WO2002005257A1

WO2002005257A1 - Dust cover for a musical instrument keyboard

Info

Publication number: WO2002005257A1
Application number: PCT/GB2001/002991
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ian R. Porter
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-07-06
Filing date: 2001-07-05
Publication date: 2002-01-17
Anticipated expiration: 2003-01-07
Also published as: GB0016512D0; AU2001269270A1

Abstract

A cover (20) for a musical instrument keyboard (1, 10) comprising a thin sheet of material which fits closely over the keys (9, 12, 14) of the keyboard (1, 10) and has an external surface shaped to conform with the contours of the keys (9, 12, 14). The cover may be vacuum formed from a sheet of plastic material which may be transparent so as to enable the keys (9, 12, 14) to remain on display while keeping them protected from the dust in the surrounding atmosphere. Alternatively, the plastic material can be opaque and coloured to match the appearance of the keys (9, 12, 14). The cover (20) can be supplied as a one-piece unit (20), or as a two-piece unit, with the two pieces (20a, 20b, 30a, 30b) having a small overlapping section (32, 34) to provide effective protection from the dust in the atmosphere at the joint.

Description

DUST COVER FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENT KEYBOARD

The present invention relates to protective covers for keyboards of musical instruments such as pianos, electronic keyboards (including electronic pianos) and the like.

Pianos, electronic keyboards and the like are popular musical instruments. As well as the enjoyment experienced by people playing and listening to others play these instruments many people derive aesthetic pleasure from the appearance of their instruments. An element of this aesthetic pleasure is the piano/keyboard keys. Many piano/keyboard owners like the look of the keys and prefer them to be visible when the piano itself is not in use. In most cases, the keys are white and black however, _.the keys may be another combination of two colours or may be multicoloured.

In most cases, pianos, keyboards and the like are provided with lids or covers designed to cover over the keyboard when the instrument is not being used. In general, these covers are opaque. Piano lids are usually solid, single piece objects, hinged above the keyboard of the piano at both ends of the keyboard so that the lid pivots at the hinge points and can be rotated about these hinge points to cover/uncover the keyboard.

Electronic keyboards can have similar hoods or covers which consist of panels running the length of the keyboard, each connected by hinges along their length. Each of the edges of the hood/cover being in a guide rail which allows the hood/cover to be pulled down over the keyboard surface. Some types of keyboard may have sliding covers or the keyboard may be provided in a sliding drawer arrangement which pulls out from the main body of the instrument. In all cases, however, these various types of cover hide the keyboard from view.

The primary purpose of these covers is to prevent dust from settling between the keys. In the case of pianos, dust which has accumulated between the keys can affect the action of the keys and in extreme cases, prevent the key from sounding a note when struck. In the case of the electronic keyboards, dust can affect the action of the keys in a similar manner to that in traditional piano keyboards with the additional problem of dust getting into the electronic circuitry of the keyboard. Therefore, piano or electronic keyboard owners who wish to keep the keys of their instrument on display cannot do so without also allowing dust to settle between the keys thereby potentially causing problems with the operation of the piano or keyboard.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a cover for a musical instrument keyboard comprising a thin sheet of material formed so as to fit closely over the external surface of the keys of the keyboard and having an external surface conforming to the external contours of said keys .

Preferably, the cover comprises a main portion adapted to cover the top and front surfaces of white keys of said keyboard and a plurality of upstanding portions formed integrally with said main portion and adapted to cover the tops and sides of black keys of said keyboard.

Preferably, the cover is formed from plastic material suitably by vacuum-forming a sheet of plastic material.

Preferably, the cover is coloured to simulate the appearance of said keyboard.

Alternatively, the cover is transparent. Preferably, the cover is divided into at least two sections. Preferably also, said sections are substantially equal in size.

Preferably, said at least two sections are sized such that the ends of said sections which meet when the cover is in use, overlap.

The invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig 1(a) shows an example of an electronic keyboard and Fig 1(b) shows a section of keyboard;

Fig 2(a) shows a cross sectional end view of an embodiment of a keyboard cover in accordance with the present invention in place on a keyboard, Fig 2 (b) shows a cross sectional front view of part of the cover in place on a keyboard and Fig 2(c) shows a front isometric view of part of the cover;

Fig 3 shows a plan view of an embodiment of a keyboard cover in accordance with the invention formed in two pieces;

Fig. 4 shows a plan view of a keyboard cover similar to that of Fig 3 but in one piece; and Fig.5 shows a plan view of an embodiment of a keyboard cover in accordance with the invention formed in two equal sized pieces. Referring to the drawings, Fig 1 shows an example of an electronic keyboard 1 with legs 3 to support the keyboard, a body 5, a top section 7 and keys 9. Electronic keyboards come in a wide range of sizes and shapes. Some, for example, are substantially flat and are known as synthesisers. In such keyboards, a large variety of sounds can be synthesised. Keyboards of this type need not necessarily have the same number of keys as a conventional piano keyboard nor must the keys be the same size or the same colour as those of a conventional piano keyboard.

