Elliptical walking exercice machine

[0001] This application is entitled to the benefit of Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/921,999, filed 2007 Apr. 4.

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] This invention relates generally to fitness exercise machines for training upper body and lower body exercises simulating walking motion with handles and pedals having resistance.

[0004] 2. Description of Related Art including information disclosed under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98

[0005] Many elliptical motion walking exercise machines have been introduced in the market. Some are simple and some are more complicated in their mechanism to simulate the walking motion of a person. Proper stride simulation is possible in both simple and complicated mechanisms, but often simple mechanisms require a large structure and smaller machines require many linkages to achieve the same movement. A couple of early concepts are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,185,622 to Swenson (1980) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,526 to Rogers, Jr. (1996) in which a crank is placed behind the pedals or a user, therefore they require a structural support in front of and behind the user, making the machines less accessible to the user and large in size when a proper stride of the pedals is set. U.S. Pat. No. 5,611,756 to Miller (1997) shows another elliptical machine that has a crank arm in the front. The overall size of the machine may be reduced with the same stride length of the pedals compared to the above disclosures but the linkage in Miller's is more complicated. U.S. Pat. No. 5,733,227 to Lee (1998) shows a stepper with an elliptical stride utilizing a crank in the front. This is a relatively simple mechanism but in order to create a proper walking stride, the overall structure must be large compared to Miller (1997). The same mechanism for more proper walking stride is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 7,153,239 to Stearns (2006). Again the size of the overall structure must be large in Stearns (2006) in order to have a proper walking stride of the pedals. U.S. Pat. No. 6,689,020 to Stearns (2004) shows an apparatus relatively small in overall size but displays two cranks with a pair of linkage mechanism to create the proper stride. There are many more prior arts that have been disclosed and introduced in the market. Each one of them has advantages and disadvantages compared to the others.

[0006] The present invention teaches certain benefits in construction and use, which give rise to the objectives described below.

[0007] The present invention is an exercise machine to be used mainly for walking and jogging type exercises with pedals and moving handles that provide different levels of resistance for the user's preference in a compact apparatus. The pedal motion combines a motion of a crank arm, a motion of an arc, and a substantially linear motion of a predefined path to produce an elliptical path at the pedals with the horizontal direction substantially being a major diameter. A first embodiment includes a base assembly that stands on a floor and has right and left handles pivotally attached to the base assembly that also pivotally supports a crank with a right crank arm and a left crank arm at a base crank pivot. The right crank arm is mechanically engaged with a right second link that supports a right pedal, and the left crank arm is also mechanically engaged with a left second link that supports a left pedal. A right first link is pivotally placed between and connects the right crank arm and the right second link. A left first link is pivotally placed between and connects the left crank arm and the left second link. Each handle is pivotally fixed to the respective second link at a point between the second link's engagement point with the respective crank arm and the position of the respective pedal.

[0008] The advantage of this mechanical arrangement is that the pedals' vertical displacement in a cycle of the motion is determined by the distance between the engagement point of each second link with the respective crank arm and the base crank pivot. And the pedals' vertical displacement can be set independently from the size of the crank arms that sets the pedals' horizontal displacement in the cycle. This main advantage of this apparatus helps the apparatus have a relatively smaller footprint compared to those of other elliptical walking machines available in the field and yet provides an ergonomically good motion with a full stride for the user. Also the arrangement of the links is simple and easy to manufacture.

[0009] A primary objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus having advantages not taught by the prior art.

[0010] Another objective is to provide such an apparatus that is compact in size and footprint.

[0011] Another objective is to provide such an apparatus that offers the user a full stride with an ergonomically good walking motion while having the compact size of the apparatus.

[0012] Another objective is to provide such an apparatus for the user to get on the pedals with an easy access through the rear end by placing the crank arms on the fore side.

[0013] A further objective is to provide such an apparatus to make its manufacturing easy and simple, employing simple parts and connections between the parts.

[0014] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention.

