IMPROVEMENTS IN ROLLERS FOR CARRYING THE TUNE-BANDS OR MUSIC SHEETS IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Year: 1884

page_text: I, JOHN MAXFIELD of Upper Street Islington in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
ROLLERS FOR CARRYING THE TUNE-BANDS OR MUSIC SHEETS IN
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS" to be as follows:-
MECHANICAL
My invention relates to the rollers upon which the travelling tune bands or
music-sheets of mechanical musical instruments are wound.
These rollers as heretofore constructed have had flanges fixed on their ends to
guide the said tune bands or music-sheets. The said flanges are objectionable by
reason of the space they occupy when packed and of their liability to break,
thereby rendering the whole roller useless. Also by reason of the expense of the
said rollers it has been customary to place a tune band or music sheet having
several tunes on each roller.
The object of my said invention is to remove these objections, and it consists
essentially in forming the rollers with loose or detachable flanges and journals, so
that they may be readily removed. It is thus only necessary to supply one set of
flanges and journals to each instrument which when connected with the spindle
forms a roller complete, the other tune-bands being provided with the spindle or
body part of a roller only, the flanges of the said roller being applicable to each
body part. By reason of the inexpensiveness of this body part it is now practicable
to supply them with one tune only, the flanges which a person may have, being
applicable to the same.
In carrying my said invention into practice I form in the ends of the spindle or
body parts of the rollers holes into which the spindles or studs forming the
journals of the rollers are inserted. Each of these spindles has securely attached
to it a flange of wood or other suitable material of the desired size, the said flanges
impinging against the ends of the rollers when the spindles are inserted in their
holes.
One of the said flanges or the spindle or stud carrying the flange has a small
pulley by means of which the roller is driven. The same flange also has a small

page_text: pin adapted to enter a hole or slot in the body of the roller to ensure the latter
turning with the flange. The said small pin may if desired be on the body part
and enter a hole or slot in the flange.
I sometimes form in one or both ends of the body part of the roller a circular
cavity concentric with the hole in which the spindle or stud is inserted. Into this
cavity a boss formed on the inner side of the flange is adapted to enter.
It is obvious that in respect of the details I may modify the construction of the
flanges and other parts and the manner of securing them to each other without
departing from the nature of my invention.

page_text: I, JOHN MAXFIELD, of Upper Street, Islington, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
ROLLERS FOR CARRYING THE TUNE-BANDS OR MUSIC-SHEETS IN MECHANICAL
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS" and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to rollers for carrying the tune-bands or music-sheets in
mechanical musical instruments.
Heretofore it has been customary to use rollers provided with guide-flanges and
axles or journals not intended to be removed or transferred from one roller to
another, that is to say, rollers provided at each end with a flange to guide the tune-
band or music-sheet and an axle or journal formed integrally with, or tightly secured
to, the main portion or body of the roller. These rollers are objectionable for
various reasons, but chiefly because of the space which they occupy when packed
for carriage or transport, and of their liability to be rendered unserviceable by the
breakage of, or injury to, the flanges.
My invention is designed to obviate these inconveniences and to enable a single
set of flanges and axles to serve for any number of rollers with their tune-bands or
music-sheets.
My said invention consists essentially in making the said flanges and journals or
axles independent of the roller proper, that is to say, the part of the roller on
which the sheet or band is wound, so that they can be readily attached thereto or
detached therefrom and transferred from one roller to another.
Therefore by my invention a mechanical musical instrument can be supplied
with any desired number of tune-bands or music-sheets, each wound upon its own
roller, and with one set of flanges and axles to be used with either of the said
rollers.
For the sake of economy, it has, heretofore, been customary to employ on each
roller a single tune-band or music-sheet for playing several tunes; but, by my
invention, by reason of the small cost of the rollers made with removable or
transferable flanges and axles, a tune-band or music-sheet for playing one tune only,
can be employed with each roller, without materially increasing the cost of
providing music for such instruments.
In the accompanying drawing, I have shewn how my said invention may be
conveniently and advantageously carried into practice.
Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in vertical central section, shewing a complete
roller made in accordance with my invention.
Figure 2 shows a flange and axle detached, and
Figure 3 is a side elevation, partly in vertical central section, shewing a slight
modification of my invention.
a is the part which I term the roller proper, in the ends whereof are holes a¹ to
receive the removable journals or axles 6 formed of any suitable metal. Each of
the said axles has securely attached to it a flange c or c¹ of wood or other suitable
material and of any desired diameter and thickness; when the axles b' are inserted
in the holes provided for their reception, these flanges bear against the ends of the
roller a as shewn. The flange c¹ is provided with a small pulley d by means of
which the said roller is driven; this pulley is preferably formed integrally with the
flange. In Figure 1, this flange is shewn as provided with a small pin or stud e,
which is fixed in the flange and enters a hole or notch a' in the roller a, to ensure

page_text: the rotation of the latter with the flange. Or, in some instances, for this purpose,
a pin or stud e¹ is fixed in the roller a to enter a hole or cavity c² in the flange c¹,
as shewn in Figure 3.
I sometimes form, in one or both ends of the roller a, a circular recess or
cavity a³, concentric with the hole a¹. And I form a boss or hub c³ on the inner
side of the flange to enter the said cavity, as shewn in Figure 3, and thus more
efficiently connect or secure the flange and axle to the roller.
In all cases it is an essential feature in my improved roller that the means
employed for ensuring the rotation of the roller with the axle and flange should
not prevent, or interfere with, the ready disconnection of the parts as above
explained.
It is obvious that I may somewhat modify the construction of the above
described parts, and the manner of securing them to each other, without departing
from the nature of my said invention.
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
The above described improvements whereby I provide for the construction and
use of removable or transferable guide-flanges and axles for the rollers employed in
mechanical musical instruments, substantially as, and for the purpose, set forth.
Dated this 8th day of October 1884