install a desired accessory  11  on the arm  5 . With the accessory engaged, the arm will move to the desired height which is calculated from the user&#39;s actual height and which is applicable to the selected exercise. The biasing unit  2  will engage the desired weight which is appropriate for the exercise selected by the user. 
     The user may then perform the selected exercise, in accordance with instructions which may be provided on the device. The details of the exercise, along with weight, time, speed, range, and number of repetitions will be stored and may be associated with the user&#39;s profile. This also allows a performance measurement to be performed and recommendations to be made for future exercises of the user. 
     It is envisaged that the invention will provide a resistance training apparatus which is modular and can facilitate a wide variety of strength training exercises for users on a single machine. This allows the apparatus to be used in many different configurations and conserves valuable floor space in a gym. The apparatus also enables automation of various tedious tasks which are currently associated with conventional resistance training equipment and allows users to store information about exercises performed with the apparatus. 
     The invention is not limited to the precise details as described herein. For example, instead of using rack and pinion guides, linear rails and actuators may be employed to move various subassemblies of the apparatus. Further, instead of using gears and gearset, belts and pulleys may be used to achieve the same effect. Similarly, instead of weights being used for resistance, electric motors or springs may be used. The examples described herein provide for separate primary, biasing, and accessory exchanger units, however, these units need not be separate and may be different integrated parts of a single unit with motorized wheels so it may be collectively moved.