Improvements relating to Portable Exercising. Appliances.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Nov., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 9th Mar., 1899-Accepted, 6th May,
1899
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements relating to Portable Exercising. Appliances.
1, HERMANN BILLER, of the Firm Markt and Co., 25 and 26, Shoe Lane, City
of London, Merchant, do hereby declure the nature of this invention which has
been communicated to me from abroad by Abram Allan Hendrickson, 180, Grand
Street, New York, U.S.A., Manufacturer, to be as follows:-
This invention has for object improvements relating to portable exercising
appliances.
For the purpose of this invention, a non-elastic rope or cord is rove freely within
a pulley block provided with a swivel hook or ring for suspension the end of this
rope or cord (flexible wire or other) have each connected to it a gut band book which
engage rings on the ends of an elastic rope or cord, the "bight" of which has a
ring for looping over a separate hook for locating the appliance in conjunction with
the swivel when attached to a wall or upright.
The elastic cord or cords terminate in hand holds by any suitable means but
preferably by gut band hooks and by which the various exercising motions of the
arms and body of a person can be carried on at will.
If the swivel hook or its equivalent be arranged above the ring hook, arms,
head, chest, and shoulders, muscles can be expanded and brought into play, and
if the swivel hook be placed below the ring hook, the trunk, legs, and feet muscles
also those of the arms and chest.
The elastic cord or cords is or are made up of a series of elastic threads enclosed
in cord or rope fashion by a braided or other covering, each thread of the cord
having its own stretching power.
The hooks by which the apparatus can be attached to a wall or upright have
screw stems and upwardly curled free ends for rapid connection of the attachments
of the exercising apparatus.
Improvements relating to Portable Exercising Appliances,
I, HERMANN HILLER, of the Firm Markt and Co., 25 and 26, Shoe Lane, City
of London, Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention which has
been communicated to me from abroad by 'Abram Allan Hendrickson, 180, Grand
Die d

page_text: Street, New York, U.S.A., Manufacturer, and in what manner the same is to be
performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement;-
This invention relates to that class of exercising appliances known as weightless
exercisers, and in which elastic cords are employed.
The object of the invention is to construct an appliance of the above character
that will be simple, durable, economic, readily set up or taken down, and through
the medium of which more beneficial results may be obtained and a greater
variety of movements accomplished than is possible when the ordinary elastic cord
exercisers are employed.
The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of the several
parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth and pointed out in the claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts
in all the figures.
Figure 1 is a view illustrating the application of the device.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the appliance drawn on a larger scale.
Figure 3 is a side elevation of an improved screw-eye employed in connection
with the said device, and Figure 4 is an edge view of the said screw-eye. Figure 5,
shows the apparatus reversed for exercising the lower limbs.
What may be termed the body portion of the exerciser consists of an elastic
cord A of suitable diameter. This elastic cord is attached at a predetermined
distance from one end to an eye 10, from whence the cord is carried to a second
eye 11, and from the said second eye to a third eye 12, the length of the cord
between the eyes 10 and 11 being preferably the same as the length of cord between
the eyes 11 and 12, and after the elastic cord is attached to the eye 12, the second
end is carried in the same direction as the first end of the cord, and the length of
the two ends of the cord is preferably the same. In fact, the elastic cord when
connected to the rings or eyes 10, 11, and 12, as specified, may be said to comprise
two main strands 13 and 14, to each of which a handle 15 is attached, and two
tributary connected strands 16 and 17.
In addition to the elastic cord A, a non-elastic cord B is employed, and this
non-elastic cord is attached at its ends by means of clips 18 or other fasteners
to the eyes 10 and 12, which when the exerciser is set up are the uppermost
eyes. The non-clastic cord, before being attached to the eyes or rings 10 and 12,
is passed through a block over a pulley 19, the said block being provided at its
upper end with an eye 19".
Only two screw-eyes 20 are needed to place the exercising appliance in position
upon the upright surface C, as shown best in Figure 2. The screw-eyes are of
peculiar construction, each comprising a spirally formed head 20" and a threaded
or screw shank 20. It is evident that when the head of a screw-eye is constructed
as illustrated and described, the eyes or rings 20 adapted for connection with said
screw-eyes may readily pass into the head portions of the screw-eyes and as con-
veniently be removed. The screw-eyes 20 are placed one above the other in pre-
ferably the same vertical plane a predetermined distance apart, the eye of the 4
block carrying the pulley 19 being made to connect with the head of the upper
screw-eye, and the lower ring or eye 11 attached to the elastic cord A is made to
connect with the head of the lower screw-eye.
In the operation of this exerciser, one of the main strands may be held, stationary
by one hand while the other main strand is brought into action or is extended, as
shown in Figure 1, and furthermore in practice the two main strands are alternately
extended and held stationary. It is evident that by connecting the non-elastic
cord with the elastic cord at the junction of its main and tributary strands, and
causing the non-elastic cord to pass over a pulley fixed to a support, the tributary
strands being likewise attached to the support, as the main strands are extended, 5
the non-elastic cord will cause the tributary strands of the elastic portion of the

page_text: device to be likewise extended, and in this manner the tributary strands are the
equivalents of weights usually employed in weighted exercising appliances.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is;-
1. An athletic or gymnastic exercising appliance, consisting of an elastic cord,
comprising main strands, tributary connected strands, and a non-elastic cord
attached to the elastic cord at the junction of the main with the tributary strands,
as and for the purpose specified.
2. An athletic or gymnastic exercising appliance, the body portion of which
consists of an elastic cord formed into two main strands having handles attached,
and two tributary connected strands, rings located at the junction of the main
with the tributary strands, and a ring located at the junction of the tributary
strauds with each other, a non-elastic cord attached to the rings, located at the
junction of the main strands of the elastic cord with the tributary strands of the
same cord, and a pulley over which the non-elastic cord passes, the pulley being
provided with means of attachment to a support, as specified.
3. In an athletic or gymnastic exercising appliance, or a like device, a screw-
eye adapted to attach the device to a support, the said screw-eye comprising a
spirally formed head, and a screw shank, substantially as described.
El 04 Th
1 1000
H. GARDNER,
Patent Agent, 166, Fleet Street, London,
Agent for the said Hermann Hiller.
H. GARDNER,
Patent Agent, 166, Fleet Street, London,
Agent for the said Hermann Hiller.