US3785239A

US3785239A - Fret board for guitar

Info

Publication number: US3785239A
Application number: US202371A
Authority: US
Inventors: W Smith
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1971-11-26
Filing date: 1973-03-23
Publication date: 1974-01-15
Anticipated expiration: 1991-01-15

Abstract

An acoustic guitar to be played with a slide bar aginst the strings in the manner of a Hawaiian guitar has a fret board carrying markings for the actual fret locations together with additional visual indicators for determining proper positions of the steel bar on the strings to produce desired chords. The string-contacting slide bar is provided with a retainer loop to encircle the guitar neck to facilitate manual positioning of the slide bar with respect to the tensioned strings.

Description

1 United States Patent 1 m1 3,785,239

Smith Jan. 15, 1974 [54] FRET BOARD FOR GUITAR 3,403,591 10/1968 Weitzner 84/485 [76] n entor: alter E. Sm t R0 BOX A 3,610,086 10/1971 Decker 84/477 X Fayette Idaho 83661 Primary ExaminerLawrence R. Franklin [22] F iled: Mar. 23, 1973 Att0rneyCharles G. Lyon et al.

Related US. Application Data An acoustic guitar to be played with a slide bar aginst [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 202,371, Nov. 26, the strings in the manner of a Hawaiian guitar has a 1971, Pat. No. 3,739,072. fret board carrying markings for the actual fret locations together with additional visual indicators for de- [52] US. Cl 84/314, 84/477, 84/485 termining proper positions of the steel bar on the [51] Int. Cl. Gl0d 3/06 strings to produce desired chords. The string- [58] Field of Search 84/314, 477, 485 contacting slide bar is provided with a retainer loop to encircle the guitar neck to facilitate manual position- [56] References Cited ing of the slide bar with respect to the tensloned UNITED STATES PATENTS Stringsv 967,507 8/1910 Finney 84/314 6 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures FRET BOARD F OR GUITAR This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Ser. No. 202,371 filed Nov. 26, 1971, and entitled Guitar Construction, now US. Pat. No. 3,739,072.

This invention relates to stringed musical instruments and is particularly directed to improvements of the socalled Hawaiian" type guitar in which a metal slide bar contacts the strings. The fret board customarily employed with such guitars has a series of parallel frets which are spaced further and further apart along the neck in a direction away from the guitar body. If the slide bar is placed in contact with the strings directly over one of these frets, a chord having the desired note spacing is produced, but if the slide bar is held in stationary contact with the strings at some location between the frets, the individual notes have improper pitch when the strings are sounded. If the musician is experienced, he can ordinarily locate the proper positions directly above the frets by listening to the sound, but a beginner with an untrained ear may not be able to do so. The situation is complicated by the fact that the strings lie above the fret board and the slide bar is above the strings so that parallax interferes with proper positioning of the slide bar directly over the desired fret.

In accordance with this invention, visual indicators compensating for parallax are provided on the fret board, in addition to markings showing where the actual frets are located. A beginner, therefore, may place the slide bar at the proper position as indicated by the visual indicator, and does not have to rely on his untrained ear to find the proper positions for the slide bar.

In a relatedfeature of this invention, brackets may be adjustably mounted along the length of the neck and shaped to receive one end of the slide bar. In this way a beginner is assisted in placing the slide bar at the proper location.

As another feature of this invention, the slide bar may be provided with a retainer loop which encircles a portion of the neck of the guitar. In this way the retainer loop assists the guitar player in holding the slide bar close to the strings so that a minimum amount of movement of the slide bar is necessary in a direction normal to the plane of the strings. Furthermore, the retainer loop helps to avoid embarrassment caused by accidentally dropping the slide bar.

Other and more detailed objects and advantages will appear hereinafter.

In the drawings:

FIG. I is a perspective view showing a guitar having a fret board equipped with visual indicators constituting one form of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken substantially on the lines 22 as shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view showing a slide bar with a retainer loop.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken substantially on the lines 4-4 as shown in FIG. 3.

F IG. 5 is a perspective view partly broken away, and showing a modification.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the device of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken substantially on the lines 7-7 as shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a fret board constituting another modification.

Referring to the drawings, the guitar generally designated 10 as shown in FIGS. 14 has an acoustic hollow body 11 of conventional shape and construction joined to a neck 12. The neck is provided with a nut 13.and a plurality of string-tensioning devices 14. The upper wall of the body 11 is provided with the usual sound opening 16. A metallic anchor 17 for the strings overlies a portion of the body 11 and is fixed to an end wall 19 of the body 11. A plurality of tensioned strings 21 extend from the string anchor 17 over the bridge 23 and over the fret board 24 of the neck 12 and over the nut 13 to the string-tightening devices 14. The plane of the strings between the bridge 23 and the nut 13 is disposed at an angle with respect to the upper surface of the body 11, and the fret board 24 is also inclined, parallel with the plane of the strings 12. This feature of inclined strings is described in detail in my prior US. Pat. Nos. 3,398,622, 3,398,623 and 3,426,638.

