IMPROVEMENTS IN ORGANS
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Christopher Lewis
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 30th July 1883.
THOMAS CHRISTOPHER LEWIS of Brixton in the County of Surrey Organ
Builder "IMPROVEMENTS IN ORGANS
"
"
My Invention has for its object to provide means whereby organs acting upon
what is known as the "pneumatic" principle can be operated by electricity by
placing in combination with the ordinary or larger "pneumatic" an auxiliary
pneumatic" acted upon by electro-magnets The following is the arrangement of
this "auxiliary pneumatic" with regard to each note. It consists of two chambers,
a wind chamber of supply and an exhaust chamber.. A rod passes through these
two chambers and carries two valves one to open or close the passage between.
the wind chamber and the other to open or close the outlet for air from the
exhaust chamber The said exhaust chamber communicates also with and acts
upon the larger "pneumatic "-The said valves are arranged so that when the one
is opened the other is closed. The rod which carries these valves is connected to
the armature of an electro magnet the current through the coils of which is caused
to pass by the making of contact by the depression of the corresponding key of
the key board which may be so situated at any suitable distance from the organ
proper. This Contact may be effected by means of one mercury trough into which
one point in connection with each key or pedal is caused to dip-When the core
of the electro magnet is thus magnetized it attracts its armature thereby closing
communication from the wind chamber to the exhaust chamber and opening the
exit passage from the exhaust chamber so that air escapes therefrom and th
ordinary "pneumatic" is 'thereby caused to operate after the ordinary manner.
When the key is released the armature falls and the parts return to their normal
position.
Each organ of the instrument (Great, choir, Swell, or solo Organ) is or may
be furnished with the herein before described "auxiliary pneumatic" but. I may
•

page_text: also provide means whereby whilst the one organ is being operated by Electricity
the other or others played in conjunction with it may be acted upon by the wind
pressure from the one organ-To effect this I provide a slide which can be operated
so that such hole in the slide opens a tube or passage leading from the exhaust
chamber of the larger "pneumatic" to operate upon the "auxiliary pneumatic"
of the organ or organs to be played in conjunction therewith-For this purpose
the valve rod of the "auxiliary pneumatic" of the organ (or each organ) to bo
acted upon by the pressure of air in the said tube or passage is provided with
a small power bellows which on being inflated operates the said "auxiliary
pneumatic" in the same manner as that in which it can be operated by the Electro
magnetic arrangement.
The herein before described Invention is applicable also to the pedal action the
draw stop action and the swell pedal action for effecting the opening and closing of
the shutters of the swell box-When applied to the swell pedal action a series of
contact points are arranged at different levels so as to bring a series of pneumatic
bellows into or out of action in succession producing the required "crescendo"
and "dimuendo"
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Thomas Christopher Lewis in the Patent Office on the
30th January 1884.
-
THOMAS CHRISTOPHER LEWIS of Brixton in the County of Surrey Organ
Builder "IMPROVEMENTS IN ORGANS"
"
My Invention has for its principal object to provide means whereby Organs
acting upon what is known as the Pneumatic" principle can be operated by
electricity by placing in combination with ordinary or larger "pneumatics'
auxiliary pneumatics" acted upon by electro magnets either directly or indirectly
as hereinafter described.
And in Order that my said Invention may be clearly understood I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same and for that purpose shall refer to
the several figures on the accompanying drawings the same letters of reference
indicating corresponding parts in all the figures.
The following is the arrangement of the "auxiliary pneumatic" with regard to
each note referenco being had to the diagram Figure 1. The said arrangement
consists of two chambers a wind chamber of supply shown at A and an exhaust
chamber shown at B. A rod C passes by an air tight joint a through these two
chambers A and B and carries two valves marked c and c the valve c being for
the purpose of opening and closing the passage a² between the wind chamber A
and the exhaust chamber B and the other valve c being for the purpose of opening
and closing the outlet a³ for air from the exhaust chamber B The said exhaust
-

page_text: chamber B communicates also with and acts upon the larger pneumatic by the
passage b. The said valves c and c are arranged as shewn so that when the one
is opened the other is closed. The rod C which carries these valves is connected
to the armature d (or to the lever carrying the armature) of an electro-magnet D
through the coils of which the current is caused to pass by the making of contact
by the depression of a pedal or of a key of the keyboard corresponding therewith
which may be situated at any required distance from the organ proper This
passage of the electrical current may be effected by any suitable electrical means
for example as indicated in Figure 2 where E indicates double mercury troughs
respectively in electrical connection with the respective poles of the generator of
electricity One or other of the contact pieces f bridges the space between the
two troughs when a key is depressed and thus completes the circuit for magnetizing
the corresponding electro magnet D and operating the pneumatics as herein before
described. I may provide to mako this contact by means of a single mercury trough
in each case (instead of a pair of troughs as hereinbefore described) into oach of
which single troughs one contact point in connection with each key or pedal is
caused to dip. In this case the electrical conductors to the respective poles of the
generator of electricity are in electrical connection respectively with the said
contact piece and the said trough. When the core of the electro maguet D is thus
magnetized it attracts its armature & thereby closing the communication at a"
from the wind chamber A to the exhaust chainber B of the auxiliary pnematic
and opening the exit passage a³ from the said exhaust chamber B so that air.escapes
therefrom and the ordinary "pneumatic" is thereby caused to operate after the
usual manner, When the key or pedal is released the electric contact is broken
and the electro magnet D demagnetized and consequently the armaturo & falls and
the parts return to their normal positions
To operate the ordinary or larger pneumatic the air may be supplied to the
chamber A at a greater pressure than that at which it is supplied to the chamber G
or a spring as at g may be used for this purpose.
Each of the several organs of the instrument (Great Choir Swell or Solo Organ)
is or may be furnished with the hereinbefore described "auxiliary pneumatic" and
electric arrangements but I may also provide means whereby whilst one of these
said organs is being operated from the keyboard by electricity the other or others
of them to be played in conjunction thorewith may be acted upon by the wind
pressure derived from the Organ first in action. To effect this I provide a slido
as shewn at h Figure 1. which can be operated so that each hole in such slide
opens communication with a tube or passage as shewn at i leading from the
exhaust chamber J or it may be from the supply chamber of each larger pneumatic
of the one organ to operate on the "auxiliary pneumatics" of the organ or organs
to be played in conjunction therewith
In Figure 3 I have shewn a diagram representing this last named organ (or one
of the organs) showing the continuation of one of the passages i leading thereto.
The valve rods C of the "auxiliary pneumatics" of the organ (or each organ) to
be acted upon by the pressure of air conveyed by the said tubes or passages i aro
each provided with a small power bellows K which on being inflated by the said
pressure operates the "auxiliary pneumatic" in the same manner as that in which
it can be operated by the electro magnetic arrangement bereinbefore described
Tho parts shewn in Figure 3. are like those shown in Figure 1 and call for no
further description.
The hereinbefore describod Invention is applicable to the manuals the pedal
action, the draw stop action, and also to the swell pedal action for effecting the
opening and closing of the shutters of the swell box. When applied to the swell
pedal action a series of contact points may bo arranged at different levels so as to
bring a series of pneumatic bellows into or out of action in succession thereby
producing the required crescendo and diminuendo.
My invention admits the placing of either of the portions of a complete Organ
iu any position apart from each other.

page_text: Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
effect I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and original
and therefore claim as the Invention socured to mo by the hereinbefore in part
recited Letters Patent is.
First. In Organs the combination with ordinary or larger pneumatics of
auxiliary pneumatics acted upon by electro magnots substantially as hereinbefore
described with reference to the accompanying Drawings.
Second. In organs the combination with ordinary or larger pneumatics of
auxiliary pneumatics provided with arrangements for being acted upon by electro
magnets either directly or indirectly through wind pressure substantially as
herein before described with reference to the accompanying Drawings.
Third. In organs the combination with ordinary or larger pneumatics of
auxiliary pneumatics acted upon by wind pressure substantially as hereinbefore
'described.
Fourth. In organs the combination with ordinary or larger pneumatics of
auxiliary pneumatics acted upon by wind pressure from an adjacent organ such as
from the Swell Organ or Choir Organ acted upon by the Great Organ-or other
Organ the said wind being admitted from a series of larger pneumatics of the said
adjacent Organ through the slide and passages i substantially as herein before
described with reference to the accompanying Drawings.
Fifth. In organs the use of a slide opening communication between the
exhaust or supply chambers of the larger pneumatics of one organ and the
passages by which the wind is conveyed to operate the auxiliary pneumatics of
another organ substantially as herein before described with reference to the
accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof I the said Thomas Christopher Lewis have to this my
-Specification.set my hand and seal this twenty-ninth day of January One thousand
eight hundred and eighty-four.