Abstract:
A resilient band holds a pick for a stringed musical instrument securely in contact with a thumb or finger of the instrumentalist. In one aspect this device appears as a ring that has been slit along its center line over a portion of its circumference, the slit then being separated to produce a Y-shape. The two arms and leg of the Y provide the pick with a three-point support that maintains stability of the pick against a finger in both strumming and plucking modes over a wide range of attack angles. The resiliency of the band serves to adapt to various fingers as well as to a variety of conventional picks according to the preferences of the user, including flat picks, thumb picks, and finger picks. Methods of manufacture are described.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates in general to an accessory that is used by a person to excite the strings of a stringed instrument. Specifically, the invention relates to a means of comfortably securing a handheld pick to a finger of the user. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Among players of stringed instruments who use a pick rather than a finger or fingernail, most prefer to use some form of conventional pick. Such picks, or plectrums, are generally made from small thin pieces of plastic or similar material having a rounded triangular shape. A user of a pick most often holds it between a thumb and the opposing index finger. The more pointed end of the pick extends beyond the finger and thumb to contact and excite the strings in either a plucking or strumming manner. If the user is not careful to maintain a relatively constant force to grip the pick between the thumb and finger, the pick may rotate away from proper playing position or be dropped completely. The force required by the user can be fatiguing over long periods of play. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,346,662 Sielaff has shown an ergonomically shaped pick that generally conforms to the shape of the thumb and index finger that grasp it. This was one attempt to reduce the required force and delay the onset of fatigue during a play session. 
   One primitive solution that has been used to reduce the stress between the thumb and index finger is to fasten the pick to the thumb with a common rubber band. While this may be acceptable in some cases, more often than not at least one of two problems arise: either the pick twists or rotates with respect to the thumb because the rubber band is too loose; or circulation of blood to the finger tip is reduced resulting in a loss of sensitivity, if not pain, from a rubber band that is too tight. 
   A different approach has been to incorporate some form of a specially designed pick mechanism into a structure that is fitted to a thumb or other finger. Such devices generally take the form of a thimble or a ring. One of the earlier examples of this format was Formey&#39;s 1904 U.S. Pat. No. 756,348 for an annular band with an integrated, substantially semicircular, loop having an abrupt projection, which extended beyond the finger tip, for picking. Some devices of this type offer great stability to the pick mechanism by requiring that they be sized to fit a particular thumb or finger of each individual user. One shortcoming that arises once such a device has been fitted is that it often becomes uncomfortably warm due to heat accumulated over a prolonged session of play. 
   Picking devices that are either conformable or adjustable to an individual&#39;s finger have been shown in a variety of formats. Strong provided in his U.S. Pat. No. 4,015,502 an adjustable strap connected to a wire frame that doubled as a pick. A device which allowed a pick element to slide along a finger-engaging wire band was described by Beall in U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,237. McVicker was granted U.S. Pat. No. 4,625,615 for a Thumb Pick made from a single flat piece of flexible material having two parallel slits forming three straps which engaged a thumb. A fingernail shaped pick body having an annular band at its rear and a criss-crossing strip nearer its tip was secured to a finger in the device that was patented by Crafton in U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,239. Miller showed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,335,477 how to form a specially shaped resilient band to serve as a pick that could be wrapped around any finger or thumb. 
   The object of all of these devices has been to provide a means of fastening a specially designed pick to a thumb or finger. In many cases the pick has been an integral part of the fastening mechanism itself. U.S. Pat. No. 5,864,075 granted to Mapson showed both finger and thumb picks, each being formed as a single unit with wings that wrapped around the finger or thumb. However, Mapson extended his design to describe a form that provided a swivel fastener that could accept a special compatible pick. Recently, Atkin has shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,797,871 a thumb sleeve that will accept, either interiorly or exteriorly, an attachable and releasable pick by means of a hook and loop fastener. Again, these devices all require a pick that has been fitted with some sort of special adapter. 
   The Pick Harness described by Brundage in U.S. Pat. No. 4,102,234 departs from other designs by providing a means of securely holding a conventional pick. Brundage shows a flexible strap that encircles the thumb and has three triangularly-related slits that accept the apices of the conventional pick with provision for the pointed end of the pick to protrude through one of the slits into a playing position. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   Many complex devices have been designed to incorporate some form of a specially designed pick, or pick mechanism, into a special attachment device for holding the pick structure closely to a thumb of a person playing a stringed musical instrument. Few devices have provided support for a conventional pick of the user&#39;s choosing. It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple means of securely attaching a conventional pick chosen by the user so that it remains in close contact with the user&#39;s thumb or other playing finger. The described invention is intended to be comfortable over large variations in sizes and shapes of both picks and fingers. While the present invention is intended to be usable with any pick, be it a flat-pick or a thumb pick, it is especially well adapted for use with a pick that conforms to the user&#39;s finger, such as the Grip™ Pick, a product of Grip Guitar Picks, Inc., described by Sielaff in U.S. Pat. No. 6,346,662. This pick attachment device has an advantage over some previous solutions in that it is stronger, holding the pick more securely to the finger, without causing the user a sensation of it being tight. Furthermore, it will be inexpensive to manufacture. 
