US498362A

US498362A - Pneumatic organ-action

Info

Publication number: US498362A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1893-05-30
Anticipated expiration: 1910-05-30

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. Y J. VLPILOHER. PNEUMATIC ORGAN ACTION.

,IIIIIIAII lariliirtli R o T 21 m n 55???aiia. N W I f Y Patented May 30,1893.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. J. V. PILGHER. PNEUMATIC ORGAN ACTION. No. 498,362. Patented May 30,1893.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN V. PILOI'IER, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

PNEUMATIC ORGAN-ACTION.

SFECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 498,362, dated May 30, 1893.

Application filed February '7, 1393- Serial No. 461,379. (No model.)

T0 at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN V. PILCHER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Iiouisville, in the county of Jefferson and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pneumatic Organ-Actions; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to that class of church organs which are provided with pipes operated by wind and controlled in some or all of their operations by pneumatic devices.

In organs as heretofore constructed, it is possible for dirt to gather under the valve which supplies each individual pipe, causing the same to leak and the pipe to sound when it is not called for; second, in the construction of pneumatic organs the chest grooveboards are usually located near to and in a direction transverse to the direction of the bottom board of the stop chambers so that before any bottom board could be removed all of the chest groove-boards had to be taken away, also the bottom board running the whole length of each chest, in order to reach the interior Works; and the valves have been heretofore so arranged that it was difficult to examine them when they were seated as in service; third, heretofore each series of pipes has been located directly over its own stop chamber and the pipes themselves were set directly on the top boards of said chamber, rendering it difficult to obtain the necessary room for properlylocating the pipes and leave spacebetween themfor speaking room without spreading the chamber room beneath the pipe so as to crowd the chest valve chamberout to one side of a vertical line of pipes, thus requiring room on the ground plan of the organ which may be extremely valuable for other purposes; fourth, it is desirable to locate the supply valve as close to the individual pipe as possible and yetsuch close location has heretofore caused the wind to produce a chirping sound before he full tone of the pipe is yielded; fifth, h retoforc the exhaust ports to the individual stop chambers have been located in the top of the chambers where dirt is likely to fall into them, and where the space is usually valuable for other purposes and is generally occupied, so that the ports left at liberty to fall naturally through the valve openings out of the organ, and that the pipe will not sound even if its valve does leak; second, by so constructing and arranging the chest groove-boards and the stop-chamber bottom boards that small portions of each may be removed with the valves which require attention, located in their normal position upon their ports, so that they can be readily examined and adjusted without disturbing the adjacent groove-boards nor the adjacent portions of the stop chamberbottom; third, by providing a top or table for the stop chambers, and another top above it composed of boards for the pipes to rest on, and by peculiarly constructing and locating those boards and the pipe supply grooves therein I bring the chest valve chamber and the stop chambers onto the narrowest practicable floor space and I obtain this full space for the location and speaking room of the pipes; fourth, by so arranging the pipe supply ducts that each one has an individual air cushion chamber near the pipe I cause the wind to attack the pipe in full volume yet with such elastic force as to produce a full clear tone under the most rapid manipulation; fifth, by locating the exhaust port valve for each stop chamber wholly within the chamber and extending the delivery of said port to open air at a vertical side of the chamber I prevent dirt from falling into the valve, and access to said valve may be readily had from the said side of the chamber without disturbing other parts or being intercepted by them. These and other minor objects I accomplish by various devices which will be more fully hereinafter described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1, shows a transverse vertical section partly in side elevation of a portion of a pneumatic organ in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2, shows a longitudinal vertical section, partly in front elevation along one of the stop chambers of the wind chest. Fig. 3, shows a longitudinal vertical section of a portion of a wind chest transverse to the stop chambers. Fig. 4, shows a longitudinal vertical section of a portion of a Wind chest lengthwise of a bar between two stop chambers. Fig. 5, shows a horizontal section at the line 00 in Fig. 4. Fig. 6, shows adetail on a larger scale.

10 represents pipes of an organ mounted in the usual manner upon the boards 11.

12 represents the stop chambers between which are partitions 13 called bars, each of which is firmly secured to a table 14, which table may extend over one chamber or any number of chambers, and the table maybe of one piece or in many pieces joined together.

