Physical therapy apparatus
OwnerRobert B. Buonauitoinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A physical therapy apparatus capable of being used with any suitable seating surface includes a tubular frame, a seat coupling device and a means for simultaneously workout the upper and lower body. The seat interfits with the frame and has a flange portion for frictionally engaging the seating surface. The means to workout the upper and lower body is mounted on the frame and includes foot pedals and hand grips interconnected by flexible elongated members for transmitting to the hand grips the dynamic forces applied to the foot pedals and visa versa. In an alternate embodiment, the physical therapy apparatus additionally includes a flywheel rotatable by a crank mechanism driven by the foot pedals disposed thereon.
Claims14
A physical therapy apparatus adapted to be used by persons seated on any conventional chair comprising a ground engaging frame, a seat coupling member comprising a flange portion for frictional engagement with the seating surface of said chair and an elongated extension for interengaging with said frame to retain said frame and chair in a predetermined spatial relationship for performing workout routines from a seated position on said chair, a pair of handgrips and a pair of foot pedals movably supported by said frame, each of said foot pedals connected to a rotatable member disposed between said foot pedals, and a pair of flexible motion transmitting cables, each of said cables being connected at one end thereof to one of said foot pedals and at the other end, to one of said handgrips for interconnecting each of said foot pedals to each of said handgrips, said frame including a second portion which extends to a level substantially higher than said foot pedals and said seat coupling member, and guide means disposed on the second portion of said frame which is adapted to receive said cables thereon to define a first free span of said cable from each foot pedal to said guide means and a second free span of each cable from said guide means to each handgrip whereby when said cables are in tension, as by applying a force to said handgrips while operating said pedals, the second free span of each of said cables may be operated at various oblique angles in relation to the first free span to enable aerobic exercises of the upper and lower body simultaneously by using said apparatus while in a seated position.
A physical therapy apparatus adapted to be used by persons seated on any conventional chair comprising a ground engaging frame, handgrips and foot pedals movably supported by said frame, a seat coupling member comprising a flange portion for frictional engagement with the seating surface of said chair and an elongated extension for interengaging with said frame to retain said frame and chair in a predetermined spatial relationship for performing workout routines from a seated position on said chair and flexible motion transmitting means for interconnecting each of said foot pedals to one of said handgrips whereby upper and lower aerobic body workouts may be carried out simultaneously by the use of said apparatus from a seated position, said foot pedals being drivingly engaged with a crank mechanism and a flywheel and wherein a drag mechanism is provided for engaging the surface of the flywheel for varying the energy expended in rotating the flywheel in response to operating of the foot pedals, said flywheel being of hollow construction and including therein a granular material disposed about the periphery of the flywheel to increase the moment of inertia thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.