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Mechanical Music Toys: U.S.A. Patents
By Bill Wineburgh

Thank you to Nicholas Simons, an MMD subscriber, who correctly points
out that the Tuneyville Player Piano and the Tuneyville Choo-Choo (and
Pipewagon) do _not_ use identical discs.  Here is the corrected
description for the Tuneyville Choo-Choo:

Tuneyville Choo Choo No. 1006, made by Tomy Corp, Carson, California.
Mfg in Thailand, c. 1980.  Similar to the Tuneyville Player Piano,
without keys but operating from 3-11/16" diameter tooth-edged plastic
discs (similar to the Tuneyville Player Piano, but a bit larger).
Uses 8 pipes, rather than only 2.  This toy adds the motion of the
moving train engine across the floor as the musical disc is played.
US Patent 3,982,459 filed Feb 13, 1975, by Kenzo Akiyama, Long Beach,
California, assigned to Tomy Kogyo Co., Tokyo.

Bill Wineburgh



(Message sent Mon, 12 Jul 2004 14:05:41 EDT , from time zone -0400.)

Key Words in Subject:  Mechanical, Music, Patents, Toys, U.S.A