IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE WIND CHESTS OF ORGANS AND SIMILAR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Year: 1881

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Oswald Dinse at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 2nd December 1881. (A communication
from Mr. Moritz Reiter, of Berlin, and Mr. Gustav Sander, of Breslau.)
OSWALD DINSE, Manufacturer, of Berlin, in the German Empire. "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE WIND CHESTS OF ORGANS AND SIMILAR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS."
(A communication from Mr. Moritz Reiter, of Berlin, and Mr. Gustav Sander,
of Breslau.)
The object of this Invention is to provide a very prompt and certain sound
action of the pipes of an organ, harmonium, or other musical instrument worked
by wind, and to improve the mode of playing such instruments, so that the move-
ment or touch of the keys is rendered lighter, and so that they need not be
depressed so far as heretofore the case.
This is attained by a peculiar arrangement of valves which are not actuated
directly by the instrumentality of the keyboard, but are moved indirectly by the
force of the compressed air contained in the wind chest, while the player, to produce
the required note by drawing the register and depressing the key, only opens flaps
which let out a small part of air from the wind chest and thereby actuate the
aforesaid valves. These valves may be called pneumatoms in order thereby to
denote that they exercise their function by the air pressure in the wind chest.
The pneumatoms or valves are double valves, that is, seating themselves when
raised against a seat at top, and when depressed against a seat below; they are
made of wood or other suitable material, they do not fit close in their boxes below,
but have play all round and rest on helical springs in such manner that the upper
smaller valves are always pressed lightly against the top of the wind chest to close
the pipe holes; below each pneumatom valve there is an auxiliary valve which is
influenced by the drawing of the register, while the upper valves are dependant
upon the keyboard.
These latter may therefore be called the play pneumatoms, and the lower ones
the register pneumatoms. All the valves, that is, the play valves and the register
valves, are arranged in a diaphragm which is provided with holes and passages for
the action of the valves. The bottom of the wind chest is provided with flat
passages, the directions of which cross each other but do not communicate with

page_text: each other, as one series of the same seven is at a higher level than the other serios
eight. Each passage has an exit to the open air, which is closed by a flap until
the player opens the same. These flaps are kept closed by springs in such manner
that tho pressure of the compressed air in the wind chest is not enough by itself
to open them, but requires a slight assistance of the player.
There are two vertical holes from each valve down into the aforesaid longitudinal
and transverso passages.
These holes go down laterally to the register valves and communicate with the
latter by small cross passages, and so combined that when the pneumatom valves
are opened air can pass out of the wind chest from the upper or play pneumatom
into the corresponding hole, and from thence to the lowermost horizontal passage;
whereas air can pass from the lower or register valve to the horizontal passago
lowest but one, while both systems of passages and valves are not in anywise
directly connected, but only indirectly through the upper smaller valve of the
lower or register pneumatom.
This arrangement operates as follows:-The wind chest is always charged with
air of a certain pressure. The double valves or play pneumatoms are by their
springs held against their upper sents, thus closing the pipes. As these valves have
play all round in their boxes as stated, and which is of material importance, the
air also presses on the underside of the lower larger valves, thus compensating for
the pressure on the top of them. But the valves are also forced upwards by the
air pressure against the underside of the upper or pipe closing valves. The register
pneumatoms or auxiliary valves have also at their lower parts play all round;
each has a small upper and a large lower valve, which aro united by a stem. When
this double valve is in a state of rest, that is, when the flap for the upper horizontal
passage is not drawn up, then the weight of the double valve will shut off the
upper pneumatom from the lower by the small valve of the latter on which the
wind pressure in the upper compartment presses.
It may be mentioned that the flap valves are to open by the register pulls, so
that the wind contained in the vertical passages may be let out.
By opening the other flaps, on the contrary, which is done by depressing a key,
the wind may be let out in the open through the play pneumatom which
belongs to the key in question, that is, to a certain organ pipe. The opening of
one of these pipe flaps alone does not however cause a note to be sounded, because
the play pneumatom will only drop into its seat and allow the wind to enter the
pipe when the register flap has been opened, the key in question depressed, and
the flap belonging thereto opened, or vice versa.
If a flap for an upper horizontal passage is opened by means of a register pull,
then wind will escape through that opening from the vertical passages, because the
registered pneumatoms in their lower position allow it to pass by them. By the
draught of air thus produced the register pneumatom is raised so that its bottom
valve is pressed against its seat, thus preventing a further exit of air. All the
pneumatoms belonging to the register in question take part in this motion because
their air passages terminate in one common horizontal passage. By pulling one
register there escapes only one part of that air which is superfluous, because it is
compressed and contained in the passages in question; in the same moment all the
lower valves of the register pneumatoms belonging to this system close the wind
chest towards the outside. This lifting movement is done in a moment in conse-
quenco of the air current which rushes through the play around the said lower
valves, whereby these are carried along with it and held against their seats.
By the lifting of the register valves the upper valves thereon aro lifted off their
seats, producing communication of the interior of the wind chest through the
raised play pneumatoms by means of the passages to the lowest horizontal passage,
which is closed towards the outside air by the Haps, so that the air cannot escape
yet.
But in the moment by depressing a key the flap in question is raised an air
current is created through the play pneumatom in question, and towards the

page_text: outside, drawing it down on to its seat, thus stopping the further egress of air, but
opening the aperture in pipe bottom above so that the wind goes into the organ
pipe in question, which now sounds its note so long as the pneumatom remains in
the position, that is, as long as the exit passage is kept open by the key acting on
the Hap; but when the key is released the flap at once closes the opening to the
exit passage, the downward air pressure on the plain pneumatom is thus taken off,
and as the air simultaneously flows out of the organ pipe presses on the top of the
play pneumatom and the spring assists the action, the valve rises and closes the
organ pipe.
According to a modification two register pneumatoms communicate with one
common play pneumatom; by this means one register of pipes may be used to two
key boards independent of each other without requiring more than one register
pneumatom for each key board and note. The action is the same as described.
According to other modifications flap valves are used for the register pneumatoms,
the flaps being united two and two by rods sliding in the diaphragm or seat part,
and the action the same as described.
The play pneumatoms may be made with an upper movable head and an inter-
mediate india rubber, leather, or other flexible washer, to ensure that the head seats
itself against the organ pipe opening, even though the lower part of the valve,
which has ample lateral play as stated, should be canted to one side; the upper
part and the lower part are united by a screw or peg which is not fixed but
slightly movable in the lower part.
Existing wind chests may be adapted to my Invention without much difficulty.
Instead of the cylindrical play pneumatoms I then use flap valves; double flaps are
used, turning two and two on two pivots like levers, and fitted in plates at the
sides; the lower flap is heavier than the upper, which therefore closes the opening
to the organ pipe while the lower flap is open.
I do not limit myself to the construction and special arrangement of pneumatom
wind chest described, as other arrangements of passages and many other forms of
valves may be used instead, which serve the object equally well. The main
peculiarity of the pneumatoms depends upon that they have play all round, thus
in the raised position producing a strong air draught between the valve and its
box as soon as the exit pipes in question are opened by key or by register, this
draught acting by friction on the inovable part of the pneumatom and producing
the described action.