U.S. patent application number 10/447107 was filed with the patent office on 2004-12-02 for passive shock absorber for treadmill.
Invention is credited to Chu, Shih-Huang, Pan, John C., Uen, Hung-Lung.
Application Number | 20040242378 10/447107 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 33451169 |
Filed Date | 2004-12-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040242378 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Pan, John C. ; et
al. |
December 2, 2004 |
Passive shock absorber for treadmill
Abstract
A passive shock absorber for a treadmill includes a tall damping
member and a short stopping member for supporting the tall damping
member. Both the tall damping and the short stopping members have a
top, a bottom and a spring stiffness, respectively. The tall
damping and the short stopping member are combined together and are
mounted in the treadmill. The passive shock absorbers are adapted
to mount under a flat stationary member on which a person walks,
runs or jogs. The top of the tall damping member abuts the flat
stationary member. Consequently, the tall damping member can absorb
impacts on the person's feet and the short stopping member will
stop a compression of the tall damping member as the tall damping
member is suddenly deformed and compressed.
Inventors: |
Pan, John C.; (Taichung,
TW) ; Uen, Hung-Lung; (Taichung, TW) ; Chu,
Shih-Huang; (Taichung, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ROSENBERG, KLEIN & LEE
3458 ELLICOTT CENTER DRIVE-SUITE 101
ELLICOTT CITY
MD
21043
US
|
Family ID: |
33451169 |
Appl. No.: |
10/447107 |
Filed: |
May 29, 2003 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
482/54 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 22/02 20130101;
A63B 22/0207 20151001 |
Class at
Publication: |
482/054 |
International
Class: |
A63B 022/02 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A passive shock absorber for a treadmill having a tread frame
and a moving tread assembly, the moving tread assembly having a
flat stationary member with a bottom, and the passive shock
absorber adapted to be mounted between the thread frame and the
bottom of the flat stationary member and comprising: at least one
tall damping member having a spring stiffness, a damping
characteristic, a top, a bottom and a height and the at least one
tall damping member being for dissipating impact energy on a
person's feet; and at least one short stopping member combined with
the at least one tall damping member together and the at least one
short stopping member having a spring stiffness, a damping
characteristic, a top, a bottom and a height and the at least one
short member being for stopping a compression of the at least one
tall damping member; wherein the spring stiffness of the at least
one tall damping member is larger than the spring stiffness of the
at least one short stopping member and the height of the at least
one tall damping member is greater than the height of the at least
one short stopping member.
2. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at
least one short stopping member is made of viscoelastic material
for dissipating impact energy on the person's feet as the top of
the at least one short stopping member abuts the bottom of the flat
stationary member.
3. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
passive shock absorber has one tall damping member having a
cylindrical shape, an axial center and an outer periphery; and one
short stopping member attached to the outer periphery of the tall
damping member and having a cylindrical shape and an axial through
hole, the outer periphery of the tall damping member being received
in the axial through hole of the short stopping member.
4. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
passive shock absorber has one tall damping member having a
rectangular parallelepiped shape with two opposite long sides; and
two short stopping members respectively attached to the long sides
of the tall damping member, each short stopping member having a
rectangular parallelepiped shape and attached to a corresponding
one of the long sides of the tall damping member.
5. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
passive shock absorber has one short stopping member having a
cylindrical shape, an axial center and an outer periphery; and one
tall damping member attached to the outer periphery of the short
stopping member and having a cylindrical shape and an axial through
hole, the outer periphery of the short stopping member being
received in the axial through hole of the tall damping member.
6. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
passive shock absorber has one short stopping member having a
rectangular parallelepiped shape with two opposite long sides; and
two tall damping members respectively attached to the long sides of
the short stopping member, each tall damping member having a
rectangular parallelepiped shape and attached to a corresponding
one of the long sides of the short stopping member.
7. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 3, wherein a
mounting hole is axially defined through the top to the bottom of
the tall damping member.
8. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 4, wherein a
mounting hole is defined through the top to the bottom of the tall
damping member.
9. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 5, wherein a
mounting hole is axially defined through the top to the bottom of
the short stopping member.
10. The passive shock absorber as claimed in claim 6, wherein a
mounting hole is defined through the top to the bottom of the short
stopping member.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a passive shock absorber
for a treadmill, and more particularly to a simple passive shock
absorber for a treadmill that will efficiently cushion impacts of
and absorb impact forces on a runner's foot.
[0003] 2. Description of Related Art
[0004] Treadmills are pieces of exercise equipment used by people
to walk, run or jog in place. However, walking, running or jogging
on the treadmill will impart impacts that will incur a possibility
of a sport injury to the feet, ankles and knees to a person who is
exercising on the treadmill. The impacts are caused by the force of
the person's foot striking a flat stationary member, also called a
deck, of the treadmill. The impacts on the person's foot must be
reduced as the person runs, jogs or walks on the treadmill
otherwise, the unattenuated impacts will cause the person who runs
or jogs on the treadmill to feel uncomfortable and probably injure
the person's feet, ankles or knees.
[0005] Therefore, to efficiently absorb or dissipate the impacts on
the person's foot while running on the treadmill, passive shock
absorbers are mounted in the treadmill to diminish effects of the
impacts. A conventional passive shock absorber for a treadmill is a
block of a damping material. Consequently, the conventional passive
shock absorber only has a single spring stiffness and damping
characteristic. However, different people using the treadmill will
be of different weights and have different exercise preferences
that cause different forces to strike the flat stationary member of
the treadmill. The different forces will cause the impacts on the
person's feet to have different magnitudes. The single spring
stiffness and damping characteristics of the conventional passive
shock absorber cannot dissipate the entire range of impacts caused
by different people. In a worst condition, the unattenuated impacts
will make the exerciser feel uncomfortable and even injure the
person, as previously described.
[0006] To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides
a passive shock absorber for a treadmill to mitigate or obviate the
aforementioned problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The main objective of the invention is to provide a simple
passive shock absorber for a treadmill to dissipate impacts caused
by a person striking a flat stationary member of the treadmill as
the person walks, runs or jogs on the treadmill.
[0008] The passive shock absorber is mounted in the treadmill below
the flat stationary member and comprises a tall damping member and
a short stopping member. Each of the tall damping and the short
stopping members has a separate top, bottom, spring stiffness,
shape and damping characteristic. The tall damping member is taller
than the short stopping member. When a person runs on the
treadmill, energies of the impacts on the person's foot will be
absorbed or dissipated by the tall damping member of the passive
shock absorber.
[0009] If the impact forces are so large that the tall damping
member cannot absorb or dissipate all the energy in the impact, the
tall damping member will be deformed and compressed whereafter the
short stopping member will limit the compression of the tall
damping member to prevent that from being completely deformed.
Furthermore the short stopping member can also be made of
viscoelastic material and will further absorb and attenuate the
impacts when the tall damping member is entirely compressed. Under
such a condition, the tall damping and the short stopping members
cooperate with each other to absorb or dissipate the impacts on the
person's feet.
[0010] Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the
invention will become more apparent from the following detailed
description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a treadmill with multiple
passive shock absorbers in accordance with the present
invention;
[0012] FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross sectional side plan view of a
passive shock absorber in FIG. 1 mounted in a treadmill;
[0013] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the passive shock absorber
in FIG. 2;
[0014] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a
passive shock absorber in accordance with the present
invention;
[0015] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an alternative configuration
of the passive shock absorber in FIG. 3; and
[0016] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an alternate configuration
of the second embodiment of the passive shock absorber in FIG.
4.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0017] With reference to FIG. 1, a treadmill is conventional
comprises a tread frame assembly (10) and a front support (20). The
tread frame assembly (10) comprises a tread frame (11) and a moving
tread assembly (12). The tread frame (11) has a top (not numbered),
a bottom (not numbered), a front (not numbered), a rear (not
numbered) and two opposite sides (not numbered). Multiple
transverse rods (111) are mounted between the sides of the tread
frame (11) for passive shock absorbers (30) being mounted in the
treadmill. For illustration purposes, only one transverse rod (111)
is shown in FIG. 1. Each transverse rod (111) has a top (not
numbered) and two ends (not numbered) respectively attached to the
opposite sides of the tread frame (11).
