Patents by Inventor Hirotaka Higasa

Hirotaka Higasa has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10134371
    Abstract: A stroke adjustment device for a keyboard instrument, which can finely adjust key depression stroke and hammer stroke to obtain sufficient controllability of weak tones during musical performance and make the dynamic range even wider. This device includes a lifting mechanism for lifting up and down a keyboard pillow on which rear ends of keys are placed, an operation mechanism manually operated for driving the lifting mechanism, and a driving force transmission mechanism for transmitting a driving force generated by operation of the operation mechanism to the lifting mechanism. The lifting mechanism has a rotating shaft body rotatably provided below the keyboard pillow, vertically movable rack parts in mesh with gear portions that rotate in unison with the rotating shaft, and a lifting part extending over the rack parts and vertically moving in unison with the rack parts to lift up and down the keyboard pillow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 20, 2018
    Assignee: KABUSHIKI KAISHA KAWAI GAKKI SEISAKUSHO
    Inventor: Hirotaka Higasa
  • Publication number: 20180096671
    Abstract: A stroke adjustment device for a keyboard instrument, which can finely adjust key depression stroke and hammer stroke to obtain sufficient controllability of weak tones during musical performance and make the dynamic range even wider. This device includes a lifting mechanism for lifting up and down a keyboard pillow on which rear ends of keys are placed, an operation mechanism manually operated for driving the lifting mechanism, and a driving force transmission mechanism for transmitting a driving force generated by operation of the operation mechanism to the lifting mechanism. The lifting mechanism has a rotating shaft body rotatably provided below the keyboard pillow, vertically movable rack parts in mesh with gear portions that rotate in unison with the rotating shaft, and a lifting part extending over the rack parts and vertically moving in unison with the rack parts to lift up and down the keyboard pillow.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2017
    Publication date: April 5, 2018
    Inventor: Hirotaka HIGASA
  • Patent number: 7678977
    Abstract: There is provided a repetition lever for a grand piano, which is excellent in shape retainability and dimensional stability and is light in weight and high in rigidity, thereby enabling required operations to be stably performed and improving the capability of repeated key striking. A repetition lever 4 for a grand piano, which performs the operation of pushing up a hammer 30 after the hammer has struck a string, is formed by a molded article of a thermoplastic resin containing long fibers for reinforcement, the molded article being molded by a long fiber process. The repetition lever 4 has reduced cross-sectional area portions 49, 50, and 54 for reducing weight thereof. The long fibers for reinforcement are carbon fibers, and the thermoplastic resin is an ABS resin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Kawai Gakki Seisakusho
    Inventors: Kenji Yoshisue, Hirotaka Higasa, Tsutomu Kihara
  • Publication number: 20070012156
    Abstract: There is provided a repetition lever for a grand piano, which is excellent in shape retainability and dimensional stability and is light in weight and high in rigidity, thereby enabling required operations to be stably performed and improving the capability of repeated key striking. A repetition lever 4 for a grand piano, which performs the operation of pushing up a hammer 30 after the hammer has struck a string, is formed by a molded article of a thermoplastic resin containing long fibers for reinforcement, the molded article being molded by a long fiber process. The repetition lever 4 has reduced cross-sectional area portions 49, 50, and 54 for reducing weight thereof. The long fibers for reinforcement are carbon fibers, and the thermoplastic resin is an ABS resin.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 13, 2004
    Publication date: January 18, 2007
    Applicant: Kabushiki Kaisha Kawai Gakki Seisakusho
    Inventors: Kenji Yoshisue, Hirotaka Higasa, Tsutomu Kihara
  • Patent number: 5804745
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an apparatus for adjusting a sound volume of a grand piano.When a grand piano is played, it is desired to adjust its sound volume depending on the surrounding conditions such as in an apartment house, or at night or the like.The present invention has an object of obtaining an apparatus for adjusting the sound volume of a grand piano in which an adjustment can be made to a desired sound volume by a simple operation and which has a sufficient sound-insulating effect. It is characterized in that a lower opening portion of a case is covered by a sound-insulating board which has an opening and closing portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 1996
    Date of Patent: September 8, 1998
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Kawai Gakki Seisakusho
    Inventor: Hirotaka Higasa