US4602550A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Ruler for composing or decomposing the chords for any polyphonic musical instrument
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1982-11-12
•
Granted: 1986-07-29
•
Expires: 2002-11-12
Abstract
Abstract The ruler for composing or decomposing the chords for polyphonic musical instruments is characterized in that it comprises: ruler slides (A,B,C,D,E,F,P,Q) movable with respect to each other in a given direction and each provided with inscriptions relative to the notes of the chromatic scale, respectively assigned to the fundamental, the third, the fifth, the sixth, the seven the etc. . . . of chord--a cursor (K,N) relatively movable in said given direction with respect to the ruler slides, said cursor being with a marking (L,N5) positioned to make evident one of the notes of the chromatic scale of each of the slides: one element (H) integral with the slide (A,P) assigned to evident the inscriptions relative to the musical chord searched for the invention applies to a chord ruler for polyphonic musical instrument.
Inventors
- 👤 Max M. Dadi
- 👤 Marcel Dadi
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 13:25
CPC Classifications
G; G09; G09B; G09B15/00; G09B15/001; G09B15/004; G09B15/005; G09B15/006
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 10
Claim 1
Independent Claim
242 words
A ruler for composing or decomposing chords for a polyphonic musical instrument, comprising: (i) a plurality of ruler slides disposed side by side, at least all those slides but one being individually movable with respect to the others and all the plurality of slides bearing symbols representing notes of the chromatic scale, one of those ruler slides carrying the note symbols for the fundamental of the chords, the adjacent ruler slide carrying the note symbols for the third of the chords, the next adjacent ruler slide carrying the note symbols for the fifth of the chords, and each successively adjacent ruler slide carrying the note symbols for the sixth, seventh, etc., of the chords, respectively, (ii) a cursor mounted to move along the, plurality of slides, the cursor having a window in which one of the note symbols on each of the slides can simultaneously appear, (iii) an indicator element fixed to the slide which carries the note symbols representing the fundamental of the chords, the indicator element having an elongate window extending over the other slides, each of those other slides having markings situated to register one at a time with the window by moving the slide, the markings representing the common major chord and variations thereof, and the note symbols being arranged on the slides such that for a chord displayed in the window of the indicator element, the notes of the chord appear in the window of the cursor.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
242 words
A ruler for composing or decomposing chords for a polyphonic musical instrument, comprising: (i) a plurality of ruler slides disposed side by side, at least all those slides but one being individually movable with respect to the others and all the plurality of slides bearing symbols representing notes of the chromatic scale, one of those ruler slides carrying the note symbols for the fundamental of the chords, the adjacent ruler slide carrying the note symbols for the third of the chords, the next adjacent ruler slide carrying the note symbols for the fifth of the chords, and each successively adjacent ruler slide carrying the note symbols for the sixth, seventh, etc., of the chords, respectively, (ii) a cursor mounted to move along the, plurality of slides, the cursor having a window in which one of the note symbols on each of the slides can simultaneously appear, (iii) an indicator element fixed to the slide which carries the note symbols representing the fundamental of the chords, the indicator element having an elongate window extending over the other slides, each of those other slides having markings situated to register one at a time with the window by moving the slide, the markings representing the common major chord and variations thereof, and the note symbols being arranged on the slides such that for a chord displayed in the window of the indicator element, the notes of the chord appear in the window of the cursor.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
105 words
The ruler according to claim 1, wherein the window in the indicator element and the window in the cursor each has two zones, the width of one of the zones being twice that of the other zone, the wider zone of the cursor's window extending over the three ruler slides allocated respectively to the fundamental, the third and the fifth of the chords, the wider zone of the window of the indicator element extending over the two ruler slides allocated to the third and fifth, the narrower zones of both windows extending over the ruler slide allocated to the sixth, seventh, etc., of the chords.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
37 words
The ruler according to claim 2, wherein the window of the indicator element and the window of the cursor are slots extending perpendicularly to the direction of the movement of the cursor and of the ruler slides.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
46 words
The ruler according to claim 3, wherein the window of the indicator element has transparent panels enabling the subjacent ruler markings on each side of the symbol representing the common major chord to be visible when the common major chord symbol is centered in the window.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
88 words
The ruler according to claim 2, wherein each of the ruler slides is divided into a series of boxes, the boxes of the three ruler slides allocated to the fundamental, the third, and the fifth of the chords each having in it one note of the chromatic scale and those boxes being twice the width of the boxes of the other ruler slides, each box of those other ruler slides accommodating a single note and there being an empty box between the boxes in which there are notes.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
105 words
The ruler according to claim 1, wherein each ruler slide carries a sheet, the sheets being disposed one over the other, the cursor having an extension representing the control part of a musical instrument, such as the neck of a guitar or a piano keyboard, the cursor's extension overlying the sheets and the extension having windows in it corresponding to finger positions, the sheets having markings corresponding to the finger positions on the instrument for the chord notes displayed in the window of the cursor, and each of the superposed sheets having apertures permitting the finger position markings of the subjacent sheet to be visible.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
26 words
The ruler according to claim 6 wherein the finger position markings on each sheet are distinctively different from the finger position markings on the other sheets.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
31 words
The ruler according to claim 1, further including: (iv) a rigid frame having immovably affixed to it the indicator element and the ruler slide allocated to the fundamental of the chords.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
59 words
The ruler according to claim 6 wherein the symbols for the notes of the chromatic scale, the symbols for the common major chord and its variations, and the finger position markings appear on the obverse face of the ruler, the reverse face of the ruler having inscriptions on it relating to the scales of improvisation of the various modes.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1989-07-28 | 1990-01-27 | 1990-07-29 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1993-07-28 | 1994-01-27 | 1994-07-29 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1997-07-28 | 1998-01-27 | 1998-07-29 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |