Wheelchair user exercise device

Claim 1

An exercise device for manually operated wheelchair users, said exercise device comprising: a pair of right and left ramps each defining a rampway for respectively receiving the right and left front and rear wheels of a wheelchair with each ramp including an open front and a barriered rear end, said ramps being arranged so that they extend in the same direction, said ramps being jointly tiltable between a downwardly directed forwardly facing wheelchair loading and unloading position, wherein said front ends thereof are inclined downwardly, and at a level wheelchair user exercising position in which said ramps are substantially horizontally disposed, means for shifting said ramps toward and away from each other for respectively receiving thereon the right and left front and rear wheels of wheelchairs to accommodate variant lateral spacing of wheelchair right and left front and rear wheels, said ramps adjacent their rear ends journaling a plurality of flywheel effect providing rollers that are exposed from the upper sides of the respective ramps, that are in spaced relation longitudinally of the respective ramps, and that are vertically disposed to lodge the respective right and left rear wheels, in tractive relation thereagainst, of a wheelchair received on said ramps, said device including means for braking one of said plurality of said rollers when said ramps are in their tilted positions, and for freeing said braked rollers to rotate when said ramps are in their level positions, said ramps each defining a recess adjacent the front ends thereof for receiving the respective right and left front wheels of a wheelchair having its respective right and left rear wheels in said tractive relation with the respective rollers of said ramps, means for proportioning said ramp recesses to accommodate variant spacing of wheelchair right and left front wheels longitudinally of said ramps, respectively, said device further including: means for simultaneously tilting said ramps between their said positions, end means cooperating with said recesses, respectively, for braking the respective right and left front wheels of a wheelchair when the wheelchair is received on said ramps and said ramps are in their said level positions, whereby, when said ramps are in their downwardly directed positions, a wheelchair user may back his wheelchair onto the respective ramps until the wheelchair right and left rear wheels respectively lodge in said tractive relation with the respective ramp rollers with the wheelchair right and left front wheels being positioned over said recesses of the respective ramps, and when said ramps are tilted to their level positions, the wheelchair respective right and left rear wheels may be freely manually rotated on said rollers of the respective ramps and the wheelchair respective right and left front wheels are braked for holding the wheelchair on the ramp for exercise by the wheelchair user.