Patents by Inventor Tomoyuki Funaki

Tomoyuki Funaki 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: 7703014
    Abstract: A music score display data arranging unit provides music score display data for displaying a music score by placing music score notational elements on a given display area in one or more staff tiers, each staff tier containing one or more measures of variable lengths based on inputted music performance representing data. The sizes of the music score notational elements and the size of the display area are determinable. A measures apportioning unit calculates, for each measure based on the sizes of the music score notational elements, a minimum horizontal length for placing at least one kind of notational elements in the measure without an overlap in the horizontal direction, and apportions a number of measures in each staff tier such that the notational elements of each measure shall be placed on the apportioned staff tier in a length of the calculated minimum horizontal length or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2010
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 7589274
    Abstract: Tone generation control signal and sound signal are communicated between an electronic musical instrument and an external apparatus, using a communication interface capable of bidirectionally communicating one or more types of signals via a common communication path in accordance with a common communication standard. Thus, where the electronic musical instrument does not have its own internal tone generator while the external apparatus has its own tone generator, a sound signal of a tone, corresponding to the tone generation control signal output from the electronic musical instrument, can be generated by the external apparatus and supplied to the electronic musical instrument, so that the electronic musical instrument can sound the sound signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2009
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 7560635
    Abstract: A musical information display apparatus which makes it possible to additionally display fingering information such that it can be easy to see. A sequence of note data and fingering information corresponding to respective pieces of the note data are supplied, and the supplied note data is displayed on a display. Fingering display information indicative of whether to display the fingering information is stored in association with the respective pieces of the supplied note data. The fingering information corresponding to the respective pieces of the displayed note data is displayed in accordance with the stored fingering display information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2009
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 7495164
    Abstract: A piano roll score, a word input/edit area and a word continuous display area are displayed. Note bars corresponding to notes of a melody are displayed on the piano roll score. The word input/edit area is divided into input cells having a length corresponding to a tempo number of each note. A pointer is moved to the input cell and a mouse is left-clicked to display an editor area. A letter(s) or character(s) is input by using a word processor function. The pointer is moved to the input cell and the mouse is right-clicked to display a command select box. A display command is selected from the command select box and input, the display command controlling a display style of a song-word character train in the word continuous display area. A dictionary database is used to search a song word by using the number of syllables and a part of speech as search keys. A sentence syntax is selected by using a sentence syntax template.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2009
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 7402741
    Abstract: A keyboard apparatus which is capable of imparting a natural key depression feeling with a definite and positive load change, with a simplified construction. A key touch feeling-imparting mechanism imparts a predetermined key touch feeling to a key when it is depressed. The key touch feeling-imparting mechanism is comprised of a receiving part provided on a support member, and an elastic engaging unit that has one end thereof held by a key operating part of an associated key and another end thereof slidably engaged with the receiving part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2008
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventors: Tomoyuki Funaki, Junichi Mishima
  • Patent number: 7314992
    Abstract: An apparatus is to analyze music data of a musical performance including note events of triplets as well as note events like triplets, and to display the note events in triplet notation properly in view of the general rhythmic tendency of the musical performance. Music data representing a musical performance is analyzed by counting the number of note events which occur as a regular rhythm pattern and the number of note events which occur as a triplet, so that the performed music as a whole is judged to be either in a triplet-shy rhythm or in a triplet-rich rhythm. Then fuzzy triplet detecting time windows detect triplet candidate notes. Thus detected fuzzy triplet note events are flexibly decided to be notated in a regular rhythm pattern form or in a triplet form depending on whether the performed music as a whole is in a triplet-shy rhythm or in a triplet-rich rhythm. The notes are displayed in the decided form of notation to provide a good-looking and easily understandable music score.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2008
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventors: Tomoyuki Funaki, Kanami Hoshika
  • Patent number: 7220909
    Abstract: A musical information displaying apparatus is to display musical notes in progression along the time axis on a musical staff together with chords and words based on the respective event data contained in a music performance data file representing a musical performance. The chords are displayed at their event positions along the time axis in the open space above and nearest to the musical staff. If two adjacent chords would overlap in part when displayed at the same vertical level in view of the respective display lengths, the vertical position of the latter chord will be shifted to prevent overlapping. The character representing the root of the chord will be displayed in an enhanced font than the other characters of the chord name. Where the words are displayed in correspondence to the notes, the words are to be displayed primarily at the positions along the time axis corresponding to the notes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 22, 2007
