US350521A

US350521A - Musical toy

Info

Publication number: US350521A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1886-10-12
Anticipated expiration: 1903-10-12

Description

{Nze Model.)

lil B. BALD'WN.

MUSICAL TOY.

No. 350,521. Ptnted 001;. 12,1886.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

NATHANIEL BATES BALDVIN, OF HYDE PARK, ILLINOIS.

MUSICAL TOY..

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 350,521, dated October 12, 1886.

Application filed October 14, 1885. Serial N0.1T9,8E5. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Bc it known that i, NATHANTEL Barns BALD- WIN, a citizen ol" the United States, and a resident of Hyde Iarlr, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Musical Toys, and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, ret'- erence being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part oi' this specification.

rIhis invention relates to improvements in that type of musical or sound-producing toys in winch the breath is blown across a stretched reed or membrane, so as to cause the same to vibrate and produce a. sound, and the present improvement has for its object to provide such class of toys with a simple, convenient, and etl'ective means for instantly changing the degree of tension oi the sound-producing membrane, so as to produce notes or sounds of a higher or lower pitch, at the will of the operator. I attain sucli objects by the construetion and arrangement ot' parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which'- Fig. lisa perspective view of my improved toy; Fig. 2, a longitudinal section of the saine, and Fig. S a transverse section at line .r fr.

Similar letters ol' reierence indicate like paris in the several views.

tci'erring to the drawings, A represents the frame or body of thc toy, preferably of wood,

but which may be of any other suitable niaterial, and ot' any desired outer configuration, as the judgment or taste of the maker may suggest. Centrally in said body is formed an elongated passage or throat, a, extending through said body, and in which is arranged the extensible reed or membrane Il, that is tixedly secured at one end in a recess, a", oi' the body A in any well-known manner. The other end, I), of said membrane passes i'reely through apassage, n, to the outside ofthe toy, so as to be grasped by the thumb and finger of the operator and enable the tension of the membrane to be regulated so as to produce a sound of the desired pitch. lVhen desired, the free end Z) of said membrane may be provided With a bead or projection, b, so as to enable the operator to.more firmly grasp and hold the same. rIhe reed or membrane B is preferably formed of a strip of elastic india-rubber, yet any other suitable material can be employed instead without departing from the spirit of my`invcntion. The shape ot' the reed can similarly be modified from a ilat strip, as shown, to a round or other shaped reed, it' desired.

My device in use is intended to be placed between. the lips and against the teeth of the operator, and in order to render the same more convenient I form the back of the toybody A with a curved recess, C, of a shape approximately that of the teeth. It is preferable to make the exit a" ot the passage or throat a ot a flaring or bell shape Vtor the more perfect discharge oi" the sound produced by the reed B.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A sound-producing toy composed of a body, A, having` a throat or passage, a, and an extensible reed or membrane arranged therein and adapted to have its tension adjusted by hand, essentially as herein described, and for the purpose set forth.

2. A sound-producing toy composed of a body, A, having throat or passage a., recess u, and passage ai, in combination with the reed or membrane B, one end of which is iixed, and the other end, lb, adapted to be grasped by thc hand, as herein described, and for the purpose set forth.

S. A sound-producing toy having the reed B fixed at one end and loose at the other, and provided with the curved recess C at its back, as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 6th day of October, 1885, at Chicago, Cook county, Illinois.

NATHANIEL BATES BALD VIN.

In presence of- ROBERT BUnxs, GEORGE H. ARTHUR.