US1084794A - Music-leaf turner. - Google Patents

Description

W. M. GRAMER.

MUSIC LEAF TURNER.

APPLICATION FILED IAN.24,1913.

1,084,794. Patented Jau. 20,1914.

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W. M. CRAMER.

MUSIC LEAF TURNER. v

APPLICATION FILED JAN.24,1913.

Patented J an. 20, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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W. M. CRAMER.

MUSIC LEAF TURNER.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.24,1913.

l1,O81=,-'794. Patented .12.11.20, 1914.

. 4 SHEETS-SHEET 3. F1 E u. n m

.3| um' nf noeutoz W. M. GRAMER.

MUSIC LEAP TURNER.

APPLICATION IILBD JAN.24,1913.

Patented J an. 20, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

W M A W WH l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM M. CRAMER, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

MUSIC-LEAF TURNER.

Application led January 24, 1913.

T0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IVILLIAM M. CRAMER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Music- Leaf Turners; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in music leaf turners.

One obj ect of the invention is to provide a music leaf turner having an improved construction and arrangement of leaf engaging devices and improved means for independently swinging said devices and the leaves with which they are engaged to the left or right for reading and playing or repeating the music thereon and to simultaneouslyT swing the entire series of devices and leaves to the right for closing the book.

Another object of the invention is to provide a music leaf turner having an improved adjustable means for holding the book leaves in position to be engaged and operated by the leaf turning mechanism.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, and the combination and arrangement of parts as will be more fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a front view of my improved leaf turner constructed and arranged for use as a music stand; Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view thereof taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a similar view taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. l; Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view through the lower portion of the stand taken on the line 5 5 of Fig. 2; Fig. 6 is an enlarged front view of a portion of the leaf engaging and turning mechanism illustrating the manner in which these parts operate for turning the leaves of the book; Fig. 7 is a detail perspective view of the upper portion of one of the leaf turning members; Fig. S is a similar view of one of the leaf engaging devices and the upper portion of one of the music leaves showing in full and dotted lines the manner in which the parts of these devices are operated to grip the leaves; Fig. 9 is a rear perspective view of the music book or leaf Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 20, '1914.

Serial No. 744,052.

supporting bar; Fig. 10 is a similar view of one of the removable front cover plates of the casing containing the leaf turning mechanism; Fig. 1l is a detail perspective view of the upper end of the supporting plate of the device and the inner ends of the leaf turning arms, showing more particularly the means for yieldingly holding the latter in their adjusted positions; Fig. 12 is a perspective view of a modified construction of the turner for use on pianos or organs.

My improved leaf turner comprises a casing which may be of any suitable size and shape and which is adapted to be applied to a music stand or to a piano or organ as will be hereinafter more fully described.

Referring more particularly to the form of the invention as applied to a music stand l denotes the casing which is secured to the upper end of a standard 2, the lower end of which is attached to a base frame 3 which is here shown as comprising three suitably braced legs 4 which are arranged in tripod form and between the front pair of which is secured upper and lower cross bars 5 and 6.

Arranged in front of and spaced a suitable distance from the base frame 3 is a pedal supporting frame comprising a cross bar 7 to the ends of which are connected legs 8, said cross bar being connected at its ends to the legs of the base frame 3 by brace bars 9 as shown.

The casing l has arranged therein a` supporting plate or board l0 which is secured thereto and to the upper end of the standard in any suitable manner and on which is mounted the operating mechanism of the device. The bottom of the casing 4l is preferably extended or projected outwardly on opposite sides of the center thereof to form a rest ll upon which, if desired, music leaves or books may be supported when not in use. The front side of the casing is preferably in the formk of two horizontally movable plates l2 which are slidably engaged at their upper and lower edges with guide flanges lf3 on the upper and lower ends of the casing, whereby said plates may be slipped outwardly in opposite directions for opening the front of the casing. he plates l2 are recessed and bent outwardly at the upper ends of their inner portions to provide space for the upper portion of the leaf turning mechanism and leaf engaging devices. On the outer edges of the front plates l2 of the casing are lateral extensions 14 which form handles whereby the plates 12 may be readily'actuated for opening and closing the casing.

On the upper end of the supporting plate 10 is a horizontally disposed outwardly extending bearing block 15 having therein a series of vertical bearing apertures 16 in which are pivotally mounted the right angular inner ends or shanks 17 of a series of leaf turning arms 18, the outer ends of which' are turned downwardly and outwardly to form stationary leaf engaging fingers 19. The lower ends of the shanks 17 project a suitable distance below the bearing block 15 and are flattened to form offset heads 20 the purpose of which will be hereinafter described. Secured to the arms 1S near their outer ends are upwar lly projecting finger supporting brackets 21 in which are pivotally secured the inner ends of movable leaf engaging fingers 227 the outer ends of which are curved downwardly for engagement with the opposite sides of the leaves from that with which the stationary fingers 19 are engaged thereby gripping the leaves between said stationary fmgers 19 and the movable fingers 22. The lingers 22 project forwardly from the brackets 21 through upwardly extending slotted guide plates 23. In the slots of the guide plates 23 midway between their ends are formed stop lugs 2l with the lower ends of which the fingers 22 are engaged when in an operative position or in engagement with the leaves. Vhen in an inoperative position the fingers 22 are engaged with and supported on the upper ends of the lugs 2&1-, The fingers 22 are retracted or swung upwardly out of engagement with the leaves when disengaged from the lower ends of the lugs 2st by coiled springs 25 which are connected to the inner portion of said ngers and to the upper ends of the brackets 21 as clearly shown in Fig. 8 of the drawings.

The leaf turning arms 18 are operated or swung in one direction for successively moving the leaves of the book to the left as when the music is being read and played by a series of right hand turning devices of which there may be any desired number, each of which comprises a triangular or wedge shaped plate 26 the upper edge of which is inclined or formed at an angle from the inner lower corner of the plate toward the upper outer corner thereof as shown. The plates 26 are secured at their outer ends to the upper ends of a series of operating rods 27 which extend downwardly through the bottom of the casing and are connected at their lower ends to the inner encs of series of foot levers 28 which are pivoted in suitable bearing brackets on the cross bar 7 of the treadle frame secured to the base 3 of the standard 2 and which are provided on their outer ends with foot treadles or pedals 29, whereby the levers may be actuated for projecting or forcing the rods 27 and the plates 26 thereon upwardly into operative engagement with the arms 18, whereby the latter and the leaves with which they are engaged are swung to the left and the leaves thus successively turned. The rods 27 and plates 26 are retracted and the levers 28 and pedals 29 are released by coiled springs 30 which a rc connected to the inner ends of the levers and to the lower cross bar 6 of the base frame $3. The rods 27 are slidably engaged near their upper ends with guide brackets 31 secured to a bracket supporting block 82 and near their lower ends said rods are slidably en gaged with guide brackets 33 secured to the upper cross bar 5 of the base frame 8 as shown. Then thus constructed and arranged, it will be seen that in order to turn the leaves of the book to the left or to open positions, it is simply necessary to depress the pedals 29 which will project the rods 27 and the wedge shaped plates 26, thereby enthe inclined upper edges of the plates with the arms 1S which will swing the latter to the left in the manner described.

ln order to swing the leaves back or to the right when it is desired to repeat the music thereon or to close the book ll provide a seriesl of left hand operating devices comprising wedge shaped plates 3lwhich correspond in size and shape to the plates 26 and which are secured to the upper ends of operating rods The rods 35 are engaged with upper and lower guide brackets 36 and 37 corresponding to the brackets 31 and of the right hand operating devices and said rods are connected at their lower ends to foot levers 38 arranged in the base frame l. and having on their outer ends pedals 3S) which correspend to the operating levers of the right hand turning devices. By successively operating the left hand leaf turning devices each of the leaves may be successively turned back for the purpose of repeating any of the music printed thereon and by operatii'ig the outer left hand foot lever and leaf turning member the entire series of leaf turning arms and the leaves to which they are attached may be swung to the right thereby closing the book.

In order to prevent the leaf turning arms from operating too freely or from being swung around by the pressure of the leaves A,

to which they are attached as might occur from the tendency of the leaves of a new bock to close, and to impart a ln'aking act-ion on the movement of said arms, I provide a suitable braking mechanism comprising a horizontally disposed brake bar fil-0 which is slidably mounted 'in supporting brackets 41 secured to the supporting plate 10 of the casing and which engages the l'lat heads 20 on the inner ends of the shanks 17 i of the turning arms 18, said bar being projected and held in yielding frictional engagement with said heads by coiled springs 42 arranged between the inner edges of said bar and the supporting plate 1() as shown.

Secured to the supporting plate 10 and spaced a suitable distance therefrom by brackets 43 is a centrally disposed book supporting bar 44, said bar being disposed adjacent to the outer side of the front of the casing as shown. Slidably mounted on the bar is a lower book supporting bracket 45 to which is secured a spring catch 46 which is adapted to engage a series of ratchet teeth 47 formed on the inner side of the bar 44, whereby the bracket 45 is adjustably fastened to the bar 44 for engaging and supporting music books or leaves of different lengths. On the bracket 45 is arranged a loose leaf gripping device 48 which may be of any suitable construction, a corresponding or similarly constructed loose leaf gripping device 49 being arranged on the upper end of the bar 44, whereby when music books having loose leaves are engaged with the leaf turner, they may be supported and the loose leaves securely held in position to be turned by the leaf turning mechanism hereinbefore described. On the upper end of the bar 44 are laterally projecting spring catches 50 which are adapted to engage the inner edges of the front closing plates of the casing, whereby said plates are held in closed position.

In Fig. 12 of the drawings my improved leaf turner is shown as being constructed for use in connection with a piano or organ, the turner in this instance comprising a casing 51 constructed similar to the casing 1 of the standard form of the turner. In this form of the device the front plates 52 have their outer side edges slidably engaged with guide flanges whereby said plates may be opened upwardly instead of laterally as in the first form of the invention. The casing 51 is secured in position on the front of the piano or organ by supporting and attaching rods 53 which are pivotally attached at their inner ends to the rear side of the casing and extend rearwardly over the top of the piano and have their outer ends bent downwardly to form hooks 54 which engage the rear side of the upper port-ion of the piano or organ as clearly shown in the drawings.

The leaf gripping and turning devices of the piano engaging form of the invention are constructed and arranged in the same manner as the leaf gripping and turning devices shown in the first form of the invention and a further description of these parts is not thought to be necessary. The leaf turning devices in the last form of the invention are provided with operating rods 58 which terminate in the lower portion of the casing and are pivotally connected at their lower ends with hand levers 59. The levers 59 are pivotally mounted on a supporting block secured in the lower portion of the casing, said levers being arranged one above the other and projecting through openings in the opposite sides of the casing. On the outer ends of the levers are arranged keys 60 which are adapted to be depressed by the operator for actuating the levers and through the latter the leaf turning devices. The rods 58 and leaf turning devices thereon are retracted when the operating levers 59 are released by means of a series of coiled springs 61 connected with the lower ends of said rods 58 and with a fixed part of the casing as shown.

Having thus particularly described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a music leaf turner, a bearing member, a series of leaf turning arms, Shanks carried by one end of said arms and having a pivotal engagement with said bearing member, leaf engaging lingers on the op posite ends of said arms, slotted guide plates secured to said fingers, brackets secured to said arms, movable leaf engaging fingers pivoted in said brackets and having a sliding engagement with said slotted guide plates, stop lugs in the slots of said plates adapted to be engaged by said movable leaf engaging fingers whereby the latter are held in operative and inoperative positions, retracting springs connecting said movable fingers and brackets, a. series of arm operating devices, and means for actuating said devices.

2. In a music leaf turner, a series of pivotally mounted leaf turning members, comprising arms, slianks on the inner ends of said arms, offset heads on said Shanks, leaf engaging fingers on the opposite ends of said arms, a braking mechanism comprising a yieldingly supported brake bar adapted to be engaged by the offset heads on the shanks of said leaf turning arms, a series of arm operating devices, and means for actuating said devices.

3. A music leaf turner comprising a casing, a series of leaf turning arms pivotally mounted therein, leaf engaging devices carried by said arms, a series of right and lefthand arm operating devices slidably mounted in the casing, said devices comprising arm operating plates having inclined upper arm engaging edges, operating rods connected at their upper ends with said plates, and means connected with said rods, whereby the same and said arm operating plates are actuated for swinging said arms and thereby turning the leaves of the book to open and closed positions.

4. A music leaf turner comprising a casing, a series of leaf turning arms pivotally mounted therein, leaf engaging devices carried by said arms, a series of right and lefthand operating devices comprising plates having inclined upper edges adapted to engage said leaf turning arms, whereby the latter are swung in one direction or the other for turning said leaves to the left or right, operating rods slidably supported in said casing and secured at their upp-er ends to said plates, operating levers connected with the lower ends of said rods, whereby the latter and said plates are projected for swinging said leaf turning arms, springs to retract said rods and plates when said levers are released, and means for holding the book in position on said casing.

5. A music leaf turner comprising' a casing, a series of leaf turning arms pivotally mounted therein,` said arms having shanks provided on their inner ends with offset heads, a series of wedge-shaped plates having inclined upper edges adapted to be engaged with said arms whereby the latter are swung to the left or right for opening and closing the leaves of a book, a braking mechanism comprising a spring projected plate slidably mounted in said casing and haring a yielding engagement with said offset heads, and operating levers connected with said plates whereby the latter are projected for turning said arms.

6. A music leaf turner comprising a casing, a series of leaf turning arms pivotally mounted therein, said arms having shanks provided on their inner ends with offset heads, spring retracted leaf engaging devices carried by said arms, a series of arm operating devices comprising wedge shaped plates having inclined upper edges adapted to be engaged with said arms, whereby the latter are swung to the left or right for opening and closing` the leaves of a book, a braking mechanism comprising a` spring projected plate slidably mounted in said casing and having a yielding engagement with the heads of the Shanks of said turning levers, whereby the latter are yieldingly held in position, operating rods connected with said leaf turning plates, operating levers connected with said rods, whereby the latter and said plates are projected for turning said arms, and a spring to retract said rods and arm operating plates when said levers are released.

ln testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

VILLIAM M. CRAMER.

'Vitnesses VILLIE HOFFMAN, H. C. BANKER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C.

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