IMPROVEMENTS IN TUNE BARRELS OR CYLINDERS OR OTHER APPARATUS FOR PLAYING UPON ORGANS OR OTHER MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Hiram Groves, of the City of New York, in the
United States of America, Surveyor and Lithographer, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TUNE BARRELS OR CYLINDERS OR OTHER APPARATUS
FOR PLAYING UPON ORGANS OR OTHER MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS."
Sealed the 4th November 1856, and dated the 14th May 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Hiram Groves at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 14th May
1856.
I, HIRAM GROVES, of the City of New York, in the United States
of America, Surveyor and Lithographer, do hereby declare the nature of
my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TUNE BARRELS OR CYLINDERS OR OTHER
APPARATUS FOR PLAYING UPON ORGANS OR OTHER MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS," to be
as follows:-
My Invention relates to the manufacture of tune barrels or cylinders, or
apparatus in any other than a barrel or cylindrical form, which is or may
be employed for playing upon organs or other musical instruments; and
consists,―
Firstly, in constructing the parts or portions of such barrels, cylinders, or
apparatus which are intended to act immediately upon the keys or stickers of
the instruments (to produce the tunes), of slips or pieces of metal or other
suitable material, on which grooves, notches, or cuttings are made to corre-
spond with the time or lengths of the notes required, such pieces or slips

page_text: being either in portions of tunc or whole lengths; and being either permanently
fixed to the revolving or moveable framing on which they are mounted, or
secured thereto in such manner as to be removeable for the purpose of sub-
stituting other slips or pieces with different notches or cuttings, and thus
changing the tunes.
Secondly, in constructing the said tune slips or pieces with bayonet catches,
for locking or holding them upon the said framing, and the framing with pins
or studs for fitting into such catches.
Thirdly, in constructing the framing of the tune barrels or cylinders, or
apparatus upon which the said tune slips or pieces are to be mounted, of the
form of an ordinary reel, or of an open or skeleton form, the carefully turned
barrel hitherto in use being rendered unnecessary.
The accompanying Drawing illustrates the manner in which the several
parts of my Invention are to be performed.
a is the reel or skeleton framing; b is one of the tune slips, which may be
either in one or more pieces and either continuous or not continuous around
the reel, a separate ring or line of tune slip or slips being provided for each
sticker or key c; d is a bayonet catch; and e, a corresponding pin or stud for
securing the slip upon the framing..
It is to be understood that the slips and also the framing may be borizontal
or straight, instead of in a curved form, as represented.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Hiram Groves in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
10th November 1856..
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HIRAM
GROVES, of the City of New York, in the United States of America, Surveyor
and Lithographer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant, unto me, the said
Hiram Groves, Her special licence that I, the said Hiram Groves, my
executors, administrators, and assigns; or such others as I, the said Hiram
Groves, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and the Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN TUNE
BARRELS OR CYLINDERS OR OTHER APPARATUS FOR PLAYING UPON ORGANS OR OTHER
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I; the said
Hiram Groves, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the.
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Hiram Groves, do hereby declare the -
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,.
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following state-
ment thereof, that is to say:-
My Invention relates to the manufacture of tune barrels or cylinders,.
or apparatus in any other than a barrel or cylindrical form, which is or may
be employed for playing upon organs or other musical instruments; and
consists,
Firstly, in constructing the parts or portions of such barrels, cylinders, or
apparatus which are intended to act immediately upon the key's or stickers of
the instrument (to produce the tunes), of slips or pieces of metal, or other
suitable material, on.which grooves, notches, or cuttings are made to correspond'
with the time or lengths of the notes required, such slips or pieces-being,

page_text: according to the tune, either in portions or whole lengths, and being either
permanently fixed to the revolving or moveable framing on which they are
mounted, or secured thereto in such manner as to be removeable for the
purpose of substituting other slips or pieces with different notches or cuttings,
and thus changing the tunes.
Secondly, in constructing the said tune slips or pieces with bayonet catches,
for locking or holding them upon the said framing, and the framing with pins
or studs for fitting into such catches.
Thirdly, in constructing the framing of the tune barrels or cylinders, or
apparatus upon which the said tune slips or pieces are to be mounted, of the
form of an ordinary reel, or of an open or skeleton form, the carefully turned
barrel hitherto in use being rendered unnecessary.
And having thus set forth the nature of my said Invention, I will proceed
to describe the manner in which the several parts of which it consists are
to be and may be performed, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawing, and to the figures and letters marked thereon.
Figure 1 is a general view or sketch; and Figure 2, a diagram, illustrating
my Invention, and shewing its application to the keys of an organ or other
instrument.
A, A, represent the keys; B, the key frame of attachment; C, C, keys
and stickers; a, the hollow reel or skeleton framing; b, one of the tune slips
(or a quarter portion of a tune) locked upon the reel, such slips being either
continuous or not continuous around the reel, and a separate ring or line of
tune slips being provided for each sticker or key C, and fitted into corre-
sponding incisions on the reel for its reception; d is the bayonet catch upon
the tune slip; and e, the pin or rod upon the reel for securing the slip upon it
by means of the catch.
Figure 3 represents the construction of reel or skeleton barrel which I prefer
for mounting the slips upon, in which it is to be observed that I have in-
troduced a partly metal framing to prevent the distortion which might ensue
from shrinking or contraction of an entirely wooden reel. b, b, the slips, two
lines only of which are shewn; s, s, are metal end plates of the reel, fitted
against end dises or pieces of wood t, t, the former having each four armatures,
in which are openings for the reception of the metal bearers v, v, these bearers
being likewise screwed to the wooden bars w, w, and the slips firmly resting
upon the bearers, and being prevented from lateral play by fitting in the
incisions in the said bars w, w. The bearers v, v, may, however, be cut so
as also to guide the slips, as represented in the Figure 4, in which case the
incisions in the wooden.bars would not be required, but the 'slips would simply

page_text: rest upon them. e, c, (see Figure 3, and also Figures 1 and 2,) are fixed pins,
studs, or rods, on to which the slips are locked by means of the bayonet
orifices or catches.
The method and order in which I perform the several operations necessary.
to the manufacture of my improved tune barrels is as follows: Firstly, I make
the reel, and turn or cut the grooves or incisions for receiving the slips.
Secondly, I fix the wire rods, pins, or studs e, e, in the reel for the catches in
the slips. Thirdly, I make the tune slips out of plates of brass or other suitable
metal or material by means of punches and dies, and I prefer to make the slips
in size always one quarter of a circle, whatever may be the dimeter required.*
Fourthly, I cut in or produce the bayonet catches upon the tune slips also by
punches and dies; these two last-mentioned operations may, however, have
been previously performed, and the plain slips with their bayonet catches may:
be ready for the next process when required.. Fifthly, (in order to make a
tune) I mount as many slips (prepared as above mentioned) on to the reel as
the grooves or incisions will receive, namely, four slips in the circumference of
each groove, and I number or mark the slips and their positions upon the reel
to correspond with each other. Sixthly, I mark the tune upon the slips by
sharp blows on the keys (or those made specially for the purpose) of the same
or a similar instrument or apparatus to that ordinarily employed for pinning
tune barrels as heretofore practised, and when marked I remove the slips from
the reel. Seventhly, I cut the slips according to the marking by means of a
file, or in any convenient manner, leaving the uncut portions to be the notes of
the tune, and when finished I replace the slips on the barrel and prove them.
If correct, I term these slips "patterns," from which to multiply is the
desideratum and leading object of the Invention. Eighthly, (for the purpose
of copying or multiplying) I take a number of plain slips (as produced by the
third operation above described), and I lay or place them into a box, as
represented at m in the Figure 5, the surface of the box on or against which
they are to be placed being shaped to a corresponding curve, and the pieces or
slips being keyed or screwed up tightly therein, as shewn.
1 represents a rotary cutter, which is mounted in a lathe head (not shown),
and as the box is passed under this cutter the slips are opened at the required
places, and the grooves or notches are thus produced, in the manner commonly
practised for cutting the teeth of wheels. o is a shaft, to or upon which the
box m is fixed, carrying also (though not shewn in the Drawing) a dividing
plate, and likewise attached thereto one of the "patterns," formed as above
described, and serving as a guide to present the slips in a proper position to
the action of the cutter.

page_text: The method above described is that which I prefer for multiplying or
copying the tune slips; but they may also be produced by casting or moulding
in any suitable composition, metal, or plastic compound of a hard nature, or
even entirely by punches and dies, and any suitable metal or material may be
employed.
I would here remark, that instead of manufacturing the tune slips with the
bayonet catches,. and fixing them with pins, rods, wires, or studs upon the reel,'
in accordance with my second improvement, they may be manufactured and
fixed in the manner represented at the Figure 6, in which is a sliding catch,
with pins, or teeth. taking into holes in the slips, one, of such holes being dis-
tinctly represented in the detached slip accompanying such Figure. This plan
would answer its purpose where one or two tunes only were wanted at a time;
should more.be required, a rod could be run through the whole. Either of
the locking arrangements permits the ready removal of the slips and sub-
stitution of others, which may be done when it is wished to, change the tune,"
thereby avoiding the necessity of a great number of barrels, as heretofore, when:
many tunes were required; or, instead of either of the foregoing arrangements,
the slips may be permanently, fixed upon the reel when change of, tune is not
desired.
Lastly, in exemplification of the Invention, so far as it relates to apparatus
in any other than a barrel or cylindrical form, which is or may be.employed for
playing upon organs or other musical instruments, it is to be understood that.
the slips, and also the framing (in place of a reel or barrel) in or upon which
they are to be..mounted, may be made straight. (so as to work horizontally or
in a straight line) instead of in a curved form (and made to revolve) as.above.
described, and illustrated by the Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said Hiram Groves, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.