Exercising apparatus

[0001] Not Applicable.

[0002] Not Applicable.

[0003] Not Applicable.

[0004] Not Applicable.

[0005] A. Field of the Invention

[0006] This invention relates to an exercising apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to an exercising apparatus for cardiovascular or body building exercises.

[0007] B. Description of Related Art

[0008] Various exercising apparatus can be found in the market for fitness and body building purposes. Utilisation of these exercising apparatus however typically involve at least one of the following for the user to achieve the desired results:

[0009] 1. addition or removal of weights;

[0010] 2. demounting and mounting of the apparatus in order to add or remove weights;

[0011] 3. provision and adjustment of straps or other fastening means.

[0012] As such, these exercising apparatus are cumbersome and fiddly to handle. It is an object of this invention to provide an exercising apparatus which involves easy and simple adjustments to enable a user to perform a wide range of strength and cardiovascular exercises.

[0013] According to the present invention there is provided an exercising apparatus including:

• • [0014] a rotatable ball having an external surface;
  • [0015] a handlebar passing through the ball and having two ends extending outwardly from the surface of the ball to provide handle grips;
  • [0016] first and second clutches supporting the ball; and
  • [0017] a tension adjustor connected to the clutches.

[0024] Referring to FIG. 1, an exercising apparatus 10 includes a rotatable ball 12, a handlebar 16, two clutches 26 and 28, and a tension adjustor 30.

[0025] Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the rotatable ball 12 is a sphere with an external curved surface 14. As best shown in FIG. 3, the handlebar 16 passes through the ball 12 and has two ends 18 and 20 extending outwardly from the surface 14 of the ball 12 to provide handle grips 22 and 24.

[0026] Turning to FIGS. 3 and 4, each of the clutches 26 and 28 is in the form of a ring encircling and supporting the ball 12. Each of the clutches 26 and 28 is connected to a flexible adaptor plate 40. The adaptor plate 40 functions as a bridging means maintaining both clutches 26 and 28 at desired positions. As best shown in FIG. 3, the ball 12 is not fixed to the clutches 26 and 28. Hence the ball 12 is capable of making multi-directional rotational movement with respect to the clutches 26 and 28.

[0027] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 4, the handlebar 16 passes through the centre 32 of the ball 12 and extends outwardly from the surface 14 of the ball 12. The handlebar 16 includes two cir-clips 34 and 36 provided at the two ends of the handlebar 16, respectively. Each cir-clip 34, 36 abuts the surface 14 of the ball 12 so as to maintain the handlebar 16 in a fixed position with respect to the ball 12.

[0028] In operation, the handlebar 16 is used to effect multi-directional movement of the ball 12. Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, for example, the handlebar is capable of being moved back and forth (as indicated by arrow F in FIG. 6) between angle α (see FIG. 6), up and down (as indicated by arrow B in FIG. 5) between angle ⊖ (see FIG. 1), and in an orbit clockwise or anticlockwise (as indicated by arrow A in FIG. 5). It will be appreciated that the ball is capable of being rotated in any directions in addition to those illustrated and described herein.

[0029] As best shown in FIG. 3, each clutch 34, 36 is clad with thick cotton cloth 38. The two clutches 26 and 28 are spaced apart and configured to make contact with the surface 14 of the ball 12. In use, the ball 12 experiences resistance when rotating due to friction between the cotton cloth 38 and the surface 14 of the ball 12.

[0030] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 6, the tension adjustor 30 is connected to the clutches 26 and 28. The tension adjustor 30 involves an adjusting mechanism for biasing the clutches 26 and 28 towards one another. The tension adjustor 30 operates in conjunction with the plates 42 and 44 which are welded to the clutches 26 and 28, respectively. The tension adjustor 30 includes a threaded bolt 46 and a nut 48. The threaded bolt 46 has one end encased in a knob 50 which abuts the plate 44. The nut 48 is internally threaded and welded to the plate 42. With such an arrangement, turning of the knob 50 by the user causes displacement of the clutch 26 in a forward or reverse direction, as indicated by arrows C and D in FIG. 1. In fact, clutch 28 may also move leaning towards clutch 26 as a result of turning of the knob 50. This results in the clutches 26 and 28 being drawn closer to one another in biased positions or forced apart in neutral positions. When the clutches 26 and 28 are in the biased positions, a larger resistance will be experienced by the user when rotating the ball 12 with the handlebar 16. Conversely, when the clutches 26 and 28 are in the neutral positions, the resistance will be relatively lower.

[0031] As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the exercising apparatus 10 has an anchoring pillar 52 having one end affixed to the underside of the flexible adaptor plate 40 and another end connected to a steel pipe frame 54. The steel pipe frame 54 is mounted on a platform 56 which in turn rests on a base 58. The base 58 has extensions covered by plastic pipe plugs 60.

[0032] It is intended that the exercising apparatus 10 is anchored to the floor by the weight of the user who can stand on the platform 56 or sit on a bench 61 which is movably rested on the platform 56.

[0033] The exercising apparatus of the present invention may offer at least the following advantages:

• • [0034] 1. it enables the user to exercise different parts of the upper body in training;
  • [0035] 2. it is easy to use and adjust for achieving different desired training results;
  • [0036] 3. the ball capable of rotating multi-directionally facilitates a vast number of exercise options and orientations; and
  • [0037] 4. it solves the problem of limited muscle training and enables targeted muscle training.