EP1233817B1 - Waist exercise device using same - Google Patents
Waist exercise device using same Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP1233817B1 EP1233817B1 EP00981883A EP00981883A EP1233817B1 EP 1233817 B1 EP1233817 B1 EP 1233817B1 EP 00981883 A EP00981883 A EP 00981883A EP 00981883 A EP00981883 A EP 00981883A EP 1233817 B1 EP1233817 B1 EP 1233817B1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- pelvis
- holder
- holding
- lower body
- constructed
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Lifetime
Links
- 210000004197 pelvis Anatomy 0.000 claims abstract description 94
- 210000001624 hip Anatomy 0.000 claims abstract description 55
- 210000003127 knee Anatomy 0.000 claims description 66
- 210000004394 hip joint Anatomy 0.000 claims description 16
- 210000002414 leg Anatomy 0.000 claims description 12
- 238000005728 strengthening Methods 0.000 claims description 10
- 230000002265 prevention Effects 0.000 claims description 8
- 210000003205 muscle Anatomy 0.000 abstract description 9
- 238000010276 construction Methods 0.000 abstract description 4
- 210000002683 foot Anatomy 0.000 description 38
- 239000012530 fluid Substances 0.000 description 15
- 210000000689 upper leg Anatomy 0.000 description 6
- 239000006096 absorbing agent Substances 0.000 description 5
- 230000035939 shock Effects 0.000 description 5
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 3
- 238000005452 bending Methods 0.000 description 2
- 210000000629 knee joint Anatomy 0.000 description 2
- 239000004809 Teflon Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229920006362 Teflon® Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 210000003489 abdominal muscle Anatomy 0.000 description 1
- 238000005299 abrasion Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000001419 dependent effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000006185 dispersion Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000006073 displacement reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000003780 insertion Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000037431 insertion Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000012856 packing Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000007789 sealing Methods 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B21/00—Exercising apparatus for developing or strengthening the muscles or joints of the body by working against a counterforce, with or without measuring devices
- A63B21/00058—Mechanical means for varying the resistance
- A63B21/00069—Setting or adjusting the resistance level; Compensating for a preload prior to use, e.g. changing length of resistance or adjusting a valve
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B23/00—Exercising apparatus specially adapted for particular parts of the body
- A63B23/02—Exercising apparatus specially adapted for particular parts of the body for the abdomen, the spinal column or the torso muscles related to shoulders (e.g. chest muscles)
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61H—PHYSICAL THERAPY APPARATUS, e.g. DEVICES FOR LOCATING OR STIMULATING REFLEX POINTS IN THE BODY; ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION; MASSAGE; BATHING DEVICES FOR SPECIAL THERAPEUTIC OR HYGIENIC PURPOSES OR SPECIFIC PARTS OF THE BODY
- A61H1/00—Apparatus for passive exercising; Vibrating apparatus; Chiropractic devices, e.g. body impacting devices, external devices for briefly extending or aligning unbroken bones
- A61H1/02—Stretching or bending or torsioning apparatus for exercising
- A61H1/0292—Stretching or bending or torsioning apparatus for exercising for the spinal column
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B21/00—Exercising apparatus for developing or strengthening the muscles or joints of the body by working against a counterforce, with or without measuring devices
- A63B21/008—Exercising apparatus for developing or strengthening the muscles or joints of the body by working against a counterforce, with or without measuring devices using hydraulic or pneumatic force-resisters
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B23/00—Exercising apparatus specially adapted for particular parts of the body
- A63B23/02—Exercising apparatus specially adapted for particular parts of the body for the abdomen, the spinal column or the torso muscles related to shoulders (e.g. chest muscles)
- A63B23/0205—Abdomen
- A63B23/0211—Abdomen moving torso with immobilized lower limbs
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61H—PHYSICAL THERAPY APPARATUS, e.g. DEVICES FOR LOCATING OR STIMULATING REFLEX POINTS IN THE BODY; ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION; MASSAGE; BATHING DEVICES FOR SPECIAL THERAPEUTIC OR HYGIENIC PURPOSES OR SPECIFIC PARTS OF THE BODY
- A61H2201/00—Characteristics of apparatus not provided for in the preceding codes
- A61H2201/16—Physical interface with patient
- A61H2201/1602—Physical interface with patient kind of interface, e.g. head rest, knee support or lumbar support
- A61H2201/164—Feet or leg, e.g. pedal
- A61H2201/1642—Holding means therefor
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B21/00—Exercising apparatus for developing or strengthening the muscles or joints of the body by working against a counterforce, with or without measuring devices
- A63B21/008—Exercising apparatus for developing or strengthening the muscles or joints of the body by working against a counterforce, with or without measuring devices using hydraulic or pneumatic force-resisters
- A63B21/0084—Exercising apparatus for developing or strengthening the muscles or joints of the body by working against a counterforce, with or without measuring devices using hydraulic or pneumatic force-resisters by moving the surrounding water
Definitions
- the present invention relates to a load generator for effectively producing exercise load by controlling the flow direction and amount of working fluid and a waist exercise appliance for strengthening and rehabilitating the waist using the load generator.
- the pelvis In general, around the waist region, the pelvis is connected to the vertebrae and two hip joints are connected to the pelvis.
- Various lumbar muscles are connected to both pelvis and vertebrae, so that the pelvis can conduct movement relative to the vertebrae.
- U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,902,009 and 5,928,112 disclose conventional appliances that are used to strengthen or rehabilitate the lumber muscles.
- a user conducts only extension exercises in which the user repeatedly sits up from a position where the upper part of his body is bent while the lower part of his body is firmly held, so the following problems occur due to its structural characteristics.
- the loading device employed for the conventional appliances is a combination of various weights and accompanied by related accessories, so the entire device occupies an excessive space and is complicated.
- the conventional appliances are constructed to allow users to conduct only extension exercises for the upper part of the body, so only a part of lumber muscles are strengthened. As a result, the conventional appliances are insufficient for the uniform strengthening and rehabilitating of the entire body.
- the lower body is tightly held by regions such as the thighs, legs or feet and the pelvis region is moved during the waist exercises, thereby producing deteriorated effects. That is, a method in which the lower body is tightly held by a belt so as to bring the knee into tight contact with a knee holding bar and bring the thigh into tight contact with a seat is to downwardly fix the tight-side of the hip joint. Accordingly, the pelvis-side of the hip joint is nearly free, so the pelvic region can be removed. As a result, the rotational center of waist exercises is removed from the lumbar vertebrae to the hip joint, so the rotational center is not stable, thereby being ineffective for the strengthening of lumbar muscles connecting the pelvis and the vertebrae.
- US patent no. 5,070,863 discloses a back exercise apparatus with a seat and a foot rest.
- User can perform exercises under use of a back frame, which can be operated in conjunction with a load generator connected with a gearbox.
- the foot rest is connected with a knee pad, which can be adjusted relative to the foot rest.
- the foot rest and the knee pad serve as a lower body holding unit constructed to fix the lower body in front of the seat.
- US patent no. 4,725,055 discloses a training apparatus, which allows training of a person by a rotation about a vertical axis, which means by turning the upper body around the lumbar vertebrae.
- the apparatus has a seat on which a person sits.
- a seat back which bears against the lower back of the person may be moved forward or backward in order to align the natural anatomical axis below the waist of the person with the axis of rotation of the rotation assembly.
- a lap belt secured into a lap belt buckle holds the person against the seat back and also down against the seat.
- Two side cushions bear against the pelvis to prevent lateral movement of the pelvis.
- Two knee pads of a knee pad assembly bear against the inside of the legs between the knees and thighs.
- Leg straps of the knee pad assembly looped around the outside of the thighs are secured to leg strap buckles on top of the knee pad assembly above the thighs.
- the knee pads and the leg straps prevent pelvic rotation and thigh movement. Tilting the pelvis or the legs about a horizontal axis cannot be prevented.
- US 5,549,534 discloses a spine rehabilitation apparatus including a frame having a vertical part and an inclined part.
- the apparatus comprises a seat and a back rest formed by a convex member connected with the inclined part.
- the pelvis of a user is only fixed by the seat and the inclined part.
- US 6,015,372 discloses an apparatus for exercising the abdominal muscles.
- the apparatus comprises a seat, a movement arm having a resistant pad engageable by the chest of the exerciser and a leg holding unit, for holding the user's legs spread apart.
- the apparatus does not comprise any foot rests or elements for holding and fixing the pelvis.
- an object of the present invention is to provide a waist exercise appliance, in which the lumbar muscles can be strengthened using the upper and lower bodies, the lower body and the pelvis are tightly held by the lower body holding unit during waist exercises using the upper body, and the upper and lower portions and the rear portion are distinguished from one another and tightly held in diagonal directions differently from a conventional exercise appliance.
- Another object of the present invention is to provide a waist exercise appliance, in which while the waist region is exercised using the upper and lower bodies, the degrees of the bending and extension of the knee joint can be adjusted by the adjustment of the height, tilt angle and horizontal position of the foot support, and the quantity and range of the strengthening and rehabilitating of related muscles can be adjusted by the conjunctive movement of the knee holding bar and foot support.
- a further object of the present invention is to provide a waist exercise appliance, in which the force of the arms is not transmitted to a back frame by a removal prevention unit during extension exercises so as to perform waist exercises only using the upper body, the central axis of the exercise is constructed to coincide with the lumbar vertebrae or hip joint so as to allow the human body and the exercise appliance to harmonize with and be moved in conjunction with each other, the angle range of exercises can be adjusted by an exercise range adjustment unit, and external effects can be excluded from the pure exercise load force by a counter exercise unit.
- a further object of the present invention is to provide a load generator, which is capable of easily controlling the quantity and direction of load, being simply constructed, being widely used, and being easily installed and utilised.
- the present invention provides a waist exercise appliance for exercising, strengthening or rehabilitating the waist, in which a chair unit is constructed by assembling all or some of a seat, two legs, a handle and related frames, and exercises are conducted using the back frame or a knee holding bar operated in conjunction with a load generator, further comprising; a lower body holding unit constructed to fix the lower body in front of the chair unit or to be moved along with the lower body, the foot support of the lower body holding unit being constructed to allow its vertical position to be adjusted.
