IMPROVEMENTS IN GRAND PIANOFORTES
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry William Viner, of Penzance, in the County of
Cornwall, Professor of Music, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
GRAND PIANOFORTES."
Sealed the 28th June 1861, and dated the 29th December 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry William Viner
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
29th December 1860.
I, HENRY WILLIAM VINER, of Penzance, in the County of Cornwall,
Professor of Music, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN GRAND PIANOFORTES," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists, first, in the construction of a double unison grand
pianoforte, as hereafter described.
Second, in the construction of a double octave grand pianoforte, as hereafter
described.
Third, in the construction of a double action for my double grand pianoforte,
having two sets of hoppers, two sets of hammers, and two sets of dampers,
acted on by one set of keys.
Fourth, in the employment of one or more pedals (in addition to those now
generally in use), for the purpose of giving the performer the power at pleasure,
by pressure of his foot, or vice versâ, to avail himself of the use of both sets of
hammers, or one set alone..

page_text: Fifth, in placing one set of hammers beneath the keys, thus obtaining a
greater speaking length of string in the lower notes in a case of the same
length, this is also applicable to single grand pianofortes.
Sixth, in the manner herein-after described of placing the bracings, sound-
board, and strings (in the upper set), whereby a greater length of sound-board
is obtained between the bridges, by reason of no opening being required
between the rest plank and sounding board in grand pianofortes, as at present
made, the same being required by the hammers in order to strike the strings.
My double-grand pianoforte is made in the following manner :-One set of
keys transmits motion to two sets of hammers (of which one set is placed
above the keys, while the other is placed beneath the keys,) one to strike up,
the other to strike down; these hammers strike two sets of strings or wires,
the one set of strings being below the under set of hammers, while the other
set of strings is above the upper set of hammers, each set of strings having its
own set of dampers; it may also have one or two extra pedals to enable the
performer by pressure of his foot, or vice versâ, to throw the set of hammers
in connection with that pedal against the strings (or nearly so), and thus
silence the same. This instrument is fitted with two distinct sets of bracings,
two hitch blocks, two rest planks, two sounding boards, two sets of strings,
and with a double-action, to be hereafter described; one set of bracings being
for (or in communication with) the upper sound board and its set of strings,
while the other set of bracings is to bear the strain of the under set of strings,
and by this means each set of strings has its own set of bracings, its own hitch
block, its own rest plank, its own sounding board, its own bridges, and so on.
There is a space between the two sets of strings of a few inches, and it is here
that the action is placed. This double-action has one key board, two sets of
hoppers, two sets of hammers, two sets of dampers, one set of dampers being
for the upper set of wires or strings, while the other set of dampers is for the
under set of strings; thus when one key (say, the centre one, or a lower one,
for the upper ones have no dampers,) is pressed down it removes two dampers
(unless the damper pedal is down) from their respective strings, it also moves
two hoppers, (the one being placed on the top of the key, while the other is
inverted and placed below the key,) the one hopper giving motion to and
causing the upper hammer to strike the string or strings above it, while the
under hopper forces the under hammer at the same time to strike the string
or strings below that hammer.
As before stated, I have two descriptions of double-grand pianofortes, one
where the under set of strings produces the same note or sound as the upper

