Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Nov., 1886
Complete Left, 19th Sept., 1887
Complete Accepted, 11th Nov., 1887
I, ALEC BROWETT of 161 Highbury Hill in the County of Middlesex Engineer do
hereby declare the nature of my Invention to be as follows:-
The object of my Invention is to provide musical tops or gyrophones with means
whereby they are caused to play tunes or emit various notes or sounds the arrange-
ment being if desired such that the mechanism is put into position for action by
the ordinary winding up of the top.
According to my Invention I provide in the gyrophone a collapsible chamber or
bag which can be compressed when the top is to be spun or as it is being spun
the said chamber or bag being provided with a contracted inlet so that air leaks
thereinto slowly and as the chamber or bag expands it operates means whereby
variation in sounds are affected.
The chamber or bag may be collapsed in various ways and I do not limit myself to
one particular way of doing it but I prefer to effect it automatically by providing
the spindle in the axis of the top with a tube or sleeve upon which the spinning
cord is wound the said tube or sleeve being rotated upon the spindle when the cord
is pulled off in spinning the gyrophone and this motion of rotation is conveyed
through a lever or other suitable means to compress the chamber or bag and as the
chamber or bag expands the said lever or means will rotate the sleeve in the other
direction and operate the appliance by means of which the variation of sounds is
effected.
I will describe an arrangement according to my Invention in order that its nature
may be fully understood premising however that I do not limit myself to the details
hereinafter given. Supported in the body of the gyrophone is a metal dish with a
flexible upper portion these making between them a flexible chamber hereinbefore
mentioned. In this is a valve opening inwards for air exhaust, and there is also a
small orifice for air inlet. To the flexible portion of the chamber is connected a
rod which is centered to a lever fulcrumed at one end and pressed upwards by
a spring which is preferably a spring fixed at both ends and bowed at each side
The said lever at its other
and with its central part underneath the said lever.

page_text: end has attached to it a cord passing over a pulley and connected with the moveable
sleeve on the axial spindle of the gyrophone. Fixed to the said sleeve is a disc
perforated to allow air to pass to tongues or reeds mounted in a circular reed plate
secured to the body of the gyrophone the disc being pressed if necessary against the
reed plate by means of a spring. The sleeve is also provided with a stop to limit its
motion as required. The cord by which the gyrophone is rotated is wound upon the
sleeve and as it is unwound (to spin the gyrophone) it rotates the sleeve and com-
presses the flexible chamber by reason of the cord (attached at one end thereto and at
the other end to the lever aforesaid) being wound upon the sleeve and drawing down
the lever and through the rod attached thereto compressing the flexible chamber and
expelling the air therefrom. As the gyrophone spins the flexible chamber expands
this taking place gradually as the air can only enter thereinto by the small inlet
passage. The bridge spring pressing up the lever effects this expansion of the
chamber.
The lever therefore pulls upon the cord and consequently rotates the sleeve in the
opposite direction and this actuates the perforated disc causing it to move around
underneath the reed plate and so uncover alternately the passages for air to the notes
which are arranged in accordance with the tune or various sounds to be produced.
If the cord instead of being attached to the lever be led over a pulley thereon and
the end be fixed to a point on the body or framing of the gyrophone the tune will be
automatically repeated by the perforated disc making more than one rotation. In
order to allow the mechanism to reverse without moving the disc the disc may be
attached to the sleeve by means of a key which can move for a small distance in its
slot in the disc before the disc is moved.
It is of course understood that the flexible chamber can be arranged in the reverse
manner that is to say to be expanded when the gyrophone is spun and operate the
sleeve to sound the tune by contracting under pressure by the slow outlet of air
instead of by inlet of air.
Dated this 18th day of November 1886
J. HENRY JOHNSON,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, W.C.,
Agent for A. Browett.

page_text: Improvements in Gyrophones or Musical Tops.
I, ALEC BROWETT, of 161 Highbury Hill in the County of Middlesex, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN GYROPHONES
OR MUSICAL TOPS," and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of my invention is to provide musical tops or gyrophones with means
whereby they are caused to play tunes or emit various notes or sounds, the arrange-
ment being if desired such that the mechanism is put into position for action by the
ordinary winding up of the top.
According to my invention I provide in the gyrophone a collapsible chamber or bag
or regulator which can be moved or compressed when the top is to be spun or as it is
being spun, the said chamber, bag, or regulator being provided with a contracted inlet
so that air leaks thereinto slowly, and as the chamber, bag or regulator expands or
moves under this action it operates means whereby variation in sounds is effected.
The chamber, bag or regulator may be moved or collapsed in various ways and I do
not limit myself to one particular way of doing it, but I prefer to effect it automatically
by providing the spindle in the axis of the top with a tube or sleeve upon which the
spinning cord is wound, the said tube or sleeve being rotated upon the spindle when
the cord is pulled off in spinning the gyrophone, and this motion of rotation is
conveyed through a lever or other suitable means to move or compress the chamber,
bag, or regulator, and as the chamber, bag, or regulator expands or returns to its
normal position, the said lever or means will rotate the sleeve in the other direction
and operate the appliance by means of which the variation of sound is effected.
And in order that my said invention may be fully understood I shall now proceed
more particularly to describe the same and for that purpose shall refer to the several
figures on the annexed sheets of drawings, the same letters of reference indicating
corresponding parts in all the figures.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation with the outer case in section, and Figure 2
in plan with the casing removed, a gyrophone or musical top constructed according to
my invention and Figure 3 is a sectional elevation of the same.
Figures 4, 5 and 6 are similar views illustrating a modification. A is the body of
the gyrophone, in the periphery of which are openings B for the passage of air from
the interior thereof, the air entering the body by openings B' provided in the outer
case A¹ around the sleeve H-On the upper side of the body A, and communicating
with the interior thereof, are boxes or recesses C in which are fitted reeds or tongues
for producing the required notes or sounds-The reed boxes C are fitted with
valves D, which are operated so as to admit air to the reeds, by means of projections E
on a rotating disc F actuated in the manner hereinafter described.
The disc F is mounted so as to turn loosely on the axis G of the gyrophone and is

page_text: operated by means of a sleeve or tube H also fitted to turn on the axis G and provided
with a notch h with which a pin f on the disc F engages, so that when the sleeve or
tube His rotated in either direction it imparts to the disc a corresponding rotary
motion-The disc F and tube H are arranged to rotate on the axis G to the extent of.
about one revolution only in either direction, they being prevented from further
rotation by a projection 9 on the disc coming into contact with a stop or projection g¹
on the body A-To the sleeve or tube H is attached one end of a cord i which passes
beneath a pulley I and is connected at its opposite end to one end of a lever K
fulcrumed at k to frame or bridge-piece L connected to the body A-To the lever K
is connected a rod M which passes through the top of a flexible chamber N and carries
at its lower end a valve m for regulating the passage of air from the interior of the
flexible chamber-Beneath the lever K and connected at its opposite ends to the
frame L is a bow spring O upon which the lever K bears, and which tends to
maintain the flexible chamber in its expanded position.
The cord for spinning the gyrophone is wound round the sleeve or tube H, which
tube by the unwinding of the cord in order to spin the gyrophone is caused to rotate
on the axis G and through the notch h and pin f to impart rotation to the disc F on
the said axis until the projection g comes into contact with the stop g¹, the cord i
being thereby wound round the tube H, whereby the lever K is drawn down and the
flexible chamber N compressed by the pressure of the rod M acting on the top thereof,
the valve m opening to allow the air to escape rapidly round the rod M, which for
that
purpose fits sufficiently loosely in the hole in the top of the chamber through
which it passes-The spring O pressing up the lever K, causes the valve m to close
rapidly the opening through which the air escaped, and whilst the gyrophone is
spinning this pressure of the spring on the lever causes the flexible chamber to
gradually expand, air entering the said chamber through an extremely small opening n
or leakage in the bottom of the chamber.
The lever K as it rises pulls upon the cord i so as to unwind it from and give
motion of rotation to the sleeve or tube H in the opposite direction to that in which it
moved in winding, which motion of rotation is transmitted by means of the pin fand
notch h to the disc F, whereupon the projections E on the disc F will, by acting on the
valve D uncover the reed boxs to admit air to the reeds in the required order to
produce the desired succession of sounds, the projections on the disc F being arranged
in such order as to act on the valves of the reeds at the proper times.
The notch in the sleeve H is preferably made sufficiently long to admit of the
sleeve making a partial rotation before coming into contact with the projection fon
the disc, so as to prevent the impetus of the apparatus when commencing to spin from
rotating the disc too rapidly-The speed of rotation of the disc is governed by the
size of the leakage or hole by which air is drawn into the flexible chamber.
In the modification illustrated by Figures 4, 5, and 6 the valves D of the reed boxes
and the projection on the disc for operating them are dispensed with, the disc F itself
acting as a valve for opening and closing the passages for air to the reeds.
In this modification the rotating disc F is arranged beneath the reed plate and is
provided with an opening d, which as the disc rotates comes opposite each of the reeds
in succession so as to admit air to produce the note or sound, the said notes being
arranged in accordance with the tune or various sounds to be produced.
The disc F is maintained in contact with the reed plate by a spiral spring P.
The cord i which operates the lever K instead of being connected to the lever as in
Figures 1, 2, and 3, is passed over a pulley carried in the end thereof, the end of the
cord being connected to the frame or bridge-piece L at a, by which arrangement the
disc F is free to make more than one revolution and thereby the tune will be
automatically repeated.
It is obvious that the flexible chamber N may be arranged to operate in the reverse
manner to that hereinbefore described-that is to say, it may be expanded when the
gyrophone is spun, and operate the disc for producing sounds, by contracting
gradually under pressure by the slow escape of air instead of by the inlet of air,
as hereinbefore described.

page_text: 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―
First In gyrophones or musical tops, the combination with reeds for producing
notes or musical sounds and a rotating disc or equivalent device for bringing into
action the various notes or sounds in the required order to produce the desired tune
or succession of sounds, of a flexible chamber or equivalent regulating device for
driving and controlling the speed of rotation of the disc or its equivalent, sub-
stantially as hereinbefore described.
Secondly-In gyrophones or musical tops containing reeds for producing notes or
musical sounds, a rotating disc provided with projections for operating valves to
admit air to the reeds in the required order to produce the desired tune or succession
of sounds in combination with a device for driving and controlling the speed of
rotation of the disc, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the
accompanying drawings.
Thirdly In gyrophones or musical tops, the flexible chamber N provided with an
aperture or leakage for the gradual admission of air, and a passage governed by a valve
for the outlet of air, in combination with the lever K, spring O or its equivalent,
sleeve or tube H with its notch h, disc F with its pin f and the connecting cord i, the
whole being arranged to operate substantially in the manner and for the purpose
hereinbefore described and illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
Fourthly The general combinations and arrangements of parts constituting the
improved gyrophones or musical tops, substantially as hereinbefore described and
illustrated by Figures 1, 2, 3 and Figures 4, 5, 6 respectively of the accompanying
drawings.
D
11
100
1
2
1
1007