Abstract:
An improved comb for a harmonica including one or more check valves mounted within the comb for improving performance and tonality and simplifying construction. The use of check valves mounted over valve slots has been previously disclosed as a method of increasing the musical range and volume of the instrument. This invention incorporates check valves but locates them within the comb of the harmonica. By placing all the check valves within the comb, construction of the harmonica is greatly simplified, air loss between various components is greatly decreased, and check valves are removed from close proximity with reeds thereby decreasing interference with the reeds, increasing volume and performance, and increasing the resonance of overtones.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    This invention relates to harmonicas or mouth organs and specifically to situating check valves within the comb of a harmonica. A previous patent incorporated check valves mounted on valve platforms, external to the reed plates of the harmonica, to improve musical range and volume. In this invention, check valves are mounted over slots situated internally between the mouth and the reeds to provide further improvements in performance and tonality. The central cells may be called valve cells. Employing a single internal valve cell in place of two external valve cells improves airtight performance, permits all reeds to be situated externally to the comb where their vibration is in direct contact with the outside air and simplifies construction by reducing the required number of components.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Check valves, or reed valves, are commonly used in the reed cells of harmonicas to improve performance. Reed valves are typically installed to control the flow of air within the harmonica. A reed valve, when attached to the external side of a reed slot to which an exhale-actuated or blow reed is secured, will serve to prevent inhaled air from passing by the blow reed when an inhale-actuated or draw reed associated with the same mouthpiece opening is being played. Likewise, a reed valve, when attached to the opposing side of a reed slot to which a draw reed is secured, will serve to prevent exhaled air from passing by the draw reed when a blow reed associated with the same mouthpiece opening is being played. For low-pitched and mid-range reeds the benefit of reduced air loss provided by reed valves outweighs the negative effects of their close proximity to the reeds. However, the amount of air that can be prevented from passing through the relatively small and constricted reed slots of high-pitched reeds, while considerable, may not be enough to outweigh the negative proximity effects of reed valves. For this reason, reed valves are usually omitted from the highest-pitched reeds of harmonicas incorporating reed valves.  
           [0003]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,937 disclosed the use of one or more valve cells separate from the reed cell of the harmonica. In this patent, check valves were mounted external to the reed plates and the reeds. One embodiment of &#39;937 disclosed two valve cells associated with each mouthpiece opening, situated externally from the mouth, reed cell and reed plates.  
           [0004]    In &#39;937, as air is exhaled into the harmonica, the blow valve cells and blow valves permit exhaled air to flow past the blow reeds and blow enabler reeds while, at the same time, exhaled air is prevented from flowing past the draw reeds and draw enabler reeds by the draw valve cells and draw valves. The draw valve cells and draw valves function to permit inhaled airflow past the draw reeds and draw enabler reeds while, at the same time, the blow valve cells and blow valves prevent inhaled airflow past the blow reeds and blow enabler reeds.  
           [0005]    The design of the harmonica disclosed in &#39;937 requires the construction of three separate bodies to be assembled with two reed plates. These three bodies, defined in U.S. Pat. No. &#39;937 as the comb, blow platform, and draw platform, are essentially three separate combs. Comparing the harmonica of &#39;937 to a prior art harmonica that has a comb but no valve platforms, this design would be relatively expensive to produce, both in tooling and assembly costs. Furthermore, the four interfaces that occur between the comb, blow platform, draw platform, and each reed plate create a significant area susceptible to air loss. A standard harmonica, having only two interfaces between the comb and two reed plates, is significantly less liable to air loss than the harmonica of U.S. Pat. No. &#39;937. As the harmonica of U.S. Pat. No. &#39;937 is played, air losses through any of the four existing interfaces result in decreased volume and performance. Placement of the external valve cells between the reeds and the outside air, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. &#39;937, also reduces the amplitude of the overtones of the vibrating reeds. Because players can reduce the amplitude of the overtones of vibrating reeds when desirable by cupping the harmonica with their hands, but cannot increase the amplitude of the overtones of the vibrating reeds in a similar manner, harmonicas producing resonant overtones are generally preferred over harmonicas lacking in resonant overtones.  
