Exercise equipment, connector or anchor, and method of making same

An exercise equipment connector for connecting an exercise equipment member, having one or more transverse through holes, to a support structure, the connector comprising:

• a three sided channel having a continuous wall and a rectangular cross-section, the three sided channel having one open side and three contiguous side panels defined by the continuous wall of the three sided channel, the three side panels joined together along an entire length of the side panels by integral bent wall connections;
• three connecting flanges each extending outwardly from each of the three side panels of the three sided channel, the connecting flanges being located at one end of the channel, the connecting flanges defined by the continuous wall of the three sided channel, the flanges being joined together along an entire width of each of the flanges by integral bent wall connections;
• and
• a connecting arrangement for positively securing the exercise equipment member to the connector, the connecting arrangement is configured so that the one or more transverse through holes provided in opposing parallel side panels of the three sided channel are aligned, the three sided channel being configured so that the transverse and aligned through holes of the three sided channel align with the one or more transverse through holes in the exercise equipment member when connected together, and a fastener configured to be inserted through the aligned through holes in the connector and one or more through holes in the exercise equipment member and connect together the opposed parallel sides of the three sided connector and the exercise equipment member to positively secure the exercise equipment member to the connector.

A method of making a connector for an exercised equipment member, having a transverse through hole in a side of the exercise equipment member, of an exercise apparatus, comprising:

• providing a flat metal blank;
• bending the flat metal blank into a three sided channel having a rectangular cross-section;
• bending the flat metal blank to provide three flanges each extending outwardly from one side of the three sided channel at one end of the channel;
• providing through holes in the connector so that the through holes are or become transverse and aligned through holes in opposed parallel sides of the three sided channel;
• aligning the through holes in the connector with the through hole in the exercise equipment member;
• and
• inserting a fastener through the aligned through holes in the connector and through hole in the exercise equipment member to connect the opposed parallel side of the three side channel and exercise equipment member together.

An exercise equipment connector for connecting a post or beam of an exercise equipment to another support structure, the connector comprising:

• a three sided channel having one open side and three closed side panels, the channel having a rectangular cross-section;
• three flanges each extending outwardly from each of the three closed side panels of the three sided channel, the at least one connecting flange located at one end of the channel, the three sided channel having slots separating adjacent flanges, the slots ending with rounded holes in a flat blank of the connector prior to being bent into a bent configuration of the connector;
• and
• a connection arrangement for positively securing the post or beam of the exercise equipment within the three sided channel of the connector against movement or removal from the three sided channel, the connection arrangement comprising at least one transverse through hole provided in a side of the post or beam of the exercise device to be aligned with at least one set of transverse and aligned through holes provided in parallel sides of the three sided channel of the connector to accommodate a fastener to positively secure the post or beam to the connector.