Electronic wind instrument and control method for electronic wind instrument

Abstract

The present invention provides an electronic wind instrument including a breath sensor that detects a breath of a user, an operator that receives operation from the user, an output unit that outputs a start signal in response to detection of the breath by the breath sensor and reception of the operation by the operator, and a generation unit that generates a sound signal corresponding to characters constituting lyrics in response to output of the start signal.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an electronic wind instrument and a method for controlling an electronic wind instrument. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known an electronic wind instrument that is equipped with a plurality of performance keys for specifying pitches and a breath sensor that detects the act of blowing into the instrument. Patent Document 1 describes a technology in which, in an electronic wind instrument, a consonant is produced when a user presses a performance key and a vowel is produced when a user blows into the key. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2014-98801 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the technology described in Patent Document 1, consonants are produced by operating the performance keys before the user blows into them, which means that the user has to learn a different operation method than when playing a regular wind instrument.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present disclosure to provide an electronic wind instrument and a control method for the electronic wind instrument that can generate sound signals using normal performance operation methods. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An electronic wind instrument according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a breath sensor that detects a user's breath, a control that accepts an operation from the user, an output unit that outputs a start signal in response to the breath sensor detecting the breath and the control accepting the operation, and a songwriter that composes lyrics in response to the output of the start signal. Any one of the characters A generator for generating a sound signal corresponding to a character. The generation unit generates a sound signal corresponding to either the first character or the second character selected based on a first time difference indicating a time difference between the first timing and the acquisition timing and a second time difference indicating a time difference between the second timing and the acquisition timing, for a first character to be pronounced at a first timing closest to the acquisition timing among characters to be pronounced at a timing earlier than the acquisition timing at which the start signal is acquired, and a second character to be pronounced at a second timing closest to the acquisition timing among characters to be pronounced at a timing later than the acquisition timing. do. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an electronic wind instrument and a control method for an electronic wind instrument that can generate sound signals using normal performance operation methods. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic wind instrument. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of an electronic wind instrument. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the functions of an electronic wind instrument. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for generating an accompaniment sound signal and a singing sound signal. [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for controlling generation of a singing sound signal. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the electronic wind instrument 100 will be described as a saxophone. The electronic wind instrument 100 may be an electronic wind instrument other than a saxophone, such as a clarinet or a flute.

[0010] The function of the electronic wind instrument 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic wind instrument 100. Fig. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the electronic wind instrument 100.

[0011] As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic wind instrument 100 includes a tube section 100 a, an operator 1 , an operation detection section 2 , a sound generation section 3 , a mouthpiece 4 , a breath sensor 5 , and an electronic control device 6 .

[0012] The tube portion 100a is a saxophone-shaped tube.

[0013] The operator 1 consists of a plurality of performance keys 1A arranged on the outer surface of the tube section 100a and one or more setting keys 1B. The operator 1 is operated by the user. The performance keys 1A are operators for specifying pitch. The setting keys 1B are operators for setting functions such as changing the pitch to match the key of the music and fine-tuning the pitch.

[0014] The operation detection unit 2 detects operations on the operators 1. The operation detection unit 2 detects individual operations on the operators 1 and outputs a signal indicating the detected operation to the electronic control device 6. For example, the operation detection unit 2 detects an operation of the performance keys 1A by the user and outputs pitch data indicating the pitch corresponding to the detected operation to the electronic control device 6.

[0015] The sound producing unit 3 is provided at the first end E1 of the tube unit 100a. The sound producing unit 3 generates sound. For example, the sound producing unit 3 outputs a sound signal output from the electronic control device 6 as sound. The sound producing unit 3 includes, for example, a mixer that mixes an accompaniment sound signal and a singing sound signal (described later), a signal amplifier that amplifies the mixed signal, and a speaker that outputs the amplified signal as sound.

[0016] The mouthpiece 4 is provided at the second end E2 of the tubular portion 100a. The mouthpiece 4 outputs to the breath sensor 5 the breath blown by the user.

