US383299A - Combined doll and phonograph - Google Patents

Description

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

JACQUES. GOMBINED DOLL AND PHONOGRAPH.

(NoModeL) Patented Ma (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2., W. W. JACQUES.

COMBINED DOLL AND'PHONOGRAPH.

No. 383,299. Patented May 22,1888.

51g '2. (Fig 3 y/IIIAFI A Inventor:

NITED STATES PATENT, OFFICE.

WI LIAM W. JACQUES, or NEwron,

MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO ran COMBINED DLOLL AND PHONOGRAPH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 383.299, dated May 212 race.

Application filed etiheri9,1S87. Serial No. 252,799. (N0'mo(lel.)

-.To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLrAM W. JACQUES, a citizen ofthe United States, residing at New" ton, in the county of Middlesex and-State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Phonographs, of which the-followingis a specification.

My invention relates to eertaiirimprovements in the apparatus known asthe phono- [O graph, substantially such as that described in the patent to Tlios. A. Edison, dated February 19, 1878, whereby it can be constructed in a manner so simple and inexpensive as to be adapted to almost universal use in the re 1 5 production of articulate sounds, and especially short sentences or phrases of every-day speech.

The particular object of my invention is to produce a talking doll or other image by placing therein a suitable phonograph which may be readily actuated, either by power applied from without or by. automatic mechanism placed within the image.

Itis obviously necessary that a talking doll or image suitable for a toy mustbe capable of repeating its phrases a great number of times and in whatever position the image may happen to be held by the child or other person inducing it to talk, and aphonograph used within such an image for the purpose of.causo ing it to talk should possess the following characteristics, to wit:

First. The record or registration of the vibrations which represent thearticulate sounds to be reproduced must be sufficiently permanent to be capable of withstanding the operation of effecting such reproduction 'a great number of times without material injury to the plate upon which the record is made, which plate I will designate as the phonogranfl Second. The relative adjustment of the plate containing the recordythe diaphragm with the style or tracer attached to its center, and the diaphragm holder oiaframe must be such as to maintain a comparatively light/yet constant 5 pressure between the record and the point of the style, while the edge of the diaphragm is so controlled as to resist quick vibratory movements and yet will readily yield'to slow movements -such, for example as'might be caused 0 by changes of temperature orinaecuracies in the construction of an apparatus intended for a toy-and the several parts of the apparatus must be capable of maintaining the abovenamed conditions without regard to the posi--- tion in which the toy may be held.

Third. In order to obviate unnecessary wear of the record and the disagreeable noise which would. otherwise be produced in reversing the v motionbf the record-plate with relation to the I tracer attached to the diaphragm, it is 'extremely desirable to provide means whereby the style will be automatically withdrawn from contact with the record-plate whenever it is moved in such reverse direction.

Fourth. To insure'g'reater clearness, and volume to the articulate sounds produced by the vibration of the diaphragm, it is essential to provide a resonating-chamber ofsuch shape and dimensions that itshalloperate in connection therewith to seleet and re-enforce the reproduced sounds due to the record, to the exclusion of accidental noises.

Fifth. That the soundsv reproduced by the phonograph may be more distinctly heard, it is requisite to provide an aperture in the body of the image opposite to or coincident with the outlet of the resonating-chamber,through which the sounds may readily issue, and this aperture '1 preferably make in the head, where it may be easily obscured by a light covering 8 of hair, and thus cause no detriment to the appearance of a doll. V

'SiX th. It is desirable that the external de; vices employed for imparting motion to the phonograph shall be capable of being readily 8 attached or detached in order toremove them from the control of children, and also that the image be so constructed as to afford ready access to the phonograph within-for the purposes of repair or renewal of the record-plate o or phonogram.

IOC

trunk of a doll, showing the phonograph and its attachments therein. .Fig. 2 is a view of the phonograph, looked at from the back of the doll, as arranged in Fig. 1, andwith the diaphragm and its holder partly in Section,

showing its position when the motion of the phonographcylinder is reversed. Fig. 3 is the same view, showing the position of the parts when the cylinder is rotated in the direction to make the phonograph talk. Fig. 4 is a detail drawing of the device by which the diaphragm, with its style or tracer, is automatically withdrawn from the record-plate when the motion of the cylinder is reversed. Fig. 5 is a top view of the phonograph. Fig. 6 is a side view of the phonograph from the same position that it is seen in Fig. 1. Figs. 7, S, and 9 are'detail drawings of the devices and construction of the parts by which the record-plate is tightened and held upon the cylinder.

Similar letters and figures in the several views indicate thesame parts of the apparatus.

a is the head of the doll; a, an aperture in the top covered by a wire-gauze, u, and hidden by thehair o.

c is a box, (preferably of tin,) within which "is fixed the frame Z 122. m m.

justing-screw 6 within the limits of its head and the shoulder upon its shank, although against the pressureof the spring 7 and the spring 10 11.

g is the diaphragm, held in a rubber ring between the platesfc and having a tracer or style, 71, attached at its center.

