Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Music therapy developmentally facilitates individuals to share their knowledge of new skills with others. By learning how to play an instrument, such as an assistive guitar, an individual has the opportunity to develop a sense of industry and competence. Music serves multiple functions, including social, emotional, and compensatory needs and is multi-modal, involving perceptual, cognitive, and physical processes. One goal of the device is to disclose an assistive musical instrument, referred to herein as a “modular automated assistive guitar,” that can be actuated by an individual with a range of independence and physical abilities. The use of the modular automated assistive guitar may also be facilitated by another person, such as a teacher, therapist, or colleague. This person may also be restricted in his/her range of physical or cognitive skill level. 
   The legal system of the United States federal government and of various states support, and in some instances mandate, that all children within their jurisdiction have access to a free public education, emphasizing special education and related services for students with identified physical or metal disabilities. Many school systems in the United States, exemplified by Rosedale School, an Austin Independent School District campus for students with multiple disabilities in Austin, Tex., support the unique needs of their students and provide a positive learning environment to prepare them to live, work, and enjoy life in their community. These school systems are supported, in turn, by research and development work at colleges, universities and commercial industry. The curriculum offered by the Mechanical Engineering Department and research efforts conducted under the direction of Dr. Kristin L. Wood is cited as examples of such support at the University of Texas at Austin. The musical device of the present invention can be effectively used by the school systems to assist students within their systems that have such special needs. 
   Beyond the use in music therapy and as assistive devices for the classroom, automated instruments provide an avenue for teaching basic instrument lessons and for appreciating the musical sounds produced by the instrument. In the case of the present modular automated assistive guitar, a modular architecture is disclosed which include a base assembly, a pick assembly, a strumming mechanism and a fretting mechanism as novel, distinct subsystems. These modules provide permit the user to focus on particular actions of playing the guitar while automating other actions. For example, strumming with a particular rhythm or cadence may be actuated within the modular guitar system while the operator slides the fretting mechanism to learn or play different chords. The operator(s) may also change picks, adjust strumming speeds, or change particular guitars within the device. The modular automated assistive guitar is usually positioned on a stand (a separate unit) that permits the operator to adjust the guitar in height and orientation for convenience. 
   Several United States Patents (USP) have been issued that relate to stringed musical instruments (e.g., the guitar) and modifications to the traditional instruments. The following patents are illustrative: U.S. Pat. No. 4,024,787, U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,400, U.S. Pat. No. 4,331,059, U.S. Pat. No. 4,428,273, U.S. Pat. No. 4,566,365, U.S. Pat. No. 4,615,253, U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,397, U.S. Pat. No. 5,212,330, U.S. Pat. No. 5,393,925, U.S. Pat. No. 6,166,307, U.S. Pat. No. 6,369,307 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,723,904. So far as the inventors are aware, none of the devices described in these patents have been used in whole or in part as an automated assistive guitar. Accordingly, there is a long-felt need for such a musical device to assist persons with physical, emotional, or mental needs. 
   The first objective of the present invention is to provide a modular automated assistive guitar that will interface with a conventional/standard guitar and automate the actions of flexibly holding a pick, strumming with different cadence or rhythm, and guiding a fretting device for choosing the chords and tonal quality of the produced music. For convenience, as used herein, the term “guitar” shall mean a guitar and other similar stringed musical instruments (e.g., a banjo, steel guitar, ukulele) that have a body and a neck, similar to a guitar, and are played in substantially the same way as a guitar. The second objective of this invention is to provide a modular automated assistive guitar that is easily adaptable to various guitars. The third objective is to provide an assistive musical instrument that is compact, light weight, and portable (an instrument that is relatively easily transported by the operator). The fourth objective of this invention is to provide a system that is easily positioned to accommodate the operator&#39;s height, weight, and preferred means of interaction with the instrument, based on the operator&#39;s physical abilities. In some instances, the operator may be able to stand but in other instances the operator may be restricted to a sitting position (as in a wheelchair) or to a reclining position (as on a hospital type bed or couch). The operator may also be limited in how he or she can activate the switch mechanism of the automated assistive guitar. In some instances, the operator may have the physical ability to activate it with their limbs, but in other instances the physical ability of the operator may be restricted to the use of other parts of their body (e.g., head, torso, etc.) to activate the switch mechanism. A modular automated assistive guitar has now been discovered that meets the above objectives. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   A novel modular automated assistive guitar is disclosed which utilizes four novel subsystems/modules (i.e., a base assembly, a pick assembly, a strumming mechanism and a fretting mechanism) in combination with a guitar to form a novel automated musical device that can be played by an individual with a range of mental and physical abilities. Optionally an assistive guitar stand is used as another module to position the automated assistive guitar for convenient interaction by the operator(s). An unmodified, traditional (or standard) guitar is preferably used in the automated musical device but other similar stringed instruments may be used instead. Some individuals may prefer one type of guitar over another, and other individuals may prefer to use a banjo, ukuleles, or other stringed instrument. The guitar component is easily interchangeable in the automated assistive guitar for the convenience of the user. 
