Fitness and Strength Building Machine with Flywheel/Fan Resistance

Abstract

An exercise fitness machine is configured for vertical lift exercises. Resistance is provided by a fan-flywheel arrangement, with flexible inextensible cables connected to the ends of a horizontal barbell member such that a vertical lift motion rotates the fan-flywheel to create a greater force on the concentric exercise phase, but a reduced force on the return or eccentric phase. This may be configured for shoulder presses, squats, curls, or bench press exercises.

Description

[0001]The present invention relates to a lift-resistance machine in which the exercise training action involves the act of lifting, pulling or pushing a weight bar or handle, and then lowering the bar or handle in a reverse direction, and repeating the motion. The arrangement employed in this invention permits a greater weight resistance to be experienced on the upward or lifting motion than on the lowering or return motion.[0002]In embodiments of the invention, the weight bar or handle has cables or lines attached to its ends, and the upward motion of the bar pulls the cables and these in turn drive a fan-flywheel, via a system of pulleys and elastic or resilient return mechanisms, so that rotary acceleration plus air resistance provides at least some of the counterforce to motion, rather than gravity alone.[0003]This arrangement can be used in place of a barbell for presses, squats, curls and similar exercises that typically require a gravity resistance weight like a barbell. This...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The invention relates to a special exercise device that reduces soreness and muscle damage associated with traditional weight training. It achieves this by allowing the person to lift against a vertical resistance during the concentric phase, and have less resistance during the eccentric phase. The device also has a variable airflow control that allows for adjustment of resistance during the concentric phase. The device includes a platform member that indicates the position of the person's feet, and a rotating resistance member that provides resistance by moving air. The resistance member can also be adjusted to control the amount of resistance during the exercise movement.

Problems solved by technology

This, just as with using simple gravity weights, can result in muscular soreness or even injury due to the heavy stress on the downward or return phase of motion.

It has been established by research that exercise movements that have heavy weight stress when the weight is being lowered on the return motion can result in high levels of muscle damage and soreness.

Movements that have a relatively high eccentric value are associated with high muscle damage and consequent high levels of muscular soreness in the hours and days after the bout of exercise has been completed.

However, this principle has not been followed in the design of any weight training or similar resistance exercise equipment, where a barbell has been used in a vertical movement pattern, and / or with the resistance force applied over the subjects body center of mass.

To date, unfortunately, the usefulness of flywheel-fan systems to change the dynamics of concentric motion versus eccentric motion has been missed in weight training equipment that uses a lift motion against gravity.

However, the lifting phase and lowering phase of a gravity weight do not logically provide different amounts of force to the trainee, and no one has previously attempted to employ a flywheel or fan to create any portion of the resistance on an exercise machine or exercise station for performing vertical lift and lowering motions against gravity or a simulated gravity resistance.

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