[0017] The breath sensor 5 detects the breath output from the mouthpiece 4. The breath sensor 5 includes, for example, a pressure sensor. The breath sensor 5 generates a breath value corresponding to the amount of breath blown in by the user and / or the magnitude of the breath pressure. The breath value is used for processing by the breath sensor 5, which will be described later, i.e., processing such as starting to produce a singing sound, stopping to produce a singing sound, and setting the volume level of the singing sound. The breath sensor 5 outputs information including the breath value as breath data to the electronic control device 6.

[0018] The electronic control device 6 is provided inside the tube section 100a. The electronic control device 6 controls the electronic wind instrument 100. The electronic control device 6 is a computer. The electronic control device 6 acquires pitch data from the operation detection section 2. The electronic control device 6 acquires breath data from the breath sensor 5. The electronic control device 6 generates an accompaniment sound signal and a singing sound signal (sound signals), and outputs the generated accompaniment sound signal and singing sound signal to the sound generation section 3. The accompaniment sound signal is a sound signal corresponding to the accompaniment sound of the song. The singing sound signal is a sound signal for reproducing the lyrics of the song at a pitch corresponding to the operation of the control 1. The method by which the electronic control device 6 generates the singing sound signal will be explained in detail later.

[0019] 2, in the electronic wind instrument 100, the operation detection unit 2, the sound generation unit 3, the breath sensor 5, and the electronic control unit 6 are connected to a bus 11. The bus 11 mediates the transmission and reception of data by these components (the operation detection unit 2, the sound generation unit 3, the breath sensor 5, and the electronic control unit 6).

[0020] The electronic control device 6 includes, for example, a CPU 61 (Central Processing Unit), a ROM 62 (Read Only Memory), a RAM 63 (Random Access Memory), and a sound source 64.

[0021] The CPU 61 includes, for example, an acquisition unit 611, an output unit 612, and a generation unit 613. The CPU 61 executes a program stored in a recording medium, for example, the RAM 63, thereby realizing these functions, that is, the functions of the acquisition unit 611, the output unit 612, and the generation unit 613.

[0022] The ROM 62 is a read-only recording medium that stores programs for implementing the various functions of the CPU 61.

[0023] The ROM 62 stores lyric data 621 and music data 622. The lyric data 621 is data in which a plurality of characters are arranged in chronological order. The music data 622 is data for generating an accompaniment sound signal for a song corresponding to the lyric data 621. The music data 622 is, for example, MIDI data. The music data 622 includes various information such as sounding timing (note-on), pitch, timbre, and sound-off timing (note-off). The lyric data 621 is associated with the music data 622 and includes information that specifies the sounding timing or sound-off timing for each character. In other words, the lyric data includes information (timing information) that indicates the timing at which each character included in the lyric data 621 is to be sounded.

[0024] The RAM 63 is a readable and writable recording medium that stores programs for implementing various functions of the CPU 61 and temporary data used when performing the various functions.

[0025] The sound source 64 generates an accompaniment sound signal in accordance with various information such as sound generation timing (note-on), pitch, timbre, and sound suppression timing (note-off) indicated in the song data 622, and outputs the generated accompaniment sound signal to the sound generation unit 3. The sound source 64 is, for example, a MIDI sound source.

[0026] A method for generating a singing sound signal by the electronic control device 6 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the functions of the electronic wind instrument 100.

[0027] The acquisition unit 611 acquires lyric data 621 from the ROM 62. The acquisition unit 611 acquires pitch data from the operation detection unit 2. The acquisition unit 611 acquires breath data from the breath sensor 5. The acquisition unit 611 outputs the pitch data and breath data to the output unit 612. The acquisition unit 611 outputs the lyric data 621, pitch data, and breath data to the generation unit 613.

[0028] The output unit 612 outputs a trigger signal. The trigger signal is a control signal related to the pronunciation of characters (lyrics) according to the lyrics data 621. The trigger signal includes a pronunciation start signal, a pronunciation stop signal, and a pitch change signal.

[0029] The pronunciation start signal (start signal) is a signal that instructs that lyrics be pronounced at a pitch that corresponds to the operation of the operator 1. The pronunciation start signal includes information that indicates the pitch (pitch). The pronunciation stop signal (stop signal) is a signal that instructs that the pronunciation of lyrics be stopped. The pitch change signal is a signal that instructs that the pitch at which lyrics are pronounced be changed. The pitch change signal includes information that indicates the pitch after the change.

[0030] The output unit 612 outputs a trigger signal to the generation unit 613 based on the detection results of the breath sensor 5 and the operation detection unit 2.

[0031] Specifically, output unit 612 outputs a sound production start signal when the user takes a breath and operates operator 1. More specifically, output unit 612 outputs a sound production start signal when the breath data acquired from acquisition unit 611 indicates that a breath is being taken and the pitch data acquired from acquisition unit 611 indicates that operator 1 has been operated. Output unit 612 outputs a sound production start signal that includes information indicating a pitch (pitch) according to the pitch data.

[0032] When the user finishes breathing, the output unit 612 outputs a sound generation stop signal. More specifically, the output unit 612 outputs a sound generation stop signal when the breath data acquired from the acquisition unit 611 indicates that no breath is being taken.

[0033] If the user blows a breath and operates another operator 1 between the time when the output unit 612 outputs the sound production start signal and the time when the output unit 612 outputs the sound production stop signal, the output unit 612 outputs a pitch change signal to change the pitch according to the operation.

[0034] The generation unit 613 generates a singing sound signal. The singing sound signal is a sound signal for reciting lyrics at a pitch according to the operation of the operator 1.

[0035] When a sound production start signal is output from the output unit 612, the generation unit 613 generates a singing sound signal based on the breath data, pitch data, and lyric data. The generation unit 613 selects lyrics to be output as the singing sound signal according to the timing at which the sound production start signal is acquired from the output unit 612. The generation unit 613 selects lyrics to be output as the singing sound signal so as to avoid a sluggish feeling, as if the lyrics are being pronounced with a delay relative to the accompaniment sounds, that is, so that the lyrics are pronounced at a natural timing.

[0036] The generating unit 613 generates a singing sound signal corresponding to the first character when the timing at which the sound production start signal is acquired satisfies a first condition (condition). The generating unit 613 generates a singing sound signal corresponding to the second character when the timing at which the sound production start signal is acquired does not satisfy the first condition.

[0037] The generation unit 613 selects either the first character or the second character depending on the timing at which the sound generation start signal is acquired (acquisition timing). The first character and the second character are characters included in the lyrics data 621. The second character is the character that follows the first character. In other words, the lyrics data 621 specifies the pronunciation timing so that the second character is pronounced after the first character.

[0038] Specifically, the generation unit 613 selects, as the first character, a character to be pronounced at a timing (first pronunciation timing) closest to the acquisition timing among characters to be pronounced at a timing earlier than the acquisition timing. The generation unit 613 selects, as the second character, a character to be pronounced at a timing (second pronunciation timing) closest to the acquisition timing among characters to be pronounced at a timing later than the acquisition timing.

[0039] The generation unit 613 generates a singing sound signal corresponding to the first character if the first condition is satisfied. The generation unit 613 generates a singing sound signal corresponding to the second character if the first condition is not satisfied. The first condition here is a condition that the timing at which the pronunciation start signal is output is closer to the timing at which the first character is to be pronounced (the timing at which the first character is pronounced) than the timing at which the second character is to be pronounced (the timing at which the second character is pronounced). In other words, the condition is a condition that the interval (time difference) between the first pronunciation timing and the acquisition timing is smaller than the interval (time difference) between the acquisition timing and the second pronunciation timing. The generation unit 613 generates a singing sound signal by associating a pitch according to the pitch data with a character selected depending on whether the first condition is satisfied.

[0040] The generating unit 613 controls the volume level of the generated singing sound signal based on the breath data, and outputs the singing sound signal with the controlled volume level to the sound generating unit 3.

[0041] When the generation unit 613 receives the pitch change signal from the output unit 612, it generates a singing sound signal by associating the changed pitch with the character selected depending on whether the first condition is satisfied. The generation unit 613 controls the volume level of the generated singing sound signal based on the breath data, and outputs the singing sound signal with the controlled volume level to the sound generation unit 3.

[0042] Furthermore, when the generation unit 613 receives the sound generation stop signal from the output unit 612, it stops generating the singing sound signal.

[0043] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure in which the electronic control device 6 generates an accompaniment sound signal and a singing sound signal.

