US3250168A - Preselector for the tonal control elements of an organ - Google Patents

Description

May 10, 1966 w s JR 3,250,168

PRESELECTOR FOR THE TONAL CONTROL ELEMENTS OF AN ORGAN Filed Feb. 14, 1963 7 Sheets-Sheet l i /2 I WW 74 x \u fi 44 144 INVENTOR 050? M 55 3 Je.

ATTORNEYS May 10, 1966 Filed Feb. 14,

O. W. SEPP, JR

PRESEILECTOR FOR THE TONAL CONTROL ELEMENTS OF AN ORGAN '7 Sheets-Sheet 2 NVENTOR $51 8 12.

May 10, 1966 o. w. SEPP, JR 3,250,168

PRESELECTOR FOR THE TONAL CONTROL ELEMENTS OF AN ORGAN '7 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Feb. 14, 1963 INVENTOR OSCAR M SEPP, IQ.

ATTORNEYS iii PRESELECTOR FOR THE TONAL CONTROL ELEMENTS OF AN ORGAN May 10, 1966 o. 'w. SEPP, JR

'7 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Feb. 14, 1963 FV/AVMW Ww NTOR NkMW

7" K g m ATTORNEYS INVE 0.9012 m/ SEPP, JR.

May 10, 1966 Filed Feb. l4 1963 o. w. SEPP, JR 3,250,168

PRESELECTOR FOR THE TONAL CONTROL ELEMENTS OF AN ORGAN '7 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS 050% W SEPP, J79.

May 10, 1966 Y O. W. SEPP, JR

PRESELECTOR FOR THE TONAL CONTROL ELEMENTS OF AN ORGAN 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Feb. 1.4, 1963 m a I k/s RP CY of a m K E..\ O v "H me J1... M A

q mm mm mm Q May 10, 1966 o. w. SEPP, JR 3,250,168

PRESELECTOR FOR THE TONAL CONTROL ELEMENTS OF AN ORGAN Filed Feb. 14, 1963 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 SWITCHES 86 OF THE OTHER TABLETS /6 86 xrb l l 70 THE RELAY TO THE RELAY OF THE OTHER TABLETS .SOL ENG/D5 I00 (Q 0 INVENTOR 0.5634? 14 35 3 JR. BY

ATTORNEYS United States Patent The present invention relates to a mechanism for mechanically moving a sereis of tonal control stops or elements in an organ into preselected positions in response to a master control.

A conventional form of organ contains an upper manual for the melody ordinarily played with the right hand, a lower manual used for the accompaniment-and for the counter-melody ordinarily played with the left hand and a series of movable tonal stops or elements, which are set up in the organ for the playing of many tonal and instrumental effects on :both manuals. These tonal controls stops or elements in a conventional form of organ comprise a bank of drawbars, which mainly set up the harmonic tone colors for the two manuals, and each of which is settable in any one of a number of positons, and a set of tiltable control tablets for imparting expression and variety of color to the music played.

Before playing each musical number, it is necessary to preset the many control stops or elements manually in accordance with the tonal quality or style desired or required. The selection is made in accordance with a preselected registration on the sheet music, or may follow a pattern or schedule determined by the player. This manual setting operation is time-consuming and tiring, especially to a non-professional performer and because of the many stops or control elements involved, is confusing and may lead easily to misdirection in making the proper selections.

One object of the present invention is to provide new and improved means by which the settings of the tonal control stops or elements in an organ can be preselected easily, accurately, quickly and expeditiously.

Another object of the present invention is to provide new and improved means by which the setting of the tonal control stops or elements in an organ can be automatically made while permitting these control elements to be manually and individually set, if desired, before or after automatic preselection.

A further object of the present invention is to provide new and improved means by which the tonal control stops or elements in an organ can be automatically brought quickly to an initial reset position in response to the actuation of a reset control member.

In accordance with certain features of the present invention, a reset control member is provided, which when actuated, brings all of the tonal control stops or elements into initial reset position in preparation for automatic or manual preselection.

In accordance with other features of the present invention a master control member desirably in the form of an index card is provided with a pattern or schedule of selector configurations corresponding to a particular musical number and the organ has a receptacle to receive this card. This index card is small for convenient handling and may be removably attached to/or contained in a pocket in the music sheet sold or maybe prepared by a player in accordance with a suitable pattern he has determined. The tonal control stops or elements are automatically set by the index card in accordance with the pattern of selector configurations thereon when the card is inserted into the organ receptacle.

As another feature of the present invention, the system i as the upper manual and played with the right hand 3,250,168 Patented May 10, 1966 for automatically actuating the tonal control stops or elements into preselected positions, does not interfere with the manual setting of these stops or elements, either before or after automatic selection.

