Patents Assigned to Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
  • Patent number: 5886278
    Abstract: A tone waveform reproduction apparatus, for an electronic musical instrument employing a plurality of samples in consonance with tone ranges, that can reduce a change in a timbre so that it will not be noticeable, and that can provide a natural transition of musical tones. An address generator generates a read address for a waveform memory. In the waveform memory are stored waveform data that differ for each timbre and each specific pitch range. A digital filter has a low-pass property and is controlled by a cutoff controller to adjust a timber or a tone quality. The cutoff controller generates a cutoff control signal for compensating for a discontinuity, at a point where tone ranges are switched, of reproduced frequencies of tone signals extracted from the waveform memory, and outputs the cutoff control signal fcn.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1999
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Toshiya Yoshida
  • Patent number: 5852252
    Abstract: In a chord progression input/modification device, when a key and a single or two successive reference chords are designated by a user, available chords are acquired and displayed. Any one of the available chords can be used, in consonance with musical theory, to follow or substitute for the single reference chord, or to be inserted between the two reference chords for generating a modified chord progression. The chord progression modification device may be installed in an electronic musical instrument.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 22, 1998
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Junichi Takano
  • Patent number: 5847306
    Abstract: When the action of key depression is paused in a semi-automatic play mode, the semi-automatic playing is switched to automatic playing. When the key depression is made in the automatic playing, the playing is shifted back to the semi-automatic playing. An electronic musical instrument includes a semi-automatic play timing controlling means responsive to a key-depression by a player for controlling the first timing for tone generation, and an automatic play timing controlling means responsive to a timing information contained in a musical playing data for controlling the second timing for tone generation. The automatic playing is enabled when the key depression is not detected within a predetermined duration of time in the semi-automatic playing with the first timing controlled by the semi-automatic play timing controlling means.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 8, 1998
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Sadamoto Wakuda
  • Patent number: 5817964
    Abstract: Waveform memory (12) stores a plurality of consecutive waveform sampling value data at a single address. Even when some waveform sampling values are skipped in a process of reproducing a musical tone of a frequency higher than a pitch inherent to a waveform prestored in the memory (12), all of the consecutive sampling values are sequentially read out and stored in temporary storage means (40.about.46) so that the interpolation calculation is accurately performed using the consecutive sampling values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 1997
    Date of Patent: October 6, 1998
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Taichi Kosugi
  • Patent number: 5777250
    Abstract: In an electronic musical instrument, playing data are produced by depressing a key in a keyboard, and divided into plural groups. At least one of the semi-automatic playing channels processes sound data of a musical piece read out of a memory to generate musical tones in synchronism with the playing data of at least one group. The sound data may be corrected according to sound correcting data before being used to generate musical tones.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 7, 1998
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Toru Aoyama, Mineo Kitamura, Yasushi Sato, Satoshi Fujimoto
  • Patent number: 5760324
    Abstract: An automatic performance apparatus with the concert magic function includes a memory for storing automatic performance data composed of a sequence of note data. Each note data includes a data of gate time and a data of step time. When it is detected that at least one of the keys corresponding to the sequence of note data is pushed, a current note data of the sequence is read out from the memory. Then, there are executed a sound generation stopping process for a previous note data and a sound generating process for the current note data. When it is detected that all of keys corresponding to the sequence of note data are released, a sound generation stopping instruction is issued and the sound generation for the current note data is stopped in the response to the sound generation stopping instruction. The sound generating process and the sound generation stopping process are executed using a reference time period which is determined based on a tempo.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 2, 1998
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Sadamoto Wakuda, Yoshihisa Shimada
  • Patent number: 5299484
    Abstract: A bearing structure in a piano action part which can always maintain the torque of rotation of a pin shaft supporting a hammer member within a predetermined range characterized in that the bearing structure comprises a pin shaft fixed to a hammer member, a support member having through-holes through which the pin shaft passes and cloth members with which the spaces between the through-holes and the pin shaft inserted through the through-hole are packed, and that the support member is made of a cellulose derivative resin composition containing silica having a number of silanol groups of 3.0 or less per 100 square .ANG. and a BET specific surface area of 100 to 210 m.sup.2 /g, and a transmission structure in a piano characterized in that the transmission structure comprises a hammer member and the above-mentioned bearing structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 1993
    Date of Patent: April 5, 1994
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instrument Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Muneo Ishida, Mituo Yamashita, Masanari Onishi, Masahiro Tanaka
  • Patent number: 5223652
    Abstract: A black key making of a resin composition comprising a cellulose derivative resin, silicon oxide and at least 0.3 part by weight of a carbon black based on 100 parts by weight of the cellulose derivative, the carbon black having a pH of 6 and below and a BET specific surface area of 260 m.sup.2 /g and above, a keyboard comprising white keys and above-described black keys and a musical instrument having the above-described keyboard are disclosed. The black key is excellent in productivity and processability and is hygroscopic and excellent in the touch to fingers during playing. The black key is preferably made by injection molding.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 1991
    Date of Patent: June 29, 1993
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instrument Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Muneo Ishida, Mituo Yamashita, Masanari Onishi, Masahiro Tanaka
  • Patent number: 5206447
    Abstract: An electronic keyboard or similar electronic musical instrument having an automatic rhythm playing function and an ad-libbing function. The instrument includes keys to which an ad-libbing function is assigned. When one presses any of the ad-libbing keys on the keyboard, the instrument allows the operator to feel as if the operator were performing an ad-lib. Various kinds of ad lib plays are available by looping note data representative of a single melody or by transforming the note data to a plurality of melodies by chord detection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 1989
    Date of Patent: April 27, 1993
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masafumi Yamaguchi, Hideki Takahashi
  • Patent number: 5107745
    Abstract: An electronic musical instrument capable of reporting a sound level and a tempo to be set. When a particular sound level or a particular tempo is selected and set, a click having a particular pitch matching the sound level or the tempo is generated to allow the user to recognize the sound level or the tempo on the basis of the pitch of the click. The instrument has a right and a left loudspeaker and, when the sound level is high or the tempo is fast, produces louder sound from one of the loudspeakers while, when the sound level is low or the tempo is slow, producing louder sound from the other loudspeaker.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 1990
    Date of Patent: April 28, 1992
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Naoto Utsumi
  • Patent number: 4840104
    Abstract: A keyboard for a musical instrument is composed of a resin composition, having a durometer hardness of 82 or larger, and the composition comprises a cellulose derivative resin and a silica having 3.0 or less silanol groups in the area of 100 square angstrom and a BET specific surface area of 10 to 210 m.sup.2 /g. It may comprises a substrate and the keyboard.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 1988
    Date of Patent: June 20, 1989
    Assignee: Kawai Musical Instrument Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Muneo Ishida, Mithuo Yamashita, Masanari Onishi, Masahiro Tanaka
  • Patent number: 3986424
    Abstract: An automatic rhythm accompaniment apparatus for an electronic musical instrument is characterized in that the same comprises a plurality of chord-memory circuits which detect and memorize respective first tones in respective bars of a melody played by the operation of keys, and a chord gate circuit which is driven by output signals of these chord memory circuits and rhythm pulses generated by a rhythm pulse generator so that, by opening and closing of the chord gate circuit, there is obtained rhythm-accompaniment tones caused by the first tones in the respective bars. A key selection circuit is provided at the front stage of the chord gate circuit so that rhythm accompaniment tones according to a key of the melody played may be obtained. A chord change-over circuit can be provided preceding the chord gate circuit so that a key of the melody can be selected. Rhythm-accompaniment tones of different chords appearing in the middle of the melody may be obtained.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 1975
    Date of Patent: October 19, 1976
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Kawai Gakki Seisakusho (Kawai Musical Instrument Manufacturing Co., Ltd.)
    Inventor: Masao Sakashita