US1187838A - Musical rubber ball. - Google Patents

Description

R. D. HUGHES.

MUSICAL RUBBER BALL.

APPL'ICATION FILED MAR. I8. 1916.

Patented June 20, 1916.

ROBERT D. HUG-HES, 0F LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOJB. T0 WILLIAM- J. ALMOND,

FRANK H. ALMOND, AND CHARLES H. ALMOND, JR., ALL OF LYNCHBURG, VIR- GINIA.

MUSICAL RUBBER BALL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June an, 1916.

Application filed March 18, 1916. Serial No. 85,154.

To all whom it may concern:

.Be it known that I, ROBERT D. HUGHES, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Lynchburg, county of Campbell, State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Musical Rubber Balls, of which the following is a specifica tion.

This invention relates to musical balls, particularly to musical balls of soft rubber having one or more apertures therein to permit of the ready inflation and deflation thereof and having secured in, or adjacent to, the aperture or apertures, a reed or other musical appliance which is adapted to sound when air passesthrough the aperture upon the deflation or inflation of the ball.

The object of this invention is to provide a ball of the above class which may be ar-' ranged to give forth sounds of the same or different character, upon inflation and deflation, and in which the sounding member is attached to the ball on the inside in such a way as to be firmly held in position at all times, and effectively protected against damage or destruction when the ball is thrown 'or deflated, by a casing of stiff material which surrounds the sounding member.

Another object is to provide a ball having the above noted features in which the musical appliance is secured in place within the outer surface of the ball with no projecting parts, thus leaving a ball of uniform outer surface with no metal or rigid parts extending to or through the outer surface.

The invention will be fully disclosed in the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure 1 is a section through the center of the ball and through the sounding device; Fig. 2 is a section along line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a section of a portion of the ball showing a modified manner of attachment ofthe sounding device; Fig. 4 is a similar view of another modification; Fig. 5 is a sectional view along the line 55 of Fig. 4.

The spherical rubber wall of the ball is indicated by the numeral 10, in the drawing and it is made in two hemispherical parts vulcanized together, in the usual manner.

Referring to the form shown in Fig. 1, the aperture through which the air is adapted to pass in the inflation and deflation of the ball is shown at 11, and the tubular soft rubber portion which is alined therewith and adapted to contain the sounding member, is indicated by 12, the sounding member ber tube 12 and materially greater than the diameter of the aperture 11 in the wall 10 of the ball. The member 14 is inserted in the tube 12 before the halves of the ball have been vulcanized together, and as the outer diameter of the tube is greater than the inner diameter of the rubber tube 12, force must be applied in its insertion to stretch the wall of the tube. The rubber tube 12 is made somewhat longer than the stiff tube 14 and when the latter is fully inserted, the projecting end 16 of the tube 12 contracts and prevents the accidental dislodgment of the tube. While I have found that when the member 14 and tube 12 are properly proportioned the friction between them will be suflicient to hold the member 14 in place, it

I will be understood that the invention is not limited to that holding means.

In Fig. 1, I have shown two reeds 15, 15, of the usual type, each comprising a troughshaped sheet metal piece 16 and a metal tongue or vibrator 17 the reeds being faced in opposite directions so that one or the other will sound when air passes through the aperture 11 and tube 14 in either direction. The bases 18, 18, of the reeds are of approximately the same diameter as the inside of the tube 14 and are held therein by frictional engagement therewith. It is obvious that one reed alone may be used or that a plurality of reeds may be inserted. The form of reed used may also be changed as desired.

An elastic cord 19 may be secured to the ball by any well known means, as by the anchor 20, so that the ball may be used as a return ball. -In using the ball in this manner, the end of the cord 19 is grasped by one hand and the ball is de flated by pressure of the other hand, after which the ball is thrown out. As it passes through the air in a path determined by the length and strength of the elastic cord, it will gradually assume its normally round shape, drawing in air steadily through the aperture 11 and tube 14 and by the reeds 15, 15, to make a continuous sound.

In Fig. 3 is shown a modified form in which the rubber tube 42 which contains the sounding member is vulcanized or cemented onto the inner side of the wall 10 of the ball instead of being integral therewith. This construction may be used, if convenient, but the operation of the device is not changed in any respect thereby.

In Figs. 4 and 5 are shown two views of another modification in which the rubber tube member is adapted to contain two sounding members 63, there being two apertures 61 in the wall 60 of the ball, registering therewith. It is obvious that several sounding members may beplaced together in this way or several individual sounding members may be spaced apart, in order to obtain chords when the ball is inflated and deflated.

As the delicate reed members are always within and protected by the stiff tube 14 they are in no danger of being damaged or destroyed when the ball is flattened, or deflated, or struckin play, and as the rubber tube 12 at all times closely engages and holds the sounding member A, the latter cannot become displaced and the device rendered inoperative.

Since the sounding appliance made of relatively hard material does not extend to the outer surface of the ball it will be seen that the objectionable projecting hard surfaces, present in some sounding balls, are avoided in my device and the appliance being fastened in place entirely within the ball inaccessible from outside there is less liability that it will be broken loose.

Having described the invention what is claimed is 1. A sounding toy comprising a hollow member of flexible material and having an aperture therein, an elastic tube having one end secured to the inside of said member in alinement with said aperture, and a sounding device located in said elastic tube which is adapted to sound upon the deflation or inflation of said flexible member through said aperture.

2. sounding toy com rising a hollow member of flexible material which normally tends to keep a definite shape, and having an aperture therein, an elastic tube having one end secured to the inside of said member in alinement with said aperture, a tube of stiff material within said elastic tube, and a sounding devi ce located in said stifl tube, which is adapted to sound upon the deflation or inflation of said flexible member through said aperture.

3. A sounding toy comprising a hollow member of flexible material having an aperture therein; a sounding member within said hollow member and adjacent said aperture and adapted to sound when air passes therethrough upon the deflation or inflation of said hollow member, and a stiff casing surrounding said sounding member to protect it from injury, said casing being secured by suitable means to the inside of said hollow member.

4. A sounding toy comprising a hollow member of flexible material having an aperture therein; a tube of elastic material secured at one end to the inside of said hollow member, in alinement with said apsaid aperture, and means on the inside of said ball comprising material similar to the material of the ball for securing said sounding device in place at said aperture.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

ROBERT D. HUGHES.

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