Patent Application
20060169124
1. Field of the Invention
The present inventions relates to hi-hat stands in general, and more particularly to a connector assembly for connecting upper and lower parts of an operating rod of a hi-hat stand.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The integral structure of a hi-hat (or high hat) cymbal stand 10 having a pair of conventional hi-hat cymbals, as shown in
A bottom end of the pull rod 18 is connected with a foot pedal 28 of the hi-hat cymbal stand 10. When the pedal 28 is pressed, the pull rod 18 will be pulled downwards to drive the upper cymbal 24 to strike the lower cymbal 14; and when the pedal 28 is released, the pull rod 18 will return upwards to its original position by a restoring elastic device (spring 30) to detach the upper cymbal 24 from the lower one 14. The hi-hat cymbal stand 10 is played when the upper movable cymbal 24 is moved up and down by the operating rod 18 through operation of the foot pedal 28, and moves against the lower fixed cymbal 14 arranged at the top of the support tube 12, for banging cymbals 14 and 24 together or separating them.
Stand legs 32 and 33 are held by the holding members 34 and 35 to the support pipe 12. An operating member 36, such as a chain, is arranged between the foot pedal 28 and the operating rod 18.
The spring 30 continuously biases the operating rod 18 upward. A stopper 37 fixes an upper end of the spring 30 to the operating rod 18. A spring lower end holding member 38 holds a lower end of the spring 30. An engaging bar 39 is provided integrally with the spring lower end holding member 38.
In this kind of high hat stand 110, the operating rod 18 is usually divided into an upper rod part 20 and a lower rod part 22, as shown in
An upper lock nut 44 is screwed to the top of the connecting nut 40 for securely positioning the connecting nut 40 with respect to the upper rod part 20 of the operating rod 18 and for preventing the upper rod part 20 and the connecting nut 40 from becoming shaky. Similarly, a lower lock nut 46 is screwed to the bottom of the connecting nut 40. If the upper lock nut 44 is not used, the lengths of the threaded segments of the end portions 21 and 23 of the upper and the lower rod parts 20, 22 of the operating rod 18 and the threaded bore 42 of the connecting nut 40 are increased.
The conventional hi-hat stand 110 described above, however, has some shortcomings. For example, during the course of playing, the upper pull rod part 20 often loosens. As a result, the upper rod part 20 and the connecting nut 40 become shaky during a performance, and the up and down movement of the operating rod 18 or the stepping operation of the foot pedal 28 produce disconcerting noise. This happens with such regularity that drummers periodically have to tighten the upper pull rod part 20 into connecting nut 40, in order to maintain proper function of the pull rod 18 of the hi-hat stand. However, if the upper and lower pull rod parts 20 and 22 are already fully engaged, continued tightening of the upper pull rod part 20 and/or the upper lock nut 44 causes the lower pull rod part 22 to turn and puts stress on the chain 36.
Therefore, while known hi-hat operating rod connecting parts, including but not limited to the discussed above, have proven to be acceptable for the hi-hat stands, such devices are nevertheless susceptible to improvements that may enhance their performance. With this in mind, a need exists to develop a connector assembly between first and second parts of an operating rod for a hi-hat stand that advances the art by reducing the stress on the chain, thus allowing longer life and improved durability of the chain and improved reliability of the hi-hat stand.
The present invention provides a novel connector assembly between two parts of an operating rod for a hi-hat stand. The hi-hat stand of the present invention includes the operating rod having first and second rod parts, and the connector assembly coupling the first and second rod parts of the operating rod. The first rod part has a first end portion facing the second rod part and a second end portion connected to a movable cymbal, while the second rod part has a first end portion facing the first rod part and a second end portion operatively connected to a foot pedal of the hi-hat stand.
The connector assembly in accordance with the present invention comprises a first connector member provided for securing to the first end portion of the first rod part, and a second connector member provided for securing to the first end portion of the second rod part. Moreover, the first connector member is rotatably coupled to the second connector member so as to allow relative angular movement between the first and second connector members. Thus, the present invention provides the connector assembly for the operating rod of the hi-hat stand that overcomes the drawbacks in the prior art by greatly reducing the stress on an operating member, such as a chain. Consequently, the present invention allows longer life and improved durability of the chain and improved reliability of the hi-hat stand.
This and other advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those of skill in the art when viewed in light of the following description and associated drawings.
The preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with the reference to accompanying drawings.
