Patent ID: 6964635

Claim:
An exercise apparatus comprising: an inflatable ball body having an inner skin confining an air chamber, and an outer skin that is attached to and that encloses said inner skin and that includes a first layer, said ball body being formed with at least a cavity between said inner skin and said first layer, said outer skin being formed with at least an access hole that is in spatial communication with said cavity and that extends radially and outwardly through said first layer; a coupling member mounted in said cavity and including at least an anchoring part that is attached to an inner periphery of said access hole within said cavity, and at least a handle-engaging part that is connected to said anchoring part and that is exposed from said access hole; a grip member including a handle part that is disposed exteriorly of said ball body, and at least a handle-fastening part that is connected to said handle part, that extends into said access hole, and that releasably engages said handle-engaging part; wherein said outer skin further includes a fabric layer sandwiched between said inner skin and said first layer, said first layer being made from a vulcanized rubber material, said cavity being formed between said inner skin and said fabric layer; and wherein said outer skin is formed with a pair of said access holes, said coupling member including a pair of said handle-engaging parts, said grip member including a pair of said handle-fastening parts, said anchoring part being attached to said fabric layer, each of said handle-engaging parts including a threaded tubular piece that extends outwardly and radially relative to said ball body from said anchoring part into a respective one of said access holes, and that is formed with an inner thread, said handle part including a generally U-shaped bar that has two opposite ends respectively attached to outer peripheries of said access holes and formed with through-holes which are respectively aligned with said access holes, each of said handle-fastening parts being in the form of a screw that extends through a respective one of said through-holes and into said threaded tubular piece of a respective one of said handle-engaging parts, and that threadedly engages said inner thread of said threaded tubular piece so as to secure said grip member to said ball body.