           [0006]    The disadvantages of harmonicas having check valves located between the reeds and the outside air are:  
           [0007]    (a) The close proximity of reed valves to reeds in standard chromatic and standard diatonic harmonicas causes a reduction of volume and resonance, particularly with high-pitched reeds.  
           [0008]    (b) A harmonica incorporating external valve cells, requiring three combs instead of one, can be expensive to produce compared to harmonicas with no external valve cells and one comb.  
           [0009]    (c) A harmonica incorporating external valve cells is subject to high air loss compared to harmonicas with no external valve cells.  
           [0010]    (d) A harmonica incorporating external valve cells produces a tonality deficient in resonant overtones compared to harmonicas with no external valve cells.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0011]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,937 disclosed the use of check valves mounted on valve platforms thereby creating two types of external valve cells, or valve cells external to the comb and reed plates of the harmonica, associated with each central cell, to improve musical range and volume. The first set of valve cells, the blow valve cells, contained valves that were actuated when air was blown into the harmonica. The second set of valve cells, the draw valve cells, contained valves that were actuated when air was inhaled from the harmonica.  
           [0012]    In the present invention, check valves are mounted over slots situated between the mouth and the reeds, thereby creating internal valve cells, or valve cells within the comb, to provide further improvements in performance and tonality. Employing a single internal valve cell in place of two external valve cells improves airtight performance, permits all reeds to be situated externally to the comb where their vibration is in direct contact with the outside air and simplifies construction by reducing the required number of components.  
         OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES  
         [0013]    Accordingly, several objects and advantages of this invention are:  
           [0014]    (a) To reduce the negative tonal effects of reed valves in standard chromatic and diatonic harmonicas by removing them from close proximity to the reeds.  
           [0015]    (b) To lower the production cost of harmonicas incorporating valve cells.  
           [0016]    (c) To reduce the amount of air loss in harmonicas incorporating valve cells.  
           [0017]    (d) To increase the resonance of the overtones in harmonicas incorporating valve cells. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0018]    [0018]FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the section indicated by plane  1 - 1  of the two-piece harmonica comb in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3. The reed plates are included in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 but are absent from FIG. 1.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 2 is a sectional view, indicated by plane  2 - 2  of FIG. 1, showing approximately one half of the first cell, or cell for the lowest pitched reeds, of the harmonica comb, with reed plates attached.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 3 is a sectional view, indicated by plane  3 - 3  of FIG. 1, showing one half of the last cell, or cell for the highest pitched reeds, of the harmonica comb, with reed plates attached.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the upper section of the two-piece harmonica comb in FIG. 1, indicated by plane  4 - 4  of FIG. 1, showing the blow reed/blow enabler reed cells and the blow valve platforms.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the lower section of the harmonica comb in FIG. 1, indicated by plane  5 - 5  of FIG. 1, showing the lower halves of the valve cells and the draw valve platforms. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0023]    [0023]FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the section indicated by plane  1 - 1  of the preferred embodiment of a two-piece harmonica comb  12  in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3. The upper piece  10  of the two-piece comb is indicated by plane  4 - 4  and the lower piece  11  of the two-piece comb is indicated by plane  5 - 5 .  
         [0024]    The novelty of this invention which distinguishes it over the prior art is the placement of the reed valves, of which there are two types shown in FIG. 1: blow reed/blow enabler reed valves  19 ′ and draw reed/draw draw enabler reed valves  21 ′.  
