Abstract:
A shoulder rest ( 50 ) comprises an attachment piece ( 60 ), an abutment piece ( 62 ), and a padding piece ( 64 ) and is adapted for supporting a stringed instrument ( 80 ) such as violin or viola during playing, wherein the attachment piece ( 60 ) is adapted to clip onto an end button ( 82 ) of the stringed instrument ( 80 ) such that the contact surface between the stringed instrument ( 80 ) and the shoulder rest ( 50 ) is juxtaposing a bottom block of the stringed instrument ( 80 ).

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This patent application is a National Stage of International Application Serial No. PCT/CN2009/070548, filed on 26 Feb. 2009, which claims the benefit of a U.S. of America Patent Application Ser. No. 61/032,431, filed on 29 Feb. 2008, the disclosures of which are all incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. 
    
    
     FIELD OF INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a shoulder rest for stringed instrument such as violin or viola intended for support on a shoulder of a user. 
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
     Many violinists or violists have often experienced pain or fatigue over their neck and/or shoulder area from playing their instruments. The contact of the hard wooden back of a violin/viola further aggravates the clavicle bone, especially after prolonged practice or play. Therefore, the introduction of a shoulder rest for supporting the violin/viola seems to be an effective solution to improve the player&#39;s comfort and providing good security of the instrument on the shoulder. 
     However, a number of virtuoso violinists/violists discourage the use of shoulder rest. One of the demerits they argue is that conventional shoulder rests may freeze the shoulder joint movement due to its inherent design, essentially restricting the freedom of movement of the violin on the shoulder, resulting in the loss of the necessary dynamic interactions between the violin, the bow and the player. 
     A conventional bridge-type shoulder rest may also hinder the smooth transmission of sound from the violin to the body of the user. In other shoulder rest designs, metal clamps are incorporated thereon for securing the violin which may also damage the violin body. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     In the light of the foregoing background, it is an object of the present invention to provide an alternate shoulder rest for supporting a stringed instrument, especially for violin and viola. 
     Accordingly, the present invention, in one aspect, is a shoulder rest for supporting a stringed instrument which comprises an attachment piece, an abutment piece, and a padding piece. The attachment piece is adapted to secure the shoulder rest to a tail-pin of the stringed instrument and the abutment piece, extending from the attachment piece, is adapted to provide support to the stringed instrument once rested onto the shoulder rest. In one embodiment, the attachment and abutment pieces are coupled to form an L-shaped support configuration for providing an area for contact between the stringed instrument and the shoulder rest to support the stringed instrument. The padding piece connects to the abutment piece and is adapted to rest on and conform to the contour of a shoulder of a user. It is further adapted to simultaneously contact the shoulder and the clavicle of the user during usage. Further, the attachment piece is adapted to clip onto an end button of the stringed instrument such that the contact surface between said stringed instrument and said shoulder rest is juxtaposing a bottom block of said stringed instrument. 
     In yet another embodiment, the abutment piece comprises a rigid material to minimize any contact between a bottom board of the stringed instrument and the shoulder rest upon attachment of said attachment piece onto said stringed instrument. As such, damping of said stringed instrument resting on said shoulder rest could be prevented during usage. 
     According to another aspect of the present invention, a shoulder rest for supporting a stringed instrument is provided and comprises an attachment plate, an abutment piece, and a flexible pad. The attachment plate contains a first end and an opposing second end. The first end further has a slot provided therein and adapted to mate with an end button of the stringed instrument for securing the shoulder rest to the stringed instrument. The abutment piece rigidly extends from the second end of the attachment plate such that a substantially L-shaped support is formed therebetween to provide an area for contact between the stringed instrument and the shoulder rest to support the stringed instrument. Further, the stringed instrument enables the contact surface to be at a bottom block of the stringed instrument such that the angle formed between the attachment plate and the abutment piece allows the abutment piece to support the edge of a bottom board juxtaposing said bottom block during usage while minimizing the contact of the bottom board of the stringed instrument with the shoulder rest. The pad, attaching to and spreading around the abutment piece along the plane thereof, is adapted to simultaneously contact and protect the shoulder and the clavicle of the user during usage. 
