US3814419A

US3814419A - Arm exercising device

Info

Publication number: US3814419A
Application number: US00366362A
Authority: US
Inventors: L Bjorklund; R Hubbard
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1973-06-04
Filing date: 1973-06-04
Publication date: 1974-06-04
Anticipated expiration: 1991-06-04

Abstract

A device for exercising the extensor muscles of the arm comprises two elongated rigid arm members connected together by a pair of coil springs for pivotal movement about a transverse axis. The arm members include straps for mounting the device to a user''s arm with one arm member alongside the user''s upper arm and the other arm member alongside the user''s forearm. The pivot axis of the arm members is located so as to extend transversely through his elbow. The coil springs provide a preset resistance to the muscle action required to straighten the arms as the user moves his arm to and from an extended position.

Description

United States Patent 1 Bjorklund et al.

[ ARM EXERCISING DEVICE [76] Inventors: Leon V. Bjorklund, 12106 E. Main Ave.; Richard T. Hubbard, 6809 E. Third Ave., both of Spokane, Wash.

22 Filed: June 4,1973

[21 App1.No.:366,362

[52] U.S. Cl. 272/80, 273/83 A [51] int. Cl A63b 23/00 [58] Field of Search 272/80, 83 R, 83 A;

l 56] References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLlCATlONS 479,873 5/1916 France 128/77 1 June4, l974 Primary Examiner-Richard C. Pinkham Assistant ExaminerJoseph R. Taylor Attorney, Agent, or FirmWells, St. John & Roberts [57] ABSTRACT A device for exercising the extensor muscles of the arm comprises two elongated rigid arm members connected together by a pair of coil springs for pivotal movement about a transverse axis. The arm members include straps for mounting the device to a users arm with one arm member alongside the users upper arm and the other arm member alongside the users forearm. The pivot axis of the arm members is located so as to extend transversely through his elbow. The coil springs provide a preset resistance to the muscle action required to straighten the arms as the user moves his arm to and from an extended position.

5 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to the broad field of exercise apparatus and more particularly to such apparatus utilized to exercise the extensor muscles of the human arm.

The extensor muscles of the arm are utilized with particular emphasis in many sporting activities. These muscles are grouped along the arm and are somewhat non-related in the sense that in order to develop a specific group of muscles utilized for a particular movement required by a sport such as golf or tennis, the participant must sometimes perform a pattern of several different exercises, with each exercise emphasizing a single muscle used in that particular activity. This process can often lead to uneven muscle development and thus result in little or no overall improvement. It may therefore be seen that a need exists for a single exercising device that will simultaneously exercise these particular groups of muscles evenly.

A prior US. patent which realizes the above problem to a limited degree was granted to Whitelow, U.S. Pat. No. 2,832,334 which discloses a therapeutic device for use in manipulative treatment of joints of the human body. The Whitelow apparatus utilizes a somewhat complex manually adjustable slip clutch for resisting angular movement about a joint. The clutch is utilized to exercise both the adductor and the abductor muscles as the limb is flexed and extended respectively.

Another US. patent granted to Shield et al. discloses an apparatus for moving or activating the parts of the body. This apparatus is utilized for manipulative purposes rather than exercise. It includes means mounted between jointed sections of a limb which may be selectively activated to extend and retract, thereby flexing and extending the limb attached thereto.

The apparatus of the present invention is utilized specifically for exercising the extensor muscles of the arm. This group of muscles is utilized particularly in sports such as golf, fly-fishing, tennis and the like. The device comprises a first elongated rigid arm member which is mountable to the users upper arm and a second rigid arm member mountable to the user's forearm or hand. The arm members are connected by coil springs which provide resistance to extension of the arm. Therefore by extending the arm against the resistance of the coil spring, the user must apply additional strain on his arm extensor muscles. By moving the arm back slowly to the flexed condition, the user also places a strain against his extensor muscles as they strain to prevent the device from quickly snapping back to a closed position.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An arm exercising device is described comprising a first elongated rigid arm member having means thereon for mounting the arm member to a users upper arm. A second elongated rigid arm member includes an abutment means for engaging the part of the users arm extending outward from the elbow. Thefirst and second It is a first object of my invention to provide an arm exercising device that exercises exclusively the extensor muscles of the arm utilized primarily in sports such as golf, tennis, fly-fishing and the like.

It is another object of my invention to provide such an exercising device that when utilized properly will develop the arm extensor muscles evenly and simultaneously.

It is a further object of my invention to provide such a device that is simple in construction and easy to use.

It is a yet further object of my invention to provide such a device that is inexpensive to manufacture.

These and other objects and advantages will become apparent upon reading the following description, which, taken with the accompanying drawings, describe a preferred form of my invention.

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a pictorial operational view of the device;

FIG. 2 is an elevational end view of the device in a partially open condition;

FIG. 3 is an elevational side view of the device;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the device shown partially open as though looking from the top in FIG. 2; and

FIGS. 5 and 6 are operational views illustrating the basic operation of the device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The arm exercising device of a preferred form of my invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings as basically comprising ,a first rigid arm member indicated by the reference numeral 10 and a second rigid arm member 11.

Arm members

10 and 11 are connected by a transversely spaced pair of coil springs 12. The springs 12 allow relative pivotal movement of the

arm members

10 and 11 about a transverse pivot axis. They urge

arm members

10 and 11 in relatively opposed angular directions about the pivot axis toward a closed or bent condition (FIG. 5). The first rigid arm member 10 comprises a pair of transversely spaced side bars 13 which are connected by a first strap member 14 located adjacent the springs 12 and a longitudinally-spaced second strap member 15. The

strap members

14 and 15 are U-shaped in configuration and extend oppositely outward from either side of the sidebars 13 to form a somewhat circular passage 18 as shown in FIG. 4, through which a users arm may pass. The first and second straps l4 and 15 comprise a mounting means which serves to mount the first arm member 10 to the users upper arm as shown in FIGS. 1, 5 and 6 by engaging the front and back of the upper arm respectively.

The straps l4 and 15 are partially encased within soft pliable pads 16 which prevent the straps from creating discomfort to the user by gouging into his upper arm. The first strap 14 is also pivotably mounted to the spaced sidebars 13 so that it may pivot with respect to bars 13 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 in response to movement of the users arm.

The second rigid arm member 11 is comprised of two laterally spaced side members 20. The side members 20 are spaced apart a distance sufiicient to receive a users forearm therebetween and extend from the springs 12 longitudinally outward to a curved cross member 21 at their outer ends. An abutment means in the form of slidable fabric tube 23 is mounted to the arm member 11 for free longitudinal movement along the side members 20. The two sides of tube 23 are joined along their longitudinal center by a row of stitches l9. Tube 23 can be moved along members 20 for adjustment purposes or to provide arm clearance for insertion or removal of the users forearm. It can be crowded across member 21 to provide free access between side members 20. The user may select a position of tube 23 wherein it will abut the back surfaces of his forearm or hand to assure comfort during exercising. The position of tube 23 also serves to adjust the amount of effort required to move the device to an extended position.

A further advantage of the movable tube 23 may be seen in FIGS. 5 and 6. With the tube 23 moved to an outward position, the user is able to exercise his arm extensor muscles as well as the muscles within his forearm for controlling the extension of his hand with respect to his forearm.

Operation of the invention may best be seen with reference to FIGS. 1, 5 and 6. The user places the device on his arm by first extending his arm in the direction of the arrow 19 in FIG. 3 through the passage 18 formed by the first and second straps l4 and 15 of the first rigid arm member 10. He positions the first arm member on his upper arm with the first strap 14 positioned closest his elbow on the side of the biceps muscle and the second strap 15 on the back side of his upper arm against the triceps muscle. The straps l4 and 15 then serve to hold thearm member 10 stationary with respect to the upper arm. The second arm member 11 must then be'forcibly' pivoted about the axis away from the first arm member 10 to allow access of the users forearm to the tube 23. He then positions the tube 23 selectively along the side members and rests his forearm or hand upon the tube 23. The exercise procedure is then accomplished byslowly extending and flexing the arm against the resistance of the-springs 12.

It may be noted that the extensor muscles may be exercised both on extension and retraction of the arm be cause of the tendency of spring 12 to urge the

rigid arm members

10 and 11 to bring the arm to a flexed condition.

The curved cross member 21 is angularly offset from the arm 11 to allow the user to grip the club, racquet, or other article used in the particular sport in which he is training. FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a tennis player utilizing the apparatus to exercise the muscles used particularly during a backswing movement. By holding the racquet in his usual grip, he can develop strength in the muscles needed for the backswing movement.

Similarly, the device is useful in practicing service of a tennis ball or a golf swing. Since it does not contact the racquet or club, it can actually be in place on the users arm while practicing contact of a ball on a tennis court or practice tee.

It may be evident from the above description and attached drawings that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the intended scope of this invention. Therefore, only the following claims are intended to define this invention.

What we claim is: 1. An arm exercising device comprising: a first elongated rigid arm member; means on said first arm member for mounting of the first arm to a users upper arm between his elbow and shoulder; a second elongated rigid arm member; abutment means on said second arm engageable with the users forearm outward of the elbow; said first and second members being operatively joined to one another for angular movement relative to one another about a pivot axis extending transversely between the members; and biasing means connecting the first and second members'for normally urging said first and second arm members in relatively opposed angular directions about the pivot axis to a closed or bent condition. 2. The device set out in claim 1 wherein the first arm member comprises:

two longitudinal side bars extending radially from inside ends adjacent said axis and spaced apart laterally a distance sufficient to allow reception of the users arm lengthwise between them; a first U-shaped strap mountedtransversely between the side bars adjacent the pivot axis; and a second strap fixed between the side bars longitudinally spaced from the first strap and having an inverted U-shape with respect to the first strap thereby defining a passage extending longitudinally along the first rigid arm member for receiving the user's upper arm therein. 3. The device set forth in claim 2 wherein the second elongated rigid arm comprises:

two longitudinal side members extending radially outward from inside ends adjacent said pivot axis and laterally spaced apart a distance sufficient to allow the user's armto be positioned therebetween;

and a cross member connecting the remaining ends of the side members.

4. The device set forth in claim 2 wherein the second elongated rigid arm comprises:

two longitudinal side members extending radially outward from inside ends adjacent said pivot axis and laterally spaced apart a distance sufficient to allow the users arm to be positioned therebetween;

rigid arm members.

Claims

1. An arm exercising device comprising: a first elongated rigid arm member; means on said first arm member for mounting of the first arm to a user''s upper arm between his elbow and shoulder; a second elongated rigid arm member; abutment means on said second arm engageable with the user''s forearm outward of the elbow; said first and second members being operatively joined to one another for angular movement relative to one another about a pivot axis extending transversely between the members; and biasing means connecting the first and second members for normally urging said first and second arm members in relatively opposed angular directions about the pivot axis to a closed or bent condition.

2. The device set out in claim 1 wherein the first arm member comprises: two longitudinal side bars extending radially from inside ends adjacent said axis and spaced apart laterally a distance sufficient to allow reception of the user''s arm lengthwise between them; a first U-shaped strap mounted transversely between the side bars adjacent the pivot axis; and a second strap fixed between the side bars longitudinally spaced from the first strap and having an Inverted U-shape with respect to the first strap thereby defining a passage extending longitudinally along the first rigid arm member for receiving the user''s upper arm therein.

3. The device set forth in claim 2 wherein the second elongated rigid arm comprises: two longitudinal side members extending radially outward from inside ends adjacent said pivot axis and laterally spaced apart a distance sufficient to allow the user''s arm to be positioned therebetween; and a cross member connecting the remaining ends of the side members.

4. The device set forth in claim 2 wherein the second elongated rigid arm comprises: two longitudinal side members extending radially outward from inside ends adjacent said pivot axis and laterally spaced apart a distance sufficient to allow the user''s arm to be positioned therebetween; a cross member connecting the remaining ends of the side members; and wherein said abutment means comprises a transverse flexible tube mounted to and extending transversely between the side members for free movement along the side members between the inside ends thereof and said cross member.

5. The device defined in claim 3 wherein the biasing means comprises a pair of coiled springs, each fixed between corresponding inside ends of the first and second rigid arm members.