Abstract:
Apparatus and method for training a boxer, martial artist, or other competitive combatants. The apparatus can have a support base  10 , a rotatable shaft  40 , a transverse member  50  secured to the rotatable shaft, a drive  30  to rotate the shaft, and a training target  60  such as a punching bag, speed bag, heavy bag. The apparatus can mimic an opponent, being able to advance toward, move away from, or move to the left or right of the training combatant. The drive can be remotely controlled so as to mimic the random movements of an opponent.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims the benefit of provisional application ______. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION  
       [0002]     This invention relates to an apparatus and method of use for conducting the physical training of a boxer, kick boxer, or other similarly trained combatants. More particularly, this invention relates to an apparatus and method to improve the coordination, reflex, and technique of a combatant by simulating the random movement of an opponent.  
         [0003]     Equipment that is traditionally used for training a combatant ranges from a small tethered ball to heavy bags. Other such equipment includes light punching bags, training bags, athletic bags, punching bags filled with air or water, speed bags, rebound punching aids, and other types of training targets.  
         [0004]     The traditional training tools fail to fully develop the coordination, reflex and technique of a training combatant because they are affixed to a specified location. By fixing the training tool to a single location, the training combatant does not fully develop skills that are required when facing an opponent that moves in random directions.  
         [0005]     There exist only a few devices that simulate the random movement of an opponent. U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,822 discloses a punching bag mounted upon a raised track which can be moved along a path. U.S. Pat. No. 5,224,912 discloses an overhead punching bag support comprising a beam, with rotatable and linear movement. U.S. Pat. No. 4,911,428 discloses an overhead support comprising a beam having a punching bag support at one end of the beam and a caster wheel at the opposite end. Each of these supports requires overhead installation, which makes each of these devices impractical for a building or gym which has a high ceiling or inadequate means to support the overhead installation.  
         [0006]     A second shortcoming of these devices is the permanence of their installation. Combatants do not always train where they compete, meaning that the preferred training tools cannot be easily relocated to a location where the training will be completed or where the competition will take place.  
         [0007]     A need exists for a free-standing, self supporting, easily relocated training device which simulates the random movement of an opponent.  
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION  
       [0008]     The void in the prior art is filled by the present invention. The present invention provides a free-standing, self supporting, rotatable, and relocatable apparatus from which to suspend a training device, whereby the movement of the training device can be controlled so as to simulate the random movement of an opponent, thereby improving upon the coordination, reflexes, and technique of a trainee.  
         [0009]     One embodiment of the present invention is an apparatus comprising a base, a support connected to the base, a vertical member rotatably connected to the support, a horizontal member, a means for rotating the vertical member, and a means for suspending a training device to the horizontal member. The apparatus is constructed such that it is free-standing and easily dismantled for transportation.  
         [0010]     In one aspect, the invention provides a free-standing rotatable support apparatus useful for physical training. The apparatus has a support base, a rotatable shaft extending upward from the support base, a bearing locator for positioning at least one bearing for the shaft above the support base, a transverse member secured to the shaft and spaced from the support base, and a training target depending from the transverse member laterally spaced from the shaft. The apparatus also has a drive for rotating the vertical member.  
         [0011]     The support base can have a flat plate, which can be circular, rectangular, polygonal or the like. The support base can alternatively have three or more outwardly extending legs.  
         [0012]     The transverse member can be reinforced with truss supports. A length from the shaft to a farthest end of the transverse member is preferably greater than a distance from the shaft to a furthest point on a periphery of the support base.  
         [0013]     The drive can be an electric motor, especially a reversible motor. The motor can be a variable speed motor, optionally including a controller, such as for example, a local control, a remote control, a programmable control mechanism, and so on.  
         [0014]     The training target can be a heavy bag, a punching bag, a speed bag, or the like. The training target can be made of polymer foam.  
         [0015]     In another aspect, the invention provides a method for conducting physical training with the apparatus described above. The method can include positioning the apparatus on a floor of a training area, and rotating the target in a circular arc around the shaft while a trainee spars with the training target. The method can also include randomly varying the direction of rotation, randomly varying the speed of the rotation, or a combination thereof. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0016]      FIG. 1  is a side elevation view of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention.  
         [0017]      FIG. 2  is a side elevation of the bearing locator and base of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 3  is a plan view of the base of the apparatus of  FIGS. 1 and 2 .  
         [0019]      FIG. 4  is a front elevation of the bearing locator and base of  FIG. 2 .  
         [0020]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the transverse member of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0021]      FIG. 6  is a bottom view of the transverse member of  FIG. 5 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 7  is a top plan view of the apparatus of  FIGS. 1-6 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0023]     One embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 1 . The apparatus generally consists of a support base  10 , bearing locator  20 , drive  30 , rotatable shaft  40 , transverse member  50 , and training target  60 , as shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0024]     The preferred embodiment is shown in  FIGS. 2-6 , illustrating the preferred component parts of the apparatus. It is easily understood by those skilled in the art that minor modifications of the apparatus or substitutions of like components does not vary the scope of the present invention.  
         [0025]     As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the base support  10  has a width, w, and a thickness, t, such that the apparatus is sturdy, freestanding and will be stable when a heavy bag or other training targets are connected to and used with the apparatus. Although the preferred embodiment depicts the base support as square in shape, it is readily understood that the shape of the base support can be of any variety of shapes, including round, oval, octagonal, etc.  