Various other objects, features and advantages of the present invention are apparent from the following description and from the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a perspective showing the console of a conventional electric organ to which the features of the present invention are shown applied for purposes of illustration;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view partly in horizontal section of the front control panel section of the organ in the region of the control drawbars;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged top plan view of an index card having one form ofselector configuration thereon and serving as the master selector control of the selector mechanism of the organ in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a section of the index card taken on lines 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic view of the drawbar selector system with its wiring circuits showing the basic mechanism for resetting a control drawbar into initial position in preparation for subsequent selection and for selecting thereafter the drawbar and positioning it in accordance with the selector configuration on the card index of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional detail perspective 0 part of the drawbar selector mechanism shown in connection with a pair of control drawbars;

FIG. 6a is a sectional detail perspective somewhat diagrammatic of a conventional tonal effect generator controlled from a control drawbar and constituting a continuation of FIG. 6 in the junction plane A-A;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged detail section part of the control drawbar selector mechanism taken on lines 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic view of the tablet selector with its wiring circuit showing the basic mechanism for resetting a control tablet into initial position in preparation for subsequent selection and for thereafter selecting the tablet in accordance with the selector configuration on the index card of FIG. 3;

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic view of the drawbar selector part of a composite or integrated selector system incorporating the basic mechanisms of- FIGS. 5 and 8 and shows the tie-up between the controls for the different control drawbars and tablets;

FIG. 9a constituting a continuation of FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic view of the tablet selector part of the composite or integrated selector system incorporating the basic mechanisms of FIGS. 5 and 8 and shows the tie-up between the controls for the different control drawbars and tablets; and FIG. 10 is 'a perspective of an alternate form of index card having another form of selector configuration there- Referring to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1, there is shown the console of an electric organ to which the invention may be applied. For purposes of illustration, the present invention is shown in conjunction with an electric organ of the Hammond type, but may be applied to an organ of any type having tonal control stops or elements.

On the organ is shown an upper set 10 of keys, known and a lower set 11 of keys, known as the lower manual for the accompaniment and counter-melody and played with the left hand.

At the top right hand corner of the organ above the upper manual 10 is a manual switch 12-, which is normally in off position when the organ is inactive and electrically shut off and which is actuated into on position when the organ is to be played.

On the control panel 13 of the organ to the left of the upper manual 10 are a series of tonal control stops or elements 14 (FIGS. 1 and 2) shown in the form of drawbars terminating in manual knobs 15 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 6). Each of these tonal control drawbars 14 has position numbers indicated thereon and shown ranging from 1 to 8 inclusive, as shown in FIG. 2. By moving the drawbars 14 endwise into any position, it is possible to reproduce any tone color desired.

Seventeen control drawbars 14 are shown for purposes of illustration to correspond to the number of drawbars on a conventional type or make of organ, but the number may vary according to the type or make of organ. The first seven drawbars 14, for example, may be the harmonic drawbars, which set up tone colors for the lower manual 11. The next control drawbar 14 may control the volume of the pedals. Finally, there is a set of nine harmonic drawbars which set up tone colors for the upper manual 10.

Many different tones may be created by making arrangements of the harmonic drawbars 14 controlling each manual.

Above the upper manual 10 of the organ are a series of tonal control stops or elements 16- (FIG. 1) shown in the form of tablets tiltable from an off raised position downwardly into an on position. These tablets 16 allow adding expression and variety of color to the music played and are shown in the specific embodiment illustrated, totaling sixteen, and arranged into six groups.

The first group of two tablets 16 represents the Lower Presets, and the next group of four tablets 16 represent the Upper Presets. The first tablet 16 in each of these two groups, when depressed, renders the tones set up on the drawbars 14 effective for the corresponding upper manual 10 or lower manual 11. The second tablet 16 in the first group may be an Ensemble control tablet producing an accompaniment tone which is a combination of strings and orchestral tones. The second, third and fourth tablets 16 in the second group may produce socalled Trumpet, Clarinet and Full Organ sound effects respectively when depressed into on position.

The third group of four control tablets 16 control the percussion tones available on the upper manual 10 and when depressed produce sound effects like harp, chimes, orchestral bells, celeste, xylophone, marimba and many more percussion sounds.

The fourth group of three control tablets 16 control the degree of vibrato on both manuals.

The fifth group of two control tablets 16 provide the correct amount of reverberation and these tablets are employed separately or in combination to give three degrees of reverberation to compensate for the deadening effect of the acoustic treatment of the room in which the organ is played.

The last control tablet 16 is a volume control.

The organ with its controls so far described, is of known type and is described as an illustration of a type or make of organ to which the present invention can be employed, but it must be understood that as far as certain aspects of the invention are concerned, the invention can be applied to the control of any type of organ having tonal control stops or elements.

bars 14 into initial (zero) position and raises the control tablets 16 from depressed on position to off position to set up these controls for preselection.

