Improvements in Pianofortes.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Sept., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 14th Feb., 1894-Accepted, 14th Apr., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Pianofortes.
We, JAMES LEYSTER COURTICE, of Cramer's Pianoforte Factory, Castle Rond
Kentish Town, in the County of London, Pianoforte Manufacturer, and JOHN
Woon of the Firm of J. B. Cramer & Co. of 201, Regent Street, in the County
of London and 46, Moorgate Street in the City of London, Musical Instrument
Dealers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
"
This invention relates to an improved construction of pianoforte whereby the
bulk of the instrument is considerably reduced and the instrument rendered much
more portable than hitherto particularly for transport purposes.
'
For this purpose the case of the instrument is made of the form usual in
horizontal grand pianofortes and adapted to receive the mechanism which is
substantially of the usual construction but we hinge or centre the keyboard in such
a manner that when the instrument is not required for use or when it is to be
moved the keyboard can be folded up into a space in the front part of the case,
the underside of the keyboard then forming as it were the front of the case of the
instrument.
In practice we find it advantageous to make the compass of our instrument
five octaves but it will be obvious that this compass may be increased: or
diminished:
By our construction we are enabled to produce an instrument having a compass
of five octaves and which when closed up need not exceed about 3 feet 8 inches long,
2 feet wide and about 1 foot high.
191huder of Santember 1893
COMPLETE DI BUILT
Improvements in Pianofortes.
We, JAMES LEYSTER COURTICE, of Cramer's Pianoforte Factory, Castle Road,
Kentish Town, in the County of London, Pianoforte Manufacturer, and JOHN
WOOD, of the Firm of J. B. Cramer & Co., 201, Regent Street, in the County of
London, and No. 46, Moorgate Street, in the City of London, Musical Instrument
Dealers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
This invention relates to an improved construction of pianoforte whereby the
bulk of the instrument is considerably reduced and the instrument rendered much
more portable than hitherto, particularly for transport purposes.
For this purpose the case of the instrument is arranged horizontally as in grand
pianofortes and adapted to receive the mechanism, but we hinge or centre the
keyboard in such a manner that when the instrument is not required for use or
when it is to be moved the keyboard can be folded up into a space in the front part
of the case, the underside of the keyboard then forming as it were the front of the
case of the instrument.

page_text: To enable our invention to be fully understood we will describe the same by
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :-
Figure 1 is a sectional end elevation of a pianoforte constructed according to our
invention, the keyboard being represented as folded up; and,
Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 representing the keyboard opened out
ready for use:
Figure 3 is a plan of the pianoforte in the position shewn in Figure 2.
a is the case of the instrument which is of rectangular shape and which we
advantageously make of a length of, say, three feet eight inches, a width of
two feet and a height of one foot so as to enable it to contain five octaves
of keys.
:
The strings and action are arranged in any suitable manner but the wrest plank b
is attached to the iron frame by a bar. or plate of iron and bolts which pass
through the frame, wrest plank and bar. The keys c, c, instead of being pivotted
upon a fixed keyboard, are mounted upon a movable board e', the keyboard being
pivotted between the end planks a' of the case a, as shewn most clearly in Figure 3,
wherein d, d indicate the pivot-pins or studs which are passed through the ends e, e
of the keyboard into the said end planks of the case. As shewn the pivots d, d
are formed in one piece with plates, screwed to the end pieces e, and other
plates g, h are screwed to the adjacent faces of the said end pieces e, e and the
planks a', a respectively in order to form a rigid bearing for the said pivots d, d.
The said keyboard c is of such width that when folded up it will lie underneath
the hinged flap a² of the cover of the case as shewn in Figure 1 and practically
form one side of the said case, and is so arranged that when turned down to the
position shewn in Figure 2 pilots or pins i, i on the inner ends of the keys b, b will
come to bear against the undersides of the action levers as shewn most clearly in
Figure 2.
Instead of making our improved pianoforte of a compass of five octaves as
herein before mentioned it is obvious that the compass may be increased or
diminished, in which case the case a will be correspondingly lengthened or
shortened.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
The manufacture and use of a pianoforte having the case and keyboard
constructed and arranged substantially in the manner hereinbefore described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 14th day of February 1894.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicants.