US589066A - von bassus - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

Ky?. VON BASSUS.

HARMONIUM.

N0. 589,066. Patented Aug. 31,1897.

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K. F. VON BASSUS.

HARMONIUM.

No. 539,066. Pmn'ted AugE 31,1897.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

K. P. VON BASSUS.

HARMNIUM. l 4 No. 589,066. Patentd Aug. 31,1897.

UNITED STATES PATENT GEEICE.

KONRAD FRII. VON BASSUS, OF MUNICH, GERMANY.

HARMONIUM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 589,066, dated August 8l, 1897.

Application filed March 21, 1896x Serial No. 584,320. (No model.) Patented in Germany March 24 .To @ZZ whom, t 11e/,ty concer/1,.

Be it known that I, KONRAD FRH. VON Bris- SUs, a citizen of the Empire of Germany, rosiding at Munich, Bavaria, Germany, have i nvented certain new and useful Improvements in Harmoniu ms, (patented in German y March 24.-, 1895, No. 84,497,) of which the following is a specication.

Myinvention relates to an improvement in harinoniums or organs, and particularly to a combination stop-action for such instruments and means for operating such an action.

The main object of my invent-ion is to provide means whereby the performer may change the timbre or strength of the tono, or both, simultaneously without the necessity of removing the hands from the keys.

The invention consists in the features, dotails of construction, and combination of parts, which will Iirst be described in connection with the accompanying drawings,and then particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a horizontal sectional view of a harmonium, taken just below the diaphragm and illustrating one embodiment of my invention; Fig. 2, a detail transverse sectional view with the diaphragm and its attached parts removed; Fig. 3, a detail front elevation Fig. ,4, a bottom plan view of the diaphragm, showing the stopae tions in place thereon; Fig. 5, a view at right angles to Fig. 4; Figs. G to 9, detail views to be referred to hereinafter, and Fig. lO a detail transverse sectional view showing a part of the action in side elevation. Fig. l1 is a detail View showing the mannerof connecting the iiaps B6 Bs and B5 BT. Fig. l2 is a shortcned detail view of the apron D.

Referring to the drawings, Ais a diaphragm secured in the casing A of the harmonium and serving to support the action which is located on the under side of the same. This action in the present case comprises the following construction: v

To the under side of the diaphragm A are hinged atb, Fig. 4L, a series of flaps or valves B to B11, inclusive, which servo to control the supply of air under pressure to the various sets of reeds, these naps being placed ove openings in the diaphragm A.

To the under side of the diaphragm A and at suitable points between the various flaps B are placed shafts Cl, C2, C3, and C4, provided with gudgeons, which are rotatable in lugs or ears c, secured to the underside of v,the diaphragm, the shafts C"E and C4 having their axes in line with cach other. The shafts C and C? are cach provided with an arm or target c c2, for a purpose hereinafter described, these arms or targets being in the present instance located at opposite ends of their respective shafts, as shown in Fig. et, and preferably project downward. The diaphragm A also carries a pivotallynnounted apron or small board D, provided with gudgcons mounted rotatably in lugs CZ, projecting downward from the under side of the diaphragm.

rlhe stop mechanism comprises a series of pulls or stops, which I have indicated by the reference-letter E, Figs. 3 and lO, with exponent-s corresponding to those of the referenceletter B applied to the ilaps or valves, in order that the connections between each pull or stop and its valve may be readily traced. For brevity, however, the reference-letters will be used without the exponents as referring to all the parts of a kind.

Each stop E is connected by a wire c to a lever F, provided with a cam-shoe j', which bears against the cap of a stud g, passing through a hole in the diaphragm and con nected to or formed integral with a bell-crank G, pivoted on the underside of the diaphragm, as shown in Fig. 7. These bell-cranks G are connected to their corresponding flaps by wires II, the exponents of the reference-letters G, II, andB indicating the respective connected parts. For instance, the wire II connects the belllcrank G and the iiap B', the wire II2 the bell-crank G2 and the flap B2, and so on.

By the construction described the flaps or valves may be individually opened by drawing out their respective stops or pulls E, each stop or pull when thus drawn out being held against accidental inward movement by the friction between the respective cam-shoe f andthe cap of the corresponding stud g, the flaps being each provided with a leafspring ZJ', whereby when the respective stops are pushed in the flaps or valves will be closed by said springs.

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In order to permit the flaps or valves to be actuated by mechanism aside from that just described and which will be explained hereinafter, the wires Hare attached to their respective flaps in a manner to permit a certain amount of lost motion inthe direction of opening the flaps. This is done, preferably, as follows: Each flap is provided with an ear b2, having an opening through which its corresponding wire H passes freely, said wire being provided with a nut or nuts 7u at one side or at cach side of said ear, the nut on that side of the ear farthest removed from the respective bell-crank G being located in close contact with said ear, whereas the nut, if any, on the other side of the ear is slightly removed therefrom, whereby, if the flap be opened by means independent of its individual pull-wire, it will be free to move without its ear actuating` the said wire.

The flaps B5 and B7, B6 and BS, it will beM noticed, are connected by arms b3, each arm being fixed to one of the outer flaps and provided with a hole at the other end, through which passes loosely' a stud b4, secured to the corresponding` adjacent iiap, and provided at its free end with a cap arranged out of contact with its arm when the flaps are in their closed position. By this construction each fiap of the two pairs B and B7, BG and B8 is capable of a limited amount of movement independent of the adjacent flap to which it is connected, while at the same time by opening each flap to a considerable extent the adjacent flap to which it is connected will also be opened .to an extent sufiicient to allow theair to pass through its opening, thereby permitting two sets of reeds to sound simultaneously by drawing out either one of the two stops to the necessary extent.

ln addition to the above-mention ed connection between the flaps B and B8 the latter flap is also connected to the flap B11 bya wire I, so attached to said flaps as to permit a slight amount of lost motion in the same way as described with relation to the manner of attaching the wires il to their respective flaps, whereby when the flap B11 is opened, by pulling ont its respective pull or stop E11 to the full extent, it will also open the flaps Bs and B6, thus permitting` three sets of reeds to sound simultaneously.

