US1360900A - Talking-machine - Google Patents

Description

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llllllll IX UNITED STATES-PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN A. DAVIS, OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO FRED S.

' LINCOLN, OF WASHINGTON. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

TALKING-MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JoHN A. DAvis, of the United States Navy, a citizen of the United States of America, and whose postofiice address is 0/0 Navy Department, Washington, 'D. (3., haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Talking- Machines, of which the following is a speclfication.

This invention relates to improvements in talking machines, and more particularly in the record-carrying elements or turntables comprised therein. The invention aims generally to overcome various defects of a recognized and serious character inherent in the present-day forms of turntables in general use, and by so doing to improve the acoustical qualities of reproduction, to' add to the utilitarian value, to materially improve the appearance, and to add to the effective life of the turntable in general.

According to present practice, it is universally the custom to use either the cast or pressed metal construction for talking machine turntables, and after plating this product a covering is applied over the entire upper surface consisting of felt, velour or other fabric of like character which supports the record or tablet through complete contact with the under or unused side.

Depending upon the character of the various metals utilized and the formation of the flange which is usually provided at the edge of the turntable for brake application, the general structure constitutes a bell form and, like one, tends to increase the already,

resonant quality of the metal. Hence, it necessarily follows that extraneous mechanical noises which may be created by the driving mechanism, by the friction of the reproducing needle traveling in the record groove, or by the reproduction of the music itself. will be readily transmtted into the turntable. The latter, in turn, will return these vibrations through the covering and into the record, blurring and otherwise impairing the quality of the reproduction, so that perfect reproduction is greatly impaired, if not practically impossible, with the present form of turntable and with the present principle of supporting records through complete contact between the under surface of the record and the upper surface of the turntable.

It will be agreed that the most perfect Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 30, 1920.

Application filed March 22, 1920. Serial No. 367,824.

spect, my invention creates a heretofore undeveloped form of turntable, according to which I eliminate all of the disadvantages mentioned above by supporting the record in a new and unique manner, 2'. 6., by means of a narrow ridge or bead, preferably in the form of a closed geometrical figure, which projects above the uncovered surface of the turntable so as to support the record with the least amount of solid contact and to allow the least amount of transmission of extraneous noises from the record-supporting medium into the record and thence into the reproducing devices. In other words, the improved supporting means, which comprises the most important feature of my invention, provides the greatest possible amount of vibratory or acoustical insulation between the record and the turntable by supporting the record with the least amount of solid contact with the turntable surface.

This arrangement posseses the further advantage that it enables the removal of a record from the turntable easily and without injury either to the finger nail or to the fabric covering, and to that extent constitutes an additional feature of my invention. This may be explained by the fact that the provision of the ridge results in dividing the surface area of the turntable into different definite zones, the position and shape of which are dependent upon the location and form of the ridge. In any event, however, at least one of these zoneshas a smooth, hard uncovered surface, due to the omission of the fabric therefrom, which zone underlies the edge of the record supported upon the shoulder and, inconsequence, provides a space permitting not only the easy insertion of the finger beneath the under surface of the record but also permitting the applilength of the lon er or free arm of. the lever thus formed y the record is so much greater than that of the shorter arm whereon the pressure is imposed that the former arm Wlll swing upwardly an appreciable distance away from the turntable and, hence, can readily be grasped by the operator, the central ortion of the record disenaging the pro ecting end of the spindle.

t the same time that the record is tilted or rocked in this way, it can be slid inwardly of the turntable across the ridge, to facilitate its grasp, due to the fact that whereas its under face will readily slide across the top of the shoulder, the edge of the record will slide with equal case over the smooth ing operation," 'for subsequent reproduction to a greater or surface of the turntable, so that the removal of the fabric positively contributes to a considerable extent to the success of the operation just described.

By emplo ing the improved ridged con struction, wlth the resultant supportin of the record sli htly above the surface 0 the turntable, a? in that there is a com lete avoidance of the dan er of the under ace of the record becommg scratched during its positioning and subsequent removal- At the present time, it is usual, excepting inthe most expensive records, to utilize both-faces of the disk for recording purposes; but since the lector of dust and other foreign substances which may be deposited thereon from the atmosphere, it will be apparent thatshould any fine particles of grit or other hard ma terial be contained in such deposit, theywill be liable to rub or scratch against and probably injure the sound grooves on the under slde of the record during thechangthereby spoiling the record less degree according to the extent of the injury.- On the otherhand, the supporting of the record in elevated position will entirely eliminate this potential source of injury, as the record will be maintained out of contact with the surface of the turntable and rest upon the top of the ridges or ribs, so that this is likewise an important feature of the invention.

In the same connection, it will be observed that the omission of the covering and the consequent avoidance of the collection of dust thereon serves a still 'further purpose in' that the discoloration of the covering produced by the deposits of foreign material and by its'exposure to sunlight and, possibly, to dampness or moisture is entirely done away with; whereas, on the other hard surface which is thus left exposed lends itself perfectly to polishing, plating. enameling and other types of ornamentation and, hence, may be caused to present a urther advantage is obtained fabric 1 covering ordinarily employed acts as a 001- hand, the uncovered metal or other" most attractive and artistic appearance, be-' sides having the property of being readily cleaned whenever desired.