The preselector index card 18 (FIGS. 3 and 4) is especially prepared for a corresponding piece of music and is made of any rigid material, such as plastic or metal, and has a pattern of selector configurations 21 thereon for actuating electric circuit control elements 22 (FIG. 5) for the drawbars 14 shown in the form of switches, and a pattern of selector configurations 23 (FIG. 3) for actuating electric circuit control elements 24 (FIG. 8) for the tablets 16 also shown in the form of switches. The index card 18 may be attached to a sheet of music to be sold, as for example, in a pocket or envelope attached to said sheet of music to permit its easy removal therefrom, and corresponds in its patterns selector configurations 21 and 23 to the desirable or suitable control setting for the piece of music imprinted on said sheet.

In the specific embodiments shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the selector configurations 21 and 23 constitute small protuberances, each formed, for example, by making parallel slits in the index card 18 and pressing the material between the slits out of the plane of the card. The index card 18 has a row of designations 26 near the front of the card ranging from 1 to 17 corresponding to the number of control drawbars 14 .and a row of designations 27 on the adjacent side of the card ranging from 1 to 8 corresponding to the number of possible selection positions of the drawbars aside from the 0 (zero) inactive position. The protuberances 21 may be located in any coordinate position along the row of designations 26 corresponding to the drawbar 14 to be selected and along the row of designations 27 according to the selected position of the selected drawbar.

The index card 18 also has a row of designations 28 near the front of the card ranging from 1 to 16 corresponding to the number of control tablets 16 and the protuberance 23 for each designation 28 is located in only one position for said designation, where actuation of a selected control tablet in on position is indicated.

The index card 18 may also have a front tab 30 to facilitate handling of the index card into or out of the recess 17 on the organ.

FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 show a wiring diagram and part of the mechanism for the resetting operation and for the positioning of a selected drawbar 14 upon insertion of the index 18 in the recess 17. In the diagram of FIG. 5, the index card 18 is shown in limiting position in the recess 17 with a protuberance 21 on said card located in position to push the first drawbar 16 mechanically into number 6 position.

In the circuit of FIG. 5, the drawbar 14 is connected to one end of a switch actuator 35, the other end being connected to one end of the core or plunger 36 of a standard solenoid 37 having a coil 38 and serving as a driver for said drawbar. There would be a solenoid 37 and a switch actuator 35 for each drawbar 14, as shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7. The switch actuator 35 is shown in the form of a plate mounted for slide movement and having a series of steps 39 with risers corresponding in number and positions to the possible selected positions 1 to 8 for the drawbar 14. These steps serve to trip in succession into open position eight normally closed springpressed switches 40 controlling the positions of the corresponding drawbar 14, as the switch actuator 35 is moved by the solenoid 37.

The resetting circuit shown in FIG. 5 includes a stepdown transformer 42 across a house line 43, which may be connected to a source of alternating current, and a rectifier 44 at the outlet of the transformer to convert the current into direct current. The solenoid coil 38 is connected in series with a reversing double pole switch 45 connected across the output of the rectifier 44 and having contact lever arms 46 and 46a movable in unison into engagement with poles 47d and 47 respectively or with poles 48 and 48a respectively of the switch 45 in accordance with the angular position of the contact arms 46 and 46a. A connector line 49 joins the pole 47 with one end of the solenoid coil 38 and a connector line 50,

51 joins the pole 47d with the other end of the solenoid coil. A connector line 52, 51 having a spring-pressed normally open relay switch 53 therein joins the pole 48a with one end of the solenoid coil 38 and a connector line 54 joins the pole 48 with the other end of the solenoid coil through part of the connector line 49.

The solenoid plunger 36 is moved in resetting direction to the right (FIG. 5) or in drawbar selecting position to the left according to the direction of the current coursing through the solenoid coil 38, which direction is determined by the position of the reversing switch 45. The rate of movement of the solenoid plunger '36 is controlled by means of a suitable dashpot 56 (FIG. 6a), which may comprise .a closed air cylinder 57 with a piston rod 58 connected to the solenoid plunger and to a piston 59 in said cylinder having air passages 60 extending therethrough.

In the absence of an index card 18 in the recess 17, the switch 53 (FIG. 5) is open, and the reversing switch 45 is normally spring-pressed in position with its contact arms 46 and 46a in engagement with the poles 48 and 48a respectively. Under these normal conditions, the solenoid coil 38 is deenergized and the solenoid plunger 36 is in the axial position determined by the last setting of the control drawbar 14 associated therewith.

'For moving the switch 45 from normal position in which its contact arms 46 and 46a engage the poles 48 and 48a respectively into position in which its contact arms engage the poles 47d and 47 respectively, to thereby reset the control drawbars 14 into initial 0 (zero) position in preparation for selection, there is provided the reset switch actuating member 20, shown in the form of a spring-pressed button. When this button 20 is manually pressed against the action of a spring 65, the reversing switch 45 is moved into position to cause its contact arms 46 and 46a to engage the poles 47a" and 47. In this position of the reversing switch 45, the solenoid 37 will be energized under polarized conditions to move the plunger 36 to the right as far as it will go, and thereby to move the corresponding control drawbar 14 to the right to the 0 (zero) position. Upon release of the button 20, the switch 45 will return under the action of the spring 65 into position in which the contact arms 46 and 46a of the reversing switch 45 engage the poles 48 and 48a respectively.