15 represents the bottom boards of the stop chambers comprisinga series of sections each of which may extend across one chamber or any convenient number of chambers, but there are a number of sections of the-bottom board in the length of each chamber. The joint at the ends of two sections is shown at 16 Fig. 2, beneath a stay bar 17 which is located across within each stop chamber, and the bottom boards may be secured to the said stay bars by means of screws each of which passes through a hole partly in the end of each adjacent board, and extends up into the stay bar, with a washer 18 beneath each screw head extending over onto the boards within a countersink. The bottom board may be otherwise secured, if it should be found convenient, by passing screwsinto the partition bars 13.

19 represents a series of groove-boards located at a little distance beneath the stop chambers transversely thereto, each grooveboard corresponding in width to the length of the section of the bottom board directly over it, and registering therewith so that the removal of one groove board opens a passage for any one of the sections of the bottom board located over it, without the necessity of removing other groove boards.

20 represents the wind box extending across to meet the ends of all the stop chambers comprised in one wind chest. Each stop chamber 12 communicatesby means of an individual supply valve 21 with the wind box 20 whereby wind is received into the stop chamber to sound any or all of the pipes connected with that chamber.

22 is an exhaust valve mounted upon the same wire or rod as the supply valve 21, and fitted to close the exhaust port of its individual stop chamber by the same act that opens the supply valve. This exhaust port has its delivery at 23 at a vertical side of the Wind chest, thus preventing dust and dirt from falling into the port, and placing the valve in position to be reached from the side. The valve 22 is located and operates wholly within the exterior walls of the valve cham ber thus avoiding liability to derangement, and leaving the top of the chest free to be occupied over the wind box by large pipes for which there is not usually room directly on top of the stop chambers.

25 is a bellows or motor receiving air from the wind box 20 by way of the valve 26, which tends to hold the bellows normally open, and the rod of the valve 21 resting upon the bellows holds that valve normally closed.

27 is a spring assisting to hold the valve 21 closed.

28' is a diaphragm motor located upon a passage 29 which is normally filled with compressed air, holding the diaphragm extended and the valve 26 open by means of the valve stem whose foot rests on the said diaphragm. 30 is another valve located upon the said stem over the exhaust port which itholds normally closed.

31 is a guide bar located across within the wind box and serving as a bearing for the upper end of the rod of the

valves

26, 30 to slide in. The passage 29 may lead to any suitable chamber 32, Fig. 1, containing com pressed air in a position convenient to have the supply valve 33 operated by a stop key 31. Thus each stop chamber 12 is controlled by an individual stop 3t on the koy-board of the organ.

35 represents the chest valve chamber which is kept constantly filled with compressed air and is provided with valves 36 leading to passages 37 corresponding in number to the nu mber of keys of that manual of the key-board to which this wind chest belongs. It may here be observed that each wind chest and its accessories comprise a small organ, and for each register of manual keys, and for each register of pedal keys there is a separate wind chest comprising such an organ. Thus it will be understood that the common church organ comprises a number of such small organs. Each passage 37 communicates with one letter key of the manual and is provided with a series of motors 38, one opposite to each stop chamber 12.

39 represents a valve located in each stop chamber 12 over one of the motors 38, and covering the inlet port of a duct which leads to a sounding pipe 10, and all the pipes actuated by one passage 38 are tuned to one letter, for example 0, but these pipes may be of different qualities of tone or of different octaves according to the stop chamber that each belongs to. V hen aletter key is pressed, its valve 36 is opened, raising all the motors 38 and opening the valve 39 in every wind chest, but only such pipes will be sounded as are upon chests provided with wind by their stops having been set on.

