Post on 06-Jul-2018
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1/4
US007692080B1
1 2 ) Ulllted States Patent 1 0 ) P a t e n t
N 0 . : U S
7 , 6 9 2 , 0 8 0
B1
R u s h i n g
4 5 )
D a t e o f P a t e n t :
A p r .
6 , 2 0 1 0
(54) FRET
WIREWITH
BENDING
NOTCHES 4,633,754
A *
1 / 1 9 8 7
Chapman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
84/31 4R
4,723,469 2/1988
Vogt . . . . . . . . .
..
84/314R
( 7 5 )
I n v e n t o r :
Donna W.
ushing,
166 3
Piedmont
R d . ,
4 , 8 4 6 , 0 3 8 A
* 7 / 1 9 8 9
T u r n e r
- - - - - - - - 5 5 4 / 2 9 3
New arket
TN
Us)
3 7 8 2 0
4 , 9 8 1 , 0 6 4
A
*
1 / 1 9 9 1
Vogt
84/314R
’
5,072,643
A
* 12/1991 Murata . . . . . . .. 84/293
- _
.
5,952,593
9/1999
Wilder
. . . . . . . .
.. 84/314R
( 7 3 )
A s s l g n e e ligmaw'Rushmg’New M a r k e t ’ T N
6 , 2 5 2 , 1 4 9
B 1 *
6 / 2 0 0 1 M a t s u s h i t a
8 4 / 3 1 4 R
( )
6,369,306 B2 4/2002
Chapman . . . . . . . . . ..
84/314R
. . . . .
6,613,969 B1 9/2003
P l l t l
84/314R
(*) Nome:
s u b l e c l t o
a n y d l s c l a l m e r i t h e t e r m
O f t h l s
7 , 0 6 0 , 8 8 1
B2*
6 / 2 0 0 6 S Z k I a i O . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 4 / 3 1 4 R
P a t e n t 1 5 extended
O r a d l u s t e d
under 35 7 , 2 5 6 , 3 3 6 B2* 8 / 2 0 0 7
Muncy
1 : 1 1 84/314R
U.S.C. 154 b)
by
0
days. 2001/0029827 Al
10/2001
Chapman . . . . . . . . . .. 84/314
R
2009/0114076 A1* 5/ 2 0 0 9 Thidell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84/314R
( 2 1 ) A p p 1 . N 0 . :
1 2 / 0 7 5 , 0 7 2
OTHERPUBLICATIONS
( 2 2 ) F l l e d :
Mar‘
’ 2008
D o w n s ,
T e r r y , “Make o u r Own
I n e x p e n s i v e
F r e t
B e n d e r , ” ©
0 0 7
5 1 I t Cl T e r r y Downs M u s i c T M , v i e w e d
M a r .
3 , 2 0 0 9 a t h t t p : / / t e r
( )
n rydownsmusic.com/technotes/fretbender/fretibender.htm.*
G10D
3 / 0 4 ( 2 0 0 6 . 0 1 )
(52) us. l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
84/314
R * C i t e d b y examiner
( 5 8 )
F i e l d
o f
‘ C l a s s i ? c a t i o n
S e a r c h
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : 8 4 / 3 1 4
R P r i m a r y E x a m i n e r i l e f f r e y
D o n e l s
S e e
a p p l 1 c a t 1 o n
? l e f o r c o m p l e t e s e a r c h
h 1 s t o r y .
A s s i s t a n t ExamineriRObenW
orn
( 5 6 )
R e f e r e n c e s Ci t e d
U . S . PATENT
DOCUMENTS
463,954 A
*
11/1891
Middlebrooke . . . . . . . . .
. . 84/314R
5 0 1 , 7 4 3 A
* 7/1893
Stratton
. . . . . . . . . . 84/314R
1,472,943
A
* 11/1923 Shaeffer
. .
84/314R
1,727,620 A
* 9/1929 Smi th . . . . . . . . . . .
. . 84/314R
2,492,845
A
*
12/1949
Conkling
e t
a 1 .
8 4 / 3 1 4 R
2,816,469 12/1957
Gossom
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 84/293
3 ,27 3 , 439
A * 9/1966
Keefe e t a l .
. .
