Multi bar encoding apparatus utilizing acoustic energy

Claim 3

The apparatus as defined in claim 1, together with a depressible key, said mechanical motion being the depression of said key.

Claim 4

The apparatus as defined in claim 1 together with a keyboard having at least two depressible keys, wherein said inducing means are activated by depression of each said key for imparting vibratory energy to at least a predetermined different one of said n members.

Claim 5

The apparatus as defined in claim 3 wherein each of said n members is elongate.

Claim 6

The apparatus as defined in claim 4, wherein the vibratory energy is acoustic energy and said inducing means comprises a striker corresponding to each said key, said striker being operable to impact at least a different one of said members and induce acoustic energy therein in response to depression of the corresonding key.

Claim 7

The apparatus as defined in claim 5, wherein said transducing means comprises an acoustic transducer operatively connected to each said elongate member at a location substantially equally distant from any given one of said strikers.

Claim 8

The apparatus as defined in claim 6, wherein said elongate members are rectangular bars.

Claim 9

The apparatus as defined in claim 4, wherein said inducing means comprises a flexible spring corresponding to each said key and mounted for movement from a relaxed first position to a flexed second position and return toward said first position for selectively striking the predetermined ones of said members in response to depression of the corresponding key.

Claim 10

The apparatus as defined in claim 8, wherein said members are rectangular bars, each of said predetermined members being a bar bearing a tab on an edge thereof adjacent said spring.

Claim 11

The apparatus as defined in claim 8, wherein said steel spring comprises at least one laterally-projecting tooth in alignment with a said member.

Claim 12

The apparatus as defined in claim 8, wherein said members are rectangular bars, all said bars bearing tabs on an edge thereof adjacent each said spring and said spring comprising a number of laterally-projecting teeth, each cooperating with the tab of at least one different bar, said number of teeth being at most equal to n.

Claim 13

The apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein said apparatus includes a frame and said supporting means comprise a plurality of pairs of thin wires, one pair being associated with each bar, and each wire of a pair having the ends thereof clamped to said frame while in a taut state, separate portions of each wire engaging opposite sides of the associated bar and extending transversely thereof near a corresponding end of the bar, whereby said bar is fixedly supported.

Claim 14

The apparatus as defined in claim 12, wherein said associated bar has two vertically spaced perforations near said corresponding end and each said wire of a pair passes successively through respective ones of said perforations to engage said opposite sides thereby providing a fixed support when tautened and clamped to said frame.

Claim 15

The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein said output control means are effective only after said vibratory energy has dissipated and said transducing means each include a latch for storing said respective bit, said output control means being connected to said latches and effecting output of the bits stored therein with subsequent clearance of each said latch.

Claim 18

The apparatus as defined in claim 15 wherein said n members are rectangular bars.

Claim 19

The apparatus as defined in claim 16, wherein said supporting means comprise a plurality of pairs of thin wires, one pair being associated with each bar, and each wire of a pair having the ends thereof clamped to said frame while in a taut state, separate portions of each wire engaging opposite sides of the associated bar and extending transversely thereof near a corresponding end of the bar, whereby said bar is fixedly supported.

Claim 20

The apparatus as defined in claim 17 wherein said associated bar has two vertically spaced perforations near said corresponding end and each said wire of a pair passes successively through respective ones of said perforations to engage said opposite sides thereby providing a fixed support when tautened and clamped to said frame.

Claim 23

The apparatus as defined in claim 19, wherein said members are rectangular bars, said predetermined one member being a bar bearing a tab on an edge thereof adjacent said spring.

Claim 24

The apparatus as defined in claim 19 wherein said spring comprises at least one laterally-projecting tooth in alignment with a said member.

Claim 25

The apparatus as defined in claim 19, wherein said members are rectangular bars, all said bars bearing tabs on an edge thereof adjacent said spring and said spring comprising a number of laterally-projecting teeth, each tooth cooperating with the tabs of a predetermined bar, and the number of teeth being at most equal to n.

Claim 26

The apparatus as defined in claim 19 together with a keyboard having at least two depressible keys, each key cooperating respectively with a said flexible spring, and effective upon depression of a said key for imparting vibratory energy to at least a predetermined different one of said n members, further including an additional vibratory energy propagating member with a corresponding transducer, said last-mentioned member having vibratory energy induced therein in response to a depression of any of said keys and the signal from the transducer of said additional member being delayed with respect to the signals from transducers of any of the n remaining members; and means to enable transfer of the last-mentioned signals to a utilization device in response to said signal from the transducer of the additional member, said transfer being normally disabled.

Claim 27

In an encoding keyboard having a plurality of depressible keys each identifiable by a discrete n-bit code for output to a utilization device, the combination of: (a) n members for propagating acoustic energy, each said member having a plurality of rigid projections, (b) means supporting said n members in acoustic isolation, (c) means for inducing acoustic energy within at least a preselected discrete one of said n members in response to depression of each key by resiliently impacting a related one of said projections on said preselected member to induce said acoustic energy, thereby forming a wave front traveling within each said preselected member, (d) means operatively connected to each of the n members for transducing a said wave front into a respective signal, (e) means connected to said transducing means and operable to generate the n-bit code identifying said depressed key in conformity with the respective signals from the transducing means, and (f) output control means connected to said transducing means, said output control means being responsive to first sensing of induced energy in any one of said n members and operable to effect output of the n-bit code to said utilization device only after a time interval sufficient for sensing of any induced energy in the remainder of said n members.