page_text: set, which I call the double unison grand pianoforte, the other where the
under set of strings produces the sound or tone of an octave above or an
octave below the upper set of strings, which I call the double octave grand
pianoforte. The advantage of the double unison grand pianofortes over single
grand pianofortes is an increase in the power or volume of sound, while the
effect of the double octave grand pianoforte is (at the pleasure of the per-
former) the power of producing with one finger the effect of octaves on single
grand pianofortes.
In the manufacture of my patent double grand pianofortes, I employ
bracings of whatever material they may be made. I prefer the sides of the
case should be a fixture to the under set of bracings, and its accom-
panying rest plank and bitch block, and that the upper set of bracings and its
accompanying rest plank and hitch block be united to the former by means of
hinges, so as to turn up, to enable the tuner the more easily to get at the
mechanism to put on a new string, or otherwise repair the instrument; or it
may be made to lift off entirely. I make use of dowels or mortices in the
manufacture of these pianofortes. I prefer that the lower set of strings be not
below its sounding board, as an opening (sufficiently large to allow the
hammer to strike its string or strings) is required between the rest plank and
its sounding board. I prefer that the upper set of strings be not above its
sounding board, as an opening (sufficiently large to allow the hammer to
strike its string or strings) is required between the rest plank and its sounding
board..
I reserve to myself the right of modifying the form and general con-
struction of grand pianofortes, so as to adapt them to the requirements of my
Invention.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent.
filed by the said Henry William Viner in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 29th June 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
WILLIAM VINER, of Penzance, in the County of Cornwall, Professor of Music,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-fourth year of Her

page_text: reign, did; for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Henry William Viner, Her special licence that I, the said Henry
William Viner, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Henry William Viner, 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 law-
fully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN GRAND PIANOFORTES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Henry William Viner, my executors or adminis-
trators, 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 Henry William Viner, do hereby
leclare 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 statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto-
annexed, that is to say :-
My Invention consists first, in the construction of what I term a double
unison grand pianoforte, as hereafter described.
Second, in the construction of what I term a double octave grand piano-
forte, as hereafter described.
Third, in the construction of a double action for my double grand pianoforte,
having two sets of hoppers, two sets of hammers, and two sets of dampers
acted on by one set of keys.
Fourth, in the employment of one or more pedals in addition to those now
generally in use, for giving the performer the power at pleasure by the pres-
sure of his foot, or vice versâ, to avail himself of the use of both sets of
hammers at one time, or one set alone.
Fifth, in placing one set of hammers beneath the keys, thus obtaining a
greater speaking length of string in the lower notes in a case of the same
length; this arrangement is also applicable to single grand pianofortes as
hereafter described.
Sixth, in the manner herein-after described of placing the bracings, sound
board, and strings in the upper set, whereby a greater length of sound board

page_text: is obtained between the front and back bridges, owing to no opening being
required between the wrest plank and sounding board in grand pianofortes as
at present generally made, the same being required by the hammers in order
to strike the strings.
same.
My double grand pianoforte is made in the following manner :-One set of
keys transmits motion, if such is the will of the performer, to two sets of
hammers, one set of which is placed, as is usually found in grand pianofortes,
above the keys, while the other is inverted, and placed beneath the keys, one
to strike up and the other to strike down; these hammers strike what I call,
and herein-after will describe as two sets of strings or wires, one set of strings
being below the under set of hammers, while the other set of strings is above
the upper set of hammers, each set of strings having its own set of dampers ;
it may also have one or two extra pedals to enable the performer by pressure
of his foot, or vice versâ, to throw and sustain the set of hammers in connec-
tion with that pedal against the strings, or nearly so, and thus silence the
This instrument is fitted with two distinct sets of bracings, two hitch
blocks, two wrest planks, two sounding boards, two sets of strings, and with a
double action to be hereafter described; one set of bracings being for or in
communication with the upper sound board and its set of strings, while the
other set of bracings is to bear the strain of the under set of strings, and by
this means each set of strings has its own set of bracings, its own hitch block,
its own wrest plank, its own sounding board, its own bridges, and so on.
There is a space between the two sets of strings of a few inches, and it is
here that the action is placed; what I mean by one or its sets of strings I will
herein-after describe. This double action has one key board, two sets of
hoppers, two sets of hammers, two sets of dampers, one set of dampers being
for the upper set of wires or strings, while the other set of dampers is for the
under set of strings, thus when one key, say, the centre one, or a lower one
for the upper ones have no dampers, is pressed down, it removes unless the
damper pedal is down two dampers from their respective strings; it also
moves two hoppers, the one being placed or secured at, in, or on the top of
the key, while the other is inverted and placed below the key, the one hopper
giving motion to and causing the upper hammer to strike its proper string or
strings above it, while the under hopper forces the lower hammer at or about
the same time to strike its proper string or strings below that hammer.
As before stated, I have two descriptions of double grand pianofortes, one
where the under set of strings produces the same note or sound as the upper.
set, which I call the double unison grand pianoforte, the other where the under:

page_text: a
set of strings produces the sound or tone of an octave above, or an octave
below the upper set of strings which I call the. double octave grand piano-
forte. The advantage of the double unison grand pianoforte over single grand
pianofortes is an increase in the power or volume of sound, while the effect
of the double octave grand pianoforte is the power of producing with one
finger the effect of playing octaves on single grand pianofortes which may be
used or dispensed with at the pleasure of the performer.
. Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings shows in longitudinal section so much
of the working parts of a pianoforte as will be necessary to illustrate one method
in which my Invention may be carried into effect. a, a, are the keys, two only,
viz., a black and white one, or a note and its flat are shown, having their
fulcra at b, where they are connected to the key frame c as in pianofortes of
the ordinary construction. In the lower set d, d, are the bracings; e, e, are
the metallic hitch plates or hitch blocks; f, f, are the wrest planks; 9, 9, are
the sounding boards; h, h, are the strings connected to the hitch pins i, i, on
one end of the hitch block or plate, and wound round the wrest pins j, j, on
the other end of the wrest plank k is the bridge on the sounding board, and
is the bridge on the wrest planks. In the upper set d', d, are the bracings;
e is the bitch block or string plate; f¹ is the wrest plank; g is the sounding
board; h¹, h, are the strings; ke is the bridge on the belly; 22, 2¹, are the
hitch pins, the tuning or wrest pins; and is the bridge on the wrest
plank. A, A, are the hammers for the lower set of strings; the butt m in
which the centre wire carrying each of the hammers is inserted is free to
move about the point n in the hammer rail o; p, p, are the hoppers, detached
views of one of which are given at Figures 2 and 3; the upper end of each
of the hoppers enters a slot, or it may be otherwise fixed to the keys formed
on the under side of the keys, and the lower end is forked unless the same
be reversed, and, carries a hopper q free to move about a pin passing through
it and the forked end of the hopper; the hopper q bears against an abutment
which is formed in the butt m; r is a lever connected to the hopper q; and
s is a spring bearing against the latter, and against the upper end of the
hopper pas shown; t is a button to regulate the escape of the hopper for the
lever to abut against; u is a spring connected to the bar y, and bearing
against the under side of the butt m of the hammer to return it to its place;
v is a check connected to the key a to prevent the rebound of the hammer
against the ruler; w is the ruler, and is the damper for the lower set of
strings. B, B, are the hammers for the upper set of strings; o' is the hammer
rail about the point n', in which the hammer is free to move; p', p' are the

page_text: hoppers, detached views of which are given at Figures 4 and 5; the lower
end of each of the hoppers is secured to the key, while the upper end- bears
against the butt of the hammer m²; r' is a lever forming part of the hopper p¹;
s' is a spring bearing against the lever r¹, and connected to the key; t¹ is
the regulating button; v¹ is the check connected to the key a, and w¹ is
the ruler. Supposing one or more of the keys to be touched by the per-
former, the following is the action which takes place. For the sake however
of brevity and clearness, I shall limit myself to the description of the action of
one key. As the key a descends, it carries with it the hopper p, which presses
against the abutment on the butt m, and depresses the hammer A sharply on
the strings ; at the time the front end of the key a descends, the back end
thereof rises, causing the hopper p¹ to drive the hammer B sharply against the
strings, both the hammers thus strike the strings at or about one and the
same time, and as shown by the dotted lines; so soon as this is accomplished,.
the springs and s act as is usual for the escapement of pianos in the lower
set, and the spring s¹ in the upper returns the parts to their original position'
as is usual in pianos.
Figure 6 is a longitudinal section of a pianoforte constructed according to
my Invention, in which the lower hammers and dampers are placed in a
different position to that shown at Figure 1, the same letters of reference.
in Figure 1 refer to corresponding parts in this Figure. The hoppers are..
however, in this case made in a different manner; these hoppers p', p¹, pull
up instead of push down; the butt m of the hammer A takes into a notch
formed in the hopper p as shown, and the head of the hopper p¹ abuts against
the butt on the hammer B. It will be seen that this hopper acts as its own
check, and that as the keys are depressed, so the hammers are caused to
strike both the set of strings (as shown by the dotted lines) simultaneously.
Instead of placing the hammer A in front of the key frame c as shown in
Figure 1, it may be placed behind it in the reverse direction, the upper
hammer occupying the same position as shown in that Figure. I can also
otherwise vary the positions of the hammers to suit the instruments to which
they are applied, as it is immaterial what position the second hammer occupies..
In the manufacture of my patent double-grand pianofortes, I employ
bracings of any suitable material. In Figure 1, I have shown them made of:
wood, and in Figure 6 I have shown the bracing d made of metal, but I can
make them of either or of a combination of them.
I prefer the sides of the case should be a fixture to the under set of bracings,.
and its accompanying wrest plank and hitch block, and that the upper set of

page_text: bracings and its accompanying wrest plank and hitch block be united to the
former by means of hinges, so as to turn up to enable the tuner the more
easily to get at the mechanism; also to put on a new string, or otherwise
repair the instrument, or it may be made to lift off entirely, in which case [
make use of "dowels" or " mortises "in the manufacture of these pianofortes
to ensure its fitting on with accuracy in its former position, I prefer to place the
lower set of strings above its sounding board as shown at C, Figures 1 and 6,
as no openings sufficiently large to allow the hammer to strike its string or
strings is required between the wrest plank and its sounding board. I prefer
that the upper set of strings be below its sounding board as shown at D,
Figure 1, as an opening sufficiently large to allow the hammer to strike its
string or strings is not then required between the wrest plank and its sounding
board. In Figure 6 however, the upper set of strings is shown above the
sounding board.
My grand pianoforte may be either a double tri-chord or a double bi-chord,
or a double una-chord, or the upper set of strings may be a tri-chord, and the
lower a bi-chord, or vice versa, or the upper set of strings may be a tri-chord,
while the lower is a una-chord, or vice versa; or the upper set may be a bi-chord
while the lower set is a una-chord, or vice versa; so that the upper set of
strings may be a una chord,-or-possess as many more strings or unisons as I
please to be used with a lower set of strings, which set of strings shall-be-a-
una-chord (only possessing one string to each note), or as many strings or
unisons as I please to each note; this double set of strings, whether the
upper set be in unison with the lower, or an octave above, or an octave
below, constitute what I term my double grand pianofortes. I reserve to
myself the right of modifying the form and general construction of grand
pianofortes so as to adapt them to the requirements of my Invention.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim as my "Improve-
ments in Grand Pianofortes,"
First, the construction of double unison grand pianofortes, substantially in
manner herein-before described.
Second, the construction of double octave grand pianafortes, substantially in
manner herein-before described.
Third, the construction and employment of a double action for what I term
double grand pianofortes, arranged and acting substantially in manner and for
the purposes herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawings.

page_text: Fourth, the employment of one or more pedals in addition to those at
present employed, in manner and for the purposes herein-before described.
Fifth, fitting the bracings, sound boards, and strings, in such manner that
a greater length of sound board between the bridges is obtained in grand
pianofortes generally, as herein-before described and illustrated in the accom-
panying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry William Viner, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of June, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-one.
HENRY WILLIAM VINER. (L.S.)
HENRY WILLIAM VINER. (L.S.)