Abstract:
The drum pedal stabilizer is designed to eliminate the problems of beater dropout, pedal and beater oscillation, drum head retrigger, tempo influence and jitter feel on drum pedals and beaters. Specifically, the present invention is directed to a stabilizer having a mounting plate and a gas spring adapted for attachment to a drum pedal to counteract oscillation of the conventional helical spring. The stabilizer may be an aftermarket attachment to conventional drum pedals, or may be incorporated as original equipment in new drum pedal assemblies.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/489,110, filed Jul. 23, 2003. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention relates to musical instruments, and more particularly to a drum pedal stabilizer which prevents spring oscillation and eliminates a phenomenon known as hammerdown in a drum pedal used with a bass drum or other kick drum in a drum set.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0005]     Performers, including professional and amateur drummers and musicians, use a drum pedal to play a kick drum, bass drum, and the like, commonly included as part of a drum kit. These performers seek absolute control of the speed and feel of the drum pedal in order to achieve the ability to perform what is required. This is particularly true for drummers who play music requiring a modulating or any tempo.  
         [0006]     When a drum pedal is required to perform dynamic and speedy or fast tempo responses in accordance with the velocity and tempo applied by the performer&#39;s foot, by way of pedal depression, the drum pedal must be stabilized or it cannot function in a manner that is comfortable, non-influential and dependable. This is due to the oscillatory nature of conventional steel springs on known pedals used to return the foot pedal and beater to the neutral position, as well as inertia of the beater. The weight of the beater exaggerates the amount of oscillation. This undesirable oscillation causes problems known as beater dropout, pedal and beater oscillation, drum head retrigger, tempo influence and jitter feel. In other words, the undesirable oscillation may cause an unintentional drum strike.  
         [0007]     Unwanted oscillation of the pedal spring may cause rhythm flutter, resulting in irregular back pressure on the foot pedal and consequent variation in the arc described by the beater, so that the rhythm of the bass drum may be thrown off tempo. If the spring return and inertia of the beater are strong enough, the beater hammer may return to a position either in contact with, or closely adjacent to, the drum head after release of the foot pedal, so that when the foot pedal is next pressed, the result is either no sound or a softer sound than desired, a phenomenon referred to as hammerdown or dropout. Even minor spring oscillation causes rhythmic fluctuations that are predetermined by the tension of the return spring, so that when these fluctuations match music tempos, the phenomenon of hammerdown occurs.  
         [0008]     Spring return is a fast, reliable method of returning the beater in a drum pedal and beater. However, conventional countering spring methods only transfer oscillation back and forth and do not stop oscillation, or thoroughly reduce or stabilize the drum pedal and beater. Total pneumatic systems are too slow for speedy performance. Also, pneumatic type drum beaters are expensive.  
         [0009]     A variety of devices have been proposed for controlling a drum pedal and beater. However, the devices of the prior art have not solved the above-referenced problems.  
         [0010]     U.S. Pat. No. 886,471, issued May 5, 1908 to Britton, describes a pneumatically operated drumbeater that suppresses oscillatory motion of the beater. U.S. Pat. No. 2,736,823, issued Feb. 28, 1956 to Sheppard et al., describes an acoustic transducer and damping assembly. U.S. Pat. No. 3,381,565, issued May 7, 1968 to Haile, describes a foot-operated chord organ.  
         [0011]     U.S. Pat. No. 3,426,640, issued Feb. 11, 1969 to Slingerland, Jr., describes a quick connect pedal connector. U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,441, issued Nov. 9, 1971 to Fearns, describes a double acting drum pedal. U.S. Pat. No. 3,797,356, issued Mar. 19, 1974 to Duffy et al., describes a linkage for a foot operated bass drum pedal.  
         [0012]     U.S. Pat. No. 4,048,896, issued Sep. 20, 1977 to Calato et al., describes a drum pedal with an opposing and adjustable set of springs for dampening the oscillatory motion of the drumbeater. U.S. Pat. No. 4,121,490, issued Oct. 24, 1978 to Deutsch, describes a touch responsive electronic piano. U.S. Pat. No. 4,152,967, issued May 8, 1979 to Barron, describes pneumatic piano action.  
         [0013]     U.S. Pat. No. 4,262,576, issued Apr. 21, 1981 to Gorsky et al., describes a percussion instrument striking apparatus. U.S. Pat. No. 4,356,471, issued Oct. 26, 1982 to Nienaber, describes a gas pedal movement damper. U.S. Pat. No. 4,410,825, issued Oct. 18, 1983 to Lobastov, describes a piezoelectric pressure transducer with a threaded damper bar.  
         [0014]     U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,224, issued Jul. 12, 1988 to Lombardi, describes a drum beating apparatus with an eccentric rotor. U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,532, issued Jan. 2, 1990 to Carlson, describes a foot activated musical drum pedal device. U.S. Pat. No. 4,945,802, issued Aug. 7, 1990 to Ruprecht, describes a viscous damper incorporated into the linkage of a foot actuated drum pedal for stabilizing a beater&#39;s return oscillatory motion.  
         [0015]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,026,248, issued Jun. 25, 1991 to Hamilton, describes a hydrodynamic swing damper and tree handling vehicle incorporating the same. U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,046, issued Nov. 8, 1994 to Sims, describes vibration damping. U.S. Pat. No. 5,365,824, issued Nov. 22, 1994 to Hoshino, describes a spring adjustment mechanism for a drum pedal beater.  
         [0016]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,704,259, issued Jan. 6, 1998 to Riehle, describes a hand operated impact implement having a tuned vibration absorber. U.S. Pat. No. 5,798,472, issued Aug. 25, 1998 to Shigenaga, describes a drum beater for a bass drum equipped with an exactly adjustable return spring regulator. U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,795, issued Jun. 15, 1999 to Tucker, describes a hammer with a vibration damper and a method of making the same.  
         [0017]     U.S. Pat. No. 6,239,342, issued May 29, 2001 to Chang, describes a stretching structure of a drum foot pedal. German Patent No. 2,061,077, published Jun. 15, 1972, describes a foot pedal mechanism for a beater.  
         [0018]     None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus a drum pedal stabilizer solving the aforementioned problems is desired.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0019]     The present invention is a drum pedal stabilizer designed to eliminate the problems of beater dropout, pedal and beater oscillation, drum head retrigger, tempo influence and jitter feel on drum pedals and beaters. Specifically, the present invention is directed to a stabilizer having a mounting plate and a gas spring adapted for attachment to a drum pedal to counteract oscillation of the conventional helical spring. The stabilizer may be an aftermarket attachment to conventional drum pedals, or may be incorporated as original equipment in new drum pedal assemblies.  
         [0020]     The stabilizer offsets the helical return spring&#39;s position from the gas spring&#39;s position in order to maximize the stabilizer effect. The forward pressure of the gas spring not only counters the return spring, but adds forward push that makes high return spring pressure less resistant to depression while maintaining a weighted feel. The weighted feel is necessary for dynamic velocity control. Furthermore, tempo is no longer influenced or interrupted when the stabilizer is used.  
         [0021]     The stabilizer may be used in conjunction with an adjustable linkage for adjusting pedal height. The adjustable linkage may be provided by a turnbuckle placed between the toe of the foot plate and the beater shaft. Alternatively, the adjustable linkage may be provided by telescoping rods having apertures which may be aligned and fixed by inserting a pin through the aligned apertures at the desired pedal height.  
         [0022]     Accordingly, it is a principal aspect of the invention to provide a drum pedal stabilizer that reduces or eliminates beater dropout, pedal and beater oscillation, drum head retrigger, tempo influence and jitter feel in a drum pedal. It is an additional aspect of the invention to provide a drum pedal stabilizer that stabilizes the entire drum pedal.  
         [0023]     It is another aspect of the invention to provide a drum pedal stabilizer and dropout eliminator having a mounting plate and a gas spring.  
         [0024]     It is a further aspect of the invention to provide a drum pedal having a stabilizer incorporated therein for eliminating hammerdown and rhythmic flutter.  
         [0025]     Still another object of the invention is to provide a drum pedal stabilizer which provides a gas spring to oppose oscillation of a conventional helical drum pedal spring, thereby producing a weighted feel so that tempo is no longer influenced or interrupted.  
         [0026]     It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.  
         [0027]     These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0028]      FIG. 1  is an environmental side view of a drum pedal stabilizer according to the present invention.  
         [0029]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a drum pedal incorporating the drum pedal stabilizer according to the present invention.  
         [0030]      FIG. 3  is an exploded view of a drum pedal stabilizer according to the present invention.  
         [0031]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a drum pedal incorporating the drum pedal stabilizer and a turnbuckle linkage according to the present invention.  
         [0032]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a drum pedal incorporating the drum pedal stabilizer and a telescoping rod linkage according to the present invention. 
     
    
       [0033]     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0034]     The present invention is directed to a drum pedal stabilizer, designated generally as  100  in the drawings. The stabilizer  100  reduces oscillation of the drum pedal return spring, thereby reducing rhythmic flutter and eliminating hammerdown or beater dropout.  
         [0035]     The stabilizer  100  is shown attached to a representative drum pedal  10  in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . There are a great variety of drum pedal designs available. Virtually all drum pedals incorporate a return spring. Therefore, the stabilizer is not restricted to use with the particular drum pedal  10  shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , but may be used with any drum pedal incorporating a return spring.  