84/314R
3 , 7 1 2 , 9 5 2 A
*
1/197 3 Terlinde . . . . .. 84/314R
3 , 7 8 7 ,6 0 0 A
*
1/ 1 9 7 4 Muncy . . . . . . . . 84/314R
3 , 7 9 1 , 2 5 2 A *
2/1974
S i b e r t e t a l . 84/31 4R
4 , 0 6 4 , 7 7 9
A
*
1 2/ 1 9 7 7
Petillo
. . . . . . .
..
84/314R
4 , 064 , 780
A
* 12/1977 Bond
. .
84/314R
4 , 2 2 1 , 1 5 1 A
*
9/1980 Barth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84/314R
( 5 7 )
ABSTRACT
The
i n v e n t i o n
i s a n o v e l f r e t
Wire f o r use on
t h e ?ngerboards
of s t r i n g e d
i n s t r u m e n t s .
The
f r e t
W i r e h a s
a croWn
of
any
u s a b l e
s h a p e f o r c o n t a c t W i t h s t r i n g s , a s u s u a l ,
b u t
i s
d i s t i n
g u i s h e d
by
h e s t r u c t u r e
o f
t h e
t a n g
a ? i x e d
t o
t h e
c r o W n .
The
t a n g c o m p r i s e s
b e n d i n g n o t c h e s
t h a t e x t e n d
n e a r l y
t h r o u g h
t h e h e i g h t o f t h e t a n g t h a t
a l l o W
t h e f r e t W i r e t o more e a s i l y
bend t o
s h a p e o f
a
c o n t o u r e d
f r e t b o a r d . Tang
e l e m e n t s
f o r m e d
by
t h e n o t c h e s embody random r o u g h n e s s o r e l o n
g a t e d s t r i a t i o n s
t o
h o l d
t h e f r e t
W i r e
s e c u r e l y i n t h e
g r o o v e s
o f
a
f r e t
board.
4
C l a i m s ,
1 Drawing
S h e e t
DETAIL
A
TYPICAL GUITAR
FRET WIRE
WITH
UNIQUE SLOTS/NOTCHES CUT
AND
SPACED
TO ALLOW MORE FLEXIBILITY
W H E N
INSTALLING
INTO GUITAR
FINGER
BOARD.
8/17/2019 US7692080-Fret Wire With Bending Notches-2008
2/4
A p r .
6 ,
2 0 1 0
U S 7 , 6 9 2 , 0 8 0
B1
S .
P a t e n t
< <
O O m m
M Q P O Z
2 5 2 m m
>
8/17/2019 US7692080-Fret Wire With Bending Notches-2008
3/4
U S
7 , 6 9 2 , 0 8 0 B1
1
FRETWIRE WITH BENDING NOTCHES
CROSSREFERENCE TO RELATED
APPLICATIONS
T h i s a p p l i c a t i o n i s
b a s e d on
p r o v is i o n a l a p p l i c a t i o n
S e r .
No. 6 0 / 4 4 3 , 5 5 1 , ? l e d on J a n . 3 0 , 2 0 0 3 .
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY
SPONSORED RESEARCH
ORDEVELOPMENT
N o t A p p l i c a b l e
DESCRIPTIONOFATTACHEDAPPENDIX
N o t A p p l i c a b l e
BACKGROUND OFTHE INVENTION
T h i s i n v e n t i o n r e l a t e s g e n e r a l l y t o
t h e
? e l d o f m u s ic a l
s t r i n g e d i n s t r u m e n t s and
more s p e c i ? c a l l y
t o
an
a r t i c l e of
m a n u f a c t u r e f o r u s e on
t h e
? n g e r b o a r d s
o f s t r i n g e d i n s t r u
ments
With
Which
m u s i c i a n s
make
m u s i c a l
n o t e s
and
c h o r d s .
S t r i n g e d i n s t r u m e n t s
h a v e
b e e n
i n e x i s t e n c e f o r c e n t u r i e s .
H o W e v e r , i t W a s n ’ t u n t i l r e l a t i v e l y r e c e n t c e n t u r i e s t h a t f r e t s
W e r e
introduced in order t o exact a more ccurate
means
o r
d e r i v i n g m u s i c a l n o t e s and c h o r d s . The
? r s t f r e t
W i r e Was
p a t e n t e d i n t h e 1 8 0 0 ’ s . S i n c e t h a t
t i m e ,
f e W
i m p r o v e m e n t s
h a v e b e e n i n t r o d u c e d t o t h i s i m p o r t a n t c o m p o n e n t . The r i g i
n a l f r e t Was
e t a l Wire
i n t h e form of
“ T ” .