In accordance with the present invention, the fret board 24 is provided with a plurality of upstanding pegs or other raised elements 25 which extend upward above the plane of the fret board 24 but below the plane of the strings 21. These pegs 25 are placed adja cent certain of the frets 26 as a visual aid in placing the slide bar 27 over the proper fret 26. The proper position for the slide bar 27 is directly over one of the frets 26, but the peg 25 is placed slightly to one side of that fret because parallax otherwise deceives the guitar player and causes him to place the slide bar 27 at a position slightly too close to-the guitar body 11;

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the slide bar 27 is hollow to receive a part of a retainer loop 28 which passes through the hollow interior of the slide bar 27 and which encircles a portion of the neck 12. The slide bar 27 is preferably provided with a ring 29 and lateral projection 30, described in my prior US. Pat. No. 3,386,325. The function of the retainer loop 28 is to assist the guitar player in holding the slide bar 27 close to the strings 21 at all times, so that a minimum amount of movement of the slide bar 27 occurs in a direction normal to the plane of the strings. It will be understood that the slide bar 27 with its retainer loop 28 may be used with conventional guitars in which the plane of the strings is substantially parallel to the upper wall of the guitar body. In any case the retainer loop 28 helps to avoid embarrassment caused by accidentally dropping the slide bar 27.

In the modified form of the invention shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7, a guide rail 31 is mounted along one side of the neck 124 1. This guide rail has a T shaped slot 32 which serves as a mounting for a plurality of brackets 33 each having a U-shaped recess 34. The bottom of each U-shaped recess 34 is positioned just below the plane of the strings 21a. Each bracket slides along the upper portion of the rail and is held in selected position by means of a thumb screw 35 engaging a nut 36 which slides in the slot 32. From this description it will be understood that the brackets 33 may each be positioned in a fixed location withrespect to one of the frets 26a. A beginner may place one end of the slide bar27a in any one of the bracket recesses 34 and be confident that he has selected the proper location for the stringcontacting slide bar, and that the strings when sounded will produce the desired chord. For many simple musical compositions, only three positions of the slide bar 27a are required, and accordingly, chords for these musical compositions require the use of only three brackets 33 spaced at the proper frets 26a.

In the modification of FIG. 8, the fret board 24b is provided with markings 26b showing the true locations of the various frets along the neck 12b. In addition to these fret markings 26b, there is provided a plurality of visual indicators 41 each extending across the fret board and each spaced to some extent from a corresponding fret 26b. The spacing is not uniform; it will be noted that spacing between the actual fret position 26b and the position of the adjacent visual indicator 41 increases gradually in the direction of the arrow 42, which is directed away from the position of the body of the guitar. The positions of the visual indicators 41 are .chosen so that, whether the musician is in a standing or sitting position, the slide bar may be placed so that it appears to the musician that it is directly over one of these visual indicators. In fact, however, and because of parallax, the slide bar will be positioned directly above the actual fret position 26b. The visual indicators 41 may take the form of wide strips, colored or uncolored, or may comprise relatively wide flat ribs raised above the surface of the fret board 24b.

The visual indicators 41 in FIG. 8 or the pegs 25 of FIG. 3 may also comprise small light globes or other elements which may be separately illuminated. The electrical circuits may include switches (not shown) under the control of a teacher, who may thus assist a student musician to place the slide bar in the proper locations by selectively illuminating the visual indicators.

Having fully described my invention, it is to be understood that I am not to be limited to the details herein set forth but that my invention is of the full scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a guitar, a fret board having a series of frets and a series of elements each projecting upward above and between the frets and below the plane of the guitar strings to provide visual assistance in placing a slide bar on the strings.

2. In a musical instrument having tensioned strings in a plane, a fret board having a series of fret marks to indicate actual fret positions, a series of spaced visual indicators projecting from the fret board, each visual indicator being placed near one of the fret marks but spaced therefrom so that when a musician playing the instrument places a slide bar on the strings in visual alignment with one of said visual indicators, 21 parallax condition occurs so that the slide bar is actually positioned in alignment with one of the actual fret marks.

3. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which the visual indicators comprise selectively illuminable elements.

4. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which the spacing between each visual indicator and its related fret mark increases along the fret board in a direction away from the body.

5. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which the visual indicators comprise pegs extending above the fret board but terminating short of the plane of the strings.

6. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which the visual indicators comprise markings extending transversely across the fret board.

Claims

2. In a musical instrument having tensioned strings in a plane, a fret board having a series of fret marks to indicate actual fret positions, a series of spaced visual indicators projecting from the fret board, each visual indicator being placed near one of the fret marks but spaced therefrom so that when a musician playing the instrument places a slide bar on the strings in visual alignment with one of said visual indicators, a parallax condition occurs so that the slide bar is actually positioned in alignment with one of the actual fret marks.