Improvements in the Valves of Cornets and all other Brass Musical Wind Instruments.
Year: 1887

page_text: Improvements in the Valves of Cornets and all other Brass Musical
Wind Instruments.
I, JOSEPH BOSSI of 12 Great Stanhope Street Bath in the County of Somerset,
Professor of Music do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My Invention for "Improvements in the Valves of Cornets and all other Brass
Musical Wind Instruments" consists in the means of giving a short partly “Spiral
Action to the pistons of the above mentioned Instruments, which may be made of
Brass or other suitable materials, by the peculiar arrangements and combination of
parts as shown in the drawings filed herewith and in each of which drawings the same
letters refer to the same parts.
"
No. 1 shews the front and back view of Piston.
No. 2
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the side view of Piston.
No. 3 =an Oblique or cross view of Piston.
No. 4
No. 5
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the Cylinder, Piston and parts completed.
shews the several parts thereof separatly.
A. Plunger being a square rod, the top part having a button screwed on, and on
the bottom a plate and conical point made of steel or other suitable materials. B. Cap
of Cylinder with square chamber for plunger to slide in-C. Piston and Rod, with
conical hole for the conical point of plunger to fit in, also shewing spring and shoulder
plate, S, and arms which run in oblique grooves H or slot cut in the cylinder which
brings the Piston into position for making the valve notes, the spring N taking the
piston back, on the note being completed. Each piston is bored through with round
horizontal hole L for the open notes, and above is a round cut crescent shaped groove M
on either side runing from right to left or left to right.
The advantages of my System are that the action will be reduced to less than one
third of that hitherto used in Valve instruments, which greatly aids quick execution

page_text: while in the open and valves notes through peculiar arrangement of the holes the
general intonation of the instruments will be much clearer and brighter-The details
of my Improved-System-may be varied without any departure from the nature
and principle of my said Invention.
I claim as my Invention the peculiar combination herein before described with the 5
right to make such variations as aforesaid, and not any parts taken separatly.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Valves of Cornets and all other Brass Musical
Wind Instruments.
I, JOSEPH BOSSI, of 12 Great Stanhope Street, Bath, in the county of Somerset,
professor of music, 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 which relates to the pistons of cornets and other like musical wind
instruments, is designed to reduce the "action," to facilitate execution and to obtain a
clearer intonation.
In order to reduce the action, means are provided for imparting a spiral movement
to the pistons when the latter are depressed for the production of valve notes.
Under one arrangement, a spiral spring is arranged around each piston rod and
bears at its lower end upon a plate in the cylinder in which the piston is contained.
The upper end of the spring bears against the underside of a button fixed to the top of
the piston rod. The normal tendency of the said spring is to maintain the piston in
the raised position, that is to say, in the position necessary for producing what are
termed open notes.
In a conical recess provided in the upper face of the head or button of each piston
rod bears the conical point of a plunger working in a guide attached to the cap of the
cylinder. Each piston has a pair of arms which extend through oblique slots provided
in the cylinder. Under the downward pressure exerted on a plunger to produce valve
notes, the piston acted upon partially rotates about its axis as it descends in the
cylinder. The cavities by which the valve notes are produced are more expeditiously
presented to the wind tube than hitherto, and execution is facilitated.
Under a modification each piston rod is made hollow and contains the spiral spring
by which, as aforesaid, the piston returns to the raised position after depression. The

