IMPROVEMENTS IN COTTAGE AND OTHER UPRIGHT PIANOFORTES
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Roberts, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Pianoforte Manufacturer, and Alfred Roberts, of
Birmingham aforesaid, Pianoforte Manufacturer, for the Invention
of IMPROVEMENTS IN COTTAGE AND OTHER UPRIGHT PIANOFORTES.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Roberts and
Alfred Roberts at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 20th February 1875.
We, GEORGE ROBERTS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Pianoforte Manufacturer, and ALFRED ROBERTS, of Birmingham afore-
said, Pianoforte Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN COTTAGE AND OTHER UPRIGHT PIANOFORTES,"
to be as follows:-
Our Invention has reference to cottage and other upright pianofortes,
that is, pianofortes in which the wires are situated in a vertical plane;
and our said Invention consists of the improvements herein-after

page_text: described in the mechanism of the said pianofortes, whereby in touch
and tone and other qualities they are made to approach more nearly
the grand pianoforte than upright pianofortes of the ordinary con-
struction.
Instead of the lever, jack, or hopper employed in ordinary upright
pianofortes jointed to the action frame by hinges or centres we employ
a jack or lever attached to the rear end of the key, and connected there-
with by a joint or centre, on which it turns. This jack or lever is
unconnected with any part of the instrument except the key, and on
removal of the key is brought away with it. A horizontal bar over the
rear ends of the keys carries a series of teeth constituting a rack. In
this rack the jacks or levers work. The escapement is effected by a
regulating screw passing through the lower part of the jack or lever and
bearing against a fixed upright on the key at the back of the jack or
lever, in conjunction with a regulating arm in front of the jack, which
when the key is depressed to nearly its full extent comes in contact
with a regulating or adjustable button carried by a rail in front of the
rack described. The check is provided for by a piece of felt glued to
the upper part of the jack or lever meeting a button on the hammer
butt. The horizontal rack and the escapement button rail are not
attached to the action frame but are fixed to blocks secured to the sides
of the case of the instrument, to which blocks the action frame is fixed
in the usual way, that is, either by tenons, dowels, or plates.
In addition to the improved musical qualities obtained in upright
pianofortes made according to our Invention they possess great
mechanical advantages in the facility with which parts may be removed
and replaced. The removal of a key brings the jack or lever with it;
the removal of the action frame brings away the hammers, dampers, and
parts connected therewith, while the rack and escapement button rail
may be separately removed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Roberts and Alfred Roberts in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 4th August 1875.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Roberts and Alfred Roberts in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 4th August 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, GEORGE
ROBERTS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Pianoforte Manu- 3

page_text: facturer, and ALFRED ROBERTS, of Birmingham aforesaid, Pianoforte
Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of February, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto us, the said George Roberts and
Alfred Roberts, Her special license, that we, the said George Roberts
and Alfred Roberts, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as we, the said George Roberts and Alfred Roberts,
our 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 Isle of Man, an Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN COTTAGE AND OTHER UPRIGHT PIANOFORTES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that we, the said George Roberts and
Alfred Roberts, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and
seal of one of us or them, 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 George Roberts, on behalf of
myself and the said Alfred Roberts, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say :-
Our Invention has reference to cottage and other upright pianofortes,
that is, pianofortes in which the wires are situated in a vertical plane;
and our said Invention consists of the improvements herein-after
described in the mechanism of the said pianofortes, whereby in touch
and tone and other qualities they are made to approach more nearly
the grand pianoforte than upright pianofortes of the ordinary con-
struction.
Instead of the lever or jack or hopper employed in ordinary upright
pianofortes jointed to the action frame by hinges or centres we employ

page_text: a jack or lever attached to the rear end of the key, and connected there-
with by a joint or centre, on which it turns. This lever or jack is
unconnected with any part of the instrument except the key, and on
removal of the key is brought away with it. A horizontal bar over the
rear ends of the keys carries a series of teeth constituting a rack. In
this rack the jacks or levers work. The escapement is effected by a
regulating screw passing through the lower part of the lever or jack and
bearing against a fixed upright on the key at the back of the lever or
jack, in conjunction with a regulating arm in front of the jack, which
when the key is depressed to nearly its full extent comes in contact
with a regulating or adjustable button carried by a rail in front of the
rack described. The check is provided for by a piece of felt glued to
the upper part of the jack or lever meeting a button on the hammer
butt. The horizontal rack and the escapement button rail are not
attached to the action frame but are fixed to blocks secured to the sides
of the case of the instrument, to which blocks the action frame is fixed
in the usual way, that is, either by tenons, dowels, or plates.
In addition to the improved musical qualities obtained in upright
pianofortes made according to our Invention they possess great
mechanical advantages in the facility with which parts may be removed
and replaced. The removal of a key brings the jack or lever with it;
the removal of the action frame brings away the hammers, dampers,
and parts connected therewith; while the rack and escapement button
rail may be separately removed.
Having explained the nature of our Invention we will proceed to
describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings the manner in
which the same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in transverse vertical section the action part of a
cottage or other upright pianoforte containing our improvements.
Figure 2 represents a front elevation, partly in section, of the lever or
jack or hopper jointed to the key, and Figure 3 represents a side eleva-
tion of the said lever or jack or hopper separately.
Figure 4 represents in plan, partly in horizontal section, the rack bar
and escapement button rail of the pianoforte, and Figure 5 is a front
elevation, partly in vertical section, of the same.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several
Figures of the Drawings.

page_text: a is the key and 6 is the lever or jack or hopper (shown separately in
Figures 2 and 3) by which the hammer is actuated. The said lever or
jack b is attached to the rear end of the key a by a joint or centre c, on
which it turns. The joint c of the lever or jack consists of a fork b² on
the bottom of the said lever or jack, through the eye of which fork a
cross pin c is passed (see Figure 2). The block a³ on the rear end of the
key a to which the lever or jack 6 is jointed is trough shaped, and in
this trough the end of the lever or jack works (see Figure 2). The
return motion of the lever or jack is effected by the spring at d. By
an examination of the Drawing it will be seen that the lever or jack 6 is
not connected with any part of the pianoforte except the key a, and on
the removal of the key a the said lever or jack 6 and the other parts
carried by the said lever or jack are brought away with it. The pin c is
covered with cloth, and the jack 6 may be detached from the key a by
raising it with a gentle pressure when the fork 6º escapes from the pin c.
Although we prefer a joint of the kind represented we do not limit
ourselves thereto as other joints may be employed with like effect. e is
the horizontal rack bar, and is the escapement button rail in front of
the bar e; f are the adjustable buttons carried by the rail f. The way
in which the rack bar e is constructed or built up is herein-after
explained. Between the rack teeth e, e³, of the bar e the levers or
jacks of the pianoforte work.
b
The parts for effecting the escapement of the lever or jack from the
hammer are as follows:-g is a regulating screw passing through the
lower part of the lever or jack b, its front end, when the key is in its
raised or normal position, nearly but not quite touching the fixed
upright on the rear end of the key a at the back of the lever or jack,
as represented. At the front of the lever or jack 6 is a regulating arm i,
which at the proper time bears against the regulating or adjustable
button f on the rail fin front of the rack bar e. k is the hammer and
7 the damper, the said hammer and damper being of the ordinary kind;
m is the string. The check for arresting the motion of the hammer
after it has struck the wire consists of a piece of felt n fixed to the
upper part of the lever or jack 6, the inclined face of the said check n
meeting the inclined face of the button or arm p fixed to the hammer
butt ³.
The action of the parts constituting our Invention is as follows :-