Claim 28

In an encoding keyboard having a plurality of depressible keys each identifiable by a discrete n-bit code for output to a utilization device, the combination of: (a) n members for propagating acoustic energy, each said member having a plurality of rigid projections, (b) means supporting said n members in acoustic isolation, (c) means for inducing acoustic energy within at least a preselected discrete one of said n members in response to depression of each key by resiliently impacting a related one of said projections on said preselected member to induce said acoustic energy, thereby forming a wave front traveling within each said preselected member, (d) means operatively connected to each of the n members for transducing a said wave front into a respective signal, (e) means connected to said transducing means and operable to generate the n-bit code identifying said depressed key in conformity with the respective signals from the transducing means, and (f) output control means connected to said transducing means, said output control means being responsive to first sensing of induced energy in any one of said n members and operable to effect output of the n-bit code to said utilization device only after a time interval sufficient for sensing of any induced energy in the remainder of said n members.

Claim 29

An encoding keyboard as defined in claim 24, wherein the n members are elongate and each of said transducing means is located at substantially the same distance from said acoustic energy inducing means.

Claim 30

The encoding keyboard as defined in claim 25, wherein said elongate members are rectangular bars.

Claim 31

The encoding keyboard as defined in claim 26, wherein said bars are in generally straight parallel arrangement, and the acoustic energy inducing means comprise strikers operated by respective ones of said keys, each striker cooperating with discrete ones of the bars in response to depression of the respective key.

Claim 32

The apparatus as defined in claim 24, wherein said output control means are effective only after said vibratory energy has dissipated and said transducing means each include a latch for storing said respective signal, said output control means being connected to said latches and effecting output of the stored signals with subsequent clearance of each said latch.

Claim 33

An encoding keyboard as defined in claim 25, wherein there is an additional acoustic energy propagating member with a corresponding transducer, said last-mentioned member having acoustic energy induced therein in response to depression of any of said keys.

Claim 34

An encoding keyboard as defined in claim 29, further comprising means including said additional member for discriminating against false inducements of sound energy within any of said n members, thereby preventing generation of an n-bit code falsely indicative of depression of a particular key.

Claim 39

The method of claim 31, or claim 32 further including the steps of: (f) providing a manually depressible key, and (g) generating said mechanical motion upon depression of the key.

Claim 40

The method of claim 32, wherein said flicking comprises flexing said striker at least partly in torsion.

Claim 41

The code-generating method as defined in claim 31, wherein said induced vibratory energy has limited duration and said time interval exceeds said duration and further including the penultimate step of temporarily storing said coarsely timed signals.

Claim 42

In an encoding keyboard having a plurality of depressible keys each identifiable by a discrete n-bit code, the combination of: (a) n elongate bars for propagating acoustic energy, said bars being in generally straight parallel arrangement (b) means isolatingly supporting said n bars, (c) impact means for inducing acoustic energy within at least a preselected discrete one of said n bars in response to depression of each key, said acoustic energy forming a wave front traveling with each said preselected bar and said impact means comprising springs having an upper surface substantially defining a single plane and being momentarily flexed at least partly in torsion in response to said key depression, and at least one of said n bars having a tab portion with a point lying in said plane for impact by said upper surface; (d) means operatively connected to each of the n bars for transducing a said wave front into a respective signal, and (e) means connected to said transducing means and operable to generate the n-bit code identifying said depressed key in conformity with the respective signals from the transducing means.

Claim 43

In an encoding keyboard having a plurality of depressible keys each identifiable by a discrete n-bit code, the combination of: (a) n elongate bars for propagating acoustic energy, said bars being in generally straight parallel arrangement (b) means isolatingly supporting said n bars, (c) impact means for inducing acoustic energy within at least a preselected discrete one of said n bars in response to depression of each key, said acoustic energy forming a wave front traveling with each said preselected bar and said impact means comprising springs having an upper surface substantially defining a single plane and being momentarily flexed at least partly in torsion in response to said key depression, and at least one of said n bars having a tab portion with a point lying in said plane for impact by said upper surface; (d) means operatively connected to each of the n bars for transducing a said wave front into a respective signal, and (e) means connected to said transducing means and operable to generate the n-bit code identifying said depressed key in conformity with the respective signals from the transducing means.

Claim 44

An encoding keyboard having a plurality of depressible keys each identifiable by a discrete n-bit code, together with a case-shift control, in combination with (a) n code members plus an additional member for propagating acoustic energy, (b) means isolatingly supporting said members, (c) means for inducing acoustic energy within at least a preselected discrete one of said n code members in response to depression of each key, said acoustic energy forming a wave front traveling within each said preselected code member; (d) means operatively connected to each of the n code members for transducing a said wave front into a respective signal, (e) means connected to said transducing means and operable to generate the n-bit code identifying said depressed key in conformity with the respective signals from the transducing means, (f) a frame mounted for movement between first and second positions, (b) normally-disabled means responsive to depression of any of said keys and effective when enabled to induce acoustic energy in the additional member; said normally disabled means being enabled only when said frame is in the second position, and (h) means responsive to said case-shift control for moving the frame to said second position.

Claim 45

An encoding keyboard having a plurality of depressible keys each identifiable by a discrete n-bit code, together with a case-shift control, in combination with (a) n code members plus an additional member for propagating acoustic energy, (b) means isolatingly supporting said members, (c) means for inducing acoustic energy within at least a preselected discrete one of said n code members in response to depression of each key, said acoustic energy forming a wave front traveling within each said preselected code member; (d) means operatively connected to each of the n code members for transducing a said wave front into a respective signal, (e) means connected to said transducing means and operable to generate the n-bit code identifying said depressed key in conformity with the respective signals from the transducing means, (f) a frame mounted for movement between first and second positions, (b) normally-disabled means responsive to depression of any of said keys and effective when enabled to induce acoustic energy in the additional member; said normally disabled means being enabled only when said frame is in the second position, and (h) means responsive to said case-shift control for moving the frame to said second position.