   The basic structure of the device produced under the present invention is that of a resilient band that has been slit longitudinally along a portion of its circumference. As the band is separated at the slit, one side from the other, it forms in one perspective a three-pronged Y-shape having what may be described as two narrow arms resulting from the slit and a wider leg remaining at the unslit portion. A conventional pick of the user&#39;s choosing can be slipped sideways into the flattened band. The more pointed lobe or apex of the pick will be inserted into the band so that the two arms of the Y can be separated so as to fall one on either side of the apex while the leg of the Y supports the opposite straighter edge of the pick. With the pick thus encompassed a user will then insert a playing finger between the resilient band and the pick. In this manner a conventional pick will be held in place against a user&#39;s playing finger by the presently described invention. 
   There are many possible variations of the basic structure, which although seemingly minor will have important effects on the resulting device. These alternatives will be understood best in light of the included Drawings in conjunction with the Detailed Description that follows. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a front view of a person playing a stringed musical instrument while using one embodiment of the invention to attach a pick to a thumb. 
       FIG. 2  shows the top view of an embodiment of the invention in use for attachment of a pick to a thumb as a user would see it when playing a guitar. 
       FIG. 3  depicts an embodiment of the present invention when it is not in use. 
       FIG. 4  shows a perspective view of a pick attachment device of the present invention engaging a pick when the combination is not in use. 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a pick attachment device supporting a pick in a playing position on a user&#39;s finger. 
       FIG. 6  shows a bottom view of the fleshy underside of a user&#39;s finger with a conventional pick attached by means of a pick attachment device of the present invention. 
       FIG. 7  depicts a single instance of the present invention in a flattened condition. 
       FIG. 8  illustrates one method of producing multiple instances of the pick attachment device from a segment of flexible resilient tubing that has been flattened. 
       FIG. 9  shows a method of production of multiple instances of the pick attachment device in an alternate format. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   In normal play a conventional thumb pick will be held between the thumb and an opposing finger, usually an index finger. That is, the pick is supported by force applied to its two faces. To relieve the user from the need to pinch a thumb pick in this manner, it is necessary to replace the force applied by the opposing finger that holds the pick in contact with the thumb. Instead of being pushed into the thumb, the pick must be pulled into it. In the present invention the replacement force is supplied by a band made from a flexible resilient material. As the band is stretched around the back side of a thumb or finger, a tension is developed that ideally is comparable to the force that would have been applied by an opposing finger. 
   When the presently described invention is used to hold a pick firmly in the proper position for playing, an opposing finger that would have been required to maintain contact with the pick is freed up. This allows an instrumentalist to use other styles of play involving the newly freed finger, which may itself take on an additional pick using another instance of the invention. 
   Since conventional picks, whether flat picks or thumb picks, are generally triangular with rounded apices, it is convenient to support them at three points, one on each edge. Indeed, it is well known in the mechanical arts that a three-point support provides the greatest possible stability. This is not to be taken as a limitation to embodiments of the present invention, since a three-point support system is readily adaptable to almost any shape of pick, whether it be nearly round or very pointed. 
   The present invention is shown in use attached to a thumb of an instrumentalist in  FIG. 1 , where a conventional pick  30  is held securely in place against a user&#39;s finger  40  by an instance of the invented pick attachment device  10 . The features of such a pick attachment device  10  may be seen in  FIG. 2  in a typical use, and in an unused standalone situation in  FIG. 3 . A longitudinal slit  18  has been cut through a portion of the circumference of the band  12 . It will be recognized that in one perspective spreading open the arms  16  about the slit  18  results in an apparent Y-shaped device with the leg of the Y being at the back side or base  14  of the pick attachment device  10 . This creates an aperture allowing the arms  16  of the band  12  to be separated so as to provide two pick-engaging surfaces  26  (more readily visible in  FIG. 5 ) at the interior of the ends of the arms  16 . 
   Turning to  FIG. 4  it will be seen how a conventional pick  30  can be installed to be held by the pick attachment device  10 . First, the playing portion or front apex  32  of the pick  30  will be inserted into the band  12  so as to protrude between the ends of the arms  16 . Then the pick  30  will be twisted within the band  12  so that a rear apex  36  passes the base  14  of the pick attachment device  10  with the pick&#39;s rear  34  finding final support inside the base  14 . 
   To use this combination of pick  30  and attachment device  10 , refer to  FIG. 5  which shows the result of the combination after it has been installed on a user&#39;s finger  40 . A user simply slips the tip  44  of a playing finger  40  between the pick  30  and its attachment device  10  with the fleshy part  46  of the finger  40  against the pick  30  so that the attachment device  10  comes to rest against the fingernail  42  or back side  48  of a playing finger  40 . The resilience and flexibility of the attachment device material allows it to conform to a variety of combinations of picks and fingers while holding the pick  30  comfortably against the playing finger  40  as shown in the bottom view of  FIG. 6 . 
