Rockin’ Patent – Kimball International Inc’s “Stringed Musical Instrument”

US Patent No. 3,237,502 – Kimball International Inc – Stringed Musical Instrument - Patents Rock - Russell IP
  • Rockin’ Patent: US Patent No. 3,237,502 
  • Filed: 11 May 1964
  • In the name of: Kimball International Inc
  • Title: Stringed Musical Instrument 
  • What’s claimed: ”In a stringed musical instrument having a head, a body and an inter-connecting neck, and having a plurality of strings extending from said head along said neck to said body, the combination of: a manually adjustable anchor for said strings mounted on said body for simultaneously varying the tension in all said strings to produce a vibrato effect; and a bridge mounted on said body adjacent said anchor and over which said strings are stretched; said anchor including support means having a plurality of misaligned apertures therein for receiving said strings, means for anchoring said strings in respective ones of said misaligned apertures, means pivotally mounting said support means for rotation about an axis displaced to one side of said apertures and generally parallel to the plane of said body and displaced therefrom, resilient means for biasing said support means about said axis in a first angular direction, and manual control means for turning said support means about said axis in the opposite angular direction.”
  • Why this patent rocks: This patent appears to relate to Semie Moseley’s vibrato unit to be used on Mosrite guitars in the mid-60s. The patent illustration appears to show a Mosrite guitar, used famously by Johnny Ramone. For a more detailed description of how it works, see here and scroll down for the ‘Mosrite vibrato’ or see here for more information on the Mosrite guitar.

If you’re a patent-savvy music tech business looking for patent help, get in touch with Russell IP here!

The information above is for general interest and information only and does not constitute legal advice.

Share the Post:

Related Posts

International Internet Day: Cryptographic Communications System And Method (US 4,405,829 A)

Celebrating International Internet Day: Five Patents That Have Shaped the Internet

Celebrating International Internet Day: Five Patents That Have Shaped the Internet Introduction: The Dawn Of The Internet Did you know that the first Internet message was just two letters long? On 29 October 1969, the message “lo” marked the beginning of a technology revolution that would change our lives forever. International Internet Day, observed on 29 October each year, commemorates the moment that first message was transmitted over the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET). Interestingly, the intended first message was “login”, but the ARPANET system crashed after only the first two characters had been sent! Over the following 55

Read More
Patent drawing from UK Patent Application Number GB2209587.1 for "Training Device For Lasso/Lariat/Roping Practice"

10 UK Patent Applications of 2023: From Flatpack Coffins to Potato Cheese

10 UK Patent Applications of 2023: From Flatpack Coffins to Potato Cheese Introduction: Exploring Ten UK Patent Applications With UK-Based Inventors Published in 2023 The Guardian recently published an article titled “Flatpack Coffins And Robot Dogs: Patents Applications Show UK Inventions Of 2023”. The article identifies 5,955 UK patent applications published in 2023 with at least one UK-based inventor and highlights ten such patent applications. While the article summarises the technologies described in those ten patent applications, it does not provide direct links to the published patent applications or include detailed information about them. Also, some of the links in

Read More

Gain the Competitive Edge

Let's see how we can help protect your IP

Get in touch using the contact form or the phone number below to see how we can protect your IP.

There’s no obligation to sign up for anything.