[0018] The moving tread assembly (12) is mounted in the tread frame
(11) and comprises a flat stationary member (121), a moving tread
(122) and rollers (not shown). The rollers are mounted in the tread
frame (11) respectively at the front 11 and the rear. The flat
stationary member (121) is mounted on the top of the tread frame
(11) between the rollers in the tread frame (11) and has a top (not
numbered) and a bottom (not numbered). The moving tread (122) is a
wide endless belt and is mounted around the rollers and the flat
stationary member (121) to form a flat moving surface (not
numbered) on the top of the flat stationary member (121). A person
can walk, run or jog in place on the flat moving surface of the
moving tread (122) because the moving tread (122) rotates around
the rollers.
[0019] Multiple passive shock absorbers (30) in accordance with the
present invention are mounted on the top of each transverse rod
(111) under the bottom of the flat stationary member (121).
However, positions of the passive shock absorbers (30) in the tread
frame (11) are not limited to the disclosed embodiment. Such a
statement means the passive shock absorbers (30) can be mounted at
the sides of the tread frame (11) or other positions below the
bottom of the flat stationary member (121).
[0020] With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, each passive shock absorber
(30) comprises a tall damping member (31) and a short stopping
member (32). Both the tall damping and the short stopping members
(31, 32) respectively have both elasticity, regarded as spring
stiffness, and a damping characteristic, regarded as a damping
coefficient. The short stopping member (32) is cylindrical and has
an axial center (not numbered), a top (not numbered), a bottom (not
numbered), an outer periphery (not numbered) and a height. A
mounting hole (33) is defined axially from the top to the bottom of
the short stopping member (32). The tall damping member (31) is
cylindrical and has a top (not numbered), a bottom (not numbered),
an axial through hole (not numbered) and a height. The axial
through hole of the tall damping member (31) is defined through the
top of which. The outer periphery of the short stopping member (32)
is received in the axial through hole of the tall damping member
(31). The bottoms of both of the tall damping and the short
stopping members (31, 32) are flush with each other and are mounted
against the top of the transverse rod (111) in the tread frame
(11). The passive shock absorber (30) is securely mounted in the
treadmill between the transverse rod (111) and the flat stationary
member (121) by a fastener (21). The fastener (21) has an enlarged
end (not numbered) and a threaded end (not numbered). The threaded
end passes through the flat stationary member (121) and the
mounting hole (33) and screws into the transverse rod (111). The
height of the tall damping member (31) is taller than the height of
the short stopping member (32). Consequently, only the top of the
tall damping member (31) initially abuts the bottom of the flat
stationary member (122).
[0021] The tall damping member (31) is made of viscoelastic
material. The short stopping member (32) is made of a hard
substance or viscoelastic material. Examples of viscoelastic
materials and devices include rubber, plastic, cork, metal springs
and pneumatic springs. Examples of the hard substance include hard
rubber (an elastomer), plastic with a high rigidity or the like.
The spring stiffness of the tall damping member (31) is larger than
the spring stiffness of the short stopping member (32), which means
the tall damping member (31) is softer than the short stopping
member (32).
[0022] Consequently, the impacts on a person's foot will be
transmitted to the tall damping members (31) when the person is
walking, running or jogging on the flat moving surface of the tread
frame (11). Energy from the impact will be absorbed or dissipated
by the tall damping member (31). If the impacts are too large, the
tall damping member (31) will be deformed and compressed. The hard
short stopping member (32), supporting the tall damping member
(31), will limit a compression of the tall damping member (31) to
prevent that from being completely deformed. Furthermore, if the
short stopping member (32) is made of viscoelastic material, the
tops of both of the tall damping and the short stopping members
(31, 32) will abut the bottom of the flat stationary member (121)
as the tall damping member (31) is entirely deformed. Both the tall
damping and the short stopping members (31, 32) cooperate with each
other to absorb or dissipate efficiently the large impacts on the
person's feet. Therefore, the impacts on the person's feet are
significantly absorbed and only a few greatly attenuated impacts
will be transmitted in a diminished form to the person's foot.
