Abstract: An architecture for a synthesizer of music or other sounds which comprises an input device which supplies real time input signals indicating selected voices, a voice program memory which stores voice programs for respective voices, and a sound processing module including an array of digital signal processors, which is coupled to the input device and the voice program memory, and responsive to real time input signals to execute a group of voice programs in the voice program memory to generate selective voices in real time. Resources coupled to the input device and the voice program memory dynamically assign voice programs for selected voices to the group of voice programs in response to the real time input signals. Further, resources are available for replacing a particular voice program in the group with a voice program for a selected voice in response to the real time input signals.

Abstract: The electronic device uses domino-shaped sound elements in combination with a support track to generate audible sounds or musical notes. The sound elements are placed in indentations on a support track in a selected sequence corresponding to the sequence of musical notes in a song to be played. Each of the sound elements corresponds to a single sound or musical note. When the sound elements are toppled in a domino-type manner, the notes are played in the selected sequence. Each of the sound elements has one or more magnetic elements in its bottom surface. The movement of the magnetic element away from associated Hall Effect sensors in the support track during toppling of the sound elements is used to trigger a decoding circuit. The decoding circuit determines the note pattern and generates the associated sound through an output speaker. A timbre sound element may also be used to select the timbre or other tonal characteristics of the output sounds.

Abstract: An apparatus for automatic playing of a piano, the apparatus activating operation terminals in consonance with received play data to play music. The apparatus includes an input device for receiving play data, the play data including soft pedal event information and key event information. The apparatus also includes: a soft pedal history storage unit that, when the soft pedal event information is received from the input device, temporarily holds ON/OFF history of a soft pedal in consonance with the soft pedal event information; a converter that, when the key event information is received from the input device and the soft pedal history storage unit is storing an ON event for the soft pedal, performs a predetermined conversion of key depression force data that is included in the key event information; and a controller that controls the operation terminals in consonance with the key depression force data that has been converted by the converter.

Abstract: An information storage medium such as a CD-ROM has a storage area divided into a plurality of sections, for storing digital audio information and for storing picture information and character information, which are stored independently of each other. The digital audio information includes accompaniment information which represents musical accompaniments relative to songs, and the character information includes information which represents words of the songs to be reproduced in time with the musical accompaniments, in the form of characters, figures, colors, or a combination thereof. An information reproducing apparatus for playing back the information storage medium controls the speed at which the character information is to be output, the shape of characters and figures representing the character information, the colors thereof, or a combination thereof.

Abstract: Analog-to-digital conversion method and device using triangular vertex solution are disclosed. The method includes the steps of defining a first and a second boundary value between which a quantity to be analog-to-digital converted resides, multiplying a difference between the first boundary value and the quantity to be converted by a first coefficient to produce a first physical quantity, multiplying a difference between the second boundary value and the quantity to be converted by a second coefficient to produce a second physical quantity, comparing the first and second physical quantities to obtain a comparison result, and logically converting the comparison result into a digital value.

Abstract: An auto-play apparatus for an electronic musical instrument generates auto-play tones or auto-accompaniment tones such as melody, chord, bass, and drum tones on the basis of preprogrammed auto-play data. The apparatus includes a detector for detecting note data in the auto-play data. Every time a tone corresponding to note data in the auto-play data is generated, a pre-programmed display sequence of animation patterns advances. Animation display pattern data representing motions of a person or animal are sequentially sent to a display on the basis of the animation display sequence. Every time a tone corresponding to note data in the auto-play data is generated, the display patterns change motion by motion, thus obtaining an animation display.

Abstract: In a parameter setting system for setting tone characters for producing musical tones in an electronic musical instrument, with respect to a plurality of tone characters having the same values as to a certain parameter, one group is made up with these plural tone characters, and parameters are stored in every group, whereby a required memory size is reduced. Further, respective tone characters are classified into a plurality of groups, and parameter setting and changing operations are executed in every group, whereby these operations are simplified.

