MODULAR CABLE-BASED RESISTANCE WORKOUT DEVICE

Abstract

The present invention provides a modular cable-based resistance workout device that can be used in different types of indoor and outdoor settings such as platform mountings, wall tracks, doors, trees, poles, or benches or chairs. The workout device includes a left spring plate assembly, a right spring plate assembly, a mainframe, a shaft, a cable reel, and a platform, or a wall mounted track or ratchet straps. The each of the spring plate assembly includes a permanent resistance assembly and a plurality of variable resistance assemblies. Each of the variable resistance assemblies comprises a secondary recoil spring that is selectively engageable with the shaft. The permanent resistance assembly alone or along with the selectively engageable plurality of variable resistance assemblies resist unwinding of the cable from the cable reel upon application of pull force on the cable.

Claims

1. A modular cable-based resistance workout device (100), comprising: a left spring plate assembly (101), and a right spring plate assembly (102), each of the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102) comprising: a permanent resistance assembly (160) mounted on a shaft (130) comprising a primary recoil spring (161) that exerts a resistive force to resist unwinding of the cable (120) from a cable reel (150); and a plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) selectively mountable to the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102), wherein each of the plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) comprises a secondary recoil spring (171) that is selectively engageable with the shaft (130) to generate a resistive force to resist unwinding of the cable (120) from the main reel; a mainframe (180) for attaching the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102) via twisting action; a platform or a wall-mounted track or ratchet straps for holding the mainframe; and wherein the permanent resistance assembly (160) alone or along with the selectively engageable plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) resists unwinding of the cable (120) from the cable reel (150) upon application of pull force on the cable (120) by the user during the intended resistance exercise.

2. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the cable (120) is having an outer cable end that is removably coupled to a handle (190).

3. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the mainframe (180) comprises at least two pairs of subframes (185, 186, 188, 189) and a bracket (187).

4. The workout device (100) of claim 3, wherein the permanent resistance assembly (160) is fixed to a first subframe (185, or 188) or a second subframe (186, or 189) of the two pairs of subframes (185, 186, 188, 189).

5. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the permanent resistance assembly (160) is mounted on the shaft (130) through a sleeve (166).

6. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the permanent resistance assembly (160) comprises: the primary recoil spring (161) having a primary working end, and a primary non-working end thereof; a primary insert (162) with a primary groove for engaging the primary working end therein; a primary base (163) that receives the primary recoil spring (161) thereinside; and a primary cover (164) that holds the primary recoil spring (161) inside the first primary base (163).

7. The workout device (100) of claim 6, wherein the primary base (163) is provided with a primary notch (165) for fixing the primary non-working end of the primary recoil spring (161) there inside.

8. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein each of the variable resistance assembly (170) is mounted on the shaft (130).

9. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) comprises: the secondary recoil spring (171) having a secondary working end and a secondary non-working end thereof; a secondary insert (172) with a secondary groove for engaging the secondary working end therein; a secondary base (173) that receives the secondary recoil spring (171) there inside; a secondary cover (174) holds the secondary recoil spring (171) inside the first primary base (163); a lever (177) for selectively engaging the secondary recoil spring (171) of each of the plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) with the shaft (130) to generate a resistive force; wherein each of the plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) is received within a plurality of lever slots of a housing (181) formed by a plurality of separators (178).

10. The workout device (100) of claim 9, wherein the secondary base (173), and the secondary cover (174) comprise a plurality of locking curves (176) configured along their circumference.

11. The workout device (100) of claim 9, wherein the lever (177) comprises: an immovable end fixed to a carriage screw (182); a locking member (181) disposed of in proximity to a movable end of the lever (177), wherein the locking member (181) gets locked with any of the plurality of the locking curves (176) of the secondary base (173); and wherein the movable end embodies a movable ball pin (183) configured to move within a lever channel (179) configured on an inner separator of the plurality of separators (178).

12. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the workout device (100) comprises an arm (110) through which the cable (120) is extended.

13. The workout device (100) of claim 12, wherein an angle of the arm (110) is adjusted using an arm-adjusting mechanism (140).

