A MUSICIAN'S STAVE SCRIBER

Abstract: A device for drawing stave lines on a sheet of paper comprises a frame (18, 30) under which a sheet of paper is to be located and a cursor (22, 34) which is slidable laterally with respect to said frame, said cursor being provided with means (24) enabling the path taken thereby to be drawn on to the sheet of paper. The means enabling the path taken by the cursor to be drawn on to the sheet of paper consists of a plurality of holes formed in the cursor at predetermined equally spaced intervals, each being capable of accommodating a writing implement, either sequentially or simultaneously.

Description: A MUSICIAN'S STAVE SCRIBER This invention relates to a stave scriber, and more particularly to an adjustable stave scriber to enable musicians to print their own manuscript lines on a sheet of paper as and where required. At present musicians and students of music typically use manuscript paper when writing down music. However, each set of stave lines is a fixed distance apart and they occupy the entire page. This means that there is limited space to make notes and set down underneath the stave lines the various types of musical layouts which are often essential to help master the complexities of music. A much preferred system would be if stave lines were able to be printed anywhere on a piece of paper to enble the musician to make the best use of the paper. At present the only way to achieve this is to draw the stave lines manually, i.e. with a writing instrument and a straight edge, which is troublesome and time consuming. The present invention seeks to overcome or reduce the above disadvantages. According to the present invention there is provided a device for drawing stave lines on a sheet of paper comprising a frame under which a sheet of paper is to be located and a cursor which is slidable laterally with respect to said frame, said cursor being provided with means enabling the path taken thereby to be drawn on to the sheet of paper. Preferably the means enabling the path taken by the cursor to be drawn on to the sheet of paper consists of a plurality of holes formed in the cursor at predetermined equally spaced intervals, each being capable of accommodating a writing implement, either sequentially or simultaneously. In one embodiment a base board is provided to receive the paper and the frame comprises a pair of rails. Preferably mounting plates are fixed to the base board at each side edge thereof and the rails are attached to each mounting plate such that they span the width of the base board. This configuration ensures that there is a space between the base board and the rails to slide the paper on and off. In another embodiment the frame may be an elongate strip and the cursor mounted to slide in a central cut-out portion. This embodiment is especially convenient as it is small and may be carried in the pocket. An adjustable stop may also be provided to locate on the frame to prevent the cursor travelling beyond a particular point. This would ensure that all stave lines would begin (or terminate) along a common vertical line. The base board, mounting plates and rails are preferably constructed from wood and the cursor from perspex, although other suitable materials could be used equally effectively. The invention will now be described further, by way of example only, with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of a stave scriber in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a front view corresponding to figure 1 and Figure 3 is a plan view of a second embodiment. Referring to the drawings, a stave scriber 10 comprises a base board 12 which would normally be constructed from plywood. Rectangular mounting plates 14 are fixed to each side edge of the base board 12 by means of screws 16, as can best be seen in figure 1. A frame comprising a pair of rails 18 is fixed to the top edges of each mounting plate by means of adhesive such that they span the width of the base board. A gap is thus formed between the rails 18 and the base board 12 through which a sheet of paper 20 can be fed. A cursor 22, which is manufactured from perspex, is supported by the two rails and is able to slide between the said rails along the width of the sheet of paper 20. A plurality of holes 24 (normally five) are formed in the cursor 22 as illustrated in figure 1. The distance between the centres of successive holes is equal to the spacing of normal manuscript lines. This ensures that stave lines drawn with the device are separated by the correct distance. A moveable stop 26 may also be positioned and fixed at any desired position between the rails 18 to prevent the cursor travelling beyond a particular point thereby ensuring that the stave lines are not staggered, but terminate in a neat vertical line. In use of the device a sheet of paper is fed between the base board and the rails until the point on the paper at which the stave lines are required is level with the cursor. A writing implement, such as a ball point pen, is inserted successively in each hole and drawn across the paper for the desired length thereby producing the stave lines . Figure 3 illustrates a convenient 'pocket' version of the device. In this, the frame is an elongate strip 30. very like a ruler. The strip 30 has a central portion 32 cut-out. A cursor 34, in all other respects similar to the cursor 22 r is positioned within the cut-out 32 and is slidably located in lateral grooves formed in the edges of the cut out portion 32 of the strip 30. Stops 38 may be provided as before. Use of the device of figure 3 requires the musician to place the frame on a piece of paper where desired and ensure that it is 'square' with respect to the sides. Thereafter a writing instrument is inserted through each hole of the cursor 34 and lines drawn as before. This particular form of the invention is highly convenient since it may be carried around in the pocket, handbag or briefcase and is thus readily available for use, which may in practice outweigh the slight inconvenience of having to ensure manually that the frame 30 is set up square to the paper. A distinct advantage of the invention is that it provides a simple and convenient device for printing manuscript lines on a sheet of paper as and where required. Although the devices illustrated have five holes for standard musical notation, other numbers can be employed. For example, plainsong has a four line stave and guitar tablature has a six line stave.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A device for drawing stave lines on a sheet of paper comprising a frame under which a sheet of paper is to be located and a cursor which is slidable laterally with respect to said frame, said cursor being provided with means enabling the path taken thereby to be drawn on to the sheet of paper. 2. A device as claimed in claim 1 in which the means enabling the path taken by the cursor to be drawn on to the sheet of paper consists of a plurality of holes formed in the cursor at predetermined equally spaced intervals, each being capable of accommodating a writing implement, either sequentially or simultaneously. 3. A device as claimed in either of claims 1 or 2 in which a base board is provided to receive the paper and the frame comprises a pair of rails. 4. A device as claimed in claim 3 in which mounting plates are fixed to the base board at each side edge thereof and the rails are attached to each mounting plate such that they span the width of the base board thereby ensuring that there is a space between the base board and the rails to slide the paper on and off. 5. A device as claimed in either of claims 1 or 2 in which the frame is an elongate strip and the cursor is mounted to slide in a central cut-out portion. 6. A device as claimed in claim 5 in which an adjustable stop is provided to locate on the frame to prevent the cursor travelling beyond a particular point. 7. A device as claimed in either of claim 5 or 6 constructed of a transparent plastics material. 8. .A device as claimed in any of claims 2 to 7 in which the cursor contains 5 holes to produce a standard musical stave.

Inventors: CHIDSEY ELIZABETH, CHIDSEY, ELIZABETH
Applicants: CHIDSEY ELIZABETH, CHIDSEY, ELIZABETH
Application year: 1989
Main classification: B41J3
IPC codes: B41J3, B43L13