Abstract: A device(timer) is provided for measurement of lapse time from a predetermined portion of a first tone assigned to a tone production channel. When a new(second) tone generation request is given to the tone production channel the tone being generated is force-dumped. The time required for force-dump, namely the waiting time until the new musical tone is generated is decided based on the count value of the timer. Upon the lapse of this waiting time the new musical tone is generated at the above-mentioned channel. Thereby the waiting time is best controlled.

Abstract: An electronic musical instrument includes a performance operator such as a bar-like member, a position detection circuit for detecting a play position on the performance operator and generating position information corresponding to the play position, a circuit for selecting a desired one of a plurality of predetermined position-tone pitch conversion characteristics or establishing a desired position-tone pitch conversion characteristic with respect to the performance operator, a conversion circuit for converting the position information from the position detection circuit to tone pitch information in accordance with the position-tone pitch conversion characteristic having been selected or established and a tone generator for generating a tone signal of a tone pitch corresponding to the tone pitch information provided by the conversion circuit.

Abstract: A desired offset value is set and difference between this offset value and touch data is obtained. A touch response control is performed in either of positive and negative directions. This difference data may be changed and adjusted by a desired touch sensitivity parameter. In a case where data used for a tone control is transferred from suitable reference data to control data corresponding to touch data, following interpolation from the reference data to the control data is made and a tone control is made in response to data obtained by this interpolation. In this case, coefficients for the following interpolation are caused to change gradually so that tone control data obtained by the interpolation will change smoothly. An abrupt change in a tone control signal thereby can be prevented and a touch response control which is not accompanied by unnaturalness can be realized.

Abstract: A muting device for a piano includes a capstan screw, a support rail, a support, a jack, a shank rail, a hammer shank, a hammer and at least one string with respect to each key. Each key is divided into a back portion and a front portion with respect to the rotation axis. This front portion of the key is depressed by a performer, while the back portion of the key is inserted into a key driving mechanism of the grand piano. In addition, a transmitting member (e.g., another capstan screw) transmits force from the key to the hammer. The transmitting member is inserted between an upper surface of the key and a lower surface of the support. The transmitting member contacts the upper surface of the key between the capstan screw and a rotation center of the key, and it also contacts with the lower surface of the support between a position at which the capstan screw comes contacts the support and a position at which the jack is connected to the support.

Abstract: An automatic playing device including a memory which stores sequence data consisting of musical sound data and sequence data to control read-out of the musical sound data. A processing unit repeatedly reads out musical sound data specified by the control data included in the sequence data stored in this memory. A movement instruction switch gives instructions for movement of an accompaniment part to be played. A control device which, when an instruction for movement of a part to be played is issued by the movement instruction switch, terminates the operation to repeatedly read out musical sound data if musical sound data stored in the memory is being repeatedly read out by the processing unit. In which case, the control device moves system operation to an operation to read out the next sequence data.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for sensing the velocity of key motion in a keyboard operated musical instrument, in which sensors (10) have a polymer piezoelectric film (18) laminated to a mylar backing material (20) are mounted in proximity to the keys (12) of a keyboard operated musical instrument. When deflected by the keys (12), the sensors (10) produce analog circuit output voltages proportional to the velocity of key motion. The analog signals are then converted to digital signals and processed by a digital microprocessor (36) to represent the velocity factor component of musical information in Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) or other digital formats. The digital data is then presented directly to a reproducing musical instrument or recorded on an electronic storage media.

Abstract: A musical tone waveform signal forming apparatus comprises a delay loop circuit, a filter circuit a drive signal generation circuit and a modulation control circuit. The drive signal generation circuit inputs a drive signal to the delay loop circuit so that a musical tone is formed in the delay loop circuit. The filter circuit filters the musical tone. The modulation control circuit changes the delay length of the delay loop circuit and the characteristics of the filter circuit thereby adding a modulation effect on the musical tone to be generated.