   Further objectives, goals, and advantages of this invention are apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment. The accompanying drawings illustrate, schematically, the preferred embodiment. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       FIG. 1  shows the fully assembled modular automated assistive guitar as an isometric. 
       FIG. 2  shows an exploded view of the modular automated assistive guitar, including the base, pick, fretting, and strumming assemblies. 
       FIG. 3A  illustrates a perspective view of the base assembly and  FIG. 3B  illustrates an assembled view of the base assembly and guitar as an isometric. 
       FIG. 4  shows an exploded view of the base assembly from  FIG. 3  without the guitar. 
       FIG. 5  shows an isometric of the strumming mechanism, including the strumming controller. 
       FIG. 6  shows the strumming mechanism, exploded view. 
       FIG. 7  shows the strumming mechanism controller as a block diagram. 
       FIG. 8  shows the pick attachment assembly as an isometric from two directions of view ( FIGS. 8A and 8B ). 
       FIG. 9  illustrates the pick attachment as an exploded view. 
       FIG. 10  shows the fretting mechanism as an isometric. 
       FIG. 11  shows the fretting slider subsystem of the fretting mechanism. The figure is an isometric. 
       FIG. 12  shows the fretting slider subsystem as an exploded view. 
       FIG. 13  shows the handle (human interface) for the fretting mechanism and a cross-section thereof. 
       FIG. 14  shows the fretting clamp, support, and translational slinging subsystem of the fretting mechanism as an exploded view. 
       FIG. 15  shows the automated assistive guitar positioned on a modular guitar stand. 
       FIG. 16  illustrates the guitar stand as an exploded view, with the assembled automated assistive guitar shown in one position relative to the stand. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   A presently preferred embodiment of the invention is described below with reference to the attached drawings. A modular automated assistive guitar  1  of the present invention including the four novel subsystems/modules and a standard guitar is shown in  FIG. 1 . An exploded view of the automated assistive guitar  1  is shown in  FIG. 2 . The musical device illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2  is adapted to sit securely on a table or other flat surface (referred to herein as a guitar stand). The guitar stand is shown in  FIGS. 15 and 16  as an optional module of the invention.  FIG. 1  shows a conventional/standard guitar  11  that is positioned on the base  5  between the two opposing, top mounted handles  14 . The fretting mechanism  2 , composed of the fretting clamp  4  and fretting slider  3 , is positioned over the neck of the guitar and is attached to the base  5  through the fretting clamp  4 . The strumming mechanism  6  is positioned over the “waist” of the guitar and attached to base  5 . The cover  10  (also referred to as a “safety shield”) is positioned over the strumming mechanism  6  and is attached to the base  5 . The pick assembly  12  is the fourth primary subsystem. The pick assembly  12  is contained within the strumming mechanism  6  and is illustrated in  FIGS. 5 ,  6 ,  8 , and  9 . The cover  10  is optional, but preferred since it provides some level of protection to the strumming mechanism and the user. Thus, the cover helps improve the durability of the strumming mechanism and helps protect the user/operator from the many moving parts that are in motion during conditions of use. The cover  10  is preferably constructed from a transparent material, e.g., a transparent polycarbonate or Plexiglas®, to permit the user to view the strumming action of the pick across the strings of the guitar. The speed of the strumming is governed by a strumming controller  7 , which is connected by electrical means (e.g., shielded and strain-protected wires) to the strumming mechanism. The strumming controller  7  includes an actuator (on/off) switch  33 , shown in  FIG. 5 , and an optional secondary corded actuator (on/off) switch  9 . The modular musical device  1  can be actuated by the electrical switching device  33  (and optionally with  9 ) to power the motor  13  and create motion in the strumming mechanism and pick attachment. The fretting mechanism  2  is operated manually and may be manipulated in conjunction with the controller  7  to produce and compose guitar music on the musical device. This operation may be carried out either by the user or by another person (e.g., a teacher, a facilitator, or another student) depending on the physical and/or cognitive abilities of the user. 
