GB2467903A - Portable musical instrument case with climate control means - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the present invention there is provided a lightweight, hand portable instrument case within which the instrument, e.g. a violin, is securely held, protected from shock and insulated by means 4, together with thermo-electric means 11 to heat or cool the interior and maintain a stable temperature coupled with humidity control means 24 that monitor such internal condition. Humidity control is accomplished by known means or by means of a filter containing super-absorbent polymer. Air is drawn into the case via inlet grills 8 and a supply air plenum chamber 15 and then distributed to the supply air vents 17 provided on the instrument holding portion 18. The air then return via the return air duct 13 to the return air plenum 14. Provision is made for communication of the location via a GPS unit and internal condition of the instrument case to a remote control unit (25, Fig-2), FOB unit (27, Fig-2) computer, PDA or mobile phone. The instrument case is battery powered at 20 or mains powered via socket 21.

Description

PORTABLE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONTROLLED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT CASE

This invention relates to a case designed to provide climate control for sensitive musical instruments and other items requiring a stable climatic condition and to provide a safe environment for the transport of such items, the example chosen being a violin.

The problem lies with the sensitivity of certain, often old and valuable, musical instruments to variations in climate and pressure. Leading musicians have to move from place to place and to store their instruments in hotel rooms, airports, and in pressurised aircraft spaces, and this frequently leads to damage to the instrument itself as the material, often wood, adjusts to the new condition. In terms of stress suffered by the musician in his uncertainty as to whether the instrument will be playable when it arrives on stage and the cost of insurance or repairs to the instrument it becomes a major consideration and one worth remedying by preventing any sudden changes in environment. While reference will here be made to a violin case the methods employed may equally be applied to other instruments and usage.

There have been many applications for conditioning of spaces and there is a wealth of prior art in this field but there does not appear to be any prior art relating to cases for musical instruments.

W02008003918 CODLING discloses a controlled environment cabinet for working with hazardous materials, and which is not portable. W02005043969 MACMILLAN discloses a portable apparatus for containing electronic equipment but whose claims are limited to maintenance of ambient heat rather than climatic control. EP1950734 TALWAR shows a portable case for a musical instrument to reduce the shock that might result from careless handing but which does not address any climatic considerations. S11517099 FRITZSCHE discloses an air conditioned mobile container but said container is intended for transport by lorry rather than by hand, and has no applicability to musical instruments. CN261 7895 LU discloses a self-power moveable air-conditioned fresh box. Like so many Chinese patents has no translation or abstract but appears to address a large conditioned space that is neither hand portable nor intended for musical instruments. The closest prior art discovered is CA26 17895 BLACKWAY, which discloses a thermoelectrically air conditioned transit case the construction of which is designed to provide a controlled space for military use rather than being lightweight and applied to musical instruments.

According to the present invention there is provided a lightweight, hand portable instrument case whose internal space is capable of being controlled to increase or reduce the internal temperature required to maintain the instrument in a stable condition. This is maintained by the control instructions programmed by the user. It is optionally provided with a humidity control such as a gel of a specific hygroscopic absorption level to provide an increase or decrease in the internal humidity content as required in response to variations in the external condition. Said instrument case would ideally be a rigid unit tailored for the instrument in question, such as a Hiscox flight case, with the addition of internal compartments for the battery power source, the electronic control system components, the heat-exchanger unit and humidity control. These items will add or remove heat to or from the internal space of the container in order to maintain a predetermined atmospheric condition and provide for a gradual transition from the condition at the place of departure to that of the place of arrival.

The humidity control is installed within the case in the airflow between the heat exchanger and the conditioned space, ideally on the outflow side of said exchanger to preserve a closer control of the internal climatic condition. Said humidity control may take the form of one or a plurality of air permeable filters housing material containing super absorbent polymer (SAP) in both the supply and return air flows. The outer casing of the invention may be constructed of any suitable material but it is envisaged that it will be formed of treated carbon fibre sheets laid over a mould and furnished with a number of hinges along one side and a flat mating surface equipped with flexible seals at the edges of top and bottom halves of said case in order to provide a gas tight seal to isolate the internal space from the external ambient condition. Within this external casing there are provided separate and defined spaces for the purposes of; storing the musical instrument, housing the equipment for conditioning said space, housing the power supply and electronics, and for insulation to thermally isolate each space from the other spaces and from the outside environment. It will be seen that it is desirable to make the isolation of the internal condition as complete as is possible in order to reduce the heating or cooling load on the heat exchanger unit. A plurality of hinges or latches are provided on one side of the case with latches provided on one or more faces as required to seal the container completely against increased positive or negative external pressure.

Said insulation may be formed in a variety of ways. e.g. a layer of Aerogel' or similar efficient insulation laid into or otherwise attached to the outer shell of the case sandwiched by a layer of injectable closed foam insulation contoured to suit the individual space, particularly that which houses the stored instrument. Airways are provided within the outer layer or layers of insulation for the circulation of the conditioned air from the heat exchanger to the inner conditioned space and its return to the heat exchanger from the inner conditioned space. The use of Aerogel' as an insulation material has the additional benefit of providing a flame barrier between inner and outer case walls thus forming an additional useful safety feature.

The internal condition of the case is firstly monitored by one or a plurality of moisture and temperature sensors whose readings are detected by the control system which in turn controls the heat exchanger. Said heat exchanger will comprise a thermoelectric unit or a plurality thereof of the Peltier' type. A typical example is marketed in Britain under the name Supercool,' being an integrated unit comprising two halves each equipped with a fan and heat sink, said halves being separated by a layer of insulation which surrounds a thermistor type component which transfers heat from one half to the other depending upon the polarity of the direct current applied across its terminals. This heat exchanger unit is mounted within the instrument case in such a manner as to allow free passage of air through grilles, vents or apertures to and from the heat exchanger, assisted by a fan or fans associated with said heat exchanger in such a manner that internal air circulation is maintained within the controlled space. The output from the heat exchanger may be ducted past a container filled with Super Absorbent Polymer or material with similar characteristics such that it will release moisture when the airflow is heated and absorb moisture when said airflow is cooled. Since the humidity is inversely temperature dependent it will be seen that reducing the internal temperature will increase the internal humidity while increasing the internal temperature will lower the internal humidity. If the required condition upon opening the case is either higher in temperature and higher in humidity or lower in temperature and lower in humidity then moisture will ideally be added or removed respectively by the means of said super absorbent polymer. The polymers will either have a Relative Humidity stasis point in which case a suitable amount of the material holding the relative amount of water will provide an automatic response to changes in temperature thereby maintaining the relative humidity at a constant level or otherwise if they continuously absorb moisture even when Relative Humidity is low then a control system will be provided to allow the conditioned space to be sealed and unsealed arid will enable initiation of a means of heating the material when extra humidity is required within said conditioned space.

In designing the case to be portable it is necessary to pay attention to the weight distribution and balance of the whole case. For this reason it has proved practicable to site the battery compartment in the central portion of the case, said case being usually formed with a carrying handle centrally upon the opening face of said case. In order to save space the battery compartment may well be arranged to lie below the neck of the violin as stored within the case in order to benefit from the cutaway provided in the design of the inner tray which cradles the instrument, between its body and its head. Likewise in order to save space the heat exchanger device is fitted at one end of said case, most practically that end away from the sensitive body of the instrument. The electronic controls will ideally be closely placed behind the user interface panel, which should be clearly visible on the opening face of said case adjacent to said carrying handle in order to reduce the possibility of damage to said sensitive control system panel and electronics. A handle will ideally be provided at the balance point of the laden case for ease of carrying.

According to the present invention, air trapped within the case when it is closed is circulated by the internal fan on the heat exchanger. This passes the humidity controller within said case prior to being ducted within the layers of insulation within the outer case towards the opposite end of said case. An even flow of conditioned air around the whole body of the instrument providing an even climate is thereby achieved, the instrument body as aforesaid being the most sensitive part of said instrument to climatic change.

After passing over the instrument body the air travels back towards the heat exchanger before being again conditioned to have excess heat removed (as compared to the programmed temperature) or to be warmed if necessary to meet said programmed temperature, at which point the cycle begins again. While this is occurring the fan on the external side of the heat exchanger will be absorbing or expelling heat as required by the internal condition and when the required stasis is achieved will cease operating, as will the internal fan. When the internal condition varies from the stasis point the cycle will again be initiated until stasis is achieved.

Since battery life is critical to the effective functioning of the unit it is intended to use standard lead-acid or alkaline batteries which are available globally although rechargeable cells may be used if their lower power density provides adequate effective current for the required purpose. A socket will also be fitted to the outside of the case to allow power to be provided from an external source. While this Patent provides for recharging of cells in situ, this is not recommended due to various factors including the possibility of excess heat building up within the case and rupture of the cells, all of which are undesirable in the vicinity of a valuable musical instrument. Battery management functions will be provided using voltage sensors, voltage level monitoring and optimum discharge profiling. It is envisaged that when parameters are set before usage, the projected life of the batteries is monitored and displayed. If the battery charge condition becomes dangerously low, alarms are generated at an increasing rate prior to calculated battery failure, e.g. two hours, one hour and after a further half hour every five minutes although other warning means are not excluded. The Power Supply Unit will consist of a pulse width modulated (PWM) circuit which uses a very low switching resistance MOSFET driven by an I/O line from the processor.

The Control System Display Panel should ideally be of liquid crystal type capable of providing a two row alphanumeric display of twelve characters per line and provided with a keypad furnished with a minimum of four function keys allowing a means of selecting the mode of operation of the controller; means of applying chosen values and means of allowing set values to be increased or decreased. The Processor Unit should ideally be a Forest Systems CMOS PlC 16C74 micro-controller or similar which allows BASIC code to be written within a Windows system environment and stored within E2RAM along with any parameters that need to be stored in the event of power failure.

Such parameters include Personal Identification codes, set points and other references required when power is re-applied. Such a processor will also provide at least a serial interface, eight 8-bit A2D analogue to digital converter channels, thirty three I/O lines capable of 100 milliamps and special purpose PWM channels. Said processor will also be provided with a special purpose interface containing thermistor signal conditioning circuitry, five volt voltage reference for the analogue to digital converter, fan switching circuitry and PWM switching circuitry for the heat exchanger.

In addition to the necessary desirable features hereinbefore detailed there are several desirable features provided by the present invention that will enhance its performance and increase the security of the valuable instrument which it is designed to protect. To this end it is proposed that a radio transmitter and receiver hereinafter referred to as the remote control system be provided in the form of e.g. a key fob to communicate with a similar unit in the case itself to provide audible and/or visible or tangible warning of an undesirable condition occurring to the case. Coded signals from the remote controller or key fob are received and decoded initially by the system in the case to activate the alarm and to initiate the production of proximity signals by the processor unit. Said proximity alarm is primarily intended to ensure that adequate warning is given if the case and the enclosed instrument are becoming distant from the owner as in the case of theft or mislaying of said case. Should the case become far enough away from the owner the case transmitter will then emit a coded proximity signal at a frequency set by the user, e.g. every two seconds, to indicate the proximity of the case. In addition, once initiated, said alarm system will emit an alarm signal whenever a vibration sensor built into the processor or otherwise within said case indicates movement of the case. A minimum of two buttons are provided on the remote control system in order to arm and disarm the case, each individual case having its own set of codes kept securely at the factory, to allow replacement of either the remote control system or internal controller if necessary. When the remote control unit and the case are separated by a predetermined distance an alarm is generated either within said case, remote control unit or both. The user may define how the alarms will function through the control panel, said mode being accessed following the entry of the correct identification code. In either situation a distinct radio frequency code will be transmitted by the case for each function at a given interval, coded to indicate normal or tamper alarm conditions, and if the set distance is exceeded between said case and said remote control unit then said proximity alarms will sound. The alarms may be as hereinbefore described in the form of a trembler' unit which creates a vibration within the remote control unit which is tangible to the user or as an audible alarm as emitted by e.g. a piezo-electric buzzer or visible as emitted by e.g. a light emitting diode or a combination thereof. It may be desirable to incorporate a warning device into said remote control unit to alert the user to low battery condition in addition to other alarms herein described. In addition, once initiated, said alarm system will emit an alarm signal whenever a vibration sensor or sensors built into the processor or otherwise within said case indicates movement of the case and will likewise emit an alarm signal whenever the internal control system senses a fault in any area of its operation. Ideally said vibration sensor will be capable of registering the severity of the shock and noting or transmitting the date and time of the potentially damaging incident for retrieval in the event of damage in transit.

The controller will also require personal identification to enable any mode requiring security access. This may be provided by the entering of a four digit PIN number which is the same as the value stored in memory for the purpose of user identification. Said controller will monitor the values being preset up or down using the UP and DOWN keys in addition to monitoring the state of the ENTER and MODE buttons and display information relevant to the specific mode selected. Various parameters being herein described. The primary and default mode will display internal humidity and temperature as relayed by the sensors within the case. No security is required to gain access to this information. In like manner another mode gives access to the external temperature and humidity information relayed by a sensor on the external surface of the case. Battery status will be monitored in another mode, based on the current drain given existing conditions to give an indication of the projected life of the batteries installed. The alarm may be enabled or disabled and the personal identification number may also be varied by the user under a under a separate secure mode. The following operational modes will be supported and selectable: Stasis, Adaptive and Monitor, which modes are hereinafter described. Stasis is the default mode in which the conditions within the case are firstly moved safely towards the ideal conditions and are then held in that state indefinitely.

Adaptive mode causes the case to move the internal conditions towards those outside the case in the optimum safe time, which will be calculated and displayed when this mode is selected. The user will be given the option to increase or decrease the amount of time and a warning light will be displayed if the entered time is considered unsafe. The mode may then be activated by depression of the ENTER button. In the instance of insufficient power being supplied to the heat exchanger an alarm is generated and the internal condition is displayed. This allows the user to see the internal condition of the case while it gives warning of an undesirable situation and allows time for external power supply to be provided before damage might occur to the instrument. The control system may also be capable * of preventing entry to the instrument case before said transition has been accomplished.

In the following drawings it is not intended to exclude features from another Figure from each specific embodiment but rather to provide a basis for their combination in specific applications.

Specific embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows the major features of the case in angled perspective Figure 2 shows radio frequency transmitting and receiving means for location and proximity sensing of the case for purposes of security, and for monitoring and control of the internal climatic condition of the instrument case.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 shows the environmentally controlled instrument case (hereinafter referred to as case 1) comprising base 2 and lid 3 provided with insulation 4 together with external seal 5 and internal seal 6 forming the housing of the case 1. Said case I is shown in an embodiment suitable for protection of a violin. An external control panel 7 is provided for monitoring and control purposes while one or a plurality of latches (not shown) are provided for secure closure and a handle 22 or handles are provided, ideally at the point of balance of the loaded case 1. Inlet and outlet grilles 8 are provided for ingress and egress of air at ambient conditions to the fan 9 on the ambient side of the thermoelectric temperature control system 11 while a fan 10 is provided to circulate air within the case 1.

A return air sensor 12 is provided in the return air duct 13 and return air plenum chamber 14 to monitor the internal condition of the case 1 prior to the return air passing through the thermoelectric temperature control system 11. The circulated air is then passed through the supply air plenum chamber 15 to the supply air duct 16 which passes through the insulation 4 to supply conditioned air to the supply air vents 17 within the instrument holder 18. The conditioned air then returns through the accessory space 19 and lid 3 to the return air duct 13 (shown within the lid 3 of the case 1) to continue the circulation cycle.

Power is provided in transit by batteries contained in the battery compartment 20 while power can otherwise be provided by means of a mains electricity connection 21 on the outer surface of the case 1. An ambient air sensor 23 is provided to monitor the external condition while a humidity control means 24 may be provided adjacent to the thermoelectric temperature control system 11 in the return air plenum 14 and supply air plenum 15. Said humidity control means 24 are ideally formed of an air permeable housing containing super absorbent polymer (SAP) gel which absorb or release humidity in response to changes in temperature. Said humidity control means 24 may additionally be provided with heating means (not shown) to provide rapid response to inappropriate internal humidity conditions.