14. The workout device (100) of claim 13, wherein the arm-adjusting mechanism (140) comprises two pairs of adjusting members (141), each pair of the adjusting members (141) is operably coupled to a locking lever (151) for locking, unlocking, and allowing to change positions of the arm (110) thereof.

15. The workout device (100) of claim 14, wherein the pair of adjusting members (141) holds the arm (110) with a pulley (142) therebetween, and wherein each adjusting member (141) comprises: a hole (143) for passing the shaft (130) therethrough; an extended segment (144) for fixing the arm (110); and a curved portion (145) provided with a plurality of grooves (146) for adjusting the angle of the arm (110).

16. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the workout device (100) comprises at least a pair of connectors (147, 148) that holds the cable reels (150) of the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102) therebetween to reduce fluctuating vibrations produced therein.

17. The workout device (100) of claim 16, wherein the connectors (147, 148) are mounted on the shaft (130) of the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102).

18. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the workout device (100) comprises at least two pairs of connectors (147A, 148A), each connected together by means of a mounting bracket (149) adapted for mounting at least one sensor configured for capturing and transmission of real-time data to at least one processor to generate various reports and output that may be useful for performance tracking and rendering coaching advices for further improvements.

19. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the platform (200) comprising: a pair of pads (210, 220) hinged together, each provided with a hinge (240) having a plurality of meshing holes (250) and a pivot hole (260); a knuckle pin (270) that passes through any of the plurality of meshing holes (250) and a first locking hole of a sidewall (180A) of the mainframe (180) and a bracket rib (152 or 153) to lock the position of the platform (200) at a required angle; and a pivot pin (280) that passes through the pivot hole (260) and a second locking hole of the sidewall (180A) and the bracket rib (152 or 153) respectively.

20. The workout device (100) of claim 1, wherein the wall-mounted track (300) comprises a slider (310) having a device angle adjusting mechanism (320), and wherein the slider (310) is adapted for slidably mounting the workout device (100) on the wall-mounted track (300) and is operable manually, automatically or semi-automatically operated.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0018] So that the manner in which the above-recited features of the present invention can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the invention, briefly summarized above, may have been referred by embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments. These and other features, benefits, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent by reference to the following text figure, with like reference numbers referring to like structures across the views, wherein:

[0019] FIG. 1A illustrates a perspective view of a workout device mounted on the platform, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] FIG. 1B illustrates a perspective view of the workout device of FIG. 1A attached to a slider of a wall track;

[0021] FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of the workout device of FIG. 1A without being mounted on the platform;

[0022] FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate a perspective view of the workout device of FIG. 2 without permeant resistance assemblies;

[0023] FIG. 5A illustrates a perspective view of a pair of connectors mounted on the shafts with mounting bracket;

[0024] FIG. 5B illustrates a perspective view of the connectors mounted on the shafts without the mounting bracket;

[0025] FIG. 6 illustrates a perspective view of the workout device FIG. 2 without housing of the variable resistance assemblies configured together;

[0026] FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of the workout device FIG. 2 without one variable resistance assembly;

[0027] FIG. 8 illustrates another view of the variable resistance assembly with lever locking;

[0028] FIG. 9A illustrates a view of the variable resistance assembly;

[0029] FIG. 9B illustrates an exploded view of the variable resistance assembly of FIG. 9;

[0030] FIG. 10A illustrates a view of the permanent resistance assembly;

[0031] FIG. 10B illustrates an exploded view of the permanent resistance assembly of FIG. 10A;

[0032] FIG. 11 illustrates a perspective view of an arm end without the cover;

[0033] FIG. 12 illustrates a device adjustment mechanism selectively coupled to the workout device;

[0034] FIGS. 13 and 14 illustrate a perspective view of the platform to mount the workout device thereon;

[0035] FIG. 15 illustrates a perspective view of the platform in a folded configuration;

[0036] FIGS. 16A, 16B, and 16C illustrate different perspective views of the workout device of FIG. 2 attached to a wall track;

[0037] FIG. 16D illustrates the perspective view of the wall track without the workout device;

[0038] FIG. 16E illustrates exploded view of the wall track without a workout device; and

[0039] FIGS. 17A, 17B, 17C, 17D, 17E, 17F, and 17G illustrate some exemplary use cases of the workout device of FIG. 2 attached to different indoor and outdoor settings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0040] Some embodiments, illustrating its features, will now be discussed in detail. The words comprising, having, containing, and including, and other forms thereof, are intended to be equivalent in meaning and be open-ended in that an item or items following any one of these words is not meant to be an exhaustive listing of such item or items, or meant to be limited to only the listed item or items. It must also be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms a, an, and the include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Although any methods, and systems similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments, the preferred methods, and systems are now described. The disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary.

