- Rockin’ Patent®: US Patent No. 3,524,365
- Filed: 4 April 1968
- In the name of: Moviecol Enterprises Ltd
- Title: Electronic Musical Instruments Played By Means Of A Stylus
- What’s claimed: “An electronic musical instrument comprising: an electronic oscillator for producing different musical frequencies, means for audibly reproducing said frequencies as musical notes, a plurality of exposed fixed electrically conducting contacts representing said different musical notes and connected to said electronic oscillator, at least one note selecting contact member adapted to be manually manipulated and including an electrical contact portion, a flexible electrically conducting lead connected between said electrical contact portion and said electronic oscillator, whereby when the at least one note selecting contact member is moved in or by the hand of a person playing the instrument so that its electrical contact portion is brought into engagement with any of the fixed contacts, said electronic oscillator is activated to reproduce the musical note represented by that fixed contact through said audible reproducing means.”
- Why this patent rocks: This patent appears to relate to the Stylophone Pocket Synth, invented by Brian C Jarvis, which is a small synth that can be played with a handheld stylus or fingers that glide across the keyboard. The synth has an onboard speaker and can produce different tones with a vibrato effect. This article gives a detailed take on the Stylophone and notes that the device was used in David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’.
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The information above is for general interest and information only and does not constitute legal advice.