The relay switch 53 which conditions the selector and resetting circuits for operation is actuated from a solenoid 66 having a spring-pressed plunger 67 and a coil 68 in series with a normally open spring-pressed target switch 69 in the path of movement of the rear edge of the index card 18 in limiting operative position of said card in the recess 17, and closed by said rear card edge in said position. This relay coil 68 is in a loop circuit, which may include a step-down transformer 70 connected across a house line 71 supplying alternating current and a rectifier 72 for converting the current to direct current, if such is required. The loop circuit of the relay coil 68 also contains in series therewith and with the switch 69 the normally open card operated spring-pressed switch 22 in position to be engaged by the protuberance 21 on the index card 18 and to close said switch when the card is in its limiting position in the recess 17, and the normally closed corresponding switch 40 in position to be engaged by a corresponding step 39 on the switch actuator 35. There are eight card-actuated normally open spring-pressed switches 22 for each control drawbar '14 spaced along each position row of the index card 18, only one, if any, being closed by a corresponding card protuberance 21, and eight corresponding spaced normally closed switches 40 in the path of the steps 39 on the actuator 35 of the corresponding control drawbar 14. Each card actuated switch 22 is connected in series with the corresponding switch 40 in a circuit loop, the eight 6 loops being connected together in parallel and all being connected in series with the relay coil 68 actuating the switch 53, as shown in FIG. 9.

In FIG. 5, the eight switches 22 for the corresponding control tablet 14 are shown somewhat mechanically only to clarify description but in actual practice these may be of any well-known construction. These switches 22 would be small almost in the nature of microswitches, and might be of the conventional easily available type operable to close upon pressing contact of a protuberance 21 on the index card 18 thereagainst, and spring-pressed back in to open condition when this contact is removed or is absent. These eight switches 22 are'shown connected together to a grounded single bus bar or connector line 74; the electrical connection of one of the contacts or poles of each switch 22 to this bus bar or line 74 is maintained both in open and closed position of the switch.

The eight norm-ally closed spring-pressed switches 40 for each switch actuator 35 of each control drawbar 14, are shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 spaced across the path of movement of the actuator in a row and opposite the risers of the steps 39 respectively on said switch actuator in position to be opened successively by said risers respectively as the switch actuator is moved towards the left by a selecting operation. The spacing between successive step risers would correspond to the distance between successive selected positions of the drawbar 14. As an alternative, the switches 40 may also be arranged in echelon or stepwise formation where this spacing is less than the distance between successive selected positions of the drawbar 14, as shown in somewhat exaggerated form in FIG. 9 to facilitate illustration. As a further alternative, the switch actuator 35, instead of presenting .a stepped forward edge, could present a straight forward switch tripping edge, while the switches are arranged in stepwise formation in position to vbe tripped successively by said edge as the switch actuator is moved towards the left, in which case, the distance between successive switches 40 along the direction of travel of the switch actuator would'correspond to the distance between successive settings of the drawbars.

There are two target switches 69 arranged in series with each other and with the relay coil 68 and spaced to engage the rear edge of the index card 18 near opposite ends thereof in limiting operative position of the indexv card, as shown in FIG. 9. With the target switches 69 so located, the circuits of the relay coil 68 will not close, if the index card is inserted in askew position in the recess 17, but will close if both target switches 69 are closed.

Stop means are provided for limiting the position of the index card 18 in its recess in operative position. In the specific form shown in FIG. 5, there is provided for that purpose a fixed upstanding wall 75 across the rear end of the recess 17 carrying the two fixed contacts 76 of the two target switches 69 interconnected by a bus bar or line (FIG. 9) and two yieldable contact fingers 77 normally spring-pressed away from said fixed contacts respectively and in the path of the rear edge of the index card 18. Whenthe index card 18 is pushed inwardly in the recess 17, the rear edge of the card engaging the contact fingers 77 of the switches 69 push said fingers against the action of the springs into contact with the fixed contacts 76 respectively of said switches, thereby closing said switches and at the same time stopping said index card in the proper place for registration of its settings on the drawbar control switches 22 and the tablet control switches 24.

In the operation of the selector mechanism so far described, it is assumed that the control drawbars 14 are in previous setting of the corresponding control drawbar 14. With the organ in this condition, the resetting button 20 is pushed to move the contact arms 46 and 46a of the reversing switch 45 into contact with the poles 47d and 47, this operation closing the circuit of the solenoid coil 38 and causing the current to flow therethrough in a direction to move the plunger 36 towards the right and the switch actuator 35 and the control drawbar 14 in the same direction. The manual pressure on the button 20 is maintained until the drawbar 14 reaches the limit of its inward stopped position, which is its (zero) position. The pushing of the resetting button 20 as described, resets all of the drawbars 14 in their initial or 0 (zero) position and in proper condtiion for card selection.

