WALL HANGER FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENT

Abstract

The invention relates to a bracket and, in particular, a wall bracket for a musical instrument (1), particularly for a stringed instrument. To this end, the bracket has an adjustable base (4) for receiving an instrument body (1a) and at least two retaining arms (5), which are able to pivot relative to an anchor element (3), for detachably securing an instrument neck (1b) received between the retaining arms (5). The base (4) and the two retaining arms (5) are coupled to each other by at least one connecting member (6). Furthermore, at least one spring (7) is provided which prestresses the base (4) into a rest position and the two retaining arms (5) into an open position. According to the invention, the connecting member (6) is designed as a connecting rod (6) rigidly coupling the base (4) to the two retaining arms (5) and prestressed by the spring (7).

Claims

1. A mount for a musical instrument, the mount comprising: an adjustable lower cradle for receiving a body of the instrument; a mounting element: two holding arms pivotable relative to the mounting element for detachably securing an instrument neck received between the holding arms; a connecting member fixed to the lower cradle and directly coupled to the two holding arms; and a spring braced between the mounting element and the connecting member and urging the lower cradle into a rest position and the two holding arms into an open position.

2. The mount according to claim 1, wherein the lower cradle and the two holding arms in the course of respective actuating movements define a common actuating plane in which the connecting rod also moves.

3. The mount according to claim 1, wherein the connecting rod and the two holding arms are coupled to one another via a common pivot.

4. The mount according to claim 3, wherein the pivot is provided at an upper end of the connecting rod.

5. The mount according to claim 1, wherein the two holding arms are connected pivotably to the mounting element via respective pivots.

6. The mount according to claim 2, wherein the two holding arms are designed as holding plates or scissor arms that can be moved in the plane and each have at least one projecting holding finger.

7. The holding device according to claim 6, wherein the respective holding finger each extend substantially perpendicularly from the respective holding arm and are curved inward toward each other.

8. The mount according to claim 6, wherein each holding finger has a soft-elastic surface.

9. The mount according to claim 1, wherein the lower cradle has at least two support fingers.

10. The mount according to claim 9, wherein the two support fingers each have a soft elastic surface.

11. The mount according to claim 1, wherein the spring extends generally parallel to the connecting rod.

12. The mount according to claim 1, wherein the spring is a helical coil spring.

13. The mount according to one of claims 1 to 12, claim 1, wherein the spring surrounds the connecting rod and/or is longitudinally connected thereto.

14. The mount according to claim 1, wherein the two holding arms and/or the lower cradle are adjustable at least transversely to the longitudinal extent of the connecting rod.

15. The mount as claimed in claim 14, wherein the connecting rod telescopes.

16. A wall or floor mount for a stringed instrument having a body and a neck, the mount comprising: a fixed mounting element; a generally vertical elongated rod vertically guided in or on the element, shiftable between an upper rest position and a lower working position, and having a lower end; a cradle fixed to the lower end of the rod, projecting transversely therefrom, and adapted to carry the body of the instrument with the neck thereof projecting upward; a pair of arms pivotal on the element above the cradle between an open position spaced from each other sufficiently that the neck can pass between them and a closed position engaging around and securing the neck of the instrument in the cradle against significant movement relative to the mounting element; a rod pivot on the rod connected to the arms such that downward movement of the rod from the upper rest position pivots the arms toward the closed position and upward movement of the rod from the lower working position pivots the arms toward the open position; and a spring braced between the mounting element and the rod and urging the rod with a predetermined force into the upper rest position and the arms into the closed position, the force being substantially less than a weight of the instrument.

17. The mount defined in claim 16, wherein the pivot between the arms and the rod defines a central pivot axis generally perpendicular to the rod.

18. The mount defined in claim 17, wherein the arms are pivoted on the element about respective side pivot axes flanking and generally parallel to the central pivot axes, whereby the arms pivot in a plane generally including a longitudinal axis of the rod.

19. The mount defined in claim 16, further comprising: links each having one end pivoted on a respective one of the arms and an opposite end pivoted on the rod pivot.