K', K2, K3, and K1 are knee-levers movably connected to the front of the harmonium or organ casing A', preferably by liinging, as shown in Figs. l and 3, said knee-levers being in pairs, the members of each pair being arranged to move toward and from each other. On that side of each lever away from the corresponding lever of its own pair is an arm, lug, or projection 7U" 7a4, extending approximately at right angles to its respective knee-lever, the said arms, lugs, or projections being arranged to contact with the outwardprojecting ends of stickers L' L2 LSL1. Each sticker is adapted to move longitudinally, being guided in openings in the easing A' and in a block or support Z' l2 Z3 Z1, secured to any suitable Vlixed part of the instrument. Each sticker, moreover, is normally held outward by a spring device-such, for instance, as the coiled springs m' m2 m5 -m1-snrrounding the stickers, as shown in Fig. i, each spring bearing` against a collar n' a1, fixed on the respective sticker and also against the block Z' Z1. By this construction each knee-lever is pressed toward the opposite kneelever of the pair to which it belongs and to such an extent that it will normally stand approximatelyat right angles to the front of the instrument, but may be swung toward the opposite member of its pair until it is iiat against the front of the instrument, one knee -lever K3 being shown in this closed position in Fig. l.

The sticker L' is located so that its inner end is opposite and in comparatively close proximity to the target c', whereby when the said sticker is forced inward the said end contracts with the said target and then partly rotates the shaft c'. This shaft is connected by the wires O', P', Q', R', and S' to the flap B, the shaft C1, and the flags B1, B7, and B3, respectively.

The sticker L2 in asimilar manneroperates the shaft C2, the latter being connected by wires O2, P2, Q2, R2, S2, T2, and U2 to the shaft C'1 and to the flaps B2, B1, BS, B7, B3, and B', respectively.

The sticker L3 is arranged to contact with a target d3, secured to the apron D, while the sticker L1 is also arranged to contact with a target d'1 on the apron, whereby said apron is given a partial rotation, this apron being connected bywires O3 P3 Q3 R3 V3 to the flaps BS B2 Bl1 B10 B' B'J B3 B7, respectively. in addition the said apron is also connected by a wire or rod O to two arms c3 c1 on the ends of the shafts C3 C1, respectively, and, moreover, is connected by a rod or wire H12 with a belln crank G12, operated from the stop E12 in the samemanner as the bell-cranks G' to G11, pre vionsly described. Furthermore, the apron D is connected by a rod or wire T3 to the flap B11.

The two rods C3 Cl are each connected by wires H13 H11 with bell-crank levers G13 G11, respectively. As these levers are intended to be used for operating the dampers for the base and treble, the construction intervening between them and their individual stops E13 E11 is somewhat modified. This construetion will now be described in connection with the treble-forte mechanism, that for the base being the same.

Referring to Eig. iO of the drawings, it will be seen that the bell-crank G13 is connected by a vertical wire Q13 to one arm of a swinging lever F13, fulcrumed atl/"1t and carrying the damper L, which normally rests on the top of the chest M, in which the tongues or reeds N are located, whereby the sound is damped. By the movement of the bell-crank G13 the lever F13 is swung on its pivot and the damper L lifted, thus accomplishing the forte IOO IIC

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expression on the treble of the instrument. i what I claim as new, and desire to secure by To the lever F13 is also connected a pull-wire @13, which connects said lever to the stop E13. By these various connections, as above described, the flaps may be opened singly or in variouscombinations and the dampers raised at the time when either one set oi reeds or various sets of reeds are being` used. Moreover, by using,` the knee-levers various combinations of stops may be made.

The most important feature of the mechanism thus described is the construction and arrangement of the knee-levers in such a manner that the knees of the performer may be inserted each between the two members of one pair of levers and a change can be made from one combination of stops to another without any break in the music and without taking the hands from the keys by merely moving the knee or knees from one side to the other-that is, from the right to the left, or vice versa.

By the employment of two pairs of kneelevers a still greater advantage arises from the fact that a new mode of operation may be iiitroduced-that is, each lever of a pair may be operated to throw a combination in action at the time one of the opposite kneelevers is being used to throw another combination into action, thus producing` still a new combination of reeds.

Having` thus fully described my invention,

Letters Patent, is-

l. In an organ or similar instrument the combination, with a stop-action, of a pair of knee-levers so placed as to admit the knee of the performer between its constituent members, and mechanism connected to the parts of the stop-action and arranged to be actuated by the knee-levers, the operating` movement of one lever of the pair being in a direction opposite to that of the operating movement oi' the other lever of the same pair, substantially as described.

2. In an organ or similar instrument, the combination, witha stop-action, of two pairs of knee-levers, each pair being,` so placed as to admit the knee of the performer between its constituent members, and mechanism connected to the parts of the stop-action and arranged to be actuated by the knee-levers, the operating movement of one lever of each pair being,` in a direction opposite to that of the operating movement of the other lever of the same pair, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing,r as my invention I have signed my name in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

KONRAD FRI-l. VON BASSUS.

Witnesses:

ALBERT iVnicimrANN, KARL MASTER.

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