Improvements in and relating to Combined Pianofortes and Reed Organs.
Year: 1897

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Combined Pianofortes and Reed
Organs.
I, EZRA JOHN SPENCE, of 217, Hyde Road, Ardwick, Manchester, in the County.
of Lancaster, Organ Builder, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
-
This invention relates to combined pianofortes and reed organs and its object
is to so construct and arrange them in a simple and compact manner that both
instruments may be played together or either of them may be played alone.
In carrying these improvements into effect the cavity board carrying the reeds
is suitably movably mounted below the keyboard of the piano. The keys of the
piano are provided with or are combined with downwardly extending screw pokers,
the lower ends or heads of which are adapted to come into contact with the ends
of pokers extending upwards from the reed pallets. The cavity board is adapted
to be moved up and down so that when it is in its extreme upward position the reed
pallet pokers are brought up into contact with the screw pokers from the piano
keys and are operated thereby. By moving the cavity board downwards the two
sets of pokers are moved out of contact with one another and the piano may be
played without the organ being affected. The required movement of the cavity
board may be produced in any desired manner as, for example, by the knee, or by
means of handles, levers or the like.
The treadles for operating the bellows are arranged one upon each side of the
ordinary piano pedals, so that, when desired, they may be folded out of the way.
and the bellows are placed underneath the keyboard. The reservoir is preferably
vertical and is contained within the piano casing behind the bottom front
panel, and the feeder is attached to the underside of the cavity board.
In order to enable the organ alone to be played I mount a movable transverse bar
which extends across the whole series of hammers in the piano. By moving this
bar in one direction all the hammer heads may be simultaneously moved against
the wires in which position they are not affected by any movement of the piano
keys. By moving the bar in the reverse direction the hammers re-occupy their
proper positions and are operated by the movements of the keys. The movable
bar may be moved in either of the required directions by means of a lever or the
like mounted below the keyboard or in any other convenient position.
By use of these improvements, therefore, the piano may be played alone when
the cavity board is lowered out of contact, the piano and organ may be played
together when the cavity board is raised and the piano hammers are in their
operative positions, the organ may be played alone when the cavity board is raised
and the piano hammers are moved up against the wires, or the keyboard may be

page_text: used as a dumb keyboard for practice when the cavity board is lowered and the
piano hammers are held against the wires.
ד
W. E. HEYS & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in and relating to Combined Pianofortes and Reed
Organs.
I, EZRA JOHN SPENCE, of 217, Hyde Road, Ardwick, Manchester, in the County
of Lancaster, Organ Builder, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to combined pianofortes and reed organs and its object
is to so construct and arrange them in a simple and compact manner that both
instruments may be played together or either of them may be played alone.
In carrying these improvements into effect the cavity board carrying the reeds
is suitably movably mounted below the key-board of the piano. The keys of the
piano are provided with or are combined with downwardly extending screw pokers
the lower ends of which are adapted to come into contact with the ends of pokers
extending upwards from the reed pallets, or other convenient means may be
employed for establishing communication between the piano keys and the pallets.
The cavity board is adapted to be moved up or down so that when it is in its.
extreme upward position the reed pallet pokers are brought up into contact with the
piano keys or projections therefrom and are operated thereby. By moving the
cavity board downwards the two sets of pokers or the like are moved out of contact
with each other and the piano may be played without the organ being affected.
The required movement of the cavity board may be produced in any desired manner,
as, for example, by the knee, or by means of handles, levers or the like.
The treadles for operating the bellows may be arranged one upon each side of the
ordinary piano pedals in such a manner that they can, when desired, be folded out
of the way, and the bellows may be placed underneath the keyboard. Preferably
the reservoir is vertical and is contained within the piano casing behind the bottom
front panel, and the feeder is attached to the underside of the cavity board.
In order to enable the organ alone to be played, I mount a movable transverse
bar which extends across the whole series of hammers in the piano. By moving
this bar in one direction all the hammer heads may be simultaneously moved
against the wires in which position they are not affected by any movement of the
piano keys. By moving the bar in the reverse direction the hammers re-occupy.
their proper positions and are operated by the movements of the keys. The movable
bar may be moved in either of the required directions by means of a lever or the
like mounted below the keyboard or in any other convenient position.
In order that my invention may be more readily understood I have hereto
appended a sheet of drawings to which I will refer hereinafter.
Figure 1 illustrates the improved combined piano and organ in cross section.
Figure 2 shows it in front elevation with part of the casing removed.
Figure 3 represents the cavity board when it is removed from the piano keys
and is inoperative.
Figure 4 is an illustration of one form of device for moving the cavity board
against or away from the piano keys.