- the lower body holding unit is comprised of a lower body holder for holding the lower body and a pelvis holder for holding the pelvis, the lower body holder being constructed to allow the foot support and the knee holding bar to be moved, the pelvis holder being constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately.
- the waist exercise appliance according the present invention is characterised in that said pelvis holder is constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately and further comprises a pelvis support situated on the rear portion of the seat to be moved forward and rearward so as to tightly hold the rear portion of the pelvis, said knee holding bar of the lower body holder and holder bodies of the pelvis holder are attached to an actuating bar to be operated in conjunction with each other, wherein the holder bodies are constructed to allow their positions to be adjusted, the actuating bar is constructed to be moved forward and rearward by means of links, so that when the rear portion of the actuating bar is lifted up around a hinge, the holder bodies situated on the front portion of the actuating bar are moved down and the holder bodies push the upper and lower portions at the same time, thereby tightly holding the pelvis.
- the waist exercise appliance is characterised in that said pelvis holder is constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately, wherein the upper and lower holder bodies of said pelvis holder are separately positioned, the holder bodies fitted around holding belts and attached to both sides of a pelvis holding rod are hingedly attached to one side of a holding frame, and the lower portion of the pelvis holding rod is hingedly held by a slot of a pressurising lever, so that when the pressurising lever is pulled up, the pelvis holding rod is rotated downwardly around a hinge, thereby allowing the holder bodies to tightly hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis.
- the lower body holding unit further comprises a passive drive unit, together with the load generator, the passive drive unit being mounted to the back frame or knee holding bar so as to selectively perform active exercises and passive exercises.
- a chair unit 7 is constructed by assembling a seat 1, two legs 3, a handle 4, and related frames 5 and 6. Exercises are conducted using the back frame 2 or a knee holding bar 9 operated in conjunction with a load generator 8.
- the waist exercise appliance of the present invention is used to exercise, strengthen or rehabilitate the waist.
- a lower body holding unit 20 is constructed to fix the lower body in front of the chair unit 7 or be moved along with the lower body.
- the foot support 26 of the lower body holding unit 20 is constructed to allow its vertical position to be adjusted.
- the lower body holding unit 20 is comprised of a lower body holder 22 and a pelvis holder 24.
- the lower body holder 22 serves to fix the lower body so as to withstand the waist exercise and prevent the dispersion of force while it is intended to strengthen or rehabilitate the waist using the upper part of the body.
- the lower body holding unit 20 is operated to move along with the lower body.
- waist exercises performed on the waist exercise appliance using the upper part of the body are described.
- extension or flexion exercises are performed using the upper part of the body over the lumber vertebra while the lower body and the pelvic region are tightly held by the lower body holding unit 20 with the lower part tightly held by the lower body holder 22 and the pelvic region tightly held by the pelvis holder 24.
- the lower body holder 22 is comprised of a foot support 26 and the knee holding bar 9.
- the foot support 26 is constructed to allow its height and its tilt angle to be controlled and to be operated separately from or in conjunction with the knee holding bar 9.
- the pelvis holder 24 includes two holder bodies 27 for simultaneously or sequentially holding the upper and lower parts of the pelvis.
- a pelvis support 28 is mounted on the rear portion of the seat 1 to be moved forward and rearward, and tightly holds the rear surface of the pelvis.
- the knee holding bar 9 of the lower body holder 22 and the holder bodies 27 of the pelvis holder 24 are attached to an actuating bar 27 to be operated in conjunction with each other.
- the holder bodies 27 are constructed to allow its position to be controlled.
- the actuating bar 220 is constructed to be moved forward and rearward by means of the links 221. When the rear portion of the actuating bar 220 is lifted up around a hinge 231, the holder bodies 27 situated on the front portion of the actuating bar 220 are moved down and the holder bodies 27 push the upper and lower portions at the same time, thereby tightly holding the pelvis.
- the foot support 26 of the lower body holder 22 is mounted to the lower portion of a block 207.
- the block 207 is moved along upper and lower guide rods 204 and 205, which are supported by support posts 201, 202 and 203, by a threaded rod 206 situated between guide rods 204 and 205.
- the first ends of links 210 are respectively attached to a bracket 208 and a worm gear 209, and their second ends are hingedly attached to allow the links 210 to be situated at upper and lower positions.
- the worm gear 209 is mounted to be engaged with a rotatable worm 211 in the interior of the block 207.
- the worm 211, worm gear 211 and links 210 are moved in conjunction with one another so that the height and tilt angle of the foot support 26 can be adjusted by the rotation of an adjustment shaft 213 mounted on the lower portions of the support rods 201, 202 and 203 and block 207, provided with a handle 212 at its front end, engaged with the worm 211 to be moved forward and rearward, and splined on a part of it. That is, the foot support 26 is moved forward and rearward by the threaded rod 206, and tilted by the adjustment shaft 213.
- the knee holding bar 9 of the lower body holder 22 is mounted to the actuating bar 220 or an actuating rod support 222, to which the upper ends of the links 221 are hinged, to be slid forward and rearward, and the pelvis holder 24 is hingedly attached to the front end of the actuating bar 220 and includes holder bodies 27 for tightly holding the upper and lower portions of the pelvis, thereby tightly holding the knee and the upper and lower portions of the pelvis at the same time.
- the lower end of one link 221 is hingedly attached to a moving piece 228a that is engaged with a threaded actuating rod 228 rotatably supported at its both ends by one bracket 224 of a crossbar 223 and the support post 202, the lower end of the other link 221 is hingedly attached to the bracket 224a of the crossbar 223, and a stopper 221a is hingedly attached at its upper end to the latter link 221 to be engaged with a toothed portion 223a formed on the crossbar 223.
- a stopper 221a is hingedly attached at its upper end to the latter link 221 to be engaged with a toothed portion 223a formed on the crossbar 223.
- the lower end of one link 221 is hingedly attached to the bracket 224 fixed to the crossbar 223, the lower end of the other link 221 is hingedly attached to a worm gear 225, and the worm gear 225 is rotatably mounted over the support posts 201, 202 and 203 and engaged with a worm 226 mounted to one end of the actuating rod 228 provided with a handle 227, thereby tightly and simultaneously holding the knee and the upper and lower portions of the pelvis.
- a pusher 230 provided with a grip 229 is hingedly attached to the hinge between the upper end of the link 221 and the actuating rod support 222, so that when the grip 229 is rotated clockwise, the rear end of the actuating bar 220 is moved upward around the hinge 231, and the front end of the actuating bar 220 is moved downward along with the holder bodies 27, thereby tightly holding the pelvis.
- a adjustment rod 233 in-line with the actuating rod 228 and connected to a handle 232 is mounted in a rotating member 235 and a linear bearing 236, which are situated on the support posts 201 and 202, to be moved forward and rearward.
- the adjustment rod 233 is provided with a splined portion 237 on its front portion. Accordingly, when the adjustment rod 233 is moved forward, the splined portion 237 of the adjustment rod 233 is engaged with an interiorly splined portion 238 formed on the actuating rod 228 and the actuating rod 228 can be rotated by the handle 232 and the adjustment rod 233. In contrast, when the adjustment rod 233 is moved rearward, the splined portion 237 of the adjustment rod 233 is engaged with an interiorly splined portion 239 formed on the rotating member 235 and the threaded rod 206 can be rotated through a pulley 241, a belt 240 and another pulley 242.
- a lower body holder 22 includes a knee holding bar 9 and a foot support 26 that are operated in conjunction with each other, and the pelvis holder 24 includes upper and lower holder bodies 27 and the pelvis support 28 situated on the rear portion of the seat 1.
- the foot support 26 of the lower body holder 22 is constructed to allow its height to be adjusted and to allow its position to be fixed
- the knee holding bar 9 of the lower body holder 22 is comprised of a main knee holding bar 90 and an auxiliary knee holding bar 92 that are attached to both ends of a support rod 94 hingedly attached to the upper end of the actuating bar 220
- a shock absorber 250 is situated to connect the lower portion of the actuating rod 220 and a block 207.
- the upper and lower holder bodies 27 are separately positioned, the holder bodies 27 fitted around holding belts 231 and 252 attached to both sides of a pelvis holding rod 11a are hingedly attached to one side of a holding frame 11, and the lower portion of the pelvis holding rod 11 a is hingedly held by the slot 263 of a pressurizing lever 261. Accordingly, when the pressurizing lever 261 is pulled up, the pelvis holding rod 11a is rotated downwardly around a hinge 265, thereby allowing the holder bodies 27 to tightly hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis in diagonal directions.
- a pelvis support 28 is situated on the rear portion of a chair unit 7.
- the rear surface of the pelvis support 28 is hingedly attached to the upper surface of a moving member 256 disposed to be moved forward and rearward along a guide rod 255 positioned between the front and rear supports 253 and 254, the lower portion of the pelvis support 28 is engaged with a threaded rod 257, and the threaded rod 257 is supported by the front and rear supports 253 and 254.
- the moving member 256 is moved forward and the pelvis support 28 is moved forward along with the moving member 256. While the pelvis is tightly pushed downward and rearward, the pelvis is pushed forward from the rear surface of the pelvis, thereby even more tightly holding the pelvis.
- the waist exercise appliance of the present invention When the waist exercise appliance of the present invention is constructed to allow extension and reflexion exercises to be performed using the lower body, its lower body holding unit 20 includes a foot support 26 and a knee holding bar 9 that allow their heights to be controlled and are capable of being moved in conjunction with each other.
- a knee holding bar 9 is constructed to allow its height to be controlled together with a foot support so as to be flexed around the hip joints.
- the knee holding bar 9 is moved in conjunction with the foot support 26.
- the knee holding bar 9 is mounted on the upper end of a retractable support rod 260, and the foot support 26 is mounted on a retractable cross rod 262.
- the support rod 260 and the cross rod 262 are hingedly situated, respectively.
- the front end of the foot support 26 and the center portion of the support rod 260 are connected to each other by a support link 264.
- the support rod 260 is constructed by telescopically assembling upper and lower support rod members 268 and 270 so as to allow its length to be controlled.
- a slit 272 is formed along the lower support rod member 270, the support link 264 and a fixing member 266 are hingedly attached to a slider 274 fitted around the lower support rod member 270, and the upper support rod member 264 is disposed to be fixed or freed depending at a certain position on the insertion of a fixing rod 273 elastically supported through the slit 272 by the manipulation of the fixing member 266.
- a foot support 26 and a knee holding bar 9 are mounted to be moved in conjunction with each other.
- a support arm 180 is hingedly connected at its lower end to a support rod 282 fixed to the lower portion of a chair unit 7 and at its center portion to one end of a connection link 286 situated to be moved together with a first gear 284.
- the knee holding bar 9 is mounted on the upper end of a telescopic support arm 290 situated to be moved together with a second gear 292.
- the first and second gears 284 and 292 are connected by a chain 294 to be moved in conjunction with each other. Accordingly, the foot support 26 and the knee holding bar 9 constitute the lower body holding unit 20 to be moved in conjunction with each other.
- a head support 41 is mounted at the upper end of the back frame 41 and a cervical vertebrae exercise unit 40 is situated behind the head support 41.
- the rear frame 42 of the head support 41 is constructed to be moved around the hinge 32, and the load generator 44 is hingedly attached to the rear frame 42 and a bracket 43.
- the upper end of the load generator 44 is attached by engaging a moving member 46 with a rotatable threaded rod 45.
- the load generator 44 is utilized by the forward and rearward displacement of the moving member 46 in accordance with the rotational direction of the threaded rod 45, and exercise load exerted on the cervical vertebrae during cervical vertebrae exercises can be controlled by the rotational movement of the head support 41.
- an upper body holding unit 50 is preferably mounted to the upper end of the back frame 2 to hold the shoulder region of the upper body, as depicted in Figs. 13 to 18 .
- an upper body holder 51 provided with two handles 4 is attached to the upper end of the back frame 2 through a hinge 32, and a locking device 52 is provided in the vicinity of the hinge 32 to keep the upper body holder 51 open or closed.
- the locking device 52 is comprised of a locking portion 53 integrated with the upper body holder 51 and a locking member 54 that constitutes the upper portion of the back frame 2 so as to adjust the locking portion 53 to be locked or released.
- the locking member 54 constitutes the upper portion of the back frame 2 and is disposed to allow its portion to be situated under the locking portion 53 to be rotated horizontally.
- a lever 58 is hingedly attached to one side of a pressurizing member 57 having a tapered shape and an open end.
- the open end 56 of the pressurizing member 57 is situated under the locking portion 53 by the manipulation of the lever 58, there occurs a release state where the upper body support 51 along with the locking portion 53 is freely bend rearward through the open end 56.
- the lever 58 is rotated to lock the locking portion 53.
- the upper body support 51 is not allowed to be pushed rearward and the tapered portion of the pressurizing member 57 pushes the lower portion of the locking portion 53 upwardly, so the front portion of the upper body support 51 is further moved forward. Accordingly, regardless of the widths of shoulders and individual conditions, the locking unit 52 can be utilized while be adjusted corresponding to circumstances.
- the upper body holding unit 50 is described as being applied to exercises using the upper body, it can be applied to exercises using the lower body.
- the central axis of the movement of the back frame 2 coincides with the cervical vertebrae so as to prevent a phenomenon that the body is not moved with the exercise appliance as one body and is not adapted to the appliance.
- the central axis of the movement of the knee holder 9 is constructed to coincide with the hip joint directly or through a connecting member.
- An example of the former case is shown in Fig. 5 in which the central axis of the movement of the back frame 2 is constructed to allow the hinge 13 provided on a stationary frame 11 to coincide with the cervical vertebrae.
- the examples of the latter case are shown in Fig.
- an exercise range adjustment unit 60 is mounted on the central axis of the exercise of the back frame 2 or knee holding bar 9 and a portion moved in conjunction with these parts so as to adjust the range of exercises during extension or flexion exercises.
- the exercise range adjustment unit 60 is comprised of a rotating disk 61, a pair of adjustment handles 63 and an outer casing 65.
- the rotating disk 61 is moved in conjunction with the hinge 13 or the central shaft 296 of the gear 292, and provided with stoppers 62 at reference positions.
- the adjustment handles 63 are not moved in conjunction with the hinge 13 or central shaft 296, fixed by the stoppers 62, and elastically supported by springs 68, thereby directly adjusting the range of exercises.
- the outer casing 65 is provided with a pair of adjustment holes 63 and adjustment cavities 67 formed along the adjustment holes 63, and is fixedly attached to a chair unit 1 so as to allow the adjustments handles 63 to be exposed to the outside.
- the ranges of exercises are determined by positioning the adjustment handles 63 in certain ones of the adjustment cavities 67 formed along the adjustment holes 66.
- the range of exercises are restricted to positions where the stoppers 62 of the rotating disk 61 moved in conjunction with the hinge 13 or central shaft 296 are inserted into or fixed in the adjustment cavities 64, thereby determining the range of the exercises of the back frame or knee holding bar 9.
- one adjustment handle 63 and one adjustment hole 66 are formed on one side of the outer casing 65 to adjust the range of exercises of one side.
- a passive drive unit together with the load generator, is mounted to the back frame or knee holding bar 9 so as to selectively perform active exercises and passive exercises.
- active exercises a user conducts exercises in accordance with exercise load obtained from the load generator 8 that is constructed to allow exercise load generated thereby; while when performing passive exercises, waist exercises are forcibly performed by passive exercise force applied from the outside.
- the load generator 80 conventional weights, springs, elastic rubber or independent shock absorbers can be employed;
- passive exercise appliance a drive motor electrically operated, a drive cylinder operated by hydraulic or air pressure, and one of other external force can be employed.
- the passive exercise appliances are constructed to be operated by passive forcible loading force exerted by a third party, such as a handle lever 74 and a medium supply adjustment unit 87 that will be described below.
- a counter exercise unit 70 is positioned opposite to a movement frame that is moved in conjunction with the back frame 2 or knee holding bar 9 situated to be moved in conjunction with the load generator 8.
- the counter exercise unit 70 in the forms of weights may be mounted on a support rod 72 through the hinge 13 of the back frame 2 to be opposite to the exercise frame; as shown in Fig. 13 , the counter exercise unit 70 is fixedly attached to a handle lever 74 mounted to the central shaft 288 of the gear 284 to be opposite to the parallel links 289 moved in conjunction with the knee holding bar 9; and as shown in Fig. 16 , the counter exercise unit 70 in the form of a weight is mounted to a handle lever 74 situated around the gear 292, the chain 294 and the central shaft 288 of the gear 284.
- the weight mounted to the support rod 72 or handle lever 74 is preferably disposed to allow its position to be controlled. As depicted in Fig.
- the counter exercise unit 70 is situated in the form of a shock absorber among the connecting link 14 of the load generator 8 operated through the hinge 13 of the back frame 2, the operating shaft 15 moved in conjunction with the connecting link 14, a support link 16 moved in conjunction with the operating shaft 15, and the fixing bracket 18 of a cross rod 17.
- an elastic body such as a spring or the like can be employed instead of the weight or shock absorber.
- a control unit 86 is constructed in such a way that an annular space 84 is provided in a casing 81 and 82 around its central shaft 83 to accommodate working fluid, a vane 85 having the same shape as the cross section of the annular space 84 is positioned in the annular space 84 to be operated in conjunction with the central shaft 83, and a working fluid adjustor 86 is situated in a portion of the annular space 84 to adjust the direction and amount of working fluid.
- a fluid load adjustor 87 is preferably formed to communicate with the annular space 84 so as to adjust load by varying an internal volume.
- a circular mounting space 802 is provided for a holding member 800 in the annular space 84, the central shaft 83 is inserted at its lower end portion into the center of the casing 81 and 82, the holding member 800 is situated in the circular mounting space 802, the vane 85 is mounted to a portion of the holding member 800, and the working fluid adjustor 86 consisting of the flow rate control valve 806 and the flow direction control valve 810 is situated in fluid passages 804 and 808.
- the casing members 81 and 82 are engaged with each other in a screw engagement manner, sealing members 814 and 816 made of Teflon having a low frictional coefficient and a high abrasion resistance are applied to the vane 85 and the holding member 800, and a retainer 818 and an U-shaped packing 820 are situated around the central shaft 83.
- a valve body 822 having a semicircular sectional shape is situated in the fluid passage 804.
- valve bodies 836 and 838 elastically supported by two springs 832 and 834 situated on two valve seats 828 and 838 are situated at both ends of an operating shaft 826 on both sides of a fluid passage 808, and an operating piece 840 is positioned to move along the outside of the operating shaft 826.
- the operating piece 840 is moved in a rack-and-pinion manner to selectively open or close one of the valve bodies 836 and 838, thereby controlling the flow direction of the working fluid.
- an adjustor body 846 is mounted on a portion of the outer casing 81 and 82 to communicate with the annular space 84 through the fluid passage 844, and a piston 850 attached to a piston rod 848 is tightly fitted into the interior of the adjustor body 846.
- the piston rod 848 is engaged in a screw manner with an end plate 852 tightly fitted into the rear end of the adjustor body 846, so the size of the cavity of the adjustor body 846 is adjusted by the moving forward or rearward of the piston rod 848 and the piston 850 by the rotation of the handle 854.
- the loading or unloading of the central shaft 83 generated by the operation of the vane 85 is effected depending on whether working fluid is accommodated in the annular space 84 or adjustor body 846.
- the load generator 80 is used with the outer casing 81 and 82 secured to a stationary portion, such as the chair unit 7, and with the central shaft 83 connected to the hinge 13 or central shaft 288 of the gear 284 moved in conjunction with the back frame 2 or knee holding bar 98.
- the central shaft 83 is rotated to operate the load generator 80, the vane 85 moved together with the holding member 800 is rotated in the annular space 84.
- the working fluid is adjusted in its exercise load, its applying direction and its loading or unloading by means of the flow rate control valve 806, the flow direction control valve 810 or the working fluid adjustor 87.
- waist exercise appliances fabricated by assembling the lower body holding unit 20, the removal prevention unit 30, the cervical vertebrae exercise unit 40, the upper body holding unit 50, the exercise range adjustment unit 60, the counter exercise unit 70, and the load generator 80 is described along with their operations.
- a waist exercise appliance of the present invention is fabricated by employing the lower body holding unit 20, the exercise range adjustment unit 60 and the counter exercise unit 70.
- the lower body of a user is tightly held by the lower body holding unit 20. While the user sits on the seat 1, the foot support 26 and the knee holding bar 9 are used, along with the pelvis holder 24.
- the user puts his feet on the foot support 26.
- the height and tilt angle of the foot support 26 can be adjusted by the rotation of the lower handle 229, and the horizontal position of the foot support 26 can be adjusted by the forward and rearward movement of the block 207 in accordance with the rotational directions of the belt 241 or threaded rod 206 using the upper handle 227.
- the knee holding bar 9 and the holder 27 of the pelvis holder 24 are forwardly downwardly moved by means of the links 221 by manually moving the actuating bar 220, as shown in Fig. 1 , or by rotating the actuating bar 228 by means of the manipulation of the upper handle 227.
- the range of exercises are adjusted in advance by the exercise range adjustment unit 60 that is situated to be moved in conjunction with the back frame 2 around the hinge 13. While the balance of mechanical load is established by the counter exercise unit 70 disposed in the forms of weights to be moved together around the hinge 13, waist exercises can be performed in active or passive drive manners utilizing the upper body.
- Fig. 5 there is shown an embodiment that is constructed by employing the lower body holding unit 20, the removal prevention unit 30, the cervical vertebrae exercise unit 40, construction for the coincidence of the center axis of exercises and the lumber vertebrae, and the counter exercise unit 70.
- the lower body holder 22 of the lower body holding unit 20 is comprised of the foot support 26 and the knee holding bar 9 that are moved in conjunction with each other.
- the foot support 26 is constructed to allow its height, tilt angle and horizontal position.
- the knee holding bar 9 tightly holds the knee by the conjunctive movement of the worm 226 and the worm gear 225 by means of the manipulation of the handle 258.
- the pelvis holder 24 allows the holders 27 to tightly hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis by the operation of the support rod 11a and a pushing lever 261. Additionally, the lower portion of the pelvis is firmly pushed from its rear direction by the pelvis support 28.
- the removal prevention unit 30 is mounted on the upper end of the back frame 2, so the force of the arm is not transmitted to the back frame 2 and waist exercises can be performed using the upper body.
- the cervical vertebrae exercise unit 40 is positioned, so the exercise of the cervical vertebrae can be performed when force is exerted on a head support 41 using the head while a user is seated.
- the hinge 13 of the back frame 2 is situated over the upper portion of the seat 1 to coincide with the lumbar vertebrae of a user.
- the hydraulic cylinder is employed as the load generator 8 moved in conjunction with the back frame 2.
- the counter exercise unit 70 in the form of a shock absorber is attached at its both ends to the operating shaft 15 moved in conjunction with the connecting link 14 hingedly connected to one side of the load generator 8 and the fixing bracket 18 of the cross rod 17, thereby balancing exercise load during extension exercises utilizing the back frame 6 and the load generator 8.
- FIGs. 13 and 16 there are illustrated embodiments in which waist exercises are performed using the lower body.
- the embodiments are constructed by employing the lower body holding unit 20, the upper body holding unit 50, construction for the coincidence of the center axis of exercises and the hip joints, the counter exercise unit 70, and the counter exercise unit 80.
- the lower body holding unit 20 is comprised of the foot support 26 and the knee holding bar 9 that are moved in conjunction with each other.
- the distance between the foot support 26 and the knee holding bar 9 is capable of being controlled according to the physique of a user.
- a user performs the extension and reflexion exercises of the waist by lifting up and lowering the knee holding bar using the feet and knee while the shoulder region of the upper body is fixed by the upper body holding unit 50 and the handles 4 are gripped.
- the quantity of the exercise load, direction of the exercise and loading or unloading of the load generator 80 can be controlled, and the exercises can be performed while the balance of the exercises is established by the mounting of the counter exercise unit 70.
- the position of the hip joints serve as the center axis of exercises, the central of rotational operation and the body harmonize with each other.
- the load generator 8 or 80 when the load generator 8 or 80 can be used so as to be operated actively or passively.
- a user can perform exercises utilizing exercise load generated by the load generator according to his own will, or perform exercises utilizing external drive force forcibly exerted by the handle lever 74 according to another intention, thereby strengthening the waist by the extension exercises of the waist region.
- the present invention provides a waist exercise appliance that is capable of allowing the lumbar muscles to be strengthened using the upper and lower bodies. While the waist region is exercised using the upper body, the lower body and the pelvis are tightly held by the lower body holding unit 20 constructed in accordance with the present invention. Differently from a conventional appliance, the upper and lower portions and the rear portion are distinguished from one another and tightly held in diagonal directions. While the waist region is exercised using the upper and lower bodies, the degrees of the bending and extension of the knee joint can be adjusted by the adjustment of the height, tilt angle and horizontal position of the foot support 26, and the quantity and range of the strengthening and rehabilitating of related muscles can be adjusted by the conjunctive movement of the knee holding bar 9 and foot support 26.
- the force of the arms is not transmitted to the back frame 2 by the removal prevention unit 30 during extension exercises, so waist exercises can be performed only using the upper body.
- the central axis of the exercise is constructed to coincide with the lumbar vertebrae or hip joint, so the human body and the exercise appliance harmonize with and are moved in conjunction with each other.
- the angle range of exercises can be adjusted by the exercise range adjustment unit 60. External effects can be excluded from the pure exercise load force by the counter exercise unit 70.
- the quantity and direction of load can be easily controlled, the structure of the load generator is simplified, the load generator is widely applied to a place where loading force is required, and the load generator is easily installed and utilized.
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Abstract
Description
- The present invention relates to a load generator for effectively producing exercise load by controlling the flow direction and amount of working fluid and a waist exercise appliance for strengthening and rehabilitating the waist using the load generator.
- In general, around the waist region, the pelvis is connected to the vertebrae and two hip joints are connected to the pelvis. Various lumbar muscles are connected to both pelvis and vertebrae, so that the pelvis can conduct movement relative to the vertebrae.
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U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,902,009 and5,928,112 disclose conventional appliances that are used to strengthen or rehabilitate the lumber muscles. However, in the conventional waist strengthening and rehabilitating appliances, a user conducts only extension exercises in which the user repeatedly sits up from a position where the upper part of his body is bent while the lower part of his body is firmly held, so the following problems occur due to its structural characteristics. - First, the loading device employed for the conventional appliances is a combination of various weights and accompanied by related accessories, so the entire device occupies an excessive space and is complicated.
- Second, the conventional appliances are constructed to allow users to conduct only extension exercises for the upper part of the body, so only a part of lumber muscles are strengthened. As a result, the conventional appliances are insufficient for the uniform strengthening and rehabilitating of the entire body.
- Third, its handles mounted to its back frame are hingedly attached, so force is naturally applied to the handles when force is insufficient during exercises. Accordingly, loading force is vertically applied to the lumbar vertebrae, so excessive loading force is applied to the disks in the joint, thereby doing harm to waist exercises and rehabilitation.
- Fourth, though the tight holding of the pelvis around the lumbar vertebrae is effective for waist exercises, the lower body is tightly held by regions such as the thighs, legs or feet and the pelvis region is moved during the waist exercises, thereby producing deteriorated effects. That is, a method in which the lower body is tightly held by a belt so as to bring the knee into tight contact with a knee holding bar and bring the thigh into tight contact with a seat is to downwardly fix the tight-side of the hip joint. Accordingly, the pelvis-side of the hip joint is nearly free, so the pelvic region can be removed. As a result, the rotational center of waist exercises is removed from the lumbar vertebrae to the hip joint, so the rotational center is not stable, thereby being ineffective for the strengthening of lumbar muscles connecting the pelvis and the vertebrae.
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US patent no. 5,070,863 discloses a back exercise apparatus with a seat and a foot rest. User can perform exercises under use of a back frame, which can be operated in conjunction with a load generator connected with a gearbox. The foot rest is connected with a knee pad, which can be adjusted relative to the foot rest. The foot rest and the knee pad serve as a lower body holding unit constructed to fix the lower body in front of the seat. -
US patent no. 4,725,055 discloses a training apparatus, which allows training of a person by a rotation about a vertical axis, which means by turning the upper body around the lumbar vertebrae. The apparatus has a seat on which a person sits. A seat back which bears against the lower back of the person may be moved forward or backward in order to align the natural anatomical axis below the waist of the person with the axis of rotation of the rotation assembly. A lap belt secured into a lap belt buckle holds the person against the seat back and also down against the seat. Two side cushions bear against the pelvis to prevent lateral movement of the pelvis. Two knee pads of a knee pad assembly bear against the inside of the legs between the knees and thighs. Leg straps of the knee pad assembly looped around the outside of the thighs are secured to leg strap buckles on top of the knee pad assembly above the thighs. The knee pads and the leg straps prevent pelvic rotation and thigh movement. Tilting the pelvis or the legs about a horizontal axis cannot be prevented. -
US 5,549,534 discloses a spine rehabilitation apparatus including a frame having a vertical part and an inclined part. The apparatus comprises a seat and a back rest formed by a convex member connected with the inclined part. The pelvis of a user is only fixed by the seat and the inclined part. -
US 6,015,372 discloses an apparatus for exercising the abdominal muscles. The apparatus comprises a seat, a movement arm having a resistant pad engageable by the chest of the exerciser and a leg holding unit, for holding the user's legs spread apart. The apparatus does not comprise any foot rests or elements for holding and fixing the pelvis. - The entire object of the present invention, as claimed in
claims - Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a waist exercise appliance, in which the lumbar muscles can be strengthened using the upper and lower bodies, the lower body and the pelvis are tightly held by the lower body holding unit during waist exercises using the upper body, and the upper and lower portions and the rear portion are distinguished from one another and tightly held in diagonal directions differently from a conventional exercise appliance.
- Another object of the present invention is to provide a waist exercise appliance, in which while the waist region is exercised using the upper and lower bodies, the degrees of the bending and extension of the knee joint can be adjusted by the adjustment of the height, tilt angle and horizontal position of the foot support, and the quantity and range of the strengthening and rehabilitating of related muscles can be adjusted by the conjunctive movement of the knee holding bar and foot support.
- A further object of the present invention is to provide a waist exercise appliance, in which the force of the arms is not transmitted to a back frame by a removal prevention unit during extension exercises so as to perform waist exercises only using the upper body, the central axis of the exercise is constructed to coincide with the lumbar vertebrae or hip joint so as to allow the human body and the exercise appliance to harmonize with and be moved in conjunction with each other, the angle range of exercises can be adjusted by an exercise range adjustment unit, and external effects can be excluded from the pure exercise load force by a counter exercise unit.
