Electronic metronome

Abstract

To provide an electronic metronome for conveying rhythms produced by the electronic metronome to a user by light, the electronic metronome being capable of conveying differences between strong beats and weak beats in a manner that the user can distinguish the strong beats and the weak beats more easily.SOLUTION: There is provided an electronic metronome 1 for conveying a rhythm to a user by the difference of light-emitting regions. The electronic metronome includes: a tempo setting unit for setting a tempo; a rhythm setting unit for setting a rhythm; a light-emitting unit made of a plurality of light-emitting regions, the light-emitting unit notifying a tempo by emitting light on the basis of the timing of the tempo set by the tempo setting unit; and a control unit for changing a light-emitting region of the light-emitting unit at the time of a strong beat and a weak beat on the basis of the rhythm set by the rhythm setting unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic metronome used when performing music. [Background technology]

[0002] Traditionally, metronomes used during music practice have communicated tempo and beat to performers by sound. However, performers must synchronize their playing with the metronome's sound while listening to their own playing, which can be inconvenient for beginners, who are not accustomed to playing musical instruments and are prone to losing rhythm. To address this issue, a new metronome has become known that includes LEDs that indicate the tempo and beat, and flashes the light when the tempo or beat sounds are played, providing a visual indication of the timing that is easy to understand (Patent Document 1).

[0003] Here, electronic metronomes that notify the performer of the tempo and beat with electronic sounds are well known. Some of these electronic metronomes distinguish between strong and weak beats by using different colors of light-emitting diodes that flash on each beat to visually indicate the difference between strong and weak beats. Because red and yellow-green LEDs were often used in the past, when practical use of LEDs was quick, it is still common practice to distinguish between beats using these colors, for example, flashing a yellow-green LED on a strong beat and a red LED on a weak beat.

[0004] Incidentally, congenital color vision deficiency, including both protanopia and deuteranopia, is said to affect approximately 5% of Japanese men (1 in 20 people) and 0.2% of Japanese women (1 in 500 people). Because people with congenital color vision deficiency have particular difficulty distinguishing between the aforementioned colors red and yellow-green, when beats are expressed in red and yellow-green, it is difficult for them to visually grasp the timing of strong and weak beats. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-88977 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide an electronic metronome that visually communicates the beats marked by the electronic metronome to the performer using LED light, allowing even those who may have difficulty distinguishing between strong and weak beats using specific color combinations to easily distinguish them. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] (1) The electronic metronome according to the present invention is comprised of a tempo setting section for setting a tempo, a beat setting section for setting a beat, and a plurality of light-emitting areas, and emits a light based on the timing of the tempo set by the tempo setting section and the strong beats and weak beats set by the beat setting section. Increase or decrease the area a light-emitting section for informing the tempo and beat by setting the tempo and beat, and a light-emitting area for lighting up the light-emitting section at the time of a strong beat and a weak beat based on the beat set by the beat setting section. luminous area of of Increase or decrease a control unit; Equipped with The light-emitting unit is composed of at least two light-emitting sources, each of which is gathered together to form a single light-emitting area within the light-emitting unit, and by turning on or off each of the light-emitting sources, the light-emitting area of ​​each of the light-emitting sources within the light-emitting area is turned on or off, thereby increasing or decreasing the light-emitting area within the light-emitting area, thereby indicating a strong beat or a weak beat of the rhythm. It features the following:

[0008] (2) An electronic metronome according to one aspect of the present invention is configured with a tempo setting unit that sets a tempo, a beat setting unit that sets a beat, and light-emitting elements of a plurality of colors, and the tempo set by the tempo setting unit and the strong beats and weak beats set by the beat setting unit are a light emitting unit for notifying the tempo and beat by emitting light based on the timing of the light emitting unit; and a light emitting color control unit for changing the color of light emitted by the light emitting unit depending on whether the beat is a strong beat or a weak beat, based on the beat set by the beat setting unit. a light emitting color storage unit that stores at least two light emitting color patterns that combine light emitting colors for strong beats and weak beats, and a light emitting color selection unit that selects one of the light emitting color patterns stored in the light emitting color storage unit; The above configuration may be adopted. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] By expressing the position of the beat by the difference in the area of ​​the light or by setting the color that is most easily distinguishable for an individual, it is possible to provide an electronic metronome that allows anyone to easily and visually distinguish the beat. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an electronic metronome according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic metronome according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing how the tempo is announced by the electronic metronome according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of an electronic metronome according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of an electronic metronome according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of an electronic metronome according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0012] The electronic metronome 1 is equipped with a power switch 2, a tempo switch 3 for setting the tempo, and a beat switch 4 for setting the beat. The settings made with the tempo switch 3 and beat switch 4 are displayed on an LCD display 5. A tempo sound is emitted from a speaker 6 at the set tempo and beat, providing audible indication of the tempo. The tempo LED section 7 emits LED light through a diffusing material, and the light flashes when the tempo sound is emitted, providing visual indication of the tempo. The tempo LED section 7 is composed of two areas: an upper light-emitting area 7a on the upper half and a lower light-emitting area 7b on the lower half, each emitting the same color. The illuminated area of ​​the light indicator 7 changes depending on whether the tempo sound is a strong or weak beat. In other words, the illuminated area of ​​the light indicator 7 changes depending on whether either or both of the upper light-emitting area 7a or the lower light-emitting area 7b is illuminated.

[0013] 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the parts related to the metronome operation of the electronic metronome 1. The electronic metronome 1 is made up of a tempo selection unit 8, a beat selection unit 9, a tempo notification control unit 10, a beat control unit 11, a sound generation unit 12, and a light-emitting display unit 13.

[0014] The tempo selection section 8 corresponds to the tempo switch 3 in Fig. 1 and is used to select the tempo of the metronome. In the example of Fig. 1, the set tempo value is separately displayed on a display section such as the liquid crystal display 5, but the tempo selection section 8 may also be configured as an analog switch that allows you to select the tempo depending on the selected position of the switch, and the switch may also be configured to indicate the set tempo by pointing to the tempo written in the selected position.

[0015] The beat selection section 9 corresponds to the beat switch 4 in Fig. 1 and is used to select the beat of the metronome. As with the tempo, the selected beat may be displayed separately on a display section such as the liquid crystal display 5, or may be configured as an analog switch whose selected position indicates the selected beat.

[0016] Based on the tempo value selected by the tempo selection unit 8, the tempo control unit 10 sets the time interval for announcing the tempo in the tempo counter. Based on the time signature value selected by the time signature selection unit 9, the time signature control unit 11 determines whether the timing of the next tempo announcement will be on a strong beat or a weak beat.

[0017] The sound generation unit 12 corresponds to the speaker 6 in Fig. 1 and generates tempo sounds under the control of the tempo control unit 10. The light-emitting display unit 13 corresponds to the tempo LED unit 7 in Fig. 1 and is a single cell made up of multiple light-emitting areas. Each of these light-emitting areas can be individually controlled to turn on or off by an LED arranged in accordance with the light-emitting area.

[0018] When the tempo counter counts down and it is time to announce the tempo, if the tempo to be announced next is an upbeat based on information from the beat control unit 11, tempo control unit 10 causes sound generation unit 12 to sound the sound of the upbeat. At the same time, only one of the light-emitting areas of light-emitting display unit 13 is made to emit light. For example, lower light-emitting area 7b is made to emit light. Also, if the tempo to be announced next is a downbeat based on information from the beat control unit 11, the sound generation unit 12 makes the sound of the downbeat. At the same time, all of the light-emitting areas of light-emitting display unit 13 are made to emit light. In other words, upper light-emitting area 7a and lower light-emitting area 7b are made to emit light at the same time.

[0019] Referring to Figure 3, we will explain the differences in the sounds and lights used to indicate the tempo for downbeats and downbeats in the electronic metronome of Figure 1. When a downbeat occurs, the speaker 6 emits a lower-frequency downbeat sound, and only the lower light-emitting area 7b of the tempo LED 7 lights up. On the other hand, when a downbeat occurs, the speaker 6 emits a higher-frequency upbeat sound, and both the upper light-emitting area 7a and the lower light-emitting area 7b of the tempo LED 7 light up at the same time. In other words, when a downbeat occurs, only half of the tempo LED section 7 lights up, and when a downbeat occurs, the entire tempo LED section 7 lights up, allowing you to visually distinguish between downbeats and downbeats. Furthermore, when a downbeat occurs, the light becomes brighter to emphasize the downbeat, indicating that it is the downbeat, which is the beginning of the beat.

[0020] The light-emitting area of ​​the tempo LED section 7 may be composed of three or more areas. Each light-emitting area may emit a different color. The light-emitting areas may be concentric or have a different shape. By providing a variety of shapes, colors, and configurations for the light-emitting areas, it is possible to increase the number of flashing patterns and distinguish them even in electronic metronomes that can produce sounds with complex rhythms other than beats.

[0021] FIG. 4 shows an example of the configuration of an electronic metronome according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] The electronic metronome 1 of this embodiment, like the embodiment of FIG. 1, is equipped with a power switch 2, a tempo switch 3 for setting the tempo, and a beat switch 4 for setting the beat. The values ​​set by the tempo switch 3 and beat switch 4 are displayed on an LCD display 5. A tempo sound is emitted from a speaker 6 at the set tempo and beat timing to provide audible indication of the tempo. The tempo LED unit 7 flashes LEDs in synchronization with the tempo sound, providing visual indication of the tempo. Note that the LEDs in the optical display unit 7 of this embodiment use three or more LEDs, or a full-color LED, so that the light-emitting area is not divided, but the emitted color changes depending on the setting. The color selection switch 15 is a switch for selecting the color emitted by the optical display unit 7.

