Exercise and Rehabilitation Machine with Autonomous Drive

Abstract

The machine of the present invention can have frame that supports an I-beam in either a vertical or horizontal manner. The I-beam can support a mounting plate and gear racks. A gear box housing is movable with respect to the I-beam under operation of a motor that turns a shaft so that pinion gears engage the gear racks to translate relative to the gear racks. A pivot assembly is fixed with respect to the gear box so that when force is applied to the carriage, it causes a change in torque loading in the gear box that is measurable by a force gauge mounted between the pivot assembly and the gear box housing. The motor is controlled by a controller to be operable to move the carriage and user engagement components carried by the carriage, such as a foot plate and/or manually grasped handles, so as to require user exertion to resist such movement.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An exercise machine comprising:
 a frame having a base configured to be supported on a floor;   a beam supported on the frame;   a housing encircling said beam and including a bearing assembly for moveably supporting the housing on the beam for movement of the housing along the length of the beam;   a drive assembly, including a drive motor, operably coupled to said housing to move said housing along said beam;   a user-engagable component mounted to and movable with the housing for movement with the housing during operation of the drive motor; and   a controller operably coupled to the drive motor to operate the drive motor to move the user-engagable component when said component is engaged by the user.   
     
     
         2 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein the user-engageable component includes at least one arm with at least one handle configured to be manually grasped by the user 
     
     
         3 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein said frame includes a seat on which the user sits when engaging said user-engageable component. 
     
     
         4 . The exercise machine of  claim 3 , wherein said user-engageable component includes a foot plate arranged to be engaged by the feet of the user when the user is seated on said seat. 
     
     
         5 . The exercise machine of  claim 3 , wherein the user-engageable component includes at least one arm with at least one handle configured and arranged to be manually grasped by the user when the user is seated on the seat. 
     
     
         6 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein said beam is arranged substantially vertically relative to said base. 
     
     
         7 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein said beam is arranged substantially horizontally relative to said base. 
     
     
         8 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein said drive motor is a reversible variable speed motor. 
     
     
         9 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , further comprising a load cell between the drive motor and the user-engageable component configured to determine the amount of force applied by the user to the user-engageable component. 
     
     
         10 . The exercise machine of  claim 9 , wherein said load cell is engaged by said user-engageable component when the user applies force thereto. 
     
     
         11 . The exercise machine of  claim 9 , wherein said load cell is carried by said housing. 
     
     
         12 . The exercise machine of  claim 9 , wherein:
 said user-engageable component includes;
 a vertical beam mounted to said housing; and 
 a foot plate mounted to said vertical beam; and 
   said load cell is mounted between said vertical beam and said foot plate so that force applied to said foot plate applies a force to said load cell.   
     
     
         13 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein:
 said beam includes at least one flange and a web perpendicular to said at least one flange; and   said bearing assembly includes at least four bearings rotatably engaging said at least one flange and at least four bearings rotatably engaging said web.   
     
     
         14 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein said drive assembly includes:
 at least one rack gear mounted to the beam;   at least one pinion gear configured for meshed engagement with the at least one gear rack; and   a drive motor operably coupled to the at least one pinion gear to rotate the at least one pinion gear along the at least one gear rack.   
     
     
         15 . The exercise machine of  claim 14 , wherein said drive motor is operably coupled to said at least one pinion gear by a gearbox coupled between an output shaft of said drive motor and an axle on which the at least one pinion gear is mounted for rotation with said axle. 
     
     
         16 . The exercise machine of  claim 15 , wherein:
 said drive motor is carried by said housing with said output shaft of said drive motor extending substantially parallel to said beam; and   said axle of said gearbox extends substantially perpendicular to said beam.   
     
     
         17 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein said drive assembly includes a continuous drive element engaged to said housing and said drive motor engages the continuous drive element to move the drive element. 
     
     
         18 . The exercise machine of  claim 17 , wherein:
 said continuous drive element is a continuous chain mounted between an idler gear and a drive gear; and   said drive motor is coupled to said drive gear to rotate said drive gear.   
     
     
         19 . The exercise machine according to  claim 1 , wherein said user-engageable component includes at least one arm supported on said housing and at least one handle adjustably mounted to said at least one arm for manual engagement by the user. 
     
     
         20 . The exercise machine of  claim 1 , wherein said user-engageable component includes:
 a vertical beam mounted to said housing;   a frame mounted to said vertical beam;   at least one arm pivotably mounted at one end thereof to said frame, said at least one arm including a manually graspable handle at an opposite end of said at least one arm, said at least one arm pivotably mounted to pivot about a substantially vertical axis relative to said frame; and   a locking device for locking said at least one arm at a pivot location of said at least one arm.