EP1355291A1 - Dual module with a single reed, especially for an accordeon like instrument - Google Patents

Abstract

The Accordion duel reed module has a reed carrier for each note (32), with an aperture (34) and a blade (36). It has at least one reed tongue (42) to the right of the aperture and bars (44) attached to each side of the aperture. The bars are movable to gaps to the sides of the reed tongue and control flow with respect to it.

Description

The present invention relates to a dual single reed module, in particular provided to be placed in a two-way wind instrument wind like an accordion.

The accordion is the instrument chosen to give all the explanations and provide all the information necessary for operation but it is understood that the reed according to the present invention can be mounted in all case a blade must vibrate, whether the wind comes perpendicularly from above or from below with respect to the plane of the blade. This is how for the rest of the description, we will talk about the two directions of the wind.

For the production of accordions, a very large number of parts are necessary.

Indeed, an accordion includes two boxes connected by a bellows forming a speaker. On each of these boxes, in the enclosure, there are tables of harmony provided with openings, release and shutter mechanisms of these openings. These soundboards generally carry several box springs which are supports for many modules also called "music" in the domain of accordion manufacturers. These modules are placed opposite the openings to be crossed or not by the air flows generated by the bellows, depending on the keys pressed.

Each module is in fact the sound production element and includes a blade holder. A module includes two windows, each with a slat fixed by a of its ends provided with a heel on said blade holder. The blade extends by its free part also called tab in this window.

This tab, vibrated by the air flow passing through the window, used to produce sounds.

Depending on the nature, thickness, length / width dimensions and cut out the tongue, we obtain sounds corresponding to the notes sought.

In the known accordions, each module includes, for the same note two windows and two blades for each of the two possible wind directions. One of slats are riveted on one side of the module opposite the first window and the other blade is riveted on the other face opposite the other window.

Each window is provided, on the face of the module opposite to that which carries the blade a valve, generally made of flexible material, more particularly leather.

Thus, for one of the directions of the wind, the corresponding blade is put in vibration and produces the note while the valve on the other window limits the air leakage by the other window.

For the other direction of the wind, it is the opposite.

In order to give this valve the desired stiffness, it is often added a elastic return element, such as a thin and narrow leaf spring.

This is disturbing, because this arrangement with a valve is not favorable to good development of the sound wave emitted by the vibrating blade.

We therefore understand that for a note, you need a module with a blade holder, at least two blades, two rivets, two valves, and often two elements elastic of recall is 9 pieces, which leads for the slightest accordion to a very large number of elements.

Beyond the number, it is necessary to adjust each of the elements providing a contribution. The clearance between the blade and the window, the curvature of the blade for create a gap, the elastic return element of the valve, this so symmetrical to produce the same note.

We also know that for so-called "musette" accordions, musicians wish have the right note but also at least one note very slightly above and at least one note very slightly below, i.e. three modules for a note with six blades. In some cases, it is requested up to four blades for the same note or eight blades for the two directions of the wind. Some accordions are equipped with more than a thousand blades.

We end up with a total number of pieces of several thousand for some instruments when the means of fixing the blade holders and the modules, the key mechanisms, the means of fixing the box springs, harmony tables, in particular.

This makes manufacturing long and very difficult and above all makes it more complex. tuning which remains reserved for fewer and fewer specialists. The cost price is very high and fragility increases in proportion to the complexity.

There is also a very important drawback, it is the weight generated by the accumulation of the number of pieces.

The weight of an accordion, 23 kilos for the heaviest but 12 kilos commonly, forbidden the youngest to play while wearing the instrument. They have to play seated. The handling is made difficult for all musicians and all the more so for small templates.

Maintenance is complex and the instrument remains fragile because the shutters on the vents for example, in leather, are subject to mold attack in presence of moisture. Mechanical characteristics also vary from significantly depending on temperature and aging is often premature except to foresee an important interview by specialists who also rare. Accessibility remains delicate. The costs are high and the important delays.

All this leads to a stagnation in the development of this instrument, even if some countries have significant productions.

It would therefore be useful to have modules whose tongue can vibrate in the two directions of the wind because the number of blades needed would be halved. Of plus, windows and associated parts such as valves being removed because become useless, the weight and size would be reduced so consistent.

In addition, removing the valves would allow better propagation of the his.

Tests have been conducted for many years without success.

Mention may be made of documents of the prior art such as the patent application French N ° 1,350,800 in which the inventor makes a vow without doing so indicate any embodiment.

A German patent No. 34 13 382 describes a reed which can operate in the two directions, the tongue remaining in the same position and the complete frame being moved on either side of the plane of the tongue to respect a certain dissymmetry.

Such an arrangement can not give satisfaction if only by the inertia that presents the frame and the parasitic noises generated by such movements large pieces.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a musical module with a single dual reed, that is to say that works in both directions of the wind. This module as presented in the description which follows, can be implemented industrially. This module overcomes the constraints related to maintenance, considerably reduces the number of pieces because in addition to dividing by two the number of blades, the valves are eliminated as well as the associated fixing and / or elastic return elements.

These modules allow the creation of simpler, more reliable instruments without sacrificing the musical quality which remains at least as good even better because the space freed up can be used to increase the sound output openings outside the instrument. It turns out that the reproducibility is also improved, by limiting interventions linked to manufacturer's know-how more than constructive considerations industrial.

• figure 1, une vue d'un sommier de l'art antérieur portant des modules de l'art antérieur,
• figure 2, une vue en perspective d'un module selon la présente invention,
• figures 3A à 3D, des vues en coupe transversales selon les lignes de coupe indiquées sur la figure 2,
• figure 3E, une vue en coupe suivant la même ligne D-D de la figure 3D mais avec un sens du vent opposé,
• figures 4A et 4B, des représentations en perspective et de dessus de l'agencement de la languette par rapport à la fenêtre ménagée dans le module de l'invention,
• figures 5A à 5D, des vues de variantes de réalisation des volets,
• figure 6, une vue en coupe d'une variante de réalisation dans laquelle la languette est dans le plan du talon avec une fixation des axes des volets en surépaisseur, et
• figure 7, une vue d'une seconde variante de réalisation des axes des volets.

The invention is now described in detail according to a particular and preferred, non-limiting embodiment, with reference to the appended drawings which represent through the various figures:

• FIG. 1, a view of a box spring of the prior art carrying modules of the prior art,
• FIG. 2, a perspective view of a module according to the present invention,
• FIGS. 3A to 3D, cross-sectional views along the section lines indicated in FIG. 2,
• FIG. 3E, a sectional view along the same line DD of FIG. 3D but with an opposite wind direction,
• FIGS. 4A and 4B, perspective and top representations of the arrangement of the tongue relative to the window provided in the module of the invention,
• FIGS. 5A to 5D, views of alternative embodiments of the flaps,
• FIG. 6, a sectional view of an alternative embodiment in which the tongue is in the plane of the heel with a fixing of the axes of the flaps in excess thickness, and
• Figure 7, a view of a second alternative embodiment of the axes of the flaps.

In Figure 1, there is shown a box spring 10 of the prior art supporting several modules 12. Each module includes a blade holder 14 with two windows 16 formed through said blade holder, a blade 18 fixed on each face of the blade holder, opposite the corresponding window, each blade having a heel 20 and a tongue 22 capable of vibrating freely in the window 16 associated.

Each heel 20 is fixed to the blade holder preferably by a rivet 24 which has the advantage of not unscrewing under the effects of vibrations.

Between the blade and the window, over the entire periphery, there is provided a light of very small dimensions and each blade is curved towards the outside of the blade holder, so as to leave a gap i between the plane of said blade and the plan of the blade holder.

