US1105802A - Fall-board for pianos. - Google Patents

Description

G. LAMBIASE.

FALL BOARD FOR PIANOS,

APPLICATION FILED JAN 27,1914.

' 1,105,802, Patented Aug. 4, 1914.

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avmmwboz GUSTAV'O LAMBIASE, 6F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

FALL-BOARD FOE PIANOS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed January 2'5, 1914. Serial No. 814,811.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GUSTAVO LAMBIASE, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and resident of Brooklyn in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fall-Boards for Pianos, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to pianos and more especially to the class of fall boards and its object is to provide a sliding board made in two parts, one part having a latch adapted to secure the board in its closed position and which is released by the other part automatically when thrown back, so that the whole may be drawn into the piano case and expose the keys, as will be more fully described in the following specification set forth in the claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1. is a sectional view through the front of a piano case with the fallboard closed. Fig. 2. is a similar view with the front section thrown back and releasing the board. Fig. 3. is a perspective view of the slide block. Figs. 4%, 5 and 6 are details of the latch operating mechanism.

Fall boards of pianos are usually constructed consisting of several parts hinged together and folding on each other, so as to be heavy and cumbersome when arranged one on the other to expose the keys but in the present invention one section of the board is hinged while the other section slides back carrying the first section to expose the keys.

The sliding section 10 of the board with the back fall 11 extends across the case from side to side, and has on its under side the slide piece 12 running in the dove-tailed groove, 13 on the upper side of the block 14, the latter being provided with slots 15 and 16 to attach it to the inside of the case.

It must be understood that as the fallboard extends across the piano the devices shown and herein described are duplicated at each end of the board.

Near the end of the board is an aperture 17 within which is secured the end of a spring 18 and whose other end is secured to a screw 19 on the block 14. A spring finger 20 engages a button 21 on the block and holds the fall in its retracted position as in Fig. 2 and it is clear that the spring 18 tends to draw the board backward when the latter is free to move so as to expose the keys 22. When the piano is to be closed, however, the board is drawn forward by means of the L-shaped section or front fall 100 and as the section 10 is drawn out, a latch 23 on its lower side engages a plate 2 1 attached to the name board, after which the section 100 is swung down into the position shown in Fig. 1 closing the front of the piano and the keys.

The lat-ch is shown in Figs. 4;, 5 and 6 and consists of a hook carried at a right angle to the lever 25 operated by other levers 26 and 27 and intervening trips 28. These levers and trips play in mortises in the board 10 and at the outer end of lever 27 is located a plunger 29 playing vertically through the board and projecting a short distance above the upper surface of same, so that when the section 100 occupies the position shown in Fig. l, the plunger is up and the latch engaged so as to hold the fall board in its forward position but when the section 100 is thrown back it forces down the plunger 29 which through the intervention of the levers and trips raises the latch and the spring 18 draws back the board and exposes the keys.

The manual operation is simply throwing back the lid and after the plunger is depressed, the operation is automatic. In closing the fall the section 100 must be drawn out to its normal position and the latch is free to catch.

This device may be readily applied to a piano case without any alteration of the latter and by simply securing the block 1 1 and attaching the spring 18 thereto.

The appearance of the piano is in no way altered but it is obvious that the details of the device may be modified or otherwise arranged without departing from the essential features above described or from the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In fall boards, the combination with a sliding board, of a spring to retract same, locking means holding the board in its forward position and releasing means.

2. In fall boards, the combination with a sliding board, of retracting means, locking means for holding the board in its closed position and releasing means connected with the board.

3. In fall boards, the combination with a shifting board, of means for carrying the Patented Aug. 4, 1914.

sliding back fall in its forward position and released by the front fall.

5. In fall boards for pianos, the combination with a sliding back fall having guides, of blocks with grooves for the guides, a spring connected with the block and the back fall, a cross bar, a latch on the back fall and adapted to engage the cross bar, 15 a plunger controlling the latch and a hinged front fall adapted to strike the plunger and raise the latch.

Signed at New York in the county of New York and State of New York this 24th 20 day of January A. D. 1914.

GUSTAVO LAMBIASE.

Witnesses:

J AMES F. DUHAMEL, CHARLES LA RUE.

Coplen 0! thin patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commiuloner of Patents. Wuhington, D. 0."

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