Karaoke device and karaoke program

Abstract

To provide a karaoke device which can quickly replay music.SOLUTION: A karaoke device comprises: a first control part for executing, request processing for requesting voice data forming music data, and video data to a second control part, reception processing for receiving the voice data and video data requested in the request processing, conversion processing for converting the voice data into voice replay data which can be replayed on the basis of the voice data received in the reception processing, voice replay processing for replaying voice replay data converted in the conversion processing, and video replay processing for replaying video data; and the second control part for executing, first sending processing for reading the voice data from the storage part and sending the same to the first control part, and second sending processing for receiving the video data from a communication part and sending the same to the first control part. The voice replay processing is started in conditions where, the prescribed amount of the voice replay data is converted, and the video replay processing is started.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a karaoke device that reproduces audio data and video data, and a karaoke program executed on an information processing device. [Background technology]

[0002] Karaoke has been widely enjoyed as a form of entertainment where people enjoy singing along with music. Karaoke not only plays music, but also displays lyrics to assist singing, or displays background images to improve the atmosphere of singing. Such display of lyrics and background images is achieved by displaying images that correspond to the music.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a music / video playback device that displays background video that matches music data. Specifically, background genre data is read from music data registered in a music reservation area, and background video data that corresponds to the background genre data is selected and played. Patent Document 1 also discloses that the music / video playback device uses a DVD drive to play background video data recorded on a DVD. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-288083 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The music / video playback device disclosed in Patent Document 1 can improve the atmosphere when singing by displaying background video data according to the genre of the music.

[0006] Currently, video playback is possible using video information in a variety of formats, and karaoke machines also use video information other than the DVD disclosed in Patent Document 1. Furthermore, as information processing devices become more advanced, the configurations of karaoke machines are becoming more diverse.

[0007] In such karaoke devices, it is required that the selected song be played back quickly. In a karaoke booth or a night club, if it takes a long time from when a song is requested until the playback starts, it may dampen the mood of the place.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and has as its object to enable quick playback of music even when karaoke devices have a variety of configurations. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] For this reason, the karaoke apparatus according to the present invention employs the following configuration. A first control unit, a second control unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit, The first control unit is a request process for requesting audio data and video data constituting the music data from the second control unit; a receiving process for receiving the audio data and the video data requested in the request process; A conversion process for converting the audio data received in the reception process into reproducible audio playback data; an audio playback process for playing back the audio playback data converted by the conversion process; A video playback process is performed to play back the video data. The second control unit is a first transmission process of reading out the voice data from the storage unit and transmitting the voice data to the first control unit; a second transmission process of receiving the video data from the communication unit and transmitting the video data to the first control unit; The audio reproduction process is started on the condition that the audio reproduction data has been converted by a predetermined amount and the video reproduction process is started.

[0010] Furthermore, in the karaoke apparatus according to the present invention, The music data is divided into two types: Type 1 and Type 2. When the music data is of the first type, the audio playback process is started on the condition that the audio playback data has been converted by a predetermined amount and the video playback process is started; When the music data is of the second type, the audio reproduction process is started on the condition that the audio reproduction data has been converted by a predetermined amount, regardless of whether or not the video reproduction process is started.

[0011] Furthermore, the karaoke apparatus according to the present invention comprises: In the request processing, the request for video data is made after the request for audio data.

[0012] Furthermore, in the karaoke apparatus according to the present invention, The music data is divided into two types: Type 1 and Type 2. When the music data is the first type, the request for the video data is made after the request for the audio data in the request process; When the music data is of the first type, the request for the video data and the request for the audio data are made simultaneously in the request process.

[0013] Furthermore, the karaoke apparatus according to the present invention comprises: The first control unit and the second control unit run on different OS (Operating Systems), The first control unit and the second control unit are connected via an internal LAN (Local Area Network).

[0014] Further, the karaoke program according to the present invention comprises: A karaoke program executed by an information processing device including a first control unit, a second control unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit, The first control unit is a request process for requesting audio data and video data constituting the music data from the second control unit; a receiving process for receiving the audio data and the video data requested in the request process; A conversion process for converting the audio data received in the reception process into reproducible audio playback data; an audio playback process for playing back the audio playback data converted by the conversion process; A video playback process is performed to play back the video data. The second control unit is a first transmission process of reading out the voice data from the storage unit and transmitting the voice data to the first control unit; a second transmission process of receiving the video data from the communication unit and transmitting the video data to the first control unit; The audio reproduction process is started on the condition that the audio reproduction data has been converted by a predetermined amount and the video reproduction process is started. Effect of the Invention

[0015] According to the karaoke device of the present invention, which is equipped with a first control unit and a second control unit and in which the first control unit plays back audio playback data and video data, it is possible to quickly play back songs. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a karaoke system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the structure of data used in the karaoke device of the present embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing an overall control process executed in the karaoke device of the present embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a flow diagram showing video processing executed in the karaoke device of the present embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram showing the audio processing executed in the karaoke device of the present embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a flow diagram showing the flow of data in the karaoke device of the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a karaoke system according to this embodiment. The karaoke system according to this embodiment includes a karaoke device 2 (sometimes called a commander) and a remote control device 1. In this embodiment, the karaoke device 2 and the remote control device 1 are communicatively connected to a LAN 100 by wire or wirelessly to form a network.

[0018] The karaoke device 2 installed in a store such as a karaoke booth includes an audio control unit 25 that plays music (accompaniment). The audio control unit 25 of this embodiment imparts acoustic effects such as echo to the audio signals input from the microphones 43a, 43b, adds a playback signal that is played based on music data, and outputs the result to a speaker 42. Although FIG. 1 shows only one speaker 42 for convenience, it is possible to adopt various configurations such as a plurality of speakers 42 and stereo or surround output.

[0019] The karaoke device 2 includes two control units (first SoC 20a and second SoC 20b) as a control configuration. An SoC (System on a Chip) is a chip also called a one-chip computer, which is a chip that integrates functions such as a CPU, memory, a video chip, and I / O (Input / Output), which are the core of a computer. Note that, in addition to using such an SoC as a control configuration, the CPU, memory, video chip, etc., which are functions of the SoC, may be prepared as components.

[0020] The first SoC 20a (first control unit) is mainly responsible for functions related to the reproduction of music. The sound generated by the first SoC 20a is output to the audio control unit 25 and emitted from the speaker . The image formed by the first SoC 20a is displayed on the monitor 41 via the switch 28. In this embodiment, the switch 28 is configured to input the images of the first SoC 20a and the second SoC 20b and display one of them on the monitor 41, but the images may be composited and displayed on the monitor 41.

[0021] The first SoC 20a is also a control unit in charge of controlling the infrared communication unit 21, the LED 22, and the operation unit 23. The LED 22 functions as a status display unit that displays various states of the karaoke device 2. The operation unit 23 is composed of a switch, a touch panel, etc., and accepts various operations from the user. In this embodiment, the first SoC 20a controls the LED 22 and the operation unit 23 via a microcomputer 26.

[0022] The second SoC 20b (second control unit) is a control unit that mainly handles various applications (application programs) executed by the karaoke device 2 and external communications with the Internet and the like. Possible applications executed by the karaoke device 2 include games, video viewing, web conferences, and the like. The second SoC 20b can output audio and video, similar to the first SoC 20a. Audio generated by the second SoC 20b is output to the audio control unit 25, and video is displayed and output on the monitor 41 via the switch 28. A hard disk 29 is mounted on the second SoC 20b, and the second SoC 20b controls reading and writing from and to the hard disk 29. The first SoC 20a and the second SoC 20b are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via an internal LAN hub 27 (internal LAN (Local Area Network)).

[0023] The karaoke device 2 can easily be configured to play music using a legacy system such as a conventional OS (operating system, in this embodiment "Linux (registered trademark)") and a control program. On the other hand, a new OS (in this embodiment "Android OS") can be used for applications executed by the karaoke device 2, allowing existing applications or a variety of development environments to be used. For these reasons, the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment employs two control units, the first SoC 20a and the second SoC 20b. The first SoC 20a and the second SoC 20b are connected to each other via an internal LAN hub 27, and therefore can be easily linked by communicating using a general communication protocol.

[0024] In addition, in this embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which a hard disk 29 serving as a storage unit is connected to the second SoC 20b. Although it is possible to provide a hard disk to the first SoC 20a as well, the hardware configuration becomes complicated and file management becomes difficult, so the configuration of this embodiment is adopted.

[0025] The internal LAN hub 27 is connected to a network using the LAN 100 by using the wireless LAN communication unit 24b and the LAN communication unit 24a (communication unit).

[0026] With this configuration, the karaoke device 2 executes various processes, and its main functions include song reservation processing, song playback processing (overall control processing, video processing, audio processing), etc. The song reservation processing is a process for specifying and reserving a song based on a user's specification, and is executed in cooperation with the remote control device 1. Reservation information formed by the song selection processing of the remote control device 1 is transmitted to the karaoke device 2. The karaoke device 2 registers the received reservation information in a reservation table stored and managed in the memory in the first SoC 20a. In the song playback processing, video processing, audio processing, and lyric display processing are executed under the overall control processing.

[0027] The audio processing is processing related to audio, and includes an audio reproduction process that causes the audio control unit 25 to perform a performance based on data (MIDI data, audio data) included in the music data. The music played by the sound control unit 25 is mixed with audio signals input from microphones 43a and 43b and is output from the speaker 42. The lyrics display process is a process that provides singing assistance by displaying a lyrics video (telop) based on lyrics data included in the music data on the monitor 41. The atmosphere of singing is improved by superimposing the background video played in the video playback process on the lyrics video displayed in this lyrics display process.

[0028] Meanwhile, the remote control device 1 is capable of executing a song selection process, which searches for songs based on instructions from a user and transmits reservation information for a song instructed to be played to the karaoke device 2. The remote control device 1 is capable of receiving various information from the karaoke device 2 or a server device 5 connected to the Internet and executing various processes. In this embodiment, the remote control device 1 is provided with an operation unit 17 and a touch panel monitor 11 as a user interface for receiving various instructions from a user. The touch panel monitor 11 is configured with a display unit 11a and a touch panel 11b, and is capable of displaying various information on the display unit 11a and receiving touch input from the user.

[0029] Furthermore, the remote control device 1 is equipped with a memory 14 as a storage unit for storing databases required for music selection processing, various programs, and various information generated with program execution, and a remote control side control unit for controlling these components in an integrated manner. The remote control side control unit includes a CPU 15, an image control unit 13 that forms an image to be displayed on the touch panel monitor 11, a video RAM 12 that temporarily stores image data of the image to be displayed, and an operation processing unit 18 that interprets input from the touch panel monitor 11 or the operation unit 17 and transmits it to the CPU 15.

[0030] The remote control device 1 is connected to the network formed by the LAN 100 by being wirelessly connected to the access point 130 by the wireless LAN communication unit 16. Each remote control device 1 is pre-associated with a specific karaoke device 2. Various commands output from the remote control device 1 are received by the associated karaoke device 2.

[0031] With such a configuration of the remote control device 1, various inputs from the user can be received from the touch panel monitor 11 or the operation unit 17, and various information can be provided by displaying on the touch panel monitor 11, making it possible to perform various processes such as song selection processing which transmits reservation information to be output to the karaoke device 2.

[0032] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the structure of data used in the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment. FIG. 2(A) shows music bibliographic information, which is used in the song selection process performed by the remote control device 1 or the karaoke device 2. The music bibliographic information includes information such as a song ID (song identification information), a song name, an artist name, and attribute data. In the song selection process in the remote control device 1, a song is selected using the music bibliographic information. Here, the attribute data is information indicating whether the song has a background video, such as a PV, which is a video prepared specifically for the song and needs to be synchronized with the audio to be played, or whether the video is appropriate for the genre of the song and does not need to be synchronized with the audio (asynchronous). As will be described later, the attribute data is used to link video processing and audio processing according to the attribute data.

[0033] Fig. 2(B) shows the configuration data that constitutes the music piece of this embodiment, with the file name of each piece of configuration data listed. In this embodiment, the configuration data includes MIDI data, lyric data, audio data, and video data. Note that a single piece of music can contain multiple pieces of MIDI data and audio data. MIDI data is performance data based on the MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) standard. In this embodiment, the MIDI data is played back by a software sound source in the first SoC 20a, converted to PCM data, and played back.

[0034] The lyric data is data that is displayed in synchronization with the performance to assist singing, and is output and displayed on the monitor 41 of the first SoC 20a. The audio data (raw audio data) is data based on actually recorded audio (raw audio), and is converted to PCM data and played back in the first SoC 20a. The video data is data used as background video, and is output and displayed on the monitor 41 of the first SoC 20a.

[0035] In this embodiment, MIDI data, lyric data, and voice data are defined as necessary data A, and MIDI data and lyric data are defined as preparation data B.

[0036] Fig. 2(C) shows a song data composition list, which stores location information of various data constituting a song as URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) in association with song IDs. The song data composition list of this embodiment is managed and used by a WebAPI (Web Application Programming Interface) server realized by the second SoC 20b. The end parts (MIDI_001, Sound_001, Lyric_001, Movie001) written as each piece of location information are the file names of the constituent data constituting the song.

[0037] When the first SoC 20a obtains composition data from the second SoC, it can use this music data composition list to obtain (1) the composition data using a URL or (2) the composition data using a file name.

[0038] In the (1) acquisition method specifying a URL (hereinafter referred to as “acquisition method (1)”), when acquiring data, the proxy server executed on the second SoC 20b first checks whether the data specified by the URL is stored in the hard disk 29. If the data is stored in the hard disk 29, the second SoC 20b reads the data stored in the hard disk 29 and transmits it to the first SoC 20a. On the other hand, if the data is not stored on the hard disk 29, the proxy server executed on the second SoC 20b uses the URL to receive the data from the external network. In this way, in the acquisition method (1), if the data on the hard disk 29 cannot be acquired from the hard disk 29 because the data is corrupted, for example, it is possible to receive the data from the external network, thereby improving the reliability of data acquisition.

[0039] On the other hand, the inventors have found that when the acquisition method (1) is used, it takes a long time to acquire the data. In particular, for data with a relatively large data volume, such as audio data, the acquisition time becomes long. Therefore, in this embodiment, by using the acquisition method (2) in which the file name is specified (hereinafter referred to as "acquisition method (2)") depending on the type of data, it is possible to shorten the acquisition time compared to acquisition method (1). Specifically, for a request to acquire preparatory data (corresponding to (A2) in Figure 6), the acquisition method (1) is used, and for a request to acquire voice data with a large data volume (corresponding to (C1) in Figure 6), the acquisition method (2) is used. In this way, in this embodiment, by using an acquisition method appropriate to the type of data, it is possible to improve the reliability of data acquisition and also shorten the time until music playback begins by shortening the data acquisition time.

[0040] Next, the process of playing a song will be described for the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment. Fig. 3 is a flow diagram showing the overall control process executed by the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment, Fig. 4 is a flow diagram showing the video process executed by the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment, Fig. 5 is a flow diagram showing the audio process executed by the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment, and Fig. 6 is a flow diagram showing the data flow in the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment.

[0041] In this embodiment, when playing music, the first SoC 20a and the second SoC 20b cooperate with each other to execute processing. The functions of the first SoC 20a and the second SoC 20b are shown in the data flow in the karaoke device 2 shown in Fig. 6. The first SoC 20a executes an overall control process (S100), a video process (S200), and an audio process (S300). The second SoC 20b is provided with a function as a WebAPI server, a function as a proxy server, and a function as an NFS server. The second SoC 20b can access an external network such as the Internet as a proxy server. As an NFS server, the second SoC 20b makes at least one directory of the hard disk 29 available to the first SoC 20a, which is an NFS client.

[0042] Playback of a song is started when the user first selects a song on the remote control device 1 or the karaoke device 2. When a song is selected on the remote control device 1 or the karaoke device 2, reservation information including the song ID is stored in a reservation table managed by the karaoke device 2. The overall control process checks the reservation table to see if there is a song to be played next (S101).

[0043] If there is a song to be played next in the reservation table (S102: Yes), the overall control process sends a song preparation request to the second SoC 20b as the WebAPI server (S103, A1). The protocol used in A1 to H1 is HTTP or HTTPS. The song preparation request includes the song ID of the song to be played. The WebAPI server that receives the song preparation request reads out the song data configuration list (FIG. 2(C)) described in FIG. 2(C) based on the song ID. The WebAPI server then uses the read out location information to make a request for required data to the proxy server (D1).

[0044] If the proxy server receives the location information included in the required data request for the first time, it transmits the required data request to a server device installed on the Internet (E1). On the other hand, if the proxy server receives the location information included in the required data request for the second time, it does not transmit the required data request to the server device. The proxy server receives the required data (F1) and starts storing it on the hard disk 29 (E2), and when reception of the required data is complete, it notifies the WebAPI server of a reception completion notification (E3).

[0045] In response to receiving the reception completion notification, the WebAPI server transmits a song preparation completion notification to the overall control process (S100) (G1). The song preparation completion notification includes the song data composition list described in Fig. 2(C), and the overall control process (S100) can request song composition data based on the song data composition list received (S104: Yes).

[0046] The overall control process (S100) transmits a request to obtain preparatory data from the music data composition list to the proxy server (S105, A2). Note that HTTP or HTTPS is used as the protocol for the various instructions transmitted in the overall control process (S100). At that time, the request to obtain the preparatory data is based on the location information and uses an acquisition method that uses a URL. Specifically, the request to obtain the preparatory data is an HTTP request that includes a URL. In this manner, in this embodiment, when acquiring preparation data, the first SoC 20a uses an acquisition method using a URL for the proxy server executed on the second SoC 20b. Therefore, if data cannot be obtained from the hard disk 29, for example if the data on the hard disk 29 is corrupted, it is possible to improve the reliability of data acquisition by using a URL to receive data from an external network.

[0047] In this acquisition method, the first SoC 20a functions as an HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) client, and the second SoC 20b functions as a proxy server. In this embodiment, as described in FIG. 2B, configuration data other than video data and audio data (MIDI data, lyric data) corresponds to the preparation data. Based on the preparation data acquisition request, the proxy server determines that the URL is the one that has been received multiple times, and reads the preparation data from the hard disk 29 (E4) without sending a data request to the server device, and transmits it to the overall control process (S100) (E5).

[0048] Moreover, the overall control process (S100) transmits the MIDI data included in the preparation data to the audio processing (S300) (A3, S105). The overall control process (S100) transmits a list of audio data location information to the audio processing (S300) based on the music data configuration list (A4, S106). The audio processing (S300) that receives the MIDI data and the list of audio data location information (S302, S303) transmits an audio preparation completion notification to the overall control process (S100) (B1, S304).

[0049] The overall control process (S100) issues an instruction to start audio playback (A5) and an instruction to start video playback (A6) on the condition that it has completed receiving the preparation data sent from the proxy server (S108: Yes) and has received an audio preparation completion notification from the audio process (S300) (S109: Yes, C2).

