Improvements in Apparatus for Facilitating the Performance of Music on Pianofortes, Harmoniums, and like Instruments.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 31st July, 1891-Accepted, 5th Sept., 1891
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by ANDREAS WIDER, of Stuttgart, in the Kingdom of
Wurtemburg and German Empire, Manufacturer.]
Improvements in Apparatus for Facilitating the Performance of
Music on Pianofortes, Harmoniums, and like Instruments.
I, GEORGE MACAULAY-CRUIKSHANK C.E. of 62 Saint Vincent Street, in the
City of Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Registered Patent Agent and Fellow of the Institute
of Patent Agents, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed (as communicated to me) to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention which relates to improvements in apparatus for facilitating the
practice or playing of music upon pianofortes, harmoniums and like instruments has
for its object to so present the piece to be played that the notes of the music shall
appear in front of the player immediately above the key to be struck on the
instrument.
The invention is illustrated on the accompanying drawings on which Figure 1 is
a vertical section, Figures 2, 2ª is a plan and Figure 3 is a vertical section of a
modification of the improved apparatus and Figure 4 is a diagram of a sheet of
music for use herewith. The apparatus consists of a drum or roller A (Figs. 1
to 3) for carrying the music sheets and composed of a series of discs 6 mounted on a
shaft a and connected together by tie rods c. The music sheet is held upon the
drum or roller frame A by clips e and a bar g seen at Figures 2 and 3 the clips e
being connected to springs d2 whose action is to draw them inwards towards the
circumference of the roller A. For moving the clips e when a new sheet of music
is to be introduced between the roller A. and the clips e there are arranged jointed
levers d, d³ forming toggle joints which are operated by means of the tie rod a from
the lever to project the clips from the circumference of the roller. The bar g
which is of T section has its vertical leg or branch inserted in a groove in the
discs b, whilst its horizontal flange grips or holds the edge of the music sheet and it
is supported from the shaft a, by inclined forks a. The turning of the music sheet
on the roller A in front of the player is effected by means of the sprocket wheel B
which is secured on one end of the roller or drum A, (in Fig. 2 on the right hand).
The turning of the roller A is effected by means of a weight, a cord z being wound
on the drum G and being strained by the said weight. The turning of the roller A
when the keys are held down is prevented by a pawl C, provided on its lower end
with a point i made of hard leather, which point i enters between two adjacent teeth
or pins of the wheel B after each partial rotation of the drum, for the purpose
stopping its movement long enough to exhibit the note to be sounded during the
required period of time in front of the player. The pawl C is also provided on its
upper end with a catch k which enters between two adjacent teeth or pins of the
wheel B when the lower point is out of engagement with the pins. The keys y
(Figs. 1 and 3) by which the note is sounded have their fulcrums at y" and at their
inner ends there is secured to each of them a thrust piece D all which thrust pieces
act upon one common frame E, so as to raise it as high as is necessary to move the
pawl C and of course to permit and stop the revolution of the roller or drum A. The
frame E is connected to the pawl C by the wire or rod h (Fig. 1). The pawl C is
pivoted at fon a lever F, which at its lower end is centred upon a stud F¹ pro-
jecting from a side frame H of the piano, harmonium or the like. In its upper
end the lever F carries a leather covered eccentric l, whose function is to so regulate
the position of the pawl C that the point i cannot enter deeper between the teeth of
the ratchet wheel B than is necessary for the momentary stopping of the rotation
of the roller or drum A. Immediately before the point of the pawl has been
of

page_text: completely withdrawn the catch
enters between two adjacent teeth of the wheel B.
The catch is jointed to the pawl C and the extent of its motion is limited
by two screws k¹, k¹¹ so that on the complete withdrawal of the point i the wheel B
and drum A are allowed to turn the distance between two adjacent pins of the
wheel so that in the next oscillation of the pawl C the point i enters between the
next adjacent pins on the wheel B and exposes the next note on the music in front
of the player.
secured.