- A further object of the present invention is to provide a load generator, which is capable of easily controlling the quantity and direction of load, being simply constructed, being widely used, and being easily installed and utilised.
- In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention provides a waist exercise appliance for exercising, strengthening or rehabilitating the waist, in which a chair unit is constructed by assembling all or some of a seat, two legs, a handle and related frames, and exercises are conducted using the back frame or a knee holding bar operated in conjunction with a load generator, further comprising; a lower body holding unit constructed to fix the lower body in front of the chair unit or to be moved along with the lower body, the foot support of the lower body holding unit being constructed to allow its vertical position to be adjusted.
- The lower body holding unit is comprised of a lower body holder for holding the lower body and a pelvis holder for holding the pelvis, the lower body holder being constructed to allow the foot support and the knee holding bar to be moved, the pelvis holder being constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately.
- The waist exercise appliance according the present invention is characterised in that said pelvis holder is constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately and further comprises a pelvis support situated on the rear portion of the seat to be moved forward and rearward so as to tightly hold the rear portion of the pelvis,
said knee holding bar of the lower body holder and holder bodies of the pelvis holder are attached to an actuating bar to be operated in conjunction with each other, wherein the holder bodies are constructed to allow their positions to be adjusted, the actuating bar is constructed to be moved forward and rearward by means of links, so that when the rear portion of the actuating bar is lifted up around a hinge, the holder bodies situated on the front portion of the actuating bar are moved down and the holder bodies push the upper and lower portions at the same time, thereby tightly holding the pelvis. - According an alternative aspect of the invention, the waist exercise appliance is characterised in that said pelvis holder is constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately, wherein the upper and lower holder bodies of said pelvis holder are separately positioned, the holder bodies fitted around holding belts and attached to both sides of a pelvis holding rod are hingedly attached to one side of a holding frame, and the lower portion of the pelvis holding rod is hingedly held by a slot of a pressurising lever, so that when the pressurising lever is pulled up, the pelvis holding rod is rotated downwardly around a hinge, thereby allowing the holder bodies to tightly hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis.
- Further embodiments of the present invention are disclosed in the
dependent claims 3 up to 8. - The lower body holding unit further comprises a passive drive unit, together with the load generator, the passive drive unit being mounted to the back frame or knee holding bar so as to selectively perform active exercises and passive exercises.
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Fig. 1 is a schematic side elevation showing a waist exercise appliance in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; -
Fig. 2 is a partial plan view showing the operation of the appliance ofFig. 1 ; -
Fig. 3 is an enlarged cross section of a part ofFig. 1 ; -
Fig. 4 is a schematic side elevation showing a variation ofFig. 1 ; -
Fig. 5 is a schematic side elevation showing another waist exercise appliance in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; -
Fig. 6 is a partially enlarged view ofFig. 5 ; -
Fig. 7 is an enlarged view showing the pelvis holder ofFig. 5 ; -
Fig. 8 is a partially exploded perspective view ofFig. 5 ; -
Fig. 9 is a rear view ofFig. 5 ; -
Fig. 10 is a schematic side elevation showing cervical vertebrae; -
Figs. 11 and12 are views showing a pelvis support shownFig. 5 , -
Fig. 11 is an enlarged side view thereof, and -
Fig. 12 is an enlarged plan view thereof; -
Fig. 13 is a schematic side elevation showing a further waist exercise appliance in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; -
Fig. 14 is a front view ofFig. 13 ; -
Fig. 15 is a schematic side elevation showing the waist exercise appliance shown inFig. 13 ; -
Fig. 16 is a schematic side elevation showing another variation of the waist exercise appliance shown inFig. 13 ; -
Fig. 17 is a side view showing a locking unit mounted to a shoulder holding unit shown inFigs. 13 and16 ; -
Fig. 18 is a plan view ofFig. 17 ; -
Fig. 19 is a vertical cross section showing an exercise range adjustment unit; and -
Figs. 20 to 23 are views showing a load generator in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, -
Fig. 20 is a side vertical cross section of the assembled load generator, -
Fig. 21 is a front vertical cross section ofFig. 20 , -
Fig. 22 is a cross section showing a one-direction check valve of direction control valves, and -
Fig. 23 is a cross section showing a two-direction check valve of direction control valves. - Hereinafter, with reference to accompanying drawings, the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.
- In the preferred embodiments of the present invention, a
chair unit 7 is constructed by assembling aseat 1, twolegs 3, ahandle 4, andrelated frames 5 and 6. Exercises are conducted using theback frame 2 or aknee holding bar 9 operated in conjunction with aload generator 8. The waist exercise appliance of the present invention is used to exercise, strengthen or rehabilitate the waist. A lowerbody holding unit 20 is constructed to fix the lower body in front of thechair unit 7 or be moved along with the lower body. Thefoot support 26 of the lowerbody holding unit 20 is constructed to allow its vertical position to be adjusted. - In this case, the lower
body holding unit 20 is comprised of alower body holder 22 and apelvis holder 24. Thelower body holder 22 serves to fix the lower body so as to withstand the waist exercise and prevent the dispersion of force while it is intended to strengthen or rehabilitate the waist using the upper part of the body. - Additionally, when it is intended to strengthen or rehabilitate the waist, the lower
body holding unit 20 is operated to move along with the lower body. - With reference to
Figs. 1 and3 , waist exercises performed on the waist exercise appliance using the upper part of the body are described. In accordance with the basic concept of the present invention, extension or flexion exercises are performed using the upper part of the body over the lumber vertebra while the lower body and the pelvic region are tightly held by the lowerbody holding unit 20 with the lower part tightly held by thelower body holder 22 and the pelvic region tightly held by thepelvis holder 24. - In fixing the lower body and the pelvis, the lower body situated under the hip joints is tightly held by the
lower body holder 22 and the pelvis situated over the hip joints is tightly held by thepelvis holder 24. Thelower body holder 22 is comprised of afoot support 26 and theknee holding bar 9. Thefoot support 26 is constructed to allow its height and its tilt angle to be controlled and to be operated separately from or in conjunction with theknee holding bar 9. Thepelvis holder 24 includes twoholder bodies 27 for simultaneously or sequentially holding the upper and lower parts of the pelvis. When necessary, apelvis support 28 is mounted on the rear portion of theseat 1 to be moved forward and rearward, and tightly holds the rear surface of the pelvis. - In more detail, in the embodiment shown in
Figs. 1 to 4 , theknee holding bar 9 of thelower body holder 22 and theholder bodies 27 of thepelvis holder 24 are attached to anactuating bar 27 to be operated in conjunction with each other. Theholder bodies 27 are constructed to allow its position to be controlled. Theactuating bar 220 is constructed to be moved forward and rearward by means of thelinks 221. When the rear portion of theactuating bar 220 is lifted up around ahinge 231, theholder bodies 27 situated on the front portion of theactuating bar 220 are moved down and theholder bodies 27 push the upper and lower portions at the same time, thereby tightly holding the pelvis. - The
foot support 26 of thelower body holder 22 is mounted to the lower portion of ablock 207. Theblock 207 is moved along upper andlower guide rods support posts rod 206 situated betweenguide rods links 210 are respectively attached to abracket 208 and aworm gear 209, and their second ends are hingedly attached to allow thelinks 210 to be situated at upper and lower positions. Theworm gear 209 is mounted to be engaged with arotatable worm 211 in the interior of theblock 207. Theworm 211,worm gear 211 andlinks 210 are moved in conjunction with one another so that the height and tilt angle of thefoot support 26 can be adjusted by the rotation of anadjustment shaft 213 mounted on the lower portions of thesupport rods handle 212 at its front end, engaged with theworm 211 to be moved forward and rearward, and splined on a part of it. That is, thefoot support 26 is moved forward and rearward by the threadedrod 206, and tilted by theadjustment shaft 213. - The
knee holding bar 9 of thelower body holder 22 is mounted to theactuating bar 220 or anactuating rod support 222, to which the upper ends of thelinks 221 are hinged, to be slid forward and rearward, and thepelvis holder 24 is hingedly attached to the front end of theactuating bar 220 and includesholder bodies 27 for tightly holding the upper and lower portions of the pelvis, thereby tightly holding the knee and the upper and lower portions of the pelvis at the same time. In the embodiment shown inFig. 1 , the lower end of onelink 221 is hingedly attached to a movingpiece 228a that is engaged with a threadedactuating rod 228 rotatably supported at its both ends by onebracket 224 of acrossbar 223 and thesupport post 202, the lower end of theother link 221 is hingedly attached to thebracket 224a of thecrossbar 223, and astopper 221a is hingedly attached at its upper end to thelatter link 221 to be engaged with atoothed portion 223a formed on thecrossbar 223. In the embodiment shown inFig. 4 , the lower end of onelink 221 is hingedly attached to thebracket 224 fixed to thecrossbar 223, the lower end of theother link 221 is hingedly attached to aworm gear 225, and theworm gear 225 is rotatably mounted over the support posts 201, 202 and 203 and engaged with aworm 226 mounted to one end of theactuating rod 228 provided with ahandle 227, thereby tightly and simultaneously holding the knee and the upper and lower portions of the pelvis. In such a case, when necessary, apusher 230 provided with agrip 229 is hingedly attached to the hinge between the upper end of thelink 221 and theactuating rod support 222, so that when thegrip 229 is rotated clockwise, the rear end of theactuating bar 220 is moved upward around thehinge 231, and the front end of theactuating bar 220 is moved downward along with theholder bodies 27, thereby tightly holding the pelvis. Aadjustment rod 233 in-line with theactuating rod 228 and connected to a handle 232 is mounted in a rotatingmember 235 and alinear bearing 236, which are situated on the support posts 201 and 202, to be moved forward and rearward. Theadjustment rod 233 is provided with asplined portion 237 on its front portion. Accordingly, when theadjustment rod 233 is moved forward, thesplined portion 237 of theadjustment rod 233 is engaged with an interiorlysplined portion 238 formed on theactuating rod 228 and theactuating rod 228 can be rotated by the handle 232 and theadjustment rod 233. In contrast, when theadjustment rod 233 is moved rearward, thesplined portion 237 of theadjustment rod 233 is engaged with an interiorlysplined portion 239 formed on the rotatingmember 235 and the threadedrod 206 can be rotated through apulley 241, abelt 240 and anotherpulley 242. - In the embodiment shown in
Figs. 5 to 12 , alower body holder 22 includes aknee holding bar 9 and afoot support 26 that are operated in conjunction with each other, and thepelvis holder 24 includes upper andlower holder bodies 27 and thepelvis support 28 situated on the rear portion of theseat 1. - The