    Assignee: Yamama Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 7217877
    Abstract: A keyboard apparatus which is capable of enhancing key touch feeling. The keyboard apparatus has a chassis (1), and key bodies (10) to be depressed are supported by the chassis. A hammer body (20) associated with each of the key bodies is driven by the key body via engagement with the same to move in a key depressing direction to thereby impart an inertial force to the key body when the key is depressed. The state of engagement between the key body and the hammer body suddenly changes as the key depressing velocity changes across a predetermined key depressing velocity, such that when the key depressing velocity is higher than the predetermined key depressing velocity, the hammer body hardly moves in the key depressing direction, whereas when the key depressing velocity is not higher than the predetermined key depressing velocity, the hammer body moves in the key depressing direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2007
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 7200813
    Abstract: The computer-implemented system stores user performance data representing multiple parts. The system also stores style data representing various different musical accompaniments that are displayed in a style data window. The user selectively copies constituent parts of the style data into a user performance data window, thereby incorporating the copied parts into the performance data. Tone pitches and musical length of the copied parts are automatically modified to suit the chord information and timing represented in the existing performance data. As the user records performance data, the on-screen start switch is displays differently (e.g., different color) to show whether the specific part corresponds to a recording part or a non-recording part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2007
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 7199298
    Abstract: Based on music performance data, music score display data are composed for displaying a music score representing the music performance. A user inputs his/her musical skill to the apparatus. Referring to a musical skill level versus music score item correspondence table, music score items to be exhibited in the music score are determined to meet the musical skill as inputted by the user, and are included in the composed music score display data. Thus, a music score containing assisting as well as necessary detailed musical signs and indications which meet the user's musical skill will be displayed in addition to the main musical notation of the note progression.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2007
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Publication number: 20060219089
    Abstract: An apparatus is to analyze music data of a musical performance including note events of triplets as well as note events like triplets, and to display the note events in triplet notation properly in view of the general rhythmic tendency of the musical performance. Music data representing a musical performance is analyzed by counting the number of note events which occur as a regular rhythm pattern and the number of note events which occur as a triplet, so that the performed music as a whole is judged to be either in a triplet-shy rhythm or in a triplet-rich rhythm. Then fuzzy triplet detecting time windows detect triplet candidate notes. Thus detected fuzzy triplet note events are flexibly decided to be notated in a regular rhythm pattern form or in a triplet form depending on whether the performed music as a whole is in a triplet-shy rhythm or in a triplet-rich rhythm. The notes are displayed in the decided form of notation to provide a good-looking and easily understandable music score.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 24, 2006
    Publication date: October 5, 2006
    Applicant: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventors: Tomoyuki Funaki, Kanami Hoshika
  • Patent number: 7096186
    Abstract: Sound signal is received which contains sound characteristics to be represented in musical notation. The characteristics, such as a volume level of the sound signal, are extracted out of the received sound signal, and various parameters for use in subsequent analysis of the sound signal are set in accordance with the extracted characteristics. Also, a desired scale determining condition is set by a user. Pitch of the sound signal is determined using the thus-set parameters. The determined pitch is rounded to any one of scale notes, corresponding to the user-set scale determining condition. Also, a given unit note length is set as a predetermined criterion or reference for determining a note length, and a length of the scale note determined from the received sound signal is determined using the thus-set unit note length as a minimum determination unit, i.e., with an accuracy of the unit note length.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2006
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Publication number: 20060070515
    Abstract: A keyboard apparatus which is capable of imparting a natural key depression feeling with a definite and positive load change, with a simplified construction. A key touch feeling-imparting mechanism imparts a predetermined key touch feeling to a key when it is depressed. The key touch feeling-imparting mechanism is comprised of a receiving part provided on a support member, and an elastic engaging unit that has one end thereof held by a key operating part of an associated key and another end thereof slidably engaged with the receiving part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 27, 2005
    Publication date: April 6, 2006
    Applicant: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventors: Tomoyuki Funaki, Junichi Mishima
  • Publication number: 20060065100
    Abstract: A musical information displaying apparatus is to display musical notes in progression along the time axis on a musical staff together with chords and words based on the respective event data contained in a music performance data file representing a musical performance. The chords are displayed at their event positions along the time axis in the open space above and nearest to the musical staff. If two adjacent chords would overlap in part when displayed at the same vertical level in view of the respective display lengths, the vertical position of the latter chord will be shifted to prevent overlapping. The character representing the root of the chord will be displayed in an enhanced font than the other characters of the chord name. Where the words are displayed in correspondence to the notes, the words are to be displayed primarily at the positions along the time axis corresponding to the notes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2005
