Exercising device

Abstract

An exercising device (1) and method comprising at least one winch (20), a motor (30) being adapted to drive and/or retard the winch (20), the winch (20) being adapted to provide a first torque to be delivered to a user interface (60) and a biasing assembly (40) being adapted to provide a second torque to the winch (20) being directed generally opposite to the first torque.

1 . An exercising device comprising:
 a. a user interface;   b. a winch operable to generate a force at the user interface responsive to a first torque operating on the winch; and   c. a motor adapted to drive and/or retard the winch.   
     
     
         2 . Exercising device according to  claim 1 , and comprising a biasing assembly coupled to the winch and operable to apply a biasing force to the winch that generates a second torque on the winch directed opposite to the first torque. 
     
     
         3 . Exercising device according to  claim 2  wherein the biasing force operates via a pulley arrangement or a lever arrangement to generate the second torque. 
     
     
         4 . Exercising device according to  claim 2  wherein the first torque is transferred to the winch by a first transmission element. 
     
     
         5 . Exercising device according to  claim 4  wherein the second torque and/or the biasing force is transferred to the winch by a second transmission element. 
     
     
         6 . Exercising device according to  claim 5 , wherein the first transmission element and/or the second transmission element is/are wound round the winch in an opposing rotating sense. 
     
     
         7 . Exercising device according to  claim 6 , wherein the first transmission element and the second transmission element end up at the opposing ends of the winch with a frictional and/or positive locking. 
     
     
         8 . (canceled) 
     
     
         9 . (canceled) 
     
     
         10 . Exercising device according to  claim 6 , wherein the end of the first transmission element and/or the second transmission element are secured to the winch. 
     
     
         11 . Exercising device according to  claim 5 , wherein the first transmission element and the second transmission element are connected to form a transmission device, and wherein the first transmission element and/or the second transmission element comprises at least one or any combination of more than one of a rope, a cable and/or a wire, wherein the rope, the cable and/or the wire is wound around the winch to form at least one loop or a fraction of one or more loop(s). 
     
     
         12 . Exercising device according to  claim 1 , wherein the user interface is any engagement device adapted to interact with a user conducting physical exercises. 
     
     
         13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . Exercising device according to  claim 5 , wherein the first transmission element or the second transmission element has a diameter of at least 1 mm, preferably approximately 3 to 4 mm 
     
     
         15 . Exercising device according to  claim 11  wherein the winch comprises a helical groove having a depth of at least about 20% and less than about 45% of the diameter of the transmission device. 
     
     
         16 . Exercising device according to  claim 15 , wherein at least one sidewall to the helical groove is formed radially outwards by an angle greater than between about 3°, about 5° to a line perpendicular to the rotational axis of the winch. 
     
     
         17 . Exercising device according to  claim 2 , wherein a resulting torque of the first torque and the second torque to the winch has an absolute value of less than 50 Nm, and preferably less than 30 Nm. 
     
     
         18 . (canceled) 
     
     
         19 . (canceled) 
     
     
         20 . Exercising device according to  claim 11 , wherein a breaking load of the transmission device is at least 2 kN. 
     
     
         21 . Exercising device according to  claim 11 , wherein an elongation of the transmission device is less than between about % 1 and about 5% at 10% of the breaking load. 
     
     
         22 . Exercising device according to claim wherein a controlling device controls a resulting torque of the first torque and the second torque of the winch to both support and/or retard a moment on the transmission device. 
     
     
         23 . Exercising device according to  claim 22 , wherein an angle sensor or a shaft encoder is mounted to the winch, a gear and/or to the motor and is adapted to feed its read out into the controlling device. 
     
     
         24 . (canceled) 
     
     
         25 . (canceled) 
     
     
         26 . Exercising device according to  claim 11 , wherein a brake is adapted to keep the transmission element and/or the transmission device in a secure mode. 
     
     
         27 . Exercising device according to  claim 15 , wherein the transmission device is held in place by rollers to prevent the transmission device from escaping from the groove. 
     
     
         28 . Exercising device according to  claim 5 , wherein at least one pulley is connected to the first transmission element, and/or to the second transmission element and/or to the user interface and is guided by at least one sliding eyelet in guide ropes. 
     
     
         29 . (canceled) 
     
     
         30 . (canceled) 
     
     
         31 . Exercising device according to  claim 5 , wherein the first transmission element and/or the second transmission element is at least partly formed as a pulley arrangement. 
     
     
         32 . A method for exercising, particularly with an exercising device according to  claim 1 , comprising the steps of
 a. providing the winch;   b. providing the motor adapted to both drive and retard the winch;   c. providing the first torque to be delivered to the user interface by the winch;   d. providing the biasing assembly   wherein the biasing assembly provides the biasing force, originating from one or a combination of a counterweight, a spring force, a motor force, a magnetic force, a pneumatic force and a hydraulic force.