Exercise devices – User manipulated force resisting apparatus – component... – Having common force transmitting support frame for user and...
Patent
1996-11-06
1998-06-09
Apley, Richard J.
Exercise devices
User manipulated force resisting apparatus, component...
Having common force transmitting support frame for user and...
482904, A63B 2106, A63B 2302
Patent
active
057625930
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to exercise apparatus and in particular to exercise apparatus for persons who are confined (whether temporarily or permanently) to a wheelchair.
Most exercise or gymnasium type equipment known to the applicant has been developed for use by full able-bodied persons and very little equipment has been developed which has regard to the ergonomic considerations peculiar to the physically handicapped, especially wheelchair users. Certain prior art exercise apparatus for wheelchair users are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,153,244, 4,747,595 and 5,044,629 and although each of these arrangements allows the wheelchair user to carry out his or her exercise routines while seated within the wheelchair, the means by which the wheelchair itself is secured relative to the surrounding framework and the manner in which the wheelchair user is supported in the wheelchair during the exercise routines are considered generally unsatisfactory. Furthermore, in some cases, the accessibility of the wheelchair user to the apparatus is such that the wheelchair user cannot independently and without external assistance, position himself in readiness for the exercise routines.
In each of the prior art arrangements, the wheelchair user, during the exercise routines, is supported in a generally upright position with the wheelchair having its front and rear wheels resting on the ground or floor on which the exercise apparatus is mounted. Hence the wheelchair, if not restrained by locking devices, is prone to movement relative to the surrounding framework.
It is an object of the present invention to provide exercise apparatus for use by wheelchair users which is designed to support the wheelchair and its occupant in a reclined stable position while exercising and which makes it possible to secure the wheelchair against movement without separate restraint devices.
It is another object of the present invention to provide exercise apparatus which is readily accessible by a wheelchair user and which allows the user to position himself in the exercising position of the apparatus with minimal, if any, outside assistance.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide an improved exercise apparatus which is designed to accommodate wheelchairs of different types and sizes with little or no modification.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an exercise apparatus which is designed so that it can be used by both wheelchair users, ambulant disabled and full able-bodied persons, and which affords increased safety and reliability, and enhanced performance in exercise prescriptions and protocols.
According to this invention therefore, exercise apparatus for use by individuals while seated in a wheelchair comprises: support means extending upwardly from the base at or adjacent the rear end thereof, said wheelchair support structure being connected to said support means for pivotal movement about a transverse horizontal pivot axis between a first wheelchair receiving position wherein the wheelchair can be wheeled backwards onto the platform base and located in a generally upright position with its seat back contiguous with said back support means, and a second tilted exercising position wherein the wheelchair and its occupant seated therein are stably supported in a reclined disposition against said back support means, and said reclined disposition.
In a preferred embodiment the support means comprises a three-sided stationary framework which includes a pair of opposite spaced apart side frames and a rear end frame interconnecting the side frames the side and rear end frames defining an area into and out of which a wheelchair can be wheeled through an open front end of the framework and said wheelchair support structure is pivotally secured to and locates between said side frames.
Preferably the wheelchair support structure is moved between its first and second positions and held therein by means of a fluid actuated power ram which can be hydraulically or pneumatically operated. Alternatively, t
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Apley Richard J.
LaMarca William
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