PORTABLE DEVICE TO LIMIT UNWANTED MOVEMENT OF DRUMS AND OTHER MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

Abstract

A portable musical instrument blocking device (1) to limit unwanted movement of a musical instrument during use. The blocking device engages said musical instrument's forward-facing leading edge where kinetic energy of the musical instrument's forward motion is transferred to the main body (2). A gripping material (10) on the blocking device's downward-facing surface grips the floor surface (9) and thereby limits movement on the floor plane. Engagement between the blocking device and the musical instrument is such that kinetic energy of the musical instrument's upward motion is not substantially transferred to the blocking device. The blocking device can be easily detached from the floor surface with application of manual force in the upward direction.

Claims

1) A musical instrument blocking device comprising: a) a body with a downward-facing surface and one or more rear-facing surfaces b) Wherein said rear-facing surfaces of the body rise upward from and perpendicular to or at acute angles to the downward-facing surface c) Wherein said rear-facing surfaces are sufficient in height and width to contact the intended musical instrument d) Wherein said rear-facing surfaces are shaped or arranged in a manner to contact the intended musical instrument at a plurality of points of contact e) Wherein the engagement between the rear-facing surface and the musical instrument provides means to substantially transfer kinetic energy from the forward motion of the musical instrument to the rear-facing surfaces and to said body without substantially transferring the kinetic energy of the upward motion of the musical instrument f) Wherein the material substance or structure of said body provides means for transferring kinetic energy from the rear-facing surfaces to the downward-facing surface of said body. g) Means for said downward-facing surface of said body to grip a floor surface or floor covering material by means such as but not limited to friction, adhesion, molecular attraction, suction, or mechanical engagement wherein said grip prevents or inhibits unwanted movement of the musical instrument blocking device along the floor plane h) Wherein said grip between the downward-facing surface of said body and the floor surface or floor covering material can be disbanded and disengaged by application of upward force to the body so as to dislodge the downward-facing surface from the floor surface and hence detach the device Whereby said musical instrument blocking device limits unwanted motion of the musical instrument along the floor plane and can be attached and detached from floor surfaces as needed.

2) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein said downward-facing surface comprising a plurality hooks and the hook material of a hook and loop system sufficient to grip certain floor surfaces and floor covering materials and thus limit movement of the downward-facing surface along the floor plane

3) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the downward-facing surface comprises an adhesive material with properties such that the molecular attraction causes the downward-facing surface to adhere to the floor surface so as to resist movement across the floor plane.

4) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 3 wherein the molecular attraction of the adhesive material causes the downward-facing surface to resist movement across the floor plane while offering substantially less resistance to upward movement away from the floor plane.

5) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the downward-facing surface provides means for mechanically inducing friction between the downward-facing surface and the floor surface in order to restrict movement of the downward-facing surface along the floor surface.

6) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the body material or structure provides means for vibration-absorbing with means to dissipate forces and kinetic energy received from the musical instrument and means to transfer those forces and kinetic energy which cannot be dissipated.

7) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the shape of said body includes one or more protruding surfaces or convex features sufficient to enable the user to manually grasp the body and exert an upwards force and thus disband the bond between the the downward-facing surface of said body and the floor surface.

8) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the shape of said body includes one or more concavities sufficient to enable the user to manually grasp and exert an upwards force and thus break the bond between the downward-facing surface of said body and the floor surface.

9) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the the rear-facing surfaces consist of two or more planes in a V-shaped formation or otherwise angled in relation to each other such that when said planes contact curved or irregular surfaces of musical instruments, engagement is attained at a plurality of points of contact

10) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the rear-facing surface is planar to more securely engage with musical instruments where preferred points of contact are aligned on one plane.

11) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein the substance of the body is sufficiently malleable so as to provide means for said body to conform to the shape and substantially retain the shape of the musical instrument and thereby expand the number of points of contact and increase engagement between the rear-facing surfaces and the musical instrument.

12) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 further comprising a hole through the body and a string or chain attached through said hole with means to link the musical instrument blocking device to the musical instrument or to other objects such as backpacks, musical instrument carrying cases, musical instrument stands wherein such string can also be used to exert manual upward force on the body to assist in detaching the device from the floor surface.

13) The musical instrument blocking device in claim 1 wherein a portion of the rear-facing surface is inclined at an acute angle relative to the downward-facing surface thereby providing means to enhance the transfer of kinetic energy of forward motion into downward forces as means for increasing the grip between the downward-facing surface and the floor surface.

14) A method of limiting unwanted motion of a musical instrument along the floor plane when said instrument is being played comprising the downward-facing surface of a body with one or more rear-facing surfaces rising upwards from and perpendicular to or at acute angles to the downward-facing surface with said rear-facing surface or surfaces contacting the musical instrument at one or more points of contact and transferring the kinetic energy of the forward moving musical instrument to the body and further transferring such energy to the body's downward-facing surfaces which has means for gripping the floor surface by means such as but not limited to friction, suction, molecular attraction, adhesion, or mechanical means engaging the floor surfaces and with certain features of said body protruding outward from said forming handles or with concavities facilitating manual uplifting of the body and thus facilitating disengaging the device from floor surfaces as needed.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] FIG. 1 shows various aspects of the musical instrument blocking device in accordance with one embodiment.

[0021] FIG. 2 shows aspects of the rear-facing planar surface, the downward-facing surface, the protruding edges, and the hook grip material on the downward-facing surface as proposed in one embodiment.

[0022] FIG. 3 shows perspectives of one embodiment including the protruding edge, the rear-facing planar surface, the hooked gripping material, the passage tunnel inlet and outlet.

[0023] FIG. 4 shows aspects of one embodiment of the musical instrument blocking device placed on the floor surface in front of an acoustic bass drum.

[0024] FIG. 5 shows another embodiment including the v-shaped rear-facing surface nearing the curved leading edge of a musical instrument pedal.

[0025] FIG. 6 Shows additional aspects of another embodiment with the v-shaped rear-facing surface in contact with the curved leading edge of a musical instrument pedal.

[0026] FIG. 7 shows another embodiment with an inclined rear-facing surface, a planar rear-facing surface perpendicular to the bottom-facing surface, and gripping material on the downward-facing surface.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0027] In the following detailed description, certain specific terminology will be employed and certain concepts will be referenced for the sake of clarity and a particular embodiment described in accordance with the requirements of 35 USC 112, but it is to be understood that the same is not intended to be limiting and should not be so construed inasmuch as the invention is capable of taking many forms and variations within the scope of the appended claims.

[0028] One embodiment of the musical instrument blocking device is shown in FIG. 1. The musical instrument blocking device 1 has a main body 2 which in one embodiment can be a malleable shock-absorbing material such as but not limited to rubber or EVA foam with structure and firmness sufficient to <absorb, dissipate, or otherwise> transfer kinetic energy. In this embodiment the planar rear-facing surface 4 rises perpendicularly from the bottom-facing surface 3.

[0029] The dimensions of the planar rear-facing surface are sufficient in height to contact and engage with the intended musical instrument. The dimensions of the rear-facing surface are also sufficient in width to engage multiple points of contact with the intended musical instrument (See FIG. 4).

[0030] In one embodiment envisioned here, the dimensions of the planar rear-facing surface are 279 mm by 47 mm. The dimensions of the downward-facing surface on this embodiment are 87 mm by 250 mm.

[0031] FIG. 2 shows one embodiment in which the gripping material 10 extends from or is mounted onto the downward-facing surface 3. In this embodiment the gripping material could be, but is not limited to, a plurality of flexible hooks such as the hooks in hook and loop material. The hooks should be sufficient in number to create adequate resistance to movement along the floor plane. The number of hooks on the downward-facing surface of the embodiment envisioned here is approximately 7,000 hooks.

