Background Art As is generally well known, modern city-dwellers suffer from various kinds of adult diseases and physical degeneracy, which mainly result from lack of physical exercise. This is because they have not enough time for physical training and go even a short distance by means of transportation, not on foot. In other words, they do not take a minimum physical exercise necessary for maintaining their basic physical fitness.

In order to solve such lack of physical exercise of the modern city- dwellers, a great number of health and fitness centers have been built in the vicinity of office buildings or in residential areas in recent years, which are now doing a thriving business.

The health and fitness centers are equipped with various kinds of equipments for aerobic exercises, which not only increase basic physical fitness of the modern city-dwellers but also strengthen their muscles.

One of equipments for improving the basic physical fitness of the modern city-dwellers is a treadmill machine, which is easy and convenient to use and thus very popular. The treadmill machines may be easily installed at homes as well as in health and fitness centers. Consequently, weak persons, old persons, or sick persons may use the treadmill machines at homes to improve their physical fitness.

They may walk or slowly run on the treadmill machines to consume calories

without abrupt physical impact. The treadmill machines are also useful to reduce and even prevent obesity since walking and slow running are aerobic exercises.

The treadmill machine is a machine basically comprising: a pair of side frames ; a rubber conveyor belt arranged between the side frames; and a motor for driving the rubber conveyor belt so that a user walks or runs on the rubber conveyor belt driven by the motor. In recent years, the treadmill machine has been designed in such a manner that the user walks or runs on the basis of various programs for reducing and preventing obesity as well as general aerobic exercise, which manner is preferably used by the modern city-dwellers.

The treadmill machine further comprises: a control panel for showing time, amount, and speed of exercise, and a tilt angle of the conveyor belt ; a power on/off switch for supplying electric current to the control panel and stopping the supply of the electric current to the control panel; a time input unit for inputting the time of exercise; a speed input unit for inputting the speed of the conveyor belt; and a tilt angle input unit for inputting the tilt angle of the conveyor belt, thereby enabling a user to easily and conveniently adjust the amount and the time of exercise.

However, the treadmill machine is usually installed in a small indoor space, such as a house or a health and fitness center, which is isolated from the open air. Consequently, a bad smell, carbon dioxide gas, and infectious viruses are discharged from a user walking or running on the treadmill machine installed in the small indoor space to contaminate the air in the small indoor space.

Especially, at health and fitness centers, where many users use a plurality of treadmill machines at the same time, minute dust contaminates the air in addition to the bad smells, the carbon dioxide gases, and the infectious viruses discharged from the users of the treadmill machines in the health and fitness centers.

As a user runs on the treadmill machine, he/she not only sweats but also becomes bored from running on the treadmill machine. Consequently, the user cannot keep running on the treadmill machine for a long time.

When the user breathes in and out while running on the treadmill machine, he inhales oxygen so that the oxygen inhaled by his/her lungs is supplied to cells by means of hemoglobin in his/her blood to burn glycogen or fat accumulated in the interior of the body and supplement energy necessary for

running, and then carbon dioxide gas is exhaled out of the body. For this reason, it is preferable to breathe deeply in an abdominal breathing fashion so that a larger amount of air can be breathed in and out at a time, which is very helpful to get rid of stress.

While the users breathe in and out while running on the treadmill machines in the health and fitness center, however, they discharge carbon dioxide gas and infectious viruses, which are breathed in again by the neighboring users running on the treadmill machines. Furthermore, they also breathe in minute dust raised by their running on the treadmill machines. As a result, their running on the treadmill machine in a limited indoor space is not beneficial to their health, but rather injures their health because they breathe in the infectious viruses. Besides, such an unhealthy environment increases the stress on the users and thus ruins their health.

Disclosure of the Invention Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a treadmill machine having an air blowing chamber formed through a control panel for showing time, amount, and speed of exercise, and a tilt angle of the conveyor belt of the treadmill machine, an air blowing fan mounted in the air blowing chamber, the air blowing fan being driven by a motor for blowing air introduced from the inlet of the air blowing chamber to the front of the control panel via the outlet of the air blowing chamber so that the air is blown to a user walking or running on the treadmill machine, an air direction control grill rotatably mounted at the outlet of the air blowing chamber for controlling the direction of air discharged to the front of the control panel through the outlet of the air blowing chamber, a removable filter mounted at the inlet of the air blowing chamber for filtering air introduced into the air blowing chamber through the inlet of the air blowing chamber so that minute dust and viruses are removed from the introduced air, and a container mounted at the inlet of the air blowing chamber for containing an aromatic agent or a natural scent material so that the aromatic agent or the natural scent material contained in the container is discharged together with the air discharged to front of

the control panel through the outlet of the air blowing chamber, thereby enabling the user to actually feel that he/she is running in the open air, enabling the user to run on the treadmill machine for a long time, and minimizing the amount of carbon dioxide gas inhaled by the user running on the treadmill machine, and thus contributing to public health.

The present invention relates to an indoor treadmill machine for physical training, and more particularly to a treadmill machine with air blowing function comprising an air blowing fan mounted in a control panel of the treadmill machine for blowing air to a user on a track of the treadmill machine, thereby enabling the user to actually feel that he/she is running in the open air.

As is generally well known, modern city-dwellers suffer from various kinds of adult diseases and physical degeneracy, which mainly result from lack of physical exercise. This is because they have not enough time for physical training and go even a short distance by means of transportation, not on foot. In other words, they do not take a minimum physical exercise necessary for maintaining their basic physical fitness.

In order to solve such lack of physical exercise of the modern city- dwellers, a great number of health and fitness centers have been built in the vicinity of office buildings or in residential areas in recent years, which are now doing a thriving business.

The health and fitness centers are equipped with various kinds of equipments for aerobic exercises, which not only increase basic physical fitness of the modern city-dwellers but also strengthen their muscles.

One of equipments for improving the basic physical fitness of the modern city-dwellers is a treadmill machine, which is easy and convenient to use and thus very popular. The treadmill machines may be easily installed at homes as well as in health and fitness centers. Consequently, weak persons, old persons, or sick persons may use the treadmill machines at homes to improve their physical fitness.

They may walk or slowly run on the treadmill machines to consume calories without abrupt physical impact. The treadmill machines are also useful to reduce and even prevent obesity since walking and slow running are aerobic exercises.

The treadmill machine is a machine basically comprising: a pair of side frames ; a rubber conveyor belt arranged between the side frames; and a motor for

driving the rubber conveyor belt so that a user walks or runs on the rubber conveyor belt driven by the motor. In recent years, the treadmill machine has been designed in such a manner that the user walks or runs on the basis of various programs for reducing and preventing obesity as well as general aerobic exercise, which manner is preferably used by the modern city-dwellers.

The treadmill machine further comprises: a control panel for showing time, amount, and speed of exercise, and a tilt angle of the conveyor belt; a power on/off switch for supplying electric current to the control panel and stopping the supply of the electric current to the control panel; a time input unit for inputting the time of exercise; a speed input unit for inputting the speed of the conveyor belt; and a tilt angle input unit for inputting the tilt angle of the conveyor belt, thereby enabling a user to easily and conveniently adjust the amount and the time of exercise.

However, the treadmill machine is usually installed in a small indoor space, such as a house or a health and fitness center, which is isolated from the open air. Consequently, a bad smell, carbon dioxide gas, and infectious viruses are discharged from a user walking or running on the treadmill machine installed in the small indoor space to contaminate the air in the small indoor space.

Especially, at health and fitness centers, where many users use a plurality of treadmill machines at the same time, minute dust contaminates the air in addition to the bad smells, the carbon dioxide gases, and the infectious viruses discharged from the users of the treadmill machines in the health and fitness centers.

As a user runs on the treadmill machine, he/she not only sweats but also becomes bored from running on the treadmill machine. Consequently, the user cannot keep running on the treadmill machine for a long time.

When the user breathes in and out while running on the treadmill machine, he inhales oxygen so that the oxygen inhaled by his/her lungs is supplied to cells by means of hemoglobin in his/her blood to burn glycogen or fat accumulated in the interior of the body and supplement energy necessary for running, and then carbon dioxide gas is exhaled out of the body. For this reason, it is preferable to breathe deeply in an abdominal breathing fashion so that a larger amount of air can be breathed in and out at a time, which is very helpful to get rid of stress.

