Variable Resistance Swing Trainer

The present technology relates to a swing training device. In particular, the present technology relates to a dynamic inertia, variable resistance swing trainer device with resistance and moving weight located inside its shaft for use in sport-specific, stick-based swing training apparatus.

Different types of sports, including baseball, softball, cricket, lacrosse, tennis, golf and hockey, involve an athlete's swing movement to play the sport. Various devices exist to help an athlete to improve a swing movement. Some of these devices employ a sliding mass, resisted by user selectable elastics or springs that slide on the exterior of a fixed shaft of the device, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,491,422.

U.S. Pat. No. 10,463,937 describes a device that allows for sport specific simulated game training by allowing the user to hit a baseball or softball with its sliding weighted baseball barrel. The described device may not be suitable for sport specific swing training in stick-base sports such as lacrosse, hockey, tennis, cricket, golf, or stickball, where is necessary to have user-selectable variable resistance and moving mass located internal to the shaft of the equipment itself.

Additionally, some types of sports equipment, such as lacrosse sticks and hockey sticks, are used with one of the players hands located distally from the near end of the shaft. In order for a swing training device to work properly, the internal weight must be located beyond the user's furthest hand. Thus, there is a need for a swing training device that provides user selectable resistance while allowing the moving weight to be located beyond the user's furthest hand.

Accordingly, there is a need for improvements in swing exercising apparatus for improving a swing movement performed when practicing a sport or for other exercising purposes.

The objective of the present invention is to address the shortcomings of the known swing training devices.

The present invention allows for dynamic inertial sport-specific game-play training equipment with user selectable variable resistance and moving mass located within the shaft of the sports equipment itself.

The training apparatus of the present invention can be used to train swing power in addition to swing mechanics. In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the swing training apparatus may include one or more elastic band assemblies that are coupled to the sliding cartridge and that can operate to resist movement of the sliding cartridge. In this manner, the elastic band assemblies require a user to produce more power to move the sliding cartridge inside the shaft.

By changing the “head” at the distal end of the shaft, sport-specific dynamic inertia training equipment such as lacrosse sticks, hockey sticks, tennis racquets, cricket bats, golf clubs, stickball bats, and other stick-based sporting apparatus is realized.

At least some of the above-mentioned objectives are achieved by providing an apparatus for training a swing including a hollow shaft with a proximal end and a distal end, a coupling member positioned inside the shaft adjacent the distal end of the shaft, a sliding cartridge positioned inside the shaft and removably coupled to the coupling member, the sliding cartridge being slideable inside the shaft, and an elastic band assembly positioned on the sliding cartridge and having one end coupled to the sliding cartridge and another end configured to be removably couplable to the coupling member. When the elastic band assembly is coupled to the coupling member, the elastic band assembly resists movement of the sliding cartridge towards the proximal end of the shaft.

In some embodiments, the training apparatus further includes a stopper coupled to the proximal end of the shaft wherein the stopper is configured to stop movement of the sliding cartridge towards the proximal end of the shaft.

In some embodiments, the elastic band assembly includes one or more elastic bands. In certain of these embodiments, the elastic band assembly has a plurality of elastic bands and the coupling member includes a plurality of receptacles corresponding to the plurality of the elastic bands. In some of these embodiments, each of the plurality of elastic bands is separately couplable to the coupling member.

In some embodiments, each elastic band has a different elasticity. In additional embodiments, each elastic band has the same elasticity.

In certain embodiments, the sliding cartridge has a shape corresponding to an internal shape of the hollow shaft.

In some embodiments, one or more heads may coupled to the proximal end of the shaft. The one or more heads may be one or more of a tennis head, a lacrosse head, a cricket head, a hockey head, a golf head, a baseball head, and a softball head.

In certain embodiments, the training apparatus may further include one of a visual and an audible indicator configured to indicate a position of the sliding cartridge at the end of the swing.

The stated objectives are also be achieved by an apparatus for training a swing, including a hollow shaft with a proximal end and a distal end, a coupling member positioned inside the shaft adjacent the distal end of the shaft, and a sliding cartridge positioned inside the shaft and removably coupled to the coupling member. The sliding cartridge is configured to decouple from the coupling member during the swing and slide inside the shaft toward the proximal end of the shaft.