[0032] FIG. 1 shows one embodiment in which one or more of the sides (non rear-facing or downward facing surfaces) have protruding surfaces 11.

[0033] FIG. 3 shows one embodiment in which a tunnel comprising an inlet 13 on one surface of the body and an outlet 12 on another surface of the body are located as to not interfere with the gripping material 10 of the downward facing surface, or with any rear-facing surface 4.

[0034] In operation, the musical instrument blocking device is positioned forward of the musical instrument and in contact with the forward-facing leading edge of the musical instrument. The planar rear-facing surface 4 engages the forward-facing edge of the musical instrument. The planar rear-facing surface provides multiple points of contact when engaging with a musical instrument such as a bass drum 6 as shown in FIG. 4.

[0035] The gripping material 10 of the downward-facing surface 3 engages with the floor surface or floor covering 9. It should be noted that in this description and throughout this entire disclosure, any reference to the “floor” or “floor surface” is deemed to include floor-covering materials such as, but not limited to those carpets, rugs, mats, laminates, etc. which may be compatible for engagement with the gripping material of the device.

[0036] The gripping material 10 is pressed onto a compatible floor surface 9 so as to engage with said floor surface. In one embodiment the gripping material 10 is the hook gripping material of a hook and loop type system. Such hooks can grip many floor covering materials and, when engaged in sufficient numbers, can resist movement along the floor plane. Such hooks, when configured as described in this embodiment, can offer substantial resistance to movement across the floor plane, can be quickly attached to the floor surface with downward pressure to cause engagement, and subsequently be quickly detached from the floor surface with manually applied upward force. Thus the gripping material described in this embodiment allows the musical instrument blocking device to be quickly placed, and easily removed for transport or for repositioning.

[0037] The gripping force of such hooks can easily be engaged with and thus attached to the floor covering materials and the material can be disengaged from the floor covering materials when upward force is applied in a direction perpendicular or roughly perpendicular to the downward-facing surface.

[0038] To facilitate detachment of the device and disengagement of gripping material from the floor surface 9, some embodiments may include a protruding surface 11 or a concavity sufficient to provide means for the user to insert fingers and apply manual force in the upward direction so as to disengage the gripping material from the floor surface. Embodiments shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, and FIG. 6 show examples of such protruding surfaces 11.

[0039] To prevent loss during transportation, and loss due to separation from the musical instrument between uses, a string or chain or other cable (not shown) can be added by means of the tunnel inlet 13 and outlet 12 shown in FIG. 3. Such string or chain or cable can be secured to the musical instrument blocking device and further secured to the musical instrument or other objects thus rendering the objects inseparable. Such string, chain, or cable can also be pulled upward by the user so as to apply upward force to one end of the device so as to facilitate application of manual force to disengage the gripping material 10 and detach the device from the floor covering.

[0040] Another embodiment of the musical instrument blocking device 1 is one with a V-shaped rear-facing surface 5, as seen in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6. This embodiment, comprising the main body 2, hook gripping material 10, protruding surfaces 11, 11a, and V-shaped rear-facing surface 5, facilitates engagement with curved and irregular shaped musical instruments, for example a hi-hat stand and pedal 7 by creating a plurality of points of contact between the V-shaped rear-facing surface 5 and such musical instrument pedal. This embodiment is positioned forward of the musical instrument and in contact with the forward-facing leading edge of the musical instrument. The V-shaped rear-facing surface 5 engages the curved forward-facing edge of the musical instrument 8. The gripping material 10 of the downward-facing surface 3 engages with the floor surface or floor covering 9. FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 illustrate how the V-shaped rear-facing surface will engage at multiple points the curved leading edge 8 of a musical instrument pedal 7. If this were a planar rear-facing surface engaging with the curved leading edge of a musical instrument, there would be only one tangential point of contact and said musical instrument would have the opportunity to pivot and would not be secure. The multiple points of contact ensure stability and prevent the curved musical instrument from pivoting and sliding.