Thus, the passive shock absorber (30) can allow the person walking,
running or jogging on the treadmill to feel comfortable and not be
injured by the impacts.
[0023] With reference to FIG. 4, a second embodiment of a passive
shock absorber (40) in accordance with the present invention has
the same inventive features as the previously described embodiment
except for the arrangement of the tall damping and the short
stopping members (31, 32). The second embodiment of passive shock
absorber (40) in accordance with the present invention comprises a
tall damping member (41) and a short stopping member (43). The tall
damping member (41) is cylindrical and has an axial center, a top
(not numbered), a bottom (not numbered), an outer periphery (not
numbered) and a height. A mounting hole (42) is defined axially
from the top to the bottom of the tall damping member (41). The
short stopping member (43) is cylindrical and has a top (not
numbered), a bottom (not numbered), an axial through hole (not
numbered) and a height. The axial through hole of the short
stopping member (43) is defined through the top of which. The outer
periphery of the tall damping member (41) is received in the axial
through hole of the short stopping member (43), with the bottoms of
the members (41,43) being flush with each other. The tall damping
and the short stopping members (41, 43) are made of previously
described materials. The spring stiffness of the tall damping
member (41) is larger than the spring stiffness of the short
stopping member (43), which means the tall damping member (41) is
softer than the short stopping member (43).
[0024] Therefore, the structure and characteristics of the second
embodiment of the passive shock absorber (40) are equivalent to the
structure and features of the previously described passive shock
absorber (30), and the mounting and operation of the second
embodiment of the passive shock absorber (40) is the same as the
previously described passive shock absorber (30). Therefore,
further description is omitted.
[0025] With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the passive shock absorbers
in accordance with the present invention can also be implemented to
have the essential characteristics of the first and second
embodiments of the passive shock absorbers (30, 40) in the
foregoing description while changing the shapes of the tall damping
and the short stopping member (31, 32, 41, 43).
[0026] With reference to FIG. 5, a third embodiment of a passive
shock absorber (50) comprises a short stopping member (51) and two
tall damping members (53). The short stopping member (51) is a
rectangular parallelepiped with two opposite long sides (not
numbered) instead of the cylindrical first embodiment of the short
stopping member (32). Two tall damping member (53) are also
rectangular parallelepiped instead of being cylindrical as is the
first embodiment of the tall damping member (31). The tall damping
members (53) are attached respectively to the long sides of the
short stopping member (51). A mounting hole (52) is formed through
the short stopping member (51) that is used to attach the passive
shock absorber (50) in a manner similar to the previous embodiments
of the passive shock absorber.
[0027] With reference to FIG. 6, a fourth embodiment of a passive
shock absorber (60) is a complementary version of the third
embodiment and comprises a tall damping member (61) and two short
stopping members (63). The tall damping member (61) is rectangular
parallelepiped with two opposite long sides (not numbered) instead
of the cylindrical second embodiment of the tall damping member
(41). Two short stopping members (63) are also rectangular
parallelepiped instead of being cylindrical as is the second
embodiment of the short stopping member (43). The short stopping
members (63) are attached to the long sides of the tall damping
member (61). A mounting hole (62) formed through the tall damping
member (61) that is used to attach the passive shock absorber (60)
in a manner similar to the previous embodiments of the passive
shock absorber.
[0028] The passive shock absorber is simple which results in the
passive shock absorber being cheap and easy to manufacture. Because
the tall damping and the short stopping members have different
spring stiffnesses and damping characteristics, the passive shock
absorber will absorb a wide range of impacts and minimize the
effect of the impacts on the person's feet. Thereafter, the passive
shock absorbers will allow an exerciser to feel comfortable when
walking, running or jogging on the treadmill and prevent the person
from being injured by the impacts.
[0029] Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the
present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description,
together with details of the structure and function of the
invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be
made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and
arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the
full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in
which the appended claims are expressed.
* * * * *