page_text: spring rests at its lower end upon a disc having arms which project through oblique
slots provided in the cylindrical piston rod. The spiral movement hereinbefore
described is imparted to the piston when the plunger is depressed for the production
of valve notes.
The holes provided in the pistons for the production of open notes are so arranged
that when the pistons are in the raised position the passage through all of them is in
the same horizontal plane and is unobstructed throughout.
For the valve notes crescent-shaped cavities are formed in the pistons. These
cavities are closed by the wall of the cylinder.
Heretofore the passages for the valve notes have been complete tubes in themselves,
that is to say, pierced through the piston and open only at the ends. By having
cavities, in accordance with this invention, the diameter of the pistons is reduced and
the pistons are arranged nearer to one another.
Referring to the accompanying sheet of illustrative drawings, Fig. 1 thereon repre-
sents a part vertical section and part elevation of the cylinder of a cornet or other like
wind instrument. Fig. 2 is an elevation of one side of the piston. Around the piston
rod a is coiled a springbone end of which bears upon the plate e lying on a shoulder
formed in the cylinder d. In a conical recoss provided in the top of the button a¹ of
the piston rod a bears the point of a plunger è contained in the chamber or guide e¹
formed in one piece with or secured to the cap f. Towards its upper end the piston g
is furnished with arms g¹ which project into oblique grooves h provided at each
side of the cylinder. The hole in the piston extends through it and is, as is well
understood, for the production of "open" notes. For the valve notes crescent-shaped
cavities g³ are formed in the piston.
The tendency of the spring 6 is to keep the piston raised, that is to say, so that the
hole g², coincides with the wind tube. When the finger of the performer is applied to
the top of the plunger e for the production of valve notes the piston g in descending
is made to partially rotate on the point of the plunger by the arins g¹ travelling in the
spiral grooves h. The cavities 9 are presented to the wind tube of the instrument
with less vertical travel of the piston, and execution is thereby facilitated.
When the finger of the performer is withdrawn from the plunger the piston is
returned to its normal position by the spring b which had been compressed and is now
released.
At Fig. 3 is represented a part of a cornet having three pistons. One of the cylinders
is partly in vertical section. Fig. 4 is a view of part of the cylinder d, some of the
wind tubes being removed. The pistons of the two end cylinders are alike. Two
different views of one of them are shown at Figs. 5 and 6.
At Fig. 7 is represented a view of the middle piston which differs from the other
two in consequence of the position of the slide, as is well understood.
Instead of placing the spring b outside the piston roda, as in the arrangement illustrated
at Fig. 1, the piston rod is made tubular and the spring is contained within it. The
piston rod is made in one piece with or rigidly fixed to the piston. The upper end of
the spring 6 bears against the screw cap a² of the piston rod a and the lower end
against the disc i.
The spring & tends to maintain the piston in the raised position, that is to say, in the
position necessary for producing open notes. At or near the point of union of each
piston rod with its cylinder is a disc i, shown apart at Figs. 8 and 9. The arms ¹ of
the disc project into spiral or oblique grooves provided in the piston rod. The
passages for the open notes are indicated by g², and the crescent-shaped cavities for
the valve notes by g³. When a downward pressure is exerted on the plunger e of
either piston to produce valve notes the piston partially rotates on its axis, the arms i¹
of the disc in the grooves / compelling this.
The passages g for the open notes are arranged at the same height in each piston and
an unobstructed passage is obtained for such notes. The slides k, l, and m are arranged
horizontally, though the slide 7 of the middle cylinder slides in a plane at right angles
to the slides k and m.

page_text: In larger instruments, for instance, in a "bombardon" and the like, all the pistons
are similar to the two end pistons of the cornet illustrated, and the slides may be
arranged vertically, or the centre slide only may be vertical.
There being, as aforesaid, no obstruction to the production of open notes and less
obstruction than heretofore to the production of valve notes, a brighter and clearer
intonation is obtained.
The slides being arranged above the wind tube, saliva does not so readily find its
way into them.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
or
"
1. In a cornet or other like musical instrument, imparting a combined spiral and
vertical motion to the pistons in descending and ascending, whereby the "stroke
"action" is reduced and execution facilitated, substantially as herein before
described.
2. In a cornet or other like musical instrument, the use of pistons such as g having
arms such as g¹ connected thereto, as at Figs. 1 and 2, or such as i¹ formed on a
separate disc such as i, Figs. 3, 8 and 9, working in oblique grooves provided either
in the cylinders in which they are contained, or in the piston rods, the pistons having
passages such as g² for the open notes and cavities such as 93 for the valve notes,
substantially as hereinbefore described.
3. In a cornet or other like musical instrument, the use, for depressing the pistons,
of a plunger such as e working in a guide such as e¹ attached to or formed in one
piece with the cap of the cylinder, the point of which plunger takes into a conical recess
in the top of the piston rod which, in descending and ascending, rotates freely about
the said point, as hereinbefore described.
4. In a cornet or other like musical wind instrument, providing open cavities such
as g³ for the valves notes, whereby the diameter of the pistons is reduced, and arranging
the passages for the open notes so that when the pistons are in the raised position a
straight, unobstructed way is afforded through the pistons from the wind tube and a
clearer intonation obtained, as herein before described.
5. The combination of parts constituting an improved cornet or other liko musical
wind instrument, constructed, arranged and operating substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying sheet of drawings.
NICHOLAS WATTS,
Applicant's Agent.