With the drawbars 14 reset, and the control tablets 16, also reset in off position in a manner to be described, the index card 18 is inserted in the recess 17 and pushed therein to the limiting position and kept there by manual pressure against the action of the springs acting on the switches 69. In this position of the index card 18, the rear edge of the card will close the switches 69, and the protuberance 21 on a drawbar position row of the index card will close the corresponding switch 22 over said row, and this will close the circuit of the relay solenoid coil 68 through the switches 69, the switch 22 and the closed switch 40 in series with the closed switch 22, thereby energizing said coil and closing the relay switch 53. This will close the circuit of the solenoid coil- 38 through the poles 48 and 48a of the reversing switch 45 and the closed switch 53, thereby energizing the solenoid coil 38 through current coursing in a direction to move the solenoid plunger 38 to the left under the control delaying action of the dashpot 56 (FIG. 6a). This moves the switch actautor 35 and the drawbar 14 towards the left. As the switch actuator 35 moves towards the left, the steps 39 thereon open in succession the switches 40 until the closed switch 40 is reached in series with the switch 22 which has been closed by the protuberance 21 on the index card 18. This opens the switch 40 in series with the closed switch 22 and thereby opens the circuit of the relay solenoid coil 68. This causes the springpressed switch 53 to open under the action of its spring, thereby immobilizing the solenoid plunger 36. In this position of the solenoid plunger 36, the drawbar 14 will be in the specific set position indicated by the pattern of the index card 18, and the solenoids 37 and 66 will be deenergized, until the next selecting operation is initiated.

In FIGS. and 9, the first drawbar 14 is shown set in position 6 by the index card 18 having a switch closing protuberance 21 in position 6 in the first row corresponding to the first drawbar.

The mechanisms for resetting the control tablets 16 in preparation for index card selection and for selecting the tablets to be moved into on position are similar to but simpler than those for resetting and selecting the control drawbars 14. FIG. 8 shows a simplified basic circuit for a single control tablet 16 and FIGS. 9 and 9a shows this circuit integrated into the overall resetting and selecting circuit of the organ.

Referring to FIG. 8, the resetting circuit for the control tablet 16 comprises the step-down transformer 42, rectifier 44 at the outlet of the transformer, the double-pole reversing switch 45 with poles 47, 48 and 48a and additional pole 47t, and resetting button 20 employed in the resetting circuit of the control drawbars 14. The control tablet 16 is connected to a plunger 80 of a solenoid 81 serving as a driver for the control tablet 16 and having a coil 82 energized from the outlet of the rectifier 44. Connected in series with the solenoid coil 82 is the switch 45. A connector line 83 and partof the connector 49 joins the pole 47 with one end of the solenoid 82 and a connector line 84 joins the pole 47t' with the other end of the solenoid coil. Part of the connector line 52, a connector line 85 having a spring-pressed normally open relay switch 86 therein, and part of the connector line 84 joins the pole 48a with one end of the solenoid coil 82 and the connector line 54, part of the connector line 49 and the connector line 83 joins the pole 48 with the other end of the solenoid coil.

The control tablet 16 has a pivot support 90 and is actuated from the solenoid plunger 80 through an arm 91 connected to said tablet at one side of said pivot support. The solenoid plunger 80 is moved in downward resetting direction (FIG. 8) to raise the forward end of the control tablet 16 upwardly in off position or is moved upwardly in position to depress the tablet into on position, the direction of movement of the plunger depending on the direction of current cousing through the solenoid coil 82. The rate of movement of the solenoid plunger 80 may be controlled by means of a dashpot 93 similar to the dashpot 56 for controlling the solenoid plunger 36, but since the control tablet 16 moves into only one of two positions, the dashpot 93 may be eliminated and friction or other means may be employed to reduce shock on the tablets.

In the absence of an index card 18 in the recess 17, the relay switch 86 is open, and the reversing switch 45 is normally in position with its contact arms 46 and 46a in engagement with the poles 48 and 48a. Under these conditions, the solenoid coil 82 is deenergized and the solenoid plunger 80 is in axial position determined by the last setting of the control tablet 16 associated therewith. The solenoid plunger 82, if vertical, may be under friction control to maintain it in whatever one of its two positions it is moved to in the absence of energization of its coil 82, or the solenoid 81 may be horizontal with a suitable linkage between the plunger 80 and the control tablet 16, to move the tablet in on or off position,

according to the directions of horizontal movements of the plunger, in which case no such friction or similar control is required.

The resetting of the control tablet 16 into raised off position shown in dot and dash lines in FIG. 8, is accomplished by pressing the button 20 against the action of its spring 65, so as to move the contact arms 46 and 46a of the switch 45 in engagement with the poles 47t and 47. In this position of the reversing switch 45, the sole: noid 81 will be energized under polarized conditions to move the plunger 80 downwardly and to raise the forward end of the control tablet 16 upwardly into ofl dot and dash line position shown. Upon release of the button 20, the switch 45 will return under the action of the spring 65 into position in which the contact arms 46 and 46a of the switch engage the poles 48 and 48a.

