Guitar tremolo systems typically utilize a bridge assembly which is attached to the front of the guitar and which includes a lever arm that is received through the body of the guitar. A plurality of counterbalance springs are usually mounted in the base of the guitar and are attached to the lever arm. By moving a tremolo arm attached to the bridge, the "pitch" of the guitar strings can be either increased or decreased. A problem arises, however, when a guitar string breaks while the guitar is being played. Upon string breakage, the remaining guitar strings go "out of tune."
Various types of stabilizing devices are available in order to prevent the remaining guitar strings from going "out of tune" when a string breaks, however, such devices typically require that the guitar player physically actuate the device. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5, 127,298 (Snape, et al), upon string breakage, the guitar player must push a pin within the device in order to actuate the stabilizing device. Similarly, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,568 (Itoh), upon string breakage, the guitar player must actuate a toggle switch to prevent movement of a slider along the surface of a stabilizing plate in order to maintain the remaining unbroken strings in tune. Also, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,882,967 (Rose), upon string breakage, the guitar player must rotate a stop member from the inactive position to the active position in order to cause the remaining unbroken strings to remain in the "tuned" state. Thus, upon string breakage, the guitar player must typically take some type of action and physically actuate some component within the stabilizing device in order to cause the remaining unbroken guitar strings to remain in their "tuned" state. Since string breakage usually occurs while the guitar is being played, immediate actuation of the stabilizing device by the guitar player is usually not possible, and thus, the guitar player must play the guitar in the "untuned" state until the stabilizing device can be actuated.
Because of the aforementioned disadvantages associated with presently available tremolo stabilizing devices for guitars, it has become desirable to develop a stabilizing device which becomes actuated automatically upon string breakage without requiring any action on the part of the guitar player and returns the tremolo to its tuned state causing the remaining unbroken guitar strings to remain "in tune".
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds