IMPROVEMENTS IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS IN WHICH WEDAMENA Toxanns AD TIPON BY AIR ARE EMPLOYED.
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Sir Charles Wheatstone, of Park Crescent,
Regent's Park, Knight, and John Matthias Augustus Stroh, of
Tolmer's Square, Hampstead Road, both in the County of Middlesex,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS IN WHICH
WEDAMENA Toxanns AD TIPON BY AIR ARE EMPLOYED.
"
Sealed the 26th February 1872, and dated the 4th January 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Sir Charles Wheatstone
and John Matthias Augustus Stroh at the Office of the Commis-
sioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 4th January 1872.
We, Sir CHARLES WHEATSTONE, of Park Crescent, Regent's Park,
Knight, and JOHN MATTHIAS AUGUSTUS STROH, of Tolmer's Square,
Hampstead Road, both in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
IN WHICH VIBRATING TONGUES ACTED UPON BY AIR ARE EMPLOYED," to be as
follows:-
The Invention has for its object improvements in musical instruments

page_text: to a novel arrangement and combination of parts whereby a single
vibrating tongue is rendered capable of producing the notes of one, two,
or more octaves, and of producing a "glide'
"from any one note to any
other of a similar character to that which may be produced on a violin
or other similar stringed instrument. For this purpose we arrange the
vibrating tongue in a frame in such manner that either the tongue or
the frame is capable of being slidden to and fro so as to cause the free
or sounding end of the vibrating tongue to extend a longer or shorter
distance from its point of support, and thereby when sounded to produce
a variety of notes according to the length of the free end of the
vibrating tongue.
Instead of moving either the vibrating tongue or the frame a slide
working to and fro on the vibrator frame, and affording support to either
side of the vibrating tongue, may be used for the purpose of varying the
length of the free end thereof.
In adapting our improvements to musical instruments with finger
keys, as in the harmonium or pianoforte, we prefer to adopt the
following arrangement:-The vibrating tongue is held by preference
between rollers acting on the top and bottom and on each edge thereof.
The axes of some of these rollers work in fixed bearings, and others of
the rollers have their axes carried by springs so as to keep them always
in contact with the vibrating tongue, whilst one or more spring rollers
bear on the rear end of the vibrating tongue to keep it down to the
"frame" and thereby prevent any secondary vibration in the rear end
thereof. The vibrating tongue is fixed to a holder which works in
guides carried by the "vibrator frame," and is connected by a wire or
rod to the upper end of a lever, on the axis of which is also fixed a 1 or
double bell-crank lever. This 1 lever is by a link or connecting rod con-
nected to one or more levers of a similar form. To the opposite lower
ends of these 1 levers are connected the upper ends of pendent wires,
the lower ends of which are connected to two rods or bars working on
suitable guides, the pendent wires on the one side of the axes of motion
of the levers being connected to one (the upper) bar or rod, and those
on the other side of said axes of motion being connected to the other
(the lower) bar or rod.
To the rear ends of the "keys" are connected other pendent wires,

page_text: and on each of these various wires at suitable positions we place two
discs or washers, one disc or washer being between the two rods or bars
and acting upon the upper one, and the other disc or washer being at
the lower ends of such pendent wires and acting upon the lower rod or
bar. The discs or washers intermediate of the rods or bars-are placed at
various distances from the ends of the pendent wires so as to cause the
rods or bars and consequently the 1 levers to be moved the requisite
distance to bring the vibrating tongue to the length required to produce.
the desired note. Each of the keys rests upon a hinged bar extending
from end to end of the instrument, such hinged bar being by a rod or
wire connected to a pallet so as to open the pallet at the moment when
the vibrating tongue is at the position required to produce the desired
note. A spring acts to retain the hinged bar in position until the
vibrating tongue is brought to the position required to produce the
desired note, when further pressure on a key depresses such hinged bar
and opens the pallet. The pitch of the instrument may be varied by the
following means:-The vibrator frame has an opening formed therein,
into which takes one end of an lever, the other end of which is operated
by a screw, or in some cases the screw may take direct into a nut fixed
to the vibrating frame. By these means the vibrator frame may be
moved a short distance so as to vary the length of the free end of the
vibrating tongue and thereby set the instrument to the desired "pitch."
To the pallet opening we adapt bell mouths and boxes of various forms
to obtain various qualities of tone. The instrument may be tuned by
increasing or diminishing the distance between the washers on the
pendent wires suspended from the keys.
The improvements before described may be mounted on a separate
frame and be provided with suitable bellows to form a distinct instru-
ment, or they may be combined with other keyed instruments, such as
harmoniums, pianos, or organs.
In applying our Invention to instruments blown by the mouth of the
performer the following arrangement is adopted :-The vibrating tongue
is fixed to a frame or plate forming the bottom of a cavity provided with
a mouthpiece. This frame or plate carries a slide, which works in
suitable guides and is provided with rollers above and below the tongue
for the purpose of holding the latter firmly between them whilst they
vary its vibrating portion. Each side of the instrument is provided with
keys which are pressed by the fingers in a similar manner to those of the

page_text: instrument known as the concertina.
The interior of this instru-
ment has a guide or guides, upon or in which two plates are capable of
being moved to and fro by the action of the keys. The keys work in
holes formed in the ends of the instrument, and are fixed to wires or rods
(square by preference) passing through similarly shaped holes formed in
one or more guide plates fixed in the interior of the instrument. The
inner end of each key acts upon one of the moveable plates and the end
of its rod or wire acts upon the other moveable plate. These two
moveable plates are by links or connecting rods connected to the ends of a
lever mounted at its centre on an axis intermediate to the two moveable
plates, whereby when one of such moveable plates is moved in one
direction the other is also similarly moved in the opposite direction.
One of these moveable plates is connected to the slide acting upon the
vibrating tongue. Thus by pressing upon any one of the keys until the
two moveable plates come to a lock between the inner end of the key
and the end of its rod or wire the free end of the vibrating tongue will
be brought to the length required to produce the desired note, whilst by
continuing to blow through the mouthpiece whilst one of the keys is
being gradually pressed inwards a "glide" from any one note to any
other note may be produced.
To tune this instrument or to adjust it to the "pitch" required, it is
only necessary to turn the external ends of the keys so as to screw them

page_text: year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto us, the said Sir Charles Wheatstone and
John Matthias Augustus Stroh, Her special licence that we, the said
Sir Charles Wheatstone and John Matthias Augustus Stroh, our
exccutors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
Sir Charles Wheatstone and John Matthias Augustus Stroh, 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 MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS IN WHICH VIBRATING TONGUES ACTED
UPON BY AIR ARE EMPLOYED," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,
the said Sir Charles Wheatstone and John Matthias Augustus
Stroh, our exccutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under our, 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 Scal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Sir Charles Wheatstone and
John Matthias Augustus Stroh, do hereby declare the nature of our
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 :—
The Invention has for its object improvements in musical instruments
in which vibrating tongues acted upon by air are employed, and relates
to a novel arrangement and combination of parts whereby a single
vibrating tongue is rendered capable of producing the notes of one, two,
or more octaves, and of producing a "glide" from any one note to any
other of a similar character to that which may be produced on a violin
or other similar stringed instrument. For this purpose we arrange the
vibrating tongue in a frame in such manner that either the tongue or
the frame is capable of being slidden to and fro so as to cause the free or
sounding end of the vibrating tongue to extend a longer or shorter
distance from its point of support, and thereby when sounded to