   Considering  FIGS. 3 and 4 , a base assembly  5  is illustrated both with and without a guitar. This base assembly  5  includes a wooden base board that is appropriately sized and shaped  15 , two wooden frame wings  16 , two lifting handles  14 , and the fretting mechanism  2 . The fretting mechanism  2  is held to the wooden base board  15  by means of a plurality of fasteners which provides the system with increased stability during use. The lifting handles  14  provide an easy means of lifting and carrying the modular musical device  1  thus increasing its portability. 
     FIG. 5  shows an embodiment of the strumming mechanism  6 , and  FIG. 6  shows an exploded view of this module. The strumming mechanism  6  consists of a moving slider  43  (also referred to as a strumming bearing), connected to the pick attachment  12  ( FIGS. 8 and 9 ) that is slidably mounted on and runs the length of a linear guide  25  (also referred to as a strumming guide). The moving slider  43  and pick attachment  12  are jointly and rotatably connected to a connecting rod  26 , which in turn is rotatably connected to a crank  29  and a motor side guide clamp  28  via a crank pin  46 , a crank bushing  45 , and a bushing cap  27 . The crank  29  is also fixedly connected to the shaft of motor  13 , which is passed through a hole in motor mount arm  31 . Motor mount arm  31  is mounted on the large female telescoping leg  42  that can be adjusted in height via use of a large circular clamp  41 . The large male telescoping leg  40  is fixedly attached to a motor side foot  39 . The strumming guide  25  is fixedly attached at one end to the top side of motor mount arm  31  and is fixedly attached at the other end to the top side of inner hinge arm  18 . The ends of strumming guide  25  are covered by the motor side guide clamp  28  and the hinge side guide clamp  19 , which are fixedly attached to the motor mount arm  31  and inner hinge arm  18  respectively. These structures serve to further stabilize the strumming guide  25  and to limit the range of motion of the strumming bearing  43  and pick attachment  12 . The inner hinge arm  18  is rotatably attached to an outer hinge arm  17 . The outer hinge arm  17  is attached to the large female telescoping leg  42  that can be adjusted in height via use of a large circular clamp  41 . The large male telescoping leg  40  is attached to a hinge side foot  44 . The motor  13  is connected electrically  32  to the strumming controller  35 , which in turn is electrically connected  37  to a power supply  8 . This permits the shaft of the motor  13  to be quickly rotated at different speeds at the option or discretion of the operator. When activated, the shaft of the motor causes the crank  29  to rotate, which in turn causes the pick assembly  12  mounted to the strumming bearing  43  to reciprocate along the length of the strumming guide  25 . This movement causes the pick  61  ( FIGS. 8A and 8B ) in the pick assembly  12  to reciprocate perpendicularly across the strings of the guitar  11  mounted below the motor mount arm  31  and the inner hinge arm  18 . This strumming mechanism  6  works efficiently and has substantial advantages, such as modularity, that facilitate manufacturing and assembly. The ability to use readily available components, such as an AC or DC motor  13 , also provides cost advantages to the manufacturer of the automated assistive guitar. 
