Patent Publication Number: US-2017372684-A1

Title: Piano pedal depressing device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/355,240, filed Jun. 27, 2016. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a device for assisting a user to depress a piano pedal. More particularly, the invention relates to a piano pedal depressing device that can be used to engage a piano pedal by movement of a user&#39;s upper leg. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Conventional pianos include pedals which are foot-operated levers located at the base of a piano. Most pianos are equipped with three pedals, a soft pedal (or una corda), a sostenuto pedal, and a sustaining pedal (or damper pedal). The piano pedals change the instrument&#39;s sound, enabling the user to achieve a desired sound when playing the piano. The damper pedal (which in general is the rightmost pedal) is the most frequently used of all pedals, and is also the most essential to playing certain pieces or arrangements. One disadvantage of the pedal&#39;s location at the base of the piano is that users with shorter legs or users with a handicap, are unable to engage the damper pedal. As such, these users cannot make full use of the piano. 
     Accordingly, there exists a need for an apparatus that permits a handicapped person, or a person with relatively short legs (such as a child) to engage and depress the damper pedal of a piano or keyboard using his or her thigh or knee. Thus, a piano pedal depressing device solving the aforementioned problems is desired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The piano pedal depressing device allows a user to depress a piano pedal using his or her upper leg, e.g., knee or thigh. The piano pedal depressing device is a portable, adjustable accessory that can be detachably connected to a piano. The device includes a support housing configured for positioning between a keyboard and a support surface, an actuator assembly in the housing, and a swivel arm extending from the housing and connected to the actuator assembly. The housing includes a plurality of sidewalls, a base, and an upper compressible member for securely positioning the piano pedal depressing device between a piano and a support surface. The actuator assembly includes an elongate shaft for selectively contacting the piano pedal. Movement of the swivel arm, initiated by the user, can cause the shaft to depress the piano pedal. 
     These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an environmental front sectional view of a piano pedal depressing device, in accordance with the present invention, operatively connected to a conventional piano. 
         FIG. 2  is a side sectional view of the piano pedal depressing device of  FIG. 1 , operatively connected to a conventional piano. 
         FIG. 3  is an enlarged sectional view of an exemplary rack and pinion assembly for controlling movement of components of the piano pedal depressing device. 
     
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , there is shown a piano pedal depressing device configured for connection to a piano P, generally referred to as  100 . The piano pedal depressing device  100  permits a user to depress a piano pedal D (such as a damper pedal) located at the base of the piano P, using his or her upper leg portion. The piano pedal depressing device  100  includes an adjustable support housing  102 , a swivel arm  136 , and an actuator assembly  120 , which are operatively connected to each other, in order to facilitate depressing the pedal D. 
     The piano pedal depressing device  100  has a generally elongate body, adapted for being removably positioned between an undersurface U of the piano keyboard portion and a floor, or horizontal support surface. As illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the support housing  102  includes a plurality of sidewall members  103   a ,  103   b ,  103   c  and  103   d  forming the body of the support housing  102 , a base member  118 , and a compressible member  116 . 
     As illustrated, the compressible member  116  is provided generally at a first or proximal end  132  of the support housing  102 , and is configured to engage the underside portion U of the piano&#39;s keyboard. The base  118  is provided generally at an opposing distal end  122  of the support housing  102 , and configured to engage the floor or surface upon which the piano P is positioned. The compressible member  116  may include a resilient pad and/or a biasing member, such as a spring loaded pressure system, which can be compressed to accommodate a wide variety of conventional pianos having various distances between the piano underside U and the floor. 
     The base  118  may include a shock absorbent member, such as a rubber pad, to absorb pressure created when using the device  100 , and to stabilize the piano pedal depressing device  100  on the floor. As illustrated, the base  118  may have an arcuate shaped portion  114  with a gap or opening configured to receive the pedal D therein. 
     The actuator assembly  120  includes a dowel rod or shaft  104 , that extends substantially along the length of the housing  102 . In an embodiment, the actuator assembly  120  further includes a biasing spring  128  and a pivot arm  130  that are connected to the shaft  104 . The shaft  104  is configured to provide reciprocating upward and downward movement within the support housing  102 . The pivot arm  130 , connected to wall  103   d , is configured to selectively pivot up and down to facilitate the downward and upward vertical movement of the shaft  104 . A lower end of the shaft  104  includes an adjustable member  112  that can be vertically adjusted to lengthen or shorten the shaft  104 . It is to be understood that the adjustable member  112  can be padded (e.g., rubber padded) to prevent, such as substantially prevent, the adjustable member  112  from either sliding off of the pedal D or from making a clicking sound once the adjustable member  112  is lowered against the pedal D. 
     In an embodiment, the swivel arm  136  can be connected to a rack and pinion assembly  140  of the actuator assembly  120 . The rack and pinion assembly  140  can include a gear member  144  supported by a shaft  148  and a spring member  146 . A rack  142  is fixedly connected to the shaft  104 . The rack  142  has a plurality of gear teeth  152  configured to engage the gear member  144 . A spring  146  is connected to the gear member  144 . A second shaft member  150  can be provided to support a portion of the swivel arm  136  within the assembly  140 . 
     The swivel arm  136  can have a first lateral portion  124 , a second lateral portion  108 , and a generally angled portion  106  that extends between the first lateral portion  124  and the second lateral portion  108 . The second lateral portion  108  can be configured to have an adjustable length to accommodate a variety of individuals. The second lateral portion  108  can be formed from telescoping members, for example. The first lateral portion  124  extends within the housing  102 . A connecting member  126  is positioned between the gear member  144  and the first lateral portion  124  of the swivel arm  136 . The second lateral portion  108  and the generally angled portion  106  extend outside of the housing  102 . A pad or cushion member  110  can be formed generally at the end of the second lateral portion  108 . 
     The swivel arm  136  is adapted to move in a generally radial direction relative to the shaft  104 , when pressed by the user&#39;s upper leg. The pad member  110  provides a soft surface against which the user may press his or her upper leg to move the swivel arm  136 . For example, movement of the swivel arm  136  can be configured to adjust the position of the gear member  144  in the rack  142  described above. The spring  146  can bias the gear member  144  in an opposing direction than that of actuation. Upon movement of the swivel arm  136  by the user, the shaft  104  is moved to an engaged position. When the swivel arm  136  is released by the user, the pedal member D provides a biasing force to move the shaft  104  up, back to an unengaged or start position. The rack and pinion assembly  140  converts rotational movement of the swivel arm  136  into vertical movement of the shaft  104 , as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . Thus, the swivel arm  136  can be rotated to move the shaft  104  downward inside the support housing  102  and engage the pedal D. It should be understood that while a rack and pinion assembly has been described, the actuator assembly may include any suitable structure to convert rotational movement of the swivel arm into vertical movement of the shaft. 
     In operation, the user attaches the piano pedal depressing device  100  to the piano P by aligning the base of the piano pedal depressing device over the pedal D and positioning the compressible member  116  against the underside of the piano P. The piano pedal depressing device  100  is positioned such that the shaft  104  is aligned vertically with the pedal D. A user can press against the pad  110  of the swivel arm with his or her leg, e.g., inner leg, to cause rotation of the swivel arm  136  and, thereby, rotation of the gear member  144 . Movement of the gear member  144  allows the shaft  104  to move in a downward direction. The shaft  104  moves downward, engaging the pedal D. Release of the swivel arm  136  permits the biasing force of the pedal D to force the shaft  104 , and swivel arm  136  back to an unengaged starting position. 
     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims