Improvements in Automatic Mechanical Musical Instruments.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Aug., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Sept., 1890-Accepted, 20th Dec., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Automatic Mechanical Musical Instruments.
I ALESSANDRO CAPRA of Hatton Yard, Hatton Wall, Clerkenwell Road in the
County of Middlesex, Automatic Musical Instrument Manufacturer do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in stringed musical instruments of a novel
character and in the arrangement and construction of mechanism for actuating the
same whereby the musical effect of a mandoline and of a harp combined is
obtained.
For this purpose a pin barrel of the ordinary mechanical piano type is advan-
tageously mounted in a suitable upright piano fraine and case and is actuated by a
crank handle in the usual manner.
The crank handle and driving axis also communicate motion to an extra pin
barrel or bar on which a series of discs set with pins are mounted to actuate the
mechanism and pins or projections which act upon the wires to produce the musical
notes of the mandoline and harp actions combined, one part or the higher notes
being of the mandoline type and the other part the lower or bass notes.
The mandoline notes are struck or produced in the following manner.
A pin or projection (to produce a musical note) on the pin barrel as it rotates
acts on a pin to raise a lever (the front of which is pressed down upon the pin
barrel) causing the other end of the lever to descend and allow a cylindrical rod
(pressed down by a spring) to descend with it and thus bring a series of pins upon
the lower end of the cylinder into position to be acted upon by a series of pins upon
one of a series of rotating discs mounted upon the extra pin barrel driven by the
winch handle as previously described thus causing the cylindrical rod to rotate on
its axis. The upper part of the cylindrical rod carries several bent pins which in
their rotation act upon the piano or mandoline string and thus produce the note
required which is struck and sustained or repeated as long as the projection on the
pin barrel keeps it in action. Directly the pin on the end of the first named lever
passes off the projection on the pin barrel a spring presses the front end of the lever
down and raises the rotating rod and the pins thereon out of action.
Each rotating rod is carried by and rotates upon a pin on the end of an arm
moving on a pin joint carried by a stationary bar. The pins which strike the
mandoline notes are bent and as they rotate press against the stretched wires in
passing to produce the required notes.
I will now describe the mechanism for striking the strings in a manner similar to
that of striking the strings of a harp by the fingers of a player thereon.
For this purpose a similar series of levers (one to cach note) to those pre-
viously described are acted upon by the pins on the pin barrel and when the
front end of the lever is raised by a pin or projection on the pin barre! the
other end of the lever in descending allows a cranked arm attached to a lever
arm above to descend and with it a vertical rod or upright arm attached thereto
(by a pin joint) the lower end of which then rests on the extra pin barrel
and in a position for a step on the lower end of the rod to be acted upon by
one of the pins on the said barrel thus pulling the rod forward and causing a
jointed finger mounted upon the rod to catch hold of the stretched wire and
thus produce the musical note required. The upright arm carries a damper
which damps the wire when the vertical rod returns to its normal position.
The finger which acts to pull the wire is jointed to the upright arm and is
pressed outwards by a spring which allows the finger to pass the wire on its
return movement without acting thereon. The upright arm carries a spring to

page_text: move it back into position ready to be acted upon by each successive pin upon
the extra pin barrel as required by the successive notes to be struck.
Dated this 23rd day of August 1890.
TONGUE & BIRKBECK,
34, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Patentee.
Fig. 1 is a vertical section of an automatic mechanical musical instrument taken
through the "mandoline" action and Figs. 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 are detail views of some
of the parts on a larger scale.
A is a pin-barrel of the ordinary mechanical-piano type mounted in the frame or
case A' and actuated by the crank handle A2 in the usual manner.
The crank handle and axis A2 also communicate motion to the axis of the
extra pin barrel or bar a part of the surface of which is set with pins and the
other part with a series of discs a' also set with pins which give motion to
the mechanism and pins or projections which act upon the strings or wires W
to produce the musical notes of the "mandoline" and harp actions combined
one part or the higher notes being of the "mandoline" type and the other or
harp part the lower or bass notes.
The "mandoline
"
notes are struck or produced in the following manner.
To produce a musical note one of the pins or projections on the pin barrel A
in its rotation acts upon a pin on the front end of the lever b (Fig. 1)
moving on the axis carried by the fixed bar or rail C. The descent of the
back end of the lever b allows the vertical rod c (the lower end of which
rests thereon, see Fig. 3) to descend with it and thus bring the pins c¹ into
position to be acted upon by the pins on the discs a' of the pin barrel a and
cause the lower cylindrical part of the vertical rod c to rotate and in its rotation
the bent pins 2 act upon one of the strings W to produce the musical note
required similar to the notes produced by the human finger acting on the strings
of an ordinary "mandoline."
The part crotates upon a central pin carried by the part 4 which is
jointed to the lever arm moving on a pin joint c on the fixed bar D. Each
of the lever arms c³, vertical rods c and parts carried thereby are constantly
pressed down by springs c' on the underside of the fixed bar D. Directly the
pin on the end of the lever b. passes off the projection on the pin barrel A
the spring * presses the front end of the lever b down and its other end
raises the vertical rotating rod c and pins c', c² thereon out of action with the
pins on the pin barrel a.

page_text: The pin barrel a is actuated by a pulley ax on the end of the driving axis A²
the pulley a gives motion by means of a crossed strap or endless band a² to
the roller a³ having driving pins thereon which enter holes in the band a² an
endless band a on the other end of the roller a³ giving motion to a driving
pulley on the end of the roller a to give motion thereto.
I will now describe the mechanism arranged for striking the strings W in a
manner similar to that of striking the strings of a harp by the fingers of a player
thereon.
For this purpose a similar series of levers (one to each musical note) to
those previously described are acted upon by the pins on the pin barrel A and
when the front end of the lever is raised by a pin on the pin barrel A the
other end of the lever in descending allows the cranked arm d (Figs. 7 and 8)
attached to the lever e to descend and with it the vertical arm e¹ connected to
the levere by a pin joint the lower end of the arm e¹ then resting on the
extra pin barrel a in a position for a step or projection e² to be acted upon by
one of the pins on the pin barrel a thus pulling the arm e forward thereby
causing the finger f mounted on the cross piece to catch hold of the stretched
wire or string W opposite to it and thus produce the musical note required.
The arm eis constantly forced backwards by the spring e so that after the
finger has acted it is forced back by the spring e into a position to act upon
the wire W again when required this return movement also causing the
dampere carried by the arm e¹ to damp the wire W as clearly shewn in the
drawings.
The finger which acts to pull the wire W forward is jointed to the cross piece e³
(fixed on the arm e¹) and is pressed outwards into position for acting upon the wire
again by a spring f¹ which also allows the finger fin its backward movement to
slip over the wire W (without acting thereon) ready for the arm e¹ to be acted upon
by each successive pin on the extra pin barrel a as required by the successive notes
to be struck.
I would here remark that if desired all the notes of an automatic instrument of
the character previously described may be of the "mandoline type or all the
strings may be struck or acted upon by fingers f similar to that of the harp although
I find it advantageous to arrange part of the notes to represent the mandoline and
part those of the harp as previously described.
I would also have it clearly understood that I do not limit my claims to the
particular mechanical arrangements hereinbefore described as the details may be
considerably varied without departing from the true character of my invention but
what I claim is :-
1. The method of producing musical notes automatically from strings or wires
stretched upon a frame or sounding board by suitable mechanism part of such
musical notes so produced resembling those of the "mandoline" or harp combined
or all of either of the same notes separately substantially as and for the purposes
hereinbefore fully described.
2. The arrangement of mechanism for producing musical notes similar to those
of the mandoline or harp by acting automatically upon stretched wires or strings so
as to imitate the action of the human fingers thereon substantially in the manner and
for the purpose hereinbefore described and represented in Sheets 1 and 2 of the
drawings hereto annexed.
D
3
A
1000
TONGUE & BIRKBECK,
34, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Patentee.