While the users breathe in and out while running on the treadmill machines in the health and fitness center, however, they discharge carbon dioxide gas and infectious viruses, which are breathed in again by the neighboring users running on the treadmill machines. Furthermore, they also breathe in minute dust raised by their running on the treadmill machines. As a result, their running on the treadmill machine in a limited indoor space is not beneficial to their health, but rather injures their health because they breathe in the infectious viruses. Besides, such an unhealthy environment increases the stress on the users and thus ruins their health.

In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of a treadmill machine with air blowing function comprising: a pair of side frames; a conveyor belt movably disposed between the side frames, which is driven by a motor; and a control panel having a mode switch mounted thereon, the motor being controlled by means of the mode switch and a health management program stored in a memory installed in the control panel, wherein the improvement comprises: an air blowing chamber formed through the control panel; an air blowing fan mounted in the air blowing chamber, the air blowing fan being driven by a motor for blowing air introduced from the inlet of the air blowing chamber to the front of the control panel via the outlet of the air blowing chamber; an air direction control grill rotatably mounted at the outlet of the air blowing chamber, the air direction control grill being rotated vertically and from side to side so that a user controls the direction of air discharged to the front of the control panel through the outlet of the air blowing chamber; and a removable filter mounted at the inlet of the air blowing chamber for filtering air introduced into the air blowing chamber through the inlet of the air blowing chamber, and a container mounted at the inlet of the air blowing chamber for containing an aromatic agent or a natural scent material, whereby the aromatic agent or the natural scent material contained in the container is discharged together with the air discharged to the front of the control panel through the outlet of the air blowing chamber.

Brief Description of the Drawings The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which : Figs. la and lb are perspective views respectively showing a treadmill machine according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention ; Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a control panel of the treadmill machine according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing a treadmill machine according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention; and Figs. 4a and 4b are enlarged cross-sectional views respectively showing a control panel of the treadmill machine according to the second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Now, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same or similar elements are denoted by the same reference numerals even though they are depicted in different drawings.

Figs. la and lb are perspective views respectively showing a treadmill machine according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a control panel of the treadmill machine according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention, Fig.

3 is a perspective view showing a treadmill machine according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention, and Figs. 4a and 4b are enlarged cross-sectional views respectively showing a control panel of the treadmill machine according to the second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in the accompanying drawings, a treadmill machine, which is denoted by a reference numeral 10, comprises: a pair of side frames 11 ; a conveyor belt 12 movably disposed between the side frames 11, which is driven by a motor

(not shown) ; and a control panel 20 having a mode switch 13 mounted thereon.

The motor is controlled by means of the mode switch 13 and a health management program stored in a memory installed in the control panel.

The control panel 20 has an air blowing chamber 30 formed therethrough.

In the air blowing chamber 30 is mounted an air blowing fan 31, which is driven by a motor (not shown) for blowing air introduced from the inlet of the air blowing chamber 3 0 to the front of the control panel 20 via the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30.

At the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30 is rotatably mounted an air direction control grill 32, which can be rotated vertically and from side to side so that a user controls the direction of air discharged to front of the control panel 20 through the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30.

At the inlet of the air blowing chamber 30 are mounted a removable filter 33 for filtering air introduced into the air blowing chamber 30 through the inlet of the air blowing chamber 30, and a container 34 for containing a chemical agent, such as an aromatic agent or a natural scent material. The aromatic agent or the natural scent material contained in the container 34 is discharged together with the air discharged to front of the control panel 20 through the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30 so that the user on the treadmill machine 10 detects a fresh smell, thereby enabling the user to get rid of stress and actually feel that he/she is running in the open air.

The air blowing fan 31 may be a horizontal cross-flow fan mounted in the air blowing chamber 30 in such a manner that the fan 31 is arranged in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the control panel 20. Alternatively, a pair of vertical cross-flow air blowing fans 31 may be mounted in two air blowing chambers 30 formed at both sides of the control panel 20 in such a manner that each of the fans 31 is arranged perpendicularly to the longitudinal direction of the control panel 20.