[0050] In this embodiment, the start of audio playback and the start of video playback are differentiated according to the attribute data of the music piece. First, a case where the attribute data of a music piece does not require synchronization (asynchronous) will be described. In the overall control process (S100), a determination is made as to whether the data is synchronous or asynchronous (S110) based on the attribute data included in the music bibliographic information in Fig. 2(A). If the attribute data indicates asynchronous (S110: asynchronous), a video playback start instruction is sent to the video processing (S200) (A6, S114), and an audio playback start instruction is sent to the audio processing (S300) (A5, S115). Note that the video playback start instruction and audio playback start instruction include information indicating that the attribute data is asynchronous.

[0051] In the video processing (S200), when a video playback start instruction is received (S201: Yes), reception and playback of video data is started (S207). In the video processing (S200), the playback method is determined to be asynchronous (S202; asynchronous). At this time, the video processing (S200) requests the video data from the proxy server by specifying the URL of the video data included in the location information (B1).

[0052] The proxy server accesses an external network such as the Internet, makes a request to acquire video data (E6), and receives the video data (F2). The video processing (S200) receives and plays a predetermined amount of video data via the proxy server (E7, S207). Note that the "predetermined amount" may refer to a predetermined amount of video data, or an amount of video data that can be played for a predetermined period of time. The reception and playback of video data (E7, S207) continues until the end of the song is reached (S208: Yes).

[0053] The audio processing (S300) receives an instruction to start audio playback from the overall control processing (S100) (S305: Yes). Then, in the audio processing (S300), the playback method is determined to be asynchronous (S306; asynchronous). Based on the list of location information for audio data, the audio processing (S300) starts acquiring a predetermined amount of audio data that is part of the list (C1, S318). At this time, the audio data is acquired using an acquisition method that uses the file name included in the URL based on the location information.

[0054] A directory, which is a storage area for saving audio data, is predefined in the hard disk 29 connected to the second SoC 20b. This directory is shared by the second SoC 20b with the first SoC 20a. The audio processing (S300) combines the shared directory with the file name included in the URL and transmits an acquisition request for audio data to the NFS server (C1). In response to the acquisition request for audio data, the NFS server reads audio data from the hard disk 29 (H1) and transmits it to the audio processing (S300) (H2). In this acquisition method, the first SoC 20a functions as an NFS (Network File System) client, and the second SoC 20b functions as an NFS (Network File System) server.

[0055] In this manner, in this embodiment, when acquiring audio data having a large data volume, the first SoC 20a uses an acquisition method using a file name for the NFS server executed on the second SoC 20b. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the time required to obtain audio data compared to methods using URLs. This makes it possible to shorten the time it takes for music to start being played.

[0056] In the audio processing (S300), generation (conversion) of PCM data (audio playback data) is started based on the received audio data and MIDI data (S319). Then, when a predetermined amount of PCM data is generated, playback of the generated PCM data is started (S320). Here, the predetermined amount may refer to a predetermined amount of PCM data capacity or an amount that allows the PCM data to be played for a predetermined time.

[0057] In the audio processing (S300), sound is generated from the speaker 42 based on the generated PCM data (S320). Note that the acquisition of a portion of the audio data (C3) and the generation of PCM data based on the MIDI data and audio data (S319) continue even during audio playback. Reception of audio data, generation and playback of PCM data (H2, S319, S320) continue until the end of the song is reached (S321: Yes).

[0058] The above describes the case of music that does not require synchronization of attribute data (asynchronous), but in the case of asynchronous music, there is no need to synchronize audio and video. Therefore, playback of PCM data is started only when a certain amount of PCM data has been generated, making it possible to quickly start audio playback using PCM data.

[0059] Next, a case of a song in which the attribute data needs to be synchronized (synchronous) will be described. In the overall control process (S100), if the attribute data indicates that it is synchronous (S110: synchronous), it transmits an audio playback start instruction to the audio processing (S300) (A5, S111). Then, the overall control process (S100) waits for a predetermined time (S112; Yes). Note that this predetermined time is set to a time that is assumed to be required for the audio processing (S300) to create a predetermined amount of PCM data. In this embodiment, the predetermined time is set in advance, but may be changed depending on the song. Then, the overall control process (S100) transmits a video playback start instruction to the video processing (S200) (A6, S113). Note that the video playback start instruction and the audio playback start instruction include information indicating that the attribute data is synchronous.

[0060] In the video processing (S200), when a video playback start instruction is received (S201: Yes), reception and playback of video data is started (S203). In the video processing (S200), the playback method is determined to be synchronous (S202; synchronous). Reception and playback of video data in the video processing (S200) is the same as in the asynchronous case.

[0061] However, since it is necessary to synchronize the video and audio, the video processing (S200) and the audio processing (S300) are performed in cooperation with each other. During video playback, the video processing (S200) transmits the video playback position to the audio processing (S300) (S204).

[0062] After receiving an instruction to start audio playback from the overall control process (S100) (S305: Yes), the audio process (S300) determines that the playback method is synchronous (S306; synchronous). Based on the list of location information of the audio data, the audio process (S300) starts acquiring a predetermined amount of audio data that is part of the list (S307). At this time, the acquisition of the audio data is the same as in the asynchronous case. The audio process (S300) starts generating (converting) PCM data (audio playback data) based on the received audio data and MIDI data (S308). Then, the audio process (S300) starts playing (sounding) the generated PCM data (S310) on the condition that a predetermined amount of PCM data has been generated and a video playback position other than the beginning position has been received (S309: Yes).

[0063] In this manner, in this embodiment, the playback (sound production) of the PCM data is started on the condition that the playback of the video data has started. Therefore, it is possible to perform playback in which the playback start positions of the video data and the PCM data are aligned (synchronized). After the sound production of the PCM data (S310), the reading of a predetermined amount of voice data (S311), the generation of a predetermined amount of PCM data (S312), and the sound production based on the PCM data (S313) are continuously executed until the end of the song is reached (S317: Yes).

[0064] Furthermore, the video processing (S200) continuously transmits the video playback position to the audio processing (S300) even during playback of video data (S204). During playback, the audio processing (S300) that receives the video playback position (S314; Yes) determines whether or not the video playback position needs to be adjusted based on the playback position of the PCM data and the video playback position (S316). If the video playback position needs to be adjusted (S315: Yes), it transmits an adjustment instruction to the video processing (S200) (S316). The video processing (S200) adjusts the video playback position based on the received adjustment instruction (S205).

[0065] In this way, when video and audio need to be played back in sync, the PCM data and video data can be played back in sync even during playback. For example, even if it takes time to acquire video data during playback, causing a delay in the playback of the video data, synchronization can be achieved by adjusting the video playback position. Video processing (S200) and audio processing (S300) are executed until the end of the song is reached (S206: Yes, S317: Yes).

[0066] The above describes the case of a song that requires synchronization. The karaoke device 2 of this embodiment is configured to take time to acquire audio data by adopting a configuration having the first SoC 20a and the second SoC 20b. In this embodiment, when the playback method is synchronous, the device is configured to wait for the start of video playback after acquiring audio data and generating a predetermined amount of PCM data based on the audio data and MIDI data. With this configuration, it is possible to start playing PCM data immediately after starting video playback.

[0067] Also, it is possible to synchronize video and audio more reliably. As a comparative example, consider a configuration in which, after video playback starts, audio data is acquired, a predetermined amount of PCM data is created based on the audio data and MIDI data, and playback of the PCM data is started. In the configuration of this comparative example, it takes more time to create PCM data than in the past, and as a result, there is a high possibility that the timing of the start of video playback and the start of PCM data playback will be misaligned. In this way, the karaoke device 2 of this embodiment is able to quickly start playback of a song that requires synchronization between video and audio, and is able to more reliably synchronize video and audio.