     FIG. 7  shows different embodiments of the means to control the motor  13 , mounted to the strumming mechanism  6 , according to the invention. The controller  7 , which has the circuit embodiment  56 , is connected to the AC/DC power supply  55  and actuated via a remote secondary actuator  49  with a primary actuator  51 , preceded by line breakers  48  and  50  respectively, where the remote secondary actuator  49  actuates a regulator  49  for timed power supply to the circuit of the controller  56 . Alternatively a different circuit embodiment can be to connect the power supply  56  to the primary actuator  51  proceeded by a line breaker  50  (dotted). Depending upon AC/DC power supply  55  two alternate controller  56  circuits can be embodied after the primary actuator  51 , one utilizing AC supply requiring the use of a transformer  52  and rectifier  53  further electrically connected to a regulator  49 , or the other circuit embodiment can be an electrical connection between the primary actuator  51  and the regulator  49  (dotted). A manual selector  54  is used with the regulator  49  to regulate power supply to the motor  13  that outputs rotation  57 . Optional feedback sensory device  58  can be embodied (dotted) to improve user control over the motor  13  output. 
   The picking mechanism  12  (also referred to as a “pick attachment”) is shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 . The springs  21  and  62  shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9  provide suitable compliance (flexibility) for strumming the guitar  11 , thus producing an enjoyable musical sound. A discovery made during the design of the pick assembly was that it needed to have compliance for strumming the guitar strings in both directions as the pick attachment  12  travels reciprocally along the linear guide  25 . Two springs ( 21  and  62 ), or equivalent, are, therefore, incorporated into the design of the pick attachment to permit one spring to hold the pick in resilient contact with the strings of the guitar as it moves in one direction, and a second spring to hold the pick in resilient contact with the strings of the guitar in the reverse direction. Two extension springs ( 21  and  62 ) provide this compliant arrangement and connect the pick mount  20  to the pick mount base  22 , one attached at the top and one at the bottom for compliance in both strumming directions. The pick  61  is held between the pick mount  20  and the pick clamp  60  by pressure asserted by threaded fasteners (e.g., screws) or equivalent, drawing the pick clamp  60  against the pick mount  20 . Other means to secure the pick  61  to the picking assembly  12  could be used, if desired. The pick mount base  20  is then fixedly attached to the piston  24 . Piston  24  is a C-shaped component that has an aperture (e.g., circular hole) fabricated through both “arms” of the C-shaped structure; this arrangement permits a bushing to be inserted through the aperture (e.g., open hole) and through a matching aperture (e.g., hole) in one end of the connecting rod  26  that is positioned between the arms of the piston  24 , thereby allowing it to be rotatably mounted to one end of the connecting rod  26 . 
   With reference to  FIGS. 10 and 14 ,  4  generally designates a clamping device (also referred to as a “fretting clamp” and “fretting support”) for holding the guitar  11  in place while the fretting mechanism  2  is being operated. The fretting clamp  4  is composed of two parallel linear guides  80  (also referred to as “fretting guides”), which in turn are each fixedly attached to two parallel arms  76 . Each of the two arms  76  are fixedly attached to the body side foot  72  via the adjustable telescoping legs ( 73 ,  74  and  75 ). The other ends of the two arms  76  are fixedly attached to the neck side foot  70  via the adjustable telescoping legs ( 77 ,  78  and  79 ). Items  73 ,  75 ,  77  and  79  are leg segments and items  74  and  78  are circular clamps, respectively, which permit the individual legs to telescope to appropriate lengths so that the arms  76  can be raised to allow the guitar  11  ( FIG. 2 ) to be appropriately positioned and the lowered to hold it in place. An end piece  69  is mounted at the extreme end to each of the linear guides  80  to provide an end stop for the slider assembly  3 . Channels are preferably routed into each end of the end piece  69  to match the fretting guides  80 ; this structure permits the end piece  69  to slide down and over the fretting guides  80  and form a more secure end stop. While various means can be used to fixedly attach the end piece  69  to the fretting guides  80 , it is convenient to use threaded fasteners that can be inserted through clearance holes fabricated at either end of the end piece  69  and those present along the length of the fretting guide  80 . A spirit level  68  is preferably attached to the top side of the end piece  69  to aid the operator in leveling the fretting mechanism  2  on the base  5  ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ). 
