US1898010A - Sound producing device - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 21, 1933. L, J. GRUBMAN 1,898,010

SOUND PRODUCING DEVICE Filed Oct. 8, 1931 INVENTOR Leo J. Grubrnan BY A ORNEYS Patented Feb. 21, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LEO J. GRUBMAN, OF BELLE HARBOR, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOB T0 VOICES, CORPORATED, Q

OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE SOUND rnonncme nnvzon Application filed October 8, 1931.

This invention relates to toys and more particularly to sound producing devices commonly known as criers or voices for dolls and like toys.

The object of the present invention is to generally improve the design, construction, and assembly of sound producing devices, particularly criers, such as are disclosed in a number of my prior patents, best exemplified by my Patents N 0. 1,590,188 and No. 1,- 658,982, issued June 29, 1926 and February 14, 1928, respectively.

The primary object of the present invention resides in the provision of such a sound producing device which will be more compact than those heretofore made, for a given air capacity. T'Vith my construction, the diameter of the casing of the crier may be sub stantially reduced, thereby making it possible to use the same with small dolls as well as with large ones, so that a single size or standard construction may be used for a wide range of sizes of dolls. Conversely, this object of my invention may be stated as making possible increased air capacity, and consequently increased length of cry, for a given external dimension of crier.

Criers of the class here considered ordinarily include a movable sound producing head attached to one end of a flexible bellows. The sound producing head is usually circular and composed of a plurality of parts forming a sound passage leading into a radial sound channel, and an annular sound chamber having sound discharge openings located opposite or remote from the sound channel. A reed located beneath the channel is passed by air from the bellows, which then flows through the channel and the chamber, and finally out'of the sound discharge openings. Difficulty is sometimes experienced, due to improper assembly of the parts of the sound producing head, whereby the sound discharge openings are located adjacent instead of remote from the channel, thereby making the sound chamber useless and ineffective. Accordingly, another object of the present invention is to overcome this difficulty and to provide a sound producing head inv which the aforesaid channel and Serial no. 567,558.

chamber are made of a single member and therefore are incapable of being improperly related.

Another object of the present invention resides in extreme simplification of the crier, whereby only a few parts are needed for the complete device, which parts are themselves greatly simplified and cheapened.

The sound producing head is ordinarily weighted so that the crier will be gravity operated. This necessitates the use of heavy metal which, in prior constructions, had to be worked and brought into a relatively complicated shape. Still another object of the present invention is to obviate the necessity of Working or shaping heavy metal pieces, and to so design the crier that only a single part need be made of heavy metal, which part is a plain fiat element, such as a washer.

A still further object of the present in-' vention resides in the provision of a crier the various parts of which and the mode of assembly of which are adapted for manufacture and assembly wholly by means of automatic machinery.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and such other objects as will hereinafter appear, my invention resides in the sound crier elements and their relation one to the other, as hereinafter are more particularly described in the specification and sought to be defined in the claims. The specification is accompanied by a drawing in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view showing the parts of the sound producing head of the crier in separated relation;

Fig. 2 is a section taken in elevation through a completely assembled crier;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken in the plane of the line 3-8 in Fig. 2; and

Fig. a is an inverted plan view ofthe sound producing head of the crier with the gravity weight removed.

The various constructional features of my invention are here particularly embodied in a crier for dolls, but it will be understood that these features are generically applicable to sound producing devices other than criers, for the production of a variety of sounds, and for use with a variety of toys.

Referring to the drawing and particularly to Fig. 2 thereof, the present crier, like those of the prior art, comprises a sound producing head A, secured to a flexible bellows B and movable within a protective casing C. The casing C is made of a generally cylindrical or tubular wall 12 the ends of which are closed by caps 14 and 16. The cap 14 is filled with large holes or openings 18 for the discharge of sound from the device, and serves merely to protect the interior parts of the crier. The bellows B consists of a tubular or frustro-conical piece of flexible air-tight material the larger end of which is closed by the cap 16 and is secured thereby to the end of the casing O, as is clearly evident from an inspection of the drawing. The sound producing head, generally designated A, is secured to and closes the other end of the bellows B. .Vhen the crier is placed in the position shown in Fig. 2, the weighted sound producing head A promptly descends, thereby causing expulsion of air from the bellows through the sound producing head, the latter, of course, including a reed operated by the discharged air.

