Patent Publication Number: US-7709714-B2

Title: Musical instrument harness

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention relates in general to musical instrument accessories and more particularly to harnesses worn by a user that aid in supporting the weight of a musical instrument. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The weight of some guitars and musical instruments is quite heavy and uncomfortable to hold over long periods of time while playing the instruments. Various suspension systems for supporting musical instruments on the front of the body are known in the art. A type of suspension strap commonly used with guitars is a single strap positioned the neck and shoulders that attaches in two locations to a musical instrument. The problem with such straps is they rest on very sensitive muscles close to the player&#39;s neck and shoulders. Within a short period of time, the musician can experience fatigue and discomfort from the strap. Some instrument support mechanisms are simply cumbersome and ineffective in providing a wide range of motion or movement of the instrument versus the musicians body position or posture. The present invention is directed to improving the distribution of weight to make playing a heavy musical instrument a more enjoyable experience and more comfortable to the musician while providing a mechanism for easy movement of the musical instrument into various playing positions. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   A musical instrument harness, according to one aspect of the present invention, includes a waist belt adapted to be worn about the waist of a user, a mounting ring attached to said waist belt, an elongated harness strap positioned within and through said mounting ring and sized in length to extend over both shoulders of the user when said waist belt is situated with said mounting ring disposed adjacent the spine of the user thereof, and means for attaching a musical instrument situated at the distal ends of said elongated harness strap. 
   One object of the present invention is to provide an improved musical instrument harness. 
   Another object of the present invention is to provide a musical instrument harness that redistributes the forces created by the weight of the musical instrument on the body. 
   Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a musical instrument harness with added comfort features that is convenient to wear and remove. 
   Still another object of the present invention is to provide a more ergonomic musical instrument harness that includes a rapid change mechanism for detaching and attaching different instruments previously equipped with a strap in accordance with the present invention. 
   These and other objects of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a musical instrument harness according to the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a front elevational view of the harness of  FIG. 1  on a human body. 
       FIG. 3  is a rear elevational view of the harness of  FIG. 1  depicted on a human body. 
       FIG. 4  is another embodiment of a musical instrument harness according to another aspect of the present invention that includes a readily detachable shoulder harness strap. 
   

   DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended, such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated device, and such further applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated therein being contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 1 , a musical instrument harness  10  according to one aspect of the present invention is shown. Harness  10  includes a waist belt  12 , a transfer ring or mounting ring  14 , a ring mounting portion  16 , and an adjustable shoulder strap  18 . Ring  14  is rotatably secured to belt  12  by mounting portion  16 . Strap  18  is inserted through ring  14  attached to mounting portion  16  which is constructed of strong resilient fabric or an elastic material that attached or sewn to belt  12 . The distal ends of strap  18  are inserted through brackets  20  and looped back and secured to triple bar strap adjustment brackets  22 . Such an arrangement is typical of musical instrument straps providing length adjustment of the straps, and further discussion herein should not be required. Mounting tongues  24  are pivotally attached to brackets  20  and include mounting holes or apertures  26  therein for receiving, for example, guitar strap buttons well known in the guitar art. 
   Waist belt  12  is preferably a waist support belt such as CorFit Lumbosacral Belt Item No. 7000 manufactured by Core Products International, Inc. and may be viewed at www.coreproducts.com via the internet. Such belts include hook and loop fasteners at  13  to secure belt  12  about the waist of the user, yet traditional mounting straps and buckles are also contemplated as alternatives in the construction of belt  12 . It should be noted that belt  12  may be constructed of any convenient resilient or flexible material, including leather or imitation leather, strong fabrics, elastomeric materials or the like. Strap  18  is constructed of flexible and durable fabric well known in the art of guitar straps such as nylon or leather. Mounting portion  16  is constructed from nylon strapping, leather or imitation leather material, or other suitably sturdy cloth material having resilient and flexible properties yet sufficiently strong to support the weight of a guitar. Transfer ring  14  is made from metal, however, high strength manmade composites such as reinforced graphite based materials or plastics may also be used. Mounting tongues  24  are typically made from leather or suitable similar material and are well known in the art. Though ring  14  is shown to be circular, it is contemplated that ring  14  may have any number of geometrically closed loop shapes, such as triangular, square, pentagonal, hexagonal etc. 
   Operationally speaking, musical instrument harness  10  is worn by attaching belt  12  about the waist. Straps  18  extend upward along the back and over the shoulders of the user and attach to a musical instrument such as a guitar in traditional fashion. The weight of the musical instrument is distributed over the shoulders as compared with traditional guitar or musical instrument harnesses that exert forces on the back of the neck. Though the embodiment of  FIG. 1  discloses mounting tongues adapted to attach to the strap buttons of a guitar, it is contemplated that the tongues may be altered to include snaps, clips or metallic hooks to mechanically attach to any musical instrument. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 2 , a front elevational view of the musical instrument harness  10  of  FIG. 1  is shown as it is worn by the user. Harness  10  is shown attached to guitar strap buttons at  28 . Strap  18  is shown looped over the users shoulders in a comfortable arrangement and distribution of the weight of guitar  30  is vertically downward on the shoulder contact areas. Also shown in  FIG. 2  are triple bar strap adjustment brackets  22  useful in adjusting the length of strap  18 . 
   Referring now to  FIG. 3 , a rear elevational view of the musical instrument harness  10  of  FIG. 1  is shown as worn by a user thereof. Waist belt  12  is shown surrounding the waist of the user. Extending over the shoulders of the user is strap  18 . Strap  18  extends through or loops around transfer ring  14 . Transfer ring  14  is shown attached to belt  12  via mounting portion  16 . Strap  18  is attached at  28  to standard guitar strap buttons. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 4 , another embodiment of a musical instrument harness  40  according to another aspect of the present invention is shown. All like item numbers in  FIG. 4  are identical in function and form to those same items shown in  FIG. 1 . In this embodiment of the harness, a detachable clip ring  42  has been added. Clip ring  42  is preferably a carabiner, which includes a spring loaded leg that is movable to attach or detach clip ring  42  from transfer ring  14 . Strap  18  is identical to strap  18  of  FIG. 1 . Also of note in this embodiment is the structure used for attaching ring  14  to belt  12 . Ring  14  is sewn into belt  14  to arrive at a more aesthetically pleasing design and less expensive design. The use of clip ring  42  provides more convenient detachment of strap  18  from belt  12 . Convenience in detaching and attaching various musical instruments arises when an artist uses several instruments during a performance and the ability to rapidly detach and attach other instruments, with strap  18  already attached thereto, is achieved. Thus a user need not remove belt  12  to switch to another guitar with usage of harness  40 . Such convenience is desirable during a musicians live performance. 
   While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description of the preferred embodiments, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood that only the preferred embodiments have been shown and described and that all changes and modifications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected.