JP7496375B2 - A straddle-type spacer for bending levers that pull single strings - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a string bender for guitar playing.

The mechanism of the string bender, which adjusts the pitch by pulling on strings tuned mainly to the note B, was developed in the 1960s and was often sold installed in the bodies of Telecaster-type electric guitars, and retrofitting it would require a lot of money and time. Devices that can be used on models other than Telecaster-type guitars have been developed, and there are commercially available products that are easy to attach and remove and can be operated with just the hands and arms, but these devices are highly subjective and the supply is limited.

Patent Publication No. 2017-102419 US20140196590A1 US20160232881A1 US3479917A US3512443A US4535670A US5140884A US5481954A US7696420B2 US9251768B2 US9530388B1 US9607589B2 SE 1930349-4 Bender, strangstrackare Swedish Patent Database

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B-Bender http://stringbender.com/classic.php https://shop.fender.com/ja-JP/articles/articles-pitch-perfect-a-history-of-the-b-bender https://store.duesenberg.de/en/hardware/multibender/76/duesenberg-multibender http://handbendersweden.com/instructions/ https://www.jacksonsteelguitar.com/product/the-edge-pitch-changer-telecaster/ http://rollingbender.com/admin/index.php/our-products/ https://b-blender.com/?page_id=131 https://bowdenbbenders.com/ https://benderbybjorn.com/pages/product http://barym.com/multi-media.html http://www.apollomusicparts.com/bg-bender/

When retrofitting a string bender that uses a guitar strap to adjust the pitch, it is expensive and time-consuming to obtain the equipment and to carve holes in the guitar body to install it, so it is desirable to have an inexpensive device that can be easily attached and detached.

The straddle-type spacer 1 is a small device that is simply fitted and fixed to the vertical part 16 of the bridge plate 13, and serves as a base for attaching the bending lever 19 that pulls the string 5. The straddle-type spacer 1 is made of lightweight, hard metal or highly tough resin.

The straddle-type spacer 1, which mounts the bending lever 19, is fixed by fitting it into the vertical part 16 of the bridge plate 13, making it easy to install and remove.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view. FIG. 3 is a rear view. FIG. 4 is a left side view. FIG. 5 is a plan view. FIG. 6 is a bottom view. Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A'. Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B'. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC'. FIG. 10 is a front perspective view. FIG. 11 is an oblique cross-sectional view taken along line A-A'. FIG. 12 is a rear perspective view. FIG. 13 is an enlarged view of the arch-shaped cutout portion on the rear surface. FIG. 14 is a perspective view taken along line D-D as seen from the left side. FIG. 15 is a rear perspective view of a six-saddle type bridge plate. FIG. 16 is a front perspective view of the use of a six-saddle type bridge plate. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing the path of the string when the apex of the contact surface of the string on the saddle is higher than the vertical part of the bridge plate.

This is a tool for attaching a bending lever 19 that pulls a single string, raises the pitch by one tone, and then returns it to the original pitch on an electric guitar that has a saddle 14, a pitch adjustment screw 11, and a spring 15 and has a bridge plate 13 with a vertical part 16 on which strings 5 are strung. It is fitted and fixed into the vertical part 16 across the pitch adjustment screw 11, spring 15, and screw head 12, and is used by attaching the bending lever 19.

The multiple arch-shaped cutouts 3 shown in the rear view of Figure 3 are shaped to straddle the pitch adjustment screw 11 and spring 15 on the bridge plate 13.

The cutout shown in the left side view of Figure 4 is the groove 2 for inserting the vertical portion 16 of the bridge plate 13. The right side view is the same as the left side view, so the right side view is omitted.

The arch-shaped recess 4 in the A-A' cross-sectional view of FIG. 7 and the A-A' oblique cross-sectional view of FIG. 11 is shaped to accommodate the screw head 12, and its apex is lower than the apex of the arch-shaped notch 3 shown in the rear view, and is slightly lower than the apex of the groove 2 as shown in the B-B' cross-sectional view of FIG. 8.

The circular portion shown in the front view of Figure 2 is a screw hole that passes through the surface shown in the A-A' cross-sectional view of Figure 7, and a stopper 9 is attached to it to determine the end point when the bending lever 19 is pressed down to pull the string 5.

The circular portion shown in the rear view of Figure 3 is a screw hole through which a set screw is inserted to secure the straddle spacer 1 to the vertical surface 17 of the bridge plate 13.

The hidden lines shown in the plan view of Figure 5 and the bottom view of Figure 6 are screw holes.

The V-shaped shape shown in the bottom view of Figure 6 leads to the arched notch 3, which serves as a path for inserting the B and G strings.

The straddle-type spacer 1 is inserted and fixed into the vertical part 16 of the bridge plate 13. The string 5, which is tensioned from the bending lever 19, is inserted through a thin arch-shaped cutout shown in the front view of Figure 2, and passed through a groove cut into part of the vertical part 16 of the bridge plate 13, or through a hollow pitch adjustment screw 6 as shown in Figures 15 and 16, and then through the saddle 14 to the string winder.

The bending lever 19 shown in Figure 1 is pressed against the front side of the straddle-type spacer 1 by the tension of the string 5 after tuning. By manually pushing down on the bending lever 19 with the corner of the spacer as the fulcrum 24, the string 5 is pulled, and the pitch can be adjusted within the range of the distance between the stopper 9 and the starting point 23, which is determined by the amount of screwing. The original pitch is restored when the force applied to the bending lever 19 is released.

The height of the apex of the arch-shaped cutout 3 shown in Figures 3, 7, 12 and 13 in the B-string guide cutout 7 and the C-string guide cutout 8 is higher than the height of the apex of the other cutouts at waypoints B 21 and C 22 in the CC' cross-sectional view of Figure 9 by adding the thickness of the string 5. As a result, when the apex of the contact surface of the string 5 on the saddle 14 is higher than the height of the vertical part 16, the path of the string 5 passing through the B-string guide cutout 7 or the G-string guide cutout 8 can be guided from waypoint A 20 to waypoint B 21, over the vertical part 16 and to waypoint C 22 as shown in Figure 17.

The present invention can be applied to guitars that use a bridge plate 13 with a vertical portion 16.

1 Straddle-type spacer 2 Groove 3 Arch-shaped cutout 4 Arch-shaped recess 5 String 6 Hollow-structure pitch adjustment screw 7 B-string guide cutout 8 G-string guide cutout 9 Stopper 10 Screw hole for attaching stopper 11 Pitch adjustment screw 12 Screw head 13 Bridge plate 14 Saddle 15 Spring 16 Vertical portion 17 Vertical surface 18 Set screw hole 19 Bend lever 20 Via point A 21 Via point B 22 Via point C 23 Starting point 24 Fulcrum

Claims (2)

A straddle-type spacer that is a device for attaching a bending lever that adjusts the pitch by pulling the strings. It has a groove for fitting into the vertical part of the bridge plate, and at the part that comes into contact with the vertical surface of the bridge plate, it has multiple arch-shaped notches to avoid contact with the pitch adjustment screws and springs, and multiple arch-shaped recesses to avoid contact with the screw heads. It is made of lightweight, hard metal or tough resin. The straddle-type spacer of claim 1 has a screw hole for attaching a stopper for adjusting the pitch, and has cutouts for the B and G strings to allow the guitar strings stretched from the bending lever to pass through to the saddle on the bridge plate with a vertical section.