Improvements in and connected with Devices for Producing Musical Tones.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 8th June, 1899-Accepted, 22nd July, 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Devices for Producing Musical
Tones.
I, THEODORE FRANCIS SMITH, of Pall Mall American and Colonial Exchange,
Carlton Street, Regent Street, London, S.W., Professional Musical Artist, 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 improvements in devices for producing musical tones,
the object being to so construct a device of this kind and arrange the operating
mechanism in such a manner, that one, two or more notes may be struck or
caused to sound simultaneously, by a single action or movement on the part of
the operator, while the tone emitted is richer and fuller than with other devices
of this nature such as hitherto employed.
The essential features of this invention comprise the arrangement of a vibrator
or vibrators in combination with a resonator or resonators, the latter being tuned
in unison with the vibrators; and an operating lever one end of which is suitably
branched or forked and carries a hammer or hammers designed to be brought into
contact with the vibrator or vibrators when required for causing a musical tone
or musical tones to be emitted, while further mechanism hereinafter more fully
described is employed for checking or arresting the action of the vibrator or
vibrators upon the operating lever being released and for ensuring the effective
action of the hammers when they are brought into operation.
In order that my invention may be fully understood, I will now proceed to
describe same with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate a
musical tone producing device constructed according to this invention and which
is designed to cause two separate and distinct tones or notes to be emitted or
sounded upon setting the vibrators in motion by means of the operating mechanism.
In these drawings, Fig. I is a perspective view of the device.
Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section, taken through one of the vibrators and
resonators, showing the parts in operation.
Fig. 3 is an underside plan of the device, and
Fig. 4 is a detail hereinafter referred to.
Like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several
views.
According to this invention and as shown in the accompanying drawings, to
the underside of a suitable base board a two vibrators bb, consisting of bars
of suitable vibrating material and of sufficient size and length to produce the
required notes upon being struck are supported upon covered plates e c¹ carried
by screw supports d d in such a manner as to allow of their freely vibrating,
each vibrator being secured by a pin e at one end to secure its position. Above
the vibrators, the base board a is pierced and resonators f fl are arranged, the
said resonators consisting preferably of hollow cylindrical chambers as shown,
closed at their upper extremities and having their lower extremities passing
through the substance of the base board a and situated directly over the
vibrators br

page_text: The operating mechanism comprises the operating lever g, formed integrally
with or having secured thereto, two extended arms g¹ g2, the whole being pivotally
carried between the supporting lugs or plates h. Each projecting arm g¹ g² is
preferably constructed of hollow form as shown and within same towards one
end a spring plate k secured at one extremity to the substance of the arm g'
is arranged, each spring plate being furnished at its free extremity with a striking
hammer of suitable form and designed to be brought into contact with its
corresponding vibrator when suitably operated.
m is a suitable stop designed to limit the upward movement of the operating
fever, while the device for arresting or checking the vibration of the vibrating
plates comprises a vertical spindle n free to slide up and down through a
fixed sleeve n and furnished at its upper extremity with a forked plate o carrying
downwardly projecting pins p¹ passing through the substance of the base
board a and provided at their lower extremities with pads q q' designed to normally
rest upon the vibrators 6 b¹.
The operation of this device is as follows:-
Upon the lever being depressed or drawn-down, which may be accomplished
by the aid of a flexible connection hooking on to the cross pin s as shown in
the drawings, or by means of an upwardly projecting pin provided with a knob
for depressing the lever (this arrangement not shown) or by operating the
lever in any other suitable and convenient manner, the arms g¹² are raised
until the projecting portion g³ of the operating lever g is brought into contact
with the stop m, when their further movement in an upward direction is arrested
the damping device consisting of the sliding pin n, forked plate o, downwardly
projecting pins with pads q q', being simultaneously raised. The spring
plates carrying the hammers continue their upward movement until they
come forcibly into contact with the vibrators bb' which are thereby set in motion
causing musical tones to be emitted, the hammers instantly flying back and
allowing the plates 6 6¹ to continue vibrating (within practical limits) until the
operating lever is released when the arms g¹ gå fall back and also the projecting
part of the lever g thereby allowing the damping device to fall, arresting or
checking the further vibration of the plates 6 6¹ by reason of the pads q q¹ coming
into contact with the said plates.
In a modified form of the device and as shown in Fig. 4, the hammer instead
of being secured to the extremity of a spring plate, is furnished with a down-
wardly projecting pin provided at its extremity with a stop 2. The pin
passes through a hole or perforation formed in the thickened or enlarged end
of the arm g', so that upon the upward movement of the arms gg2 of the
operating lever g being arrested by the stop m, the hammers by reason of their
acquired momentum will continue their upward movement until coming into
contact with the vibrators, when they fall back by reason of their own weight.
Where a device constructed according to this invention is required to cause a
single musical tone to be emitted, one striking hammer only is employed, while
where more than two musical notes are to be produced the operating lever is fur-
nished with a corresponding number of operating arms and striking hammers,
while the several tones so produced by any single device may be caused to sound
in unison, in octaves, or as a chord, or in any other convenient way, by a proper
form and construction of the vibrators and resonators, and furthermore, when a
scale or range of varying tones is desired, duplicate devices are provided, different
only in size, in all other respects being identical.
Pads of suitable soft material may be placed at various points of the device for
deadening the sound of the operating parts, while where a series of such devices
are to be employed, they may be secured to a board or table in any convenient
and suitable manner, the base board or each device being furnished at its extremity
with a slot a¹ (Fig. 1) to facilitate the fixing by means of a clamping screw or
its equivalent.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, 1 declare that what
I claim is:
1/. A musical tone producing device for the simultaneous production of two
or more musical tones, comprising essentially the arrangement of vibrating plates
or vibrators such as a and b, in combination with resonators such as f f tuned
in unison, and operated by mechanism comprising a pivoted operating lever 3,
furnished with projecting arms each carrying towards one end a spring
plate such as provided at its free extremity with a striking hammer 7; a stop
such as m, and suitable damping mechanism, the whole arranged and constructed
substantially as set forth.
2. The combination with a device for the simultaneous production of one,
two or more musical tones, such as above claimed; of damping mechanism con-
prising the vertical pin passing through a fixed sleeve ¹, and carrying at its
upper extremity a forked plate o furnished with downwardly projecting pins p
provided with damping pads q q¹ normally in contact with the vibrators and
designed to be raised by the operating mechanism, substantially as set forth.
3. The combination with a device for the simultaneous production of two or
more musical tones; of a suitable stop such as m for checking the upward motion
of the arms gg2 forming a part of the operating lever g, to ensure the efficient
striking operation of the hammers and their instantaneous return, substantially
as set forth.
4/. A device for the production of a musical tone or the simultaneous production
of two or more musical tones, consisting of the various parts arranged, constructed
and operating substantially as set forth,
5/. The modification in the form and arrangement of striking hammer, sub-
stantially as herein described and shown with reference to Fig. 4 of the accom-
panying drawings.
Dated this 1st day of June 1899.
F. G. CASSELL,
(Of Cassell & Co.),
22, Glasshouse Street, Regent Street, London, W.,
Agent for the Applicant.