At the right hand end of the roller A a drum G is secured upon the shaft a the
said drum having a ratchet wheel G into which a pawl m pivoted on the end
disc of the roller A enters. The drum G is put in motion by the weight of the
cord being wound upon it and to provide for the winding up of the said weight
a second cord is wound upon the drum in the opposite direction to the cord z,
the cord ¹ passing over guide pulleys to a slide n, which is furnished with a button
and works in a groove or slot in the case o. When the weight has run down, the
slide n, which is then at the right hand end of the slot is drawn towards the other
end the effect of which is to again wind up the cord z on the drum G. The
bearings of the roller A are in standards H, H which are connected together by
a bar
and on the right hand standard the stud F¹ for the lever F is formed or
On the said standard there is also carried a sliding pin which at certain
times is entered into holes t, t¹ in the end disc of the roller A to temporarily lock
the said roller in position. The said standard H also carries a jaw or fork I in
which levers K, L are centred and it likewise carries a small block having an
adjustable screw r and an arm's provided with two arresting pins s', sl (Fig. 2A).
The lever K has its left hand extremity connected to the pawl lever F which can
be moved round its pivot F1 by moving the lever K. The lever I is longer than
the lever K and is covered underneath with a piece of leather. A draw bar M is
provided which on being pulled out acts by means of an adjusting screw on the
right hand end of the lever L which through an upwardly projecting part of its
surface acts on the corresponding end of the lever K said end being connected to
one extremity of a spiral spring O whose opposite end is attached to the cheek P.
The lever L is returned to its original position by the spring O' on pushing in
the bar M. By the draw bar M of which the button N is visible, the roller A is
quickly connected with the pawl C or disconnected therefrom. When the button N
is pulled outwards the left hand ends of both levers K, L move rearwards as does
also the lever F, with the pawl C the roller A being thereby released from the
pawl and turned by the weight hung upon the cord until it is stopped by the
adjustable projection Q, which comes in contact with the leather padding of
the lever L. On drawing out the bar M the flat spring R, which is also fixed to
the upper lever K catches on projections on the arms and so holds the pawl C
back until the spring R is released by a slight upward movement of the bar M and
the lever K with the pawl lever F and pawl C are again released. When the
lever L is in contact with the projection Q the roller A is then in position for
removing and replacing the music sheet to which end it is turned a little back-
wards and the pin is slipped into the hole t on the end of the roller A by which
the roller is again held fast. The lever f is then turned to the left and the clip
bar is moved through an arc to the right on its forks a causing it to part slightly
from the roller. The lever f is then moved down until it lies parallel to the
shaft a causing the clips or catches e to move out from the periphery of the
roller A and the music sheet is then placed in position after which the lever f is
raised moving the catches e inwards to grip the sheet and the clip bar or rod g is
moved back so as to hold one edge of the sheet throughout its length. In order
to wind the sheet round the roller the pin q is drawn out and the rod M. (or the
button N) is pushed back for an instant without exerting any upward pressure,
thereby causing the lever L to be moved out of the way of the pin Q the rod M
and the lever L being thereafter returned to their former position. The weight
on such backward movement of the lever L turns the roller A and lays the sheet

page_text: around it. The roller is then again locked by the pin 9 being entered into the
hole t'.
The rod or bar g is again raised and the free end of the music sheet is placed
under it both ends being thus held when the rod g is returned to its normal
position in which it may be locked by a pin attached to the lever f. If the pin
be now withdrawn the roller A moves into such position that the first notes are
above the keys to be struck and if the button N of the rod M is now pressed
inwards and slightly upwards the spring R loses its hold on the arm sand is
drawn back by the spiral spring O acting on the lever K thereby causing the
inner ends of both levers K, L to move simultaneously towards the front whereby
the upper lever K again engages the pawl C with the teeth of the said wheel B
and the under lever L is made to avoid the projection Q on the wheel B when the
leather tip of the pawl C has caught that tooth of the wheel B which exposes
the first note or notes of the music. The regulation of these movements is
effected by the adjusting screw whilst the similar screw r effects the adjustment
of the point k. For greater clearness in indicating the note to be struck an
indicator bar S is placed behind the keys which bar is supported at its ends on
the standards H, H and at the middle by the pin u Figure 3 which pin is attached
to the plate u. To prevent the pin u from being displaced it is furnished with a
spring placed under the keys the function of which is to draw it away from the
roller B the required position of the bar S being at the same time regulated
relatively to the roller A by means of the screw w. Above the bar S the roller A
is enclosed within a cover T which is carried by brackets a small adjusting
screws serving to regulate the distance of the cover from the roller.
For such pieces of music as contain more notes than can conveniently be printed
on one sheet rolls of paper are employed these being wound upon a roller U which
has a spring provided in conjunction with it to act as a brake and prevent the strip
from being unwound from the roller faster than the music is exposed at S or than
it is wound upon the larger roller A to which one end of the paper is secured as
before set forth. When such a roll of music has been played to the end it must be
rewound on the drum U off the roller A. To enable this to be done the roller A
must be left free to turn backwards. This is partly accomplished by drawing out
the bar M as before described thus withdrawing the pawl C and leaving the roller
locked by the lever L catching the projection Q. The roller A is freed from the
drum G by means of two levers V and W which are jointed together and which
are both centred on pins on the casing by means of slots so that each of them is
capable of longitudinal motion as well as motion round its fulcrum. The lever W
has a knob at its free end, and the lever V at its free end has a hook or fork
embracing the rim of a toothed wheel G fixed on the side of the drum G. By a
backward longitudinal movement of the lever W the left hand end of the lever V
is pushed towards the front and enters between two teeth of the wheel G2 to
prevent rotation of the drum. The lever W has on its underside a pin which
catches on a projection on the bar M and on the backward movement of the said
lever the bar M is also pushed back and moves the lever L out of the path of the
projection Qthe lever K being held by its spring R engaging the catch's as before
described.
By pushing to the left the knob on the lever W a longitudinal motion to the
right is imparted to the lever V whose hooked end embracing the rim of the
wheel G2 draws said wheel and the drum G (which is capable of sliding on
the shaft a) to the right so that the ratchet G¹ on the drum is freed from the
pawl m on the end of the roller A. The roller A is now entirely free and the roll
of paper can be rewound on the drum U by providing it with a weight and cord
acting on a drum similar to G or by any other suitable means.
The connecting bar p acts as a support for the roller U and for the frame E and
for a trip bar Z provided in conjunction with the thrust levers D, which as before
set forth are attached to the inner ends of the keys y" at Figure 1 and to the
balance beam y Figure 3 and raise the frame E momentarily when one or more

page_text: keys are struck. The thrust levers are in the form of bell crank levers their
vertical ends acting to raise the frame E from which they are disengaged in the
arrangement Figure 1 by the wedge shaped part D in rising being acted on by
the edge of the trip bar Z and in Figure 3 by the horizontal arm of the lever
coming in contact with the trip bar Z either arrangement operating to throw the
vertical arm of the lever clear of the frame E. After each disengagement the
thrust levers D are brought back to normal position by the springs d so that
every note can be sustained at leisure or can be immediately played over again.
By the frame E the pressure on any key momentarily releases the roller through
the hook and pawl C immediately allowing the roller to turn. As the style of
the usual piano does not afford the required room for applying the apparatus
internally it may be conveniently placed on a table or bracket of proper height in
front of the key board Y' of the piano (Fig. 3) to which the touch is conveyed
from the keys y¹¹ of the apparatus by means of the balance beam y the rear end of
which can be connected to any piano the connection being effected by the adjusting
screw y' having a leather covered point bearing on the keys of the piano. The
other ends of the beam y are connected by links 211 with the keys y the lower
end of the said links resting loosely in channels 2" from which they are prevented
from moving out by the leather band z¹111.
In the playing of duets it is necessary that the thrust levers D of the left hand
or bass half of the keys should be disconnected and this is effected by means of
the levers 1, 2 Figs. 1 and 2. In the arrangement Fig. 1 on pulling forward the
upper end of the lever 1 its lower end acts on the lever 3 to turn down the bar 4
which is hinged to the trip bar Z said bar 4 pushing from under the frame E the
levers D of all the left hand or bass keys except the first. The levers 2 perform
the same action singly for the last eight keys up to the middle C sharp by the
pin 5 coming in the path of the pin 6 carried on the horizontal arm of the lever D
and thus preventing said lever from acting upon the frame E. In Figure 3 the
bar 4 is pushed forward by the lever 1 and pushes the bass levers D from under the
frame E and the levers 2 perform the same action singly up to the middle C sharp
by means of the pins 5. The object of this arrangement is as follows
As two players are unable to strike their keys simultaneously and which is
absolutely essential to the regular turning of the roller A the second player who
accompanies the melody, has his notes brought before him by the first player whose
touch alone upon the keys influences the turning of the roller. Where however in
the accompaniment single notes or chords require to be played on whilst notes in
the treble (Discant) are sustained a key is provided in the bass which does not
cooperate in the accompaniment but nevertheless effects the turning of the roller A
its thrust lever D not being thrown out of action by the lever I. This key must
be struck by the player along with his other accompaniment notes if said notes are
to be played on or repeated whilst notes in the treble (Discant) are to be sustained.
The times at which this mode of procedure is to be observed, are indicated on the
music by an open round or oval figure with a stroke or strokes through it as shewn
by Fig. 4 of the drawings at A°. By a light pressure upwards and at the same
time forwards upon a lever 7 Fig. 1 the apparatus when for use with harmoniums
throws the reed valve in connection with one key out of action the lever 7 being
connected to the hammer 8 by which the valve is opened when the key is depressed.
When so out of action the hammer 8 rests upon the spring carrier 9 and the
depression of the key only effects the turning of the roller A and does not emit
any sound.
By means of the lever 12 Figure 3 the whole apparatus can be disconnected the
frame E being lifted out of action by this lever. In the case of apparatus for use
both with harmoniums and pianofortes removable hammers 8 are applied to all the
keys. The necessary wind produced by treadle is led under the table before-
mentioned through india-rubber piping into the wind reservoir and if for instance
the piece is to be played on the harmonium and the accompaniment on the
pianoforte the hammers 8 of those keys which are to act on the pianoforte are

page_text: thrown out of action whilst the treble (Discant) keys of the pianoforte are held
against the back wall of the apparatus by means of an eccentric bar.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me,
I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The improved apparatus for facilitating the practice or playing of music on
pianofortes or harmoniums by providing an indication of the note to be struck
substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings annexed.
2. In apparatus of the class set forth the mechanism for disconnecting the
pawl C from the wheel B and consisting of the draw bar M, spring levers K, L
adjusting screws r, 1 spiral springs O, O' and arms with guiding pins s', s
arranged and combined substantially as set forth with reference to the accompanying
drawings.
3. In apparatus of the class set forth the combination of the roller A lever f
draw bar d¹ and clips e, g substantially as described with reference to the appended
drawings.
4. In apparatus of the class set forth the combination of the lever F lever K
pawl C the latter having a point i and a catch k substantially as described with
reference to the drawings annexed.
5. In apparatus of the class set forth the use of the hook h to transfer the
movement of the keys to the roller A, whereby the said roller is allowed to move
round at each movement a distance equal to the space between two teeth on the
wheel B substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
6. The connnecting and disconnecting of single keys by means of the lever 2 the
disconnecting of the left hand keys in duet playing by a bar 4 with pins 3, also the
disconnecting of the whole apparatus by raising the frame E through the lever 12
substantially as described with reference to the drawings annexed.
7. In apparatus of the class set forth the arrangement for disconnecting a key
in the bass and consisting of lever 7, hammer 8 and thrust piece 9 substantially
as described with reference to the appended drawings.
8. In apparatus of the class set forth the arrangement of the drum G guide
pulleys and slides substantially as described.
9. In combination with the beam Y Figure 3 the arrangement of mechanism
to enable the apparatus to be applied to any pianoforte substantially as described.
Dated this Thirtieth day of July 1891.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agents.