In some embodiments, the apparatus also includes an elastic band assembly positioned on the sliding cartridge and having one end coupled to the sliding cartridge and another end configured to be couplable to the coupling member, wherein, when the elastic band assembly is coupled to the coupling member, the elastic band assembly resists movement of the sliding cartridge towards the proximal end of the shaft.

In certain embodiments, the sliding cartridge further includes a first anchor member positioned at one end of the elastic band assembly and a second member positioned at the opposite end of the elastic band assembly. At least one of the first anchor member and the second anchor member may have one or more receptacles configured to removably accommodate one or more elastic bands of the elastic band assembly.

In some embodiments, the one or more elastic bands may be configured to be removed from the one or more receptacles and coupled to the coupling member. When the one or more elastic bands are coupled to the first and second anchor members, the elastic assembly does not resist the movement of the sliding cartridge towards the proximal end of the shaft.

In certain embodiments, the elastic band assembly may have six elastic bands.

In some embodiments, the sliding cartridge is configured to couple to the coupling member at the end of the swing.

Further objects, aspects, features, and embodiments of the present technology will be apparent from the drawing figures and below description.

It is noted that, as used in the specification and the claims, the singular form “a,” “an,” and “the” comprises plural referents unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. For example, reference to a component in the singular is intended to comprise a plurality of components.

The term “about” is to be construed as modifying a term or value such that it is not an absolute. This term will be defined by the circumstances. This includes, at the very least, the degree of expected experimental error, technique error and instrument error for a given technique used to measure a value. In general, this term used in connection with a numerical value throughout the specification and the claims denotes an interval of accuracy, familiar and acceptable to a person skilled in the art. In general, such interval of accuracy is ±10%. Thus, “about ten” means 9 to 11. All numbers in this description indicating amounts, ratios of materials, physical properties of materials, and/or use are to be understood as modified by the word “about,” except as otherwise explicitly indicated.

The term “comprising” is synonymous with “including,” “having,” “containing,” or “characterized by.” These terms are inclusive and open-ended and do not exclude additional, unrecited elements or method steps.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for training both mechanics and power for a swing-based sport. As will be described in detail herein, training of swing mechanics is accomplished by a sliding component positioned internally in a swing device shaft. The sliding component audibly and/or visually indicates whether a swing is proper, and training of swing power is accomplished by elastic components that resist movement of the sliding component. The present disclosure is applicable to any swing-based, stick-based sport and may be designed to fit inside off-the-shelf sports equipment.

illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a baseball swing training apparatusin accordance with the present invention. The apparatusincludes a handleand a shaft, which are coupled to each other. The apparatushas a proximal endat the end of the shaft, and a distal endat the opposite end of the handle. The handleand the shaftare both hollow and may be made with any suitable materials, such as metal or plastic. The handleand the shaftmay be coupled to each other in various ways. In some embodiments, the handleand the shaftmay be coupled to each other by screw threads. For example, one end of the shaftmay be hollow and may receive the handle. The end of the handlethat fits into the shaftmay have screw threads (not shown) on the end portion of the handlethat is inserted into the shaft. The portion of the shaftthat receives the handlemay include complementary screw threads (not shown) on the inner surface such that the handlemay be screwed into and coupled with the shaft. The screw coupling is merely exemplary, and other types of removable or non-removable coupling are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the shaftand the handlemay be non-removably coupled together using adhesives, welding, or other suitable methods. It is noted that the shaftand the handlemay also be provided as a unitary piece.

The handlehas an end cappositioned at the distal end. The end caphas an opening at its end such that an internal assembly described below may be inserted into and removed from the hollow handleand shaft. In some embodiments, the end caphas a latch mechanism that couples and secures one end of the internal assembly to the handle, as described in more detail below. It is understood that other types of removable couplings may be used within the scope of the present disclosure.

As shown inand, the swing training apparatus also includes an internal assemblyconfigured to fit inside the hollow handleand the hollow shaft. The internal assemblyhas a proximal endand a distal endand includes a sliding cartridgeand a coupling memberremovably coupled to the sliding cartridge. The sliding cartridge may include a rodand an elastic band assemblypositioned over the rod. In some embodiments, the coupling membermay be a latch cylinder with an opening therein that removably receives a portion of the sliding cartridge. Preferably, an inner diameter of the opening is slightly larger than an outer diameter of the portion of the sliding cartridge received in the opening. The latch cylinderretains the portion of the sliding cartridgeuntil a swinging action is performed, during which the sliding cartridgedecouples from the latch cylinder, allowing the sliding cartridge to travel inside the hollow handleand shafttowards the proximal endof the assembly. The latch cylinder is merely exemplary, and other types of removable couplings are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

The internal assemblymay also include a weight memberpositioned at the proximal end. The weight memberadds additional weight to the sliding cartridge making it easier for a user to swing the training device and requiring less power to perform the swing. The weight of the weight membermay be adjusted depending on the type of training device, abilities and skill level of the user, and other considerations. The weight member may be made with aluminum, steel or other suitable materials and may be secured to the rodby any suitable means, such as adhesive, welding, etc.

