Control method, control device, program and musical instrument

Abstract

To control sound without operating an operator so that processing which is previously set is automatically performed at timing according to an instruction which a player inputs.SOLUTION: A control method includes: a step of calculating speed of performance based on performance information corresponding to performance operation; and a step of generating control information for controlling timing to perform processing related to a loop based on beat information for specifying beats and the speed. Processing which is previously set can automatically be performed at timing according to an instruction which a player inputs.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for controlling sound. [Background technology]

[0002] There are various ideas for musical instruments to generate sounds. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a guitar equipped with various controls for imparting various sound effects to the generated sounds. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2018 / 201100 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] One object of the present invention is to provide control so that preset processing is automatically executed at a timing corresponding to an instruction input by a player. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a control method including calculating a speed of a performance based on performance information corresponding to a performance operation, and generating beat information for identifying a beat and control information for controlling a timing of executing a process related to a loop based on the speed.

[0006] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a control device including a control unit that executes the above control method.

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a program is provided for causing a computer to execute the above control method.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a musical instrument comprising a control unit that executes the above control method and an operator that accepts a performance operation.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a musical instrument is provided comprising strings, a soundboard to which vibrations of the strings are transmitted, a detector attached to the soundboard for detecting input of instructions from a user, and a control unit for executing a predetermined process at a timing determined based on the timing of receiving the instruction and a set delay time. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to control the automatic execution of preset processing at a timing according to an instruction input by a player. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front view showing an acoustic guitar according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a side view of the guitar shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] 2 is a plan view of the inner surface of the back plate of the body of the guitar shown in FIG. 1, viewed from a direction perpendicular to the inner surface. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a control device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 5] 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a control unit according to an embodiment. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the timing of executing a process related to a loop. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the timing of executing a process related to a loop. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram showing an example of a flow of processing related to a loop executed by a control unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The embodiments shown below are merely examples, and the present invention is not to be interpreted as being limited to these embodiments. In the drawings referred to in this embodiment, the same parts or parts having similar functions are given the same or similar symbols (symbols with A, B, etc. added after numbers) and repeated explanations may be omitted. In order to clarify the explanation, the drawings may be described schematically with dimensional ratios different from the actual ratios or parts of the configuration omitted from the drawings.

[0013] [Instrument Composition] In one embodiment of the musical instrument, a vibrator having a predetermined weight can be attached to an acoustic member. The musical instrument according to the embodiment will be described below. In the embodiment described below, the musical instrument is an acoustic guitar as an example. Note that the musical instrument according to the present invention is not limited to an acoustic guitar.

[0014] A musical instrument according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1 to Fig. 3. Fig. 1 is a front view showing an acoustic guitar according to one embodiment. Fig. 2 is a side view showing the guitar shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the inner surface of the back plate of the body of the guitar shown in Fig. 1, viewed from a direction perpendicular to said inner surface.

[0015] 1, an acoustic guitar 1 (hereinafter referred to as guitar 1) includes a guitar body 10 (musical instrument body) and a vibration exciter 30. The guitar body 10 includes a body 11, a neck 12, strings 13, a pickup 21, a control unit 22, and a detection sensor (detector) 40.

[0016] The body 11 is formed in a box shape having a cavity inside. The body 11 has a top plate 14, a back plate 15, and side plates 16. The top plate 14 and the back plate 15 are flat plates of the same shape. The top plate 14 and the back plate 15 are arranged at intervals from each other in the thickness direction. The side plates 16 extend from the periphery of the back plate 15 to the periphery of the top plate 14. The top plate 14, the back plate 15, and the side plates 16 form a soundboard. The top plate 14, the back plate 15, and the side plates 16 form the body 11 having a cavity inside. In the following description, the direction in which the top plate 14 and the back plate 15 are lined up (Z-axis direction) may be referred to as the up-down direction.

[0017] A sound hole 17 is formed in the top plate 14, penetrating it in the thickness direction. The sound hole 17 connects the cavity of the body 11 to the space outside the body 11. In addition, a bridge 18 is provided on the outer surface of the top plate 14, for fastening first ends of the strings 13 in the longitudinal direction.

[0018] A control unit 22 is disposed on the side panel 16. The control unit 22 includes an operation section 23 and a control device 50. The operation section 23 includes one or more setting operators for controlling the settings of the guitar 1 and the sound output from the guitar 1. The setting operators are operation buttons, touch sensors, sliders, and the like. The operation section 23 generates an operation signal in response to an operation by a user, and outputs the operation signal to a control device 50, which will be described later. The operation signal includes beat number information for specifying the number of beats of a piece of music. The beat number information will be described later. Here, the control unit 22 is disposed on the side panel 16, but the position at which the control unit 22 is disposed is not limited to the side panel 16. The control device 50 will be described later.

[0019] The neck 12 extends from the body 11 in a direction generally perpendicular to the up-down direction (Z-axis direction). A head 19 is provided at the tip of the neck 12 for winding the second longitudinal end of the string 13. In the following description, the direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and in which the neck 12 mainly extends (Y-axis direction) may be referred to as the front-rear direction. Additionally, the direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and the front-rear direction may be referred to as the left-right direction (X-axis direction).

[0020] The string (operator) 13 is stretched across the body 11 and the neck 12 in the front-to-rear direction. Specifically, a first end of the string 13 is fastened to a bridge 18 of the body 11, and a second end of the string 13 is wound around a head 19. In this way, the string 13 is stretched between the bridge 18 and the head 19. The string 13 vibrates when the user performs a playing operation.

[0021] A vibration transmission part 20 (saddle) is provided between the strings 13 and the outer surface of the top plate 14. In the guitar 1, the vibration of the strings 13 is transmitted to the top plate 14 via the vibration transmission part 20, causing the top plate 14 to vibrate, and also causing the back plate 15 and the side plates 16 to vibrate. This causes the air inside the body 11 (hollow) to resonate, and sound is radiated outside the body 11.

[0022] The pickup 21 detects the vibration of the strings 13 and outputs a performance signal (performance information) corresponding to the vibration of the strings 13. In Fig. 1, the pickup 21 is disposed at the position where the sound hole 17 of the top plate 14 is formed so as not to impede the vibration of the top plate 14 accompanying the vibration of the strings 13. However, the position where the pickup 21 is installed is not limited to this. The performance signal output from the pickup 21 is supplied to the control device 50. The performance signal may be audio data (waveform data) or sound generation control data such as MIDI data.

[0023] The guitar 1 may also have a communication unit (not shown). The guitar 1 can transmit and receive signals to and from an external device via the communication unit. If the control device 50 is external to the guitar 1, the performance signal is transmitted to the control device 50 via the communication unit.

[0024] The detection sensor 40 is attached to the inside of the front panel 14. The detection sensor 40 outputs a detection signal corresponding to a force applied to the body 11. The detection sensor 40 may be, for example, a deflection detection sensor (e.g., a strain gauge) that detects a deflection caused in the body 11 when a force is applied to the body 11. The detection sensor 40 may also be, for example, a pressure sensor that detects a pressure applied to the body 11. The detection sensor 40 may also be, for example, an electrostatic contact sensor that detects when the user touches the body 11.

[0025] Here, the detection sensor 40 is attached to the inside of the top plate 14, but the position where the detection sensor 40 is placed is not limited to the top plate 14, and the detection sensor 40 can be placed at any position on the body 11. For example, the detection sensor 40 is preferably placed at a position where the user's fingers can easily approach when the user plays the guitar 1. The detection sensor 40 detects the contact of the user's fingers with the body 11. The user may perform a predetermined action before or while playing the guitar 1, such as lightly tapping the body 11 to count. The detection sensor 40 can detect the predetermined action.

[0026] The back plate 15 of the body 11 has an inner surface 15a that faces the top plate 14 in the up-down direction. As shown in Fig. 3, a plurality of sound bars 24 are attached to the inner surface 15a of the back plate 15. Each sound bar 24 is fixed in a predetermined position on the inner surface 15a by adhesive or the like. The shape, number, position, etc. of the sound bars 24 illustrated in Fig. 3 are merely examples, and the position, etc. may be changed as appropriate depending on the purpose of increasing the rigidity of the back plate 15 or the purpose of adjusting the tone of the guitar 1.

[0027] The vibrator 30 includes a vibrator main body 31 (hereinafter, referred to as the main body 31) and a support section 32. The main body 31 vibrates the back plate 15 (soundboard) of the body 11 described above. The main body 31 is connected to a control device 50. The main body 31 may be connected to the control device 50 by wire, or may be connected to the control device 50 wirelessly so that a wireless unit (not shown) provided in the main body 31 receives a signal from the control device 50. The support section 32 supports the main body 31 and fixes it to the inner surface 15a of the back plate 15. The main body 31 may be, for example, a voice coil type actuator.

[0028] The control device 50 outputs a sound signal in response to a control signal (control information) generated based on pre-stored music data, audio data, or a performance signal indicating the vibration of the sound source (strings 13) of the guitar 1. The main body 31 of the vibrator 30 vibrates the back plate 15 in response to a drive signal (electrical signal) based on the sound signal. Note that, although an example of vibrating the back plate 15 has been shown in this embodiment, the place where vibration is applied is not limited to the back plate 15. For example, the main body 31 of the vibrator 30 may vibrate the top plate 14, or may vibrate both the back plate 15 and the top plate 14. Alternatively, the main body 31 of the vibrator 30 may vibrate the side plate 16, or may vibrate the side plate 16, the top plate 14, and / or the back plate 15.

[0029] 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device 50. The control device 50 includes a control unit 51 and a storage unit 53. The control device 50 may also include an equalizer 55. Here, the control device 50 is attached to the body 11 of the guitar 1 as the control unit 22. However, the control device 50 may be an external device capable of communicating with the guitar 1. In this case, the control device 50 includes a communication unit (not shown) capable of communicating with an external device such as the guitar 1. The control device 50 is connected to the main body 31 of the vibrator 30 by wire or wirelessly.

[0030] The performance signal (performance information) output from the pickup 21, the operation signal output from the operation unit 23, and the detection signal output from the detection sensor 40 are supplied to the control unit 51. If the control device 50 includes an equalizer 55, the performance signal output from the pickup 21 is supplied to the control unit 51 after its frequency characteristics are adjusted by the equalizer 55. If the control device 50 does not include the equalizer 55, the performance signal is supplied directly to the control unit 51.

[0031] The control unit 51 includes a processing circuit such as a CPU, and storage devices such as a RAM and a ROM. The control unit 51 executes a control program stored in the storage unit 53 by the CPU to realize various functions. The storage unit 53 is a storage device such as a non-volatile memory. The storage unit 53 stores the control program executed by the control unit 51. The storage unit 53 also stores information required for the control unit 51 to execute processing. The control unit 51 realizes various functions by executing the control program. In this embodiment, the control unit 51 realizes a loop function. Hereinafter, processing for realizing the loop function is referred to as processing related to the loop. The processing related to the loop includes recording a sound signal based on a performance sound by switching between starting and ending the recording of the performance sound corresponding to a performance operation (recording processing), and repeatedly playing back the recorded sound signal (loop playback processing).

[0032] 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the control unit 51. The control unit 51 includes a performance speed calculation unit 511, a control signal generation unit 513, and an output unit 515. The control unit 51 generates a control signal (control information) based on an operation signal and a performance signal.

[0033] The performance speed calculation unit 511 acquires a performance signal (performance information). When the detection sensor 40 outputs a detection signal, the performance speed calculation unit 51 acquires the detection signal from the detection sensor 40. As described above, the detection sensor 40 can detect a predetermined action by the user before or during a performance by detecting the contact of the user's fingers with the body 11. That is, the detection signal is an instruction indicating the start of counting by the user. When the detection signal is input, the performance speed calculation unit 511 determines a reference timing based on the detection signal as a reference for starting counting the beat of the performance. The reference timing is, for example, the timing at which a predetermined action by the user before or during a performance is detected. The reference timing is, for example, the timing at which a performance signal is output immediately after the detection of the predetermined action by the user before the performance. The performance speed calculation unit 511 calculates the performance speed (performance tempo) based on the acquired performance signal. Specifically, the performance speed calculation unit 511 calculates the performance speed (performance tempo) based on a performance signal output during a predetermined period of the performance period in which the user is playing the guitar 1. This "predetermined period" is either a period before or after the reference timing, or a period including the reference timing, and may be a pre-set period before the desired processing is started. The "predetermined period" may be set by the user. The performance speed (performance tempo) is found by calculating the BPM of the performance. The performance speed calculation unit 511 outputs information indicating the reference timing and the calculated performance speed to the control signal generation unit 513.

[0034] The control signal generating unit 513 obtains information indicating the reference timing and the performance speed from the performance speed calculating unit 511. The control signal generating unit 513 also obtains an operation signal. The operation signal includes beat information and information specifying a desired process related to the loop. The beat information is, for example, beat information for specifying after how many beats the process related to the loop will be executed. The beat information is preset by the user via the operation unit 23.

[0035] The control signal generating unit 513 generates a control signal (control information) for controlling the timing of executing a loop-related process based on the beat information and the performance speed (performance tempo). Execution of a loop-related process includes at least one of starting a loop-related process and ending the loop-related process. In other words, the timing of executing a loop-related process includes at least one of starting a loop-related process and ending the loop-related process. As described above, the loop-related process includes a recording process and a loop playback process. A user can set a desired loop-related process via the operation unit 23.

[0036] The control signal generating unit 513 determines the time (period) until the loop-related process is executed based on the beat information and the performance speed (performance tempo). Furthermore, the control signal generating unit 513 determines the timing for executing the loop-related process based on the reference timing and the time (period) until the loop-related process is executed.

[0037] For example, when the user specifies that the loop playback process is to be executed 24 beats after the start of the performance, the user sets "24 beats" as the beat number information via the operation unit 23, and sets the loop playback process as the desired process related to the loop. As described above, the performance speed calculation unit 511 determines the reference timing based on the detection signal, and further calculates the performance speed (performance tempo) based on the performance signal. Furthermore, the control signal generation unit 513 generates a control signal for starting the loop playback process 24 beats after the reference timing based on the operation signal and the performance speed acquired from the performance speed calculation unit 511. Here, the timing for starting the loop playback process is 24 beats after the reference timing according to the performance speed. In other words, the timing 24 beats after the reference timing is variable according to the performance speed.

[0038] When the process related to the loop desired by the user is a loop playback process, the control signal generating unit 513 outputs a control signal to the output unit 515. The output unit 515 acquires a pre-stored sound signal for playback, and outputs the sound signal to a drive device (not shown) for driving the vibrator 30 at a timing based on the control signal. In this embodiment, the sound signal for playback is pre-stored in the storage unit 53 of the control device 50. The output unit 515 reads out the sound signal for playback from the storage unit 53. The sound signal for playback may be stored in an external storage device capable of wired or wireless communication with the control device 50. In this case, the output unit 515 reads out the sound signal for playback from the external storage device by wired or wireless communication.

[0039] The driving device for driving the vibration exciter 30 may be included in the control device 50, or may be a separate device capable of communicating with the control device 50 by wire or wirelessly. The driving device generates a driving signal for driving the vibration exciter 30 based on a sound signal for reproduction, and outputs the generated driving signal to the main body 31 of the vibration exciter 30. The main body 31 vibrates the back plate 15 in response to the driving signal. As a result, the guitar 1 executes a loop playback process at a timing based on the control signal. Note that FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram, and the arrows connecting the playing speed calculation unit 511, the control signal generation unit 513, and the output unit 515 indicate the flow of signals, and do not indicate the order of processing. That is, for example, these three functions executed by a program or the like may be processed in any order.