         [0025]    The two-piece comb  12  is joined together in FIG. 1 as it will be upon final assembly. This figure depicts a common ten-cell harmonica. The joined comb pieces form an essentially rectangular comb body  12  including a front side  60 , a top adjacent side  61 , a bottom adjacent side  62 , a rear side (not shown in FIG. 1), a low-pitched end  64  and a high-pitched end  65 , with the thickness of the comb  12  typically wider from front  60  to rear than from top  61  to bottom  62 . Valve cells  49  are created centrally along the longitudinal body of the comb after the upper piece  10  and lower piece  11  are joined. The valve cells  49  are separated by cell walls  37  shown spaced apart at intervals along the comb  12 . A longitudinal portion of the upper piece  10  of the comb forms a blow valve platform  39  within the comb  12 . Top cell wall extensions  66  create blow reed/blow enabler reed cells  47  spaced along the top adjacent side  61  of the comb with each blow reed/blow enabler reed cell  47  sharing a portion of the blow valve platform  39 . Blow reed/blow enabler reed valve slots  23 ′ are apertures in the blow valve platform  39  allowing a passageway for air to flow between each valve cell  49  and its associated blow reed/blow enabler reed cell  47 . A blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′ is secured at one of its ends above each blow reed/blow enabler reed valve slot  23 ′. Positioning the blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′ on the blow valve platform  39  therefore moves the valve within the comb  12  thereby distinguishing this invention over prior art. This positioning of the blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′ provides separation of the valve from the blow reeds, which will be mounted on a reed plate (not shown in FIG. 1) exterior to the comb  12  on the top adjacent side  61 , thereby reducing the negative tonal effects of reed valves in prior art harmonicas, and increasing the resonance of overtones. By positioning the blow reed/blow enabler reed valves  19 ′ within the comb, less components are required as in prior art harmonicas with valves thereby providing the additional benefits of less air loss between components and lowering the cost of production.  
         [0026]    A longitudinal portion of the lower piece  11  of the comb forms a draw valve platform  40  within the comb  12 . Bottom cell wall extensions  67  create draw reed/draw enabler reed cells  48  spaced along the bottom adjacent side  62  of the comb  12  with each draw reed/draw enabler reed cell  48  sharing a portion of the draw valve platform  40 . Draw reed/draw enabler reed valve slots  25 ′ are apertures in the draw valve platform  40  allowing a passageway for air to flow between each valve cell  49  and its associated draw reed/draw enabler reed cell  48 . A draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ is secured at one of its ends above each draw reed/draw enabler reed valve slot  25 ′. Positioning the draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ on the draw valve platform  40  thereby moves the valve within the comb  12 , distinguishing this invention over prior art. This positioning of the draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ provides separation of the valve from the draw reeds, which will be mounted on a reed plate (not shown in FIG. 1) exterior to the comb  12  on the bottom adjacent side  62 , thereby reducing the negative tonal effects of reed valves in prior art harmonicas, and increasing the resonance of overtones. By positioning the draw reed/draw enabler reed valves  21 ′ within the comb, less components are required as in prior art harmonicas with valve cells thereby providing the additional benefits of less air loss between components and lowering the cost of production.  
         [0027]    The upper comb piece  10  and lower comb piece  11  are typically constructed of wood or plastic. A typical plastic employed for comb construction is ASS. The elasticity of the ABS may be specified such that the two pieces may be secured together by screws (not shown in FIG. 1) and thereby form an air tight junction. Alternatively, the pieces may be secured with adhesive or other commonly known means. The blow reed/blow enabler reed valves  19 ′ and the draw reed/draw enabler reed valves  21 ′ are typically constructed of plastic, which may be mylar, PVC, or any thin resilient non-permeable material.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the comb  12 , indicated by plane  2 - 2  of FIG. 1, showing approximately one half of the first trio of cells, or cells for the lowest pitched reeds of the harmonica comb  12  and depicting the reed plates attached. A separation line  70  is depicted showing the junction between the upper piece  10  and lower piece  11  of the comb. The upper piece  10  of the comb  12  has a valve cell  49  at its center with the comb&#39;s integral blow valve platform  39  forming a ceiling for the valve cell  49 . The lower piece  11  of the comb  12  includes an integral draw valve platform  40  forming a floor for the valve cell  49 . When joined, as shown in FIG. 2, the upper piece  10  and lower piece  11  of the comb in conjunction with the cell walls  37  form the valve cells  49  in the central portion of the comb  12 . The top extension of the cell wall  66  (not shown in FIG. 2) and the blow valve platform  39  create a blow reed/blow enabler reed cell  47 . The top adjacent side  61  of the upper piece  10  of the comb  12  is secured to a blow reed/blow enabler reed plate  9  in an airtight fit. The bottom extension of the cell wall  67  (not shown in FIG.  2 ) and the draw valve platform  40  create a draw reed/draw enabler reed cell  48 . The bottom adjacent side  62  of the lower piece  11  of the comb  12  is secured to a draw reed/draw enabler reed plate  8  in an airtight fit.  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 2 further depicts a blow reed/blow enabler reed valve slot  23 ′ formed in the blow valve platform  39 . The blow reed/blow enabler reed valve slot  23 ′ provides an air passageway between the valve cell  49  and the blow reed/blow enabler reed cell  47 . Mounted on the upper side of the blow valve platform  39  is the blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′, which is attached to the blow valve platform  39  at one end, depicted by the adhesive line  36 ′, and is free at its opposite end. A blow reed/blow enabler reed plate  9  is secured to the top adjacent side  61  of the comb  12  and includes a blow reed  18  secured by a rivet  17  at one end.  