The coupling memberis affixed to an end knob. When the internal assemblyis inserted into the hollow handleand shaft, a portion of the end knobmay extend out from the distal endof the handle, as seen e.g., in. The end capof the handle and the end knobare provided with mating coupling members configured to removably secure the end knobto the end cap. In some embodiments, the end knobmay have one or more spring actuated protrusionsand the end capmay have one or more mating openings, as seen in. When the end knobis inserted into the end cap, the protrusionsspring out into the openingscoupling the end knobto the end cap. When a user desires to remove the internal assemblyout from the handleand shaft, the protrusionsmay be pushed inward out of the openingsallowing the end knobto be removed from the end cap. It is understood that other coupling mechanisms known in the art may be used to couple the end knob to the end cap within the scope of the present disclosure.

As seen in, the proximal endof the shaft has a stopper, configured to halt the sliding of the sliding cartridgeinside the shaft. As shown, e.g., in, the sliding cartridgeis shorter than the length of the handleand the shaftand is slidable inside the hollow handleand the hollow shaftbetween the coupling memberand the stopper. The stoppermay have various shapes. In some embodiments, the stoppermay include a flange and a bung-shaped stopper portion (not shown). Other shapes for the stopperare contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. The stoppermay be removably or non-removably secured to the shaft, e.g., by mating screws and threads, adhesives, or welding. In some embodiments, the stoppermay be formed as an integral part of the shaft, rather than coupled to the shaft. The coupling mechanisms described above are exemplary, and other coupling mechanisms are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

As mentioned above, the sliding cartridgeincludes the elastic band assembly. The elastic band assemblycomprises one or more elastic bandsand a first and second anchor membersandpositioned on opposite ends of the elastic band assembly, as best seen in. The anchor members may be inserted over the rodand may be removably or non-removably secured to the rodby any suitable means, such as welding, adhesive, screws, etc. In some embodiments, as shown in, the elastic band assemblyis positioned toward the end of the sliding cartridgethat is adjacent the coupling member. It is understood that the positioning of the elastic band assemblymay be varied along the length of the sliding cartridge, as desired.

One or more elastic bandsare secured at each end to the first anchorand the second anchor. In some embodiments, one end of the one or more elastic bandsis removably secured to the second anchorpositioned adjacent the coupling memberand the other end of the one or more elastic bands is non-removably secured to the first anchorpositioned on the opposite end of the elastic band assembly. The elastic bandsmay be secured to the anchorsandin various ways.show various exemplary embodiments of the anchors,. The anchors include one or more receptaclescorresponding to the elastic bands. Each receptaclemay receive and secure one elastic bandof the elastic band assembly. In various embodiments, the anchors,can include a different number of receptacles, such as one receptacle, two receptacles, four receptacles, eight receptacles, or another number. The receptacles may be arranged differently than as shown in. In various embodiments, the receptacles can be evenly spaced apart, as illustrated. In additional embodiments, the receptacles need not be evenly spaced apart.

The anchorsandalso include a central openingthrough which the rodis inserted such that the anchors are retained on the rod. In some embodiments, the anchors are permanently secured to the rod in any suitable way, such as by adhesive or welding. In additional embodiments, the anchors may be removably secured to the rodsuch as by friction or a screw. In some embodiments, the anchors may be repositionable at various locations along the rod, as desired, to accommodate various types of stick-sport equipment.

An outer surface of the anchors may have various desired shapes to accommodate positioning of the internal assemblyinside hollow shafts of various types of sport equipment. In the embodiment illustrated in, the outer surfaceof the anchors has a generally circular shape, which may be particularly suitable for use with baseball or softball bats. In the embodiment shown in, the outer surfaceof the anchors has an elongated hexagonal shape, which may be suitable for use with tennis rackets. In various embodiments, the anchors can have another shape, such as hexagon, oval, etc. to correspond to the shaft shape of a particular stick-sport device. Various configurations of the anchors having receptacles are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, an outer diameter of the anchors is chosen such that can easily slide inside a hollow shaft of the sport device.

