US1133615A - Harp-harness. - Google Patents

Description

M. A. CLARK.

HARP HARNESS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 5, 1912.

1,133,615. Patented Mar. 30, 1915.

2 SHBETS-SHEET 1.

M. A. CLARK.

HARP HARNESS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 5, 1912.

1,133,615. Patented Mar.30,1915.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

2 QE Z E a? f "nal vertical sectional view through the rear UNITED STATES PATEN T OFFICE.

MELVILLE A. CLARK, OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK.

HARP-HARNESS.

Application filed January 5, 1912.

- To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, MELVILLE A. CLARK, of'Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Harp- Harness, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to certain improvements in body supports for harps for supporting relatively small sized harps upon the body of the player.

The main object is to provide simple means for attaching the harp to the body in such manner as to support the harp firmly in playing position independently of any external supporting means so as to readily respond to various rapid movements of the body as in walking, dancing or other movements without liabi ity of displace- 'ment and atthe same time permitting freedom of movement of all parts of the body leaving the hands free for manipulation and turning of the strings with even greater facility than when supported in the usual manner.

One ofthe specific objects is to provide the harp with a body brace capable of holding the harp the desired distance from the body and at the same time bracing it against undue lateral swaying movement and in connection with the body loop serves to hold the harp in playing position at substantially rightangles to the front of the body.

. Another object is to enable the harness to be easily and quickly detached from the harp and body so that the harp may be used in the usual manner when desired.

A still further object is to provide the base of the harp with a non-slipping leg rest attachment for engaging the leg and supporting the harp thereon when the player is in a sitting posture.

Other objects and uses will be brought out in the following description.

In the drawings-Figure l is a perspective view of a harp and harness attachment in operative position upon the body of a player. Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudi- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 30, 1915. Serial No. 669,572.

side of the harp column and adjacent portions of the harness in operative position thereon, the'lower end of the base supporting strap being shown in section. Fig. 3 is a still further enlarged vertical sectional view of the upper end of the body brace shown in Fig. 2. Fig. a is a top plan of the portion of the body brace shown in Fig. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the detached body brace. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the upper attaching end of the body loop. Fig. 7 is an inverted plan of the lower end of the body loop and adjacent portion of the harp base showing the means for adjustment of the loop to bodies of different size. Fig. 8 is an enlarged perspective view of the detached leg engaging pad for the base of the harp. Fig. 9 is a longitudinal sectional View of the same pad and adjacent portion of the harp base. Fig. 10 is a transverse sectional view of a leg pad and harp base showing the hinge connection for permitting relative tilting movement of the base and leg pad. Fig. 11 is a transverse sectional view of a modified form of attaching means for the leg pad to the harp base.

This harp support comprises a body loop 1, a body brace 2- and a leg pad -3-, the body loop preferably consisting of a flexible strap of leather or other suitable material of sufficient length to pass from the upper front of the shoulder around the back and waist and return to the front of the body for attachment to the upper and lower portions of the harp as A in a manner presently described.

The harp is provided with the usual hol low column having its rear side formed with a series of openings a for the exit of the sound waves from the sounding board, thus forming lower, intermediate and upper cross bars or shoulders a.

The upper front end of the body loop 1 terminates in a hook-shaped fastening device 4 preferably of metal and of such dimensions as to readily pass through the opening a and engage with the upper shoulder a as shown more clearly in Fig. 2.

The lower end of the body loop 1-- is provided with an adjustable section 5 connected thereto by a buckle -6 to permit the body loop to be readily adjusted to different sizes of harps or to difierent individual players, the section 5- terminating in a metal clasp 6 having akey slot 7 for the reception of a headed pin or stud 8 on the underside of the base of the harp near its rear edge, thus permitting the lower end of the body loop to be easily and quickly attached to or detached from the harp.

The body brace 2 comprises a laterally elongated bar or plate 9 which is curved longitudinally to conform as nearly aspossible to the front portion of the body of the player against which it is adapted to restand is provided with forwardly divergarms -10 and 1l having hookshaped. extremities 12- and 13 for interlocking. engagement with the lower and intermediate bars a' of the harp.

The hooks l, 12- and 13- con- I stitute attaching members for supporting ,harpfrom each other, I have provided the upper arm -11- with a movable catch -14 which, in this instance, is journaled on the hook 13 and is adapted to be moved to and from a position across the upper side of the adjacent bar a by means" of a finger piece 15 as best seen in Figs. 2, 3 and 4:. 7

It is now clear from the foregoing description that when the body loop -l and brace -2- are properly adjusted on the body, the body loop serves to support the weight of the harp, while the body brace serves to hold it in proper relation to the body, leaving the arms free to manipulate the strings in the usual manner, and at the same time permitting the player to move about with more or less rapidity while playing without liability of displacing the harp from its playing position. The same is also true when the player is in a sitting position except that under such conditions, I prefer to rest the weight of the harp upon the legs and in order to prevent lateral slipping of the harp upon the legs I have provided the pad .3' which is preferably hinged for swinging movement to the underside of the base of theharp column.

is secured at one end by a screw 22 to the underside of the base of the harp, the

opposite end of the hinge pin being free to permit the bearing -20 to slide thereon for removal or replacement of the pad.

In Fig. 11 I have shown a similar pad.

-3 omitting the bearing 20 and hav-' ing its section 16 slidably interlocked with a stationary loop 23 on the under side of the base of the harp, said loop being preferably secured to said base in an inclined position through the medium of an interposed wedge-shaped member --2 l which is also rigidly secured to the harp base.

In both instances the pad may be adjusted laterally either along the hinge pin .21-

shown in Fig. 8 or along the guide loop 23- shown in ,Fig. 11 to conform to the position of the leg relatively to the harp.

In placing the harp in position upon the body, it is simply necessary to throw the strap or body loop 1 around the righthand shoulder and to then lift the harp into proper position and attach the upper hook -4 and lower clasp 6 to their respective shoulders a and stud 8 after which the body brace 2 may be placed in operative engagement with the corresponding shoulders -a with the plate 9 resting against the front of the body, the body brace being held in position against downward displacement by the proper adjustment of the locking member 14., whereupon the harp is ready for playing either in a sitting or standing posture. In reverse'manner the body loop and brace may be detached from the harp and the latter used in the usual manner, under which conditions the leg pad 3 may be removed entirely or shifted under the base and the section 19-- folded upwardly against the section -16 out of the way.

What I claim is: f

1. In combination with a harp-column having openings therein, a brace having a laterally extending curved plate for engagement with the body of the player and arms rigidly secured to the plate and provided with attaching members entering the openings and engaged with the harp-column.

2. In combination with a harp-column having transverse bars spaced apart one above the other, a brace having a laterally extending curved plate for engaging the body of a player, and forwardly diverging arms rigidly secured to the plate and having their forward ends hook-shaped and engaged with the undersides of said bars.

3. In combination with a harp-column, a brace having a laterally elongated plate and forwardly diverging arms rigidly secured thereto and having their front ends attached to the harp-column, the lower arm projecting forwardly beyond the vertical plane of the upper arm when in use.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set 15 my hand on this 27th day of December, 1911.

MELVILLE A. CLARK.

Witnesses:

H. E. CHASE, E. F. TUCKER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained or iive cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0.

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