So when the air flow is directed towards the blade, it is deflected on the edges of the tongue and goes into this gap. It is during the forced passage of this flow in the gap that the tongue vibrates, almost instantaneously for small blades of low inertia and in a few tenths of a second for the largest corresponding to the bass.

The dimensions of the blade holders are 18 to 50 mm long for 2 to 5 mm in wide and 2 to 5 mm thick to give orders of ideas. The tongues are a few tenths of a millimeter thick.

In the drawings, the scales are not respected to allow a better reading.

In the case of the prior art, if the air flow is in the opposite direction, the blade bends and moves away from the blade holder without vibrating. This is the reason for the presence of the valves 26, each carrying an elastic return element 28, these valves preventing inadvertent air leaks as explained above. Thus, we see that it is absolutely necessary to arrange the whole of the module with an asymmetry capable of initiating the vibration, which explains the impossibility of realizing a single dual reed with the conception of art prior.

The module 30 according to the present invention is shown diagrammatically on the figure 2.

This module 30 includes a blade holder 32 with a window 34. A blade 36 having a heel 38 is fixed with a rivet 40 on said blade holder thus that a tongue 42 which is free to vibrate in the window 34.

On either side of the longitudinal edges of the tongue 42, there are provided movable flaps 44.

These components are listed in window 34.

The following description is made equally with regard to the series of Figures 3A to 3E and 4A, 4B.

In the embodiment chosen, the heel 38 is arranged in superposition on the blade holder. The fixing must be perfectly rigid, which is the case with the rivet 40.

This is shown in Figure 3A, section along line 3A-3A.

If we move along the longitudinal axis of the tongue, we place ourselves in the cutting plane of line 3B-3B.

At this level, we note the presence of window 34 with the tab located in this window.

For this embodiment, the tongue is deformed to be placed to part of its thickness in the window. The heel is indeed above the plane window out of necessity and the tab should be at least partly in the thickness of the blade holder.

According to the present invention, unlike the prior art, it is advisable to keep the plane of the tongue perfectly integrated so that this tongue is perfectly symmetrical. There is no longer a need for a gap by permanent curved deformation of the tongue above the plane of the module, outwards. This can be seen on the different successive sections. By placing yourself along the 3C-3C cutting line, you can see the presence of flaps 44. These components are in the form of portions of a part of revolution. In this embodiment, it is a cylinder but one could consider also a cone or a more complex piece. In this case, it is about a quarter of a cylinder, so that the faces of each portion of cylinder are perpendicular to the plane of the tongue at rest.

Two ribs 46 extend over the entire length of each flap, in the plan of each face of the dihedral. These ribs are designed to come respectively by pressing on the corresponding edge of window 34, above and below.

These flaps are movable in rotation relative to the blade holder about an axis 48, parallel to the longitudinal edge of the tongue.

This axis must imperatively be placed in the median plane of the tongue, to ensure symmetry.

We note that the angular sector is roughly a quarter of a cylinder because it takes be able to materially include axis 48, which is at the geometric center of the curved part, except to offset the axis of rotation outside the section of the shutter.

If we are in the section plane of the 3D-3D line, the elements are identical to those of the previous section plane, except for the edge of the portion of cylinder along which a chamfer 50 is formed. This chamfer, advantageously, is more and more marked as one moves away from the heel towards the end of the tongue.

This makes it possible to generate a gap of variable dimensions between each of the flaps and the tongue, in the plane of the tongue. This chamfer is drawn plan but it can be hollow or more complex in shape without modifying this invention knowing that it is necessary to create a gap, between each of the shutters and the blade.

We also note that this gap, of variable dimensions along the tongue is asymmetrical and allows the blade to vibrate, although the surface neutral of this blade is flat.

in this position, the upper rib 46 bears on the upper face of the blade holder or on an attached stop.

The direction of the air flow and the passages in the interstices are shown on this 3D figure.

The interstice of variable dimensions, being in this embodiment, more large dimensions at the end of the tongue, causes a setting more effective vibration of said tongue.

