Improvements in Organs.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Mar., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 11th Dec., 1891-Accepted, 30th Jan., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Organs.
I, JAMES JOHN WALKER of 27 Francis Street Tottenham Court Road London
in the County of Middlesex Organ Builder do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object the improvement of the tone of organs,
principally those used in small buildings, though I may at times apply it to large
organs in use in churches, halls, and public buildings, and consists of a method
of causing the sound and wind from the various organs called the great choir
solo swell pedal and other organs to pass through or impinge against an enclosed
space or soundboard, hereafter called the soundboard, which may take the form of
a box or case the interior or exterior of which is occupied by bells, resonating
metal bars or stretched wires of metal or strings of other suitable material, so hung
or placed or stretched that the vibration of the wind from the pipes causes similar
vibrations to be set up in the bells, pieces or strips of metal or wood or in the
strings, hereafter called the tone resonator or enforcer.
In rooms of large size having roofs of bad acoustic properties I can hang a
soundboard resonator immediately over the pipes, inclined at any suitable angle and
controlled by means of a damping pedal or drawstop, to be used at the option of
the player, or in rooms of moderate size and where it is convenient I frequently
use an ordinary pianoforte instead of a separate case of tone resonators providing
in the enclosing case of the pianoforte a suitable aperture for the admission of the
wind from the speaking pipes.
In order that the sound and wind from the pipes may when necessary be conducted
through or against the soundboard containing the tone resonators I connect it to
the various organs by means of rigid or flexible tubes or pipes, and I enclose each
of the organs in a
case or swell box, cach of which has a shutter or series of
shutters cutting it off from the rigid or flexible tube which connects it with the
resonator. I may also arrange these swell boxes in the usual way, that is so that
any of its sides or ends may be opened or closed at pleasure independently of
the flexible or rigid tube above mentioned. To obtain compactness and entire
independence of each of the organs before mentioned, I place each of them on
rollers, wheels or slides and by mounting them on rails or slides and using wind
trunks or passages for conveying the wind from the bellows to the soundboards
made of convenient form and flexible, I not only enable a person to get at any
individual organ that it may be necessary to attend to, without disorganising the
whole, but I save the space usually occupied by the passage boards, rendering the
whole organ more compact, and the mechanism more accessible. My invention is
applicable to any organ that is controlled by or has a pneumatic or electro
pneumatic action, and where it is convenient I so arrange my organ that the
pipes and the cases or swells that contain them, are mounted
on their rails
in a separate room to that occupied by the performer, who can be placed
at a moveable console or keyboard, mounted on castors, and the sound and
wind are conducted through the cases of the tone resonators, into that occupied
by him. I usually only employ one case of tone resonators but in certain cases it
may be convenient to employ two or more, and I can mount my organs on rollers,
slides or wheels, and rails whether they are enclosed in a swellbox or otherwise.
find that the wind passing through the case of tone resonators under a pressure,
I

page_text: more or less, from the various organs, causes a vibration to be set up in them
which enforces, mellows, and continues the tones of the pipes, producing an effect
of echo that is usually only obtained in large churches, halls and buildings.
Dated this 11th day of March 1891.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Organs.
I, JAMES JOHN WALKER of 27 Francis Street Tottenham Court Road London
in the County of Middlesex 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 :-
This invention has for its object, the improvement of the tone of organs, and is
principally applicable to those used in small buildings, and chambers though it
can and sometimes will be applied to organs in use in churches and public buildings,
either to improve the tone of the various organs, that is, the great, choir, solo,
swell, pedal and others, collectively called an organ, as a whole, or to emphasize
and enforce the tone of any one or more of them should the acoustic properties of
the building require it.
The invention consists in the construction and application of a soundboard, box
or case, the exterior of which is occupied by stretched wires or strings of suitable
material. The wind or sound waves on leaving the pipes are caused to pass over
or through or to impinge against the strings, hereafter called the resonators,
inducing as to pitch similarvibrations to those of the various organ pipes, to be
set up in them, enforcing and continuing the tones of the pipes.
The particular form of the soundboard has to be determined by the particular
case in which it is to be used, but it may be taken to resemble in its general_form
a fully strung soundboard of a full sized piano, although in certain cases I can
employ an ordinary cottage pianoforte, as a resonator with an accessory sound-
board upon which are strung singly or in duplicate or more the strings of the
lowest three octaves of a full sized grand pianoforte or longer if necessary, to
enforce the 32 foot tone of the organ.
In certain cases I find it advantageous, in order that the wind and soundwaves
from the pipes may be made to pass through over or against the resonators, to
connect the strung soundboards to the various organs by means of rigid tubes or
pipes, a convenient form being not unlike the ordinary wind trunks of an organ,
made of any convenient form rectangular or otherwise. I enclose each of the
organs in a case or swell box where such treatment is admissible and provide a
shutter or a series of shutters cutting it off from the rigid tube, which is connected
with the strung soundboard or to the pianoforte case making a convenient opening
in the case for the admission of the wind or soundwaves from the speaking pipes
and placing the accessory soundboard in a horizontal position in front of the
swell shutters to assist in reflecting and passing on the sound waves.
To obtain compactness where space is limited, and entire independence of each
of the organs before mentioned, I place each one on rollers or wheels mounting
them on rails or guides, which has the advantage of enabling a person to get at
any part that may require attention, and thus saving the space usually occupied by
passage boards, rendering the organ more compact and the mechanism more
accessible.
If the wind tubes are flexible I am enabled to move any organ that it may be
necessary to get at, and open it, and still have the power of using the rest of the
strument, particularly for tuning pun poses.
I usually only employ one ea of resonators, but in certain instance. I shall

page_text: employ two or more and I can mount my organs on rollers or wheels whether they
are all enclosed in swell boxes or not.
My invention is applicable to any organ that is controlled by or has a pneumatio
or electro pneumatic action, flexible connections being used in either instance, and
where it is convenient I so arrange my organs that the pipes and the cases and
swells that contain them, are mounted on their rails if required, in a separate room
to that occupied by the performer who can be placed at a moveable console.or
keyboard mounted on rollers, and the sound is conducted through the case of
resonators into that occupied by him.
I find that the wind or soundwaves passing through the case of tone resonators,
under a pressure more or less, from the various organs, causes a vibration to be
set up in them which enforces and continues the tonal effects of the pipes producing
an artificial echo or reverberation that is usually only obtained in large churches,
halls and buildings.
I apply my invention to existing organs by suspending my cases of tone
resonators over the organ in convenient places, all that is required being that as
far as possible the full force of the wind or soundwaves should impinge against the
resonators.
In connection with the resonators, I employ dampers placed under the control of
the performer, that their vibrations may be stopped wholly or partially at any
desired interval of time after the pipes have ceased speaking.
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. The combination of an organ as a whole with a strung soundboard having
strings on the outside substantially as above described.
2. The combination of an organ or series of organs with or without swell boxes,
connected by flexible or rigid tubes to soundboards with resonators and wind supply
and mounted on wheels or rollers for the purposes and substantially as above
described.
Dated this 10th day of December 1891.
JAMES JOHN WALKER.