   Most combinations of fingers and picks will be accommodated by beginning with a plastic or rubber tube having an inner diameter of about ¾″. When flattened, as illustrated in  FIG. 7 , such a tube will have a length of approximately 1⅛″. The preferred embodiment of a pick attachment device  10  in the present invention will be made from a ⅛″ wide segment of such a tube by cutting a slit  18  having a total length of ⅝″ through the centerline of the segment along a circumference of the band. The easiest way to form this slit  18  is to cut 5/16″ inward from the edge of the flattened tube along its centerline. After preparing the slit  18 , with the segment of tubing still flat, the ends of the arms  16  of the resulting Y will be separable to form an angle approaching 90° at the fork  24  between them, as was seen in the various views of  FIG. 2  and  FIGS. 4-6 . A longer slit  18  that extends up to one-half of the circumference of the band will produce a more open Y with an angle at the fork  24  approaching 120°. Wide angles may be useful for better control of a more rounded pick  30 , but wider than about 120° may allow the pick to become loose during play as the arms  16  separate and the pick works its way through the slit  18 . An alternate embodiment of the present invention may be made from a tapered or other non-rectangular shaped segment of a flattened tube. This might be useful to accommodate greater width at the end of the arms  16  without unnecessarily increasing the width of the band  10  in contact with the finger  40 . 
   While there might be some temptation to use a wider band, as has been the case in the prior art, and to cut a slit horizontally across the band rather than around it, this should be avoided. A wider band tends to cause discomfort due to accumulated heat, though it is recognized that this may be partially overcome by perforations in the band depending upon the material being used. Additionally, turning a pick so that its edges engage the forks at the ends of a slit tend to place undue stress at those forks and may cause them to tear out. To avoid potential tear out, or runs, at the ends of the slit, it may be helpful to superimpose a small diameter hole  22  at the two forked ends  24  of the slit  18  to relieve stress. 
   The preferred mode of use wherein the playing tip  32  of the pick  30  protrudes between the arms  16  of the Y is most amenable to standard thumb picking. This is not to preclude other playing styles. Although this description has covered the more common case in which the pick  30  is worn attached to the fleshy surface  46  of the thumb or finger and the band  10  is stretched across the nail on the back of the digit, there is no limitation that would prevent accommodation to styles of play where the pick attachment device  10  is rotated to position the pick  30  at the back side of the digit to be adjacent to the fingernail  42 . Furthermore, the pick  30  may be rotated so that one of its rear apices  36  is held by the pick-engaging arms  16  allowing the playing tip  32  to extend beyond the end of a finger  44 , though successful use of this mode is somewhat dependent upon the shape of the pick  30 . 
   Production of Pick Attachment Device 
   The pick attachment device  10  will generally be produced from a rubber or rubber-like material. Although a single item can be cut from an individual rubber band of the right size, this is inefficient and prone to error. Mass production can be relatively straightforward as will now be described in reference to  FIG. 8 . A tube  50  of the appropriate material having a proper diameter and thickness is flattened, generally by a press or roller. Some caution is necessary at this step to avoid irreversibly creasing the edges  52  of the flattened tube. While a slight creasing may be advantageous to better hold the pick in the proper position, especially when using a material that lacks conformability due to low pliability or a slick surface, care must be taken that the material is not adversely weakened. 
   A first cut  54  may sever waste or previous product from the end of the tube  50  in preparation for continued production. This first severing cut  54  may be square with respect to the flattened edge  52  or tapered or shaped as shown in one alternate embodiment in  FIG. 9 . A slitting cut  56  is then made from one of the flattened edges  52  toward the center of the width of the tube. There is a tendency in some plastic, rubber-like materials for a cut to tear out or creep. As a preventive measure one alternate embodiment provides for a small diameter hole  58  to be punched at the end of the slit  56  to act as a strain relief. The final step in this process is to make a second severing cut  62  to separate one finished instance of a pick attachment device  10  from the remainder of the tubing material  50 . 
   It will be apparent to those skilled in such manufacturing arts that this process may be carried out in batch mode using a specially made punch of finite size to produce multiple items from a predetermined length of tubing. It will also be recognized that this process is amenable to a continuous production mode wherein the tubing  50  is fed through a roller system containing appropriately spaced cutting and punching dies. Depending upon the material being used it may be desirable to anneal or temper the exposed surfaces of at least some of the cuts. Those familiar with such processes will recognize that this may be accomplished simultaneous with the cutting operations. For some materials the hole  58  that acts as a strain relief at the end of the slit  56  may preferably be drilled rather than punched. 
   While the present invention has been described with respect to a preferred embodiment, and alternate embodiments and methods of manufacture have been shown, there is no implication to restrict the present invention to preclude other implementations that will be apparent to those skilled in the related arts. It is easily recognized that the described invention may be produced in various sizes and is scalable to accommodate wide variations in picks and fingers. It may be constructed from a variety of materials. Therefore, it is not intended that the invention be limited to the disclosed embodiments or the specifically described details, insofar as variations can be made within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.