The duct 40 is peculiar in two respects: First, that portion 4-1 which lies in the top board 11 extends horizontally to various distances according to the location of the pipes, and the top boards 11 are so arranged that some of the pipes may be located directly over their respective stop chambers as at 43, or they may be located so as to extend partly over the adjacent stop chamber as at 44, or entirely off from their own chamber and over other chambers or over the chest valve chamber as at 45, by which means I am enabled to utilize the whole top of the wind chest includ ing stop chambers and chest valve chamber for the location of pipes, thus giving more speaking room to the pipes with a given amount of floor space; second, the ducts 40 are enlarged in their vertical columns 48 as shown more particularly in Figs. 4 and 5, whereby an individual reservoir is formed in each duct to serve as a cushion chamber for the air immediately beforeit reaches each pipe, so that no matter how suddenly the valve 39 may be opened the wind will attack the pipe softly and in full volume, thus instantly producing a full melodious tone in contrast to the chirping sound which the pipe sometimes gives forth when suddenly fed by a duct of uniform diameter throughout its length.

46 is an exhaust valve for each duct 40 located upon the same stem as the valve 39 and left normally open while the valve 39 is left normally closed.

47 is a foot piece for the rod of

valves

39 and 46 standing upon the diaphragm of the motor 38. By providing an exhaust port for the valve 46 to each duct 40 between the pipe and the stop chamber 12 I furnish an exit for any leakage of wind which might occur if one of the valves 39 should chance to beheld a little open by dirt, so that such leakage will pass out freely at the valve 46 and not cause the pipe to sound. By placing the valves 39 directly in and upon the bottom boards 15 I am enabled to remove the valves with the bottom board and to examine each and every valve in the exact position relative to its seat that it occupies when closed up in the organ; and the bottom boards being divided into sections as before described, renders this inspection and any adjustment that may be required comparatively easy, so that if a valve 39 becomes leaky it may be readily inspected and repaired, yet while leaking its pipe does not sound and it will not prevent the use of the organ.

The

valves

39 and 46 secured upon a single stem provided with the foot piece 47 resting freely upon the motor 38 on the groove board 19, permits the removal of one or allthe groove boards without disturbing the said valves, the valves being entirely supported by and carried upon the bottom boards 15 of the stop chambers.

The inlet valve ports to the pipe-supplying ducts bear a ratio to the ports of the exhaust valve 3 of eight to five in diameter, which proportions are formed in practice to so balance the valve that it will respond with accuracy to the most rapid and delicate touch upon the keys.

The inlet valve 36 connected with an exhaust valve 49 of each individual air passage 37, is of the same construction and operation as the

valves

39 and 46 before described, but the motor 50 is provided with an independent exhaust valve 51 that is connected with a button 52 which rests upon the motor whereby the usual flexible diaphragm motor is provided with an exhaust port automatically closed and opened by the said motor, so that when the air ceases to press upon the motor the exhaust port will open, permitting, the air to escape and allowing the motor to recede instantly so as to respond to the most rapid manipulation.

54 is a box supplied with compressed air, and 55 is an inlet valve to the passage 53 which supplies the motor 50. The valve 55 is operated by a motor 57 upon an air passage 56 to which wind is supplied from abox 58 through a port 59 by a valve 60 which is connected with a key 61 of the manual No.1.

62 isa motor connected with the stem of the valve 55, and actuated by air from the same box 54, the acting area for air pressure upon the motor 62 being proportioned to the area of the valve 55 so as to balance the action on the valve of the wind in the box, thus leaving the valve at liberty to be actuated by a very little pressure from the motor 57.

63 is a valve upon the stem of the valve 55 performing the double function of an exhaust port valve for the passage 53, and a return motor for pneumatically reseating the valve 55. To this end the size of the exhaust port 64 is made in due relation to the size of the supply port of valve 55, but its lower end or mouth 65 where the valve 63 rests is very much enlarged so that the area of pressure upon the valve 63 is greater than the area of pressure upon the valve 55 and the action upon the valve 63 will be instantaneous to close the valve 55, yet the exhaust port 64 remains at the proper size not to waste air at the instant of opening the valve 55.

By this system of balancing the valves avery light pressure of Wind in the box 58 operating along passage 56 will instantly actuate the motor 57, no matter at what distance it may be located from the key board, because the valve 55 being so accurately balanced will act freely no matter how great the pressure may be in the chest 54, and that pressure will instantly actuate motor 50 and open the valve 36 while the automatic escape valve 51 for the motor will permit the air to exhaust instantly from the motor in response to the instantaneous action of the valve 55. This combination producesa means of pneumatic communication so sensitive that the modern devices of echo organs, dad, may be located at great distances from the key board of the main organ and yet respond perfectly thereto.

