IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF HARMONIUMS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Philip Augustus Claude, of Ossulston Street,
Euston Road, in the County of Middlesex, Harmonium Manu-
facturer, for the Invention of " IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF
HARMONIUMS."
Scaled the 30th May 1876, and dated the 1st December 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Philip Augustus
Claude at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 1st December 1875.
I, PHILIP AUGUSTUS CLAUDE, of Ossulston Street, Euston Road, in
the County of Middlesex, Harmonium Manufacturer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION
OF HARMONIUMS," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to simplify the construction of har-
moniums and thereby to reduce the cost of their manufacture without
detracting from their quality or efficiency. In the attainment of this
end I do away with the air chamber below the reed pans and connect
these pans directly with the air reservoir which is supplied as usual
from the feeders.
I fit the closed reed pans, supposing the instrument to consist of an
open and a closed reed which is divided into two compartments, with a

page_text: pair of flap valves for admitting air to the two compartments from the
air reservoir. These valves open inwards, and they are held to their
seats by means of springs.
Instead of using draw stops for opening these valves I employ a pair of
horizontal cranked rock levers, to the outer ends of which are fitted pieces
for the knees of the player to act against laterally, the inner ends of these
levers bear against an incline on their respective valves, and when either
lever is rocked in its bearing the corresponding valve is lifted and air is
admitted to one division of the reed pan, thereby allowing the reeds of
that division of the pan to sound on the depression of the keys which
control that end of the instrument.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Philip Augustus Claudo in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 1st June 1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, PHILIP
AUGUSTUS CLAUDE, of Ossulston Street, Euston Road, in the County of
Middlesex, Harmonium Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the First day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Philip Augustus Claude, Her
special licence, that I, the said Philip Augustus Claude, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Philip
Augustus Claude, 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 lawfully 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 THE CONSTRUCTION OF HARMONIUMS," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Philip Augustus Claude,
my executors or administrators, 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

page_text: 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 Philip Augustus Claude, do hereby
declare 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, reference being had to the Drawing here-
unto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say):-
The object of this Invention is to simplify the construction of bar-
moniums which have two or more reed boxes, and thereby to reduce the
cost of their manufacture without detracting from their quality. or
efficiency. In attaining this end I do away with the air chamber below.
the reed boxes and connect these boxes (two, three, four, or more)
directly with the air reservoir, as in the single stop instruments, such
reservoir being supplied as usual from the feeders, and I so arrange the
instrument as to remove the necessity for draw stops, or I limit the use
of the draw stops to say one set of reeds which will be brought into
occasional use only for the sake of variety.
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional eleva-
tion of an harmonium with five reed boxes arranged according to my
Invention.
Fig. 2 is a plan view showing the arrangement of the reed boxes; and
Figures 3 and 4 are sectional views illustrating the means for operating
the air valves of the closed reeds. a, a, is the open reed which there-
fore sounds whenever the instrument is being played, this will represent
the diapason stop; b, b, is a closed reed box divided up by a partition
into treble and bass; and c, c, d, d, are similarly arranged reed boxes
fitted with different qualities of vibrators as is usual in instruments of
this class. The treble divisions of the three reed boxes are open to each
other, and so also are the bass divisions, and they are supplied with air
by means of the flap valves e, e*. These valves (see Fig. 1) open
directly into the air reservoir f which receives its supply of air from the
feeder 9 in the usual manner, the feeder being worked by a pair of
treadles h. The open reed box a receives its supply of air direct from
the feeder, but it is also in connection with the reservoir f. The valves
e, e*, are operated respectively by the lateral pressure of the knees of
the player against a pair of wing-shaped pieces i, i*, forming the termi-
nations of a pair of horizontal cranked levers k (see Fig. 3), the inner

page_text: ends of which bear against a stud projecting from the flap valves e,
and when rocked tip those valves and admit air to either or both
divisions of the reed boxes. By this means the player is enabled
without taking his fingers from the keys to bring into use the vibrators
in the boxes b, c, and d, the rock levers forming a cheap and efficient
substitute for draw stop rods applied to all the closed reeds.
It will be understood that according to my Invention the number of
reed boxes is limited to the plan area of the reservoir, I have however
shown the manner in which additional stops or sets of vibrators may be
introduced without the use of the ordinary air chamber.
In Fig. 2 it will be seen that the treble portions of the reed boxes a
and bare contracted so as to provide a space for a fifth reed box l.
This may be conveniently fitted with vibrators representing the "voix
celeste" of the organ. The flap valve for admitting air thereto will be
conveniently operated by a draw stop m, as shown in Fig. 4, the
vibrators of that stop being so tuned as to prevent their being advan-
tageously used with any but the open reed.
The arrangement for enabling the keys to sound a corresponding note
in all the sets of vibrators is shown in Fig. 1, and will be readily under-
stood by any one familiar with the ordinary construction of harmoniums.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of " Improvements
in the Construction of Harmoniums," and explained the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the
above in part recited Letters Patent I claim, in combination with an
open reed the arrangement of apparatus above described, whereby one or
more closed reeds may be brought into and thrown out of use without
the employment of an air chamber interposed between the reservoir and
the reeds and without the use of draw stops.
In witness whereof, I, the said Philip Augustus Claude, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, the First day of June, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
PHILIP AUGUSTUS CLAUDE. (L.S.)