[0040] 6 and 7 are conceptual diagrams for explaining the timing of executing a loop-related process. Here, as an example, a case will be explained in which the loop-related process is a loop playback process and the beat number information is "24 beats."

[0041] FIG. 6 shows a case where the reference timing based on the detection signal is simultaneous with the start of performance (the timing when the performance signal is output). In this case, the performance speed calculation unit 511 calculates the speed of the performance based on the performance signal output during the period A after the start of performance. The control signal generation unit 513 determines the timing 24 beats after the reference timing based on the performance speed calculated by the performance speed calculation unit 511 as the loop playback processing start timing. The control signal generation unit 513 generates a control signal for starting the loop playback processing 24 beats after the reference timing. The output unit 515 reads out the sound signal for playback from the storage unit 53 based on the control signal and outputs it to the drive device. When the reading of the sound signal for playback by the output unit 515 is completed, the loop playback processing is completed. In other words, the loop playback processing end timing is the timing when the reading of the sound signal for playback by the output unit 515 is completed. The loop playback period is the period from the loop playback processing start timing to the loop playback processing end timing. In FIG. 6, the period A shows the period immediately after the start of performance. However, the period A may be the period after a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of performance.

[0042] FIG. 7 shows a case where the reference timing based on the detection signal is after the start of performance (the timing when the performance signal is output). In this case, the performance speed calculation unit 511 calculates the performance speed based on the performance signal output in any one of the periods A1, A2, and A3 after the start of performance. The period A1 is a predetermined period before the reference timing. The period A2 is a predetermined period after the reference timing. The period A3 is a predetermined period before and after the reference timing, including the reference timing. The user can set any one of the periods A1 to A3 via the operation unit 23. The generation of the control signal by the control signal generation unit 513 and the reading and output of the sound signal for reproduction based on the control signal by the output unit 515 are the same as those described with reference to FIG. 6.

[0043] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram showing an example of a flow of processing related to a loop executed by the control unit 51. As shown in FIG.

[0044] Before playing, the control unit 51 receives beat information and a designation of processing related to the loop desired by the user (S601). Next, the control unit 51 acquires a detection signal (S602). The control unit 51 determines a reference timing based on the detection signal. When the user starts playing, the control unit 51 acquires a performance signal (S603). The performance speed calculation unit 511 of the control unit 51 calculates the performance speed (performance tempo) based on the performance signal (S604).

[0045] The control signal generating unit 513 of the control unit 51 determines the timing for executing the process related to the loop desired by the user based on the detection signal, the beat information, and the performance speed (S605). Next, the control signal generating unit 513 generates and outputs a control signal based on the determined timing (S606).

[0046] If a specified action of the user is detected during a performance operation, in other words, if a specified action performed by the user while playing the guitar 1 is detected by the detection sensor 40 after the user starts playing the guitar 1, the order of the above-mentioned processes S602 and S603 may be reversed.

[0047] In this way, when the user has set the beat information and the desired loop-related processing before playing, the control unit 51 determines the timing for executing the desired loop-related processing based on the set beat information. This allows the user to omit an operation for executing the desired loop-related processing during playing. The control unit 51 also calculates the speed of the user's playing, and determines the time from the reference timing to the timing for executing the desired loop-related processing based on the calculated playing speed and beat information. Therefore, regardless of the playing speed, the control unit 51 can automatically determine the timing for executing the desired loop-related processing based on the beat information and playing speed.

[0048] Modifications of the above-described embodiment will now be described.

[0049] [Variation 1] In the above-described embodiment, the reference timing for determining the timing to execute the loop-related process is determined based on a detection signal that detects a predetermined action performed by the user before or during a performance. However, if the user does not perform the predetermined action before or during a performance, the detection signal is not output. In this case, the timing when the performance starts may be determined as the reference timing, or the user may set the reference timing via the operation unit 23.

[0050] Furthermore, the signal for determining the reference timing is not limited to the detection signal output from the detection sensor 40. For example, instead of performing a predetermined action on the body 11 before starting to play, the user may output a signal indicating the start of playing to the control device 50 via the operation unit 23. Also, a signal indicating the start of playing may be output to the control device 50 by operating a predetermined switch provided on the guitar 1. The control unit 51 can determine the reference timing based on the signal indicating the start of playing.

