Patent Application
20170206866
Field of the Disclosure
Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to stringed instruments, and more specifically, the present disclosure relates to guitar bridges having tonal enhancement characteristics.
Description of the Related Art
Musical notes have been created using many forms of instruments and devices. Stringed instruments, where gut, nylon, steel, and/or other materials are placed under tension and plucked or strummed, have been in existence for approximately 3000 years.
Modern stringed instruments take many forms. A popular stringed instrument is the guitar, which also has many different types. Although guitars have many different applications in musical composition and performance, the principle of operation is very similar across the spectrum of guitars that are available. A number of strings are placed under tension between two end points, and the strings are vibrated, either alone or in conjunction with other strings. Depending on the tension and the length of each string, the vibrations produce different frequencies, or “notes” within a song or composition.
Materials used for the strings, guitar, plectrum (or “pick”) and/or other parts of the guitar also affect the tonal qualities of the frequencies generated by such instruments. For example, a guitar string made of steel will have a different tone than a string made from nylon, even if the two strings are vibrating at the same frequency. Further, the design of an instrument, in terms of the shape, construction, and/or other design characteristics will also affect the tonal qualities produced by the instrument. For example, a guitar made from a certain type of wood, e.g., spruce, will sound different than a guitar made from a harder wood such as birch, and both will sound different than a guitar made of metal.
Depending on the type of music being played, different tonal qualities of a guitar, or any instrument, may be more desirable. For example, a flamenco style piece may emphasize different tonalities and tonal relationships between notes than a jazz style of music. Some musical pieces employ different consonance (relaxation and/or harmonization) and dissonance (tension and/or conflict) between the tonic (the central note of a chord or piece of music) and the other notes in a musical composition.
However, guitar manufacturers do not necessarily know what type of music a given guitar player will be playing, and, as such, cannot economically produce a guitar that has a specific tonal quality (e.g., more reverberation at higher frequencies) at the expense of other characteristics (e.g., less reverberation at lower frequencies). Guitars are often manufactured to produce a balance of consonance and dissonance across a wide range, and any emphasis on specific tonal characteristics may merely be a remnant of trade-offs made during instrument design.
The present disclosure describes a stringed instrument employing a bridge coupled to the soundboard of the instrument via a plate. By selecting the material composition of the bridge and controlling the coupling between the bridge and the soundboard, an aspect of the present disclosure provides for different tonal enhancements and/or tonal transmissions between the bridge and the soundboard.
One embodiment of a guitar bridge assembly in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure comprises a bridge and a plate, coupled to the bridge, in which a soundboard of a guitar is coupled between the plate and the bridge, in which a material is selected for the bridge to alter the tonal qualities of the guitar.
One embodiment of a stringed instrument in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure comprises a soundboard, a bridge on a portion of a first side of the soundboard, and a plate on a portion of a second side of the sound board at least partially overlapping with the portion of the first side such that the soundboard is sandwiched between the bridge and the plate.
One embodiment of a guitar bridge in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure comprises a top surface and a bottom surface, with the top surface shaped to define a recess and a plurality of string guides adjacent said recess.
One embodiment of a guitar bridge assembly in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure comprises a bridge, a plate shaped to define one or more coupling holes, and one or more connectors configured to connect the plate to the bridge through the soundboard, with at least one connector passing through a coupling hole and attaching to the bridge.
The above summary has outlined, rather broadly, some features and technical advantages of the present disclosure in order that the detailed description that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of the disclosure will be described below. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that this disclosure may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same or similar purposes of the present disclosure. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the teachings of the disclosure as set forth in the appended claims. The novel features, which are believed to be characteristic of the disclosure, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages, will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present disclosure.
For a more complete understanding of the present disclosure, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The detailed description set forth below, in connection with the appended drawings, is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the various concepts. It will be apparent, however, to those reasonably skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, structures and components are shown in block diagram form in order to aid in avoiding obscuring such concepts. As described herein, the use of the term “and/or” is intended to represent an “inclusive OR”, and the use of the term “or” is intended to represent an “exclusive OR”.
Music, and musical compositions such as songs, are often written and/or composed to evoke emotions and/or feelings in the listener. Musical presentations combine tones and harmonics (also known as “overtones”) to tell a story. Many different types of musical instruments, e.g., stringed instruments, percussive instruments, wind instruments, etc., may be used, alone or in combination, to present the artist's interpretation of a feeling and/or emotion through auditory stimuli.
An aspect of the present disclosure describes a guitar (or other stringed instrument) bridge assembly. The bridge shape, thickness, and/or material may accentuate certain tonal qualities of the string vibrations, and when coupled to a guitar soundboard, may produce additional sustain for tonic (central tone) notes. In an aspect of the present disclosure, the bridge may be modified or tuned, either during manufacture or by the user, to accentuate and/or de-accentuate specific tonal qualities of the instrument.
Guitar 100, which may be an acoustic guitar, acoustic-electric guitar, or electric guitar, for example, comprises a body 102, a neck 104, and a headstock (also referred to as a “head” or “peg head”) 106. For acoustic and/or acoustic-electric guitars, body 102 may be hollow, or semi-hollow, in that body 102 may create an acoustic chamber to amplify the noise caused by the vibrations of strings 108.
Although shown in
As shown in
Neck 104 may comprise one or more frets 116. Strings 108, which may have varying diameters and masses, are strung under tension between saddle 120 and nut 118. The varying frequencies strings 108 may produce is controlled at least in part by the distance between saddle 120 and nut 118, the weight (mass) of each string 108, the material of each string 118, and the tuning knobs 124, to name a few. The frequency produced by each string 108 can also be changed by clamping the string 108 at frets 116 on neck 104, which changes the operative length of string 108. As the vibrational length of string 108 is shortened, higher frequencies are produced when string 108 is plucked or otherwise moved. Frets 116 are sized and spaced between nut 118 and saddle 120 on bridge 122 to produce different notes.
Body 102 also comprises a soundboard 124, which is the “top” and/or top surface of guitar 100. As strings 108 are vibrated, saddle 120 also vibrates, and transfers the vibrations generated by moving strings 108 through bridge 122 onto soundboard 124. Soundboard 124, having a larger area, transfers these vibrations into body 102, which produces air movement between soundboard 124 and back 126 of body 102 (shown in cutaway 128). Back 126 may be attached to soundboard 124 by leg 128 and/or brace 130, which may be substantially coupled along an outer portion of back 126 and/or an outer portion of soundboard 124.
As previously described, the vibrational frequency of string 108 is transferred to body 102 via saddle 120, which in turn transfers the vibrations to bridge 122. The bridge 122 transfers vibrations to soundboard 124, and thus into the hollow body 102 of guitar 100. These vibrations are then amplified by the hollow space of body 102 between soundboard 124 and back 126, and cause sound to be emitted from guitar 100 via one or more sound holes 126.
In some acoustic-electric guitars 100, saddle 120 may comprise one or more transducers that transform the vibration of strings 108 into an electrical signal, which signal may travel from guitar 100 via wires. The signal may subsequently be amplified electronically to increase the volume of guitar 100, and/or may be modified electronically to change the sounds produced by guitar 100. Further, in some guitars 100, plate 132 may be present, either as a decorative item or as a cover for an attachment rod (also known as a truss rod) that couples neck 104 to body 102.
As described with respect to
In an aspect of the present disclosure, bridge 122 may be made of a different material than the material of soundboard 124. Further, bridge 122 may be coupled to soundboard 124 in different ways, such that the transmission of vibrations between bridge 122 and soundboard 124 is more efficiently performed.
Further, in another aspect of the present disclosure, bridge 122 may provide additional transmission qualities, such as additional vibration time (which may be referred to as “sustain”), additional vibrational amplitude (which may be referred to as “volume”), or other additional vibrational attributes (e.g., timber, tone, etc.), each of which may be accentuated and/or enhanced through design and selection of bridge 122 shape and/or materials.
On the inside of soundboard 124, structural elements may be used to provide mechanical support to soundboard 124 after attaching soundboard 124 to body 102. For example, near sound hole 126, ribs 200, 202, 204, 206 may be attached to soundboard 124 to mechanically strengthen soundboard 124. Further, soundboard 124 may have ribs 208, 210, 212, 214, and/or gusset plate 216, to provide cross-strengthening materials. Ribs 208, 210, 212, 214 and gusset plate 216 may be in an “X” pattern as shown in
Bridge assembly 300, in an aspect of the present disclosure, comprises bridge 122 and plate 302. Bridge assembly 300, in such an aspect, is attached to soundboard 124 by coupling holes 304. Coupling holes 304 allow for screws and/or other attachment devices or connectors to sandwich soundboard 124 between bridge 122 and plate 302. These attachment devices or connectors can, for example, pass through soundboard 124.
Bridge assembly 300, vis-à-vis bridge 122 in an aspect of the present disclosure, may comprise recess 306. Recess 306 may provide a positioning guide for saddle 120. Access hole 308 in plate 302 allows for wiring and/or other access to recess 306 from inside of guitar 100, i.e., on a surface of soundboard 124 that is inside of the body 102 of guitar 100. Access hole 308 can open up into recess 306, such as opening into a bottom of recess 306.
Bridge assembly 300 may also comprise string recess 310 and string guides 312 adjacent and/or connected to recess 306. String recess 310 provides a contoured and/or semi-contoured resting point for the “ball end” of strings 108. String guides 312 and holes 314 provide access to feed strings 108 through bridge 122, to be strung under tension across body 102 and along neck 104 to head 106 and tuning knobs 124. String recess 310 may face towards lower bout 110 of body 102. In other aspects of the present disclosure, string recess 310 may be on plate 302, or in another plate or location on guitar 100, as strings 108 may be “through body” strung rather than strung on the outer (“top”) surface of soundboard 124. Further, hole(s) 314 may have threaded inserts or be threaded such that fine tuning devices (not shown) may be coupled to bridge 122 at holes 314. Other tuning mechanisms, e.g., a drop tuner on one or more strings (e.g., a “drop-D” tuner for the low E string on a standard tuned guitar), half-step tuners, a whammy tremolo, or other tuning mechanisms may be coupled to or part of bridge assembly 300 without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
As shown in
A guitar bridge 122 may be, in related guitars, glued to soundboard 124. Further, guitar bridges 122 in related guitars are often made from wood. However, a bridge 122 made from wood, which may have an acoustic impedance of between 1.5 and 3 Mega Rayleigh (MRayl), may not accurately or completely transmit the vibrations of strings 108 to soundboard 124, at least in part because the glue used to connect bridge 122 to soundboard 124 may have a different acoustic impedance of, perhaps, 4 to 7 MRayl. Other acoustic properties of bridge 122, such as longitudinal velocity, shear velocity, density, and/or other properties, may also affect the transmission of vibrations between bridge 122 and soundboard 124. As such, some of the vibrations may be lost, absorbed, or scattered by the coupling of bridge 122 to soundboard 124.
The characteristic (acoustic) impedance of a material is given by:
Z0=p0c0
where
By selecting material for the bridge assembly 300 (vis-à-vis bridge 122), and controlling the coupling between bridge assembly 300 and soundboard 124, an aspect of the present disclosure provides for different tonal enhancements and/or tonal transmissions between bridge 122 and soundboard 124.
In an aspect of the present disclosure, bridge assembly 300 may be made of a different material than wood, e.g., aluminum, titanium, alloys of various metals, composite materials, carbon fiber, combinations of materials, etc., which allow for different types and/or modes of transmission between bridge assembly 300 and soundboard 124. Further, because such materials can be threaded and coupled to soundboard 124 via plate 302, the coupling between bridge assembly 300 and soundboard 124 can be more precisely controlled through aspects of the present disclosure. Plate 302 can be made of the same material as bridge 122, or can be made of a different material including but not limited to those listed above. Soundboard 124 may also be made of a variety of materials, such as wood, composite materials, carbon fiber, combinations of materials, etc.
