Having looked at quite a few eBay pictures for Mark VI altos (as one does ), I became curious as to which patents Selmer actually held that were so important that they felt the need to stamp them on every single horn they produced. The first two listed here are what you might expect: a patent for the linkage on the left hand key cluster, and a patent for the octave key.
U.S. Patent 2710558 http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=02710558&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D1%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D2710558.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F2710558%2526RS%3DPN%2F2710558&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page
U. S. Patent 2846917 http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=02846917&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D1%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D2846917.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F2846917%2526RS%3DPN%2F2846917&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page
This patent number, though, appears on Mark VI horns of earlier vintage (it's not on my 1974 horn, not sure when they stopped stamping it), and doesn't seem to relate. Did Selmer stamp a wrong patent on their horns for 20 plus years?
U.S. Patent 2940640 http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=02940640&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D1%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D2940640.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F2940640%2526RS%3DPN%2F2940640&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page
Is anybody on here a patent attorney ?
U.S. Patent 2710558 http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=02710558&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D1%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D2710558.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F2710558%2526RS%3DPN%2F2710558&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page
U. S. Patent 2846917 http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=02846917&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D1%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D2846917.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F2846917%2526RS%3DPN%2F2846917&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page
This patent number, though, appears on Mark VI horns of earlier vintage (it's not on my 1974 horn, not sure when they stopped stamping it), and doesn't seem to relate. Did Selmer stamp a wrong patent on their horns for 20 plus years?
U.S. Patent 2940640 http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=02940640&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D1%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D2940640.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F2940640%2526RS%3DPN%2F2940640&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page
Is anybody on here a patent attorney ?