Back massage device usable with leg elevation

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, separate mounting means being provided for said larger diameter roller, said separate mounting means being independently pivoted upon said long sides of said elongate frame and involving a pair of handles, one located adjacent each end of said larger diameter roller, said handles being adapted to be grasped by the user and pulled substantially simultaneously in order to cause said larger diameter roller to move about its pivot point in a longitudinal direction along said frame, independent of any motion of the other rollers of said array, thus to bring about a desired massaging action on the head, neck and shoulders of the user.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, said elongate rollers being of generally cylindrical configuration and each of a length dimension at least twice its diameter, each of said elongate rollers having a mid portion of diminished diameter, such that when the user is lying supine in a substantially centered position on the rollers, undesirable contact with the spinal column of the user is avoided.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, a head support member provided for utilization in conjunction with said larger diameter roller when said roller is being used in connection with head, shoulder and neck massage, said larger diameter roller being in direct rolling contact with the supporting surface, said head support member serving to prevent the user's head from moving too far backward during such massage.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, a head support member provided for utilization in conjunction with said larger diameter roller when said roller is being used in connection with head, shoulder and neck massage, said head support member serving to prevent the user's head from moving too far backward during such massage, said head support member comprising a head frame secured upon said long sides of said frame, in which head frame a movable carrier member having left and right sides is operatively supported, a taut, relatively wide elastic band extending between said left and right sides of said carrier member, and serving on occasion as a direct support for the user's head, means for normally biasing said carrier member to a location closely adjacent said larger diameter roller, so that subsequent to said carrier member being displaced by the motion of the user's head away from the location closely adjacent said larger diameter roller, said carrier member will tend to return to said closely adjacent location.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with said long sides of said frame having a spaced series of vertically disposed slots, each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis received in respective slots, about which axis it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, support wheel means used at each end of said elongate frame for assuring a consistent spacing of said frame above the supporting surface, despite some vertical movement of said rollers in their respective vertically disposed slots.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, said elongate frame of rectangular configuration being utilized in combination with, and in a multimode manner on, an elongate support member utilized as the supporting surface, said elongate support member having guide means thereon for preventing said elongate frame from falling off of said elongate support member during back and forth movements of said elongate frame, said guide means involving a plurality of small wheels operatively engaging, and interacting with, at least one elongate groove.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with said long sides of said frame having a spaced series of vertically disposed slots, each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis received in respective slots, about which axis it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, said elongate frame of rectangular configuration utilizing rollers of substantially equal length, said frame being utilized in combination with, and in a multimode manner on an elongate support member, said support member having contoured edge portions, with the spacing of said edge portions being such as to contact and support the ends of said rollers of said frame, when said frame is placed upon said support member, the presence of said vertically disposed slots in said long sides making it possible for one roller to have a different heightwise position than the adjacent rollers.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said elongate rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said elongate rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said elongate rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on said elongate rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said elongate rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with said elongate rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the elongate rollers of the roller array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, said frame being utilized in combination with, and in a multimode manner on, an elongate support member, said support member being constituted by a base member having left and right side edges, said left and right side edges each defining a surface of undulating configuration, being represented by alternating peaks and valleys, with each elongate roller of the roller array being of sufficient length as to be in contact with both of said surfaces of undulating configuration, the elongate rollers in contact with such peaks when said frame is at a given location with respect to said support member being higher than the adjacent elongate rollers of the array.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides paired together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, a leg elevating device utilized in conjunction with said elongate frame, latter device involving at least one roller designed to directly contact and support the user's legs and permit freedom of leg movement, the elevation of the user's legs as a result of the use of said leg elevating device bringing about a pelvic tilt serving to flatten the user's lumbar spine and thus facilitate the massage of the user's lower back area by the gentle movement of said rollers of said elongate frame as they help stretch the lower spine muscles of the user.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, said elongate frame of rectangular configuration being utilized on, and in combination with, an elongate support member, and a framework provided for receiving said elongate support member and for maintaining latter member at a location above the supporting surface, said framework having portions configured to receive said elongate support member in an angular relationship to the supporting surface, so that the head of the user lying on said elongate frame supported by said support member will be higher than his torso, said framework also having upper portions configured to have an overhead member available to be grasped by the hands of a user lying on said elongate frame, such that the user can utilize the pulling muscles of his arms for causing said elongate frame to roll up said angled support member.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame on the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, at least one of said rollers being of significantly larger diameter than the other rollers of the array, said frame having a head end, adjacent which said larger diameter roller is operatively mounted so as to be contacted by the user's head, said larger diameter roller being employable by the user for head, neck and shoulder massage, said elongate frame of rectangular configuration being utilized on, and in combination with, an elongate support member, and a framework is provided for receiving said elongate support member, said framework having portions configured to receive said elongate support member in a desired relationship to the supporting surface, leg elevation means mounted on said framework, roller means operatively mounted on said leg elevation means so as to be directly contacted by the legs of the user, thus making relative motion of the user's legs possible, and so that the legs of the user will be held higher than his torso when the user is lying on said elongate frame, the elevation of the user's legs as a result of the use of said leg elevation means bringing about a pelvic tilt serving to flatten the user's lumbar spine and thus facilitate the massage of the user's lower back area by the gentle movement of said rollers of said elongate frame as they help stretch the lower spine muscles of the user.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface in the direction of its long dimension at such time as the user is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, and an elongate support member forming said supporting surface, said support member having on its upper surface at least one pair of elongate grooves disposed in a parallel relationship and extending at least a part of the long dimension of said support member, and at least one pair of relatively small support wheels mounted on the underside of said frame, with the spacing of said support wheels being such as to permit said support wheels to operatively engage said grooves, whereby said grooves serve as guide means for guiding the back and forth movements of said frame along said support member.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface in the direction of its long dimension at such time as the user is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, and an elongate support member forming said supporting surface, said support member having on its upper surface at least one pair of elongate grooves disposed in a parallel relationship and extending at least a part of the long dimension of said support member, and at least one pair of relatively small support wheels mounted on the underside of said frame, with the spacing of said support wheels being such as to permit said support wheels to operatively engage said grooves, whereby said grooves serve as guide means for guiding the back and forth movements of said frame along said support member, a leg elevating device utilized in conjunction with said elongate frame, latter device involving at least one roller designed to directly contact and support the user's legs and permit freedom of leg movement, the elevation of the user's legs as a result of the use of said leg elevating device bringing about a pelvic tilt serving to flatten the user's lumbar spine and thus facilitate the massage of the user's lower back area by the gentle movement of said rollers of said elongate frame as they help stretch the lower spine muscles of the user.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface in the direction of its long dimension at such time as the user is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of the frame bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, and an elongate support member forming said supporting surface, said support member having on its upper surface at least one pair of elongate grooves disposed in a parallel relationship and extending at least a part of the long dimension of said support member, and at least one pair of relatively small support wheels mounted on the underside of said frame, with the spacing of said support wheels being such as to permit said support wheels to operatively engage said grooves, whereby said grooves serve as guide means for guiding the back and forth movements of said frame along said support member, said support member being constituted by a base member having left and right side edges, said left and right side edges each defining a surface of undulating configuration, being represented by alternating peaks and valleys, with each roller of the roller array being of sufficient length as to be in contact with both of said surfaces of undulating configuration, the rollers in contact with such peaks when said frame is at a given location with respect to said support member being higher than the other rollers of the array.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined together by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a roller array in the form of a parallel series of elongate, generally cylindrical rollers loosely mounted in a spaced apart, operational relationship between the long sides of said elongate frame, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is freely rotatable, said elongate frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said elongate frame being able to readily bring about back and forth rolling movement of said elongate frame along the supporting surface in the direction of its long dimension at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during such back and forth movement of said elongate frame bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers, and a leg elevating device utilized in conjunction with said elongate frame, the elevation of the user's legs resulting from the use of said leg elevating device bringing about a pelvic tilt serving to flatten the user's lumbar spine and thus facilitate the massage of the user's lower back area by the gentle movement of said rollers of said elongate frame as they help stretch the lower spine muscles of the user, said leg elevating device involving the use of at least one set of leg-contacting roller devices.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long sides joined by a pair of short sides and being several times as long as it is wide, a series of vertically disposed slots arranged in a spaced relationship along each of said long sides of said frame, with the slots in one long side being in alignment with the slots in the other long side, a roller array constituted by a series of elongate rollers operatively mounted in a loose relationship in said slots, with each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is rotatable, and with a support shaft protruding for a limited extent from each end of each roller, each support shaft being disposed along the longitudinal axis of the roller, and each support shaft extending through a respective slot of said frame, said slots, because of being disposed vertically, permitting one roller to have a different heightwise position than adjacent rollers, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers are in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, and a handle on each side of said elongate frame, to be grasped by a user in enabling said elongate frame to be moved in a back and forth manner on the supporting surface at such time as the user is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during rolling movement of said elongate frame bringing about a massaging action upon the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers.

A back massage and exercise device comprising a substantially flat, elongate frame of generally rectangular configuration able to be utilized on a supporting surface, said frame having a pair of long side members joined together by short side members defining a head end and a tail end, and being several times as long as it is wide, a series of vertically disposed slots arranged in a spaced relationship along each of said long side members of said frame, with the slots in one long side member being in alignment with the slots in the other long side member, an array of elongate rollers operatively mounted in a loose relationship in said slots, each of said rollers having a longitudinal axis about which it is rotatable, with a support shaft protruding for a limited extent from each end of each roller, each support shaft being disposed along the longitudinal axis of the roller, and each support shaft extending through a respective slot of said frame, said slots, because of being disposed vertically, permitting one roller to have a different heightwise position than adjacent rollers, fixed height wheel means at each end of said frame, for supporting said frame a consistent distance above the supporting surface, said frame having an operative position in which a lower portion of substantially all of said rollers is in contact with the supporting surface, with an upper portion of said rollers being available for directly supporting a human body, the user of said device being able to readily bring about back and forth longitudinal movement of said frame along the supporting surface at such time as he is lying on the rollers, with the motion of the upper portions of said rollers during rolling movement of said frame along the supporting surface bringing about a massaging action to the portion of the user's body in contact with the rollers of said roller array, a large roller rotatably mounted near said head end of said elongate frame, for use during head, neck and shoulder massage, and a head supporting member mounted adjacent said large roller, said head supporting member being mounted for movement in accordance with movements of the head as the body of the user moves back and forth along the roller array, said head supporting member preventing undesirable rearward head motion during such head, neck and shoulder massage.