US1274055A - Pneumatic action. - Google Patents

Description

A. JOHNSON, A. C. SWANSON & A. H. UTTERBERG.

PNEUMATIC ACTION.

APPLICATION men not. 23, I916.

Patented July 30, 1918,

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALFRED JOHNSON, ARTHUR o. swAnsoN, AND ALFRED H. nr'rnnnnne, or cIIIoAoo,

ILLINOIS.

PNEUMATIC ACTION.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July so, 1918.

Application filed October 23, 1916. Serial No. 127,066.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ALFRED JOHNSON and ARTHUR C. SwANsoN, both citizens of the United States, and ALFRED H. UTTER- BERG, a subject of the King of Sweden, residents of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pneumatic Actions, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to selfplaying musical instruments, and particularly to improve pneumatic action therefor.

The object of our invention is to simplify and improve the construction andarrange ment' of the valve mechanism for controlling the operation of the action pneumatics to reduce the cost of manufacture and to make inspection and repairs easier.

011 the accompanying drawings a structure is shown embodying the features of our invention. In these drawings- Figure 1 is a plan view of a-pneumatic action unit,

Fig.2 is a sectional view on plane 2-2, Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a plan view with the top cover removed and the valve seat supporting flexible member swung back to reveal the construction in the diaphragm chamber,

gral therewith. A plate 12 is hinged at its "rear end to the bottom of the body at one end thereof and extends below the body and the extension 11, fiexible'fabric 13 being secured to the plate 12 and to the body 10 and its extension 11 to form the action bellows. The block 10 is bored vertically to leave the annular slot 1 1. aroundthe platform 15 whose topis below the'top of thejblock to leave the space 16 abovethe diaphragm 17 i which issecuredat its periphery to the rim of the platform, the platform being ,hol-

lowed out to provide the space 18 below the diaphragm and the central pocket- 19. Surrounding the upper end of thespac'e .16 is the depressed annular-seat20 fora metal valve disk 21, a sealing washer 22 being preferably applied between the disk and seat. The disk has the central opening 23 forming a passageway between the space 16 and the valve chamber 2 1 in the cover 25 secured to the block 10 by screws 26, a passageway 27 in the cover connecting the valve chamber with the passageway 28 leading to the interior of the action bellows. Above the valve chamber 2A the cover 25 has the atmosphere port 29. l

The ports 23 and 29 are controlled by a valve 1) whose movement is controlled by the diaphragm 17 and atmospheric pressure. The construction of the valve forms an important feature of our invention. It comprises a disk 30 preferably of wood which has a plurality of guide legs 31 extending downwardly therefrom, these legs extending through the port 23 to guide the valve as it is moved upwardly and downwardly during operation of the action.

rectly by the diaphragm when the diaphragm is forced upwardly, but preferably an ad ustable abutment is provided for the These guide legs can be of sufiicient lengthto be engaged didiaphragm. As shown, a screw 32 threads phragm, the diaphragm having preferably a stiff remforcing abutmentdisk 35 secured to its upper. face. The top of the disk 30 is tenedto receive a tool for turning the screw 7 to ad ust its head with reference to the dia-' faced by a layer 36 preferably of leather for y insuring air-tight engagementof the valve around the air port 29 when the valve is up. Betweenthe cover 25 and the body 10 we interpose a sheet 37 of soft flexible material preferably leather, this sheet extending over the metal valve disk 21 and has the central opening in register with the opening 23 of the disk. The sheet 37 formsa sealing seat for the valve '0 around the opening or port 23, and the sheet is also compressed between the body-1O and cover 25 to form a seal between the chamber 16 and the valve chamber 2 1 when the valve is down. Preferablyv also the metal :valvedisk 21 issupported on the flexible sheet 37 by being glued thereto-so that when the cover 25 is removed the sheet with the valve seat thereon can be readily removed to give access to the diaphragm. To insure proper receiving of the valve seat disk the sheet is glued to the top of the body at the outer end thereof, as indicated at 38. Then when the cover 25 is removed and the valve 1; withdrawn, the sheet can be swung back, as indicated in Fig. 3, to expose the upper diaphragm chamber and the diaphragm.

