Animal husbandry – Exercise or amusement device – Hurdle – jump – or support therefor
Reexamination Certificate
1999-12-13
2001-07-24
Price, Thomas (Department: 3643)
Animal husbandry
Exercise or amusement device
Hurdle, jump, or support therefor
Reexamination Certificate
active
06263835
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to an apparatus for training horses of the type comprising a series of adjustable obstacles including transverse crosspieces to be jumped over by the horses to be trained.
BACKGROUND ART
As it is known, in the field of horse training and more precisely in the specialised schools assigned to this purpose, there are utilised some apparatuses which, together with appropriate measures or methods, allow to impose or to increase the ability of the horses, or to correct defects of the imposition, by means of specific exercises.
One of the methods used provides for the predisposition on the training field of a series of low crosspieces or obstacles, displaced consecutively on appropriate trestles positioned at a certain distance one from the other, adapted to impose the stride or to correct any imposition defects in the stride, or to increase the ability of the horse forcing it to carry out preimposed gymnastic exercises.
The low crosspieces or obstacles for the stride training of the horses, which up to now have been devised, force the trainers into a notable manual activity for the positioning and above all to the variation of the inter-distance and of the height of the obstacles themselves, according to operations which must be carried out by positioning or in any event moving each of the obstacles singularly.
All of this renders the work of the operators predisposed to the training of the horses rather heavy and laborious, which work turns out to be even more onerous if it is considered that in a horse school there may be trained numerous horses, each with different training and corrective necessities.
Moreover, the above cited trestles may represent a real danger for the horses, due to the presence of protruding parts which may injure or in any event represent stumbling elements, as it may also happen that the horse, knocking against the obstacles placed on the trestles, may vary the inter-distance or the configuration thereof.
A system for vertical regulation of equestrian obstacles with distance actuation is disclosed in document FR-A-2712820, whereby no presence of operators is necessary.
In this system the obstacles can be placed in series, too. However the presence of operators near the obstacles is required when the latter must be displaced in the longitudinal direction so as to change distance between obstacle.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
One principle object of the present invention is to eliminate or at least reduce the above mentioned drawbacks, by providing an apparatus for the training of horses which allows an automatic adjustment of the obstacles both longitudinally and vertically, in a manner to allow both the variation of the inter-distance between one obstacle and another, and the variation of the single heights.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a training apparatus of the specified type, which allows to automatically and quickly change the configuration of the obstacles in a manner to perform particular exercises both in training and in competitions.
These and other objects which will appear more clearly hereinafter are achieved by an apparatus for training horses, comprising a series of adjustable obstacles including transverse crosspieces to be jumped over by the horses to be trained, a plurality of vertical elements or mounts having vertically mobile supports for supporting and holding the crosspieces of said obstacle at adjustable height, characterised by the fact of comprising a base structure formed by a pair of substantially horizontal and parallel guide rails disposed on the ground at a predetermined distance from each other, the vertical elements or mounts being slidably placed upon said guide rails to adjust their longitudinal position therealong.
The same number of vertical mounts is disposed on both rails in mutually facing relationship with respect to each other to form pairs of mounts placed along orthogonal directions with respect to the axes of the rails.
Each of said vertical mounts is fixed on a wheeled carriage adapted to slide along said guide rails. Each of said carriages comprises first motor means adapted to provide synchronous horizontal movement of each pair of mounts along said rails, said first motor means comprising a pinion meshing with a rack fixed along one edge of each rail or a similar driving mechanism.
Each of said vertically mobile supports is mounted on a slider adapted to slide along a vertical guide attached to a respective vertical mount, each slider being operatively coupled to a second motor means to promote vertical movement thereof along said vertical guide, said second motor means being of the type including a worm screw or a similar mechanism.
Said first and said second motor means are coupled to a central control device which may be operated by a command panel or by a remote control unit.
Each rail is provided with a tubular cover adapted to protect the rail against water, mud and other atmospheric agents and to protect the horses against injury from sharp edges of the rails.
Each vertical mount is attached to a respective carriage by means of a rotating joint and is held in a vertical position by means of a releasable stop means.
The first motor means provided on each carriage are disengageable from a respective rack to allow free sliding thereof along the respective rail.
The immediate advantage provided by the present invention consists in the elimination of the manual imposition of each single obstacle or crosspiece on the part of the trainer, whose work, utilising the apparatus according to the invention, will be limited to the adjustment both of the inter-distance and the height of the single obstacles or crosspieces, by simply operating a distance telecommand or intervening on a command board opportunely predisposed in the vicinity of the apparatus itself.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5679105 (1997-10-01), Vittone et al.
patent: 5842954 (1998-12-01), Slupskiy
patent: 5967093 (1999-10-01), Vitt et al.
patent: 2712820 (1995-06-01), None
patent: 93/24197 (1993-12-01), None
O'Byrne Daniel
Price Thomas
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