BALANCE PAD

Abstract

A balance pad includes a base. A plurality of first pillars and a peripheral wall are uprightly disposed on the base. The peripheral wall surrounds the first pillars so that the first pillars are located within the peripheral wall. Thereby, the first pillars reduce the stability of the balance pad to increase the difficulty of doing balance exercise. The peripheral wall surrounds the first pillars, so that the first pillars can abut against the peripheral wall to avoid excessive inclination of the first pillars to cause injury to a user.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a pad, and more particularly to a balance pad for doing balance exercise.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A conventional balance pad is a soft solid pad made of polyvinyl chloride or nitrile rubber. When in use, the user maintains the stability of his/her body by exerting force on the balance pad, such as standing on one foot, so as to achieve the effect of exercising the relevant muscle groups for rehabilitation, sports or training purposes.

However, the conventional balance pad is flat, so it has a fixed degree of balance. By means of elastic compression, the stability of the user's body is reduced, and it is difficult to increase the difficulty of training. In addition, if the user steps on the outer periphery of the balance pad unexpectedly, the foot support will be insufficient, which may lead to the risk of injury to the elderly or rehabilitation patients easily. Accordingly, the inventor of the present invention has devoted himself based on his many years of practical experiences to solve these problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a balance pad that improves the training intensity by reducing the stability of the balance pad.

In order to achieve the above object, a balance pad comprises a base, a plurality of first pillars and a peripheral wall. The first pillars are uprightly disposed on the base. The peripheral wall is uprightly disposed on the base and surrounds the first pillars so that the first pillars are located within the peripheral wall.

The balance pad provided by the present invention reduces the stability of the balance pad through the first pillars to increase the difficulty of doing balance exercise. The peripheral wall surrounds the first pillars, so that the first pillars can abut against the peripheral wall to avoid excessive inclination of the first pillars to cause injury to the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top view in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a bottom view in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention when in use; and

FIG. 7 is another schematic view in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention when in use.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a top view in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. The present invention discloses a balance pad 100, comprising a base 10, a plurality of first pillars 20 and a peripheral wall 30 that are integrally formed.

Referring to FIGS. 3 to 5, the base 10 is a platy body with a thickness. The underside of the base 10 has an anti-slip pattern.

The first pillars 20 are uprightly disposed on a top surface 11 of the base 10. The first pillars 20 are polygonal pillars. Each first pillar 20 includes a first top surface 21. The first top surface 21 has an anti-slip pattern. The first top surface 21 is connected with a plurality of first side surfaces 22. The first side surfaces 22 of every adjacent two of the first pillars 20 face each other and are spaced apart from each other. Each first pillar 20 has a plurality of first side curved surfaces 23. The first side curved surfaces 23 are disposed between a pair of adjacent surfaces of the first top surface 21 and the first side surfaces 22 to provide smoothness and comfort in use. In this embodiment, the cross-section of the first pillar 20 is a regular hexagon. The first side curved surface 23 is formed at the end point of the regular hexagon. Each first pillar 20 has six first side surfaces 22. The first pillars 20 are arranged at intervals along a first direction 24. The first pillars are arranged in a staggered manner along a second direction 25. The entirety of the first pillars is in a honeycomb-like shape.

The peripheral wall 30 is uprightly disposed on the top surface 11 of the base 10. The peripheral wall 30 is in the form of a hollow rectangular frame. A recess 31 is formed between the peripheral wall 30 and the base 10. The peripheral wall 30 surrounds the first pillars 20 so that the first pillars 20 are located within the peripheral wall 30. The height of the peripheral wall 30 is equal to the height of the first pillar 20. The peripheral wall 30 includes two first side walls 32 and two second side walls 33. Two ends of each first side wall 32 are connected to the second side walls 33. The first side walls 32 are parallel to the first direction 24. The second side walls 33 are parallel to the second direction 25. A first groove 321 is formed on the top surface of each first side wall 32 adjacent to the recess 31. The side surface of the first groove 321 is a convex curved surface. A second groove 331 is formed on the top surface of each second side wall 33 adjacent to the recess 31. The side surface of the second groove 331 is a convex curved surface. The first grooves 321 and the second grooves 331 are connected in series to form an annular groove 34.

Each first side wall 32 is integrally formed with a plurality of second pillars 40. The second pillars 40 are uprightly disposed on the top surface 11 of the base 10. The second pillars 40 are polygonal pillars arranged at intervals. The height of the first side wall 32 is equal to the height of the second pillar 40. Each second pillar 40 includes a second top surface 41. The second top surface 41 has an anti-slip pattern. The second top surface 41 is connected with a plurality of first end surfaces 42, a plurality of second side surfaces 43 and at least one first connecting surface 44. The first end surfaces 42 are connected to each other. The other end of each first end surface 42 is connected to a corresponding one of the second side surfaces 43. The second side surfaces 43 are jointly connected to the first connecting surface 44. The first end surfaces 42 each face and are spaced apart from the corresponding first side surfaces 22. The second side surfaces 43 of every adjacent two of the second pillars 40 face each other and are spaced apart each other. The first connecting surface 44 is connected to the corresponding first side wall 32. Each second pillar 40 has a plurality of second side curved surfaces 45. The second side curved surfaces 45 are disposed between a pair of adjacent surfaces of the second top surface 41, the first end surfaces 42, the second side surfaces 43 and the first connecting surface 44 to provide smoothness and comfort in use. In this embodiment, the cross-section of each second pillar 40 is a pentagon. The second side curved surface 45 is formed at the end point of the pentagon. Each second pillar 40 has two first end surfaces 42, two second side surfaces 43 and a first connecting surface 44.

The middle portion of each second sidewall 33 is connected to a corresponding one of the first side surfaces 22. Two ends of each second side wall 33 are connected to the corresponding second side surfaces 43, respectively. Each second side wall 33 is integrally formed with a plurality of third pillars 50. The third pillars 50 are uprightly disposed on the top surface 11 of the base 10. Each third pillar 50 is located between a corresponding one of the first pillars 20 and a corresponding one of the second pillars 40. The third pillars 50 are polygonal pillars. The height of the second side wall 33 is equal to the height of the third pillar 50. Each third pillar 50 includes a third top surface 51. The third top surface 51 has an anti-slip pattern. The third top surface 51 is connected with at least one second end surface 52, a plurality of third side surfaces 53 and at least one second connecting surface 54. The other end of each second end surface 52 is connected to a corresponding one of the third side surfaces 53. The third side surfaces 53 are jointly connected to the second connecting surface 54. The second end surface 52 faces and is spaced apart from a corresponding one of the first side surfaces 22. The third side surface 53 faces and is spaced apart from the corresponding first side surface 22 or the corresponding second side surface 43. The second connecting surface 54 is connected to the corresponding second side wall 33. Each third pillar 50 has a plurality of third side curved surfaces 55. The third side curved surfaces 55 are disposed between a pair of adjacent surfaces of the combination of the third top surface 51, the second end surfaces 52, the third side surfaces 53 and the second connecting surface 54 to provide smoothness and comfort in use. In this embodiment, the cross-section of each third pillar 50 is a quadrangular. The third side curved surface 55 is formed at the end point of the quadrangular. Each third pillar 50 has a second end surface 52, two third side surfaces 53 and a second connecting surface 54.

The material of the balance pad 100 is thermoplastic elastomer (TPE).

Please refer to FIG. 6. When in use, the base 10 of the balance pad 100 is placed on the ground for the user to do balance exercise, with or without weight. The posture may be standing on one foot, standing on two feet, lying down, sitting, kneeling, or elbow balance, etc. Because the first pillars 20, the second pillars 40 and the third pillars 50 are spaced apart from each other, the first pillars 20 are inclined to abut against the other first pillar 20, the second pillar 40 or the third pillar 50, respectively. In this way, the stability of the balance pad 100 is reduced, so as to increase the difficulty of doing balance exercise. Besides, the first pillars 20, the second pillars 40, the third pillars 50 and the base 10 are all elastically compressed, so the user needs to control the center of gravity to maintain balance, so the training effect is better. The second pillars 40 and the third pillars 50 of the peripheral wall 30 surround the first pillars 20, so they can abut against the first pillars 20 to avoid excessive inclination of the first pillars 20 to cause injury to the user. The material of the balance pad 100 is thermoplastic elastomer, so it has a better support effect to improve safety and training stability effectively.

Please refer to FIG. 7. The balance pad of the present invention can be used in another way. The base 10 of the balance pad 100 faces upward. The degree of inclination of the first pillars 20 is less when in use. Therefore, it is easier for the user to control the center of gravity of his/her body and maintain balance. Thus, the difficulty of doing balance exercise with the balance pad provided by the present invention can be adjusted according to the user's status.

In this embodiment, the cross-section of each first pillar 20 is hexagonal. The cross-section of each second pillar 40 and the cross-section of each third pillar 50 are about half of a regular hexagon, respectively. Therefore, when the balance pad 100 is used, the gaps between the first pillars 20, the second pillars 40 and the third pillars 50 are relatively low. The first pillars 20, the second pillars 40 and the third pillars 50 are in surface contact with each other, so the support effect is good and the safety in use is improved.

It is worth mentioning that the cross-sectional shapes of the first pillars 20 and the peripheral wall 30 may be changed to other polygonal, circular or elliptical shapes according to the degree of stability. The cross-sectional shapes of the second pillars 40 and the third pillars 50 correspond to the shape of the first pillars 20.

Claims

1. A balance pad, comprising:

a base;

a plurality of first pillars, uprightly disposed on the base;

a peripheral wall, uprightly disposed on the base and surrounding the first pillars so that the first pillars are located within the peripheral wall.

2. The balance pad as claimed in claim 1, wherein the peripheral wall is provided with a plurality of second pillars, the second pillars are spaced apart from each other, and the second pillars are spaced apart from the corresponding first pillars, respectively.

3. The balance pad as claimed in claim 2, wherein each first pillar includes a plurality of first side surfaces, the first side surfaces of every adjacent two of the first pillars face each other and are spaced apart from each other, each second pillar includes at least one first end surface, and the first end surface faces and is spaced apart from a corresponding one of the first side surfaces.

4. The balance pad as claimed in claim 3, wherein the at least one first end surface includes two first end surfaces, the first end surfaces of each second pillar are connected to each other, another end of each first end surface is connected to a second side surface, the second side surfaces of every adjacent two of the second pillars face each other and are spaced apart each other.

5. The balance pad as claimed in claim 4, wherein the peripheral wall is provided with a plurality of third pillars, and each third pillar is located between a corresponding one of the first pillars and a corresponding one of the second pillars.

6. The balance pad as claimed in claim 5, wherein each third pillar includes a second end surface, the second end surface faces and is spaced apart from a corresponding one of the first side surfaces, either end of the second end surface is connected to a third side surface, and the third side surface faces and is spaced apart from a corresponding one of the first side surfaces or the corresponding second side surface.

7. The balance pad as claimed in claim 4, wherein a top surface of the peripheral wall is formed with an annular groove.

8. The balance pad as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base, the plurality of first pillars and the peripheral wall are integrally formed.

9. The balance pad as claimed in claim 1, wherein each first pillar is a hexagonal pillar.