For example, and not by way of limitation, in an aspect of the present disclosure, the percussive sustain of a tonic note has been found to be longer in a bridge assembly 300 made from metal and coupled to soundboard with plate 302. This is thought to occur because of the material properties of the metal bridge assembly 300, as well as, possibly, the better coupling of bridge assembly 300 to soundboard 124 to transmit vibrations of strings 108.
Some stringed instruments, such as mandolins, 12-string guitars, and mountain dulcimers, use additional strings (sometimes referred to as “drone” strings) 108 to enhance the tonic (base) note of a chord. However, in an aspect of the present disclosure, guitar 100 may produce enhanced tonic notes because of the improved coupling of bridge assembly 300 to soundboard 124 and/or the improved matching of material properties between bridge assembly 300 and soundboard 124. Further, it has been found that the amplitude of vibrations transmitted to the saddle 110 may be increased, as bridge assembly 300 may have increased interaction with saddle 110.
Depending on the bracing used on the interior of guitar 100 employing a bridge assembly 300 in accordance with the present disclosure, plate 302 may take different shapes. For example, as shown in
Further, in an aspect of the present disclosure, the material and coupling characteristics of bridge assembly 300 may be controlled by shaping bridge assembly 300, removing and/or adding material to bridge assembly 300 in various locations, and controlling the pressure with which bridge assembly 300 is coupled to soundboard 124. Such control of the coupling/transfer of vibrations from bridge assembly 300 to soundboard 124 may balance the sound produced by guitar 100, and/or may enhance certain frequencies or tones being produced by guitar 100. For example, and not by way of limitation, bridge assembly 300 may be hollowed out such that a different amount of bridge assembly 300 is coupled to soundboard 124, which may create one or more hollows (and/or tone chambers) for resonance between bridge assembly 300 and soundboard 124 and/or creating different amounts and/or modes of resonance in soundboard 124 that may enhance specific notes or tonics in various chords. For example, one or more holes and/or hollow areas can be made in a bottom surface of bridge 122, and/or the bottom surface of bridge 122 can be textured, either of which alone or in combination would change the contact area and characteristics. Bridge assembly 300 may have user and/or manufacturer installed plugs of material, such as threaded rods, screws, or other devices, which may be made from the same material as bridge assembly 300 and/or different materials, such that the bridge assembly 300 may be “tuned” with respect to guitar 100. Such “tuning plugs” may allow a manufacturer to mate a bridge to a guitar 100 body 102, or may allow users, if the plugs may be installed on bridge assembly 300 in such a fashion that a user may access such locations, to tune bridge assembly 300 to the type of music that particular user is playing.
As shown in
Guide width 510, recess width 512, and base width 514 are also shown. Each of the lengths and widths 500-514, as well as the overall shape of bridge assembly 300, may be varied within the scope of the present disclosure to selectively control the coupling between bridge assembly 300 and soundboard 124, as well as to selectively control the resonance and/or tonal qualities transferred from bridge assembly 300 to soundboard 124.
Although the present disclosure and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the technology of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims. For example, relational terms, such as “above” and “below” are used with respect to a device. Of course, if the device is inverted, above becomes below, and vice versa. Additionally, if oriented sideways, above and below may refer to sides of a device. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular configurations of the process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification. As one of ordinary skill will readily appreciate from the disclosure, processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to be developed that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding configurations described herein may be utilized according to the present disclosure. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within their scope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps.
The description of the disclosure is provided to enable any person of reasonable skill to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be readily apparent to those of reasonable skilled, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the examples and designs described herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein. Accordingly, the disclosure is not to be limited by the examples presented herein, but is envisioned as encompassing the scope described in the appended claims and the full range of equivalents of the appended claims.
The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Pat. App. No. 62/280,020 to Xavier, filed on Jan. 18, 2016 and entitled “Guitar Bridge with Tonal Enhancement,” which is fully incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62280020 | Jan 2016 | US |