page_text: Similar letters of reference are used to indicate similar parts where they occur
in the different drawings.
The cavity board A which carries the reeds is hinged or pivotted as at B to the
casing of the piano and occupies a position beneath the piano keyboard. It is
capable of being raised or lowered to a slight extent by any suitable means, as, for
example, by the hook C which is pivotted to the cavity board and is capable of
engaging by its inclined head with an eye or the like upon the piano casing.
When the hook is forced right home in the eye the cavity board is raised; when it
is withdrawn from the eye the board is lowered. The reed pallets D are furnished
with upwardly extending pokers, projections, or the like E, and the piano keys F
are provided with downwardly extending pokers or the like G. When the cavity
board is raised and occupies its highest position as shown by Figure 1 the pokers E
and G are brought into contact with each other and any motion imparted to a
piano key is communicated to the reed pallet beneath it, and the piano and the
organ would be played simultaneously. Figure 3 illustrates the cavity board in
its lowest position where the pallets are out of reach of the piano keys and the piano
alone is played.
It will of course be understood that other equivalent devices may be employed in
substitution for the pokers illustrated and in order to establish connection between
the keys and the pallets. For instance, either the keys alone or the pallets alone
may be formed or provided with projections long enough to extend across the space
between them. Also, the cavity board instead of being hinged may be adapted to
be raised or lowered in any other convenient manner.
The bellows are placed below the key board and are operated by the treadles H.
The feeder or feeders I is or are secured beneath the cavity board and is or are
connected to the treadles by cords, chains or the like J. The reservoir K is pre-
ferably placed vertically behind the lower front panel of the piano. When out of
use the treadles may be folded to the position shown by dotted lines, Figures 1
and 2.
When it is desired to play the organ alone without playing the piano the cavity
board is raised to its highest position as shown in Figure 1 so that the movement of
the keys is communicated to the pallets. The piano hammers L are then moved up
against the wires by a movable bar M which extends the length of
the piano and is operated by a handle or lever N. When this bar
is moved to the position shown by the dotted lines in Figure 1 all the
hammers are against the wires and can not be operated by the keys, and the organ
alone will be played.
By the use of these improvements, therefore, the piano may be played alone
when the cavity board is lowered out of contact with the keys, as shown in
Figure 3; the piano and the organ may be played together when the cavity board
is raised and the keys are in their operative positions as illustrated in Figure 1:
and 'the organ may be played alone when the cavity board is raised and the piano.
hammers occupy the position indicated by dotted lines in Figure 1.
The key board may be used as a dumb key board for practice when the cavity
board is lowered and the piano hammers are held against the wires.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. A combined piano and reed organ, in which the cavity board of the organ
is mounted beneath the piano key board in such a manner that it may be raised
or lowered so as to place its reed pallets into or out of contact with the piano keys,
substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and as illustrated by
the accompanying drawings.
2. In a combined piano and reed organ, the combination with the piano portion
of the instrument of a transverse bar or the like by means of which the hammers
of the piano may be moved up against their wires and the piano thus rendered

page_text: inoperative, substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accom-
panying drawings.
3. A combined piano and reed organ, constructed and arranged substantially
as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accom-
panying drawings.