         [0026]     Support base  10  further includes holes  13  which are used to bolt the bottom shaft support  17  to the support base  10 . Holes  13  are positioned near the center of support base  10  so as to provide stability to the structure during operation of the apparatus. It should be readily understood that bottom shaft support  17  can also be connected to support base  10  by screwed connection, welding, or other well known means.  
         [0027]     As shown in  FIG. 2 , bearing locator  20  is attached to the base support  10 . Bearing locator  20  generally consists of angle support  21 , and vertical support  22 , each of which is preferentially welded to base support  10 . Angle support  21  and vertical support  22  can alternatively be bolted, screwed, etc. to base support  10 . Bearing locator  20  supports shaft  40  during operation and is designed to promote stability of the apparatus.  
         [0028]     Plates  23 , 24 , and  25  are attached to vertical support  22 , as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 4 . Plate  23  is located at the same height for which the drive  30  is desired to be installed. Plate  24  is preferably located near the middle of vertical support  22 , and plate  25  is preferentially located at the top of vertical support  22 .  
         [0029]     Bearings  27  and  28  are attached to plates  24  and  25 . Bearings  27  and  28  have an inner diameter similar to that of the outer diameter of shaft  40 , such that shaft  40  can be inserted through bearings  27  and  28 . Bearings  27  and  28  can further include bearings or other devices commonly used to decrease the friction associated with the rotation of shaft  40  while simultaneously supporting shaft  40 .  
         [0030]     Vertical support  22  is located such that bearings  27  and  28  are vertically aligned with bottom shaft support  17 . Bottom shaft support  17  is similar to bearings  27  and  28 , having an inner diameter such that shaft  40  can be inserted. Bottom shaft support  17  can further include bearings or other means to decrease the friction associated with the rotation of shaft  40 .  
         [0031]     Returning to  FIG. 1 , shaft  40  has a top end and a bottom end. The bottom end is placed in bottom shaft supports  17 , such that the top end is above bearing  28 . On the top of shaft  40  is a connection device  41 A. Connection device  41 A mates with connection device  41 B such that shaft  40  and transverse member  50  are dependently connected, so that transverse member  50  turns in unison with the rotation of shaft  40 . Connection device  41 A and  41 B may be a flanged connection or a similar device for mating two parts.  
         [0032]     A coupling device (not shown) can be attached to shaft  40 . The coupling device allows for drive  30  to be used for rotatingshaft  40  by means of a pulley or other common methods for imparting rotation on a shaft. In an alternative embodiment, shaft  40  is directly coupled to drive  30 .  
         [0033]     Transverse member  50  is shown in detail in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . Training target  60  is connected at one end of transverse member  50 . The overall length L of horizontal member  50  is based upon two factors. The first is the width or diameter of base  10 . The distance from connection device  41 B to the middle of training target  60  should be greater than the distance from the location of bottom shaft support  17  to any point along the perimeter of support base  10 . This will help ensure that support base  10  does not interfere with the trainee while the device is in operation. The distance from the connection device  41 B to the end opposite training target  60 , and the remaining structure shown as part of horizontal member  50  is preferably based upon the structure needed to support training target  60 , so as to provide stability during use of the apparatus and to provide durability of the apparatus.  
         [0034]     Drive  30  can be chosen from a variety of equipment. In one embodiment of the invention, drive  30  is a reversible constant speed motor. This would allow shaft  40  to be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise, as indicated by the arrows in  FIG. 7 . The rotation in this manner allows the simulation of an opponent advancing or retreating, or an opponent crossing from the left or right, depending upon the position of the trainee (A, B, or C), as shown in  FIG. 7 .  
         [0035]     In another embodiment, drive  30  is a reversible variable speed motor such that shaft  40  can be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise at varying speeds so as to simulate an opponent that does not move at constant speeds.  
         [0036]     In the preferred embodiment, drive  30  is a reversible variable speed variable frequency motor with control means  35  such that the rotation of shaft  40  can be remotely controlled so as to randomly rotate shaft  40  clockwise or counterclockwise at varying speeds so as to best simulate the random movements of an opponent.  
         [0037]     The apparatus of the present invention is typically constructed of primarily of steel however other suitable materials can also be used. The overall shape and design of the apparatus may be varied based upon the materials used, the inherent properties of the materials, and the dimensions of the component parts without deviating from the scope of this invention.  
         [0038]     Training target  60  can be a speed bag, a heavy bag, a light punching bag, a rebound target, or any number of other training devices common to boxing and the martial arts or other forms of combatant arts. The apparatus of the present invention preferably has a connection which is universally adapted to the aforementioned training targets  60 .  
         [0039]     In a preferred embodiment, training target  60  is selected to be a large foam target suspended for use by a trainee. The foam material is preferably non-rigid polyurethane foam of type M110B, manufactured by E. R. Carpenter, having a density between 2.1 and 2.18 lb/cu. ft., and an IOD firmness between 105 and 115. This type of foam is suitable for striking without protection on the trainee″s appendages, as is often required with other types of training devices.  
         [0040]     A preferred method for use of the apparatus was alluded to earlier in this description. Referring again to  FIGS. 1 and 7 , the desired training target  60  is attached to transverse member  50 . The trainer or coach will remotely control the drive  30  to vary the speed and direction that the training target  60  is traveling while the trainee practices his art on the training target  60 . To improve the trainee&#39;s skill, reflexes, coordination, and technique, the trainer will preferentially control drive  30  in a random pattern so as to mimic an opponent.