1 is an aperture through the plate e for the emission of the sounds produced by the diaphragm.

10 11 is a spring of bent wire hung on a rod, 9, and having a piece of rubber tube, 12, upon it, which rests lightly against the surface of the cylinder 2' when it is turned in the direction to make the phonograph talk. Its object is to raise the diaphragm-frame by contact with the projection 5 when the rotation of the cylinder 1' is reversed, and thus disengage the tracer h from the record upon the plate j.

jis a metallic foil wound around the cylinderz' and having its ends pushed through the slot 18 therein and into the slot 17 in the end of the plug 13, where it is held tightly in place by turning the said plug B from the position shown in Fig. 8 to that shown in Fig. 9. This foil is the phonogram or record-plate, on which at first is registered the vibrations of a diaphragm, caused by talking to' it, and at the same time revolving a cylinder upon which the foil is wound, and which afterward, when placed upon the cylinder 2', causes the same sounds to be reproduced by inducing similar vibrations in the diaphragm g.

S is a resonating tube or chamber connecting the aperture 1' with the openinga through the tube I for the purpose of conducting the sound from the diaphragm out of the doll,and also for the purpose of selectingand re-enforc-- ing the sounds due to the rccord,to the exclusion ofaccidental noise.

Resonatingchambers .of other forms and dimensions adapted to different qualities of sound to be reproduced may ,be used and the tube t may be dispensed with'; but in order to operate satisfactorily the outlet ofthe resonating-chamber should be opposite to or coincident with the aperture in the head of the image.

b is the upper portion of the phonograph chamber, (preferably of tin.) attached to the head of the doll at 1 and 2, and serving as a cover fitting onto the box or lower part, c, of said chamber.

The parts may be of any suitable materials; but for the sake of economy, as well as rigidity of material, I make the parts mz'f c of castiron, and the resonating-tubes I make of paper. The spring 7 should be sufficiently strong to hold the diaphragm-frame in place even when the phonograph is inverted.

In order to secure a substantially permanent record, I substitute for the tin, silver, or other foils heretofore used with the phonograph a foil which is'inelastic and has been made hard upon its surface only, (preferably by the buffing process,) so that a record once impressed upon it by the style of the diaphragm will not be distorted by reason of elasticity, (in the sense that rubber is elastic,) and being made superficially hard is not easily worn away by the action of the style upon it. Specifically I preferoroide foil composed ofthe following pro- 7 portions: copper, eight-y per cent.; zinc, thirteen per cent. niekel,six per cent. iron and tin,

one per cent. A record upon such foil,prepared as above mentioned, will repeat a phrase distinctly several thousand times in a phonograph, and when thus' prepared the foil be-- comes polished, which prevents undue vibrations caused by friction, and advantageously it may be oiled for the same purpose. A record upon foil such as above named gives far better results than that. produced by electroplating or analogous methods.

It is desirable, in order further to insure permanency, thatthe foil upon the cylinder should present a continuous surface without seam, and that it should be held there under considerable tension. I effect this by inserting the ends of the foilthrough the narrow slit 18 in the cylinder ,and into the slit 17 in the plug B, and after turning the plug to the position shown in Fig. 9 soldering the seam at- 18. If the foil is held inthe manner usual in the phonograph,it very soon begins to wear outat the seams and causes the diaphragm to produce a thumping sound, which is very disagreeable.

For the purpose of securing the relative adjustment of the record, diaphragm with its tracer, and diapln'agm-holder, referred to in the second desidcratum hereinbe'fore specified, and at the same time render the phonograph operative in any position in which it maybe held, I make the diaphragm-holder of considerable weightsay about four ouncesso that its inertia may restrain the vibratory motions of the edge of the diaphragm, and Iretain the diaphragm-holder in its normal position by two counteracting springs,7 and 10 11,0f sufficient strength to maintain the diaphragm and stylus with the supporting frame in operative re lation to the record-cylinder even when the phonograph isinverted. springs are so proportioned that in whatever position the phonograph may be placed the stylus maintains a comparatively light but constant pressure upon the record. This method of holding the diaphragm in aholder which offers resistance to rapid vibrations by reason of its inertiainstead of its rigidity may be said to be analogous tothe method ot'holding the carbon electrode of a Blake transmitter or similar microphone as contradistinguished from the so-called rigid contact microphones.

