US3494240A

US3494240A - Sounding box

Info

Publication number: US3494240A
Application number: US640595A
Authority: US
Inventors: Armand G Laselva; John Baptist Orfei
Original assignee: American Science and Engineering Inc
Current assignee: American Science and Engineering Inc
Priority date: 1967-05-23
Filing date: 1967-05-23
Publication date: 1970-02-10
Anticipated expiration: 1987-02-10

Description

Feb. 10, 1970 LA LV ET AL 3,494,240

SOUNDING BOX Filed May 23, 1967 2a United States Patent 3,494,240 SOUNDIN G BOX Armand G. Laselva, Rockport, and John Baptist Orfei, North Revere, Mass., assignors to American Science and Engineering, Inc., Cambridge, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed May 23, 1967, Ser. No. 640,595 Int. Cl. G10d 3/00; G09b 15/02 U.S. Cl. 84-291 10 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The invention herein illustrated is an educational sounding box containing an opening in its top, a bridge piece spanning the opening and one or more elastic bands mounted on the box with portions stretched over the bridge.

Background of the invention Summary As herein illustrated, the device comprises an elongate box having a top, bottom, sides and ends, said top containing near one end an opening, a bridge mounted on the top over the opening, said bridge providing an elevated ridge spaced from and parallel to the surface of the top and one or more strands secured at opposite ends to the box with the portions between said ends supported in tension on the ridge above the opening. The bridge comprises parts hinged to each other mounted on the top of the box with their distal ends held engaged with the top at opposite sides of the opening and with the hinge above and parallel to the top.

The device is furnished in blank form comprising hinged connected parts adapted by setting at right angles to each other to form a box having a top, bottom, sides and ends and is characterized in that a pair of anchoring members are severed from the stock of the top part so as to be foldable outwardly therefrom about transversely extending, spaced parallel hinges, and a bridge member detachably connected at one end to one end of the top or bottom part, the bridge member being foldable intermediate its ends when detached to enable placing its distal ends against the top between the outwardly folded anchoring member and to be held thereby astride the opening left by the outwardly folded anchoring members.

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is an isometric of the sound box;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an end view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the blank as seen from one side; and

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the blank seen from the opposite side.

Referring to the drawings, the device comprises an elongate box 10 of rectangular configuration having a top 12, bottom 14, sides 16and ends 18. The top 10 contains near one end a substantially rectangular opening 20 of lesser prior to setting up prior to setting up as 3,494,240 Patented Feb. 10, 1970 width than the top and over this opening there is mounted of parts 24 connected by a hinge 26 and is mounted on the top with its distal ends 28 engaged with the top between outwardly folded anchoring members 30 connected to the top at opposite edges of the opening 20the resistance to outward folding of the parts 30 operating to hold the distal ends of the bridge member against the top of the box.

One or more strands 32 of elastic material, for example, elastic bands, are mounted on the box with the portions crossing the top side of the box held away from the top by engagement with the ridge of the bridge member 22the ridge being constituted by the hinge 26. By employing elastic bands of different thickness and by adjusting the strands to increase the tension in the portions crossing the bridge member the pitch may be modified.

To enable increasing or decreasing the tension in a given 1 strand the end of the box remote from the bridge member is provided with a rough edge 34, over which the strand may be drawn to increase the tension, which offers sufficient friction so that the stretched strand will remain in place without slipping.

To dramatize the fundamental requirements of the combination of a hollow box as an amplifier and the strings as sound generators in the development of stringed instruments, the device is furnished in a form as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, that makes it necessary for each student to erect the sound box from a fiat collapsed box blank and apply the strings thereto under tension. Also the box blank is designed to enable its manufacturer with the bridge member embodied in it and detachable therefrom.

The top side of the blank, as shown in FIG. 5, comprises the top part 12, one side 16, one end 18, tuck pieces 36 and side flaps 38. The reverse or bottom side of the blank as shown in FIG. 6 comprises the bottom side 14, one side 16, one end 18, the tuck pieces 36 and the side flaps 38. In the top 12 (FIG. 5) there are shown the anchor members 30 and these are provided by forming hinges 40 in the stock of the top, transversely thereof, cutting through the stock along lines 42 which connect the opposite ends of the hinges 40 and then making spaced parallel cuts 44 midway between the hinges. A single cut 44 may be employed, however, a double cut is preferred to enable removing a narrow strip so that it is easier to grasp an edge of one of the anchor members 30 to lift it upwardly away from the top of the box.