[0041] The present invention is described hereinafter by various embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein reference numerals used in the accompanying drawing correspond to the like elements throughout the description. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiment set forth herein. Rather, the embodiment is provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In the following detailed description, numeric values and ranges are provided for various aspects of the implementations described. These values and ranges are to be treated as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims. In addition, several materials are identified as suitable for various facets of the implementations. These materials are to be treated as exemplary and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

[0042] The various features and embodiments of the present invention will now be described in conjunction with the accompanying figures, namely FIGS. 1A-1B to 17A-17D, which should be regarded as merely illustrative without restricting the scope and ambit of the present invention.

[0043] The present invention is directed to a modular cable-based resistance workout device that can be used in different types of indoor and outdoor settings such as platform mountings, wall tracks, doors, trees, poles, benches, or chairs. The permanent resistance assemblies alone or along with selectively engaged variable resistance assemblies if coupled resist unwinding of the cable/cord from the main reel of the workout device upon pulling the cable by the exerciser during exercise. The workout device would optionally allow real-time data collection and transmission to a smart device or Internet for performance tracking and rendering coaching advice. For this, the workout device is configured to analyze activity information, such as for example applied force, number of repetitions and sets, velocity, and timing. The workout device can provide various exercise options with a high degree of variation in the resistance provided to the user/exerciser. The workout device utilizes a recoil spring mechanism that is easy to use and maintain. The workout device is compact in size, lightweight, simple in construction compared to massive-sized conventional gym machines, or other similar workout devices.

[0044] From herein afterward, the workout device is referred to as a workout device (100).

[0045] Referring now to the FIGS. 1A and 2, the workout device (100) includes a left spring plate assembly (101), a right spring plate assembly (102), a mainframe (180) and a platform (200) or wall-mounted track (300) or ratchet straps (400). The left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102) are attached to the mainframe (180) via twisting action. Referring now to FIG. 4, the mainframe (180) includes at least two pairs of subframes (185, 186, 188, 189) and a bracket (187). The permanent resistance assembly (160) is fixed to a first subframe or a second subframe of the two pairs of subframes (185, 186, 188, 189). The plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) is fixed to a subframe disposed opposed to the first subframe or the second subframe of the two pairs of subframes (185, 186, 188, 189) over. The subframes (185, 186, 188, 189) are provided with holes for mounting and attachment purposes. The mainframe (180) is made up of metal or metal alloy. The mainframe (180) ensures the mechanical strength of the device (100).

[0046] The left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102) are symmetrical (Refer FIG. 1B). Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, the mainframe (180) includes on each side a cable (120), an arm (110), a shaft (130), an arm-adjusting mechanism (140), a cable reel (150), a permanent resistance assembly (160), a plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) and at least a pair of connectors (147, 148). The permanent resistance assembly (160) alone or along with the selectively engageable plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) resists unwinding of the cable (120) from the cable reel (150) upon application of pull force on the cable (120) by the user during the intended resistance exercise.

[0047] The arm (110) includes a rectangular metallic bar (110A) which is covered with a polymer/plastic cover (110B). The cover (110B) and the bar (110A) are bolted together (FIG. 11). The cover (110B) protects the bar (110A) from the atmosphere and enhances the aesthetics thereof. The cable (120) is extended through the arm (110). The cable (120) has an inner end and an outer end. The outer cable end is removably coupled to a handle (190). The handle (190) is removably or permanently attached to the cable (120) by means of a handle receiving member (111). The handle receiving member (111) is configured inside the arm by means of holding pin (112) (FIG. 11). The handle (190) includes a handle locking means (190A) that gets locked inside the handle receiving member (111). The holding pin (112) restricts the handle movements inside the arm (110). The shaft (130) is a hexagonal shaft (130). The shaft (130) passes through colinear holes of any two parallel subframes (185, 186, 188, 189).

[0048] Referring now to FIG. 3, the cable reel (150) is mounted on the shaft (130) for winding or unwinding the cable (120) there around during an intended resistance exercise. The cable reel (150) includes a pair of discs. The discs are detachably fixed together by means of press fit engagement, latch members, rotational locks, nut bolts, etc. At least one of the pair of discs is provided with a protrusion for fixing the inner cable end therein.

[0049] Referring now to FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 6, the arm-adjusting mechanism (140) allows a user to adjust the angle of the arm (110) as per workout requirements. The mechanism (140) includes two pairs of adjusting members (141). Each pair of the adjusting members (141) is operably coupled to a locking lever (151) for locking, unlocking, and allowing to change positions of the arm (110) thereof. The user is only allowed to change the positions of the arms (110) when the locking lever (151) is pulled outside from an original position thereof. The adjusting member (141) holds the arm (110) with a pulley (142) there between. The adjusting member (141) is bolted to the rectangular bar of the arm (110). The pulley (142) ensures smooth winding and unwinding of the cable (120) around the cable reel (150). The pulley (142) is smaller in diameter relative to the cable reel (150). The adjusting member (141) includes a hole (143), an extended segment (144), and a curved portion (145). The hole (143) for passing the shaft (130) therethrough. The extended segment (144) is provided for rigidly fixing the arm (110) therewith. The curved portion (145) is provided with a plurality of grooves (146) for adjusting the angle of the arm (110).

[0050] The permanent resistance assembly (160) is mounted on the shaft (130) through a sleeve (166) (FIG. 3). The assembly (160) exerts a resistive force to resist the unwinding of the cable (120) from the cable reel (150). Referring now to FIGS. 10A and 10B, the assembly (160) includes a primary recoil spring (161), a primary insert (162), a primary base (163), and a primary cover (164). The primary recoil spring (161) have a primary working end and a primary non-working end. The primary insert (162) is provided with a primary groove for engaging the primary working end therein. The primary base (163) receives the primary recoil spring (161) there inside. The primary cover (164) holds the primary recoil spring (161) inside the first primary base (163). The primary base (163) is provided with a primary notch (165) for fixing the primary non-working end of the primary recoil spring (161) there inside.

[0051] Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, the variable resistance assemblies (170) are selectively mountable to the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102). The variable resistance assemblies (170) are mounted on the shaft (130). Each of the plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) is selectively engageable with the shaft (130) to generate a resistive force to resist the unwinding of the cable (120) from the cable reel (150).

[0052] The plurality of variable resistance assemblies (170) is housed in a housing (181) (FIG. 1B). Each of the variable resistance assemblies (170) includes a secondary recoil spring (171), a secondary insert (172), a secondary base (173), a secondary cover (174), a lever (177), a plurality of separators (178) as best seen in FIGS. 9A, and 9B. The secondary recoil spring (171) has a secondary working end and a secondary non-working end. The secondary insert (172) is provided with a secondary groove for engaging the secondary working end therein. The secondary base (173) receives the secondary recoil spring (171) there inside. The secondary cover (174) holds the secondary recoil spring (171) inside the first primary base (163). The secondary base (173), and the secondary cover (174) are configured with a plurality of locking curves (176) configured along their circumference. The secondary base (173) is provided with a secondary notch (175) for fixing the secondary non-working end of the secondary recoil spring (171) there inside.

[0053] Referring now to FIG. 8, the lever (177) is provided for selectively engaging the secondary recoil spring (171) with the shaft (130) to generate a resistive force. The variable resistance assemblies (170) are received within a lever slot of the housing (181) formed by a plurality of separators (178). The lever (177) includes an immovable end, and a locking member (181). The immovable end is fixed to a carriage screw (182) as seen in FIG. 7. The locking member (181) is disposed of in proximity to a movable end of the lever (177). The locking member (181) gets locked with any of the plurality of the locking curves (176) of the secondary base (173). The movable end embodies a movable ball pin (183). The ball pin (183) is configured to move within a lever channel (179) configured on the inner separators of the plurality of separators (178). When the lever (177) is not engaged, the ball pin (183) holds the lever (177).