    Publication date: March 30, 2006
    Applicant: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Publication number: 20060065101
    Abstract: A musical information display apparatus which makes it possible to additionally display fingering information such that it can be easy to see. A sequence of note data and fingering information corresponding to respective pieces of the note data are supplied, and the supplied note data is displayed on a display. Fingering display information indicative of whether to display the fingering information is stored in association with the respective pieces of the supplied note data. The fingering information corresponding to the respective pieces of the displayed note data is displayed in accordance with the stored fingering display information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 24, 2005
    Publication date: March 30, 2006
    Applicant: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Publication number: 20060060057
    Abstract: A keyboard apparatus which is capable of enhancing key touch feeling. The keyboard apparatus has a chassis (1), and key bodies (10) to be depressed are supported by the chassis. A hammer body (20) associated with each of the key bodies is driven by the key body via engagement with the same to move in a key depressing direction to thereby impart an inertial force to the key body when the key is depressed. The state of engagement between the key body and the hammer body suddenly changes as the key depressing velocity changes across a predetermined key depressing velocity, such that when the key depressing velocity is higher than the predetermined key depressing velocity, the hammer body hardly moves in the key depressing direction, whereas when the key depressing velocity is not higher than the predetermined key depressing velocity, the hammer body moves in the key depressing direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 5, 2005
    Publication date: March 23, 2006
    Applicant: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Publication number: 20060054004
    Abstract: Tone generation control signal and sound signal are communicated between an electronic musical instrument and an external apparatus, using a communication interface capable of bidirectionally communicating one or more types of signals via a common communication path in accordance with a common communication standard. Thus, where the electronic musical instrument does not have its own internal tone generator while the external apparatus has its own tone generator, a sound signal of a tone, corresponding to the tone generation control signal output from the electronic musical instrument, can be generated by the external apparatus and supplied to the electronic musical instrument, so that the electronic musical instrument can sound the sound signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 29, 2005
    Publication date: March 16, 2006
    Applicant: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Patent number: 6949704
    Abstract: A plurality of client apparatus are individually connectable to a server apparatus via a communication network at any desired time. The server apparatus automatically selects suitable performance information from its own database, and delivers the thus-selected performance information to each of the client apparatus currently connected to the server apparatus. User of each of the client apparatus can request a desired music piece from the server apparatus. The user-requested music piece is selected by the server apparatus in accordance with a predetermined priority order and interleaved or incorporated between the automatically-selected music pieces, so that the incorporated user-requested music piece is delivered to the client apparatus along with the automatically-selected music pieces. In requesting a desired music piece, the user can impart the music piece with additional information such as desired texts and images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 27, 2005
    Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Publication number: 20040123724
    Abstract: A piano roll score, a word input/edit area and a word continuous display area are displayed. Note bars corresponding to notes of a melody are displayed on the piano roll score. The word input/edit area is divided into input cells having a length corresponding to a tempo number of each note. A pointer is moved to the input cell and a mouse is left-clicked to display an editor area. A letter(s) or character(s) is input by using a word processor function. The pointer is moved to the input cell and the mouse is right-clicked to display a command select box. A display command is selected from the command select box and input, the display command controlling a display style of a song-word character train in the word continuous display area. A dictionary database is used to search a song word by using the number of syllables and a part of speech as search keys. A sentence syntax is selected by using a sentence syntax template.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 12, 2003
    Publication date: July 1, 2004
    Applicant: YAMAHA CORPORATION
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki
  • Publication number: 20040112201
    Abstract: A music score display data arranging unit provides music score display data for displaying a music score by placing music score notational elements on a given display area in one or more staff tiers, each staff tier containing one or more measures of variable lengths based on inputted music performance representing data. The sizes of the music score notational elements and the size of the display area are determinable. A measures apportioning unit calculates, for each measure based on the sizes of the music score notational elements, a minimum horizontal length for placing at least one kind of notational elements in the measure without an overlap in the horizontal direction, and apportions a number of measures in each staff tier such that the notational elements of each measure shall be placed on the apportioned staff tier in a length of the calculated minimum horizontal length or more.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2003
    Publication date: June 17, 2004
    Applicant: YAMAHA CORPORATION
    Inventor: Tomoyuki Funaki