. The operation of the shipping device shown at Fig. 4, which I employ for automatically disengaging the tracer h from the record on the platej, is as follows,to wit: The bcntwire 1111 being wound spirally about the rod 9, and having its ends 10 10 restingnpon the portion m of the franic,constitutes a spring,which should be so adjusted as to cause the portion upon which the rubber tnbe"12 is placed to bear lightly against the phonographcylinder at all times Thuswhen the'cylinder is turned in the direction indicated in Fig. 3 to make the phonograph talk the portion 12 will order'to give greater volume and clearness to merely rub lightly against the record-plate; but immediately that the rotation of the cylinder is reversed, as indicated in Fig. 2,the piece ofindia-rubber,12,will stick to the face of the cylinder and be carried upward, and with it the diaphragm and its frame, until the resistance ofthe spring 7 becomes equal to the pressure exerted by the springll 11, when the rubber piece 12 will simply slip upon the surface of the cylinder. \Vhen the diaphragm and its frame are raised to the position shown at Fig. 2, the tracerwill be withdrawn from contact with lJIIB- ICCOIGWJPOI] the piatej and no sound will be produced by the diaphragm.- The phonograph may beoperated by a keyor crank, 0,- or a small clock mechanism may be placed within the'box c and geared tothejournal k. l

It is of great benefit. and very essential in the sounds caused by the vibrations of the diaphragm dneto the record,to the exclusion ofac- The tensions ofthese' cidental noises, when the phonograph is operated,to use a resonating-chamber constructed, according to thclaws of aconstics,of such form and dimensions as will adapt it to select and men forcesounds ofthe same pitch as the voice which produced the record. For example, with a record; produced by a woman's soprano voice a tube four and one-half inches long and three-quarters of an inch in diameter,arranged as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, produces excellent results; or for the same-record, ifthe tube 15 is omitted, the best results are obtained by making the tube 8 like an inverted frustum ofa cone about three and one-half inches long, three-quarters of an inch in diameter at the small or lower end, and one and a half inch in diameter at the large or upper end, and over this upper end should he fixed, at a dis' tance of about half an inch, a cup shaped coversuch, for instance, as is formed by the inside of a dollshead, with an opening through it opposite to the'ontlet of this flaring tube. For records produced by voices of lower pitch the dimensions of the resonating-tube should be relatively enlarged. I also find that by the use ofdifferent materials considerable variety inthe quality of the sounds issuing from the resonating'chamber may be obtained.

It is obvious that the opening for the emission of the sounds from the phonograph may 1 be made in various other parts of the image instead of the top of the head; but this is a convenient location in dolls having artificial hair.

The construction ofthe chamber for containing the phonograph shown in the drawings will be found convenient as affording facility in reaching the phonograph for repair or renewal of the record-plates, for, as heretofore shown, the head of the image may be removed and replaced as easily as the cover of a box, and for the sake of greater security a screw may be used to fasten the head and body together. An opening in the body of the image injuxtaposition to the phonograph, which can be closed by a suitable cover, will serve the purpose of gaining access to the operating mechanism of the apparatus,although it might not afford the same facility in adjusting the resonati ng-t u hes.

The construction of phonograph described in this specification was devised for use with a doll or other image; but, as will be readily understood, the same apparatus maybe used in a box or case of any form desired, and a record of a great variety of sounds may be impressed upon different record-platcsfor reproduction.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Leters Patent, is-

1. The combination of a phonograph and a doll provided with a body carrying said phonograph, and a head having an orifice therein for the emission of sounds from the phonograph, substantially as described.

2. The combination of a phonograph hav ing its stylus or tracersupportcd by the opposing tension of two or more springs, and adoll serving as a receptacleanda support for said phonograph, substantially as described.

3. The combination of a phonograph and a doll having a body provided with a cavity for receiving and a support for holding the phonograph therein, and a resonator contained in a perforated head for conveying, and emitting sounds produced by the phonograph within the body, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with a cavity and a support or supports for a phonograph, of a phonograph having a diaphragm held in a frame at one edge and controlled in its movements by aspring upon the upper and under sides 'of said frame, substantial-ly as described.

5. In a phonograph, the combination of a traveling record-surface with'a pivoted diaphragm provided'with astylus and maintained between two counteracting-springs under tension in operative relation with said recordsurface, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with a phonograph, of an automatic shipping device actuated by the reversed motion of the recordsurface to withdraw ihe diaphragm-tracer from the contact with a doll provided with the reconlisurface, substantially as described. V

7. The combination, in aphonograph, of a diaphragm held in a hinged frame. cushioned by a spring acting upon one side thereof,with a second spring acting upon the other side of the frame, and having an extension bearing upon the record-surface, so as to disengage the stylus from the record-surface when the motion of the latter is reversed, substantially as described.

8. A record-plate for phonographs,'consisting of a foil of metal which is superficially hard upon the side'which is to receive the record and is normally soft upon the other side, substantially as described, and for the. purpose specified.

9. In combination with a phonograph, a. record-plate of oroide foil made superficially hard upon the side which is to receivethe rec- 0rd, whereby-while the record may be readily impressed thereon it becomes practically permanent, substantially as described.

WILLIAM \V. JACQUES. Wi tncsses:

ALBERT E. LYONS,

R. L. ROBERTS.

Images