page_text: produce a variety of notes according to the length of the free end of the
vibrating tongue.
Instead of moving either the vibrating tongue or the frame a slide
working to and fro on the vibrator frame, and affording support to either
side of the vibrating tongue, may be used for the purpose of varying the
length of the free end thereof.
66
In adapting our improvements to musical instruments with finger
keys, as in the harmonium or pianoforte, we prefer to adopt the
following arrangement:-The vibrating tongue is held by preference
between rollers acting on the top and bottom and on each edge thereof.
The axes of some of these rollers work in fixed bearings and others of
the rollers have their axes carried by springs so as to keep them always
in contact with the vibrating tongue, whilst one or more spring rollers
bear on the rear end of the vibrating tongue to keep it down to the
'frame," and thereby prevent any secondary vibration in the rear end
thereof. The vibrating tongue is fixed to a holder which works in
guides carried by the "vibrator frame" and is connected by a wire or
rod to the upper end of a lever on the axis of which is also fixed a 1 or
double bell-crank lever. This 1 lever is by a link or connecting rod
connected to one or more levers of a similar form. To the opposite
lower ends of these 1 levers are connected the upper ends of pendent
wires, the lower ends of which are connected to two rods or bars
working on suitable guides, the pendent wires on the one side of the
axes of motion of the 1 levers being connected to one (the upper) bar or
rod and those on the other side of said axes of motion being connected to
the other (the lower) bar or rod. To the rear ends of the "keys" are
connected other pendent wires, which pass through holes formed in the
above-mentioned rods or bars, and on each of these various wires at
suitable positions we place two discs or washers, one disc or washer
being between the two rods or bars and acting upon the upper one, and
the other disc or washer being at the lower ends of such pendent wires
and acting upon the lower rod or bar. The discs or washers intermediate
of the rods or bars are placed at various distances from the ends of the
pendent wires so as to cause the rods or bars and consequently the levers
to be moved the requisite distance to bring the vibrating tongue to the
length required to produce the desired note. Each of the keys rests upon a
hinged bar extended from end to end of the instrument, such hinged bar
being by a rod or wire connected to a pallet so as to open the pallet at

page_text: the ends of a lever mounted at its centre on an axis intermediate to the
two moveable plates, whereby when one of such moveable plates is
moved in one direction the other is also similarly moved in the opposite
direction. One of these moveable plates is connected to the slide acting
upon the vibrating tongue. Thus by pressing upon any one of the keys
until the two moveable plates come to a lock between the inner end of
the key and the end of its rod or wire, the free end of the vibrating
tongue will be brought to the length required to produce the desired
note, whilst by continuing to blow through the mouthpiece whilst one of
the keys is being gradually pressed inwards a "glide" from any one note
to any other note may be produced.

page_text: The slide at is by a wire or rod c connected to the upper end of a lever d,
on the axis e of which is also fixed a 1 lever f. This 1 lever f is by a
link or connecting rod f1 connected to other levers fof a similar form.
To the opposite lower ends of these levers fare connected the upper ends
of pendent wires g, g¹, the wires being connected to the bar or rod 1,
and the wires g¹ being connected to the bar or rod h¹. To the rear ends
of the keys i arc connected other pendent wires 2, which pass through
holes formed in the said rods or bars h, h¹, and on cach of these various
The
wires at suitable positions we place two discs or washers, ³.
discs or washers are placed at various distances from the ends of the
pendent wires so as to cause the rods or bars h, h¹, and consequently
the 1 levers f to be moved the requisite distance to bring the vibrating
tongue a to the length required to produce the desired sound. Each of
the keys i rests upon a hinged bar ; extending from end to end of the
instrument under the keys. The hinged bar j is by a rod or wire j¹
connected to a pallet k so as to open the pallet at the moment when the
vibrating tongue a is at the position required to produce the desired
note. Springs act to retain the bar j in the position shown in the
Drawings until the vibrating tongue is brought to the position required,
when the further pressure on a key i depresses such bar j and opens the
pallet k. To the pallet opening k¹ we adapt bell mouths and boxes of
various forms to produce various qualities of tone. The "pitch" of the
instrument may be varied by the following means:-The vibrator
frame has an opening b¹ (or it may be a tooth) formed therein, into
which takes the shorter end of an L lever 1, the longer end of which is
formed with slots to receive pins from a nut which is operated by a
screw m. By these means the vibrator frame 6 may be moved a short
distance in either direction to alter the length of the free end of the
vibrating tongue a as may be required to vary the "pitch" of the
instrument. If desired instead of the above arrangement a horizontal
screw may be made to take direct into a nut fixed to the vibrator frame b.
The instrument may be tuned by increasing or diminishing the distance
between the washers and i on the pendent wires . This may be done
as shown in the Drawings by forming the pendent wires in two parts,
3 and by screwing them a greater or less distance into the nuts . Or
other convenient arrangement may be adopted. By depressing any one
of the keys the vibrating tongue a is operated to produce the desired
note, whilst by retaining such key in a depressed position, and at the
same time depressing another key until the note corresponding with

