Exercise devices – User manipulated force resisting apparatus – component... – Utilizing weight resistance
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-02
2001-06-12
Donnelly, Jerome W. (Department: 3764)
Exercise devices
User manipulated force resisting apparatus, component...
Utilizing weight resistance
C482S072000, C482S101000, C602S032000, C602S035000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06244995
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
“Not Applicable”
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
“Not Applicable”
REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX
“Not Applicable”
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to an exercise device, in particular to an exercise device suitable for the development of general physical fitness and for the improvement of body posture.
DESCRIPTION OF PRIOR ART
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,263,913, 5,810,698 and 5,445,583 teach that these devices also consist of inclined tracks, carriage and footrest. However, the tracks and the carriage are straight and the devices are designed for completely different exercises.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,176,836 is the only device which bears some similarity to our proposed device. It takes advantage of a discretely curved incline or tracks on which the carriage can be moved up and down by the exercising person. It has also a footrest.
What makes this device entirely unsuitable for the exercises our device offers is as follows:
the curve of the tracks is of a much larger radius compared to our tracks and the inclination of the tracks cannot be changed;
the carriage is not curved and parallel to the tracks. It is placed on the tracks at a large angle (the bottom part of the carriage is quite a distance from the tracks, while the top part sits by the small wheels directly on the tracks).
Consequently, the carriage moves up the tracks by extension of the legs and the pressing of the shoulders against the shoulder pads of the chair. This exercise compresses the spine instead of bending it and the shoulders are exposed to enormous stress. The sole purpose of the device according to the author is “to vary the resistance encountered by the body part or parts along a discreetly curved incline, whereby the resistance varies automatically and instantaneously commensurate with the sine of the angle of the incline”.
Our device serves a completely different purpose. The tracks and carriage are more curved and the carriage moves parallel to the tracks. The carriage is propelled by the interaction between the legs and torso (including the head) of a person. The legs apply the force relative to the carriage and the body at approximately 60 degrees angle (not along the longitudinal axis of the back which is the case in compared device). This in turn permits the person to resist this force by the whole length of the trunk and also by the head. The carriage then moves upward and backward as a result of the friction between the person's back, head and the surface of the carriage. Hence, the curved carriage. Our inclined tracks are curved at a specific radius in order to permit a person to fully extend the legs while maintaining almost the same angle of force application relative to the carriage and person's back. This is very important for flexing the lumbar spine and for stretching and strengthening the lower back muscles. The upper back and neck muscles are also strengthened due to this crucial detail in the construction of our device.
The listed patents involve devices which are designed for a different purpose. The difference from our device renders them inapplicable for the exercises our device can provide.
Various exercise devices have been proposed, however, they generally require that the user be either standing, sitting or lying to perform the exercise. Such devices are not satisfactory for some people with lower back pain, since the very position in which the exercise is performed, such as sitting or standing, may well aggravate the condition. Such devices may correctly develop muscles of the arms and legs, however, they may incorrectly shorten the lower back muscles which may lead to a faulty body posture and back pain. Many devices have been developed for strengthening the abdominal muscles and very few for correct and sufficient development of the back muscles.
Accordingly it is the object of the instant invention to overcome these difficulties in previous devices by providing a device that allows the person's body to assume a supine flexed position with rounded (flexed) lower back (lumbar spine) and to maintain or even increase this flexed lumbar spine during the exercise. Thus lower back muscles are not only beneficially stretched but also strengthened in their elongated state. This is the key factor for improving person's body posture.
In recent years, more attention has been paid to the improvement of physical fitness as well as to the problem of lower back pain caused by an incorrect body posture. The instant invention seeks to provide an exercise device which would develop physical fitness and maintain or improve body posture. Such a device would be suitable not only for a healthy person but also for a person suffering from back pain or other related conditions. Such a device would also be suitable for increase or maintenance of physical fitness in people of advanced years.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The instant invention offers a substantial improvement over the prior art as more fully described hereinafter.
There is provided an exercise device capable of entirely supporting a person by the trunk and feet of the person consisting of a trunk support or carriage and footrest. The carriage equipped with four small wheels moves relative to the footrest in the grooves of the inclined semi-circular tracks, while the footrest is stationary. Due to the gravitational force, the carriage is normally positioned at the bottom end of the tracks at the beginning of the exercise. The person lies on the carriage on the back (in a supine position) with the whole length of the body except for the legs which are flexed in hips, knees and ankles and rest with the feet on the footrest. Due to the 40 degree inclination of the front part of the carriage, the pelvis of a person is flexed forward. The exercise consists of partial or full extension and flexion of the legs. The nature of this exercise (body position and angle of the force application) allows to maintain or even increase the flexion of the pelvis during the exercise. The trunk with the carriage slide in an arcuate movement backward and upward on the slanted semi-circular tracks due to leg extension and then they slide following the same path forward and downward due to the gravitational force under the control of the flexing legs. When the legs are straightened against the resistance of the body and carriage and then flexed in order to slow down the body's fall, beneficial exercise may be achieved for the legs, buttocks, back and neck. The leg extension can also be assisted by arm flexion and extension or the body with the carriage can be raised and lowered with the arms exclusively. Thus various muscles of the arms, trunk, shoulders and hands can be developed. In all these exercises, the involved muscles are exposed to both concentric and eccentric contractions.
In the instant invention the user can move the body and the carriage with arms by gripping special firm handles with the hands. These handles are located on both the front and rear upright posts. The body moves backward by arm flexion and is slowed down on the way forward by arm extension when using the handles on the rear posts. The body moves backward by arm extension and forward by arm flexion when using the handles on the front posts. In the first case the user primarily develops the biceps and in the second case the triceps.
The instant invention allows a method of exercising wherein a person fully supported by the carriage located on the inclined semi-circular tracks and by the feet positioned on the footrest moves the body alternatively backward against the gravitational force by leg extension and/or arm flexion and forward with the gravity by leg flexion and/or arm extension. None of the prior art allows the body to exercise by moving it along the semi-circular tracks with fixed feet on the footrest and thus keeping the pelvis in a flexed position. In the instant invention, the carriage connected with the inclined semi-circular tracks by means of the small wheels moves d
Amerson Lori Baker
Donnelly Jerome W.
Prsala Jan
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