Abstract:
A double-end punching and exercise bag assembly and cable where the bag is vertically adjustable by extending the cable through the bag assembly and providing clamp assemblies at both ends of the bag assembly each having collet-like radial spring fingers activated by an axially movable threaded nut.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Double-end punching and exercise bag assemblies have been designed and implemented in gymnasiums and other athletic venues for many decades and generally include an air inflated bag assembly having a variety of spheroidal configurations suspended by two generally vertical cables, one attached to the top of the bag assembly and one attached to the bottom of the bag assembly, attached at their distal ends to generally stationary supports. Because these double-end punching bags, particularly in commercial environments, must be adapted to various anatomical configurations of the athletes, such as total height, arm reach, and other anatomical factors, it is necessary and desirable to provide a vertical adjustment to the punching bag assembly. This function has in the past been provided in a variety of ways including different length cables; i.e., the upper and lower cables supporting the bag assembly from fixed ceiling and floor mounted supports, adjustable shackles connecting the upper and lower cables to the bag itself and adjustable shackles supporting the distal ends of the two cables to the upper and lower fixed supports. 
     The principal problem with all of these prior adjustable assemblies is that they: (a) cannot be readily changed by the using athletes and require the assistance of a knowledgeable technician; and (b) the adjustability mechanisms in these prior designs are quite time-consuming to effect. 
     The applicant in this case has conducted a patentability search and has uncovered the following relevant patents relating to the adjustability of double end punching and exercise bags. 
     
       
         
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 Inventor 
                 Patent No. 
                 Issue Date 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
                 Aragona 
                 4,465,273 
                 Aug. 14, 1984 
               
               
                   
                 Dye 
                 4,491,315 
                 Jan. 1, 1985 
               
               
                   
                 Shustack 
                 4,635,929 
                 Jan. 13, 1987 
               
               
                   
                 Donohue 
                 4,953,852 
                 Sep. 4, 1990 
               
               
                   
                 Shic 
                 5,261,821 
                 Nov. 16, 1993 
               
               
                   
                 Stephens 
                 5,503,606 
                 Apr. 2, 1996 
               
               
                   
                 Zlojutro 
                 5,554,088 
                 Sep. 10, 1996 
               
               
                   
                 Newman, et al. 
                 5,725,458 
                 Mar. 10, 1998 
               
               
                   
                 Zagata, et al. 
                 5,769,761 
                 Jun. 23, 1998 
               
               
                   
                 Hackaday 
                 6,743,157 
                 Jun. 1, 2004 
               
               
                   
                 Iglehart 
                 7,044,895 
                 May 16, 2006 
               
               
                   
                 Fields, et al. 
                 7,086,997 
                 Aug. 8, 2006 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
     All of these patents show complicated and time-consuming mechanisms for adjusting the position of double-end punching bags with respect to the adjacent cable supporting mechanisms. 
     It is a primary object of the present invention to ameliorate the problems set forth above in double end punching and exercising bag assemblies. 
     SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
     In accordance with the present invention, a double-end punching and exercise bag assembly and cable are provided where the bag is vertically adjustable by extending the cable through the bag assembly and providing clamp assemblies at both ends of the bag assembly each having collet-like radial spring fingers activated by an axially movable threaded nut. 
     The advantages of the present invention are manifold. Firstly, a single cable is provided instead of two in prior designs. Next, the bag assembly in the present invention is much more rapidly adjusted because it does not require the disconnection or manipulation of the cable as is required in earlier designs. Further, the collet-like clamps are rapidly activated and released without the removal of any parts. 
     Other objects and advantages of the present invention will appear more clearly from the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a front view of the present double-end punching and exercise bag assembly and the supporting cable assemblies; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the punching bag assembly illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded enlarged view of the upper cable clamp illustrated in  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a horizontal cross-section through the center of the bag assembly illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , and; 
         FIG. 5  is an assembled front view of the bag assembly illustrated in  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to the drawings and particularly  FIG. 1 , a punching and exercise bag is illustrated generally designated by the reference character  10  supported on a generally vertical cable assembly  11  fixed at its upper end to a fixed support  13  and at its lower end to a fixed support  14 . The bag assembly  10  generally includes an upper clamp assembly  16  releasably fixed to the cable assembly  11  and a lower clamp assembly  17  releasably fixed to the same cable assembly  11  to hold the bag assembly  10  in a variety of vertical positions along the cable assembly  11 . 
     As seen in  FIG. 2 , the punching bag and exercise assembly  10  is seen to be generally spheroidal in configuration and includes an outer spheroidal leather layer  20  (see also  FIG. 4 ) that may be real leather or a leather substitute and a complimentary spheroidal bladder assembly  22  as seen in  FIG. 4 . The bladder assembly  22 , as seen in  FIG. 4 , includes an outer layer  24 , an annular inner tube  26 , and partitions  27 ,  28 ,  29  and  30  that separate the bladder  22  into air chambers  32 ,  33 ,  34  and  35 , that receive air from an unshown air inlet check valve type fitting. 
     As seen in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , each of the clamp assemblies  16  and  17  are identical, but reversed in direction and include an annular inner frusto-conical, tapered, split collet  42  consisting of four separate segments  44 ,  45 ,  46 , and  47  spaced apart at  50 ,  51 ,  52 , and  53  so that they have radial flexibility. The split collet  42 , as well as the connecting compression nut  56 , are constructed of a rigid thermoplastic material in the Shore D hardness range, and the flexibility of the annular collet  42  is achieved more by the split configuration of the collet  42  as opposed to the flexibility of the elastomer of which the collet  42  is composed, particularly since collet  42  is attached at  58  by a bonding process, to the outer leather layer  20  of the bag assembly  10 . The outer surface of the collet  42  is threaded and is sized to receive threads  58  on the interior of the nut  56 . The threads  58  are also tapered so that they mate with the threads  58  but are sized so that as the nut  56  is threaded on the collet  42 , the segments  44 ,  45 ,  46  and  47 , the segments will move inwardly as the nut  56  is threaded downwardly. The inner surface of the threads  58  on the nut  56  may be either annular in configuration with a diameter less than the lower diameter of threads  60  on the collet  42 , or they may be frusto-conical in configuration with the lower threads less in diameter than the diameter of the lower threads  60  on the collet  42 . As the nut  56  is threaded on the collet  42 , the inner surfaces of the segments  44 ,  45 ,  46  and  47  move inwardly and engage and clamp on the cable assembly  11 . 
     The clamp assemblies  16  and  17  are identical so it should be understood that the description above with respect to clamp assembly  16  applies to the clamp assembly  17  as well.