foot support 26 of thelower body holder 22 is constructed to allow its height to be adjusted and to allow its position to be fixed, theknee holding bar 9 of thelower body holder 22 is comprised of a mainknee holding bar 90 and an auxiliaryknee holding bar 92 that are attached to both ends of asupport rod 94 hingedly attached to the upper end of theactuating bar 220, and ashock absorber 250 is situated to connect the lower portion of theactuating rod 220 and ablock 207. In thepelvis holder 24, the upper andlower holder bodies 27 are separately positioned, theholder bodies 27 fitted around holdingbelts pelvis holding rod 11a are hingedly attached to one side of a holdingframe 11, and the lower portion of thepelvis holding rod 11 a is hingedly held by theslot 263 of a pressurizinglever 261. Accordingly, when the pressurizinglever 261 is pulled up, thepelvis holding rod 11a is rotated downwardly around ahinge 265, thereby allowing theholder bodies 27 to tightly hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis in diagonal directions. - When necessary, a
pelvis support 28 is situated on the rear portion of achair unit 7. The rear surface of thepelvis support 28 is hingedly attached to the upper surface of a movingmember 256 disposed to be moved forward and rearward along aguide rod 255 positioned between the front andrear supports pelvis support 28 is engaged with a threadedrod 257, and the threadedrod 257 is supported by the front andrear supports rod 257 is rotated by the rotation of thehandle 258, the movingmember 256 is moved forward and thepelvis support 28 is moved forward along with the movingmember 256. While the pelvis is tightly pushed downward and rearward, the pelvis is pushed forward from the rear surface of the pelvis, thereby even more tightly holding the pelvis. - When the waist exercise appliance of the present invention is constructed to allow extension and reflexion exercises to be performed using the lower body, its lower
body holding unit 20 includes afoot support 26 and aknee holding bar 9 that allow their heights to be controlled and are capable of being moved in conjunction with each other. Aknee holding bar 9 is constructed to allow its height to be controlled together with a foot support so as to be flexed around the hip joints. - In more detail, as shown in
Figs. 13 and16 , theknee holding bar 9 is moved in conjunction with thefoot support 26. Theknee holding bar 9 is mounted on the upper end of aretractable support rod 260, and thefoot support 26 is mounted on aretractable cross rod 262. Thesupport rod 260 and thecross rod 262 are hingedly situated, respectively. The front end of thefoot support 26 and the center portion of thesupport rod 260 are connected to each other by asupport link 264. Thesupport rod 260 is constructed by telescopically assembling upper and lowersupport rod members support rod member 270, thesupport link 264 and a fixingmember 266 are hingedly attached to aslider 274 fitted around the lowersupport rod member 270, and the uppersupport rod member 264 is disposed to be fixed or freed depending at a certain position on the insertion of a fixing rod 273 elastically supported through the slit 272 by the manipulation of the fixingmember 266. - In an embodiment shown in
Fig. 16 , afoot support 26 and aknee holding bar 9 are mounted to be moved in conjunction with each other. A support arm 180 is hingedly connected at its lower end to asupport rod 282 fixed to the lower portion of achair unit 7 and at its center portion to one end of aconnection link 286 situated to be moved together with afirst gear 284. Theknee holding bar 9 is mounted on the upper end of atelescopic support arm 290 situated to be moved together with asecond gear 292. The first andsecond gears foot support 26 and theknee holding bar 9 constitute the lowerbody holding unit 20 to be moved in conjunction with each other. - As illustrated in
Figs. 5 to 9 , when theback frame 2 is mounted to be moved in conjunction with aload generator 8 through ahinge 13 and aremoval prevention unit 30 is positioned on the upper end of theback frame 2, thehandle 4 of theremoval prevention unit 30 is situated to be moved around ahinge 32, astopper 34 is positioned to surround thehinge 32, across member 36 is disposed in the vicinity of the lower end of thestopper 34 and aninclined surface 38 is provided on the rear portion of thestopper 34. When thehandle 4 is pushed rearward around thehinge 32, thehandle 4 is capable of being pushed till theinclined surface 38 is brought into contact with the upper surface of thecross member 36. Accordingly, there can be prevented a problem that when a user conducts extension exercises using his upper body and lacks force for pushing the back frame, force is applied through his hands, thereby preventing removal in a movement direction. - Next, when necessary, a
head support 41 is mounted at the upper end of theback frame 41 and a cervicalvertebrae exercise unit 40 is situated behind thehead support 41. As depicted inFigs. 3 to 6 , therear frame 42 of thehead support 41 is constructed to be moved around thehinge 32, and theload generator 44 is hingedly attached to therear frame 42 and abracket 43. In this case, the upper end of theload generator 44 is attached by engaging a movingmember 46 with a rotatable threadedrod 45. Accordingly, theload generator 44 is utilized by the forward and rearward displacement of the movingmember 46 in accordance with the rotational direction of the threadedrod 45, and exercise load exerted on the cervical vertebrae during cervical vertebrae exercises can be controlled by the rotational movement of thehead support 41. - Next, when exercises are performed using the lower body, an upper
body holding unit 50 is preferably mounted to the upper end of theback frame 2 to hold the shoulder region of the upper body, as depicted inFigs. 13 to 18 . In more detail, anupper body holder 51 provided with twohandles 4 is attached to the upper end of theback frame 2 through ahinge 32, and alocking device 52 is provided in the vicinity of thehinge 32 to keep theupper body holder 51 open or closed. The lockingdevice 52 is comprised of a lockingportion 53 integrated with theupper body holder 51 and a lockingmember 54 that constitutes the upper portion of theback frame 2 so as to adjust the lockingportion 53 to be locked or released. The lockingmember 54 constitutes the upper portion of theback frame 2 and is disposed to allow its portion to be situated under the lockingportion 53 to be rotated horizontally. Alever 58 is hingedly attached to one side of a pressurizing member 57 having a tapered shape and an open end. When theopen end 56 of the pressurizing member 57 is situated under the lockingportion 53 by the manipulation of thelever 58, there occurs a release state where theupper body support 51 along with the lockingportion 53 is freely bend rearward through theopen end 56. On the contrary, while theupper body support 51 is situated forward and fixedly surrounds the shoulders of the user before a user performs exercises, thelever 58 is rotated to lock the lockingportion 53. Accordingly, theupper body support 51 is not allowed to be pushed rearward and the tapered portion of the pressurizing member 57 pushes the lower portion of the lockingportion 53 upwardly, so the front portion of theupper body support 51 is further moved forward. Accordingly, regardless of the widths of shoulders and individual conditions, the lockingunit 52 can be utilized while be adjusted corresponding to circumstances. - Although the upper
body holding unit 50 is described as being applied to exercises using the upper body, it can be applied to exercises using the lower body. - When waist exercises are performed using the upper body, the central axis of the movement of the
back frame 2 coincides with the cervical vertebrae so as to prevent a phenomenon that the body is not moved with the exercise appliance as one body and is not adapted to the appliance. In contrast, when the waist exercises are performed using the lower body, the central axis of the movement of theknee holder 9 is constructed to coincide with the hip joint directly or through a connecting member. An example of the former case is shown inFig. 5 in which the central axis of the movement of theback frame 2 is constructed to allow thehinge 13 provided on astationary frame 11 to coincide with the cervical vertebrae. The examples of the latter case are shown inFig. 13 in which, while a vertical straight line connecting the centers of the first andsecond gears center 15 of the hip joint,parallel links 289 are employed as connecting members to connect the rear end of thecross rod 262 and thecenter 288 of thefirst gear 284 so as to keep the distance between the center of the hip joint and the center of theknee holder 9, or inFig. 16 in which the central axis of the movement of theknee holding bar 9 is constructed to allow the center of thesecond gear 292 to coincide with the central axis of the movement of the hip joint. - Next, an exercise
range adjustment unit 60 is mounted on the central axis of the exercise of theback frame 2 orknee holding bar 9 and a portion moved in conjunction with these parts so as to adjust the range of exercises during extension or flexion exercises. As illustrated inFigs. 1 ,4 ,13 ,16 and19 , when the exerciserange adjustment unit 60 is mounted to thehinge 13 orcentral shaft 296 of thegear 292 moved in conjunction with thecentral shaft 288 of thegear 284, the exerciserange adjustment unit 60 is comprised of arotating disk 61, a pair of adjustment handles 63 and anouter casing 65. Therotating disk 61 is moved in conjunction with thehinge 13 or thecentral shaft 296 of thegear 292, and provided withstoppers 62 at reference positions. The adjustment handles 63 are not moved in conjunction with thehinge 13 orcentral shaft 296, fixed by thestoppers 62, and elastically supported bysprings 68, thereby directly adjusting the range of exercises. Theouter casing 65 is provided with a pair of adjustment holes 63 andadjustment cavities 67 formed along the adjustment holes 63, and is fixedly attached to achair unit 1 so as to allow the adjustments handles 63 to be exposed to the outside. When the ranges of exercises are determined by positioning the adjustment handles 63 in certain ones of theadjustment cavities 67 formed along the adjustment holes 66. the range of exercises are restricted to positions where thestoppers 62 of therotating disk 61 moved in conjunction with thehinge 13 orcentral shaft 296 are inserted into or fixed in the adjustment cavities 64, thereby determining the range of the exercises of the back frame orknee holding bar 9. Of course, oneadjustment handle 63 and oneadjustment hole 66 are formed on one side of theouter casing 65 to adjust the range of exercises of one side. - Additionally, a passive drive unit, together with the load generator, is mounted to the back frame or
knee holding bar 9 so as to selectively perform active exercises and passive exercises. When performing active exercises, a user conducts exercises in accordance with exercise load obtained from theload generator 8 that is constructed to allow exercise load generated thereby; while when performing passive exercises, waist exercises are forcibly performed by passive exercise force applied from the outside. For active exercise unit, theload generator 80, conventional weights, springs, elastic rubber or independent shock absorbers can be employed; for passive exercise appliance, a drive motor electrically operated, a drive cylinder operated by hydraulic or air pressure, and one of other external force can be employed. The passive exercise appliances are constructed to be operated by passive forcible loading force exerted by a third party, such as ahandle lever 74 and a mediumsupply adjustment unit 87 that will be described below. - With regard to exercise load generated by the
load generator 8, actual exercise load experienced by a user is not the exercises load generated by theload generator 8, and related parts including theback frame 2 orknee holding bar 9 are moved together and necessitate loading force. In order to prevent the above-mentioned problem or reduce loading force required for passive exercises forced by a third party, acounter exercise unit 70 is positioned opposite to a movement frame that is moved in conjunction with theback frame 2 orknee holding bar 9 situated to be moved in conjunction with theload generator 8. - As shown in