         [0036]     The drum pedal  10  has a base platform  12  having a pedestal  14  with a riser  16  attached to the rear end of the platform  12 . A foot plate  18  is pivotally attached to the pedestal  14  by a hinge or pivot pin  20 . At lease one upright  22  is attached to the forward end of the platform  12 . The upright  22  defines a fork  24 . In some drum pedals, the base platform  12  will have a pair of parallel uprights attached to the forward end of the base platform  12  to define the fork. In the drum pedal  10  of  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the drum pedal  10  has a single upright  22 , with the fork  24  extending from the single upright  22  in cantilever fashion. The two branches  26  of the fork are journalled to receive a beater shaft  28  pivotally mounted on the fork  24 . The two branches  26  of the fork  24  may have bearings (ball, roller or needle bearings) mounted therein for smoother rotation of the shaft  28 .  
         [0037]     A beater  29  is attached to the shaft  28 . The beater  29  includes a beater support arm  30  extending from the shaft  28  and a hammerhead or mallet  32  mounted at the free end of the beater arm  30  by a loop  34  or other attachment means. A linkage is connected between the toe end of the foot plate  18  and the shaft  28 . In the drum pedal  10  shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the linkage includes a lever arm  36  fixed to the shaft  28  in order to rotate with the shaft  28  and extending from the shaft  28 , and a rod  38  having a first end pivotally mounted to the lever arm  36  and a second end pivotally attached to the toe end of the foot plate  18 . Thus, when the foot plate is depressed, the beater  29  is pulled forward by the linkage to strike the drum, and when the beater  29  returns to its start position, the linkage pulls the foot plate  18  up to its original position.  
         [0038]     It is known to use various linkage systems in drum pedals. In some drum pedals, the linkage may comprise a chain and sprocket mechanism. In other drum pedals the linkage may comprise a flexible cord of leather or nylon cord wound around a pulley system. The present invention will function with any conventional linkage, or may be used in conjunction with the novel linkages described in  FIGS. 4 and 5  below.  
         [0039]     The drum pedal  10  includes a bias system for returning the beater to its rest position. The bias system includes a lug  40  having a first end fixed to an end of the shaft  28  external to the upright  22  in order to rotate with the shaft  28 . A pin or bolt  42  projects outwardly from the second end of the lug  40 . A return spring  44  has a first end attached to bolt  42 . A spring mounting bracket  46  projects from the lower end of the upright  22 . A spring support  48 , usually adjustable in height, projects upward from the bracket  46 , and the second end of the return spring  44  is attached to the support  48 . The return spring  44  is usually a helically wound tension spring. The tension of the return spring  44  is adjusted via the spring support  48  so that the beater  29  is cocked at the desired tension with the lug  40  and the return spring  44  aligned essentially linearly at equilibrium.  
         [0040]     When the foot plate  18  is depressed to strike the beater  29  against the drum, the lug  40  rotates with the shaft  28 , expanding the return spring  44 . When pressure is removed from the foot plate  18 , the return spring  44  contracts to return the beater  29  to its rest position. However, due to inertia from the weight of the mallet  32 , the beater  29  oscillates and only returns to the rest position when the oscillations die down. Oscillation of the spring  44  may lead to dropout or hammerdown.  
         [0041]     The above description essentially describes the structure and operation of a conventional drum pedal.  
         [0042]     According to the present invention, the drum pedal  10  includes a stabilizer  100  to prevent unwanted oscillation and eliminate dropout. The stabilizer  100  additionally stabilizes the entire drum pedal  10 . Referring to  FIGS. 1-3 , the stabilizer  100  includes a mounting bracket  102  and a gas spring  110 . The mounting bracket  102  is an elongated plate attached to the end of the spring mounting bracket  46 . The bracket  102  has a plurality of openings defined therein, which may include circular holes and keyhole slots. The stabilizer mounting bracket  102  is attached to the spring support bracket  46  by a pair of screws or bolts  104  used to mount both brackets  46  and  102  to the upright  22 . The stabilizer mounting bracket  102  is prevented from pivoting about the upright  22  by using two spaced apart screws or bolts in attaching the stabilizer mounting bracket  102  to the spring mounting bracket  46  and to the upright  22 . The stabilizer mounting bracket  102  is elongated, so that its free end is offset from the upright  22 , preferably extending normal to the upright  22 .  