The
Wire
h a s been
m a r k e t e d i n l o n g r o l l s ,
f r o m
Which i n s t r u m e n t
m a k e r s c u t
l e n g t h s o f t h e W i r e
t o
a p p r o p r i a t e l e n g t h s
t o
? l l t h e d i f f e r e n t
l e n g t h o f l o t s on h e v a r i o u s
? n g e r b o a r d s
o f h e i n s t r u m e n t s .
The
l e g ,
o r
t a n g , o f t h e T e x t e n d s t o
t h e
bottom o f t h e
? n g e r b o a r d s l o t and t h e
t o p
o f t h e T
e x t e n d s
a b o v e t h e
?n
g e r b o a r d
and
s
u s u a l l y
rounded o o f f e r
more
c o m f o r t t o t h e
musician a s
he
o r she
?ngers
t h e
musical n o t e s o r
c h o r d s .
Many
? n g e r b o a r d s
a r e
c u r v e d
o r
c o n t o u r e d . When
h e
a p p r o p r i a t e l e n g t h o f
W i r e
i s c u t
f o r
a
p a r t i c u l a r s l o t ,
t h e
W i r e
i s
t h e n
pounded n t o t h e s l o t . B e c a u s e o f h e s h a p e o f h e W i r e ,
t h e
t o p
o f t h e W i r e
t e n d s
t o s t r e t c h
and
h e t a n g
t e n d s
t o bunch
o r
g a t h e r .
As
a r e s u l t , a s
t h e t o p
o f t h e W i r e p u l l s and t h e
b o t t o m
o f
t h e W i r e p u s h e s , t h e r e
i s
a
t e n d e n c y
f o r t h e
l o W e r
e n d s o f t h e W i r e t o
l i f t o u t
o f t h e s l o t ,
and
may W a r p .
I n 1 8 9 3 ,
John . S t r a t t o n r e c e i v e d a p a t e n t on a f r e t d e s i g n , US. a t .
N o .
5 0 1 , 7 4 3 . T h i s
f r e t
d e s i g n h a s s u b s t a n t i a l l y e n d u r e d f o r
s u b s e q u e n t y e a r s ,
t o
t h e
p r e s e n t .
T h i s d e s i g n embodied h e T
c o n ? g u r a t i o n ,
Whereby
t h e t a n g Was i n s e r t e d
i n t o
a s l o t c u t
i n t o t h e
? n g e r b o a r d o f
t h e i n s t r u m e n t ;
a n d
t h e t o p
o f
t h e
T
c o n s t i t u t e d t h e a c t u a l
f r e t W i t h
Which m u s i c a l n o t e s and
c h o r d s
Were
made.
A d d i t i o n a l l y ,
t h e t a n g Was endoWed
W i t h
e l o n g a t e d
t r i a n g u l a r c u t o u t s , d e s i g n e d
t o
h e l p h o l d t h e f r e t i n
p l a c e o n c e i n s t a l l e d .
T h i s
d e s i g n i s a d e q u a t e f o r i n s t r u m e n t s
t h a t
h a v e
? a t ? n g e r b o a r d s ; b u t a r e
t r o u b l e s o m e f o r c o n t o u r e d
? n g e r b o a r d s .
High p r e s s u r e s
o r
hammer b l o W s r e q u i r e d
f o r i n s t a l l a t i o n
f r e q u e n t l y
l e a d
t o
d i s t o r t e d
f r e t s u r f a c e s
Which
must b e l e v
e l e d a n d d r e s s e d b y
s k i l l
l a b o r e r s p r i o r t o
s e n d i n g
t h e
i n s t r u
ment
t o
m a r k e t ,
o r
r e l e a s i n g
i t t o
a
r e p a i r
c u s t o m e r .
During
r o u t i n e l y r e q u i r e d r e p l a c e m e n t , ? n g e r b o a r d s l o t s
f r e q u e n t l y
become W i d e o r
o t h e r W i s e
d a m a g e d , e x a c e r b a t i n g t h e p r o b
l e m o f
l o o s e n i n g f r e t s .
BRIEF SUMMARY
OFTHE INVENTION
The p r i m a r y
o b j e c t o f t h e
i n v e n t i o n
i s t o p r o v i d e a neW and
i m p r o v e d f r e t W i r e .
1 0
20
25
3 0
35
4 0
45
50
55
60
6 5
2
Another
b j e c t
o f
t h e i n v e n t i o n
i s t o p r o v i d e
a l s s
s t i f f
f r e t
W i r e .
Another b j e c t
o f
h e i n v e n t i o n
i s
t o
p r o v i d e
a
f r e t W i r e t h a t
r e q u i r e s l e s s f o r c e t o i n s t a l l .
A u r t h e r o b j e c t
o f
t h e i n v e n t i o n i s t o p r o v i d e a f r e t
W i r e
t h a t
does n o t
r e t a i n i n t e r n a l s t r e s s e s s u ? i c i e n t
t o
cause i t
t o
l o o s e n
a n d
r i s e
f r o m
t h e
? n g e r b o a r d .
Y e t a n o t h e r o b j e c t o f
t h e i n v e n t i o n
i s t o p r o v i d e a f r e t W i r e
t h a t may
e
i n s t a l l e d
a n d l e v e l e d b y l e s s
s k i l l e d
l a b o r ,
s p e e d
i n g a n d
r e d u c i n g
t h e c o s t o f i n s t r u m e n t m a n u f a c t u r i n g .
S t i l l y e t
a n o t h e r
o b j e c t
o f
t h e i n v e n t i o n
i s
t o
p r o v i d e
a f r e t
Wire t h a t
may
e s u b s t i t u t e d i n t o
c u r r e n t i n s t r u m e n t
manu
f a c t u r i n g
p r o c e s s e s
W i t h o u t s i g n i ? c a n t
c h a n g e s i n t h o s e p r o
c esses .
Another b j e c t
o f
h e i n v e n t i o n i s t o
p r o v i d e
a
f r e t W i r e t h a t
may be manufactured W i t h minimum a d j u s t m e n t t o
t h e
c u r
r e n t m a n u f a c t u r i n g p r o c e s s e s
a n d
t e c h n i q u e s .
O t h e r
o b j e c t s a n d a d v a n t a g e s
o f
t h e p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n
W i l l
become a p p a r e n t
f r o m
t h e f o l l o W i n g d e s c r i p t i o n s , t a k e n i n
c o n n e c t i o n
W i t h
t h e a c c o m p a n y i n g
d r a W i n g s , W h e r e i n ,
b y
Way o f
i l l u s t r a t i o n and e x a m p l e , an embodiment
o f t h e
p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n
i s
d i s c l o s e d .
I n
a c c o r d a n c e W i t h a p r e f e r r e d
embodiment
o f t h e i n v e n
t i o n , t h e r e i s d i s c l o s e d an r t i c l e of
manufacture
o r use on h e
? n g e r b o a r d s o f s t r i n g e d i n s t r u m e n t s W i t h W h i c h m u s i c i a n s
make
m u s i c a l n o t e s a n d c h o r d s c o m p r i s i n g :
a
f r e t
W i r e o f i n d e t e r m i n a t e l e n g t h
and
W i d t h
a
f r e t
Wire With l e g , o r
t a n g ,
With r a i s e d s u r f a c e , a?ixed
t o
t h e
t a n g ,
t h a t s t a n d s
a b o v e
t h e
i n s t r u m e n t
? n g e r b o a r d
a n d
c o n s t i t u t e s t h e W o r k i n g p o r t i o n o f t h e f r e t W i r e
a f r e t W i r e W i t h b e n d i n g n o t c h e s t h a t e x t e n d c o m p l e t e l y , o r
n e a r l y c o m p l e t e l y ,
t h r o u g h
t h e h e i g h t
o f
h e t a n g ,
r e s u l t i n g i n
u s e f u l
s t a n d a l o n e t a n g
e l e m e n t s
o f i n d e t e r m i n a t e W i d t h and
l e n g t h
BRIEF
DESCRIPTION
OFTHE
DRAWINGS
The
d r a W i n g s c o n s t i t u t e
a
p a r t
o f t h i s s p e c i ? c a t i o n
a n d
i n c l u d e
e x e m p l a r y embodiments
o
t h e i n v e n t i o n , Which may
be embodied
in v a r i o u s
f o r m s . I t i s t o b e u n d e r st o o d
t h a t i n
some
i n s t a n c e s
v a r i o u s a s p e c t s
of h e i n v e n t i o n
may
be
shoWn
e x a g g e r a t e d
o r e n l a r g e d t o f a c i l i t a t e an
u n d e r s t a n d i n g
o f t h e
i n v e n t i o n .
F I G .
1
i s a n
o b l i q u e
vieW o f
t h e
i n v e n t i o n .
FIG. 2 s a c r o s s s e c t i o n
a t
t h e l o c a t i o n i n d i c a t e d
b y
A-A n
F I G . 1
F I G . 3
i s
a d e t a i l e d c l o s e u p
o f
t h e i n v e n t i o n
DETAILED
DESCRIPTION
OFTHE PREFERRED
EMBODIMENTS
D e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n s
o f
h e p r e f e r r e d
embodiment
r e p r o
v i d e d
h e r e i n . I t
i s t o b e u n d e r s t o o d , h o W e v e r ,
t h a t t h e
p r e s e n t
i n v e n t i o n may e embodied i n v a r i o u s f o r m s . T h e r e f o r e , s p e
c i ? c
d e t a i l s
d i s c l o s e d
h e r e i n a r e
n o t
t o
be
i n t e r p r e t e d a s
lim
i t i n g , b u t r a t h e r a s a b a s i s f o r t h e
c l a i m s
and a s a
r e p r e s e n t a
t i v e
b a s i s f o r
t e a c h i n g one s k i l l e d i n t h e a r t t o
employ
t h e
p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n
i n
v i r t u a l l y a n y a p p r o p r i a t e l y d e t a i l e d s y s
tem, structure or
manner.
With r e f e r e n c e t o F I G S . 1 t h r o u g h 3 , t h e f r e t W i r e o f t h i s
i n v e n t i o n
i n c l u d e s ,
b u t i s n o t l i m i t e d
t o ,
T - s h a p e d
f r e t
W i r e 1
i m p r o v e d
b y a s e r i e s o f b e n d i n g n o t c h e s 2 ,
t h u s
a l l o W i n g
t h e
upper r o s s
b a r o f h e
f r e t
W i r e 3
t o
be s u p p o r t e d by
s e r i e s of
i n d e p e n d e n t t a n g s
4 e a c h h o s t i n g one r more s e c u r i n g t a b s
5 ,
r a t h e r t h a n
b y
a c o n t i n u o u s t a n g a s
i n
c u r r e n t f r e t W i r e
With
a
8/17/2019 US7692080-Fret Wire With Bending Notches-2008
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U S
7 , 6 9 2 , 0 8 0 B1
3
c o n t i n u o u s l y
u n i f o r m
T - s h a p e d
c r o s s s e c t i o n
1 . The e r i e s o f
t a n g s
4 r e d u c e t h e s t i f f n e s s
o f
t h e f r e t W i r e a s compared t o
c o n t i n u o u s - t a n g f r e t W i r e .
The
? n g e r b o a r d
h o s t i n g t h e i m p r o v e d f r e t W i r e i s t h e same
i n a l l r e s p e c t s
a s
t h a t u s e d in c u r r e n t f r e t t e d s t r i n g e d i n s t r u
m e n t s . I n s t a l l a t i o n o f t h e improved
r e t W i r e i s
s i m i l a r t o t h a t
o f
c u r r e n t
f r e t
W i r e ,
W i t h
t h e
e x c e p t i o n
t h a t
t h e
i m p r o v e d
f r e t
W i r e
n e e d n o t b e b e n t t o s h a p e p r i o r t o i n s t a l l a t i o n and
t h e
W i r e can be p r e s s e d
o r
hammered i n t o
p l a c e
more e a s i l y
W i t h o u t t h e b e n d i n g r e s i s t a n c e e n c o u n t e r e d by h e c u r re n t f r e t
W i r e
d e s i g n .
I n a p r e f e r r e d
embodiment f h i s i n v e n t i o n ,
t h e f r e t
W i r e i s
of
h e same
c r o s s s e c t i o n a s c u r r e n t continuous-tang f r e t Wire
1 . The e r t i c a l
e l e m e n t s
of h e f r e t W i r e c o n s i s t s o f a s e r i e s of
s e p a r a t e
t a n g s
s e p a r a t e d
b y b e n d i n g n o t c h e s 2 c o m p l e t e l y o r
n e a r l y
c o m p l e t e l y
t h r o u g h
t h e
h e i g h t
o f h e t a n g . E a c h t a n g 4
h o s t s one
o r
more
s e c u r i n g
t a p s 5 The t a n g 4 i s
o f t y p i c a l
h e i g h t
of p p r o x i m a t e l y ,
b u t
n o t l i m i t e d t o a Width
o f
l . 5
mm.