The relay switch 86 conditions the selector and resetting circuits for operation and is actuated from a solenoid having a spring-pressed plunger 101 and a coil 102 in series with the normally open spring-pressed switches 69 in the path of movement of the rear edge of the index card 18 in limiting operative position of said card in the recess 17, and closed by said rear card edge in said position. This relay coil 102 is in a loop circuit which includes the step-down transformer 70 connected across the house line 71 supplying current and the rectifier 72 for converting the current to direct current, if such is required. The loop circuit of the relay coil 102 also contains in series therewith and with the target into on position is. indicated. The switch 104 is opened I against the action of its spring by an offset or earn 105 on the arm 91 adapted to trip said switch open as the plunger 80 of the energized solenoid 82 is moved upwardly.

In the operation of the selector mechanism for the cont'rol tablets 16, it is assumed that at least some of the tablets are in on position from a previous setting and that no index card 18 is in the recess 17. In this normal condition of the organ, the reversing switch 45 is in position to contact the poles 48 and 48a, the switches 69, 86 and 24 are open and the switch 104 is closed. With the organ in this position, the resetting button 20 is pushed to move the contact arms 46 and 46a of the reversing switch 45 into contact with the poles 471' and 47, this operation not only resetting the control drawbars 14 through the contact 47d as previously described but also closing the circuit of the solenoid coil 82 and, causing the current to flow therethrough in a direction to move the plunger 80 downwardly and the forward section of the control tablet 16 upwardly in the off position. pushing of the resetting button 20 as described, resets all of the tablets 16 in oil position in proper condition for card selection.

With the drawbars 14 reset in position and the tablets 16 reset in off position by the operation described, the index card 18 is inserted in the recess 17 and pushed therein to limiting operative position as described. In this position of the index card 18, the rear edge of the a card will close the target switches 69 and the protuberance 23 on the index card will close the corresponding switch 24, and this will close the circuit of the relay solenoid coil 102 through the switches 69, the switch 24 and the switch 104 in series therewith, thereby energizing said coil and closing the relay switch 86. This will close the circuit of the solenoid coil 82 through the poles 48 and 48a of the reversing switch 45 and the closed switch 86, thereby energizing the solenoid coil 82 through current coursing in a direction to move the solenoid plunger 80 upwardly. This moves the forward section of the control tablet 16 downwardly in on position and will at the same time open the switch 104, thereby opening the circuit of the relay coil 102 and causing the switch 86 to open. The opening of the switch 86 opens the circuit of the solenoid coil 82. The control tablet 16 will remain in on position until reset and reselected for the next piece of music, or until manually returned to 011 position, if such is desired during the playing of a piece of music.

Since the springs acting on the switches 69 push against the index card 18 tending to open said switches, it is necessary to maintain manual pressure edgewise against the cards to maintain said switches closed, until the selections and settings of the control drawbars 14 and tablets 16 are completed, whereupon manual pressure against the card can be released. This release of manual pressure on the index card 18 will permit said card to move outwardly from the recess 17 sufiiciently to open the switches 69 against the action of their springs, and this will deenergizethe electrical selector control systems described.

After the automatic selection and setting of the control drawbars 14 and 16 have been made as described, and after the switches 69 have been automatically opened by the release of manual pressure on the index card 18, it is possible to manually reset any drawbar or drawbars or any tablet or tablets in the usual way without interfering with the setting of the other drawbars and tablets and without removing the index card from the recess 17. This manual control superposed onthe automatically effected controls may be desirable to interpose tonal variations in the piece being played without disturbing the general or basic pattern of tonal effects automatically set at the beginning of the piece by means of the index card.

The tone generators and the tonal function controls accomplished by the settings of the different control drawbars 14 and the control tablets 16, per se, form no part of the present invention and may be accomplished in any suitable manner. For example, in FIG. 6a, there is shown such a tone generator 110, which may comprise a' constant speed wheel 111 for generating sound vibrations, and a tuning fork 112 connected to a stem movable The 18 with the solenoid plunger 36 relative to the wheel, so that the position of this tuning fork will accord with the setting of the corresponding control drawbar 14 to generate a corresponding tone.

A suitable tonal function control 113 (FIG. 8) may be similarly operated in on position of a tablet 16, as shown in FIG. 8.

,FIGS. 9 and 9a conjointly show the basic circuits of FIGS. 5 and 8 integrated for the first two control drawbars 14 and for the first two control tablets 16 into a composite circuit; the tie-up of the circuits for all of the drawbars and tablets is obvious from this composite circuit. 'It is seen from this composite circuit that there is required only one reversing switch 45, one resetting button 20 for operating said switch, a solenoid 37 for driving each drawbar 14, a relay solenoid 66 for each drawbar, a solenoid 81 for driving each, tablet 16 and a relay solenoid for each tablet.