         [0030]    The lower portion of FIG. 2 depicts a draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′. Mounted on the upper side of the draw valve platform  40 , directly above the draw reed/draw enabler reed valve slot (not shown in FIG. 2) is the draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′, which is attached to the draw valve platform  40  at one of its ends, depicted by the adhesive line  36 ′, and is free at its opposite end. A draw reed/draw enabler reed plate  8  is secured to the bottom adjacent side  62  of the comb  12  and includes a draw reed  20  secured by a rivet  17  at one end.  
         [0031]    As air is blown into the mouthpiece opening  38  of the valve cell  49  shown in FIG. 2, the blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′ opens in response to the high pressure in the valve cell  49  and the draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ is held shut. The air passing through the blow reed/blow enabler reed valve slot  23 ′ and the open blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′ passes into the blow reed/blow enabler reed cell  47  and then past the blow reed  18  causing it to vibrate and create a musical note. Although not shown in FIG. 2, a blow enabler reed may also be mounted to the blow reed/blow enabler reed plate  9 , and this blow enabler reed may be caused to vibrate in response to the harmonica player blowing air and adjusting his mouth and throat to a resonant frequency suitable for note bending.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the comb  12 , indicated by plane  3 - 3  of FIG. 1, showing approximately one half of the last trio of cells, or cells for the highest pitched reeds of the harmonica comb  12  and depicting the reed plates attached. The valve cell  49  is located between the blow valve platform  39  and the draw valve platform  40 . A draw reed/draw enabler reed valve slot  25 ′ forms an air passageway between the valve cell  49  and the draw reed/draw enabler reed cell  48 . A flexible draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ is secured at the adhesive line  36 ′ to the upper surface of the draw valve platform  40 .  
         [0033]    As air is drawn from the mouthpiece opening  38  of the valve cell  49  shown in FIG. 3, the draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ opens in response to the low pressure in the valve cell  49  and the blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′ is held shut. The air passing through the draw reed/draw enabler reed valve slot  25 ′ and the open draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ evacuates from the draw reed/draw enabler reed cell  48  thereby pulling outside air past the draw reed  20  causing it to vibrate and create a musical note. Although not shown in FIG. 3, a draw enabler reed may also be mounted to the draw reed/draw enabler reed plate  8 , and this draw enabler reed may be caused to vibrate in response to the harmonica player drawing air while adjusting his mouth and throat to a resonant frequency suitable for note bending.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the upper piece  10  of the harmonica comb in FIG. 1, indicated by plane  4 - 4  of FIG. 1. The upper piece  10  is typically machined from wood or molded of plastic. The upper piece  10  is an elongated essentially rectangular body including a front side  60 , a top adjacent side  61 , a rear side  63 , and two ends with a low-pitched end  64  on the left side of FIG. 4 and a high-pitched end  65  on the right side of FIG. 4. A series of blow reed/blow enabler reed cells  47  are molded into the top adjacent side  61 . Each blow reed/blow enabler reed cell  47  includes a blow valve platform  39  in the bottom of each cell. A blow reed/blow enabler reed valve slot  23 ′ is formed through the blow valve platform  39  that is located at the bottom of each blow reed/blow enabler reed cell  47 . A blow reed/blow enabler reed valve  19 ′ is positioned above each blow reed/blow enabler reed valve slot  23 ′ and is secured at one end to the blow valve platform  39  with the other end unsecured and free to move. A series of cell walls  37  are spaced apart along the lower surface of the upper piece  10  of the comb. Each pair of cell walls  37  defines an upper channel  80  that is open to the front side  60  and closed at the rear. When the upper piece  10  is later aligned and secured to the lower piece  11  (not shown in FIG. 4), the upper channels  80  of the upper piece  10  and lower channels  81  of the lower piece  11  (not shown in FIG. 4) will combine to form the valve cells.  