US3683098A

US3683098A - Violin chin rest

Info

Publication number: US3683098A
Application number: US55449A
Authority: US
Inventors: Abraham Chavez Jr
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1970-07-16
Filing date: 1970-07-16
Publication date: 1972-08-08
Anticipated expiration: 1989-08-08

Abstract

A violin chin rest, including means for mounting the chin rest on the base of a violin, has a swivelly mounted chin support portion mounted in a base member mounted on the violin mounting means. Means are provided for adjusting the position of the chin support member relative to the base member, and clamping means are provided for clamping the chin support member in a selected position relative to the base member.

Description

United States Patent Chavez, Jr. {451 Aug. 8, 1972 [54] VIOLIN CHIN REST 72 Inventor: Abraham Chavez, Jr., 4497 Grinnel W Examiner-Stephen Tomsky Ave., Boulder, Colo. 80303 [22] Filed: July 16, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 55,449

[52] US. Cl ..84/278 [51] Int. Cl. ..Gl0d l/02 [58] Field of Search 84/278, 279

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 925,068 6/ 1909 Ziegler ..84/279 1,435,280 11/1922 Colbertson ..84/279 1,204,642 11/1916 Becker ..84/279 Assistant Examiner-Lawrence R. Franklin Attorney-Richard D. Law

[5 7] ABSTRACT chin support member in a selected position relative to the base member.

6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures P'ATENTEDM 8 m 3,683, 098

FIG. 2 FIG. 4

INVENTOR ABRAHAM CHAVEZ JR.

ATTORNEY VIOLIN CHIN REST The present invention relates to chin rests and more particularly to a violin chin rest.

Generally, while playing a violin, a violinist positions the base of the instrument between his shoulder and chin and clamps it there by pressing his chin against the base of the violin. Thereby, the violin is held in a generally stable position for playing. This manner of holding a violin is, of course, not completely satisfactory for all physiques, and may be tiring on the neck of the violinist, due to various degrees of bending the neck in order to clamp the violin between the chin and shoulder. Further, the longer the neck of the violinist, the more neck must be bent in order to hold the violin.

It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to provide an improved violin chin rest characterized by having a chin support portion which is selectively positionable for accomodating violinists.

It is further an object of the present invention to provide an improved violin chin rest which in situ has a chin support portion positioned abovethe base of the violin and is characterized by having means for selectively adjusting the height of the chin support portion over the violin base.

It is additionally an object of the present invention to provide an improved violin chin rest characterized by having a chin support portion which may be swivelly positioned relative to the base of a violin upon which it is mounted.

In accomplishing these and other objects, there has been provided, in accordance with the present invention, a violin chin rest including means for attaching the chin rest to the base of a violin. A base plate is included in the attaching means and is positioned on the upper surface of the violin base whenever the chin rest is mounted thereon. Adjustably mounted in the base plate is the chin support portion of the chin rest. The chin support portion includes a support member, for supporting a violinists chin, which is mounted by means of a mounting plate on ball joint means so as to be swivelly adjustable. The mounting plate is mounted on the lower side of the chin support member and has a plurality of spaced holes, any of which may be selectively engaged by the ball joint means. Thereby, the position on which the chin support member is mounted on the ball joint means may be selected relative to the base of the violin. Means are additionally provided in the ball joint means for adjusting the height of the support member over the violin base. Thus, there is provided an improved violin chin rest which has a selectively adjustable chin support portion as desired by violinists.

A better understanding of the present invention may be had from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a pictorial view of a violin chin rest according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an end elevational view of the violin chin rest of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the violin chin rest of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the plate upon which the chin support portion of the violin chin rest of FIG. 1 is mounted.

Referring to the drawings in more detail, there is shown in FIGS. 1-3, a violin chin rest, generally indicated by the numeral 1. The chin rest 1 includes a lower flat clamping member 2 connected with a base member 3. The base member 3 has an upper flat clamping member 4 mounted on its lower surface. The base member 3 and clamping member 2 are joined by a pair of upright members 5 which are preferably mounted perpendicular to the upper surface of the clamping member 2. Each upright member 5 has an adjustable portion 6 for varying its length, and the upper portion of the members 5 are each bent at preferably right angles so that the base member 3 may be positioned over the upper surface of the base of a violin. Thereby, the clamping

members

2 and 4 are positioned substantially parallel with respect to each other.

Swivelly mounted in the base member 3 is a ball joint means having a ball portion 7 and an upwardly extending member 8. The member 8 is threaded and of a predetermined length, and has a portion of its length screwed into the ball 7. The extent to which the member 8 is screwed into the ball 7 is adjustable so that height at which a chin support member 16 mounted thereon is positioned over the base member may be selectively determined. Lock nut means 10 is shown threaded on the member 8, to lock member 8 at a predetermined penetration into the ball 7. The ball 7 is positioned by a clamping means 9 threaded through a hollowed-out portion of the base member 3. The ball 7 may be clamped in a selected position by tightening the knurled knob of the clamping means 9. The angle the upward projecting member 8 makes with the upper surface of the base member 3 may be thereby selectively adjusted.