Figure 2 shows radio frequency transmitting and receiving means 26 for location and proximity sensing of the instrument case 1 for purposes of security. GPS tracking is also provided if required. Radio frequency transmitting and receiving means 26 may be provided within the instrument case I for location and proximity sensing of the case 1 for security. A remote control unit 25 will communicate with said radio frequency transmitting and receiving means 26 within said instrument case 1 in order to ensure that said case 1 is not more than a specified distance from the remote control unit 25. Should this occur, GPS tracking will enable retrieval of the instrument case 1 and its valuable contents.

Said radio frequency transmitting and receiving means 26 and remote control unit 25 may also be capable of monitoring and control of the internal condition of said transit case 1. Said remote control unit may also be provided in the form of a key fob 27 or similar easily portable item. Equally, the communication system could rely on communication via the mobile phone network to the user's mobile phone or by internet to the user's computer or PDA. The remote control unit 25 will ideally be provided with alarm means, visual display and electrical push-buttons for control of the internal condition of the case I and to control the transition from the existing (pre-transit) condition within the case 1 to the post-transit (ambient) condition on opening of the case 1. The control system may also be capable of preventing entry to the instrument case before said transition has been accomplished.

Claims (16)

1. CLAIMS1. A transit case for musical instruments containing: one or more power sources; thermoelectric means for heating and cooling of the internal environment; means for control of said thermoelectric means; means of securely housing said musical instrument; means of insulation of the internal environment and means of ducting conditioned air to and from the internal environment.
2. 2. A transit case as claimed in Claim 1 provided with means for control of the humidity of the internal environment.
3. 3. A transit case as claimed in Claim 2 wherein control of the humidity is provided using one or a plurality of filters of Super Absorbent Polymer.
4. 4. A transit case as claimed in Claim 1 containing radio frequency transmitting and receiving means for location and proximity sensing of the case for purposes of security.
5. 5. A transit case as claimed in Claim I provided with a remote control unit containing radio frequency transmitting and receiving means for location and proximity sensing of the case for purposes of security and for monitoring of the internal condition of said transit case.
6. 6. A transit case as claimed in Claim 1 containing radio frequency transmitting and receiving means for communication with the user's computer or mobile telephone.
7. 7. A transit case as claimed in Claim 2 provided with a remote control unit containing radio frequency transmitting and receiving means for location and proximity sensing of the case for purposes of security and for monitoring of the internal condition of said transit case.
8. 8. A transit case as claimed in Claim I provided with sealing means for maintaining the internal pressure condition of said transit case.
9. 9. A transit case as claimed in Claim 1 provided with one or more handles at the balance point or points of said transit case.
10. 10. A transit case as claimed in Claim I featuring separate internal compartments for the electronic means, the power source or sources, means of humidity control and the instrument to be protected, being sealed from each other and from the external environment by closure of the lid of the case.
11. 11. A transit case as claimed in Claim I provided with pressure resistant seals at the juncture of the body and the lid of said case capable of resisting the drop in pressure related to air travel to preserve the integrity of the internal condition of said transit case.
12. 12. A transit case as claimed in Claim 1 formed from carbon fibre material to ensure lightness and rigidity.
13. 13. A transit case for musical instruments as claimed in Claim I produced in a range of sizes to provide protection for instruments ranging from a violin to a double bass, but not excluding other types of instrument.
14. 14. A transit case for musical instruments as claimed in Claim 1 constructed of lightweight materials in order to be portable by a single person.
15. 15. A transit case for musical instruments as claimed in Claim I equipped with a vibration sensor or a plurality thereof capable of registering the severity of the shock and noting or transmitting the date and time of the potentially damaging incident for retrieval in the event of damage to the protected item in transit.
16. 16. A transit case for musical instruments substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 1 and 2.