In Figures 4A and 4B, this gap is clearly shown.

Figures 3A to 3D show the position of the different parts for a direction of wind.

We note when the wind direction is opposite, Figure 3E, that the symmetry of operation is fully respected with respect to the blade.

In this position, the lower rib 46 is in abutment on the lower face of the blade holder. Each flap has pivoted about its axis 48. Indeed, the pressure opposite direction differential rotated these flaps because these ribs constitute means of training and simultaneously end stops of race.

The gaps are symmetrically arranged and the blade can enter vibration in the same way as before but in the opposite direction of the wind.

Such shutters, even made of plastic, can cause noise parasites during pivoting, especially when they are abrupt. Even if such noise is only noticeable by trained ears, it is necessary be able to resolve this imperfection.

This is the object of the variants of FIGS. 5A, 5B and 5D.

In the case of FIG. 5A, the blade holder 32 and the flaps 44 are provided with means 52 air flow dampers. Such means take the form of a wall 54 projecting, coming from manufacture with the blade holder.

This wall is of profile conjugated with the shape of each rib 46 to generate an air cushion 56 which is trapped in a leaking volume controlled. As shown in FIG. 5A, this air leaks but this slight setting temporary overpressure, for an extremely short time, nevertheless generates a cushioning air cushion.

Any parasitic noise of the flap in abutment is thus eliminated or at least sufficiently cushioned to no longer be disturbing.

The symmetrical arrangement allows damping in the two positions of work of each component.

In FIG. 5B, there is a variant of the damping means under form of a groove 46-1 cooperating with the wall 52-1 projecting from the blade holder to make an air cushion 56-1.

In this variant, there is also a reduction in the inertia of the flap. This flap is made from a central core 58 and radial fins 60.

Such shutters, whatever the embodiment, are easily manufactured by plastic extrusion, with excellent precision, like this is commonly practiced in this area of industry.

This ensures reproducibility.

Figure 5C shows an even lighter variant with a core but only two radial fins. It is then necessary to increase the height of the projecting walls so that the fins provide a certain seal without leaving a free passage to the air.

This variant with two fins can also be provided with means noise dampers. The latter are also dropouts which generate the formation of an air cushion.

The fact of being able to produce chamfers of the desired profile makes it possible to shape the sound spectrum of the module.

Indeed, if we widen the chamfer to the right of the third of the length of the tongue, from the heel, the air flow increases the aerodynamic driving force in this place, which favors the production of the third harmonic, it is at say the one that is at the triple frequency of the fundamental.

We can therefore significantly improve the musical quality by controlling the manufacturing, precisely.

The arrangement according to the present invention makes it possible to overcome the drawbacks modules of the prior art since it makes it possible to obtain a single dual reed. Many advantages result from the implementation of such modules, especially for the manufacture of accordion type instruments.

We can also note that, in addition to the gains in number of parts and weight linked to the deletion, some other parts can be modified.

bans the present invention, if the blade holder must be mass to the right of the heel fixation, for the part located on the periphery of the tongue and flaps, the volume of material required can be greatly reduced, by clipping around the moving parts, namely the flaps.

Similarly, in manufacturing, the blade 42 was deformed to be integrated partially in window 34. This blade can be kept in the plane of the heel without any difficulty. It then suffices to provide mounting bearings 62 axes 48, on the upper face of the blade holder. Such bearings can be came from molding without any difficulty.

The condition is to respect a positioning of axes 48 in the median plane of the blade at rest.

In FIG. 6, an alternative positioning of the axes of the flaps has been produced. above the blade holder like the blade itself. In this variant, the heel, the tongue, the axes of the flaps are in the same plane. The bearings 62 are then projecting. They may have come from molding with the blade holder.

In FIG. 7, a different arrangement has been made which provides a reed, the heel 38 is provided with two cutouts 38-1 capable of receiving the axes 48 of the flaps.