Fig. 1 or4 , thecounter exercise unit 70 in the forms of weights may be mounted on asupport rod 72 through thehinge 13 of theback frame 2 to be opposite to the exercise frame; as shown inFig. 13 , thecounter exercise unit 70 is fixedly attached to ahandle lever 74 mounted to thecentral shaft 288 of thegear 284 to be opposite to theparallel links 289 moved in conjunction with theknee holding bar 9; and as shown inFig. 16 , thecounter exercise unit 70 in the form of a weight is mounted to ahandle lever 74 situated around thegear 292, the chain 294 and thecentral shaft 288 of thegear 284. The weight mounted to thesupport rod 72 or handlelever 74 is preferably disposed to allow its position to be controlled. As depicted inFig. 5 , thecounter exercise unit 70 is situated in the form of a shock absorber among the connectinglink 14 of theload generator 8 operated through thehinge 13 of theback frame 2, the operatingshaft 15 moved in conjunction with the connectinglink 14, asupport link 16 moved in conjunction with the operatingshaft 15, and the fixingbracket 18 of across rod 17. Although not illustrated, an elastic body such as a spring or the like can be employed instead of the weight or shock absorber. - In the
load generator 80 constructed to be applied to the exercise appliance of the present invention and widely applied to various appliances requiring loading force, as shown inFigs. 20 to 23 , acontrol unit 86 is constructed in such a way that anannular space 84 is provided in acasing central shaft 83 to accommodate working fluid, avane 85 having the same shape as the cross section of theannular space 84 is positioned in theannular space 84 to be operated in conjunction with thecentral shaft 83, and a workingfluid adjustor 86 is situated in a portion of theannular space 84 to adjust the direction and amount of working fluid. Additionally, when necessary, afluid load adjustor 87 is preferably formed to communicate with theannular space 84 so as to adjust load by varying an internal volume. - When the construction of the
load generator 80 is described in more detail with reference toFigs. 20 to 23 , acircular mounting space 802 is provided for a holdingmember 800 in theannular space 84, thecentral shaft 83 is inserted at its lower end portion into the center of thecasing member 800 is situated in thecircular mounting space 802, thevane 85 is mounted to a portion of the holdingmember 800, and the workingfluid adjustor 86 consisting of the flowrate control valve 806 and the flowdirection control valve 810 is situated influid passages casing members members vane 85 and the holdingmember 800, and aretainer 818 and anU-shaped packing 820 are situated around thecentral shaft 83. In the flowrate control valve 806, avalve body 822 having a semicircular sectional shape is situated in thefluid passage 804. In the flowdirection control valve 810, twovalve bodies springs valve seats shaft 826 on both sides of afluid passage 808, and anoperating piece 840 is positioned to move along the outside of the operatingshaft 826. Theoperating piece 840 is moved in a rack-and-pinion manner to selectively open or close one of thevalve bodies - In the working
fluid adjustor 87, anadjustor body 846, as shown inFig. 21 , is mounted on a portion of theouter casing annular space 84 through thefluid passage 844, and apiston 850 attached to apiston rod 848 is tightly fitted into the interior of theadjustor body 846. Thepiston rod 848 is engaged in a screw manner with anend plate 852 tightly fitted into the rear end of theadjustor body 846, so the size of the cavity of theadjustor body 846 is adjusted by the moving forward or rearward of thepiston rod 848 and thepiston 850 by the rotation of the handle 854. As a result, the loading or unloading of thecentral shaft 83 generated by the operation of thevane 85 is effected depending on whether working fluid is accommodated in theannular space 84 oradjustor body 846. - The
load generator 80 is used with theouter casing chair unit 7, and with thecentral shaft 83 connected to thehinge 13 orcentral shaft 288 of thegear 284 moved in conjunction with theback frame 2 or knee holding bar 98. When thecentral shaft 83 is rotated to operate theload generator 80, thevane 85 moved together with the holdingmember 800 is rotated in theannular space 84. The working fluid is adjusted in its exercise load, its applying direction and its loading or unloading by means of the flowrate control valve 806, the flowdirection control valve 810 or the workingfluid adjustor 87. - Hereunder, waist exercise appliances fabricated by assembling the lower
body holding unit 20, theremoval prevention unit 30, the cervicalvertebrae exercise unit 40, the upperbody holding unit 50, the exerciserange adjustment unit 60, thecounter exercise unit 70, and theload generator 80 is described along with their operations. - When waist exercises are performed utilizing the upper body, a waist exercise appliance of the present invention, as shown in
Figs. 1 and4 , is fabricated by employing the lowerbody holding unit 20, the exerciserange adjustment unit 60 and thecounter exercise unit 70. In this case, the lower body of a user is tightly held by the lowerbody holding unit 20. While the user sits on theseat 1, thefoot support 26 and theknee holding bar 9 are used, along with thepelvis holder 24. - The user puts his feet on the
foot support 26. The height and tilt angle of thefoot support 26 can be adjusted by the rotation of thelower handle 229, and the horizontal position of thefoot support 26 can be adjusted by the forward and rearward movement of theblock 207 in accordance with the rotational directions of thebelt 241 or threadedrod 206 using theupper handle 227. In addition, theknee holding bar 9 and theholder 27 of thepelvis holder 24 are forwardly downwardly moved by means of thelinks 221 by manually moving theactuating bar 220, as shown inFig. 1 , or by rotating theactuating bar 228 by means of the manipulation of theupper handle 227. When the rear end of theactuating bar 220 are upwardly moved and the front end of theactuating bar 220 is downwardly moved by moving forward the movingpiece 228a by means of the rotation of theactuating bar 28 by thehandle 227, as shown inFig. 1 , or by manipulating thepusher 230, as shown inFig. 4 , so the pelvis is tightly held by pushing the upper and lower portions of the pelvis at the same time with theholder 27 and the knee is tightly held by downwardly pushing the knee with theknee holding bar 9, thereby completely holding the feet, knee and pelvis of the lower body. - While the lower body is tightly held as described above, the range of exercises are adjusted in advance by the exercise
range adjustment unit 60 that is situated to be moved in conjunction with theback frame 2 around thehinge 13. While the balance of mechanical load is established by thecounter exercise unit 70 disposed in the forms of weights to be moved together around thehinge 13, waist exercises can be performed in active or passive drive manners utilizing the upper body. - In
Fig. 5 , there is shown an embodiment that is constructed by employing the lowerbody holding unit 20, theremoval prevention unit 30, the cervicalvertebrae exercise unit 40, construction for the coincidence of the center axis of exercises and the lumber vertebrae, and thecounter exercise unit 70. - In such a case, the
lower body holder 22 of the lowerbody holding unit 20 is comprised of thefoot support 26 and theknee holding bar 9 that are moved in conjunction with each other. Thefoot support 26 is constructed to allow its height, tilt angle and horizontal position. Theknee holding bar 9 tightly holds the knee by the conjunctive movement of theworm 226 and theworm gear 225 by means of the manipulation of thehandle 258. Thepelvis holder 24 allows theholders 27 to tightly hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis by the operation of thesupport rod 11a and a pushinglever 261. Additionally, the lower portion of the pelvis is firmly pushed from its rear direction by thepelvis support 28. Theremoval prevention unit 30 is mounted on the upper end of theback frame 2, so the force of the arm is not transmitted to theback frame 2 and waist exercises can be performed using the upper body. The cervicalvertebrae exercise unit 40 is positioned, so the exercise of the cervical vertebrae can be performed when force is exerted on ahead support 41 using the head while a user is seated. Thehinge 13 of theback frame 2 is situated over the upper portion of theseat 1 to coincide with the lumbar vertebrae of a user. The hydraulic cylinder is employed as theload generator 8 moved in conjunction with theback frame 2. Thecounter exercise unit 70 in the form of a shock absorber is attached at its both ends to the operatingshaft 15 moved in conjunction with the connectinglink 14 hingedly connected to one side of theload generator 8 and the fixingbracket 18 of thecross rod 17, thereby balancing exercise load during extension exercises utilizing theback frame 6 and theload generator 8. - In
Figs. 13 and16 , there are illustrated embodiments in which waist exercises are performed using the lower body. The embodiments are constructed by employing the lowerbody holding unit 20, the upperbody holding unit 50, construction for the coincidence of the center axis of exercises and the hip joints, thecounter exercise unit 70, and thecounter exercise unit 80. - The lower
body holding unit 20 is comprised of thefoot support 26 and theknee holding bar 9 that are moved in conjunction with each other. The distance between thefoot support 26 and theknee holding bar 9 is capable of being controlled according to the physique of a user. A user performs the extension and reflexion exercises of the waist by lifting up and lowering the knee holding bar using the feet and knee while the shoulder region of the upper body is fixed by the upperbody holding unit 50 and thehandles 4 are gripped. In such a case, the quantity of the exercise load, direction of the exercise and loading or unloading of theload generator 80 can be controlled, and the exercises can be performed while the balance of the exercises is established by the mounting of thecounter exercise unit 70. In particular, since the position of the hip joints serve as the center axis of exercises, the central of rotational operation and the body harmonize with each other. - Of course, in the above-described embodiments, when the
load generator handle lever 74 according to another intention, thereby strengthening the waist by the extension exercises of the waist region. - As described above, the present invention provides a waist exercise appliance that is capable of allowing the lumbar muscles to be strengthened using the upper and lower bodies. While the waist region is exercised using the upper body, the lower body and the pelvis are tightly held by the lower
body holding unit 20 constructed in accordance with the present invention. Differently from a conventional appliance, the upper and lower portions and the rear portion are distinguished from one another and tightly held in diagonal directions. While the waist region is exercised using the upper and lower bodies, the degrees of the bending and extension of the knee joint can be adjusted by the adjustment of the height, tilt angle and horizontal position of thefoot support 26, and the quantity and range of the strengthening and rehabilitating of related muscles can be adjusted by the conjunctive movement of theknee holding bar 9 andfoot support 26. - The force of the arms is not transmitted to the
back frame 2 by theremoval prevention unit 30 during extension exercises, so waist exercises can be performed only using the upper body. The central axis of the exercise is constructed to coincide with the lumbar vertebrae or hip joint, so the human body and the exercise appliance harmonize with and are moved in conjunction with each other. The angle range of exercises can be adjusted by the exerciserange adjustment unit 60. External effects can be excluded from the pure exercise load force by thecounter exercise unit 70. - In accordance with the present invention, the quantity and direction of load can be easily controlled, the structure of the load generator is simplified, the load generator is widely applied to a place where loading force is required, and the load generator is easily installed and utilized.