Extending through the block 10 from the central pocket 19 below the diaphragm is a pipe 39 which in practice extends into one ofthe passageways in the vacuum chest to be connected with one of the openings in the tracker board of the instrument. Passageways 10 through the block 10 extend from the upper diaphragm chamber 16 to the block end to communicate with openings in the vacuum chest leading to the interior thereof. Normally the spaces above and below the diaphragm are under low pressure by being connected with the vacuum compartment of the vacuum chest, atmospheric pressure then acting on the valve 1) through the port 29 to hold the valve open with the head of the screw 32 against the diaphragm.

When the valve is down the interior of the action pneumatic 13 is connected with atmosphere. As a music sheet travels over the tracker board and an opening thereof comes into registration with the tracker board opening, air under atmospheric pressure will rush into space 19 below the dia phragm, the space above the diaphragm still being subject to low pressure, the result being that the diaphragm is thrown upwardly to raise the valve to close the atmosphere port 29 andto connect the action pneumatic 13 through the now open port 23 with the space 16 above the diaphragm and the vacuum space with the vacuum chest so that the plate 12 of the action pneumatic will be swung upwardly. As shown, this plate has the usual extension 4E0 provided with a slot 12f0r receiving the lower end ofa striker rod. When the tracker board opening is again closed the pressure below the diaphragm is reduced to that above the diaphragm by virtue of the usual bleed passageway between the vacuum compartment of the vacuum chest and the atmospheric passageway to the space below the diaphragm, the valve being then shifted back to its lower position to close the port 23 and to reopen the atmosphere port 29 to the action pneumatic.

g The structure of the valve 1) is'extremely simple, a block of wood being turned and "cut to leave the disk 30 and the guide legs 81. .By means of the screw 32 passing through thedisk 30 the valve may be read ily adjusted in relation to the diaphragm.

/ and atmosphere inlet.

Only the top of the valve is faced with leather, the leather sheet 87 forming a seat for the lower face of the valve. The section ot the sheet above the chamber 16 is held in horizontal alinement by the seat disk 21 which is glued thereto and which is supported on the annular seat 20 surrounding the chamber 16. The sheet being hinged at one end to the block 10 by being glued thereto assures accurate seating of the disk 21 after it has been swung away from its seat with the sheet.

l/Ve do not, of course, desire to be limited to the exact construction and arrangement sh Wn, as changes are no doubt possible which would still come within the scope of the invention.

We claim as follows: 7

1. In pneumatic action mechanism of the class described, the combination of a block having a diaphragm chamber, a diaphragm mounted in said chamber, an annular seat formed in said block above the diaphragm chamber, a metallic plate mounted on said seat and having a port above the diaphragm, a cover for the block having a valve chamber over said port and having an atmosphere passageway leading thereto, a sheet of flexible material clamped between said cover and block and having an opening in register with said port, and a valve in said valve chamber seating on said sheet and having guide legs extending through said port toward the diaphragm, said valve being actuated by the diaphragm to control said port 2. In pneumatic controlling mechanism of the class described, the combination of a block having a diaphragm chamber, a diaphragm mounted in said chamber, a cover on said block having a valve chamber therein and having an atmosphere inlet to said chamber, a sheet of flexible material clamped between the block and cover, a stifi' plate secured to the under side of said sheet to fit over the diaphragm chamber, said sheet and plate having a port 'therethrough between the valve chamber and the diaphragm chamber, and a valve in said valve chamber having legs extendingdownwardly through on said block having a valve chamber therein and having an atmosphere inlet to said chamber, a sheet'offlexible material clamped between the block and'cove'r, a stifl plate secured to the under side of said sheet to fit over the diaphragm chamber, said sheetand plate vhaving a 'port therethrough between the valve chamber and the diaphragm chamber, and a valve in said valve chamber having legs extending downwardly through said port to the diaphragm, said sheet forming a flexible sealing seat for the lower face of said valve, said sheet being glued to the block along one end whereby it may be swung to carry said plate away from the ALFRED JOHNSON. ARTHUR C. SWVANSON. ALFRED H. UTTERBERG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G."

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