The hinges 40 may be formed in any suitable fashion and preferably are formed so that they resist outward deflection of the anchor members 30.

The bridge member 22 is formed integral with one end of the top part 12, as shown in FIG. 5, at the left end thereof and extends from this end out to the end of the truck piece 36 at this end, being divided intermediate its ends into the two sections 24 by the hinge 26 which coincides substantially with the hinge between the end 18 and the tuck piece 36 situated beneath it. A series of perforations 46 are formed through the stock to enable detaching the part 22 from the top and also to provide the rough edge 34.

The fiat blanks are set up by disposing the top, bottom, sides and ends at right angles to each other after having detached the bridge member 22 from the top, then the bridge member is folded on its hinge 26 and its distal ends disposed between the anchor members 30 which are folded outwardly for this purpose to receive the bridge member. One or more elastic bands are now placed about the box so as to extend over the ridge of the bridge member and these are adjusted to provide the desired pitch or to modify and contrast the pitch between one strand and another.

The entire device is comprised of paperboard which may be faced on one or both sides with a decorative or attractive material and which may optionally bear printed instructions of the steps for assembly of the device on the bottom for example.

We claim:

1. An educational device comprising a box having a top and enclosing a volume, said top containing an opening, a bridge member mounted on the top over the opening, said bridge member providing an elevated ridge spaced from the top, and one or more strands mounted in tension on the box with the portions intermediate the ends at the top supported in spaced relation to the top by said bridge, wherein said bridge member comprises parts joined by a bridge, wherein said bridge member comprises parts joined by a hinge mounted astride the opening with the hinge above the opening and with the distal ends of the parts bearing on the top, and means at the opposite edges of the opening holding the distal ends of the parts in engagement with the top.

2. An educational device comprising a box having a top and enclosing a volume, said top containing an opening, a bridge member mounted on the top over the opening, said bridge member providing an elevated ridge spaced from the top, and one or more strands mounted in tension on the box with the portions intermediate the ends at the top supported in spaced relation to the top by said bridge, and further comprising anchoring members along the opposite edges of said opening, said anchoring members being resistant to outward displacement relative to the top and being operative by engagement with the distal ends of the parts of the bridge engaged with the top to hold the bridge member in place.

3. An educational device comprising a. box having a top and enclosing a volume, said top containing an opening, a bridge member mounted on the top over the opening, said bridge member providing an elevated ridge spaced from the top, and one or more strands mounted in tension on the box with the portions intermediate the ends at the top supported in spaced relation to the top by said bridge, and further comprising a rough edge at the end of the top part remote from. the bridge over which the strand or strands pass, said edge being resistant to slip of the band or bands relative thereto.

4. A blank comprising hingedly connected parts adapted by setting at right angles to each other to form a box having a top, bottom, sides and ends, characterized in that a pair of anchor members are severed from the stock of the top part so as to be foldable outwardly therefrom about transversely extending, spaced parallel hinges, and a bridge member is detachably connected at one end to one end of the top or bottom part, said bridge member being foldable between its ends when detached to enable planting its distal ends against the top part between the outwardly folded anchor members and to be held thereby astride the opening left by said pair of outwardly folded anchor members.

5. A blank according to claim 4, wherein the anchor members are defined by transversely extending, spaced parallel hinge formed in the stock and longitudinally extending spaced parallel cuts connecting the ends of the hinges.

6. A blank according to claim 4, wherein the anchor members are defined by transversely extending, spaced parallel hinges formed in the stock, transversely extending, spaced parallel cuts situated between the hinges, and longitudinally extending, spaced parallel cuts connecting the ends of the hinges and intersecting the ends of the intermediate cuts.

7. A blank according to claim 4, wherein the bridge member corresponds in width to the top.

8. A blank according to claim 4, wherein one end part of the box is hinged to one end of the top part and the other end part of the box to the bottom part, and the bridge member is detachably connected at one end to the end of the top or bottom part opposite that to which an end part of the box is hinged.

9. A blank according to claim 8, wherein a line of perforations detachably connect the bridge member to the top so that separation of the bridge member from the top leaves a rough edge at that end of the top.

10. A blank according to claim 4, wherein tuck pieces are hingedly connected to the distal ends of the ends of the box for holding the ends of the box in position when the box is set up, and said bridge member corresponds in length to the composite length of an end of the box and its tuck piece.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 529,893 11/1894 Burke 84173 X 2,020,557 11/1935 Loar 841 RICHARD B. WILKINSON, Primary Examiner J. F. GONZALES, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 84-470