     Being rigid but flexible, the L-shaped support formed by the coupling of the attachment and abutment pieces is allowed to be forced open upon attachment of the shoulder rest to the stringed instrument. The abutment piece would then be forced away from the stringed instrument such that contacts between the shoulder rest and the stringed instrument, and thus the damping of the stringed instrument resting thereonto, could be minimized. 
     Also, due to its inherent design, the ridge-shaped abutment piece of the shoulder rest of this invention helps in preventing the dropping of the scroll of the violin or viola during playing and so the hand holding the stringed instrument can have complete freedom of movements to attain a full range of orientations and directions. Further, the playing ergonomics of the arm holding the stringed instrument can be improved. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES 
         FIG. 1A ,  FIG. 1B , and  FIG. 1C  are perspective, side and top views of a shoulder rest for supporting a stringed instrument respectively according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2A  is an illustration of the shoulder rest resting on a shoulder of a user without attaching to a stringed instrument according to the same embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2B  is an illustration of the shoulder rest in use in which a stringed instrument is attached thereonto according to the same embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a shoulder rest for supporting a stringed instrument according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     As used herein and in the claims, “comprising” means including the following elements but not excluding others. When interpreting each statement in this specification that includes the term “comprising”, features other than that or those prefaced by the term may also be present. Related terms such as “comprise” and “comprises” are to be interpreted in the same manner. 
     The term “formable” refers to the nature of a material that allows for a substance made thereof to have its shape readily changeable, but once changed, it can retain the shape. 
     “Proximal side” refers to the side of the shoulder of a user that is closer to the neck. Likewise, its counterpart, “distal side”, refers to the side of the shoulder near the arm and positioned farther away from the neck. Correspondingly, “proximal clavicle” means the side of the clavicle of a user closer to the neck of that user, whereas “distal clavicle” is the opposing side of the “proximal clavicle”. 
     Referring first to  FIGS. 1A ,  1 B and  1 C, the first embodiment of the present invention is a shoulder rest  50  for supporting a stringed instrument which comprises an attachment piece  60 , an abutment piece  62 , and a padding piece  64 . In the example shown, the attachment piece  60  is a flat plate containing a first end  60   a  and an opposing second end  60   b . A slot  60   e  is provided within the first end  60   a . The abutment piece  62  is a tongue extending from the second end  60   b  to form a substantially L-shaped support with the attachment piece  60 . It has a shape of a ridge disposed across the upper surface of the tongue and horizontally aligned with the two ends of the attachment piece  60 . The ridge of the abutment piece  62  contains a slanted inner surface  62   a  facing the attachment piece  60  and an adjacent slanted outer surface  62   b . The padding piece  64  is a flexible pad attached to the abutment piece  62  that spreads around the plane thereof. 
     Turning now to  FIGS. 2A and 2B , the shoulder rest  50  can be attached onto a stringed instrument  80  by sliding the slot  60   e  through the neck of the end button  82 . In the embodiment shown, the first end  60   a  consists of a slit next to the slot  60   e . The slit can be pulled open to allow the end button  82  to be inserted into the slot  60   e  for attaching the shoulder rest  50  onto the stringed instrument  80 . In the embodiment shown, the attachment piece  60  is made of rigid but yet elastic material and so it can aid in securing the attachment. As further illustrated in  FIG. 2B , the tail-pin  80   a  of the stringed instrument  80  would come into contact to the inner surface  62   a  of the abutment piece  62  adapted to provide support to the stringed instrument  80  once rested onto the shoulder rest  50 . As such, upon attachment of the attachment piece  60  onto the tail-pin  80   a , the bottom board  80   b  of the stringed instrument  80  would be pressed onto the hard but flexible abutment piece  62 , forcing open the L-shaped support joining the abutment piece  62  with the attachment piece  60 . With the presence of the ridge, the distal side of the abutment piece  62  would be forced away from the bottom board  80   b  in order to minimize any contact that may occur between the bottom board  80   b  (that facilitates the generation of music through vibration) and the abutment piece  62 . As such, damping of the stringed instrument  80  resting on the shoulder rest  50  could be minimized. Padding piece is not shown in both  FIGS. 2A and 2B  for ease of description. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the attachment piece  60  of the shoulder rest  50  is provided with a size adjustment mechanism for the slot  60   e  to accommodate the clipping of the slot  60   e  onto end buttons with different sizes. The size adjustment mechanism in the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 3  is composed of a flexible band  90  which is attached to the attachment piece  60  at a back side thereof and stretches across the slot  60   e . The size of the slot  60   e  can be adjusted by adjusting the length of the band  90  thereacross (as shown in dotted lines  90   a , the extended form of band  90 , in  FIG. 3 ) and so end buttons with different sizes can be fitted with the shoulder rest. 
     On attaching the shoulder rest  50  onto the stringed instrument (not shown in  FIG. 3 ), the end button  80  (shown in dotted lines in  FIG. 3 ) is inserted into the slot  60   e . In this specific embodiment, the slot  60   e  comprises an opening at the first end  60   a  of the attachment piece  60 . Then, the flexible band  90  is stretched to wrap around the end button  80 . As such, a resistive force is applied onto the end button  80  by the flexible band  90  to prevent it from being disconnected from the slot  60   e.    
     With the use of the shoulder rest  50  of the present invention, the user can attain unrestricted movement of his/her clavicle during play while his/her stringed instrument  80  rests comfortably on his/her shoulder above on the shoulder rest  50 . The padding piece  64  of the shoulder rest  50  is made and designed to conform to the contour of the user&#39;s shoulder and simultaneously contact the shoulder and the clavicle of the user during play. Since it is preferably made of a soft, flexible or formable material, both the sternoclavicular and acromial-clavicular joints of the user can be remained free and mobile. Further, the user&#39;s arm holding the stringed instrument  80  can now move in multiple orientations and directions. 
     The details of some embodiments of the present invention are thus fully described. Although the description refers to particular embodiments, it will be clear to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced with variation of these specific details. Hence this invention should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. 
     For example, the attachment piece and abutment piece are illustrated to be provided on the central position of the padding piece, but it is clear to one skilled in the art that these two pieces can be disposed on other positions of the padding piece according to the user&#39;s preference. The attachment piece and the abutment piece may be made of any rigid material, such as but not limited to plastic or wood, and can be of other shape and thickness according to the user&#39;s requirement based on the teaching provided herein. Further, the length and shape of the abutment piece can be varied according to one&#39;s preferences. 
     The attachment piece is illustrated in the aforesaid example to contain a slit followed by a slot to accommodate the end button. It is clear that other configurations of the attachment piece may be used based on the teaching provided herein. For example, a narrow slot may be provided instead of a slit, or other clamping mechanism may be used to secure the attachment piece to end button or the clamps around the end button or their equivalents according to the stringed instrument. 
     During use when the stringed instrument rests on the shoulder rest, the angle between the abutment piece and the attachment piece within the L-shaped support could be of any angle that fits the end of the stringed instrument resting thereon. 
     The padding piece of the shoulder rest can be made of a soft material such as soft rubber, sponge or quilt, among others. It can also be made of an ergonomically adjustable frame such that it can be modified to conform to different contours of different users according to one&#39;s preferences. For example, a wire frame or a formable material can also be used to support the soft material for the base such that the resulting shoulder rest can be adjusted to conform to the contour of the shoulder of the user. 
     Further, the padding piece can be designed to be detachable from the abutment piece such that when the shoulder rest is not in use, the user can disconnect the padding piece from the abutment piece, while the abutment piece remains attached to the stringed instrument, according to the his/her preferences. 
     A piece of soft material can also be incorporated onto the joint between the attachment piece and the abutment piece within the L-shaped support for extra protection to the stringed instrument resting onto the shoulder rest according to the preferences of the user. 
     The size adjustment mechanism as illustrated is composed of a flexible band in the embodiment described above, but it is clear to one skilled in the art that other forms such as Velcro, spring, screws or adaptors can be used to provide secure attachment of the shoulder rest onto the stringed instrument. The flexible band can be made of a resilient and flexible material such as soft rubber, nylon, a combination thereof, among others.