20. The mount defined in claim 16, wherein the rod pivot carries both of the arms for pivoting bout the central pivot axis, the mount further comprising: links each having one end pivoted on the on the mounting element and an opposite end pivoted generally centrally on a respective one of the links.

Description

[0027] In the following, the invention is described in more detail with reference to a drawing showing a single embodiment. Therein:

[0028] FIG. 1 shows the hanger according to the invention in the form of a wall hanger in an overview with a musical instrument,

[0029] FIG. 2 is a front view of the object according to FIG. 1 without the musical instrument and in the open position,

[0030] FIG. 3 is a side view of the hanger of FIGS. 1 and 2;

[0031] FIG. 4 shows the object according to FIG. 2 when moving from the open position into the closed position;

[0032] FIG. 5 shows a variant of the invention and

[0033] FIGS. 5 and 6 show a further second and third embodiment variant of the invention.

[0034] The figures show a mount for a musical instrument 1 designed and provided in the embodiment and not by way of limitation as a wall hanger for fixing to a wall 2. In principle, the mount could also be designed as part of a floor stand. In this case, a mounting element 3 is not fastened to the wall 2, but rather to a lower cradle frame or is designed as part of this lower cradle frame.

[0035] In its basic construction, the mount according to the invention has, in addition to the above-mentioned mounting element 3, an adjustable lower cradle 4 constructed and designed to hold a body 1a of the musical instrument 1. In fact, the musical instrument 1 is a guitar and in particular an electric guitar in the context of the nonlimiting embodiment. The latter has, in addition to the instrument body 1a, basically and additionally an instrument neck 1b, which is also releasably secured with the aid of the mount.

[0036] For this purpose, at least two holding arms 5 are provided that are pivotable on the mounting element 3 and serve for releasably embracing and securing the instrument neck 1b of the musical instrument 1. The lower cradle 4 and the two holding arms 5 are coupled to one another via at least one connecting member 6. In addition, a spring 7 is provided.

[0037] The design is such that the spring 7 pretensions the lower cradle 4 into an upper rest position shown in dot-dash lines in FIG. 4. The two holding arms 5 are biased by the spring 7 in an open position also shown in dot-dash lines in FIG. 4.

[0038] In the rest position of the lower cradle 4 and the open position of the two holding arms 5 in accordance with the dot-dashed illustration in FIG. 4 or in the open position illustrated in FIG. 2, the musical instrument 1 can be set upon the lower cradle 4. For this purpose, the instrument body 1a is set down on at least two supporting fingers 8 of the lower cradle 4 that, in the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 5 are integral parts of a U-shaped bracket fixed at the lower end of the connecting member 6. As soon as the musical instrument 1 is deposited with its instrument body 1 on the support fingers 8 or lower cradle 4, the weight of the musical instrument 1 ensures that the spring 7 is compressed. This can be seen in the transition from the position of FIG. 2 to that of FIG. 4

[0039] In the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 4, compression of the spring 7 is accompanied by an adjusting movement T of the lower cradle 4, shown in FIG. 4 by a double arrow and effected during the transition of the lower cradle 4 from the upper rest position shown in dash-dotted lines into the lower working position shown in solid lines. As a result of this adjusting movement T of the lower cradle 4, the two holding arms 5 are also pivoted starting from their open position in FIG. 2 also shown in a dot-dash representation in FIG. 4 into its closed position shown in solid lines in FIG. 4. This is accompanied by a further pivotal adjusting movement S of the holding arms 5 which, in the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 4, corresponds to an arc S indicated in FIG. 4 or to a transverse movement in comparison with the longitudinal movement and extent of the connecting member 6, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5. As a result, the neck 1b of the musical instrument 1 is secured in the closed position of the holding arms 5 shown in solid lines in FIG. 4 until the musical instrument 1 with its instrument body 1a is again lifted off the lower cradle 4. This is because the holding arms 5 then shift from their closed position shown in solid lines in FIG. 4 into the open position shown there in dot-dash lines and also in FIG. 2.

[0040] According to the invention, the connecting member 6 is now designed as a connecting rod 6 that directly couples the lower cradle 4 to the two holding arms 5 and is prestressed with the aid of the spring 7. In fact, the connecting rod 6 is designed to be telescopic, so that different sizes of the musical instrument 1 to be received can be taken into account. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the telescopic capability provides for movement which is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to 4, and a fixing means 9 can fix how far an extension rod can dip into a dip tube to relatively fix both components of the connecting rod 6 in a desired position.

[0041] According to the invention, the lower cradle 4 and the two holding arms 5 perform the adjusting movement T of the lower cradle 4 longitudinally and parallel to the connecting rod 6 on the one hand and the arcuate and transverse pivoting movement S in comparison with the connecting rod 6 for the holding arms 5 on the other hand. Both adjusting movements S, T together define a common adjusting plane E in which the connecting rod 6 is also moved.

[0042] Consequently and essentially, the mounting element 3, the spring 7, the two holding arms 5 and also the lower cradle 4 lie in this common adjustment plane E, which leads to a particularly compact and narrow construction of the mount according to the invention. The projecting support fingers 8 of the lower cradle 4, on the one hand, and also holding fingers 10, also projecting with respect to the holding arms 5, on the other hand, are only excluded from this. In fact, the supporting fingers 8 and the holding fingers 10 are predominantly oriented in such a way that they largely project perpendicular to the lower cradle 4 or the holding arms 5 and thus of the adjusting plane E in accordance with the embodiment from the drawing plane in the direction of the viewer.

[0043] In order to avoid damage to the instrument body 1a as well as the instrument neck 1b, both the two support finger 8 and the two holding fingers 10 are each equipped with a soft elastic surface, as has already been described in detail above. The lower cradle 4 is rigidly connected to the lower end of the connecting rod 6. At its upper end, the connecting rod 6 is coupled to the two holding arms 5 via a common rod pivot 11. According to the embodiment, the pivot 11 is formed in such a way that a pivot pin connected to the connecting rod 6 engages in respective guide slots on the holding arms 5. As soon as the connecting rod 6 is moved downward during movement of the lower cradle 4 from its rest position into the working position according to the embodiment, as is the case shown in FIG. 2, the pivot pin follows the downward movement and ensures that, according to the embodiment, the two holding arms 5 perform the arcuate pivoting movement already described, on the one hand, in the clockwise direction indicated in FIG. 4 and, on the other hand, in the counterclockwise direction. As a result, the two holding fingers 10 connected to the holding arms 5 move toward one another and can wrap around the instrument neck 1b between them. The pivoting movement of the two holding arms 5 stops as soon as the holding fingers 10 rest on the outside of the instrument neck 1b.

[0044] In addition to the rod pivot 11 provided at an upper end on the connecting rod 6, the two holding arms 5 are each pivotably connected to the mounting element 3 via at least one further side pivot 12. This further pivot 12 ensures the rotary pivoting movement of the relevant holding arm 5 in the clockwise direction or counterclockwise as seen in the transition from the open position of the holding arms 5 shown by dot-and-dash lines in FIG. 4 to the closed position of the holding arms 5 shown in solid lines in FIG. 4. The two holding arms 5 are holding plates movable in the adjustment plane E as part of the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 4. In the variant according to FIG. 5 the two holding arms 5 are interconnected like scissor blades that are in turn connected via the head-side pivot 11 on the one hand to the connecting rod 6 and, on the other hand, via in this case a pivot 12, find a connection to the mounting element 3. The two scissor levers in this case have an additional central scissor-type pivot 13. The two holding fingers 10 are connected at these center pivots 13 to the holding arms 5 or the scissor legs are connected in the example case of FIG. 5.

[0045] As already explained, the holding fingers 10 are essentially perpendicular to the respective support arms 5. In addition, the holding fingers 10 are advantageously curved inward in order to be able to fit perfectly around the instrument neck 1b. The spring 7 follows the longitudinal extension of the connecting rod 6. In both embodiments, the spring 7 is a helical coil spring. In principle, it is, of course, also possible to use a differently loaded spring.