It is noted that the shaftmay be made to have a generally circular inner surface shape and a differently shaped outer surface shape to correspond to the shape of the outer surface of the shaft of a particular sports equipment. For example, as shown in, the outer surfaceof the shaft may have an octagonal shape to correspond to a lacrosse stick shaft, whereas the inner surfaceof the shaft may be generally circular to accommodate the circular shaped anchors. This way, the same sliding component with anchors may be used with differently shaped sports equipment.

shows a sectional view of a portion of the rodand the elastic band assembly. The elastic band assemblyincludes the elastic band, the first anchorand the second anchordescribed above. In the illustrated embodiment, both ends of the elastic bandcan be secured to the anchors,in the same way. The elastic bandhas two abutment membersandpositioned at the opposite end of the band. The abutment members may be secured to the band ends by any suitable method, such as adhesive, molding the abutment members onto the band ends, tying the band ends around the abutment members, etc. The abutment members,abut and push against the ends of the anchors,and are unable to enter the receptacles. In this manner, the elastic bandis secured to the first and second anchor,. The embodiment ofis exemplary, and other ways of securing an elastic band to the anchors are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the first anchorcan be molded and formed around an end of the elastic bandsuch that when the anchoris solidly formed, one end of the elastic bandis within the anchor.

The end of the elastic bandadjacent the second anchormay be grasped and pulled out of the anchorto stretch the elastic band. In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the coupling memberincludes one or more receptacles corresponding to the one or more elastic bands. The receptacles of the coupling member may be similar to the receptaclesof the first and second member shown in. The receptacles of the coupling memberreceive one end of the one or more elastic bandsand secure the elastic band end to the coupling memberin a similar manner as described above.

When the elastic band end is not pulled, the end of the bandabuts the second anchor, as shown in. In this state, the elastic band assemblydoes not operate to resist movement of the sliding cartridge. When the elastic bandis pulled and anchored to coupling member, the elastic band assemblyresists movement of the sliding cartridgetowards the stopper. Accordingly, the user needs to produce more power to move the sliding cartridgeduring a swing. As shown in, the swing apparatuscan include multiple elastic bands within the elastic band assembly. Each elastic bandcan be individually pulled, separately from any other elastic bands.illustrate one elastic bandbeing pulled and secured to the coupling member, while other elastic bands are not pulled. In various embodiments, each elastic band can have the same elasticity. In various embodiments, different elastic bands can have different elasticities. The amount of resistance can be adjusted by anchoring different numbers of elastic bands to the coupling member, and/or by anchoring elastic bands having different elasticities. For example, anchoring three elastic bands to the coupling member provides more resistance than anchoring one elastic band.

Accordingly, described above is a baseball swing training apparatusthat includes the handle, the shaft, the internal sliding cartridgewith the elastic band assembly, first and second anchors,and the coupling member. The training apparatuscan be used in live batting practice. When the batter holds the apparatus at the start of a swing, the sliding cartridgeis coupled to the coupling member, which is fixedly secured to the handle portion, as shown in. In the motion of swinging the bat, the sliding cartridgedecouples from the coupling memberand slides inside the hollow handleand the hollow shafttowards the stopper, as shown in. One or more elastic bandsof the elastic band assemblyare coupled to the coupling memberand resist movement of the sliding cartridgetowards the stopperas shown in. A batter's swing mechanics can be determined by audibly and/or visually examining the movement of the sliding cartridge. For example, if the sliding cartridgereaches the stoppertoo early before contacting a ball or does not yet reach the stopperwhen contacting the ball, the batter's swing mechanics may need to be improved. Towards the end of the swing, the sliding cartridgeslides away from the stopperback towards the coupling memberand is in contact with the coupling memberat the end of the swing, as shown in.

In some embodiments, a through-opening (not shown) may be made at an appropriate location in the elongated shaft. The opening may be made by any suitable means, such as drilling, machining, etc. The through-opening is made such that it is possible to see inside the shaft. The sliding cartridgemay be colored with a different color on the outside such that, as the sliding cartridgeslides within the shaft, it will pass the through-opening and the color of the outside of the cartridge will be visible through the opening to an outside observer. The outside color of the cartridgeis preferably contrasting to the color of the shaftsuch that it can be easily seen through the opening. The through-opening is positioned at a particular location along the shaft such that the sliding cartridge will have to pass beyond the through-opening if the swing is performed properly. This way, the sliding carriage will either slide past the opening, causing the color within the opening to change, or there will be no change in color indicating that the sliding component did not slide far enough. This allows a batter or a coach to visually detect whether the swing has been performed properly.