Abstract: A bending angle detector is constructed by a flexible base member, a flexible resistor and a detecting circuit. Herein, the flexible resistor is attached on at least one surface of the base member so that the resistance thereof can be varied in response to a bend of the base member. The detecting circuit, coupled to the flexible resistor, detects a bending angle of the base member based on the resistance variation of the flexible resistor. In an electronic musical instrument employing this bending angle detector, there is provided a flexible mounting member having a shape to be put on an articulation portion of a person. At least one storage pouch is formed at the predetermined position of the flexible mounting member to store the bending angle detector therein. Thus, a musical tone signal is formed based on a bending angle of the articulation portion of the person detected by the bending angle detector. Preferably, the flexible mounting member has a glove-like-shape.

Abstract: A planar wave transducer assembly comprising a rigid structure formed by a pair of foot pads, each with an upstanding leg and a span bar extending across the top of the legs. A piezoelectric transducer element is attached to the span bar, preferably in a channel extending between the legs, to convert wave motion in the plane defined by the flat bases of the foot pads into an electrical signal. The transducer assembly herein disclosed has been found to be remarkably effective as a pick up when applied to the soundboard of a piano, achieving excellent signal isolation as well as enhancing the acoustic sound produced by the instrument.

Abstract: A system and method for detecting, separating and recording the individual voices in a musical composition performed by a plurality of instruments. The electrical waveform signal for the multi-voiced musical composition is fed to a waveform signal converter to convert the waveform signal to a frequency spectrum representation. The frequency spectrum representation is fed to a frequency spectrum comparator where it is compared to predetermined steady-state frequency spectrum representations for a particular musical instrument. Upon detecting the presence of a frequency spectrum representation corresponding to a predetermined steady-state frequency spectrum representation, the detected frequency spectrum representation and measured growth and decay frequency spectrum representations are fed to a waveform envelope comparator and compared to predetermined waveform envelopes, i.e. frequency spectrum representations during the growth, steady-state and decay periods of the waveform signal.

Abstract: Variable frequency sawtooth waveforms are often utilized as an excitation signal in a digital musical synthesizer. A problem exists at lower sampling rates in such systems due to an aliasing problem which occurs at frequencies near the Nyquist rate. Low pass filtering may be utilized to mask this problem; however, low pass filtering is very time consuming to implement in a ditigal signal processor. The method and apparatus of the present invention reduces the upper harmonic content of a sawtooth waveform by proportionally converting the sawtooth waveform to a triangle waveform in response to variations in the frequency of the sawtooth waveform. This is accomplished by adding a selectable offset to the sawtooth waveform and then taking the absolute value of the resultant waveform. By restoring this waveform to a zero offset, the sawtooth waveform excitation signal will be converted to a triangle waveform having a substantially reduced upper harmonic content.

Abstract: An improved resonator tuning plug for the resonators of keyboard percussion instruments. An inexpensive plug suitable for the entire range of the keyboard instrument, offering quick tuning changes and secure locking of position. A thickness of material shaped to a slip fit within the resonator is slotted on one surface in such a manner that pressure applied to a tapered center hole expands the circumference and produces a pneumatic seal. The tuning plug is invertible so that tonal characteristics of the air column are further adjustable.

Abstract: An improved encoder for indicating angular position or rotation of a shaft, and particularly a digital encoder for use with materials handling vehicles, includes an index mark in an index band of the encoder that is made wider than the marks in the data tracks. Associated detecting circuitry is responsive to the wide index mark for creating a dead band around a neutral position of the encoder to permit the free movement of the encoder shaft by an angular amount determined by the width of the index band. The wide index band enlarges the tolerance permitted in the return of the shaft to its neutral position and when installing the encoder on a shaft. When an encoder having a wide index band is used with a control handle, such as in positioning devices and accelerators on materials handling vehicles, the control handle has an improved feel and response.