Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 26th July, 1887.
Specification Accepted, 14th Oct., 1887
I, GEORGE STECK, of 1066 East Boulevard, in the City and State of New York,
United States of America, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
In the accompanying drawing:
Fig. 1 is a vertical transverse section on line a, e, fig. 2.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on line y y fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of the plate & and
Fig. 4 a detail longitudinal section through the socket e.
The letter a represents the square frame of a piano, containing a suitable action b
having hammer 6 and operated by key c as usual.
Against the back plate of the frame a there is placed an upright metal plate d
having a horizontal flange d' as shown. The plate d extends about half way across the
piano, from right to left and is secured in place by being tightly screwed to the
frame a. Upon the flange there are placed at short intervals, and secured by
screws or otherwise, a number of sockets e. Each of these sockets carries the end of
a coiled spring the coils of each spring being placed in substantially parallel layers,
as shown.
The plate d constitutes in substance a sounding board, but the instrument is provided
with an additional horizontal sounding board g, which is placed at a short distance
from the flange d' and approximately in line with it. Between the flange d' and the
sounding board the springs have but a single coil, as shown, while directly
above the sounding board y, the springs are coiled several times backwards and
forwards. The portion of the spring is the one acted upon by the hammer b¹ from
below, and also by a damper h from above. This damper is secured to a lever h¹
pivoted to damper frame at h² and adapted to be oscillated from key c by means of a
lifter 3. This lifter passes through a perforation of flange d¹ (fig. 3), the several
perforations for the several damper lifters being placed in front of sockets e
between the springs as shown.

page_text: As thus far described, the piano is constructed to produce the lower notes and this
construction extends to about the center of the piano. The right hand or upper notes
are not produced by the coiled springs but by a number of straight metal plates i, i,
which are capable of a limited up and down motion and which are secured to the
sounding board so as to project with their rear end over the rear edge of the
sounding board. Thus the plates are accessible to the hammers b¹.
i
Of course the length of the springs f and also the length of the plates i varies as
shown decreasing from low to high notes.
A piano constructed as described will be found to possess a full and clear tone; it
may be strongly and at the same time cheaply manufactured.
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. The combination in a piano having frame of a pair of sounding boards d, y, one
placed in an upright and the other in a horizontal position, with the springs secured
to sounding board d and projecting over sounding board g substantially as specified.
2. The combination of sounding board d having flange d¹ and of sounding board
with the springs having a single coil between the parts d, g, and double coil above
sounding board g substantially as specified.
3. The combination of sounding board having perforated flange d' with the
sockets e and springs and with the dampers h connected to the levers and with
the damper lifters 3 passing through perforations of flange d¹ substantially as
specified.
4. The combination of the upright sounding
horizontal sounding board g with the spring
hammers and dampers acting upon springs
board g substantially as specified.
board d having flange d¹ and of the
secured to flange and with the
between the flange d and sounding
5. The combination of sounding board d having the flange d'and carrying springs f
with the sounding board g extending beneath the forward ends of such springs and
with the vertically movable plates projecting beyond the rear edge of sounding
board substantially as specified.
Dated this 15th day of Jul, 1007