In contrast, some electronic keyboards are designed to have the look, feel and sound of a conventional piano . Fig 1 provides an example of this type of keyboard. In some cases, the electronic keyboard is situated in the casing of a conventional upright or grand or baby grand piano. The present invention is applicable to all types of musical instrument keyboard, including acoustic and electronic instruments.

Fig 1(b) shows an enlarged plan view of part of the keyboard of Fig 1(a), having white keys 12 and black keys 14. The gaps between the keys are denoted by reference numeral 8. Figs 2 (a) -(c) illustrate a first embodiment of the present invention. Figs 2(a) and 2(b) show a keyboard 10 with white keys 12 and black keys 14 mounted on a base 16. The keyboard also includes a back section 18. In many keyboards, the back section houses the keyboard lid. In this example, no lid is present. In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a protective keyboard cover 20 which serves to prevent dust from getting into the gaps 8 between the keys 12, 14 (Figs 1(a) and 1(b)).

In this example, the cover is made from thin (typically 1 - 3 mm) , relatively rigid, plastic material. Suitably, the cover may be vacuum-moulded from a sheet of material of uniform thickness, so that a lower (inner) surface of the cover 20 fits closely over the external surfaces of the keys and an upper (outer) surface of the cover 20 conforms to the external contours of the keys . The material from which the cover 20 is formed is preferably sufficiently rigid to maintain its shape (i.e. the contours of the keys) but its size and relative thin- ness means that the cover 20 as a whole is likely to be quite flexible. As seen in Fig 2(c), the cover may be regarded as comprising a main portion 22 having a generally planar, horizontal top section 22a and a generally planar, vertical front section 22b, which covers the top and front surfaces of the white keys 12, and a plurality of generally rectangular, box-like portions 24 upstanding from the main portion 22, which covers the black keys. The cover 20 may be formed from transparent material, so that the keys 12, 14 are directly visible through the cover. Alternatively, the cover may be coloured to simulate the appearance of the underlying keyboard; i.e. the main portion 22 of the cover may be coloured white and the upstanding portion coloured black. Lines 26 may also be marked on the main portion 22 to simulate the appearance of the gaps between the keys. The cover may, for example, be formed from white material and the external surface coloured/patterned appropriately. Alternatively, the cover may be formed from transparent material and colouring/patterning applied to either the internal or external surfaces . The cover may also be coloured differently from the underlying keyboard if desired.

It will be understood that the precise shape and configuration of the ends and edges of the cover 20 will depend on the configuration of the keyboard, and may, for example, be shaped to overlap portions of the instrument adjacent the keyboard in order to maximise protection against the ingress of dust.

The cover 20 may be formed in a single piece, the length of the keyboard, as shown in Fig 5. However, for a full size piano keyboard, which is typically about 1.2 m (4 feet) in length, the cover may be divided into two or more sections 20a, 20b for ease of handling and storage, as shown in Fig 3. The sections are preferably approximately equal in length. Where the cover is divided into sections in this way, it is preferred that the divisions between adjacent sections are located at positions corresponding to the middle of a key (most preferably a white key) , lessening the likelihood of dust penetrating between the keys should there be any gap between adjacent cover sections. In Fig.3, the cover sections meet in the middle of the E key above middle C, this results in one of the sections being slightly longer than the other.

Alternatively, sections could be adapted to overlap and/or to be fastened together. Fig.5 shows a keyboard cover in two sections 30a and 30b with an end section 34 on 30a and an end section 32 on 30b. These end sections provide an overlap between the two parts of the cover 30a and 30b. This is particularly useful where the sections of the keyboard, meet at a gap between the keys. The overlapping sections ensure that dust cannot enter the gap between the keys .

Improvements and modifications may be incorporated herein without deviating from the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A cover for a musical instrument keyboard comprising a thin sheet of material formed so as to fit closely over the external surface of the keys of the keyboard and having an external surface conforming to the external contours of said keys .

2. A cover as claimed in Claim 1, comprising a main portion adapted to cover the top and front surfaces of white keys of said keyboard and a plurality of upstanding portions formed integrally with said main portion and adapted to cover the tops and sides of black keys of said keyboard.

3. A cover as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, formed from plastic material.

4. A cover as claimed in Claim 3, vacuum-formed from a sheet of said plastic material.

5. A cover as claimed in any preceding Claim, coloured to simulate the appearance of said keyboard .

6. A cover as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 4 , wherein said cover is transparent.

7. A cover as claimed in any preceding Claim, wherein the cover is divided into at least two sections.

8. A cover as claimed in Claim 7 , wherein said sections are substantially equal in size.

9. A cover as claimed in Claim 7 or Claim 8, wherein said at least two sections are sized such that the ends of said sections which meet when the cover is in use, overlap.

10. A cover for a musical instrument keyboard, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.