   The fretting slider  3  is illustrated in  FIGS. 11 through 13 . This module  3  fretting mechanism  2  depicted in  FIG. 11  is shown in exploded view in  FIG. 12 , and in cross-section in  FIG. 13 . The slider base plate  64  is fixedly attached to two fretting bearings  81  which, in turn, are slidably mounted on the two fretting guides  80  of the fretting clamp  4  ( FIGS. 10 and 14 ) on either side of the neck of the guitar  11 . The handle  63  is mounted onto plunger  83  via a collar  82  (also referred to as the “plunger head”) with a set screw or equivalent attachment means. The plunger  83  slides through a matching hole fabricated in the plunger guide  67  and the slider base  64  and a matching hole in the slide aligner  66  to hold the slide  65  in place. The slide  65  traverses the neck and is in contact with the strings of the guitar. The operator can cause the slide  65  to exert different pressure on the strings of the guitar  11  by how hard he/she presses the handle  63  down against the strings of the guitar  11  and can lock it in place with a thumb screw  84  when the desired pressure in achieved. The generally rectangular openings in the handle  63  permit the handle  63  to slide down over the plunger guide  67  when the handle  63  is pushed down during fretting operations. Once this operation is completed, the operator can use the handle  63  to move the fretting slider  3  to different fretting positions along the neck of the guitar  11  by moving it along the length of the fretting guides  80  thus enabling him/her to play a number of different chords. The design of the fretting mechanism  2  satisfactorily addressed a number of technical issues, including quality of the musical sounds produced, ease of use, and overall stability. 
   Considering  FIGS. 15 and 16 , an optional guitar stand module  93  is illustrated. This guitar stand  93  includes a flat table top surface  85 , which includes an entrance cavity or indentation  92  to increase the proximity of the user to the modular musical device  1 . The table top  85  is rotatably connected to a support structure via hinge joint  91  and can be adjusted to various angular orientations through the use of a sliding support  87 . The height of the table top  85 , at any given orientation, may be adjusted through the use of telescoping leg structure ( 88 ,  89 , and  90 ) where  88  and  90  are female and male leg segments respectively connected by a circular clamp  89 . A horizontal bar member  86  adds additional stability to the guitar stand assembly  93 . 
   Besides the four primary subsystems (and optional guitar stand), the assistive guitar design preferably includes protective padding, e.g. closed-cell foam rubber, on all of the surfaces that interface with and contact the guitar. Such padding helps avoid surface marring and tonal distortion. 
   Various safety devices can be added to the present musical device. The transparent plastic cover  10  ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ) is highly preferred for user safety and product durability. The size and shape of any such cover can be varied to convenience, but usually it is designed to cover the complete workings of the strumming mechanism  6  ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ). Other safety features can include quick-release wiring  32  and  37  ( FIG. 5 ) to connect the motor  13  ( FIGS. 5 ,  6  and  7 ) to the controller  7  ( FIGS. 1 ,  2 ), along with an on/off control switch  33  ( FIG. 5 ) to act as a “kill switch” for the motor  13  in the case of an emergency. For additional safety, the base  5  ( FIGS. 1 ,  2 , and  3 ) and all fabricated parts can be and preferably are constructed with radius edges. The lifting handles  14  ( FIGS. 1 through 4 ) are for safety and convenience in handling. Such handles  14  can be constructed of steel or any similar such material and shaped for operational convenience. 
   While the invention has been described, illustrated, and disclosed in various forms of embodiment or modifications, the scope of the invention is not intended to be, nor should it be deemed to be, limited thereby. Such other modifications or embodiments as may be suggested by the teachings herein are particularly covered, as they fall within the breadth and scope of the appended claims.

Technology Category: 3