The object of the second port 56 under the same valve 60 is to communicate with another wind chest or organ by means of passage 68. This wind chest or organ which I will call chest No.2, is not here shown because it may be in all respects like the wind chest already described.

.69 is a wind box, a valve covering the port leading therefrom to the passage 68, and '71 is a key of the upper manual. connected with the valve 70, and by means of this upper manual which I call manual No. 2, the second organ or wind chest No. 2, may be directly operated.

2 is a wind box provided with motors 73, one for each key or manual No. 1. To this wind box compressed air will be admitted by means of any usual key or knob upon the manual or pedal board. .Vhenever the usual manual No. 1, is being played upon, both the valve ports 59 and 66 are opened by every action of the key, and whenever it is desirable to operate two organs by the same manual that knob is to be drawn which admits air into the box 72. Then the motor 73 will open the valve 74 and admit air from port (36 to passage 68 and operate organ No. 2 while at the same time air entering port 59 operates organ No. 1. If the passage 66 opened directly into passage 56 without the interposition of the valve 00 there would be an unexpected back action through the valve 74 and the said passage 56, whereby organ No. 1 would always be operated if there chanced to be wind in the box 72 when manual No. 2 was being played upon, but with the present device the two organs will be coupled together to respond only to the action of manual No. 1 as thus far described.

75 represents a pedal connected with a valve 76 opening between wind box 77 and passage 78 of organ No. 3, not shown.

79 is a passage leading off from passage 78 and provided with two branches 80 and S1 communicating with air boxes 82 and 83 by means of valves and motors S4 and respectively. The valve 84c admits air to passage 88 which may communicate with organ N0. 1, and the motor valve 85 admits air through passage 87 which may communicate with organ No. 2. The air boxes 82 and 83 have their respective keys or knobs within reach of the operator whereby he may at any time admit air to either of the said boxes and when the air is so admitted any performance upon the pedals will not onlysound the pedal organ No. 3, but will also sound organ No. 1, if chest 82 is open, and organ No. 2, if chest 83 is open.

lVhile the method of coupling the manuals is particularly sensitive and suitable to the light manipulation of the fingers yetthe accompanying devices occupy a great deal of space and there is not room in the front part of the organ to repeat such devices for the pedals, nor is such sensitiveness required nor even admissible where the weight of the operators feet must be allowed for on the pedals. Therefore though I have shown two methods of coupling, one with the manual keys and the other with pedals yet neither method would be successful it changed to the other style of keys and both methods of couplings are essential in a full organ in order to produce the perfection of action at which I aim.

86 is an exhaust valve for the passage 68 and it is located upon the stem of valve 7% like other valves hereinbefore described.

The operation of the various parts has been set forth in connection with the description of the construction and functions thereof.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I believe to be new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is the following:

1. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers separated by partition bars; bottom boards for the stopchambers, made in separable sections, there being two or more sections or bottom boards in the length of each chamber; and a series of groove-boards located beneath and transversely to the stop-chambers, the width of each groove-board corresponding to the length of the section of the bottom boards directly over it, substantially as described whereby the removal of a groove-board will uncover and permit the removal of the sections of bottom boards over it.

2. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers and bot tom boards therefor divided into separable sections in the length of each chamber, sub stantially as described.

3. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stopchambers separated by partition-bars; bottom-boards for the said chambers divided into separable sections in the length of each chamber, and cross-bars within the chambers at the joints of the said sections for securing the sections, substantially as described.

4.. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers; bottomboards therefor divided into separable sec tions in the length of the chambers, and groove-boards corresponding in width to the length of the said sections and located each groove board directly beneath one or more sections of bottom boards, substantially as described.

5. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers located side-by-side as a portion of the wind chest; a wind box extending across and communicating by Valves with the respective chambers, and a pneumatically operated exhaust valve for each chamber located wholly within the walls of the chest and having its discharge port at the side of the wind chest, substantially as described.