The upper end of the member 8 is threaded into a plate member 15 mounted on the lower surface of the chin support member 16. The plate member 15, which is shown in detail in FIG. 4, is preferably circular and has a plurality of spaced holes 17 tapped therein. The holes 17 are appropriately sized and threaded for receiving the upper end of the member 8. Thus, by selecting the particular hole 17 into which the member 8 is threaded, the position the chin support 16 is mounted relative to the ball 6 is selected.

The chin support member 16, as shown in FIGS. 1-3, has its upper surface curved to accomodate the chin of a violinist. This chin support 17 may be made of wood, plastic, or another suitable material which will comfortably support a violinists chin while at the same time permitting the violinist to stably hold the violin between his chin and shoulder.

In operation, the violin chin rest 1 is clamped or mounted on the base of a violin by positioning the clamping member 2 against the lower side of the violin base and adjusting the length of the upright members 5 by means of the adjustable portions 6. These adjustable portions 6 may be threaded on the members 5, for example, so that the length of the members 5 may be adjusted by turning the portions 6, thereby to clamp the clamping

members

4 and 2 on the upper and lower sides of the violin base, respectively. It is noted that the contact portions of the

clamping members

2 and 4 are preferably made of a material such as cork, which does not damage or scratch the base of the violin.

With the clamping

members

2 and 4 securely clamping the violin chin rest 1 on the base of the violin, the position of the chin support member 16 is adjusted relative to the base member 3. Adjustment of the position of the chin support member 16 relative to the base member 3 automatically changes the distance of the support member 16 above the base of the violin. The position of the chin support 16 relative to the violin base may be adjusted in any of several manners in order to accomodate the chin of a violinist. First, the clamp means may be adjusted in order to lengthen or shorten the distance the member 8 extends from the ball 7, thereby to adjust the height of the support 16 over the base of the violin. Secondly, the particular hole 17 in the plate 15, into which the member 8 is threaded, may be selected so as to determine the mounting of the chin support member 16 relative to the ball 6. Additionally, the position of the chin support member 16 relative to the base member 3 and the base of the violin may be fixed by swivelly moving the ball 6 in the base member 3. In this manner, the angle of the support member 16 may be selected by tilting the extension 8 with respect to the base member 3 and the sense which the chin support 16 is positioned may be determined by rotating the ball 6 relative to the base member 3. Once the chin support 16 is appropriately positioned for the chin of a particular violinist, the knurled knob of the clamping means 9 is tightened in order to fix the position of the chin support 16 relative to the base of the violin.

Thus, there is provided an improved violin chin rest which is selectively attachable to a violin and has a selectively positionable chin support portion according to the desires of the violinist.

I claim:

1. A violin chin rest, comprising means for mounting said chin rest on the base of a violin, said mounting means including a base member for positioning on the upper surface of the base of a violin on which said chin rest is mounted; a chin support member for supporting the chin of a violinist; a single extending member depending from said chin support for securing the same to said base member; ball joint means for swivelly mountselectively clamping said chin support member in a selected position relative to said base member so as to selectively fix the position of said chin support member relative to the base of said violin.

2. The invention recited in claim 1 wherein said single extending member is secured in said ball joint, said extending member being mounted in the ball portion of said ball joint to extend upward therefrom, and a plate having a plurality of holes therein is mounted on the lower surface of said chin support member, the holes in said plate being constructed to receive the upper end of said extending member so that said chin support member is mounted on said ball joint by selectively engaging said extending member in any selected one of the holes of said plate.

3. The invention recited in claim 2, wherein said extending member includes means for selectively adjusting the extent to which it extends upward from the ball orti of aidb l'oint. p 4. e i nvent i oli recited in claim 3, wherein said mounting means includes a flat lower clamping member for positioning against the lower side of said violin base, a flat upper clamping member for positioning against the upper side of said violin base, and upright support members connecting said upper and lower clamping members, said upright members having means for adjusting their length so that said clamping members may be selectively clamped on said violin base.

5. The invention recited in claim 4, wherein said upright members include a pair of support members mounted on said lower clamping member perpendicular thereto, and said upper clamping member is mounted on said support members so as to be positioned substantially parallel with said lower clamping member.

6. The invention recited in claim 1, wherein said mounting means includes a flat lower clamping member for positioning against the lower side of said violin base, a flat upper clamping member for positioning against the upper side of said violin base, and upright support members connecting said upper and lower clamping members, said upright members having means for adjusting their length so that said clamping members may be selectively clamped on said violin base.

Claims

1. A violin chin rest, comprising means for mounting said chin rest on the base of a violin, said mounting means including a base member for positioning on the upper surface of the base of a violin on which said chin rest is mounted; a chin support member for supporting the chin of a violinist; a single extending member depending from said chin support for securing the same to said base member; ball joint means for swivelly mounting said single extending member on said base member so that said chin support member may be swivelly positioned over the base of said violin; and clamping means operable to clamp the ball portion of said ball joint for selectively clamping said chin support member in a selected position relative to said base member so as to selectively fix the position of said chin support member relative to the base of said violin.

3. The invention recited in claim 2, wherein said extending member includes means for selectively adjusting the extent to which it extends upward from the ball portion of said ball joint.

4. The invention recited in claim 3, wherein said mounting means includes a flat lower clamping member for positioning against the lower side of said violin base, a flat upper clamping member for positioning against the upper side of said violin base, and upright support members connecting said upper and lower clamping members, said upright members having means for adjusting their length so that said clamping members may be selectively clamped on said violin base.