[0023] 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the parts related to the metronome operation of electronic metronome 14. Electronic metronome 14 is made up of a tempo selection unit 8, a beat selection unit 9, a light-emitting color selection unit 16, a memory unit 17, a tempo notification control unit 10, a beat control unit 11, a light-emitting color selection unit 16, a memory unit 17, a sound generation unit 12, and a light-emitting display unit 13. The operations of tempo selection unit 8, beat selection unit 9, tempo control unit 10, and beat control unit 11 are the same as those explained in the block diagram of FIG. 2, and therefore will not be described here.

[0024] In this embodiment, the light-emitting color selection unit 16 allows the user to select the color combinations to be illuminated on the strong and weak beats. The memory unit 12 stores light-emitting color combination patterns for the strong and weak beats, as well as the currently selected light-emitting color combination among them. The light-emitting color combination patterns include the common red and yellow-green, as well as a red and blue combination that is easy for color-blind people to distinguish. The combination patterns can be switched each time the light-emitting color selection unit 16 is pressed. The user is notified of the selected color by the light-emitting display unit 13 sequentially lighting up the colors of the strong and weak beats in the colors of the current combination pattern when the light-emitting color selection unit 16 is pressed. Alternatively, the color of the weak beat may be fixed, and the color of the LED that flashes on the strong beat may be selectable. Alternatively, instead of selecting from a color combination pattern, the user may adjust the desired color by individually adjusting the brightness of the three red, green, and blue elements of the full-color LED.

[0025] When the tempo counter counts down and it is time to announce the tempo, if the tempo to be announced next is a downbeat based on the information from the beat control unit 11, the tempo control unit 10 causes the sound generation unit 12 to sound the sound of the downbeat. At the same time, it causes only one of the light-emitting areas of the light-emitting display unit 13 to light up. At this time, the light that is emitted is the color of the downbeat from the color combinations stored in the memory unit 17. Also, if the tempo to be announced next is a downbeat based on the information from the beat control unit 11, the sound generation unit 12 sounds the sound of the downbeat. At the same time, it causes all of the light-emitting areas of the light-emitting display unit 13 to light up, but in this case too, the color of the downbeat from the color combinations stored in the memory unit 17 is emitted. This makes it possible to distinguish between downbeats and downbeats by color.

[0026] According to the present invention, which is exemplified by the above-mentioned embodiments, the light emitting area of ​​the light emitting section makes it possible to visually distinguish between strong beats and weak beats. In addition, by changing the light emitting color to any color, the user can recognize the beat in the color that is most easily visible to the user.

[0027] In addition, various modifications to the configuration of this embodiment are possible within the scope of the effects of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0028] 1. Electronic metronome 2 Power switch 3 Tempo Switch 4 beat switch 5 LCD display 6 speakers 7 Tempo LED section 7a Upper light-emitting area 7b Lower light-emitting area 8 Tempo selection section 9. Time Signature Selection Section 10 Tempo control section 11 Time signature control section 12 Pronunciation section 13 Illuminated display 14 Electronic Metronome 15 Color selection switch 16 Emitting color selection section 17 Memory section

Claims

1. a tempo setting section for setting the tempo; a time signature setting section for setting the time signature; a light-emitting unit that is configured with a plurality of light-emitting areas and that notifies the tempo and beat by increasing or decreasing the light-emitting area of ​​the light-emitting areas based on the timing of the tempo set by the tempo setting unit and the strong beats and weak beats set by the beat setting unit; a control unit that increases or decreases the light-emitting area of ​​the light-emitting region that is caused to emit light at strong beats and weak beats based on the beat set by the beat setting unit, The light-emitting unit is composed of at least two light-emitting sources, each of which is gathered together to form a single light-emitting area within the light-emitting unit, and by turning on or off each of the light-emitting sources, the light-emitting area of ​​each of the light-emitting sources within the light-emitting area is turned on or off, thereby increasing or decreasing the light-emitting area within the light-emitting area, thereby indicating a strong beat or a weak beat of the rhythm. This electronic metronome features:

2. a tempo setting section for setting the tempo; a time signature setting section for setting the time signature; a light-emitting unit that is configured with light-emitting elements of a plurality of colors and that notifies the tempo and the beat by emitting light based on the tempo set by the tempo setting unit and the timing of the strong beats and weak beats set by the beat setting unit; a light emitting color control unit that changes the color of light emitted by the light emitting unit depending on the strong beat and the weak beat based on the beat set by the beat setting unit; a light emitting color storage unit that stores at least two light emitting color patterns that combine the light emitting colors of the strong beat and the weak beat; and a light emitting color selection unit that selects one of the light emitting color patterns stored in the light emitting color storage unit. An electronic metronome that features:

Images