Improvements in or applicable to Mechanical Organs, Pianos, and the like.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 18th May, 1896
Complete Specification Left, 17th Feb., 1897-Accepted, 20th Mar., 1897
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or applicable to Mechanical Organs, Pianos, and
the like.
I, ANSELME ANDRE MARIE GAVIOLI, of 2, Avenue de Taillebourg, Paris,
in the Republic of France, Organ Builder, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to means for the reception of perforated tune strips or cards
as they issue from mechanical organs, pianos and other similar musical instruments
the object being to ensure the automatic folding of the strips or cards and allow a
piece of music to be played for an indefinite length of time without any appreciable
interruption.
For this purpose I arrange beneath the outlet aperture for the tune strip and
below the strip, a rocking flap pivoted in brackets fixed on the outer side of the
case of the instrument.
The tune strip after having left its supporting table rests upon the flap and passes
into a receiving box.
The flap rests upon the upper part of a bent lever. The larger arm of this
lever situated within the organ bears upon a projection on the movable portion of
the organ bellows and slides without friction between guides.
The smaller arm which may be of metal of any suitable shape and be provided
with a roller is fixed on the larger arm and extends outside the organ through an
aperture in the side of the case.
It will be obvious that when the operating shaft which works the bellows and
the various mechanical parts of the organ is revolved every time the connecting
rod lifts the movable portion of the bellows the projection will lift the lever and
consequently the flap.
As soon as the movable portion of the bellows descends, the lever being deprived
of support falls by its own weight and with it the flap.
The rotation of the shaft being relatively quick it follows that the flap will
communicate a shaking motion to the tune strip which being thereby lifted and
then suddenly allowed to drop will obviously fold with much greater facility than
if it issued simply in a continuous manner without being shaken.
The tune strip forms a kind of volume the leaves of which are superposed in
accordion fashion in the box.
I employ a removable box the two ends of which consist of lids or covers which
are alike. The box rests on a wood or metal bracket hung upon hooks fixed in
the case of the organ at a convenient height.
While the box is receiving the tune strip its uppermost cover is open and the
lowermost one is shut.
As soon as all the tune strip has passed, the uppermost cover must be shut, a
half turn given to the box around its horizontal axis parallel to the direction of
ravel of the tune strip, and the other cover which bad before formed the bottom
of the box and is now uppermost, opened; the box with its bracket is then trans-
erred to the left hand side of the instrument and hung upon hooks similarly
rranged to those herein before described. The tune strip as will be readily

page_text: understood is conveniently arranged in the said box for the recommencement of
the playing of the piece, the strip always travelling from left to right.
It is of course understood that it is necessary to have two similar boxes, one for
paying or letting out the tune strip and the other for receiving it. The places of
these two boxes are respectively changed after each passage of the tune strip and
the playing of the piece is only interrupted during the very brief space of time
occupied in effecting this change.
To allow of easily seeing if the folding of the tune strips is taking place satis-
factorily, each box has in its front a small door which, as regards the right hand
box, is left open during the reception of the tune strip.
The flap may be oscillated through the medium of the shaft in any other suitable
manner than that described, for example, the lever can be directly jointed to the
flap and to the movable portion of the bellows and can be placed either inside or
outside the instrument; I can make the flap of any suitable shape such as rounded
or angular, at the part where it bears upon the tune strip to lift it. Also I can
arrange upon its supporting edge a small roller in order to minimise damage to the
strip. The flap can be replaced by any other arrangement acting upon the tune
strip in a like manner, for example, I can employ a simple oscillating metal stirrup
which would be operated by its lateral arms or under an auxiliary arm, etc.
Dated the 18th day of May 1896.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in or applicable to Mechanical Organs, Pianos, and
the like.
I, ANSELME ANDRE MARIE GAVIOLI, of 2bs, Avenue de Taillebourg, Paris,
in the Republic of France, Organ Builder, 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:-
My invention relates to means for the reception of perforated tune strips or
cards as they issue from mechanical organs, pianos, and other similar musical
instruments the object being to ensure the automatic folding of the strips or cards
and to allow a piece of music to be played for an indefinite length of time without
any appreciable interruption.
To enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe it by reference to
the accompanying drawing, in which :-
Figure 1 is a front elevation of the receiving box, for the cards assumed in
position upon its support.
Figure 2 is a section on the line 1-2 of Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a partial longitudinal section of a mechanical organ shewing the side
from which the cards issue and having my device applied thereto.
Figure 4 is a section on the line 3-4 of Figure 3.
It will be understood that, to avoid constant attendance whilst a mechanical
organ or the like is playing, the perforated tune strip, when leaving the instrument
should be automatically folded as it falls into its box or receptacle. If it were not
so folded its movement would be retarded and the playing of the instrument
interrupted.
To effect this automatic folding operation I arrange beneath the outlet aperture a
for the tune strip band below the strip, a rocking flap c pivoted at o in brackets d, d
fixed on the outer side of the case P of the instrument.

page_text: The tune strip b after having left its supporting table frests upon the flape and
passes into a receiving box.
The flap crests upon the upper part 1 of a bent lever L. The larger arm of this
lever situated within the organ bears upon a projection on the movable portion g
of the organ bellows S and slides without friction between guides h, h.
The smaller arm which may be of metal of any suitable shape and provided
with a roller is fixed on the larger arm and extends cutside the organ through an
aperture in the side of the case P.
It will be obvious that, when the operating shaft O which works the bellows
and the various mechanical parts of the organ is revolved by means of a handle m
or by power every time the connecting rod n lifts the movable portion 9 of the
bellows S the projection on the portion g will lift the lever L and consequently the
flap c.
As soon as the movable portion g of the bellows descends, the lever L being
deprived of support, falls by its own weight and with it the flap e falls.
The rotation of the shaft O being relatively quick it follows that the flap c will
communicate an oscillating cr shaking motion to the tune strip 6 which, being
thereby lifted and then suddenly allowed to drop, will obviously fold with much
greater facility than if it issued simply in a continuous manner without being
shaken.
The tune strip forms a kind of volume the leaves of which are superposed in
accordion fashion in the box B.
I employ a removable box B the two ends of which consist of lids or covers p p¹
which are alike. The box B rests on a wood or metal bracket g hung upon hooks r
fixed in the case of the organ at a convenient height.
While the box B is receiving the tune strip bits uppermost cover p is open and
the lowermost one p' is shut (see Figure 3).
As soon as all the tune strip has passed, the uppermost cover p must be shut, a
half turn given to the box around its horizontal axis parallel to the direction of
travel of the tune strip, and the other cover p¹ which had before formed the
bottom of the box and is now upper-most, opened; the box B with its bracket g is
then transferred to the left hand side of the instrument and hung upon books
similarly arranged to the hooks r herein before described. The tune strip, as will
be readily understood, is conveniently arranged in the said box for the
recommencement of the playing of the piece, the strip always travelling from
left to right.
It is of course understood that it is necessary to have two similar boxes, one for
paying or letting out the tune strip and the other for receiving it. The positions
of these two boxes are respectively changed after each passage of the tune strip
and the playing of the piece is only interrupted during the very brief space of
time occupied in effecting this change.
To allow of easily ascertaining if the folding of the tune strips is taking place
satisfactorily, each box B has in its front a small door v that of the right hand box
being left open during the reception of the tune strip.
The flap c may be oscillated through the medium of the shaft O in any other
suitable manner than that described, for example, the lever L cau be directly
jointed to the flap c and to the movable portion g of the bellows S and can be
placed either inside or outside the instrument; 1 can make the flap of any suitable
shape such as rounded or angular at the part where it bears upon the tune strip to
lift it. Also I can arrange upon its supporting edge a small roller in order to
minimise damage to the strip b. The flap c can be replaced by any other arrange-
ment acting upon the tune strip in a like manner, for example, I can employ a
simple oscillating metal stirrup which would be operated through its lateral arms
or by means of an auxiliary arm, etc.
My removable boxes can be made of any height and of any suitable material.
In the drawing they are represented as made of wood, but sheet metal or wire
gauze is preferable.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A device for automatically receiving perforated jointed tune strips as they
leave organs, mechanical pianos and other similar instruments the said device
comprising a box with removable ends and attached to the musical instrument
below the outlet for the tune strip and a rocking flap arranged above the box and
adapted to act upon the inner face of the tune strip so as to impart to it continuous
shocks or jerks thereby facilitating its folding into the box, the rocking motion
being communicated to the flap from the main shaft of the musical instrument,
substantially as described and illustrated.
2. In a device of the kind described in Claim 1 a flap jointed or pivoted to the
case of the musical instrument over which flap the tune strip passes on leaving the
instrument and to which the oscillating or rocking motion is communicated by
means of a tent lever, actuated by the main shaft, either directly or by utilizing
the up and down motion of the movable position of the main bellows, substantially
as described.
3. In a device of the kind described in Claim 1 the employment of a box having
removable ends the said box being arranged upon a support attached to the
musical instrument and adapted to receive the tune strip which is folded therein
on leaving the instrument substantially as described.
Dated this 17th day of February 1897
G. F. REDFERN & Co,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.