Tone indicating music box and its application to a music instrument

Abstract

Abstract My invention comprises a music box mechanism with its metal revolving drum studded with metal plucking pins and its metal tone producing reeds, but where each of the tone producing reeds is electrically isolated from each other and from the electrical ground. The other working parts, including the plucking pins and revolving drum, are part of the electrical ground, and continuity exists and only exists between a tone producing metal keep and the electrical ground when the reed is in the process of being plucked by a metal plucking pin of said ground potential. To each key (or other point of actuation) of a music instrument (such as a toy piano) is placed a light bulb wired in series with the metal reed (or switch) producing the same tone when plucked as the key of the music instrument, when struck. The other connection of all the light bulbs is connected to one side of a battery, and the other side of the battery (or other voltage source) is connected to the electrical ground. Thus, as the music box plays, a child may accompany, (on a toy piano) the music boxes tune correctly by stricking only those keys hearolded (or signaled) by a blinking light. As each lights blinks over a given key (of a toy piano) just before the corresponding metal reed in the music box sounds, (this being the point when the plucking pin is in the process of plucking) there is even some allowance of time for the childs reflexes in his responding to the light signal.

Inventors

• 👤 E Frank

Bibliographic Details