[0018] The above described drawings FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate the invention, an elliptical walking exercise machine, an apparatus 10 comprising: a base assembly 12 standing on a floor and having a base frame 22 which supports a base upper pivot 24 and a base crank pivot 26. An embodiment in FIG. 1 further comprises a right crank arm 28, a left crank arm 128, and a main pulley 36, also called a main wheel that could be a gear, a sprocket, or a belt pulley, pivotally engaged to base frame 22 at base crank pivot 26. Right crank arm 28 and left crank arm 128 each having a mechanical engagement point, a right roller 32 and a left roller 132, for respective links, a right second link 44 and a left second links 144 that are parts of respectively a right pedal linkage 16 and a left pedal linkage 116. Right roller 32 is pivotally attached on a right crank step 30 of right crank arm 28 and left roller 132 on a left crank step, not shown, of left crank arm 128. Both the right and left crank arms are fixed to each other to maintain their relative position of about 180 degree offset angle from each other, and both arms are fixedly attached to main wheel 36 to rotate together at base crank pivot 26 of base assembly 12. Main wheel 36 transfers the user's power to a force unit 40 through a belt 38. Force unit 40 can be simple flywheel with a brake or an alternator as widely used in the field to provide a resistance to the exercise. Belt 38 also may be replaced with any other power transmission medium, such as chain links or a gear, that can be placed between main pulley 36 and force unit 40, as widely practiced in the field.

[0019] A right third link 54 and a left third link 154 are pivotally connected to base assembly 12 at base upper pivot 24. The first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 has third links 54, 154 with their upper sections being handgrips, respectively a right handle 56 and a left handle 156. The lower parts of right third link 54 and left third link 154 are attached to respectively a right second link 44 at a right second pivot 50 and a left second link 144 at a left second pivot, not shown. The right and left second links support a right pedal 46 and a left pedal 146 respectively at one end of each second link for the user to put her or his feet. And at the other side of each second link is mechanically engaged with roller 30 on respective crank arms 28, 128 such that a right contact surface 52 of right second link 44 is in contact with roller 30 on right crank arm 28 and a left contact surface, not shown, of left second link 144 is in contact with roller 30 on left crank arm 128 as both crank arms rotate about base crank pivot 26. A right first link 42 is placed between and pivotally connected to both right crank arm 28 at a right crank pivot 34 and right second link 44 at a right first pivot 48 such that, as the crank arm rotates, right first link 42 pushes and pulls right second link 44 forward and backward with a set stride length which is about twice the length of the related crank arm. And a left first link 142 is placed between and pivotally connected to both left crank arm 128 at a left crank pivot 134 and left second link 144 at a left first pivot 148 such that, as the crank arm rotates, left first link 142 pushes and pulls left second link 144 forward and backward with the set stride length which is about twice the length of the left crank arm.

[0020] The first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 with the crank arms on the front side and the pedals placed at the rear end of the second links makes the user easy to get on and off the machine since the rear end of the apparatus is cleared. And the pedals may be placed near to the third links that pivotally link the base frame and the respective second links without compromising the feel of the motion of the pedals. The pedals have a full stride length going back and forth and a controlled vertical displacement in a cycle by placing crank steps on both right and left sides between the base crank pivot and respective right and left crank pivots. This arrangement makes possible virtually any ratio of major and minor diameters of the elliptical shape of the path for fine-tuning the feel with the horizontal side being the major diameter that is about twice the length of each crank arm, and yet the footprint of the machine may stay in a compact size.

[0021] The second embodiment shown in FIG. 2 has the same benefits of the first embodiment with a slight difference in arrangement of the parts. Basically the contact surface on the second links that slides on the rollers placed on the crank arms is moved to the rear end of second links 44, 144 such that the rear section of the second links slide on pedals 46, 146. First links 42, 142 are pivotally linked to the respective pedals 46, 146 and also pivotally connected to the respective crank arms 28, 128. Second links 44, 144 are pivotally connected to the respective crank arms 28, 128 between the connection points of the respective first links and base crank pivot 26. Again the effect on the motion of the pedals is virtually the same as on that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1.

[0022] To use the apparatus, the user gets on the machine by placing each foot on the respective pedal, and places each hand on the respective handle. Either by moving the pedals or handles or both simultaneously, the machine is actuated and guides the user to move her/his body in a walking or a jogging motion. The user may adjust force unit 40 built in with an adjustment mechanism, not shown, to change the level of the resistance against the movement. Handles 56, 156 move in a swing arm motion going back and forth and pedals 46, 146 move in an elliptical path with the horizontal direction being a major diameter. The user may get on or off the machine from the sides or from the rear end of the machine.

[0023] Although the invention has been disclosed in detail with reference only to the embodiments shown above, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various other embodiments can be provided without departing from the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is defined only by the claims set forth below.