Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
WO 2021/101494
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HAND GRIP EXERCISE MACHINE
The invention relates to sports training machines, in particular, exercise
machines
intended for the development and strengthening of human body muscles. It will
have the most
widespread use for the training involving cyclic hand movements (running
hands), and for
muscle-strengthening exercises both of cyclic nature and repetitive nature,
such as presses, arm
bending and unbending exercises, dip bar exercises etc.
The life of a modern man is closely related to the use of exercise machines.
They are
helpful in achieving an excellent physical shape, preserving a great health
condition for a long
time, restoring disordered functions during the rehabilitation. Nowadays
regular gym visits are
not required as it is possible to achieve desired results by installing
necessary sports exercise
machines at home. The advantage of home exercise machines is the possibility
to build muscles
at any time without sticking to any gym operation hours that are not always
coincident with a
real free time a person may have. Constant gym membership purchases can affect
a family
budget in a considerable way. Besides, as a rule, only family members have
access to home
exercise machines.
Exercise machines are widely popular not only among the users who would like
to have
athletic body shape and develop different types of muscles but also among
those who want to
regain their health after injuries, various diseases etc. It is because of
high popularity and real
benefit of exercises the particular attention is given to the issue of
creating new and improving
existing structures of training and rehabilitation exercise machines.
The prior art represents a wide range of structural embodiments of various
exercise
equipment where the features of construction of each embodiment primarily
depends on what
group of muscles should be built, as well as the location of the exercise
machine.
Thus, the RF patent No. 12793 (IPC8: A63B 9/00, published 10.02.2000, Bulletin
No. 4)
represents one of the most classic types of exercise machines ¨ gym ladder ¨
monkey bar ,
whose key purpose is arm building. The exercise machine is made in the form of
a mounted
vertical frame with bars consisting of two equal movable parts. The upper
frame is additionally
equipped with a rope ladder. During the training the user is doing "running
hands", alternately
grabbing the bar and moving along the ladder.
The disadvantage of this exercise machine is a low efficiency level and
limited range of
use. The reason for this is that during the bar arm grip the user's body hangs
loose, with the
joints being strained by its personal weight. Under such conditions a person
can get tired very
quickly especially when he/she is overweight or physically disabled. Due to
simplified design of
this machine, only a certain group of muscles can be trained, so, it is
obvious that it can be
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interesting and high in demand for the persons doing some physical workout but
not going in for
sports.
The machine is known for swimmers' muscle-strengthening exercises with the key
purpose to train arm muscles during rowing movements. The exercise machine is
a supporting
plate with the built-in hook attached to the wall bar. It consists of flexible
rod tossed over the
roller, where the handle gripped by a sportsman is fixed on one end, and the
other end is
connected to the resistor element made in the form of a slide bar (A.s. No.
204212, 1PC7:A6313,
class 77a, 21/00, published on 09.10.1967, Bulletin No. 21, 1967). The
training provides for the
resistor element load change allowing the manipulation of the value of force
that can be
developed by a sportsman.
As in the example above, the disadvantage of training on the exercise machine
is a
limited list of muscles to be trained - in the process, the upper body is
involved, while the lower
one, in particular, muscle groups of the press, is only partially strained.
The training process
itself cannot be categorized as flexible, because practically the same
exercises are performed on
this exercise machine bringing the same result. Besides, the exercise machine
cannot be moved
from place to place - it is tied to the gym wall, and it is not suitable for
use at home at all.
The exercise machine which is more promising in terms of enhancement of
operational
capabilities is the exercise machine presented in the patent of the Russian
Federation No.
2635795 (IPC9: A63B 21/00, published on 15.11.2017, Bulletin No. 32). In
contrast to the
exercise machines described above, it is mobile (installed on wheels), so, if
necessary, it can be
moved to any convenient place depending on the configuration of the room, in
addition, the
gymnastic equipment of the exercise machine provides the opportunity to train
different muscle
groups. The exercise machine is built on the basis of a controlled pneumatic
cylinder with the
rod tied to the power cable, tossed over a roller, mounted on a vertical
telescopic prop. The loose
end of the cable is equipped with quick-release fasteners for various areas of
the user's body.
