The Talking Machine Patent Archive

Patents you could hear

Diaphragm

Patent drawing of Edison's tinfoil phonograph showing a grooved cylinder flanked by two diaphragm assemblies with speaking tubes, connected via a threaded shaft and clockwork mechanism labeled with letters A through X.Improvement in Phonograph or Speaking MachinesThomas A. Edison · February 19, 1878Patent drawing of a tin-foil cylinder phonograph showing two geared cylinders, a central diaphragm with dual mouth-pieces and tubes, and a forked lever with recording points, alongside a side elevation of the full mechanism on its base.IMPROVEMENT IN PHONOGRAPHSA. Wilford Hall · September 23, 1879Patent drawing of a graphophone recording apparatus showing a frame with gears, a screw-threaded shaft, a record cylinder mounted between standards, a recorder with flexible speaking tube and diaphragm, and a separate bench-mounted machine with a rotating cylinder and adjustable weighted arm for smoothing the wax surface.METHOD OF REPREPARING GRAPHOPHONE-TABLETS.David Wolfe Brown · August 6, 1889Patent drawing of a cylinder phonograph showing the main frame with grooved record cylinder, a diaphragm and pivoted style assembly on a sliding carriage, a large curved amplifying horn rising above, and several detail cross-sections of the reproducer mechanism below.PHONOGRAPH.John H. White · November 11, 1890Technical patent drawing showing a mechanical phonograph with two reels (B and B') connected by a wax-coated ribbon (D) that passes over a guide roller (C), with a hinged cover housing an adjustable diaphragm and stylus assembly, plus detailed cross-sections of the reel and roller mechanism.PHONOGRAPH.Eustace Oxley · September 1, 1891Patent drawing of a graphophone mechanism showing a wax cylinder, a curved sound tube leading to a horn, a diaphragm-supporting frame with pivoted styles, and a threaded guide rod for traversing the cylinder, with hand-signed inventor and witness signatures below.PHONOGRAPH.John H. White · January 26, 1892A perspective mechanical drawing of an early disc gramophone recorder showing a flat horizontal disc mounted on an upright shaft, a hand crank and flywheel driving the mechanism via gears and a screw-threaded shaft, a diaphragm and stylus assembly on an arm above the disc, and a flexible tube leading to a flaring alcohol reservoir and a curved sound-conveying tube ending in a bell-shaped mouth-piece.GRAMOPHONE.Emile Berliner · February 19, 1895Technical patent drawing showing a phonograph diaphragm assembly in cross-section and face view, with a stylus bar D extending downward through a yielding spring plate E to a needle point d', alongside detail views of grooved supporting plates labeled Fig. 5, 6, and 7.SOUND RECORDING AND REPRODUCING MACHINEAlfred Corning Clark and Eldridge R. Johnson · May 9, 1899