page_text: is also lifted, the force of the blow received by the key a is transmitted
directly to the notch of the hammer butt k³, causing the hammer to
strike the string m, as is well understood. On depressing the key a the
fixed support on the rear end of the key comes against the regulating
screw g immediately before the key has reached its lowest point, and
when the key has been fully pressed down the regulating arm i in front
of the lever b comes against the adjustable button f³ and causes the
upper end of the lever or jack 6 to escape from the notch of the hammer
butt, the checking or arresting of the hammer k at the same time being
effected by the check n meeting the button or arm 2 on the hammer
butt.
The horizontal rack bar e in which the levers or jacks 6 work and the
escapement button rail fare secured to blocks, one of which is marked q,
at each end of the case r of the instrument, the said blocks being
secured to the said case by screws or otherwise. The blocks q are
morticed or recessed at q² to receive the ends of the rack bar e, and the
said blocks Չ have lateral mortices at q³ for receiving the ends of the
escapement button rail f, the said rail ƒ being fixed in its place in the
blocks e by turns or catches, one of which is marked s. The action
frame carrying the hammers k, dampers 1, and other parts connected
therewith is independent of the blocks q, q, carrying the rack bar e and
escapement button rail f, the said action frame t being supported on
the blocks q, q, and fixed to the said blocks by tenons, dowels, or
plates.
When the action frame t is removed it brings with it the hammers k,
dampers, and parts connected with them, without interfering with the
rack bar e and escapement button rail f. The said rack bar and escape-
ment button rail may however be separately removed from the blocks q
on the case r, the bar e by a vertical motion and the rail ƒ by a hori-
zontal motion. The removal of the key a brings the lever or jack 6 and
the parts d, h, g, and i with it. The principal parts of the pianoforte
action are thus capable of independent removal and may be replaced
with great facility, the removal and replacing of the key and jack or
lever being effected without interfering with the action frame t.
Instead of supporting the rack bar e and button rail f upon blocks
fixed to the case of the instrument, as described and illustrated, the
said bar and rail may be supported and the rack bar constructed in the

page_text: manner illustrated in front elevation (partly in longitudinal section) in
Figure 6, and separate parts in Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 of the
Drawings. r, r, is the case of the instrument and u are standards fitted
into the blocks us, by which the action frame is supported; e is the rack
bar supported by the short uprights v. The escapement button rail f,
not represented in Figure 6, is supported by the uprights o in a similar
manner to that represented for supporting the rack bar e. Intermediate
uprights similar to those marked may be used for supporting the rack
bar and escapement button rail by cutting away portions of the keys.
The rack bar e is constructed in the manner represented in plan in
Figure 7, and elevation in Figure 8, and cross sections in Figures 9
and 10. The rack is formed of separate pieces of the kind represented.
in Figure 11, and marked e³, the said pieces e² being fitted into a recess
or cut-away part w in the rack bar e (see Figure 9). These pieces e*
are arranged in the recess w in the manner represented in Figure 7, and
are glued or otherwise fastened in their places. A cross section of the
rack bar with one of the separate pieces e fixed therein to form the
rack is represented in Figure 10. The rack bar made as described is.
fixed to the uprights by its ends or tenons es dropping into mortices
in the said uprights.
The inner faces of the racks and the front of the rack bar against
which the levers or jacks 6 work are covered with felt or other soft
fabric e, applied as represented in Figures 1 and 5 of the Drawings.
The said felt may either be applied before or after the pieces e³ are fixed.
on the bar e.
Having now described the nature of our Invention and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that we
do not limit ourselves to the precise details herein described and illus-
trated as the same may be varied without departing from the nature of
our Invention; but we claim as our Invention of improvements in
cottage and other upright pianofortes,―
First. Jointing the lever or jack or hopper by which the hammer is
operated to the rear end of the key, the said lever or jack being uncon-
nected with any part of the instrument except the key, substantially as
herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings,
whereby on the removal of the key the said lever or jack or hopper and
parts carried by it are brought with the said key.

page_text: Secondly. The construction and arrangements of the parts of the
escapement mechanism herein-before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings.
Thirdly. Fixing the horizontal rack bar in which the levers or jacks
or hoppers work, and also the escapement button rail, to blocks secured
to the sides of the case of the instrument and unconnected with the
action frame, substantially as and for the purpose described and illus.
trated in the accompanying Drawings; also the modification described
and represented in Figure 6 for supporting the rack bar and the escape-
ment button rail, and the method of constructing or building up the
rack bar described and represented in Figures 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 of
the accompanying Drawings.
Lastly. Making the action frame carrying the hammers, dampers, and
parts connected therewith independent of the parts carrying the rack
bar and escapement button rail, so that the said action frame may be :
removed and replaced independently of the said rack bar and escape-
ment button rail, substantially as herein-before described and illustrated
in the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Roberts, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Thirty-first day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
GEORGE ROBERTS.
(L.S.)