A 38-2 plate is attached to the top of the heel, which allows constitute a blind housing to receive the axes. This brochure is taken and held by the rivet 40 with the heel.

In addition, the 38-2 plate provides better heel support, which also allows to limit the reed's movements because these movements are not necessarily symmetrical in both directions of the wind.

There is also a stiffening of each component because the axes are maintained in blind housings, at both ends. Even if the deformations are microscopic, additional stiffening further improves quality of achievement.

Many other practical arrangements can be envisaged without this is beyond the simplicity of the present invention.

The proposed arrangement includes movable components in rotation because the pivoting around an axis is currently the simplest and generates the least friction and the least wear. These are parameters important if rapid change is to be achieved without inertia of the flap position when the wind direction is reversed and durability satisfactory for hundreds of thousands of cycles.

If, with suitable materials, friction and wear be able to be combated, an assembly of the flaps in translation instead of the rotation might be fine. The invention would in no way distorted and would produce the same effects.

There is also a particularly sensitive area which is the end of the tongue because it is at this end that the moment of the acting forces is the most important since it is the area furthest from the point of attachment to know the rivet.

If we want to involve this area, the mobile elements in this case the flaps 44 must have a shape which surrounds the tongue including its end.

The shape of the shutters is necessarily more complex and the production industrial must use molding rather than extrusion.

Indeed, in the case of shutters produced according to the preferred embodiment, the flaps can easily be produced by extrusion, in different sizes in according to the dimensions of the slides and therefore the types of notes, then to be debited at the length of these wire parts obtained.

The production of chamfers can easily be industrialized, just like the fixing of the axes.

The arrangement according to the present invention, in addition to the advantages indicated previously, is part of a concrete industrial achievement and economically compatible with the product to be marketed.

Claims (10)

Module with single dual reed, in particular for an accordion type instrument using two wind directions, characterized in that it comprises, for each note, a single fixed blade holder (32) with a window (34) and a blade (36 ) attached to said blade holder and comprising at least one tongue (42) disposed in line with this window, as well as at least one associated movable element (44), disposed laterally with respect to said tongue and capable of assuming a first position for the first direction of the wind by leaving a gap between this mobile element and the edge of the tongue so that this tongue vibrates to emit said note in this first direction of the wind and a second position symmetrical with the first with respect to the plane of the blade for the second direction of the wind while also leaving a gap so that the tongue vibrates to emit the same note in this second direction of the wind. Single dual reed module according to claim 1, characterized in that the gap between each movable element (44) and the tongue (42) is variable. Single dual reed module according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that each movable element is a movable flap (44), mounted freely in rotation about an axis (48) disposed substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the tongue (42) and in the immediate vicinity, said axis being disposed in the median plane of the tongue at rest. Single dual reed module according to claim 3, characterized in that each flap (44) is a portion of a part of revolution, the axis (48) of rotation being close to the axis of said portion of part of revolution , this flap being provided with means (46) for driving and abutment in the two positions corresponding to the two directions of the wind. Single dual reed module according to claim 4, characterized in that the portion (44) of the part of revolution is defined so that the faces are parallel to the air flow circulating in the window (34), this in the first and second positions of the movable elements for each of the two directions of the wind, said portion of part of revolution carrying a chamfer (50) formed on the edge, of variable dimensions along the longitudinal axis. Single dual reed module according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises means (52) for damping the stops of the elements (44) relative to the blade holder. Single dual reed module according to claim 6, characterized in that these damping means (52) comprise a part carried by the drive and stop means (46) and a part carried by the blade holder to generate a cushion of air (56) trapped in a controlled leak volume. Single reed module according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the blade (36) comprises a heel (38) fixed on the blade holder (32), preferably by rivet. Single dual reed module according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each movable element (44) has a shape which surrounds the tongue (42) including its end. Single dual reed module according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the blade holder (32) has a contoured shape around the movable elements (44).

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