page_text: such last-mentioned key is sounded, a "glide" from the one note to the
other is produced of a similar character to that which may be produced
from a violin or other similar stringed instrument.
The improvements before described may be mounted as shown in the
Drawings on a separate frame and be provided with suitable bellows n
operated by treadles in the usual way to form a distinct instrument, or
they may be combined with other keyed instruments such as har-
moniums, pianos, or organs as will be well understood. And if desired
more than one vibrating tongue and parts connected therewith may be
employed in a single instrument.
Figure 6 is an elevation; Figures 7 and 8 are opposite end views;
Figure 9 is a section; Figure 10 is an elevation with the front plate and
parts carried thereby removed; and Figure 11 is a back view of the
front plate and parts carried thereby, showing our Invention applied to
an instrument to be blown by the mouth of the performer. o is the
front plate, which is provided with a mouthpiece o'. To this plate o is
fixed the vibrating tongue o², which in the present case is always held in
the same position, but which has the length of its vibrating portion
varied by the following means:-On the back of the plate o is a slide p
which is provided with projections p¹ to work in slots o* in the front
plate o, as shown, or it may be held in position in any other suitable
way. To the slide p are fixed bearings p² which pass through slots o* in
the front plate o, and carry rollers p³to bear upon the front of the
tongue o. To this slide p arc also fixed springs p' which carry rollers p³
to bear upon the back of the tongue o², the slide p also carries a spring p
and a regulating screw p" by which it is connected to the plate q. The
interior of this instrument is provided with a guide r, on which the
plates q, q', are capable of being moved to and fro by the action of the
keys 8, and in order to ensure these plates q, q', moving correctly to and
fro in parallel planes a frame or guide q³ is attached to each of the said
plates, such frames or guides at their outer ends being formed with
capability of adjustment to fit and slide on the guide ». The keys & pass
through holes formed in the ends of the instrument and are fixed to
wires or rods & (square by preference) passing through suitably shaped
holes formed in the fixed guide plates t, t. The inner end of each key s
acts upon one of the moveable plates q, q', and the end of its rod or
wire s' acts upon the other of such moveable plates q, q'. The moveable

page_text: plates q, q', are by links or connecting rods q³, q³, connected to the ends
of a lever v mounted at its centre on an axis v¹, whereby when either of
such moveable plates q, q', is moved in one direction, the other is
similarly moved in the opposite direction, and the requisite amount of
motion communicated to the slide p to regulate the length of the free
end of the vibrating tongue o*. Thus by pressing upon any one of the
keys & until the moveable plates q, q¹, come to a lock between the inner
end of the keys and the end of its rod or wire & the free end of the
vibrating tongue will be brought to the length required to produce the
desired note and by continuing to blow through the mouthpiece o¹ as
one of the keys & is being gradually pressed inwards a "glide" from any

page_text: with a musical instrument provided with keys to be fingered in a similar
manner to those of the concertina.
In witness whereof, we, the said Sir Charles Wheatstone and
John Matthias Augustus Stroh, have hereunto set our hands
and seal, this Second day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.
Witness to both signatures,
B. J. B. MILLS,
Patent Agent,
35, Southampton Buildings,
London.
C. WHEATSTONE. (L.S.)
(L.S.)
A. STROH.