So also there is the further advantage to be derived that in the case of warped records, a more satisfactory frictional engage ment is Provided than'is the case with a" table having a completely covered surface 7 occupying a single plane, because of the fact that the arc of the warped section merely bows into the space provided above the plane of the table surface and onthe inside of the ridge when the record is placedupon the table convex side down, while the space on the outside of the ridge is utilized'in this connection with a record placed concave side down.

In addition to the foregoing features, the lnvention also resides in'the provision of a construction according to which the turntable may occup a osition a roximatel flush with the eckgf the caliihet or ma chine, while still providing a means whereby an adequate finger-space is obtained for lifting off records, even of lar e stock sizes.

This arrangement has the a vantage that the operative height of the tone arm maybe reduced with a resultant decrease in the waste of valuable room space in the perpendlcular measurement of a machine. In'the case of large-size records, the object indicated is accomplished by forming a groove or depression of semi-circular or equivalent section which is constructed partly in the edge of the turntable andpartly in the deck, and which underlies the edge of the record, thus enabling the fingers to be readily inserted beneath said record edge and the recordthen lifted off the table.

Other and further objects and advantages will appear in the course of the following description; but it is to be understood that no limitation to the precise structure herein disclosed is contemplated or intended, but that modifications and changes may readily be made within the scope of the invention as subsequently claimed. Parts of the invention may also be used to the exclusion of others, and in other and different environments.

In the accompanying drawing,

Figure 1 is a plan view of a turntable constructed inaccordance with the invention, showing also the deck or motor board whereon it is mounted;

Fig. 2 is a diametric section on line 2--2, Fig. 1;

Fi of one of the ribs, and

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are diametric plan views, shtewing various other arrangements of the n s. Referring more particularly to the drawing, 1 designates the turntable as a whole and 2 the deck, motor board or panel. The

g. 3 is an enlarged detail sectional viewturntable is carried by the verticalspindle 3 and ma be mounted thereon in the usual way or, i desired, in the manner illustrated in Fig. 2, in which instance the tip of the spindle, instead of passing completely through the turntable, will fit in an upwardly extending socket 4 formed in the surface of the turntable, the latter bein provided, in turn, with an integral, upstan ing lug or projection 5 which is located directly above the socket and hence, in line with the spindle so that it will act as the centering means for the record. The deck may likewise be of the ordinary construction, and in that case the turntable will, as usual, occupy a slightly elevated position with relation thereto; or, instead, the central portion of the deck may be cut away to form a circular opening 6 of approximately the same diameter as the turntable, which latter will then be arranged in such opening with its upper surface substantially flush with that of the deck, as represented in s has already been stated, it is the purpose of this invention to omit the usual covering of felt, velour or other fabric, either partly or wholly, and to rest the record, which is indicated more or less diagrammatically at 15, upon an improved form of support in such a manner that its grooved under face will be spaced a slight distance above the upper surface of the turntable. Such support preferably consists of one or more narrow or thin ridges which, in turn, are composed of narrow or thin upstanding ribs. These ridges may be arranged at any desired point or points on the turntable, and they may be concentric with each other and withthe turntable or may be located eccentrically with relation thereto. They maybe continuous, or noncontinuous; that is to say, each of them may consist of a single, continuous or integral rib or projection, or may consist of several structurally-separate ribs or projections disposed end to end with their confronting ends either in contact with or spaced from one another, and in the latter instance the individual ribs or sections may be either straight or curved. They may, if desired, be disposed radially, and they may be constructed of the same material as, and as an integral part of the turntable, or they may be of different material and either metallic or non-metallic,'as desired; all of such arrangements, as well as others not specifically mentioned, falling within the scope of the invention.

For present purposes, however, the arrangement disclosed in Fig. 1 maybe regarded as preferred, according to which there are two of the above-mentioned ridges indicated at 7 and 8, disposed in spaced, concentric relation to each other and to in the other case polygonal.

the peri heral edge and the axis of the turngeometrical figure, in this instance a circle, and consists of a single, continuous rib whlch is itself formed of wood or similar fibrous material and is suitably anchored or secured in a correspondingly shaped seat 9 provided in the, upper surface of the turntable.

IVhere the rib is constructed of non-metallic material, such as that just mentioned, 1t may be advisable to provide it with a friction covering 10, (Fig. 3), which may be wrapped spirally around the rib, as shown, or may extend only over its rounded or convexed upper edge. Such covering may consist of a continuous strip of felt, velour or other cloth; or it may consist of lead tape or the like.

