Improvements in and relating to Pianos.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Feb., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 12th Nov., 1892-Accepted, 14th Jan., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Pianos.
I, PAUL NOUSBAUM, of 23 Rue de l'Hôtel de Ville, Laval, in the Republic of
France, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows :-
This invention relates to a piano having a double key-board, arranged in such a
manner that one of the two key-boards is movable and can be withdrawn when it is
desired to play on a single key-board, and that the instrument when not in use shall
not occupy more room than an ordinary piano.
My improved piano is susceptible of various modifications according to the result
to be obtained.
In the simplest arrangement I provide in the same frame two series of strings,
one on each side of the single sounding board, and place a key-board on each side
of the instrument, so that a double instrument is obtained. One of the key-boards
is stationary as usual, while the other is movable and may be connected by joints
or hinges to the body of the instrument and turned downwards behind the cloth
which usually covers the rear surface of the piano. In another arrangement I fix
arms to the mounting of the key-board, these arms being adapted to engage with
supports attached to the sides of the instrument.
This movable key-board, which may be completely separated from the piano so
that the latter then has a single key-board, on one side, is well adapted for an
elegant arrangement of my piano which I will now describe.
With the upright pianos heretofore employed the player turns his back to the
auditors in case the piano is placed against a wall. If the piano is placed in the
corner of a room, nothing is seen of the piano but the cloth back which does not
present a pretty effect. I give this face of the piano a particularly elegant
appearance in the manner hereinafter described.
Suppose the key-board is removed from an ordinary upright piano and shifted to
the rear without any change in the strings and in the action. By connecting the
squares of the key levers through the medium of rods with the hammers of the
action, this being left as it was previously, I can play on the shifted key-board.
The front of the piano having thus become free I uncover it and expose the
whole action of the instrument which is very interesting by reason of the various
movements performed by the levers, hammers, and other parts set in operation by
the keys. This visible front of the piano may be protected by a glass and provided
if desired with paintings, ornaments and other decorative designs.
My piano having a key-board adapted to be turned back permits of the
employment of a movable key-board on the front if desired. The two key-boards
act upon the same series of strings. The aforesaid glass has a movable part to
allow the movement of the key levers of the movable key-board.
Dated this 13th day of February 1892.

page_text: In the accompanying drawing I have shown how my said invention may be
conveniently and advantageously carried into practice.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of one form of my improved piano.
Figure 2 is a front elevation of the same.
Figure 3 is a partial plan thereof.
Figure 4 is a perspective view of a piano provided with a rear key-board.
Figure 5 is a similar view showing the piano adapted to be used by two artistes
at the same time and
Figure 6 is a side elevation partly in section of the internal mechanism drawn to
a larger scale.
In the simplest arrangement which is represented in Figures 12 and 3 I provide in
the same frame, two series of strings, one on each side of the single sounding
board A on each face of the latter is a series of strings a a¹; a key-board is
arranged on each side of the instrument so that a double instrument is obtained.
One of the key-boards C is stationary as usual, while the other C is movable and
may be connected by joints or hinges 6 to the body of the instrument and turned
downwards behind the cloth E which usually covers the rear surface of the piano,
see dotted lines in Figure 1. The movable keyboard C is held in its raised position
by hinged flaps c c arranged upon the sides of the piano, when the said flaps are in
the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 3 the keyboard C' can be turned
down.
In another arrangement I fix arms to the mounting of the key-board C₁these
arms being adapted to engage with supports attached to the outer sides of the
instrument.
This movable key-board, which may be completely separated from the piano so
that the latter then has a single key-board on one side and forms a convenient
arrangement.
In the use of upright pianos as heretofore, the player frequently has to turn his
back to the audience when the piano is placed against a wall. If the piano is
-placed in the corner of a room, nothing is seen but the cloth back which does not
present a pretty appearance. I provide this face-of the piano with a particularly
elegant appearance in the manner hereinafter described.
Suppose the key-board is removed from an ordinary upright piano and shifted to
the rear without any change in the strings and in the action. By connecting the
bell crank levers under the action of the key levers through the medium of rods
with the hammers of the action, which is left as it was previously, I can play on the
shifted key-board.
The front of the piano having thus become free I uncover it and expose the whole
action of the instrument which is very interesting by reason of the various
-movements performed by the levers, hammers, and other parts set in operation by
the keys. This visible front of the piano may be protected by a glass plate

page_text: and provided if desired with suitable paintings, ornaments or other decorative
designs.
This piano with the key-board at the rear permits of the employment of a
movable key-board at the front if desired. The two key-boards act upon the same
series of strings. The aforesaid glass plate has a movable part to allow the
movement of the key levers of the movable key-board.
No change is made in the mechanism of the piano represented in Figures 4 to 6.
In order to connect the said mechanism with the key-board which is moved to the
front, as shewn on the right of Figures 4 and 5 the levers L of the keys Tact below
bell-crank levers H pivoted at o in a fork f secured to a fixed bar B. The second
arm of the bell-crank lever H is connected by a rod t provided with adjusting nuts e
with the bell-crank lever H' existing in ordinary pianos. Owing to this transmitting
mechanism the action produced upon a key of the rear key-board is the same as if
the action had been upon one of the keys of the ordinary key-board corresponding to
the bell crank lever H¹.
Of course in this case the sounding board and the bars are in the reverse position
to those of ordinary pianos.
Figure 4 shows the front face of the piano provided with a glass plate composed
by preference of three parts G G G beautified if necessary with paintings, gilding
or ornamented in any other suitable manner. By this means the whole interior
mechanism of the piano, and the action of the several parts in motion, when the
piano is played, is visible.
When the temporary key-board is to be placed at the front face, the part of
the glass plate is removed for disengaging the parts of the mechanism below which
must engage the levers of the keys of the supplementary key-board. This key-
board has at each extremity (Figure 5) arms B' B₁ presenting an upper notch a
and a lower notch y to correspond with the knobs z z' which are fixed to the case of
the piano. The arms B1 B1 of the key-board being engaged obliquely between
these knobs zz' the key-board is lowered so as to engage the said knobs with the
notches and y; the metallic mounting a constitutes a stop limiting the sliding
movement of the arm B'. The second key-board is thus put in its place ready to
be operated. The supplementary front key-board will still serve for tuning the
piano.
2
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. A piano with two key-boards and two series of strings arranged one on each
side of the same sounding board, one of the key-boards being movable.
2. The mounting of the movable key-board by joints or hinges, or by means of
arms engaging with lateral supports.
3. A piano with a key-board placed at the rear and with an exposed front, or
provided with a glass plate, this front face being adapted to receive, when it is
desired, a second movable key-board adapted to actuate the single series of strings
of the piano.
Dated this 12th day of November 1892.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.