The novelty of the present construction centers about the sound producing head A, and this is shown in exploded or disassemled relation in Fig. l of the drawing. Referring to that figure, the sound producing head comprises a sheet metal cap 22, a reed 24, a sealing disc 26, and a gravity weight in the form of a relatively heavy washer 28. As is obvious from inspection of the drawing, the only intricate part is the cap 22, and even this is simply a sheet metal part which is readily and continuously stamped out of flat sheet metal in an ordinary press.

Cap 22 comprises a preferably radial air channel 30 leading directly intov an annular air chamber 32, the channel and chamber being connected at the junction 34. The chamber 32 is provided with a plurality of sound discharge openings 36 which are located opposite or remote from the air channel 30. It will be evident that air expelled from bellows B will flow through weight 28, sealing disc 26, and after passing reed 24 and being set into vibration thereby, will continue to flow radially outward through channel 30 and thence in opposite directions around the sound chamber 32, finally discharging through the openings 36. It will immediately be evident that with this construction the channel 30 and the openings 36 in chamber 32 cannot be relatively displaced and therefore cannot be mistakenly assembled or subsequently moved to a position permitting direct discharge of air from channel 30 through openings 36, without preliminarily circulating through the chamber 32.

The integral piece of sheet metal from which the cap 22 is formed, further includes a depending peripheral flange 38, a ring of prongs 40 disposed between channel 30 and chamber 32, and a shallow recess 42 concentric with the relatively deep channel 30. The function of depending peripheral flange 38 is to receive and hold sealing ring 26, weight 28, and bellows B. The function of the series of prongs 40 is to secure and lock sealing ring 26 in place, preventing rotation thereof, and sealing the air channel 30 from the air chamber 32 except at their regular point of junction 34. The purpose of the shallow recess 42 is simply to provide clearance for free vibration of the reed 24.

Reed 24 is simply a flat piece of sheet metal the stationary end 44 of which is preferably widened and provided with a short depending tab 46.

Sealing disc 26 may be made of any desired material, but is preferably made of a fibrous material, such as cardboard, so that it may be readily secured to the central portion of the cap 22 by the use of prongs 40 previously mentioned. The disc is provided with a central hole 48 which exposes the vibratory end of reed 24 and permits free passage of air past the reed and into channel 30. Disc 26 is preferably also provided with a slit 50 for receiving the tab 46 of reed 24. Any preferred form of mating means may be used to hold the reed in place, but that here shown in exceedingly simple and permits rapid preliminary assembly of the reed and disc and proper alignment of I the reed with reces 42 and channel 30. \Vhen the sound producing head is completely assembled and the parts thereof are locked together, the reed is, of course, securely and permanently locked in position.

In assembling the device, the tab 46 of reed 24 is placed in slit 50, and the downwardly struck portion of disc 26 at the slit 50 may then be pushed upwardly or brought flush with the remainder of the disc, thereby holding reed 24 quite snugly in place. Disc 26 is then forced into cap 22. The diameter of the disc is such that the fit in the cap is a force fit, and air leakage around the disc into air chamber 32 is effectually prevented even though no cement or adhesive is used. At the same time'the inner portion of disc 26 is forced through the series of prongs 40, and these are in turn bent around the lower face of disc 26, as is best shown in Fig. 4. This figure also shows how reed 24 is exposed in opening 48. The prongs 40 prevent rotation of disc 26 and consequent misalignment of reed 24 with channel 30. These prongs also prevent direct escape of air from opening 48 outwardly to air chamber 32, and instead constrain the air to flow past reed 24 and through channel 30. Any other sealing means may be used instead of the prongs 40, and in fact such sealing means may even be dispensed with, and the pressure obtained between the parts when completely assembled may alone be relied upon.

Weight 28 takes the form of a relatively thick fiat washer. It may be made in any desired manner, as by casting or by stamping the same from heavy stock. It will be evident that when weight 28 is forced with the bellows material into cap 22 and there locked in position, as by the use of a; force fit, which I prefer, or, if desired, but less preferably, by subsequent turning or inbending of the edge of the cap 22 about the lower face of weight 28, the weight will hold sealing disc 26, the reed 24:, and the cap 22 pressed together in desired relation, besides forming an air-tight connection with the bellows material.

