Abstract:
A pedal harp has an upper harp frame which is the pillar and neck parts made as a single piece and a lower harp frame which is the soundbox and soundboard and soundbox parts made as a single piece. The upper harp frame, lower harp frame, faceplates and pedal box are made from a carbon fiber material. This provides lighter weight for the pedal harp, and a stronger, more durable construction.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates, in general, to the construction of a pedal harp made of a carbon fiber material, with the pillar and neck parts being made as a single piece. 
         [0002]    Harps are made in two basic types. A pedal harp which has pedals connected to a mechanism in the neck to vary the vibrating length of the strings, and a “Celtic” harp which does not have pedals. Traditionally harps are made with laminated wood pieces forming the pillar, the neck, various parts of the body and the pedal box. Each of the sections is joined together to make the harp. There are disadvantages to the traditional construction techniques. Wood is heavy making the harp hard to move and easily damaged. The joints between the harp sections tend to flex and loosen over time, which cause the sound of the harp to deteriorate and the harp to deteriorate structurally over time. 
         [0003]    The above disadvantages can be overcome by using modern materials such as graphite carbon fiber to construct the elements of the harp, and by constructing those elements in such a way as to combine as many various elements as possible into the smallest number of overall pieces, creating a more unitized type of construction. Others have suggested making harp components from carbon fiber, but have not succeeded in combining the separate components into fewer elements of the pedal harps. 
         [0004]    A pedal harp has a mechanism which connects the pedals to a series of discs that, when engaged, vary the vibrating length of the strings. This serves to change the key signature of the harp. The mechanism itself is attached to the underside of the neck of the harp, and consists of a stacked series of linkages which control the discs. The mechanism is controlled by a series of rods which are located inside the pillar. The lower ends of the rods are connected to the pedals in the pedal box, and the upper ends connect to and control the mechanism and linkages. In traditional construction the rods are positioned inside the pillar before the neck is joined to the pillar. Budin (cited below) believes that a pedal harp cannot have the pillar and neck made as a single piece due to the mechanism inside the harp. Budin at column  4 , lines  40 - 43 , states: “All the other joins between the components are produced preferably by bonding with epoxy or polyester adhesives. In the particular case of harps having no mechanism, of the “Celtic” type, it will be possible for the pillar  5  to be molded directly with the neck and the cone  10  in order to form a single assembly.” 
         [0005]    The instant invention is a solution to this problem. 
       DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
       [0006]    In the prior art various types of devices have been proposed. 
         [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,024 issued Apr. 24, 1990 to Budin for a Harp Made From Composite Material. This reference shows harp pieces made of carbon fiber. 
         [0008]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,469,770 issued Nov. 28, 1995 to Taylor for a Distributed Load Soundboard System. This reference shows a guitar soundboard made of graphite. 
         [0009]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,739,446 issued Apr. 14, 1998 to Bahnson for a Harmonica And Method Of Playing Same. This reference shows a harmonic slide made of graphite. 
         [0010]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,005,173 issued Dec. 21, 1999 to Mitchell for a Stringed Musical Instrument. This reference shows a valiha (tube zither) body made of graphite. 
         [0011]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,127,615 issued Oct. 3, 2000 to Rosenberg for a Stringed-Instrument Practice Device. This reference shows the base of a stringed instrument practice device made of graphite. 
         [0012]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,369,304 issued Apr. 9, 2002 to Tucker for a Selected Percussion Additions For Stringed Musical Instruments. This reference shows a percussion attachment for guitar made of graphite. 
         [0013]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,787,688 issued Sep. 7, 2004 to Harmos, et al. for a Musical Instrument. This reference shows an odd stringed instrument made of carbon fiber, and mentions it could apply to harps. 
         [0014]    U.S. Pat. No. 7,498,495 issued Mar. 3, 2009 to Mooers for a Harp Sound Box Construction And Method. This reference shows a harp soundboard made of graphite. 
         [0015]    U.S. Pat. No. 7,795,513 issued Sep. 14, 2010 to Luttwak for a Stringed Musical Instruments, And Methods Of Making The Same. This reference shows guitar with unitary shell made of carbon fiber. The claims cite a harp guitar with unitary shell, but the carbon fiber variant in not mentioned in connection with the harp guitar. The only mention of the harp guitar is in a single claim. 
         [0016]    U.S. Pat. No. 7,884,271 issued Feb. 8, 2011 to Dain for a String-Bridge Interface System And Method. This reference shows carbon fiber sound boards in pianos. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0017]    The present invention is directed to a pedal harp made of a carbon fiber material, with the pillar and neck parts being made as a single piece. 
         [0018]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved pedal harp that has improved rigidity and stability. 
         [0019]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved pedal harp that is light in weight. 
         [0020]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved pedal harp that is more durable. 
         [0021]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved pedal harp that is more resistant to damage. 
         [0022]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved pedal harp that is more stable and requires less frequent tuning. 
         [0023]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved pedal harp that is resistant to water damage, making it more versatile for playing outdoors or in other difficult environments. 
         [0024]    These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be fully apparent from the following description, when taken in connection with the annexed drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0025]      FIG. 1  is an exploded view of a prior art pedal harp. 
           [0026]      FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the present invention. 
           [0027]      FIG. 3  is a cross section view along line A-A of  FIG. 2 . 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0028]    The preferred embodiment herein described is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. It is chosen and described to best explain the invention so that others, skilled in the art to which the invention pertains, might utilize its teachings. 
         [0029]    Referring now to the drawings in greater detail,  FIG. 1  shows the prior art construction of a pedal harp. Traditionally prior art pedal harps  1  are made with laminated wood pieces forming the pillar  2 , the neck  3 , various parts of the body  4 , including the soundboard  5  and bridge  6 , and ii the pedal box  7 . Each of the sections is joined together using adhesives and epoxies to make the harp frame. A faceplate  8  is attached to the neck  3 , and the strings  9  are connected between the faceplate  8  and soundboard  5 . 
         [0030]    A pedal harp  1  has a mechanism (not shown) which connects the pedals (not shown) to a series of discs (not shown) that, when engaged, vary the vibrating length of the strings  9 . This serves to change the key signature of the harp. The mechanism itself is attached to the underside of the neck  3  of the harp, and consists of a stacked series of linkages (not shown) which control the discs. The mechanism is controlled by a series of rods (not shown) which are located in a hidden passage  10  inside the pillar  2 . The lower ends of the rods are connected to the pedals in the pedal box  7 , and the upper ends connect to and control the mechanism and linkages. In traditional construction the rods are positioned inside the pillar before the neck is joined to the pillar. 
         [0031]      FIG. 2  shows the pieces of the improved pedal harp  21  of the instant invention. The upper harp frame  22 , consisting of the pillar  23  and the neck  24 , is made as a single piece out of a carbon fiber material. The pillar  23  is hollow to allow the passage of the rods (not shown) from the lower end of the pillar  23  to the neck  24 . The faceplates  25 , which support the works of the mechanism, are connected to the upper harp frame  22 . The faceplates  25  are made of a carbon fiber material. A lower harp frame  26 , consisting of the body  27 , receiver  28  and sound board  29 , is made as a single piece out of the same carbon fiber material as the upper harp frame  22 . Harp strings  30  are mounted in a conventional manner between the tuning pins (not shown) on the upper harp frame  22  and the lower harp frame  26 . The upper end of the lower harp frame  26  is attached to the upper end of the upper harp frame  22  by means of a broad tenon  31  on the top of the lower harp frame  26 , fitting into a receiver  32  in the upper harp frame  22 . The lower end of the upper harp frame  22  has a large extension, or tenon  33 , which is attached to a receiver  28  at the lower end of the lower harp frame  26 . The receiver  28  has a large opening (not shown) to allow the rods to pass through, as does the tenon  33 . The tension of the strings  30 , about 3000 psi, hold the upper harp frame  22  and the lower harp frame  26  together without the need of any adhesives or mechanical fasteners. The combined assembly of the upper harp frame  22  and the lower harp frame  26  are mounted on a pedal box  34 . The pedal box  34  is made of the same carbon fiber material as the other components. The pedal box  34  is provided with openings  35  through which pedals (not shown) are mounted. The pedals are connected to the mechanism by the rods (not shown) which extend via openings in the pedal box  33 , the receiver  28  and the tenon  31  up through the hollow pillar  23  into the neck  24  where it is connected to the mechanism. The mechanism, consisting of the faceplates  25  and the mechanism itself (not shown) is of conventional design but is connected to the neck  24  in a new manner with a recess receiver area  36  in the neck  24  into which the faceplates  25  of the mechanism are attached. 
         [0032]      FIG. 3  is a view along the cross section A-A of  FIG. 2 . The neck  24  is hollow. The lower edges of the neck  24  are provided with recesses  36  in which the faceplates  25  are mounted so that the outside surfaces of the faceplates  25  and neck  24  are flush. Bolts  37  fasten the faceplates  25  to the neck  24  using threaded tubes  38 . The bolts  37  may be countersunk if so desired. The mechanism extends through the faceplates  25  to connect to the strings  30 . 
         [0033]    Although the Carbon Fiber Pedal Harp and the method of using the same according to the present invention has been described in the foregoing specification with considerable details, it is to be understood that modifications may be made to the invention which do not exceed the scope of the appended claims and modified forms of the present invention done by others skilled in the art to which the invention pertains will be considered infringements of this invention when those modified forms fall within the claimed scope of this invention.