[0044] The electronic control device 6 reads out the song data 622 and starts generating an accompaniment sound signal (step S1). Triggered by the generation of the accompaniment sound signal, the acquisition unit 611 of the electronic control device 6 acquires the lyric data 621, pitch data, and breath data (step S2). The acquisition unit 611 outputs the pitch data and breath data to the output unit 612. The acquisition unit 611 outputs the lyric data 621, pitch data, and breath data to the generation unit 613.

[0045] The output unit 612 acquires the pitch data and the breath data, and outputs a trigger signal based on the acquired data to the generation unit 613 (step S3). The output unit 612 outputs a sound production start signal, for example, when the user blows a breath and operates the operator 1.

[0046] When the generation unit 613 receives the trigger signal from the output unit 612, it generates a singing sound signal based on the timing at which the trigger signal was received, the lyrics data 621, the pitch data, and the breath data (step S4).

[0047] The electronic control device 6 determines whether or not reading of the song data 622 is complete (step S5). If reading of the song data 622 is not complete (step S5: No), the electronic control device 6 returns to step S2. If reading of the song data 622 is complete (step S5: Yes), the electronic control device 6 stops generating the accompaniment sound signal (step S6) and ends the process. If reading of the song data 622 is not complete (step S5: No), the electronic control device 6 returns to step S2. This ends the main routine.

[0048] 5 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure in which the electronic control device 6 controls the generation of a singing sound signal. Specifically, FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the processing of step S4 in FIG. 4. In the following description, it is assumed that the lyrics data 621 (characters constituting the lyrics) includes the character "Ka" as the first character and the character "Ki" as the second character. "Ka" represents one character in the Japanese hiragana alphabet. "Ki" represents another character in the Japanese hiragana alphabet.

[0049] The generating unit 613 of the electronic control device 6 acquires a trigger signal from the song data 622 (step S41). Next, the generating unit 613 determines whether the trigger signal is a sound generation stop instruction (step S42). If the trigger signal is not a sound generation stop instruction, i.e., if the trigger signal is a sound generation start signal or a pitch change signal (step S42: Yes), the generating unit 613 determines whether a first condition is satisfied (step S43). The first condition is a condition that, for the characters "Ka" and "Ki" associated with timings before and after the timing of issuance of the sound generation start signal, the timing to pronounce "Ka" is closer to the timing of issuance of the sound generation start signal than the timing to pronounce "Ki." If the generating unit 613 satisfies the first condition (step S43: Yes), the generating unit 613 generates a singing sound signal that pronounces "Ka" as the first character at a pitch defined by the pitch data (step S44). If the first condition is not satisfied (step S43: No), the generating unit 613 generates a singing sound signal that pronounces "Ki" as the second character at the pitch defined by the pitch data (step S45). On the other hand, if the trigger signal is an instruction to stop sound production (step S42: Yes), the generating unit 613 stops generating the singing sound signal (step S46) and ends the process.

[0050] As described above, in the present disclosure, the output unit 612 outputs a sound production start signal when the user takes a breath and operates the control 1. When the generation unit 613 acquires the sound production start signal, it generates a singing sound signal based on the breath data, pitch data, and lyric data. This allows the singing sound signal to be generated by a performance operation similar to that of a normal wind instrument. This also makes it possible to generate appropriate singing sounds that match the accompaniment sounds even if the timing at which the user blows a breath deviates from the timing previously defined in the lyrics data.

[0051] The present disclosure also includes other aspects as described below. In one aspect, the music data 622 is omitted. In this case, the lyric data 621 may or may not include timing information. Furthermore, regardless of the presence or absence of timing information in the lyric data 621, the generation unit 613 sequentially reads out the characters defined in the lyric data 621 and generates a singing sound signal every time a pronunciation start instruction is output. In one aspect, the acquiring unit 611, the output unit 612, and the generating unit 613 may be realized by one or more sound source chips to generate the singing sound signal. In one aspect, sound source 64 may be a software sound source that functions by CPU 61 executing a program. In one aspect, the music data and lyric data may be obtained from a source external to the electronic wind instrument 100. In this case, the electronic wind instrument 100 further includes an interface. The electronic wind instrument 100 obtains the music data and lyric data stored in an external device via the interface. The external device may be, for example, a karaoke machine. In one aspect, the breath sensor 5 may be provided in the electronic control unit 6 . In one aspect, the mouthpiece 4 may include a sensor other than the breath sensor 5 as the first sensor. The first sensor may be, for example, a voice sensor, a tongue sensor, or a lip sensor. Alternatively, the first sensor may be a combination of at least two of the voice sensor, the tongue sensor, and the lip sensor. In this case, the generation unit 613 may impart an effect to the singing sound signal based on the output of the first sensor. The effect here may be, for example, vibrato or subtone. In the above-described embodiment, the sound producing unit 3 is provided at the first end E1 of the tube section 100a, but the present disclosure is not limited to this configuration. In one aspect, the electronic wind instrument 100 may have the sound producing unit 3 provided in the electronic control device 6. In this case, the electronic wind instrument 100 may have a bell-shaped tube at the first end E1 of the tube section 100a.

[0052] Alternatively, a program for realizing the functions of CPU 61 may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program may be read into a computer system and executed to perform sound generation processing. Note that the term "computer system" here includes hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices.

[0053] Furthermore, if a WWW system is used, the "computer system" also includes the homepage provision environment (or display environment). Furthermore, "computer-readable recording media" refers to portable media such as flexible disks, optical magnetic disks, ROMs, and CD-ROMs, as well as storage devices such as hard disks built into computer systems. Furthermore, "computer-readable recording media" also includes devices that retain programs for a certain period of time, such as volatile memory within a computer system that serves as a server or client. The program may be a program that realizes part of the aforementioned functions, or may be a program that can realize the aforementioned functions in combination with a program already stored in the computer system. The program may also be stored on a designated server, and distributed (e.g., downloaded) via a communication line in response to a request from another device.

[0054] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described above in detail with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and includes designs within the scope of the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 100···Electronic Wind Instruments 1. Controls 2. Operation detection unit 3. Pronunciation section 4. Mouthpiece 5. Breath sensor 6. Electronic control device 61 CPU 611...Acquisition part 612 Output section 613...Generation section

Claims

1. a breath sensor that detects the user's breath; an operator that accepts an operation from the user; an output unit that outputs a start signal in response to the breath sensor detecting the breath and the operation being accepted by the operator; a generating unit that generates a sound signal corresponding to any one of a group of characters that constitute lyrics in response to the output of the start signal; and the generation unit generates a sound signal corresponding to either the first character or the second character selected based on a first time difference indicating a time difference between the first timing and the acquisition timing and a second time difference indicating a time difference between the second timing and the acquisition timing, for a first character to be pronounced at a first timing closest to the acquisition timing among characters to be pronounced at a timing earlier than the acquisition timing at which the start signal is acquired, and a second character to be pronounced at a second timing closest to the acquisition timing among characters to be pronounced at a timing later than the acquisition timing; Electronic wind instrument.

2. the generation unit determines whether a condition that the first time difference is smaller than the second time difference is satisfied; When the generation unit determines that the condition is satisfied, the generation unit generates a first sound signal corresponding to the first character; When it is determined that the condition is not satisfied, the generation unit generates a second sound signal corresponding to the second character that follows the first character that constitutes the lyrics.

2. The electronic wind instrument according to claim 1.

3. The breath sensor detects the magnitude of the breath, The generating unit generates the sound signal indicating a volume corresponding to the volume of the breath.

3. An electronic wind instrument according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the operator accepts the designation of a pitch through the operation, The generating unit generates the sound signal indicating the specified pitch.

4. An electronic wind instrument according to claim 1.

5. A method for controlling an electronic wind instrument including a breath sensor for detecting a user's breath and an operator for receiving an operation from the user, comprising: outputting a start signal in response to the breath being detected by the breath sensor and the operation being accepted by the operator; In response to the output of the start signal, a sound signal corresponding to any one of a group of characters constituting lyrics is generated, a first character to be pronounced at a first timing closest to the acquisition timing among characters that should be pronounced at a timing earlier than the acquisition timing at which the start signal is acquired, and a second character to be pronounced at a second timing closest to the acquisition timing among characters that should be pronounced at a timing later than the acquisition timing, the second character being selected based on a first time difference indicating a time difference between the first timing and the acquisition timing and a second time difference indicating a time difference between the second timing and the acquisition timing; A method for controlling an electronic wind instrument, comprising:

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