[0041] Another embodiment of the musical instrument blocking device 1 is one with a downward-facing surface 3 comprising a material 17 which creates substantial adhesive friction between downward facing surface's gripping material and the floor surface. This embodiment, shown in FIG. 7, comprising the main body 2, an inclined rear-facing surface 18 leading to a planar ear-facing surface 4, and the downward-facing surface 3 with an adhesive gripping surface 17. Said embodiment is designed for hard floor surfaces such as, but not limited to, cement, tile, wood. Said embodiment is placed on the floor surface 9. The intended musical instrument is then placed onto the inclined rear-facing surface 18 with the forward-facing leading edge engaging the planar rear-facing surface 4. The force created by playing the instrument will be transferred to planar 4 and inclined rear-facing surface 18, and exerted as downward pressure further securing the adhesive bond between the downward-facing surface and the floor surface. Materials which could provide the type of adhesive friction envisioned in this embodiment may include, but are not limited to, certain types of rubber, certain “sticky” polymers, and certain adhesive coatings with properties similar to 3M Company's Post-It adhesive. These materials and coatings offer induce substantial friction when moved across a plane yet are easily detached when lifted upwards away from said plane.

[0042] In some embodiments, the material comprising the main body can have, but is not required to have, properties which provide pliable deformation such that the material conforms more closely the shape of the musical instrument thus increasing the number of points of contact and the surface area of engagement between the rear-facing surface and the musical instrument so as to facilitate energy transfer from the musical instrument to the main body.—which can dissipate and transfer kinetic energy from the musical instrument engaged with the rear-facing surface 4.

[0043] Thus the reader will see that one or more embodiments of the musical instrument blocking device provides a more portable, more compact, lighter weight, more secure, easier to use, and faster way to secure a wide variety of musical instruments during use.

[0044] Furthermore, the musical instrument blocking device of one or more of the embodiments provides substantial advantages for musicians in that they: [0045] Permit fast setup and tear down of the musician's equipment [0046] Allow the device to be quickly detached and reattached to the floor surface so as to reposition the device and the musical instrument [0047] Allow the musician to easily carry and transport the musical instrument blocking device from place to place due to the device's lightweight and small size [0048] Provide handles in the form of protruding surfaces or concavities to facilitate quick and easy manual detachment of the device from the floor surface. [0049] Permit use of musical instruments with varying shapes and curvatures [0050] Permit use on a variety of floor surfaces [0051] Provide a blocking device which opposes and limits the musical instrument's forward movement yet is not subject to the instrument's bouncing up and down movement which upward movement could tend to detach the blocking device from the floor surface. [0052] Can absorb and dissipate unwanted kinetic energy of the musical instrument [0053] Insure the secured positioning of the musical instrument [0054] Provide a barrier to limit the instrument's movement that will not cause kinetic energy to bounce back to the player, which has to potential to cause bodily harm [0055] Engage the musical instrument without causing damage to said instrument [0056] Allows the musical instrument blocking device to substantially grip the floor surface without marking, scratching or otherwise damaging said floor surface [0057] Allows the musical instrument blocking device to substantially grip a variety of floor surface materials [0058] Is not attached to the musician's chair nor dependent on the position of the musicians chair thus allowing the musician to relocate his or her chair without causing the musical instrument to shift its position [0059] Provide a stationary body that Is not attached to any moving object and not attached to the musical instrument being secured. [0060] Provide means for limiting unwanted movement which means are not dependent on weight in order to be effective such that in one embodiment the described blocking device with hook gripping material, while weighing just six ounces, the device can be more effective at limiting movement than 100 pounds of weighted objects.

[0061] While our above description contains many specificites, these should not be considered as limitations on the scope, but rather as exemplification of several embodiments thereof. Many other embodiments are possible. For example the rear facing surface could differ in size and shape, such as greater or lesser height, and greater or lesser width. The color of the musical instrument blocking device can vary based on consumer preference. Accordingly the scope should be determined not by the embodiments illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.