In additional embodiments, an electronic component may be added to the end of the shaft. When the sliding cartridgeslides within the shaft during a swing, the electronics component may be contacted by the weight of the sliding cartridge, causing an LED or another suitable electronic mechanism to turn on and produce either an audible signal (beep, etc.) or a visual signal (light turns on) indicating that a proper swing has been achieved. If the electronics component does not turn on, it indicates that the sliding cartridge did not slide far enough and thus, a proper swing has not been achieved. In further embodiments, the physical contact between the sliding cartridgeand the stoppermay produce an audible sound, e.g., two materials clashing together, which may indicate when a contact between the sliding cartridge and the stopper is made.

illustrate another embodiment of the swing training apparatus in accordance with the present technology. This embodiment is particularly suitable for training in lacrosse. The training apparatusincludes a hollow shaftwith a distal endand a proximal end, and a lacrosse headcoupled to the proximal end. The lacrosse headmay be attached to the hollow shaftby any suitable method known to those skilled in the art, such as screws, friction fitting, adhesive, welding, etc. In some embodiments, the lacrosse headis removably coupled to the shaftsuch that it may be removed and another type of head typically used for swing sports may be attached to allow the apparatusto be used for training in a different sport. In some embodiments, the headis permanently attached to the shaft. It is understood that the training apparatus of the present invention may also be used with off-the-shelf lacrosse sticks or other stick-based sports equipment, which may be custom fitted with the training assembly described herein.

Referring to, the training apparatusfurther includes an internal assembly. The internal assembly according to this exemplary embodiment is similar to the internal assemblydescribed above. The internal assembly includes a sliding cartridge, a coupling memberand an end knob. When the internal assembly is inserted inside the hollow shaft, a removable coupling deviceprovided on the end knob, such as a spring activated protrusion, interacts with a mating removable coupling device, such as an opening, provided at the distal endof the shaftto removably secure the end knoband the attached coupling memberto the shaft, as shown in.

The sliding cartridge has a rodand an elastic band assemblypositioned over the rod, as shown in the exemplary embodiment in. The sliding cartridgemay also include a weight memberto add weight to the sliding cartridgeas desired.

The elastic band assemblyincludes one or more elastic bandspositioned between a first anchor memberand a second anchor member. The structure of the first and second anchor members,may be similar to that described above. One end of the elastic bandis removably or non-removably secured to the first anchorand an opposite end of the elastic bandis removably secured to the second anchor. This may be accomplished by any of the methods described above. Due to the nature of lacrosse, the user would typically hold the stick with the two hands spaced apart from each other. This moves the fulcrum down towards the proximal end of the shaft. In order for the swing training device to function properly, the sliding weight has to move past the furthest hand positioned on the shaft. To accommodate for this, the length of the sliding cartridge may be adjusted as necessary.

The operation of the training apparatusis generally similar to that described above. As shown in the exemplary embodiment in, when a user holds the apparatus at the start of a swing, the sliding cartridgeis coupled to the coupling member, which is fixedly secured to the shaft. In the motion of swinging the lacrosse stick, the sliding cartridgedecouples from the coupling memberand slides inside the hollow shafttowards the distal endof the shaft, as shown in. The user's swing mechanics may be determined by audibly and/or visually examining the movement of the sliding cartridge via any methods described above. Towards the end of the swing, the sliding cartridgeslides away from the distal endback towards the coupling memberand is in contact with the coupling memberat the end of the swing.

As described above, the one or more elastic bandsmay be decoupled from the second anchor member, stretched and coupled to the coupling memberand operate to resist movement of the sliding cartridge. In this manner, the elastic bandsrequire a user to produce more power to move the sliding cartridge along the shaft. Each elastic band can be individually pulled, separately from any other elastic bands. The amount of resistance can be adjusted by anchoring different numbers of elastic bands to the coupling member, and/or by anchoring elastic bands having different elasticities. For example, anchoring three elastic bands to the coupling member provides more resistance than anchoring one elastic band.