Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a method and system for calibrating a musical device. In some embodiments, a method for calibrating a musical device includes: energizing an actuator to actuate a key using a force corresponding to a first intensity level; obtaining, from a sensor, a first sensor signal representing motion information of the key corresponding to application of the force; and calibrating the musical device based on the first sensor signal.

Abstract: A detection device includes: a movement detector that includes light emitters and light receivers, wherein in accordance with movement of a moving body among moving bodies, each corresponding to a different combination of a light emitter and a light receiver, a light reception level of the light receiver in a combination corresponding to the moving body changes; and a processor coupled to a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, configure the processor to: cause each of the light emitters to sequentially emit light in each light emission period by providing a driving signal, and cause a signal level of the driving signal to differ between unit periods within the light emission period; and select, for each light emission period, a light reception level in one of the unit periods within the light emission period as a detected value for each of the light receivers.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a method and system for calibrating a musical device. In some embodiments, a method for calibrating a musical device includes: determining a first time corresponding to a first instruction that instructs a driving device to actuate a first component of a musical device using a first force; receiving first sensor data relating to motion information of the first component; determining a second time based on the first sensor data; determining, by a hardware processor, a first time deviation based on the first time and the second time; and calibrating the musical device based on the first time deviation.

Abstract: Systems and methods for processing sensor data and self-calibration are provided. In some embodiments, systems and methods are provided which are capable of calibrating a continuous analyte sensor based on an initial sensitivity, and then continuously performing self-calibration without using, or with reduced use of, reference measurements. In certain embodiments, a sensitivity of the analyte sensor is determined by applying an estimative algorithm that is a function of certain parameters. Also described herein are systems and methods for determining a property of an analyte sensor using a stimulus signal. The sensor property can be used to compensate sensor data for sensitivity drift, or determine another property associated with the sensor, such as temperature, sensor membrane damage, moisture ingress in sensor electronics, and scaling factors.

Abstract: A keyboard musical instrument is provided in which variations in the detection mechanism is corrected so that an appropriate musical sound control can be performed. Detection sections SW1, SW2, and SW3 detect an object at detection positions pSW1, pSW2, and pSW3. On the basis of a detection timing (rT2) by the detection section SW2, a detected key depression speed (V21), and a detection timing (rT3) by the detection section SW3 in a case where the key is depressed in a derivation mode, after a rST32 value is calculated, a stroke correction value calST32 is derived as correction information J and stored in a memory 57. In the performance mode, the musical sound is controlled on the basis of the detection timing by the detection sections SW1, SW2, and SW3 and the stroke correction value calST32.

Abstract: A keyboard unit includes: a key; a displacement member which is configured to be driven directly or indirectly with the key by a pressing operation of the key to be moved in a forward stroke direction; a detector which is configured to detect that an operation direction of the displacement member has changed from the forward stroke direction to a returning direction; and a generator which is configured to generate sound generation indication information based on information detected by the detector.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention include systems and methods for inferential generation of virtual sequencer controls in a MIDI sequencer to automate functionality of physical or virtual controls of MIDI instruments. MIDI source data from a song or a live feed is analyzed to determine a sequence of MIDI control commands from which a set of virtual sequencer controls can be automatically inferred without manual generation or configuration of the virtual control. The virtual sequencer controls are generated to automate a corresponding MIDI instrument control. Some embodiments provide functionality, including generation and handling of clone controls, use of virtual sequencer controls as slave and/or translation controls, and handling of after-click control information through a virtual synthesizers and the like.

Abstract: A keyboard musical instrument including: a key; a hammer; an actuator configured to drive at least one of the key and the hammer in a movement direction in which the at least one of the key and the hammer moves in a key depression stroke; a hammer detector configured to detect a hammer-motion related value that relates to a motion of the hammer; a trajectory generator configured to generate a target trajectory of the at least one of the key and the hammer based on automatic performance information that defines a motion target value of the at least one of the key and the hammer; a feedback-value generator configured to generate a feedback value based on the hammer-motion related value in automatic performance detected by the hammer detector; and a controller configured to servo-control the actuator based on the generated target trajectory and the generated feedback value.