In the modified arrangement indicated diagrammatically in Fig. 4 there is a single ridge 7, which likewise has the form of a circle; but which, instead of being constructed of a single, continuous rib, is made up of a plurality of separate arcuate ribs 7, the adjacent ends of which are slightly spaced from each other. In Fig. 5, there is also a single ridge 7 in the form of a closed, geometrical figure; but such figure in this instance, has the shape of a regular polygon, the component members or ribs of which are indicated at 7 In Fig. 6, the ridge 7- is star-shaped, and is made up of radial ribs 7, and still other shapes and figures may be adopted. I

In all of the above constructions, it will be observed that the ridge-and it is to be noted that such term is employed to designate the record-supporting means as a whole and as distinguished from its component ribs or members-has the effect, irrespective of its shape, of dividing the upper surface area of the turntable into different definite zones, at least one of which (but preferably all of which) has a smooth, uncovered surface which, in the case of the ordinary metal table, will usually be polished. Thus, in the Fig. 1 construction, the ridges will define outer and inner annular zones 11 and 12 and a circular inner zone 13; while in Figs. 4 and 5, the outer zones 11 and 11 will be substantially annular, and the inner zones 12 and 12 will in one case be circular and In Fig. 6, the radiating ribs 7 will define a set of sectorshaped zones 11 which may or may not be exact counterparts according to the arrangement of the ribs. These uncovered spaces or zones may be ornamented in a great number of different ways to meet the requirements of the interior decorator or cabinet 'table. ach of the ridges forms a closed,

The substantially annular outer ridge serves the added fulcrum about which the record may be t lted when ressure in a downward directlon is impose upon its outer marginal edge, at an point thereof, the distance between such point and said rib being so small as compared with that between the rib and the metricall opposite point, that the latter point wil be moved in an upward direction suflicientl far to cause the record to clear the top of the spindle or the centering projection 5, according as one constructlon or the other is adopted. Furthermore, by reason of the smooth hard surface which is provided immediately outside the ridge or rib, the edge of the record is enabled to slide easily over the table toward the spindle without the least friction whatever, thereby facilitatin the graspin of its opposite portion by t e other ban of the operator; whereas the depressed or table-engaging edge might tend to catch in the felt or velour coverin if provided. This 0 eration' will be rea ily understood from ig. 2, in which the tilted position of the record is indicated in dotted lines.

The removal of the records is also facilitated by the provision of an annular fingerspace which exactly underlies the edge of the record. In the case of records of small stock sizes (ten inches and less), such space will be produced consequent upon the supporting of the record in elevated position above the surface of the turntable upon the inner rib or ridge; it being understood, of course, that thediameter of such records will exceed that of the zone or s ace inclosed by the ridge, so that the over ang of the record edge beyond the rib will produce a space or recess into which the fingers can be inserted. The same will also hold true for the large 12-inch records, in which case the finger space will be formed beyond the outer ridge or rib and between the latter and the ed of the turntable.

11 case it is desired to locate the turntable in a plane substantially flush with the deck, as illustrated in Fig. 2,then a lifting groove, recess or depression for the large-size records, which is indicated at 14, will be formed partly in the edge of the turntable and partly in the edge of the deck" opening 6, the two halves 14 and 14 of such groove being substantial counterparts and of any desired depth, width and cross-sectional shape commensurate with the thickness of the deck andturntable.

The several features turntable is constructed, provided, of course, that the turntable, whether formed of metal, wood, glass, composition or other substance or material, has a hard, smooth upper surfunction of constituting aished to increase its smoothness,

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described above are independent of the material of which the face; and in any or all of such instances, the aforesaid surface may or may not be poland may not be plated or otherwise. ornamented in various ways. v

What I claim is:

1. A talking machine turntable, provided upon its upper surface with a plurality of narrow,- upstanding ribs to support a record above said surface.

2. A talking machine turntable, provided upon its narrow, upstanding ribs'to support a record above said surface, said ribs conjointly forming a circle.

3. A talking machine turntable, provided upon its upper surface with a narrow,-annular, upwardly-projecting ridge to support a record above said surface.

4. A talking machine turntable provided upon its upper surface with a narrow, up-

standing record-supporting ridge which upper surface with a plurality of has the form of a substantially-closed, geometrical figure dividing the surface area of the turntable with respect to said ridge into outer and inner zones, the former having a smooth surface. T

5. A talking machine turntable, provided upon its upper surface with a narrow upstanding ridge to support a record above said surface, said ridge having a friction surface to engage the under side of the record.

'6. A talking machine turntable, provided upon its upper surface with a narrow upstanding ridge to support a record above said surface, said ridge having a friction covering applied to it to engage the under side of the record.

7. In a-talking machine, the combination of a motor deck having an opening therespindle passing through said opening; and a turntable mounted on said spindle substantially flush-with the surface of the deck, said deck and turntable being constructed to conjointly provide an annular finger-space which underlies the edgesaid deck and provided at its peripheral edge with a continuous finger-space which is overhung by the edge of a record on the turntable, said deck having an arcuate depression in its surface whlch is concentric with said finger-space and which registers with the same so as to form a lateral extension thereof.

In testimony whereof I have afiixed my signature.

' JOHN A. DAVIS.

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