[0068] [First Modification] In the above embodiment, when synchronization is required, the overall control process (S100) transmits a video playback start instruction to the audio process (S300) a predetermined time after the video playback start instruction to the video process (S200) has elapsed. In other words, the first control unit 20a requests the second control unit 20b for video data after the request for audio data.

[0069] Instead of the above-described embodiment, the first control unit 20a may request the second control unit 20b for video data at the same time as the request for audio data. Depending on communication delays, server congestion, and the like, it may take some time from when the video data is requested until it can be played. By preparing to play the video data while a predetermined amount of PCM data is being generated, it is possible to quickly start playing the music.

[0070] Various embodiments have been described above using the karaoke device 2 as an example, but the scope of the present invention extends not only to the karaoke device 2, but also to karaoke programs executed in various information processing devices such as personal computers and game devices. [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 1: Remote control device 21: Infrared communication unit 2: Karaoke equipment 22: LED 5: Server device 23: Operation unit 11: Touch panel monitor 24a: LAN communication section 11a: Display section 24b: Wireless LAN communication section 11b: Touch panel 25: Sound control unit 12: Video RAM 26: Microcomputer 13: Video control section 27: Internal LAN hub 14: Memory 28: Switch 15: CPU 29: Hard disk 16: Wireless LAN communication unit 41: Monitor 17: Operation unit 42: Speaker 18: Operation processing unit 43a, 43b: Microphone 20a: 1st SoC 130: Access point 20b: 2nd SoC

Claims

1. A first control unit, a second control unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit, The first control unit is a request process for requesting audio data and video data constituting the music piece data from the second control unit; a receiving process for receiving the audio data and the video data requested in the request process; A conversion process for converting the audio data received in the reception process into reproducible audio playback data; an audio playback process for playing back the audio playback data converted by the conversion process; A video playback process is performed to play back the video data. The second control unit is a first transmission process of reading out the voice data from the storage unit and transmitting the voice data to the first control unit; a second transmission process of receiving the video data from the communication unit and transmitting the video data to the first control unit; The audio playback process is started on the condition that a predetermined amount of audio playback data has been converted and the video playback process has started. Karaoke equipment.

2. The music data is classified into a first type and a second type. When the music data is of the first type, the audio reproduction process is started on the condition that the audio reproduction data has been converted by a predetermined amount and the video reproduction process is started; When the music data is of the second type, the audio playback process is started on the condition that the audio playback data has been converted by a predetermined amount, regardless of whether the video playback process is started or not.

2. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 1.

3. In the request processing, the request for video data is made after the request for audio data.

2. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 1.

4. The music data is classified into a first type and a second type. When the music data is of the first type, in the request process, the request for the video data is made after the request for the audio data; When the music data is of the second type, the request for the video data and the request for the audio data are made simultaneously in the request process.

2. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 1.

5. The first control unit and the second control unit run on different operating systems (OSs), The first control unit and the second control unit are connected via an internal LAN (Local Area Network).

2. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 1.

6. A karaoke program executed by an information processing device including a first control unit, a second control unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit, The first control unit is a request process for requesting audio data and video data constituting the music piece data from the second control unit; a receiving process for receiving the audio data and the video data requested in the request process; A conversion process for converting the audio data received in the reception process into reproducible audio playback data; an audio playback process for playing back the audio playback data converted by the conversion process; A video playback process is performed to play back the video data. The second control unit is a first transmission process of reading out the voice data from the storage unit and transmitting the voice data to the first control unit; a second transmission process of receiving the video data from the communication unit and transmitting the video data to the first control unit; The audio playback process is started on the condition that a predetermined amount of audio playback data has been converted and the video playback process has started. Karaoke program.

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