Abstract: Each of Dampers provided for each of keys is controlled in response to both an operation of a damper pedal and an operation of the corresponding key. For each of the dampers and over one stroke of the pedal in at least one of depressing releasing directions of the pedal, load information indicative of loads imposed on a portion linked to the damper is acquired in association with individual stroke positions of the pedal. Then, for each of the dampers, a half pedal region is identified on the basis of relationship between the stroke positions and the loads corresponding to the stroke positions. The portion linked to the damper may be any suitable portion related to a damper lever moving in an up-down direction in interlocked relation to both of vertical movement of a lifting rail responsive to an operation of the pedal and an operation of the key.

Abstract: A sound generation mechanism, provided with a string for generating a vibration sound in response to striking by a hammer, is automatically played in accordance with performance data. The performance data include striking data (note-on event data) for designating timing at which the string should be struck by the hammer, velocity data indicative of an intensity of the striking, and muting data (soft pedal data) for controlling muting. A controller determines drive start timing of the hammer in accordance with the velocity data in such a manner that the string is struck by the hammer at the timing designated by the striking data and performs control such that the drive start timing is advanced in accordance with the muting data. Thus, the string is struck at the striking timing designated by the striking data, but also muting control is performed in accordance with the muting data.

Abstract: An automatic player piano is equipped with solenoid-operated actuators for moving keys in automatic performance without fingering of a human player, and an overheat protector is provided for the solenoid-operated actuators so as to prevent the solenoid-operated actuators from overheat; the overheat protector includes not only a temperature sensor and a rescuer but also an information processor, and a computer program runs on the information processor so as to realize a temperature rise estimator for estimating a solenoid temperature on the basis of the amount of current flowing through the solenoid and an environmental temperature determined through the temperature sensor estimator and an overheat detector so as to find an overheated solenoid, thereby making the rescuer interrupt the current for preventing the solenoid-operated actuator from the overheat.

Abstract: A double keyboard piano system is provided. The double keyboard piano system may include a first automatic player piano, a second automatic player piano, and a double keyboard console including a first keyboard and a second keyboard mounted above the first keyboard. The first automatic player piano is in communication with the double keyboard console to receive a first signal including first information describing a first key for the first automatic player piano to automatically play based on a first key of the first keyboard being played, and the second automatic player piano is in communication with the double keyboard console to receive a second signal including second information describing a second key for the second automatic player piano to automatically play based on a second key of the second keyboard being played.

Abstract: A key drive device to be installed on a musical instrument with a keyboard partly located above a leg block via a key bed, including: drive units to be at least partly inserted into a removal space in the key bed. In a state in which the drive units are installed, at least one drive unit which drives at least one key located above the leg block includes: (a) a first portion at least a part of which is inserted into an insertion space portion of the removal space between the leg block and the keyboard; and (b) a second portion at least a part of which is disposed in other space portion of the removal space, a dimension of the second portion in at least one of a vertical direction and a horizontal short-side direction being larger than that of the first portion.

Abstract: The invention provides an actuator for actuating a pallet of a pipe organ under the command of a key of an organ. The actuator comprises a movable member, adapted to be connected to the pallet of the organ pipe and a magnetic plunger, mounted on the movable member. It also comprises an electromagnet having a gap within which the magnetic plunger can be inserted and moved, wherein the electromagnet when energized moves the member to thereby actuate the pallet. A controller unit controls a current in the electromagnet to provide a controlled actuation of the pallet that is proportional to a key dip of the key. It also provides for a system based on a digital serial link for controlling an assembly of organ pallets that are actuated by electromagnets.

Abstract: A keyboard musical instrument provides plural keys of a keyboard to be driven by an automatic playing system; although the automatic playing system selectively drives the keys in accordance with a performance rule expressing a music tune, a motion controller of the automatic playing system changes the performance rule if the human player drives the keys different from those defined in the performance rule so that the automatic playing system changes a part of the music tune in real time fashion during the automatic performance.

Abstract: A musical tone control system for a grand-type piano, which not only enables a shutter to be mounted on a hammer without any inconvenience even when a space above the hammer is small, but also is capable of properly controlling musical tones to be sounded. In this system, first to third optical sensors are disposed along the length of a hammer shank. Depression or non-depress of a key and a pivoting direction of an associated hammer are determined based on signals from the first and second optical sensors, respectively. Further, the pivoting speed of the hammer is calculated based on a signal from the third optical sensor. A musical tone to be sounded is controlled based on the determined depression or non-depression of the key and pivoting direction and the calculated speed of the hammer.

Abstract: An upright piano is equipped with a soft pedal, and a player makes the hammer stroke shorter by depressing the soft pedal; while a user is reproducing a music tune by means of an automatic player piano fabricated on the basis of the upright piano, the keys are servo controlled on the basis of a position difference of keys between target values and actual values and a key velocity difference, and the duty ratio of driving signal, which is supplied to solenoid-operated key actuators for the keys, are determined on the basis of multiplications between the position difference/key velocity difference and a position gain and a velocity gain; the value of position gain is reduced on the condition that the soft pedal is depressed for preventing the playback from an unintentional loud tone or tones.

Abstract: A computer portion 70 determines main reaction force RF0 by use of a main reaction force table storing main reaction forces which vary according to the velocity and the depth of a depression of the key 11. The computer portion 70 determines first ancillary reaction force RF1 by use of a first ancillary reaction force table storing first ancillary reaction forces which vary according to the amount of depression of a lever 32 of a pedal apparatus 30. The computer portion 70 adds the first ancillary reaction force RF1 to the main reaction force RF0 to obtain a composite reaction force to control a solenoid 21 on the basis of the composite reaction force so that a reaction force which is to be exerted on the key 11 will be the composite reaction force.

Abstract: The invention provides an actuator for actuating a pallet of a pipe organ under the command of a key of an organ. The actuator comprises a movable member, adapted to be connected to the pallet of the organ pipe and a magnetic plunger, mounted on the movable member. It also comprises an electromagnet having a gap within which the magnetic plunger can be inserted and moved, wherein the electromagnet when energized moves the member to thereby actuate the pallet. A controller roller unit controls a current in the electromagnet to provide a controlled actuation of the pallet that is proportional to a key dip of the key. It also provide for a system based on a digital serial link for controlling an assembly of organ pallets that are actuated by electromagnets.

Abstract: The keys in a reproducing piano are actuated by a plurality of solenoids, one for each key to be played. The solenoids are arranged along the width of the keyboard and deviated from each other in the front-back direction of the keys in a staggered manner. A consequence of this arrangement is that the mechanical lever advantage of some solenoids is greater than the mechanical lever advantage of others, and as a result, some keys are played more loudly than others. In order to correct this problem, the drive applied to a solenoid is adjusted to compensate for the mechanical lever advantage, thereby allowing a performance to be accurately reproduced.

Abstract: A method and system for controlling actuators in a mechanical reproducing piano or other instrument. In one implementation, a single finite state machine is provided to control all the actuators. The finite state machine may be or include a shift register or a toggle register, which increases the operating speed. When a note is to be played, the desired dynamic is mapped into a start vector and a stop vector. The actuator is turned on when the state of the finite state machine is equal to the start vector, and is turned off when the state of the finite state machine is equal to the stop vector. Furthermore, the period of the finite state machine is adjusted to be directly proportional to the supply voltage. This allows notes to be played at the desired dynamics even when the supply voltage fluctuates.

Abstract: A piano includes a plurality of keys having forward and rearward ends and an emitter and a detector both disposed adjacent the rearward end of each key. The emitter emits a signal directed toward a surface of the rearward end of the key. The detector receives a signal reflected from the surface of the rearward end of the key. A controller is in communication with the emitter and the detector and processes detection signals received from the detector to determine key movement.

Abstract: An automatic player piano is equipped with a preliminary data producer comprising an experimental routine and an editor; a motion controller forces each of the black and white keys to travel on a test trajectory at different values of key velocity so that the black or white key gives rise to rotation of hammer by means of an action unit, and a hammer sensor varies the magnitude of a hammer position signal depending upon the current hammer position; the hammer velocity is converted to a value of MIDI velocity so that a table producer correlates the values of key velocity with the values of MIDI velocity; while an automatic player is performing a music passage, the motion controller exactly determines a value of key velocity on the basis of the relation already determined by the preliminary data producer.

Abstract: While an automatic player piano is reenacting a music tune, the automatic player piano sometimes fails to miss a tone or tones in a repetition due to a high-speed key movement; a controller searches a music data file for a series of key events expressing the repetition, and makes the key movements uniform without changing the lapse of time from the last key event before the repetition and the lapse of time to the first key event after the repetition so that the automatic player piano is less liable to miss a tone.

Abstract: A hybrid keyboard musical instrument is fabricated on a piano, and a hammer stopper and an electronic tone generating system are installed in the piano; the electronic tone generating system includes hammer sensors arranged on a framework secured to a shank flange rail by means of stud bolts, and the stud bolts and spacer nuts, which are threaded with the stud bolts, serve as locators for locating the sensors at target relative positions with respect to the hammers independently in the fore-and-aft direction and up-and-down direction; the framework is pressed to the spacer nuts with nuts driven into the stud bolts so that the framework is removable from and reassembled with the shank flange rail without loosening the stud bolts.

Abstract: A sound control apparatus for a keyboard-based musical instrument for avoiding a touch of a shutter to a back check, thereby appropriately setting a sound generation timing and maintaining a satisfactory touch feeling. The sound control apparatus comprises a shutter integrated with a hammer adapted to swing associated with a swinging motion of a key, extending along a plane including a path along which said hammer swings, and formed with a cutout in an edge on an opposite side to a direction in which said hammer swings. An optical sensor has a light emitter disposed on one side of the swinging path of said shutter for emitting light, and a light receiver disposed on the other side of the swinging path for receiving the light from said light emitter, and generates a detection signal in accordance with a light receiving state of said light receiver.

Abstract: A servo controller of an automatic player piano normalizes an actual key position to a value less than a reference value indicative of a target stop on a reference trajectory when the key is found in a region immediately before the target stop and to another value greater than the reference value when the key exceeds the target stop, and adjusts a driving signal to a proper value in such a manner that a solenoid-operated key actuator minimizes the difference between the value or another value and the reference value, whereby the servo controller keeps the key in a narrow region on both sides of the target stop for reproducing stop-and-go key motion.

Abstract: A musical performance apparatus has an I/O unit including a digital signal processor (DSP) and a plurality of application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), which are connected together in a cascade connection manner and each of which includes a plurality of shift registers. The DSP produces drive signals for driving a plurality of operators (e.g., keys and pedals) based on performance data. In synchronization with a serial clock signal, drive signals are transferred in a serial manner from the DSP to the shift registers. In synchronization with a word sync signal based on the serial clock signal, detection signals representing displacements of the operators are transferred in parallel to the shift registers, which in turn output drive signals in parallel. Both of the serial clock signal and word sync signal are produced using a single clock generator.

Abstract: An automatic playing system is independent of acoustic pianos, and is designed to perform music tunes expressed by sets of MIDI music data codes on the acoustic pianos; since the acoustic pianos have their own individualities, control parameter table, which were prepared through experiments on a standard piano, are not optimum for most of the acoustic pianos due to the individualities: the automatic playing system can tailor the control parameter tables defining relation between the magnitude of driving signal and the MIDI velocity and relation between the magnitude of driving signal and time lag from the supply of the driving signal and the collision between the hammers and the strings for each sort of acoustic pianos before the automatic playing so that the automatic playing system reproduces the music tunes at high fidelity regardless of the sort of acoustic pianos.

Abstract: An automatic player piano is a combination between an acoustic piano and an electronic system serving as a recorder and an automatic player; while a user is fingering a piece of music on the acoustic piano, the player strongly depresses some keys and softly depresses other keys so as to give artistic expression to the tones, and the depressed keys give rise to hammer motion at different values of hammer velocity; since the hammer velocity is proportional to the loudness of tones, the controller is expected exactly to determine the hammer velocity; the hammers travel on linear trajectories and parabolic trajectories depending upon the hammer velocity so that the controller estimates the hammer velocity by using different methods, whereby the controller can produce music data codes exactly expressing the tones to be produced.

Abstract: An automatic playing system creates a feedback control loop for the keys incorporated in an acoustic piano; key sensors, which are provided under the front portions of the keys, informs a motion controller of current positions, and the motion controller periodically compares the current position and a current velocity with a target position on a reference trajectory and a target velocity to see whether or not a positional deviation and a velocity deviation occur; when the motion controller finds the deviations, the motion controller multiplies the deviations by a position gain and a velocity gain for determining an increment or decrement of the duty ratio of driving signals, and supplies the driving signals to the solenoid-operated actuators so as to accelerate or decelerate the keys; the gain is variable depending upon the key motion so that the actual key trajectory becomes close to the reference trajectory.

Abstract: While an automatic player piano is reenacting a music tune, the automatic player piano sometimes fails to miss a tone or tones in a repetition due to a high-speed key movement; a controller searches a music data file for a series of key events expressing the repetition, and makes the key movements uniform without changing the lapse of time from the last key event before the repetition and the lapse of time to the first key event after the repetition so that the automatic player piano is less liable to miss a tone.

Abstract: An automatic player piano is only equipped with key sensors, and the automatic player is expected to give rise to hammer motion to be varied together with the loudness of tones; the manufacturer prepared not only a velocity conversion table expressing a relation between measured values of the hammer velocity and measured values of the reference key velocity but also a reference table expressing a relation between measured values of hammer velocity and target values of reference key velocity through experiments, and the velocity conversion table and reference table were stored in a suitable memory in the automatic player; the automatic player determines a playback table partially through an experiment and partially through transcription from reference table so as to drive the hammers without influence of unstable key motion at large loudness.

Abstract: An automatic player piano is equipped with solenoid-operated pedal actuators for driving the pedals in a playback; since a large quantity of induction is coupled to the solenoid, the driving signal is delayed due to long time constant so that the pedals behave differently from those in the original performance; a controller, which is incorporated in the automatic player, firstly determines a target mean current of the driving signal to be theoretically required for the reproduction of the pedal motion, and a temporary means current twice as much as the target mean current at the maximum; the controller supplies the driving signal at the temporary mean current to the solenoid in an early stage of each cycle, and, thereafter, recovers the driving signal to the target mean current so that the pedal motion becomes close to that in the original performance.

Abstract: In order to define movement of a particular key to be automatically operated, first-order trajectory data are generated, on the basis of performance information, which are indicative of variation over time of position, velocity and acceleration components of the particular key. Jerk component related to the movement of the particular key is calculated on the basis of the acceleration component in the first-order trajectory data, and second-order trajectory data are generated by modifying the first-order trajectory data with the calculated jerk component. Then, a drive device for driving the particular key is servo-controlled on the basis of the second-order trajectory data. In this way, nonconstant acceleration (or constant jerk) control, rather than constant acceleration control, can be performed to control driving of the key during a successive key depression, so as to allow the successively-depressed key to operate with an increased smoothness.

Abstract: A portable modular device for the purpose of sensing key movement of a piano or keyboard, processing key movement information, and communicating at least key-note ON/OFF and key-note velocity information. A portion of the modular device, the key sensor strip, inserts between the keys and fallboard and mounts atop a piano or keyboard.

Abstract: A method of utilizing previous event feedback information from historical derived hammer velocity data, such as associated with a MIDI record function, for providing non-real-time feedback when controlling actuators. The use of non-real-time feedback within the present invention provides a number of advantages over the use of conventional real-time feedback mechanisms. Utilization of the non-real-time (historical) key actuation information reduces the amount of circuitry necessary for correcting the operation of the actuators (i.e. solenoids) during playback on the instrument. By way of example, a programmable circuit element receives velocity information on previous key strikes for adjusting the actuator velocity output signal which will be generated for future key strikes. The accuracy of key strike normalization provided by this method approaches that which is achievable using real-time feedback, because the velocity profiles for each key remain substantially constant during playback.

Abstract: An automatic player piano has a feedback control loop for each of the black/white keys; the controller firstly determines a reference trajectory, i.e., a target key position varied with time for each key to be moved in the play-back, and calculates a target key velocity, and compares a true key position reported from a key sensor and a true key velocity calculated from the true key position with the target key position and target key velocity for optimizing the duty ratio of the driving signal; the positional difference and the velocity difference are independently multiplied by a positional gain and a velocity gain so as to determine the optimum duty ratio; since the ratio of the velocity gain to the positional gain is 1 to 3, the key travels along the reference trajectory without oscillation and overshoot.

Abstract: A hammer sensor includes a photo-filter plate movable together with a hammer assembly and having a base plate fixed to the hammer shank and an arc pattern formed on the base plate and different in transparency from the base plate, a photo radiating element radiating a light beam toward the arc pattern and a photo detecting element disposed on the optical path of the light beam for converting the amount of transmitted light to an electric signal, wherein the photo-filter plate converts the rotational angle of the hammer assembly to the amount of light incident on the photo detecting element, and makes the photo radiating element and the photo detecting element stationary so that a suitable photo-shield case prevents the photo elements from environmental light.

Abstract: A hammer sensor includes a photo-filter plate movable together with a hammer assembly and having a base plate fixed to the hammer shank and an arc pattern formed on the base plate and different in transparency from the base plate, a photo radiating element radiating a light beam toward the arc pattern and a photo detecting element disposed on the optical path of the light beam for converting the amount of transmitted light to an electric signal, wherein the photo-filter plate converts the rotational angle of the hammer assembly to the amount of light incident on the photo detecting element, and makes the photo radiating element and the photo detecting element stationary so that a suitable photo-shield case prevents the photo elements from environmental light.

Abstract: A device and related method for detecting, controlling, and recording keyboard motion in which individual magnets, sensors and actuators associated with each key capture and re-produce key motion with a high degree of accuracy. The method uses a non-contact sensing assembly technique that requires no mechanical or electrical connections with the keyboard assembly, thus making the device easy to service and install. The method also uses a mathematical algorithm to adjust actuator key movement at a very rapid rate making it possible to install in a variety of pianos with different key weights and still be able to play with high accuracy. Finally, the device system dynamically maps the keyboard to which keys are in playback mode and which are in record mode, allowing the use of both modes simultaneously, thus letting the player add to (layer) performances.

Abstract: An automatic player piano is an acoustic piano equipped with a data acquisition system and a playback system, and the data acquisition system monitors the hammers with hammer sensors for producing a set of music data codes representative of a performance on the keyboard, wherein the hammer sensor has a detectable range over the trajectory of the associated hammer so that the data acquisition system obtains pieces of music data accurately representative of the trajectory of hammer to be required for a faithful reproduction of the original performance.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for measuring and recording keyboard motion in which an array of magnets and sensors capture key movement with high accuracy. This method uses a non-contact sensing and assembly technique that requires no mechanical or electrical connections with the entire keyboard assembly, thus making installation and servicing easier, as there are no cables or other devices required to connect or remove from the keyboard. This method also uses a mathematical algorithm to adjust for sensor distance variation (from the sensor to the key), allowing for high accuracy over the entire keyboard. Finally, this method allows for sideways keyboard movement (soft pedal in grand and some vertical pianos), without affecting the sensor readings.

Abstract: A keyboard musical instrument is equipped with solenoid-operated key actuators for guiding a player in fingering on the keyboard, and the solenoid-operated key actuators stop the keys at terminative positions on the way to the end positions, wherein key sensors supplies detecting signal representative of the keys reaching the terminative positions to a controller so that the controller removes the driving signals from the solenoid-operated key actuators immediately before the escape of jacks from the hammers.

Abstract: A keyboard assembly for an electronic musical instrument is provided, which is capable of having touch inputs to a key from a finger of a player reflected in his power of expression with higher fidelity even when the single key is successively depressed to repeatedly generate the same tone. A plurality of mass members are each disposed to be pivotally driven in response to depression of the corresponding key. A support device pivotally supports the keys and the mass members. A plurality of musical tone instruction devices provided respectively for the keys each instruct generation and damping of a musical tone in response to depression of a corresponding key, and are each comprised of a first sensor and a second sensor for generating a key event during a stroke of the corresponding key in response to depression thereof or in response to pivotal movement of the corresponding mass member responsive to the depression of the key.

Abstract: A keyboard musical instrument is equipped with solenoid-operated key actuators for guiding a player in fingering on the keyboard, and the solenoid-operated key actuators stop the keys at terminative positions on the way to the end positions, wherein key sensors supplies detecting signal representative of the keys reaching the terminative positions to a controller so that the controller removes the driving signals from the solenoid-operated key actuators immediately before the escape of jacks from the hammers.

Abstract: An automatic player piano determines the loudness of an acoustic tone to be reproduced in a playback on the basis of a hammer velocity, and the hammer velocity is calculated on the basis of a long distance defined in a shutter plate attached to each of the hammers for a strongly depressed key or a short distance also defined in the shutter plate for a softly depressed key so as to accurately produce the acoustic tone.

Abstract: An automatic player piano has a released key velocity estimator for modifying the constant released key velocity of a piece of music data information to a target released key velocity; a memory stores relation between the target key velocity estimator and other key-touch factors such as a final hammer velocity and a time interval between an impact timing and a key release timing, the released key velocity estimator supplies the key-touch factors to the memory so as to read out the target key velocity estimator, and modifies the piece of music data information so as to indicate the target released key velocity.

Abstract: An ideal automatic player piano is assumed to reproduce an original performance from fundamental data representative of a fundamental forward key trajectory and a backward key trajectory; however, if an actual automatic player piano reproduces a forward key trajectory and a backward key trajectory on the basis of the fundamental data, the forward key trajectory and the backward key trajectory do not faithfully reproduce the original key motions; for this reason, the actual automatic player piano learns first offset time at the end position and second offset time at an intermediate position between the end position and the rest position so as to determine a virtual forward key trajectory and a virtual backward key trajectory, and further learns first dead time around the rest position and second dead time around the rest position so as to exactly determining first starting time at the rest position and a second starting time at the end position, thereby moving keys along composite forward/backward trajectories

Abstract: The invention was developed in order to play an electronic piano in the same manner as when playing an acoustic piano without feeling any sense of incompatibility. At S100, the key velocity (key stroke strength) is detected by key sensors 33 and 35. At S110, the detected key stroke strength is converted referring to the conversion table stored in ROM 43 and showing a touch curve. At S120, based on said converted key stroke strength data, an electronic sound source 9 and an amplifier 11 are controlled to generate sounds from speakers. The converted key stroke strength represents the sound volume. Since the conversion table of the present embodiment is set so that when the electronic piano is played with the same touch as in playing the acoustic piano, the same sound volume as the acoustic piano can be obtained. Therefore, the player do not feel any sense of incompatibility.