The
b e n d i n g n o t c h e s 2 a r e s p a c e d
a p p r o x i m a t e l y b u t
n o t
l i m i t e d
t o
3 mm p a r t
and a r e
approximately
0 . 5
mm i d e ,
r e a c h i n g
t o o r
c l o s e
t o
t h e c r o s s b a r of h e f r e t .
While
t h e
i n v e n t i o n h a s
been
d e s c r i b e d
i n
c o n n e c t i o n W i t h
a
p r e f e r r e d embodiment, t i s
n o t i n t e n d e d
t o l i m i t
t h e
s c o p e o f
t h e
i n v e n t i o n
t o t h e p a r t i c u l a r
form
s e t f o r t h ,
b u t on
h e
con
t r a r y , i t i s i n t e n d e d
t o
c o v e r
s u c h a l t e r n a t i v e s ,
m o d i ? c a t i o n s ,
and q u i v a l e n t s a s may
e i n c l u d e d W i t h i n
t h e s p i r i t and s c o p e
o f t h e i n v e n t i o n a s de?ned by t h e appended c l a i m s .
1 5
20
25
4
What s c l a i m e d i s :
1 . An r t i c l e of
manufacture
f o r
u s e
on h e
?ngerboards
of
s t r i n g e d
i n s t r u m e n t s
W i t h
Which m u s i c i a n s make m u s i c a l
n o t e s and c h o r d s c o m p r i s i n g : a f r e t
W i r e
h a v i n g a l e n g t h and
a W i d t h , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g : a t a n g ,
W i t h
a r a i s e d s u r f a c e ,
a ? i x e d
t o t h e t a n g , t h a t s t a n d s a b o v e t h e
i n s t r u m e n t
? n g e r
b o a r d a n d
c o n s t i t u t e s
t h e W o r k i n g p o r t i o n o f t h e f r e t W i r e ;
b e n d i n g
n o t c h e s
t h a t
e x t e n d c o m p l e t e l y , o r n e a r l y
com
p l e t e l y ,
t h r o u g h
t h e
h e i g h t
o f t h e t a n g , r e s u l t i n g
i n
u s e f u l
s t a n d
a l o n e t a n g
e l e m e n t s
e a c h e l e m e n t h a v in g a n
o r d i n a r y
t a n g
W i d t h and l e n g t h t h a t i s s h o r t
W i t h
r e s p e c t t o t h e l e n g t h
of
f r e t on
musical
i n s t r u m e n t : Whereon h e tang
elements
embody
a b r a s i o n s
a l o n g t h e
s i d e s ,
c o m p r i s e d o f e i t h e r r a n
dom
r o u g h n e s s
o r
e l o n g a t e d
s t r i a t i o n s
o f
a p p r o x i m a t e l y
0 . 0 0 1 t o
0 . 0 1 0
i n c h i n h e i g h t
a b o v e
t h e t a n g c o n t o u r .
2 .
An p p a r a t u s a s i n c l a i m 1 Wherein t h e
l e g , o r
t a n g ,
i s
t o p p e d W i t h a
b r o a d ,
r o u n d e d s u r f a c e t h a t , When i n s t a l l e d i n
t h e
s l o t s
o f
? n g e r b o a r d ,
c o m p r i s e t h e
u s e f u l , f r e t t i n g p o r t i o n
o f t h e d e v i c e .
3
An
p p a r a t u s
a s i n
c l a i m
1 Wherein h e t a n g
p o r t i o n
of h e
f r e t
Wire
s notched s o a s t o a l l o W t h e
f r e t
Wire
t o bend a s i l y
t o
f o l l o W
t h e
c u r v e o f
c o n t o u r e d
? n g e r b o a r d s .
4 .
An
p p a r a t u s
a s i n
c l a i m
1
Wherein
t h e
t a n g e l e m e n t s
c o n t a i n r o u g h e n e d , o r e l o n g a t e d , s t r a i g h t s u r f a c e s , t h a t
e n g a g e
t h e
f r e t
s l o t
t o h e l p h o l d
t h e
f r e t
t i g h t l y i n
p l a c e o n c e
i n s t a l l e d .