The point of training exercises is that depending on the specifics of the
task, certain areas
of the user's body are tied to the power cable using fasteners, thereafter the
user starts making
training movements. The telescopic prop allows changing angles of traction
force depending on
the group of muscles the training is focused on. The displacement amplitude of
body areas,
programmed efforts, time parameters of the exercises are transmitted to the
rod of pneumatic
cylinder whose operation mode is adjusted through computer software via
control panel.
The main disadvantage of this exercise machine is the complexity of structural
design,
considerable bulkiness and high cost ¨ it is equipped with complex structural
elements, besides,
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it requires computer hardware. It is obvious that this exercise machine is not
accessible to a
broad spectrum of users.
The hand grip exercise machine is taken as a prototype of the invention having
two L-
shaped props and interlinked load elements (RF patent No. 172210,
IPC9:A63B21/22, published
on 30.06.2017, Bulletin No. 19). The load elements are two wheels fixed on the
same axis, made
in the form of a rim with levers (spokes). The wheels are interconnected by
bars and L-shaped
props are tied by horizontal tubes making the props stable.
During the training with the exercise machine, the user in suspension climbs
on the bars
by performing "running hands-. At this moment the wheels turn with the efforts
adjusted by the
braking device.
The disadvantage of the exercise machine is its simplified and rather
primitive
construction focusing on a limited range of movements only and therefore
unable to ensure the
training of a broad group of the muscular system. For example, the user cannot
develop grip
strength and endurance, hand and forearm strength effectively, let alone a
lower part of the body
and crunches. Besides, the structural components of the exercise machine and
the properties of
their attachment are very unreliable and are not designed for significant
efforts, thus, it is more
acceptable for children.
As stated above, during the -running hands- exercise, the joints are strained
by a personal
weight and that results in high tiredness and for some categories of people
such type of training
is very problematic or even impossible.
The disadvantage of the exercise machine also lies in the fact that it is not
mobile, the
exercise machine is fixed to the wall through two pairs of hooks.
This invention is based on the creation of a multifunctional, structurally
simplified hand
grip exercise machine, which is easy to install and operate by improving its
structural
construction, in particular, by equipping it with wheels, fitting it with
levers on both ends of the
shaft, pairwise coupled bars tossed over the transverse arms, allowing the
user to make intense
movements and to develop considerable traction force in the conditions of
variation of the
resistance value, diversify grips, body positions and postures relative to the
exercise machine and
thereby create the load for a broad group of muscles of both upper and lower
body.
This task can be achieved thanks to the fact that in the hand grip exercise
machine having
two L-shaped props and interlinked load elements, according to the invention,
L-shaped props
are mounted on the supporting frame on the wheels, strengthened by stiffening
ribs and have
openings through which a shaft extends on two sides with at least four levers
installed circle-
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wise oriented at the same angle to each other and strengthened by at least one
row of jumpers,
while the levers installed on both sides of the shaft are connected pairwise
by transverse handles,
through which the endless rope can be thrown, besides, the L-shaped props are
equipped with
lanyards tied to straps tossed over the ends of the shaft. The weights having
different range of
loading force can be fastened on the transverse handles of the exercise
machine.
The technical result that can be achieved during the performance of the
proposed exercise
machine is contingent on the features distinguishing it from similar designs
of training devices
described according to the prior art, in particular, in the solutions taken as
a prototype.
The main distinguishing feature of the proposed exercise machine is its
versatility,
because the structure of this device combines the capabilities of a whole
range of training means
of various types, each designed for training only a specific group of muscles.
First and foremost,
this versatility is contingent on a wide range of possibilities provided by
the unlimited number of
levers and transverse handles (crossbars) between them, as well as the rope
tossed over these
handles allowing to train even those groups of muscles that cannot be loaded
on standard
exercise machines.