Also, it should be noted that once the necessary selection and setting of the drawbars 14 and tablets-16 have been made by the insertion of the selector index card 18 in the recess 17, and the switches 69 have been opened by the release of edgewise manual pressure on the index card, the resetting and selecting circuits are all deenergized until the next resetting and selecting operations are initiated.

In the composite or integrated circuits of FIGS. 9 and 9a, FIG. 9a is joined to FIG. 9 along the connector line points a, b, c, d and e, so that by joining the two figures at these points, the composite circuits are formed.

In the composite circuit of FIGS. 9 and 9a, the driver solenoids 37 for the drawbars 14 and the driver solenoids 81 for the tablets 16 are connected in parallel across the reversing switch 45. With such parallel connection, in order to prevent the relay switches 53 and'86, controlling the selections of those drawbars 14 and/ or tablets 16 which are not scheduled for selection on the index card 18 in the recesses 17, from being shunted or short-circuited, and to prevent thereby such unscheduled selection and setting of these drawbars and tablets, the contact lever arm 46 of said switch has a gang of contact points marked 1, 2 one for each drawbar 14, and a gang of contact points marked 1, 2' one for each tablet 16, Although there are shown only two contacts points 1, 2 and only two contact points 1', 2' to conform to the first two drawbars 14 and to the first two tablets 16 shown in FIGS. 9 and 9a, actually there would be seventeen contact points 1, 2 ,for the seventeen drawbars and sixteen contact points 1, 2 for the sixteen tablets, to agree with the specific embodiment of the invention illustrated. For cooperation with the contact points 1, 2 and contact points 1, 2 on the contact arm 46 of the switch 45, there are provided poles 47d, 47d having respective connector lines 50, 50' for connection to the driver solenoids 37 of the drawbars 14 respectively and poles 47t', 47t" having respective connector lines 84, 84', for connection to the driver solenoids 81 of the tablets 16 respectively.

In the circuits of FIGS. 9 and 9a, the first drawbar 14 is shown set for position 6, the second drawbar is shown set for position 5, the first tablet 16 is shown set in on position and the second tablet 16 is shown set in off position.

Summarizing the overall operation, upon pushing the button 20 inwardly, the switch 45 will close contact with poles 47d, 47d" 47t', 47t" and pole 47 simultaneously and will close thereby the circuits of allof the solenoid coils 38 and the solenoid coils 82, to cause the drawbars 14 and tablets 16 set for'a' previous playing session to be reset. With all of the drawbars 14 reset in 0 (zero) position and all of the tablets 16 reset in off position, and with the switch 45 restored to normal position in which contacts are reestablished with poles 48 and 48a, the index card 18 is pushed into the recess 17 into limiting position to close relay switches 69. This will close the circuits through the switches 69 and- I through those drawbar switches 22 and tablet switches 24 which have been closed by the selector protuberances 21 and 23 on the index card 18, thereby moving the selected drawbars 14 in selected position by means of the corresponding driver solenoids 38 and moving the selected tablet 16 in on position by means of the corresponding driver solenoids 81.

In the embodiment of the invention so far described, the selector index card 18 is illustrated with selector configurations in the form of protuberances 21 and 23 for actuating electric circuit control elements 22 and 24 shown in the form of switches. However, as far as certain aspects of the present invention are concerned, the selector configurations can take other forms. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the selector configurations in the index card 18a may take the form of openings 21a for selection of the drawbars 14 and similar openings (not shown) for selection of the tablets 16. With such a perforated index card, either direct mechanical switches may be employed for control elements as shown in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. l-9a, or pneumatically, magnetically or photoelectrically controlled circuitry could be employed to select the drawbars 14 and tablets 16. Also, as far as certain aspects of the invention are concerned, the index card may take other forms. For example, the index card may be magnetized in selected sections to adapt it for operation with magnetically controlled circuitry or may be made transparent at selected sections, either by perforations as shown in FIG. 10 or by masking or other means for operation with photoelectric circuitry or other optical responsive mechanisms.

While the invention has been described with particular reference to specific embodiments, it is to be understood that it is not to be limited thereto but is to be construed broadly and restricted solely by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

I. In an organ, the combination comprising stops for controlling tonal effects, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector configurations thereon, and means automatically operable when said control record is placed in said receptacle without subsequent additional manipulation for selecting stops and positioning them in accordance with said configurations.

2. In an organ, the combination comprising stops for controlling tonal eifects, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector configurations thereon, means for sensing said configurations automatically when said record is placed in predetermined position in said receptacle without subsequent additional manipulation, and means responsive to said sensing means for selecting stops in accordance with the sensed configurations and for positioning the selected stops into active positions according to said configurations.

3. In an organ, the combination comprising stops for controlling tonal effects, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector configurations thereon, means for sensing said configurations, electric power driver means responsive to said sensing means for selecting and moving selected stops into active positions, said power means being inoperative in the absence of a master control record in said receptacle, a target switch located in position to be tripped by said record when said record is placed in said receptacle in proper position to cause said configurations to be properly sensed by said sensing means, and means for rendering said power means operative upon the tripping of said switch by said record.