In Figs. 2 and 3, it will be readily appreciated that there is a continuous air passage from the bellows B to the sound discharge openings 36. This air passage includes first the center of weight 28 and next the hole 48 in sealing disc 26. The air then flows past the free or vibratory end of reed 24 which is set into vibration thereby. Clearance for this vibration is permitted by shallow recess 42. The air then flows radially outward through channel 30, and then flows through chamber 32 and out of the sound discharge openings 36'. In effect this series of passages comprises a single sound passage having an inlet end at the reed 24 and an outlet end at the discharge openings 36, and the said sound passage (which is equivalent to the horn of a musical instrument or loud speaker) is formed out of the single piece of sheet metal constituting the cap 22. The sealing disc 26 with vibratory reed 24 effectively completes the sound producing head, and it is obvious that the weight 28 may, if desired, be dispensed with, in which case the weight of cap 22 is alone relied upon to operate the device. For this purpose, cap 22 should preferably be made of sheet metal of increased gauge or thickness. I prefer, however, to form the cap out of relatively thin sheet metal and to subsequently add the separate weight 28, which serves additional functions in locking sealing disc 26 against cap 22 and anchoring the bellows B within cap 22.

It will be evident, from inspection of Fl 2, that the internal diameter of bellows B is substantially equal to the external diameter of the sound producing head A. This is so because of the thinness of the material used for sheet metal cap 22, which is in sharp con- 7 trast with the thick metal heretofore used and intended to act as the gravity weight of the device. It will therefore be seen that the external'diameter of the casing C of the crier is greatly reduced for a given diameter of bellows, or conversely, that for a given size of easing the air capacity and consequently the length of the cry caused by the bellows may be greatly increased. The sound producing head is also compact in a vertical direction, and here again space economy is obtainable, but this factor is of less importance than that of the diameter, already pointed out.

It is believed that the mode of constructing and assembling, the mode of operation, and the many advantages of the present improved sound producing device, will, for the most part, be apparent from the foregoing detailed description thereof. It will further be apparent that while I have shown and described my invention in preferred form, many changes and modifications may be made in the structure disclosed, without departing from the spirit of the invention, described in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a cap made of a piece of metal struck into a form including a sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openings disposed remotely from the sound channel, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, and means closing the sound chamber.

2. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a sheet metal cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form including a radial sound channel leading into an annular sound chamber having sound discharge openings disposed opposite the sound channel, and a depending peripheral flange, a fiatsheet metal vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, and means closing the sound chamber and sealing the same from the sound channel except at their regular point of junction.

3. In a device of the class described, a ound producing head comprising a can made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form including asound passage having entrant and discharge ends, and a depending peripheral flange, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the entrant end of the sound passage, and a gravity weight in the form of a simple thick flat washer received by the peripheral flange of the cap.

4. In a device of the class described, a sound producing headcomprising a cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form including a sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openings disposed remotely from the sound channel, and also including a depending peripheral flange, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, means closing the sound chamber, and a gravity weight in the form of a simple thick fiat washer received by the peripheral flange of the cap.

5. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a metal cap made of a single piece of metal struck into a form including a sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openings disposed remotely from the sound channel, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, means closing the sound chamber, a tubular casing having ends one of which is perforate and the other of which is imperforate, and a generally tubular flexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and the other end of which is secured to the metal cap.

6. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a cap made of a piece of sheet metal struck into a form including a sound passage having entrant and discharge ends, and a depending peripheral flange, a reed mounted adjacent the entrant end of the sound passage, a gravity weight in the form of a simple thick flat washer received by the peripheral flange of the cap, a tubular casing having ends one of which is perforate and the other of which is imperforate. and a generally tubular flexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and the other end of which is secured between the weight and the flange of the cap.

7. A sound producing device of the class :lescribed, comprising a sheet metal cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form including a radial sound channel leading into an annular sound chamber having sound discharge openings disposed opposite the sound channel, and also including a depending peripheral flange, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, means closing the sound chamber and sealing the same from the sound channel except at their point of junction, a gravity weight in the form of a simple thick flat washer adapted to be received within the peripheral flange of the cap, a tubular casing having ends one of which is perforate and the other of which is imperforate, and a generallytubular flexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and the other end of which is secured between the washer and the flange of the cap.

8. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a single piece of metal struck into a form including a sound passage having entrant and discharge ends, and a depending peripheral flange, a generally flat sheet metal reed disposed beneath the entrant end of the sound passage and having at its stationary end a downwardlv bent tab, a sealing disc having a central opening and a slit for receiving the tab, said disc being received within the peripheral flange of the cap.

9. In a device of the class described, a

sound producing head comprising a single air passage opening on the reed, said disc being secured to the rim of the cap and being additionally secured to the cap by the aforesaid holding means in order to separate the chamber from the channel except at their regular point of junction.

10. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a single piece of metal struck into a form including a shallow recess surmounted by a relatively deep sound channel leading directly into a sound chamber having a series of sound discharge openings distributed remotely from the sound channel, a depending peripheral flange, and a series of holding prongs struck downwardly from the top surface of the cap between the recess and the sound chamber, a reed disposed beneath the recess and channel and having positioning means at its stationary end, a sealing disc having a central opening and means mating with the positi oning means for holding the reed in proper alignment with the recess and channel, said disc being forced within the peripheral flange of the cap and being additionally secured to the cap by the aforesaid series of holding prongs in order to seal the chamber from the channel except at their point of junction.

11. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a single piece of metal struck into a form including a. shallow radial recess surmounted by a relatively deep radial sound channel leading di- '-ectly into an annular sound chamber having a series of sound discharge openings distributed opposite the sound channel, a depending peripheral flange, and a ring of holding prongs struck downwardly from the top surface of the cap between the channel and the sound chamber, a generally flat sheet metal reed disposed beneath the recess and channel and having at its stationary end a downwardly bent tab, a sealing disc made of cardboard or like fibrous material having a central opening, and a slit for receiving the tab and thereby anchoring the reed in proper alignment with the recess and channel, said disc being forced within the peripheral flange of the cap with a tight fit and beingadditionally secured to the cap by the aforesaid ring of holding prongs in order to seal the chamber from the channel except at their point of junction, whereby air applied to the sound producing cap flows through the opening in the sealing disc past the reed, through the channel, through the chamber, and finally out of the openings.

12. In a sound producing device of the class described, comprising a cap made of a single piece of metal struck into a form including a sound channel leading directly into a sound chamber having a series of sound discharge openin s distributed remotely from the sound channel, a depending peripheral flange, a generally flat sheet metal reed disposed beneath the channel and having at its stationary end a downwardly bent tab, a sealing disc having a central opening and a slit for receiving the tab and thereby anchoring the reed in proper alignment with the channel, said disc being held against the cap with a tight tit in order to seal the chamber and the channel, a casing having ends one of which is perforate and the other of which is imperforate, and a tubular flexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and the other end of which is secured to the cap.

13. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a sheet metal cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form including a shallow recess surmounted by a relatively deep sound channel leading directly into a sound chamber having a series of sound discharge openings distributed remotely from the sound channel, a depending peripheral flange, and a series of holding prongs struck downwardly from the top surface of the cap between the channel and the sound chamber, a reed disposed beneath the recess and channel, a sealing disc having an air passage opening on the reed, said disc being received by the peripheral flange of the cap and being additionally secured to the cap by the aforesaid series of holding prongs, a gravity weight in the form of a simple flat washer received within the peripheral flange of the cap, a tubular casing having ends one of which is perforate and the other of which is imperforate, and a generally tubular flexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and the other end of which is secured between the washer and the flange of the cap.

14. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a cap ,made of a single piece of metal struck into a form including a shallow recess surmounted by a relatively deep sound channel leading directly into a sound chamber having a series of sound discharge openings distributed remotely from the sound channel, a depending peripheral flange, and a series of holding prongs struck downwardly from the top surface of the cap between the channel and the sound chamber, a reed disposed beneath the recess and channel and having at its stationary end a downwardly bent tab, a sealing disc having a central opening and a slit for receiving the tab and thereby anchoring the reed in proper alignment with the recess and channel, said disc being received by the peripheral flange of the capand being additionally secured to the cap by the aforesaid series of holding prongs, a gravity weight in the form of a simple flat washer received within the peripheral flange of the cap, a tubular casing having ends one of which is perforate and the other of which is imperforate, and a generally tubular flexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and the other end of which is secured between the washer and the flange of the cap.

15. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a cap made of a piece of metal struck into a form including a sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openings, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, and means closing the sound chamber.

16. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a cap made of a single piece or" sheet metal struck into a form including a sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openings, and also including a depending peripheral flange, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, means closing the sound chamber and separating the same from the sound channel except at their regular point of junction, and a gravity weight received by the peripheral flange of the cap.

17. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprising a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form including a sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openings, and also including a depending peripheral flange, a generally flat sheet metal reed disposed beneath the sound channel, and a sealing disc received within the peripheral flang of the cap, said disc having an opening exposing the vibratory end of the reed, the stationary end of said reed being secured to said disc and being additionally held between the disc and the aforesaid single piece of metal.

Signed at New York in the County of New York and State of New York this 7th day of October A. D. 1931.

LEO J. GRUBMAN.

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