[0051] [Variation 2] The loop-related processing includes a recording process in addition to the loop playback process described above. The recording process includes a recording start process and a recording end process. When starting recording, the user designates the recording start process via the operation unit 23 and sets beat information. The control unit 51 determines the timing to execute the recording start process based on the reference timing, the set beat information, and the performance signal, and generates a control signal for executing the recording start process at the determined timing.

[0052] The control unit 51 executes a recording start process based on the generated control signal. When recording starts based on the control signal, the control unit 51 stores the performance signal output from the pickup 21 in the storage unit 53. The performance signal output from the pickup 21 may be stored in the storage unit 53 after the frequency characteristics are adjusted by the equalizer 55.

[0053] When ending recording, the user designates the recording end process and sets the beat information via the operation unit 23. The control unit 51 determines the timing to execute the recording end process based on the reference timing, the set beat information, and the performance signal, and generates a control signal for executing the recording end process at the determined timing. The control unit 51 ends the ongoing recording process based on the control signal.

[0054] When performing the recording process, the start of recording and the end of recording may be specified in combination. That is, the user can set both beat information that specifies the timing to execute the recording start process and beat information that specifies the timing to execute the recording end process. In this case, the control unit 51 executes the recording start process based on the reference timing, the set beat information, and the performance speed, and executes the recording end process based on the set beat information and the performance speed. Here, the timing to execute the recording end process is determined based on the set beat information, the performance speed, and the timing when the recording start process was executed. The performance signal stored in the storage unit 53 can be used as a sound signal for playback used in the loop playback process.

[0055] In the case of recording processing, the control unit 51 may generate a control signal for controlling the performance signals stored in the storage unit 53 based on the reference timing, the set beat information, and the performance signal. In this case, all performance signals output from the start of performance to the end of performance are temporarily stored in the storage unit 53. The control unit 51 determines the recording start processing timing and the recording end processing timing based on the reference timing, the set beat information, and the performance signal, and determines the period from the recording start processing timing to the recording end processing timing as the recording period. The control unit 51 generates a control signal indicating the recording period, and deletes from the storage unit 53, among the performance signals stored in the storage unit 53, performance signals other than those output during the recording period based on the control signal. In other words, the performance signals finally stored in the storage unit 53 are only the performance signals output during the recording period.

[0056] [Variation 3] In the above-described embodiment, the beat information is beat information for specifying how many beats after which the process related to the loop is executed. However, the beat information is not limited to beat information. For example, the beat information may be information indicating a desired number of bars for specifying how many bars after which the process related to the loop is executed.

[0057] [Variation 4] In the above-mentioned embodiment and the above-mentioned modified example, the control unit 51 determines the time (period) from the reference timing to the execution of the loop-related processing based on the beat information and the performance speed, and determines the timing to execute the processing. However, the time (period) from the reference timing to the execution of the loop-related processing may be set by the user.

[0058] For example, the user may set a delay time via the operation unit 23. The delay time is a delay time from a reference timing, and is the time (period) from the reference timing until the processing related to the loop is executed. This delay time may be a fixed value or a variable value. By setting the delay time in advance before playing, the user can omit the operation for executing the processing related to the loop during playing, as in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0059] [Variation 6] In the above-described embodiment and modified example, the control unit 51 realizes the loop function by executing the control program stored in the storage unit 53. However, the function realized by the control unit 51 executing the control program is not limited to the loop function.

[0060] For example, the control unit 51 may apply a predetermined sound processing to the performance of the user on the guitar 1. Examples of the sound processing include a process of adding distortion, a process of adding reverb, a process of adding a flanger, a process of changing a frequency band, etc. The user can specify the desired sound processing via the operation unit 23.