[0054] The pair of connectors (147, 148) hold the cable reels (150) of the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102) therebetween to reduce fluctuating vibrations produced therein (FIG. 5B). The connectors (147, 148) are mounted on the shaft (130) of the left spring plate assembly (101) and the right spring plate assembly (102). In another alternative embodiment of the present invention, the workout device (100) comprises at least two pairs of connectors (147A, 148A) (FIG. 5A). Each pair of connectors (147A, 148A) is connected together by means of a mounting bracket (149).

[0055] The mounting bracket (149) is provided for mounting a sensor (electronic load cell) thereon. In some embodiments the bracket (187) is provided with structural extensions (187A) for mounting the sensor thereon as best seen in FIG. 3. In some embodiments, where the sensor is mounted, the sensor and other like components are adapted to collect real-time data and transmits to one or more electronic devices through a wireless network module. The real-time data is processed by a processor using predefined executable instructions to generate various reports and outputs. The reports and the generated outputs may be useful for performance tracking and rendering coaching advice for further improvements.

[0056] The workout device (100) includes a plurality of bracket ribs (152, 153) and horizontal ribs (154) for providing strength to the mainframe (180) as seen in FIG. 3.

[0057] The workout device (100) is attached to a platform (200). Referring now to FIGS. 12, 13, and 14, the platform (200) includes a pair of pads (210, 220), a knuckle pin (270), and a pivot pin (280). The pads (210, 220) hinged together. The pads (210, 220) are provided with a hinge (240). The hinge (240) is having a plurality of meshing holes (250) and a pivot hole (260). The knuckle pin (270) passes through any of the plurality of meshing holes (250) and a first locking hole of a sidewall (180A) of the mainframe (180) and the bracket rib (152 or 153) to lock the position of the platform (200) at a required angle. The pivot pin (280) passes through the pivot hole (260) and a second locking hole of the sidewall (180A) and the bracket rib (152 or 153) respectively.

[0058] Referring now to FIGS. 16A-16E, the workout device (100) is mounted on a slider (310) that slides on a wall-mounted track (300). The track (300) is mountable to any plane surface. The slider (310) includes a device angle-adjusting mechanism (320). The slider (310) is manually, automatically, or semi-automatically operated. The user is allowed to adjust the height of the device (100) by sliding upward or downward the slider (310) on the track (300).

[0059] Referring now to FIG. 17D, the workout device (100) is permanently or detachably attached to an object using a pair of ratchet straps (400). The object may include a solid or rigid object such as a tree trunk.

[0060] In order to use the workout device (100), the operator/user of the device (100) needs to attach the device (100) to the platform (200) or the slider (310), or the ratchet straps (400). Thereafter, the user requires to adjust the angle or device (100) and/or angle of the arm (110) and the resistance of the spring by selecting and engaging the variable resistance assemblies (170) of a left (101) or a right (102) or both (101, 102) spring plate assemblies as per workout requirement. Also, the user is allowed to adjust the angle and height of the slider (310). FIG. 17A shows a user performing a unilateral leg workout (side leg rises-standing abductors) using an ankle strap (350). The handle (190) is exchanged with the ankle strap (350) and the slider (210) along with the mounted workout device (100) moved and fixed closer to the bottom of the slider (300). FIGS. 17B and 17D show a user performing a double-arm chest press. The workout device (100) can be used for a single-arm chest press. FIG. 17C shows a user performing a lower chest raise or cable bicep curls. FIG. 17E shows a user performing a seated arm exercise. As seen, the device (100) with the platform (200) is configured underside a chair and the user holds the two handles (190) by sitting onto the chair (600) for performing the arm exercise. In other examples, the workout device (100) assembled onto the platform (200) is placed underside an exercise bench (700) as seen in FIGS. 17F and 17G for performing lower and upper chest exercises using either the handles (190) as seen in FIG. 17F or using a bar as seen in FIG. 17G.

[0061] It should be understood according to the preceding description of the present invention that the same is susceptible to changes, modifications and adaptations, and that the said changes, modifications and adaptations fall within scope of the appended claims.