The air blowing fan 31 may also be a scirocco fan or an axial fan, which is useful to stably and comfortably blow air to the user on the treadmill machine.

The operation of the treadmill machine with the above-stated construction according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail.

Figs. la and lb are perspective views respectively showing a treadmill

machine having a control panel with a cross-flow fan or cross-flow fans mounted therein according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, and Fig.

2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the control panel with the cross-flow fan of the treadmill machine as shown in Fig. la. As shown in Figs. la, lb, and 2, the air blowing chamber 30 is formed through the control panel 20 of the treadmill machine 10 comprising the side frames 11, the conveyor belt 12 movably disposed between the side frames 11, which is driven by the motor, and the control panel 20 having the mode switch 13 mounted thereon, the motor being controlled by means of the mode switch 13 and the health management program stored in the memory installed in the control panel.

In the air blowing chamber 30 is mounted the air blowing fan 31, which is driven by the motor for blowing air introduced from the inlet of the air blowing chamber 30 to the front of the control panel 20 via the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30.

At the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30 is rotatably mounted the air direction control grill 32, which can be rotated vertically and from side to side so that the user controls the direction of air discharged to front of the control panel 20 through the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30.

At the inlet of the air blowing chamber 30 is mounted the removable filter 33 for filtering air introduced into the air blowing chamber 30 through the inlet of the air blowing chamber 30 so that minute dust and viruses are removed from the introduced air. In front or the rear of the filter 33 is mounted the container 34 for containing an aromatic agent or a natural scent material. The aromatic agent or the natural scent material contained in the container 34 is discharged together with the air discharged to front of the control panel 20 through the outlet of the air blowing chamber 30 so that the user on the treadmill machine 10 detects a fresh smell, thereby enabling the user to get rid of stress and to feel that he/she is nice and cool.

A treadmill machine according to the second preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 3,4a, and 4b. As shown in Figs. 3,4a, and 4b, the treadmill machine has an air blowing fan 31 mounted in an air blowing chamber 31 of a control panel 20, which is a horizontal cross-flow fan. Alternatively, a pair of vertical cross-flow air blowing fans 31 may be mounted in two air blowing

chambers 31 formed at both sides of the control panel 20.

The air blowing fan 31 may also be a scirocco fan or an axial fan, which is useful to effectively control the amount and the direction of blown air, and thus stably and comfortably blow air to the user on the treadmill machine.

As described in detail above, the air blowing fan, which is driven by the motor, is mounted in the control panel of the treadmill machine so that the air is blown toward the face and chest of the user on the treadmill machine. The blown air dries the sweat from the user and thus refreshes the user so that the user can run pleasantly on the treadmill machine. The treadmill machine of the present invention has a simple structure. Consequently, the treadmill machine of the present invention can be manufactured easily, simply, and economically.

Industrial Applicability As apparent from the above description, the present invention provides a treadmill machine comprising an air blowing chamber formed through a control panel of the treadmill machine, and an air blowing fan mounted in the air blowing chamber, the air blowing fan being driven by a motor for blowing air introduced from the inlet of the air blowing chamber to the front of the control panel via the outlet of the air blowing chamber so that the air is blown to a user walking or running on the treadmill machine, thereby enabling the user to actually feel that he/she is running in the open air and to run on the treadmill machine for a long time.

The treadmill machine of the present invention further comprises an air direction control grill rotatably mounted at the outlet of the air blowing chamber for controlling the direction of air discharged to the front of the control panel through the outlet of the air blowing chamber, a removable filter mounted at the inlet of the air blowing chamber for filtering air introduced into the air blowing chamber through the inlet of the air blowing chamber so that minute dust and viruses are removed from the introduced air, and a container mounted at the inlet of the air blowing chamber for containing an aromatic agent or a natural scent material so that the aromatic agent or the natural scent material contained in the container is discharged together with the air discharged to the front of the control panel through the outlet of the air blowing chamber, thereby enabling the user to

actually feel that he/she is running in the open air, enabling the user to run on the treadmill machine for a long time while he/she feels refreshed.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.