US1431677A - Art of muting instruments of the viol class - Google Patents

Description

B. E. MILLS.

\ ART OF MUTING INSTRU MENTS OF THE VIOL CLASS.

APPLICATION mm JULY 8,1921.

1,431,677, Patented Oct. 10,1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

B. E. MILES? ART OF MUTING INSTRUMENTS OF THE VKOL CLASS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 8.1921;

1,431,677, Patented Oct. 10, 1922.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2- have/2%]? ZZZ; l I 4 6..

Patented Oct. 10, 1922.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BER'I'IE E. MILLS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO MILLS NOVELTY COMPANY, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

ART OF MUTING INSTRUMENTS OF THE VIOL CLASS.-

Application filed July 8, 1921.

To all 'wimm it may concern.

Be it known that I, BERTIE E. Minus, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Art of Muting Instruments of the Viol Class, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in the art of muting instruments of the viol class and is fully vdescribed and explained in the specification and illustrated in the'accompanying draw- T have immediately devised my invention for use on self-playing violins, and more especially on electric self-playing violins of the type represented, for example, in United States Letters Patent to Henry K. Sandell of which Nos. 807 ,7 41 and 1,085,943 may be referred to; and I therefore confine the following description to that particular use and illustrate it in that connection in the drawings, in which Figure 1 is a broken plan view of an electric self-playing violin of the type referred to showing the application of my invention; Figure 2 is a section on the irregular line 2--2, Fig. 1; Figure 3 is a broken sectional view illustrating the muting device in dotted elevation, and Figure 4 is a diagram explanatory of the principle upon which my invention operates; and Figure 4 is an enlarged section on line 4 of Fig. 2.

The violin 5, as explained in any of the aforesaid patents, is electrically played by sounders 6, 6 or bows on rotary shafts 7, 7, one for each string 8, stretched in the usual manner over a bridge 9, the shafts being driven by an electric motor 10 having its shaft suitably geared to each, the gearing being enclosed in a housing 11. The shafts 7 are carried, near their forward ends, to maintain the Sounders normally raised off the strings, by bent levers 12 each connected at one end with a different shaft 7 and between their ends with a rock-shaft 13 journaled in suitable bearings on the frame of the machine, the levers being spaced apart by collars 14 on the rock-shaft and carrying at their rear ends armatures 15 provided to be worked by an electromagnet 16 forrocking the levers to apply Serial No. 483,159.

the constantly rotating sounders to the violin-strings.

The parts thus far described are substantially the same in construction and operation as the corresponding parts in the aforesaid Patent No. 1,085,943, and the foregoing more or less general description thereof is believed to suflice for identifying them and enabling their co-operation with the present muting invention, as applied to the particular instrument, to be readily understood. Other parts of the mechanism illustrated in the drawings and including the fingering elements, of which two are represented at 17 in Fi 1, correspond with those in the Patent in). 1,085,943 and do not require description in the present connection to assist in an understanding of the muting device hereinafter described.

A rosin-holder 18 is vibratorily supported to extendover the four rotatory 'sounders. This holder is in the form of an elongated rectangular box open at top and bottom with an inturned bottom-flange for seating cakes of rosin on the flanges to float or ride on the rotatory 'sounders 6. An arm 19 extends from the box and terminates in a depending shoe 20, at which the box is pivotally supported on the shaft 13 and has secured to it a leg 21 connected at its upper bent end by a coiled spring 22 with the frame at 23 and terminating at its lower end in an armature 24. An electromagnet 25, supported to present its pole to the armature, is included in the circuit of a generator, conventionally represented at 26 (Fig. 2), a switch being indicated at 27 in the circuit. A bent arm 28 extends from a part of the frame at 29 along one side of the box 18 and is provided near its forward end with an upwardly extending bifurcated finger 30, in which is fulcrumed a curved lever 31. containing an elongated inclined or cam slot 32, through which a stud 33 projects from the adjacent side of the rosin-box. The lower end of this lever alines with the adjacent lateral edge of the bridge and carries to register with that edge a contact member, shown as a sharpened stem 34.

When the electromagnet 25 is energized to attract the armature 24, resultant depression of the box 18 causes the stud 33, by its movement in the slot 32, to u n t le on its fulcrum and bear the stem 34: against the edge of the bridge with the effect or deadening the resonance, the same as that of the ordinary mute applied to the bridge in the ordinary manner.

In theparticular application shown and described oi? my muting invention, the stem is caused to contact with a lateral edge of the bridge, but the muting eiiect may be pro duced by contacting it with any part oi": the bridgesuriiace above the base of the bridge.

The diagrammatic showing in Fig. Li; illus trates the principle of my invention. A bellcrank form of lever 31 t'ulcrun ed at'SO has one arm extending as an armature across a stop 35 and the pole ot' an electromagnet 25 in the circuit of an electric generator 26 containing a switch 27"; and the stem 34* on the depending lever-arm registers with the adjacent edge of the bridge 9" on the belly 5 or a violin, whereby energizing the electromagnet to attract the armature turns the bellcrank to produce the muting contact.

While the electromagnet for operating my muting device is shown in an'electric circuit containing a switch, represented in conventional form, it is to be understood that the circuit may be opened and closed automatically through appropriate perforations in a travelling music-sheet, or from akey-board having the keys electrically connected with the lingering-mechanism of the violin for playing it and having a key or other means for controlling the mute-operating circuit. I realize that considerable variation is possible in the details of the construction herein shown and I do not intend to limit my invention thereto except as pointed out in the following claims, in which it is my intention to'claim all the novelty inherent in the invention as broadly as permissible by the state ofthe art.

I claim: I

1. In combination with an automaticallyplayed instrument of the viol class, a muting device comprising a lever fulcrumed adja cent the bridge of the instrument and terminating at one end in a sharpened contactmember registering at its attenuated end with a lateral edge oi said bridge, and means for impelling said member against said bridge-edge. v j

in combination with an instrument of the viol class automatically played by Sounders rotating against the strings, a rosin-holder supported to extend over the sounders, means for depressing said holder and a muting device connected with said holder to be actuated by its depression into muting contact with the bridge of the instrument.

3. In combination with an instrun'icnt of the viol class autonmtically played by sounders rotating against the strin a rosinholdor pivotally supported to ClilXJHl. over the sounders, a springretracted armature connected with said holder, an electromagnet in an electric circuit and presenting its pole to attract said armature and depress the rosin-holder, and a mutingdevice connected with said holder lo be actuated by its 5 pr ssion into muting Contact with the bridge of the instrument.

4t. In combination with an instrument of the viol class automatically played by sounders rotating against the strings, a rosin-holder pivotally supported to extend over the sounders and carrying a stud, a mutting device comprising a lever tulcrumec adjacent said holder and provided with a cam-slot engaged by said stud, said lever terminating in a stem registering with the adjacent edge of the bridge of the instru ment, a spring-retracted armature connected with said holder, and an electromagnetin an electric circuit and presenting its pole to attract said armature and depress the rosinholder to actuate said lever to impel said stem into muting contact with said bridgeedge.

I 5. In combination with an automaticallyplayed instrument of theviol class, an electric circuit, a lever tulcrumed adjacent the bridge of the instrument and carrying a contact member, and means in said circuit to automatically operate said lever to impel the contact member carried thereby against the bridge of the instrument.

6. In combination with. an automatically played instrument of the V101 class, an electric circuit, a lever fulcrumed adjacent the brldge oi the instrument and carrying a contact member, and an electromagnetin said oircu tto automatical'iy operate said lever to impel the contact member carried thereby against the bridge out thoinstrument.

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