Thus, when making pulling movements under conditions of different lever
rotation
resistance value, the exercise machine allows the maximization of the force of
grip, hand and
forearm_ Its structure allows the change of body position relative to the
exercise machine adding
a variety of exercises both through levers and through the rope involving a
great array of muscles
of both upper and lower body into the training.
It is well known that ordinary sit-ups often can create unnecessary strains on
the neck and
back making them extremely complicated or even hazardous. Holding onto the
rope, levers or
transverse handles, one can choose a position (for example lying position)
where the sit-up can
be efficiently done without involving neck and back muscles. Likewise, the leg
muscles can be
easily trained in a lying (or sitting) position.
Thanks to the chain, the exercise machine can be connected to any cable-pull
machine
with removable weights (kettlebells) and thus provide a possibility to train
the arm and shoulder
muscles by pulling the rope of the cable-pull machine up, as in a deadlift, or
down, as during the
rope rising.
The "dip bar exercise" simulation is a variant of training exercises. To do
such exercise, a
sports rubber (rubber tape) is fixed to the supporting frame and when it is
stretched, a certain
group of muscles can be strained.
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By reducing the resistance and finding the optimum speed, the exercise machine
can be
used for aerobic training, and thanks to the variety of exercises and
resistance control, it will be
an aerobic exercise with an incredible amount of calories burned. At the same
it provides
cardiovascular and power load which cannot be reached during the trainings
using standard
sports equipment.
It should be noted that the rope is a very important and effective supplement
to the
proposed design of the exercise machine, it significantly increases its
operational capabilities,
but the training through the use of such machine cannot be so effective
without a rope. For
example, strength and endurance can be developed by running over the bar and
exercising
"running hands-, with the important moment of training being the possibility
to change the
power of resistance of levers* rotation. For this purpose, the weighting
mediums of different
weight are fixed on transverse arms of the exercise machine, and the
resistance is adjusted by the
braking system - lanyards connected to belts tossed over the ends of the
shaft.
Summarizing the material, we can note that the proposed exercise machine is an
effective
tool for increasing strength and endurance, which is a great supplement to
daily training for both
professional athletes and amateurs, people of all ages and different physical
condition. Thanks to
its mobility, it can be equally successfully used in gyms, at home and for
outdoor sports grounds.
The structure of the proposed hand grip exercise machine is explained on
drawings illustrating the following:
Fig. 1 - general view of the structure in isometry;
Fig. 2 - view of the exercise machine with endless rope;
Fig. 3 - view of the exercise machine with the weighting medium;
Fig. 4 - view of the exercise machine with the sports rubber;
Fig. 5 - schematic front view of the exercise machine.
The hand grip exercise machine (Fig. 1 - 5) has a supporting frame 1,
installed on wheels
2. On the supporting frame there are two fixed L-shaped props 3, strengthened
by stiffening ribs
4. The props have openings, through which shaft 5 extends on two sides with
levers 6 installed
circle-wise and on the ends of these levers there are handles 7 that the user
can hold on during
the exercises. The number of levers varies depending on the purpose of the
exercise machine -
from four and more. The levers are oriented at the same angle to each other
and strengthened by
one or several rows of stiffening jumpers 8 (fig. 1-4). The levers are
connected pairwise by
transverse handles 9, through which the endless rope 10 is thrown (fig. 2). L-
shaped props are
equipped with a breaking system, in particular, lanyards 11 tied to straps 12
tossed over the ends
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of the shaft. The weights 13 (fig. 3) can be fastened on the transverse
handles wherein, if
necessary, such weights can be changed depending on training conditions.
Besides, the exercise
machine can be equipped with sports rubber tape 14 (fig. 4) covering shaft 5
and supporting
frame 1.
The exercise machine is operated as follows:
The structure is installed in the place required for exercises. With the help
of a lanyard,
the power of resistance of the shaft is determined for a specific situation -
the more efforts the
exercise requires, the more the shaft is clamped. Then, by exerting some
efforts, the user
performs training to roll the shaft. These efforts can be exerted by rope or
by any other method
described above, in particular through the use of weights or sports rubber.
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