6. The combination in a pneumatic organ IIO action, of a series of stop-chambers each provided with valves located on its bottom board and communicating with the organ pipes and with the keys; each valve having a stem with a foot upon it depending below the bottom board and one or more groove-boards located below the said bottom; the grooves of these boards being provided with motors located beneath the said valvestem feet for the same to rest removably upon substantially as described.

7. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers separated by partition bars and provided with a table on top of the bars; separable pipe supporting top-boards upon the table, and ducts passing from the lower portion of the chambers up the partitions through the table and into the top-boards wherein said ducts are extended to pipes located above and to one side of the chamber from which the ducts started, substantially as described.

8. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers provided with a top-table and a series of pipe supporting boards located removably upon said toptable, substantially as described.

9. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers; a series of pipes located above them; valves in the chambers and ducts communicating between the valves and pipes individually, each duct being enlarged into an air cushion chamber near the pipe, substantially as described.

10. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of pipes; and supply ducts and valves for the pipes, the ducts each being provided with an air cushion chamber near its pipe, substantially as described.

11. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of stop-chambers; bottomboards therefor made in movable sections and Valves for supplying individual pipes seated upon and carried by the sections of the bottom-boards substantially as described.

12. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of pipes, a series of stopchambers; movable bottom-boards for the chambers; ducts in the bottom-boards to communicate between the stop-chambers and pipes; aninlet valve to each duct in the bottom-board and an exhaust port for the same directly under the said valve, substantially as described.

13. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a series of pipes; a series of stopchambers; ducts leading from the said chambers to the respective pipes; an inlet valve for each duct in the bottom of the chamber and an exhaust valve for the same duct connected with the inlet valve to be operated to open and close in. opposition to each other, the sizes of the ports of the said two valves bearing the definite ratio to each other set forth, substantially as described.

let. The combinationin a pneumatic organ action, of a chest-valve chamber 35; passages leading therefrom to communicate with individual pipes; inlet and exhaust port valves for each passage; passages communicating with manual keys; a motor upon each key passage; an exhaust port for the motor and a valve for that port provided with a stem extending through the movable member of the motor and a button upon the stem resting on the motor, the foot of the aforesaid passage valve resting freely upon the said button, substantially as described.

15. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a pneumatic motor located upon the side of a wind passage 53 and adapted to move transversely to the passage; an exhaust port in the opposite side of the passage; a valve covering the exhaust port and connected with the motor substantially as described whereby the forward move of the motor closes the said valve and the return move opens the valve.

16. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a wind box 5% having a port at one side; a valve for the said port; means exterior to the wind box for opening the valve; and a motor at the opposite side of the wind box from the said valve and connected therewith and acting to balance the valve relative to the wind pressure in the box, substantially as described.

17. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a wind box 5%, an airpassage at one side of the box and connected therewith by a supply valve port and having an exhaust port opposite to the supply port; valves for the said two ports mounted upon a single stem which passes through the passage and through the wind box; means connected with the said stem for balancing the action on the valves of the wind in the box; a motor for opening the supply valve and at the same time closing the exhaust valve; the exhaust port being small at its entrance and much enlarged at its exit at the seat of its valve, substantially as described.

18. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of two manuals of keys; two

wind boxes

58 and 69; a main air passage adapted to lead from each of the said boxes respect ively to the sounding mechanism of a separate organ or wind chest; a branch passage communicating between one of the said main passages and the other wind box; a valve in the last named box covering both the main passage and the branch passage leading from that box; connections between the said valve and a key of one manual; a valve on the port of the branch at the other main passage, and an independently operated wind box provided with a series of motors to actuate a series of the last named valves, substantially as described.

19. The combination in a pneumatic organ action, of a set of pe'dal keys; a wind box; a main air passage and a valve therefor connected with each key and adapted to connect the said wind box with a pipe of an organ;

one or more branch passages connected with In testimony whereof I affix my signature in each of the main passages; a separate Wind presence of two witnesses. box for each set of branch passages, a set of p i 4 j ER. passages having valves in the wind box for JOHN PH H 5 each set of branch passages, and inotorsupon Witnesses:

the branch passages to actuate the said valves R. E. PILCHER,

respectively, substantially as described. I. S. MADDOX.