Claims (8)
- Waist exercise appliance for exercising, strengthening or rehabilitating the waist, in which a chair unit (7) is constructed by assembling a seat (1), two legs (3), a handle (4) and related frames (5) and (6) and exercises are conducted using a back frame (2) or a knee holding bar (9) operated in conjunction with a load generator (8), further comprising a lower body holding unit (20) constructed to fix the lower body in front of the chair unit (7) or to be moved along with the lower body, wherein said lower body holding unit (20) comprises a foot support (26) being constructed to allow its vertical position to be adjusted, a lower body holder (22) for holding the lower body and a pelvis holder (24) for holding the pelvis, said lower body holder (22) is constructed to allow said foot support (26) and the knee holding bar (9) to be moved,
characterized in that
said pelvis holder (24) is constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately and further comprises a pelvis support (28) situated on the rear portion of the seat (1) to be moved forward and rearward so as to tightly hold the rear portion of the pelvis,
said knee holding bar (9) of the lower body holder (22) and holder bodies (27) of the pelvis holder (24) are attached to an actuating bar (220) to be operated in conjunction with each other,
wherein the holder bodies (27) are constructed to allow their positions to be adjusted, the actuating bar (220) is constructed to be moved forward and rearward by means of links (221), so that when the rear portion of the actuating bar (220) is lifted up around a hinge (231), the holder bodies (27) situated on the front portion of the actuating bar (220) are moved down and the holder bodies (27) push the upper and lower portions at the same time, thereby tightly holding the pelvis. - Waist exercise appliance for exercising, strengthening or rehabilitating the waist, in which a chair unit (7) is constructed by assembling a seat (1), two legs (3), a handle (4) and related frames (5) and (6) and exercises are conducted using a back frame (2) or a knee holding bar (9) operated in conjunction with a load generator (8),
further comprising a lower body holding unit (20) constructed to fix the lower body in front of the chair unit (7) or to be moved along with the lower body,
wherein said lower body holding unit (20) comprises a foot support (26) being constructed to allow its vertical position to be adjusted, a lower body holder (22) for holding the lower body and a pelvis holder (24) for holding the pelvis, said lower body holder (22) is constructed to allow said foot support (26) and the knee holding bar (9) to be moved,
characterized in that
said pelvis holder (24) is constructed to hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis simultaneously or separately, wherein the upper and lower holder bodies (27) of said pelvis holder (24) are separately positioned, the holder bodies (27) fitted around holding belts (251) and (252) attached to both sides of a pelvis holding rod (11a) are hingedly attached to one side of a holding frame (11), and the lower portion of the pelvis holding rod (11a) is hingedly held by a slot (263) of a pressurizing lever (261), so that when the pressurizing lever (261) is pulled up, the pelvis holding rod (11a) is rotated downwardly around a hinge (265), thereby allowing the holder bodies (27) to thightly hold the upper and lower portions of the pelvis. - Appliance according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said back frame (6) is mounted to be moved in conjunction with a load generator (8) trough a hinge (13) and a removable prevention unit (30) is positioned on the upper end of the back frame (6) to prevent removable from an exercise direction.
- Appliance according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an upper body holding unit (50) mounted to the upper end of the back frame (6) to hold the shoulder region of the upper body, wherein said upper body holder (51) provided with two handles (4) is attached to the upper end of the back frame (6) through a hinge (32), and a locking device (52) is provided in the vicinity of the hinge (32) to keep the upper body holder (51) open or closed.
- Appliance according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said knee holding bar (9) is constructed to coincide with the hip joint directly or through a conjunctive member.
- Appliance according to claim 1, 2 or 4, further comprising an exercise range adjustment unit (60) mounted on the central axis of the exercise of the back frame (2) or knee holding bar (9) and a portion moved in conjunction with these parts so as to adjust the range of exercises during extension or flexion exercises.
- Appliance according to claim 1, 2 or 4, further comprising a passive drive unit, together with the load generator, said passive drive unit being mounted on the back frame (2) or knee holding bar (9) so as to selectively perform active exercises and passive exercises.
- Appliance according to claim 1, 2 and 4, further comprise a counter exercise unit (70) positioned opposite to a movement frame that is moved in conjunction with the back frame (2) or knee holding bar (9) situated to be moved in conjunction with the load generator (8).
Applications Claiming Priority (3)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
KR9952806 | 1999-11-25 | ||
KR1019990052806A KR100343094B1 (en) | 1999-11-25 | 1999-11-25 | Load generator and waist exercise device using thereof |
PCT/KR2000/001358 WO2001037939A1 (en) | 1999-11-25 | 2000-11-25 | Load generator and waist exercise device using same |
Publications (3)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP1233817A1 EP1233817A1 (en) | 2002-08-28 |
EP1233817A4 EP1233817A4 (en) | 2005-03-30 |
EP1233817B1 true EP1233817B1 (en) | 2008-04-09 |
Family
ID=19621875
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP00981883A Expired - Lifetime EP1233817B1 (en) | 1999-11-25 | 2000-11-25 | Waist exercise device using same |
Country Status (5)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP1233817B1 (en) |
KR (1) | KR100343094B1 (en) |
AU (1) | AU1899101A (en) |
DE (1) | DE60038569D1 (en) |
WO (1) | WO2001037939A1 (en) |
Families Citing this family (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
CN100418502C (en) * | 2006-05-11 | 2008-09-17 | 北京联合大学 | Passive type exerciser for lower limbs |
KR100948168B1 (en) | 2009-10-14 | 2010-03-17 | 김용관 | Exercise apparatus for handicapped use |
KR102041999B1 (en) * | 2017-07-21 | 2019-11-07 | 대구대학교 산학협력단 | The stretching apparatus of the lower leg muscle |
CN108478390A (en) * | 2018-05-07 | 2018-09-04 | 南通市第二人民医院 | A kind of Orthopaedic nursing device with infrared function |
CN109907959B (en) * | 2019-04-02 | 2021-01-05 | 德州市人民医院 | Postpartum auxiliary recovery instrument |
KR102269719B1 (en) * | 2020-01-09 | 2021-06-28 | 장기남 | Joint exercise equipment |
KR102409379B1 (en) | 2020-08-25 | 2022-06-15 | 대구대학교 산학협력단 | The stretching apparatus of the lower leg muscle having enhanced stretching function of thigh |
Family Cites Families (13)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JPS59108571A (en) * | 1982-12-10 | 1984-06-23 | セノ−株式会社 | Muscle force training machine |
US4500089A (en) * | 1983-01-20 | 1985-02-19 | Nautilus Sports/Medical Industries, Inc. | Weight lifting lower back exercising machine |
US4725055A (en) * | 1985-11-27 | 1988-02-16 | Lumex, Inc. | Lower body stabilization apparatus for a back test, rehabilitation and exercise machine |
FR2608057B1 (en) * | 1986-12-11 | 1989-07-21 | Coley Roland Le | REHABILITATION APPARATUS FOR THE RECOVERY AND MAINTENANCE OF THE BASIN MOBILITY |
US4902009A (en) * | 1987-06-11 | 1990-02-20 | Arthur Jones | Machine for exercising and/or testing muscles of the lower trunk, and method |
US5104364A (en) * | 1987-06-11 | 1992-04-14 | Jones Arthur A | Method for exercising or testing rotary torso muscles |
US5928112A (en) * | 1987-06-11 | 1999-07-27 | Medx 96, Inc. | Machine for exercising and/or testing muscles of the human body |
US5549534A (en) * | 1989-02-07 | 1996-08-27 | Parviainen; Arno | Spine rehabilitation apparatus |
US5070863A (en) * | 1990-03-08 | 1991-12-10 | Baltimore Therapeutic Equipment Co. | Back exercise apparatus |
KR0140155Y1 (en) * | 1995-07-18 | 1999-05-15 | 안정용 | All-round body training tool |
JP3612379B2 (en) * | 1996-04-10 | 2005-01-19 | 三菱自動車工業株式会社 | Variable valve mechanism drive device and hydraulic actuator |
US6015372A (en) * | 1998-03-03 | 2000-01-18 | Medx 96, Inc. | Abdominal exercise machine and methods |
DE19852183B4 (en) * | 1998-11-12 | 2004-03-25 | Klaus Schnell | Device for fixing the pelvis of a seated person |
-
1999
- 1999-11-25 KR KR1019990052806A patent/KR100343094B1/en not_active IP Right Cessation
-
2000
- 2000-11-25 WO PCT/KR2000/001358 patent/WO2001037939A1/en active Application Filing
- 2000-11-25 DE DE60038569T patent/DE60038569D1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 2000-11-25 EP EP00981883A patent/EP1233817B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 2000-11-25 AU AU18991/01A patent/AU1899101A/en not_active Abandoned
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
KR100343094B1 (en) | 2002-07-05 |
AU1899101A (en) | 2001-06-04 |
EP1233817A4 (en) | 2005-03-30 |
WO2001037939A1 (en) | 2001-05-31 |
KR20010048215A (en) | 2001-06-15 |
DE60038569D1 (en) | 2008-05-21 |
EP1233817A1 (en) | 2002-08-28 |
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