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the lower piece  11  of the harmonica comb in FIG. 1, indicated by plane  5 - 5  of FIG. 1. The lower piece  11  is typically machined from wood or molded of plastic. The lower piece  11  is an elongated essentially rectangular body including a front side  60 , a bottom adjacent side  62 , a rear side  63 , and two ends with a low-pitched end  64  on the left side of FIG. 5 and a high-pitched end  65  on the right side of FIG. 5. A series of draw reed/draw enabler reed cells  48  are molded into the bottom adjacent side  62  (not shown in FIG. 5) and a series of lower channels  81  are molded into the top of the lower piece. A draw valve platform  40  is included in the bottom of each lower channel  81 . A draw reed/draw enabler reed valve slot  25 ′ is formed through the draw valve platform  40  that is located at the bottom of lower channel  81 . A draw reed/draw enabler reed valve  21 ′ is positioned above each draw reed/draw enabler reed valve slot  25 ′ and is secured at one end to the draw valve platform  40  with the other end unsecured and free to move. A series of cell walls  37  are spaced apart along the upper surface of the lower piece  11  of the comb. Each pair of cell walls  37  defines a lower channel  81  that is open to the front side  60  and closed at the rear side  63 . When the lower piece  11  is later aligned and secured to the upper piece  10  (not shown in FIG. 5), the upper channels  80  of the upper piece  10  and the lower channels  81  of the lower piece  11  will combine to form the valve cells.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIGS. 1, 2,  3 ,  4  and  5  show a preferred embodiment that is designed to have two reeds adjacent to each reed cell, four reeds being associated with each mouthpiece opening. This embodiment is suitable for bending harmonicas as well as for standard octave and tremolo harmonicas.  
         [0037]    A second embodiment has one reed adjacent to each reed cell, four reed cells and four reeds being associated with each mouthpiece opening. Two of these four reeds can be blow reeds and the other two draw reeds. This second embodiment can be incorporated into a chromatic harmonica and can include the addition of a chromatic harmonica style slide apparatus that will permit the selection of one blow reed and one draw reed while blocking the other two reeds associated with the same mouthpiece opening. The second embodiment will provide the tonal advantages of the internal valve cell and permit reed valves to be utilized in association with every reed, including those of the highest-pitch cell, without the disadvantages created by standard reed valves mounted on reed plates.  
         [0038]    A third embodiment has one reed adjacent to each reed cell, two reed cells and two reeds being associated with each mouthpiece opening. This embodiment can be incorporated into a standard diatonic harmonica and will provide the advantages of a harmonica with internal valve cells and reed valves without the disadvantages created by standard reed valves mounted on reed plates.  
         [0039]    Accordingly, harmonicas incorporating the harmonica comb of this invention can be used to improve the tonality and performance of the bending harmonicas described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,937, as well as improve the tonality and performance of the standard  10  cell,  20  reed diatonic harmonica, the standard tremolo harmonica, the standard octave harmonica and the standard chromatic harmonica. Furthermore, harmonicas incorporating the harmonica comb of this invention have the further advantages of:  
         [0040]    (a) reducing the negative tonal effects of reed valves in standard chromatic and diatonic harmonicas by reducing their close proximity to the reeds;  
         [0041]    (b) lowering the production cost of harmonicas incorporating valve cells by combining the draw valve platform and the blow valve platform into a single comb;  
         [0042]    (c) reducing the air losses in harmonicas incorporating valve cells by reducing the number of necessary components liable to air loss; and  
         [0043]    (d) increasing the resonance of the overtones in harmonicas incorporating valve cells by situating the valve cells internal to the reed plates, thereby providing direct contact between the reeds and the outside air.  
         [0044]    Although the description above contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments of this invention.  
         [0045]    Thus the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.