A high hat stand 10 of the present invention, shown in
In the high hat stand 10, the operating rod 18 mounted to the upper movable cymbal 24 is moved up and down by operation of the foot pedal 28 to bang the upper cymbal 24 on the lower fixed cymbal 14. The operating rod 18 is divided into the upper or first rod part 20 and the lower or second rod part 22 which are freely separably joined by the connector assembly 50 of the present invention. As shown in
As illustrated in
The connector assembly 50 of the operating rod 18 comprises a first connector member 52 and a second connector member 60 rotatably coupled to the first connector member 52 so as to allow relative angular movement between the first and second connector members 52 and 60, respectively. The first connector member 52 is adapted to be secured to the first end portion 21a of the first rod part 20, while the second connector member 60 is adapted to be secured to the first end portion 23a of the second rod part 22. Preferably, as illustrated, the first connector member 52 and the second connector member 60 are substantially coaxial to the central axis 17.
More specifically, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first connector member 52 is a male connector member and includes a body portion 54 and a pin portion 56 outwardly extending from the body portion toward the first end portion 23a of the second rod part 22. The body portion 54 is provided with a threaded bore 55 adapted to threadedly receive the threaded section 53 of the first end portion 21a of the first rod part 20, thus drivingly coupling the connector assembly 50 to the first rod part 20 of the operating rod 18. The high hat stand 10 of the present invention may further include a locknut 59. The pin portion 56 of the first connector member 52 has a threaded section 57a at the distal end thereof and a non-threaded section 57b adjacent to the body portion 54. Preferably, the body portion 54 of the first connector member 52 is knurled on its outer peripheral surface to provide a reliable of grip.
The second connector member 60 is a female connector member and includes a hollow body 62 defining a cavity 63 and having an access window 64 providing an access into the cavity 63, a rod bore 66 adapted to receive the first end portion 23a of the second rod part 22, and a connector bore 68 adapted to receive the pin portion 56 of the first or male connector member 52 therein. The hollow body 62 of the second connector member 60 further includes a gripping portion 70 about the connector bore 68, preferably having a hexagonal cross-section adapted to be engaged with a wrench (not shown). A transverse set screw hole 67 extends through the hollow body 62 perpendicularly to the central axis 17 and into the rod bore 66. A set screw 69 is inserted into the set screw hole 67 to secure the first end portion 23a of the second rod part 22 in the rod bore 66 of the hollow body 62.
In an assembled condition of the connector assembly 50, the pin portion 56 of the first connector member 52 extends into the cavity 63 within the hollow body 62 through the connector bore 68. The connector assembly 50 further includes a bushing 74 provided between the pin portion 56 and an inner peripheral surface of the connector bore 68 and mounted substantially about the non-threaded section 57b of the pin portion 56. Preferably, the bushing 74 is made of a low friction material, such as plastic. The first connector member 52 is secured to the second connector member 60 by a nut member 72 threadedly engaging the threaded section 57a of the pin portion 56 of the first connector member 52. Furthermore, connector assembly 50 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a set of washers including a rubber washer 76 sandwiched between a pair of fiber washers 78a and 78b. As shown in
Moreover, in order to further reduce friction between the first connector member 52 and the second connector member 60, the connector assembly 50 further includes a washer 80, such as a fiber washer, disposed between the body portion 54 of the first connector member 52 and the hollow body 62 of the second connector member 60.
During the assembly of the connector assembly 50, the access window 64 provides an access into the cavity 63 for the nut 72, the washers 76, 78a and 78b, and the assembling wrench (not shown).
One of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate that alternatively the first or male connector member could be attached to the first end 23a of the second rod part 22 and the second or female connector member attached to the first end 21a of the first rod part 20, as illustrated in
The above described arrangement of the connector assembly 50 allows relative rotation between the first connector member 52 and the second connector member 60 about the central axis 17 to prevent stress on the chain 36. The ability of the connector assembly 50 to spin greatly reduces the stress on the chain 36, thus allowing longer life and improved durability of the chain 36 and improved reliability of the hi-hat stand 10. The described connector assembly is of simple construction, easy to assemble and is effective in use.
The foregoing description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been presented for the purpose of illustration in accordance with the provisions of the Patent Statutes. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments disclosed hereinabove were chosen in order to best illustrate the principles of the present invention and its practical application to thereby enable those of ordinary skill in the art to best utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated, as long as the principles described herein are followed. Thus, changes can be made in the above-described invention without departing from the intent and scope thereof. It is also intended that the scope of the present invention be defined by the claims appended thereto.