         [0043]     The gas spring  110  includes the usual cylinder  112  and sliding rod  114  extensible from the cylinder  112 . A lug extending from the base of the cylinder  112  permits pivotal attachment of the cylinder  112  to the free end of the stabilizer mounting bracket  102  by bolt  116  outboard from the upright  22  in a direction opposite to rotation of the lug  40  when the pedal  10  is depressed, i.e., the lug  40  rotates rearward when the foot plate  18  is depressed while the cylinder  112  is attached forward of the upright  22 . The free end of the sliding rod  114  is pivotally attached to bolt  42 . In order to ensure smooth action of the gas spring  110 , the original drum pedal lug bolt is replaced with elongated bolt  42 , and a nylon spacer  118  is placed between the end of the return spring  44  and the free end of the sliding rod  114 , which is then secured by a washer  119  and nut  120 , or other appropriate hardware.  
         [0044]     The gas spring  110  preferably has a pressure of between two and six pounds. Alternatively, the pressure of the gas spring may be adjustable.  
         [0045]     In operation, when the foot plate  18  is depressed, the link rod  38  and lever arm  36  rotate the beater  29  forward to strike the drum, simultaneously rotating the lug  40  rearward and extending the return spring  44  and sliding rod  114  of the gas spring  110 . When pressure is released from the foot plate  18 , the return spring  44  contracts, rotating the lug  40  and shaft  28  clockwise to return the beater  29  to the rest position. Simultaneously the sliding rod  114  retracts into the cylinder  112 . When inertia moves the free end of the lug  40  forward of the upright  22 , the movement is resisted by gas pressure in the cylinder  112  of the gas spring  110 , thereby dampening oscillation. Similarly, when the return spring  44  extends as the mallet  32  rotates forward towards the rest position, the gas spring  110  resists further extension of the sliding rod  114 , again dampening oscillation. Consequently, the stabilizer  100  reduces rhythmic flutter and eliminates dropout or hammerdown caused by oscillation of the return spring  44 .  
         [0046]     It will be understood that although a particular return spring  44  structure has been shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , that the various models of drum pedals available have similar structure so that it is always possible to mount the stabilizer mounting bracket  102  to the upright  22  in such a position that the base of the gas spring  110  can be offset from the linear alignment of the lug  40  and the return spring  44  in the rest position. A bearing may be inserted in the free end of the sliding rod  114  for smoother pivoting, if desired.  
         [0047]      FIGS. 4 and 5  illustrate novel adjustable linkages for adjusting the height of the foot plate  18  and rotating the beater shaft  28 . The adjustable linkages may raise, lower or angle the foot plate  18 . The adjustable linkages work in cooperation with the gas spring  110  to provide the desired weighted feel and foot pedal speed, given the tension applied by the return spring  44 .  FIG. 4  shows a turnbuckle linkage  150 . The turnbuckle  150  comprises an upper rod  152  pivotally attached to the lever arm  36  fixed to the shaft  28 , and a lower rod  154  pivotally attached to the toe end of the foot plate  18 . A hollow sleeve or shell  156  connects the upper rod  152  and the lower rod  154 . The upper rod  152  and lower rod  154  are both threaded, but in opposite directions, i.e., one rod has right hand threads while the other has left hand threads. The hollow shell  156  has threaded bores in opposite ends, the bores being threaded in opposite directions, so that when the shell  156  is rotated in a clockwise direction, the linkage  150  is shortened to raise the toe end of the foot plate  18 , and the linkage  150  is lengthened when the shell  156  is rotated counterclockwise to lower the toe end of the foot plate  18 , or vice versa.  
         [0048]      FIG. 5  shows an adjustable pin linkage  160 . The pin linkage  160  includes a hollow, tubular, lower rod  162  pivotally attached to the toe end of the foot plate  18  and either a solid or hollow, tubular, upper rod  164  pivotally attached to the lever arm  36 , which is fixed to the beater shaft  28 . Both the lower rod  162  and upper rod  164  have a plurality of apertures  166  spaced apart and extending longitudinally along the rods. Alternatively, one rod  162  or  164  may have a single aperture  166  defined therein, while the other rod  164  has a plurality of spaced apart apertures  166  defined therein. As shown in  FIG. 5 , the upper rod  164  has a smaller outer diameter than the inner diameter of the lower rod  162  so that the upper rod  164  telescopes into the lower rod  162 . A pin  168 , such as a cotter pin, hitch pin, or other suitable fastener, is inserted through aligned apertures  166  in the upper  164  and lower  162  rods to fix the length of the linkage  160 . Thus, the height of the linkage  160  may be adjusted by raising or lowering the toe end of the foot plate  18  to slide the upper rod  164  into or out of the lower rod  162  until the desired pair of apertures  166  is aligned, and then inserting the pin  168  through the aligned apertures  166  to adjust the height of the linkage  160 .  
         [0049]     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.