[0046] In the context of the variant according to FIGS. 1 to 4, the spring 7 is designed as a helical coil spring surrounding the connecting rod 6. In contrast, in the variant according to FIG. 5, the spring 7 is connected to the a longitudinal upward extension of the connecting rod 6. In both cases, the spring 7 is connected by its one end to the connecting rod 6 and by its other end to the mounting element 3 or is braced against the support element 3. As a result, of this pretensioning, the spring 7 ensures that the lower cradle 4 is shifted into its rest position and the two holding arms 5 are into their open positions as long as no musical instrument 1 is being held or supported.

[0047] However, if the musical instrument 1 is deposited with its instrument body 1a on the lower cradle 4, its weight therewith ensures that the spring 7 in the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 4 is compressed or, in the variant according to FIG. 5, is tensioned. This is because in this process, starting from the rest position, the lower cradle 4 performs the adjusting movement T, which, according to the embodiment, corresponds to the arrow in FIG. 2 and is coupled to a downward movement of the lower cradle 4 and consequently the connecting rod 6 connected thereto.

[0048] The downwardly moved connecting rod 6 in turn provides, via the upper pivot 11 and the holding arms 5 connected thereto, that the holding arms 5 also transition from their previously assumed spread position as shown in FIG. 2 into the closed position against the force of the spring 7. At the same time, the spring 7 in the variant according to FIGS. 1 to 4, to be precise until the two holding fingers 10 projecting on the holding arms 5 properly secure the instrument neck 1b. In the variant according to FIG. 5, the spring 7, which is extended during this process, again ensures that the instrument neck 1b is held firmly and releasably in this case.

[0049] In an unillustrated embodiment, the holding arms 5 are adjustable transversely of the longitudinal extension of the connecting rod 6. In this way, the holding arms 5 or the spacing of the holding fingers 10 can be adapted to differently designed instrument necks 1b. In the simplest case, it is conceivable, for this purpose, for the holding arms 5 to be designed in two parts and telescopically similar to the telescopic connecting rod 6. In the variant according to FIG. 5, it is conceivable that the holding fingers 10 can be displaced relative to the scissor-type pivot 13 in the transverse direction in comparison to the longitudinal extension of the connecting rod 6 in order to be able to make the adaptations described.

[0050] In addition to the basic possibility of being able to adjust the two holding arms 5 and thereby to be able to adapt them to different instrument necks 1b, the invention additionally provides the option of forming additionally or alternatively also the lower cradle 4 in an adjustable manner. This can be done by virtue of the fact that the two support fingers 8 connected to the lower cradle 4 are designed to be variable with regard to their relative spacing. In addition, however, the lower cradle 4 can also be rotated or pivoted as a whole about an axis 14 as shown in FIG. 5. A also multi-part design of the lower cradle 4 with two arms pivotably connected to the axle 14 with end-mounted support fingers 8 is also conceivable. In this way, the lower cradle 4 can be adapted, for example, to differently and in particular asymmetrically configured shapes of the instrument body 1a.

[0051] A slightly modified embodiment variant of the example according to FIG. 5 is shown in FIG. 6. In this case, the two holding arms 5 can also be adjusted transversely to the longitudinal extension of the connecting rod 6. As a result, the holding arms 5 or, in this connection, extensions 5′ of the holding arms 5 and with them the holding fingers 10 can be adapted to differently designed instrument necks 1b. For this purpose, in the embodiment according to FIGS. 6A and 6B the holding fingers 10 are attached to the upper ends of the respective extensions 5′ or the holding arms 5.

[0052] It can be seen that the extensions 5′ each project from the upper end of the respective the holding arms 5 connected in turn to the telescopic connecting rod 6. Again, in this case, a scissor-type pivot 13 is realized that ensures displacement of the holding fingers 10 in the transverse direction in comparison to the longitudinal extension of the connecting rod 6, as can be seen when comparing the opened position according to FIG. 6A with the closed position of FIG. 5B embracing the guitar or instrument neck 1b as shown in FIG. 6B. The spring 7, which is also realized in the embodiment variant according to FIGS. 6A and 6B, is not explicitly illustrated here, but rather may be concealed behind the mounting element 3 and, in the illustration according to FIG. 6A, is shown by way of example, so that the two holding arms 5 in the position according to FIG. 6B can secure the instrument neck 1b as described with the spring force.