[0061] The control unit 51 generates a control signal for controlling the timing of executing the set sound processing based on the reference timing, the set beat information, and the performance signal. Here, executing the sound processing includes at least one of starting the sound processing and ending the sound processing. The timing of executing the sound processing means the timing of starting the sound processing or the timing of ending the sound processing.

[0062] The control unit 51 performs a predetermined signal processing for applying the set acoustic processing to the input performance signal based on the control signal. The control unit 51 outputs the performance signal (sound signal) that has been subjected to the predetermined signal processing to a drive device for driving the vibrator 30.

[0063] The driving device generates a driving signal for driving the vibration generator 30 based on the acquired performance signal, and outputs the driving signal to the main body 31 of the vibration generator 30. The main body 31 vibrates the back plate 15 in response to the driving signal. This allows a desired sound effect to be imparted to the performance sound corresponding to the performance operation on the guitar 1 at a desired timing based on the beat information and the performance speed.

[0064] [Variation 7] Unlike the above-described embodiment, the control unit 51 may control the timing at which a drive signal generated based on a sound signal input from the outside is output to the vibration exciter 30. For example, a case may be considered in which a sound signal output from an external sound source is reproduced by the guitar 1. In this case, the sound signal output from the outside is supplied to a drive device for driving the vibration exciter 30, and the drive device generates a drive signal based on the acquired sound signal and outputs it to the main body 31 of the vibration exciter 30. The user can set the timing at which the sound signal is reproduced by the guitar 1 via the operation unit 23. For example, at this time, the control unit 51 may generate a control signal for controlling the timing at which the drive signal is output from the drive device to the vibration exciter 30 based on a reference timing and a timing set by the user. The control unit 51 outputs the generated control signal to the drive device. The drive device outputs the drive signal generated based on the sound signal to the main body 31 of the vibration exciter 30 at a timing based on the acquired control signal. [Explanation of symbols]

[0065] 1: guitar, 10: main body, 11: body, 12: neck, 13: strings, 14: top plate, 15: back plate, 16: side plate, 17: sound hole, 18: bridge, 19: head, 20: vibration transmission section, 21: pickup, 22: control unit, 23: operation section, 24: sound bar, 30: vibrator, 31: main body, 32: support section, 40: detection sensor, 50: control device, 51: control section, 53: memory section, 511: playing speed calculation section, 513: control signal generation section, 515: output section

Claims

1. Calculating the speed of the performance based on the performance information corresponding to the performance operation; generating control information for controlling a timing of executing a process related to the loop based on beat information for identifying a beat and the speed; A control method comprising:

2. The control method according to claim 1 , wherein executing a process associated with the loop includes starting or ending a process associated with the loop.

3. receiving instructions for determining a reference timing; The control method according to claim 1 , wherein the timing for executing the process related to the loop is determined based on the reference timing, beat number information for specifying the beat number, and a time determined based on the speed.

4. The control method according to claim 1 , wherein the beat number information is preset and includes at least one of beat information specifying a beat and information indicating a desired number of bars.

5. 2. The control method according to claim 1, wherein the control information includes information for designating at least one of a start and an end of recording of a performance sound corresponding to the performance operation.

6. 2. The control method according to claim 1, wherein the control information includes information for starting playback of a recorded performance sound.

7. A control device comprising a control unit that executes the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. On the computer, A program for executing the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

9. A control unit that executes the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6; An operator that accepts the performance operation; A musical instrument that includes:

10. the operator includes a string that vibrates in response to the playing operation, a soundboard to which the vibration of the strings is transmitted; A vibrator attached to the soundboard and vibrating the soundboard based on a supplied drive signal; Further equipped with 10. The musical instrument of claim 9, wherein the vibrator is provided with a drive signal indicative of a sound to be produced by processing associated with the loop performed based on the control information.

11. Strings and a soundboard to which the vibration of the strings is transmitted; a detector attached to the soundboard for detecting input of a user's instruction; a control unit that executes a predetermined process at a timing determined based on the timing of receiving the instruction and a set delay time; A musical instrument that includes:

12. The musical instrument of claim 11 , wherein the predetermined process is a process related to a loop.

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