Gym Machine Levers With Forearm Guides for Arm Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gymnastic machines for training trunk and shoulder muscles often cause undesired muscle recruitment and alignment issues, leading to mechanical stress and improper activation of shoulder and scapula muscles, necessitating continuous trainer supervision.
Innovation Solution
A gymnastic machine with improved levers and reference elements that maintain arm position during exercise, using a frame, first and second levers with fixed fulcrums and reference elements below the forearm, connected via a transmission system to a resistance device, ensuring correct arm alignment and muscle activation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If traditional levers are used in gymnastic machines, then the machine structure is simple, but the arm alignment deteriorates causing elbows to drop below wrist level
Solution Approach 1:
A guide structure acts as an intermediary element between the lever and the user's arm, providing a physical reference that maintains proper arm alignment. The guide structure includes a guide surface that contacts the user's forearm or elbow, preventing deviation from the correct movement plane without adding complex control systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The lever design incorporates self-aligning features such as ergonomic handle positioning and visual markers that automatically guide the user into correct arm position. The structure serves itself by providing inherent alignment cues rather than requiring external supervision or complex active control mechanisms.
2Device complexity
If traditional levers without alignment features are used, then the device complexity is low, but muscle activation precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The guide structure serves as a mediator between the mechanical lever system and the user's body, ensuring that the force application aligns with the intended muscle groups. By providing a physical guide for arm positioning, it ensures precise activation of target muscles without requiring complex adjustment mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
Visual markers or color-coded indicators are incorporated into the lever design to provide immediate visual feedback on correct arm positioning. These markers change or become visible at specific positions, guiding users to maintain proper alignment for optimal muscle activation without adding mechanical complexity.
3Device complexity
If no arm position reference is provided, then the device is simpler, but wrist stress increases due to misalignment
Solution Approach 1:
The guide structure provides preventive protection by establishing correct arm alignment before the exercise movement begins. By pre-positioning the arm in the correct orientation through the guide surface, it prevents harmful wrist stresses from occurring during the exercise rather than attempting to correct misalignment after damage occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide structure acts as a protective intermediary between the lever force and the user's wrist joint. It distributes and directs forces through proper biomechanical alignment, preventing concentrated stress on the wrist by maintaining the arm in a mechanically sound position throughout the movement.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention concerns a gymnastic machine (1) for training the trunk muscles and shoulder cingulum comprising a frame (2) for resting said gymnastic machine (1) on the ground or on a base, a first lever (4), comprising a first handle (42) which can be gripped by the user, coupled to said frame (2) in a first fixed fulcrum (41) and capable of rotating around said first fixed fulcrum (41) according to a first direction of rotation (R), from a first position to a second position, a second lever (5), comprising a second handle (52) which can be gripped by the user, coupled to said frame (2) in a second fixed fulcrum (51) and capable of rotating around said second fixed fulcrum (51) according to a second direction of rotation (R'), opposite to said first direction of rotation (R), from a first position to a second position, a resistant device (7, 7') capable of opposing a resistance during the movement of said first (4) and second (5) lever from said first position to said second position, a transmission turn system (6) capable of connecting said first (4) and second (5) lever to said resistant device (7, 7'), wherein said first lever (4) comprises a first reference element (44), arranged so that, when the user grips said first handle (42), said first reference element (44) extends below the forearm of the user, in order to act as a reference for the position in which keeping the arm during the execution of the exercise, and said second lever (5) comprises a second reference element (54), arranged so that, when the user grips said second handle (2), said second reference element (54) extends below the forearm of the user, in order to act as a reference of the position in which keeping the arm during the execution of the exercise.