4. In an organ, the combination comprising stops for controlling tonal effects in the form of drawbars, each adapted to be drawn into more than two active selected positions from an inactive position, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector'configurations thereon, means for sensing said configurations when said record is placed in predetermined position in said re- I2 ceptacle, and means responsive to said sensing means for selecting stops in accordance with the sensed configurations and for drawing the selected stops into selected positions in accordance with said configurations.

5. In an organ, the combination comprising stops for controlling tonal effects, some of said stops being in the form of drawbars, each drawable into selected positions from an inactive position, and the other stops being in the form of tablets tiltable into on and off positions, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector configurations for the stops of both types, means for sensing said configurations when said record is placed in predetermined position in said receptacle, and means responsive to said sensing means for selecting drawbars in accordance with the sensed configurations and drawing the selected drawbars into selected positions in accordance with said configurations and for selecting tablets and tilting the selected tablets in on positions in ac cordance with said configurations.

6. In an organ, the combination comprising stops for controlling tonal effects, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector configurations thereon, means operable when said control record is placed in said receptacle in predetermined position for automatically selecting stops and positioning them in accordance with said configurations, and comprising a control member for said selecting means automatically set by said receptacle in position to render. said selecting means operative automatically when said control record is in said predetermined position, spring means in said receptacle urging said control record away from said predetermined position, whereby upon manual release of said control record in said receptable said record will be moved by said spring means away from said predetermined position without disturbing the positions of said stops, said control member being automatically set in position to render said selecting means inoperative automatically when said record is out of said predetermined position, and means for rendering said stops operative for manual separate positioning while said record is out of said predetermined position.

7. In an organ, the combination comprising stops for controlling tonal effects and each mounted for positioning from inactive position into more than one active position,

a receptacle for receiving a master control record having a selector configurations therein, means for sensing said configurations when said record is placed in predetermined position in said receptacle comprising a switch for each active position of each stop having means for feeling said configuration and closing selected switches thereby, and means operable when said switches are closed for automatically moving the corresponding stops into active positions.

8. In an organ, the combination comprising manually settable stops for selecting and controlling tonal effects, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector configurations thereon, and means operable automatically when said control record is placed in said receptable for selecting tonal effects and for controlling them to the same extent as they would be controlled by the manual setting of said stops without subsequent additional manipulation.

9. In an organ having playing keys, the combination comprising manually settable stops for selecting and controlling tonal effects produced when the keys are played, means supporting each of said stops for movements from an inactive position into a number of diiferent active positions, corresponding to different tonal effects respectively, means responsive to the manual setting of any one of said stops into any one of its active positions for producing the corresponding tonal effects when the organ keys are played, a receptacle for receiving a master control record having selector configurations thereon, and means automatically operable in accordance with the pattern of said selector configuration when said control receptacle is placed in predetermined position in said receptacle for controlling said effects to the same extent as they would be controlled by the manual setting of said stops into active positions corresponding to said selector configurations.

10. In an organ having playing keys, the combination as described in claim 9, wherein said stops are in the form of drawbars, each being adapted to be moved endwise into any of said active positions.

11. In an organ having playing keys, the combination as described in claim 9, said automatically operable means comprising banks of switches corresponding to said stops respectively and arranged side by side for controlling the actions of said tonal efiects, each bank having a series of switches corresponding to the number of active positions on the corresponding stop, said switches in each bank being adapted to be normally opened and each switch in said bank being closed by a corresponding configuration on the master control record, when said master control record is inserted in said predetermined position in said receptacle, whereby the position of a particular configuration on the control record will determine the particular switch in a corresponding bank of switches closed by said particular configuration.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,650,555 11/1927 Walcker 84-343 1,819,820 8/1931 Kent 84-1.18 2,541,051 2/1951 Hanert 84-122 2,699,085 1/1955 Zuck 84-1.19 2,704,187 4/1955 Beach et al 2356l.12 2,855,816 10/1958 Olson et al 841.03 2,954,716 10/1960 Raymond 84-337 3,103,141 9/1963 Adams 84343 3,114,036 12/1963 Andregg 235-61.12 3,172,939 3/1965 Campbell et a1 84-103 LOUIS I. CAPOZI, Primary Examiner.

LEO SMILOW, C. M. OVERBEY, Assistant Examiners.

Claims (1)

1. IN AN ORGAN, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING STOPS FOR CONTROLLING TONAL EFFECTS, A RECEPTACLE FOR RECEIVING A MASTER CONTROL RECORD HAVING SELECTOR CONFIGURATIONS THEREON, AND MEANS AUTOMATICALLY OPERABLE WHEN SAID CONTROL RECORD IS PLACED IN SAID RECEPTACLE WITHOUT SUBSEQUENT ADDITIONAL MANIPULATION FOR SELECTING STOPS AND POSITIONING THEM IN ACCORDANCE WITH SAID CONFIGURATIONS.

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