Component for wind instrument and wind instrument

Abstract

A component 3 for a wind instrument has a cylindrical wall part 10. At least a portion of the cylindrical wall part 10 is provided with: an inner wall 11 that constitutes an inner cylindrical surface 10a of the cylindrical wall part 10; an outer wall 12 that constitutes an outer cylindrical surface 10b of the cylindrical wall part 10 and is positioned spaced apart from the inner wall 11 in the thickness direction of the cylindrical wall part 10; and an infill pattern 13 formed in a space S1 between the inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12.

Description

Wind instrument parts and wind instruments

[0001] The present invention relates to a component for a wind instrument and to a wind instrument.

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a musical instrument silencer that has a housing for accommodating a woodwind instrument and allows the woodwind instrument housed in the housing to be played from outside the housing, as a wind instrument component that changes the acoustic characteristics of the woodwind instrument. Because woodwind instruments have many tone holes, it is more difficult to reduce the volume, which is one example of an acoustic characteristic, compared to brass instruments, which have few or no tone holes. In contrast, the musical instrument silencer of Patent Document 1 accommodates the woodwind instrument in the housing and covers the multiple tone holes of the woodwind instrument, thereby reducing the volume of the woodwind instrument.

[0003] Patent No. 6004159

[0004] However, in the musical instrument silencer of Patent Document 1, the woodwind instrument is housed in a housing, which significantly changes the way the woodwind instrument is played compared to when the woodwind instrument is not housed in a housing. For example, when a woodwind instrument is housed in a housing, the parts of the woodwind instrument that are operated with the fingers are not visible, and the woodwind instrument becomes heavier due to the housing, which may make it difficult to play. For these reasons, it is particularly difficult to change the acoustic characteristics, such as volume, of a woodwind instrument without changing the way it is played, compared to a brass instrument.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide a wind instrument component that can change the acoustic characteristics of a wind instrument such as a woodwind instrument without changing the playing style of the wind instrument, and a wind instrument equipped with the same.

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is a component for a wind instrument having a cylindrical wall portion, at least a portion of which is provided with an inner wall that forms the inner cylindrical surface of the cylindrical wall portion, an outer wall that forms the outer cylindrical surface of the cylindrical wall portion and is positioned at a distance from the inner wall in the thickness direction of the cylindrical wall portion, and an infill pattern formed in the space between the inner wall and outer wall.

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is a wind instrument comprising a wind instrument body and the wind instrument component attached to the wind instrument body.

[0008] According to the present invention, the acoustic characteristics of a wind instrument can be changed without changing the playing style of the wind instrument.

[0009] 1 is a front view of a clarinet as a wind instrument according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a mouthpiece as a wind instrument component according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the mouthpiece shown in FIG. 2 taken along line III-III. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the mouthpiece shown in FIG. 2 taken along line IV-IV. FIG. 5 is a photograph of an example of a mouthpiece as a wind instrument component according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is an enlarged photograph of region VI in FIG. 5. FIG. 7 is a graph showing a time series of sound volume when an alto saxophone is played at a long tone using the mouthpiece of the example. FIG. 8 is a graph showing a time series of sound volume when an alto saxophone is played at a long tone using the mouthpiece of the comparative example. FIG. 9 is a graph showing the frequency characteristics of an alto saxophone using the mouthpiece of the example and the frequency characteristics of an alto saxophone using the mouthpiece of the comparative example. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a barrel as a wind instrument component according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0010] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 9. As shown in FIG. 1, the wind instrument 1 of this embodiment is a clarinet, a type of woodwind instrument. The wind instrument 1 includes a wind instrument body 2 and wind instrument components: a mouthpiece 3 and a barrel 4. The wind instrument body 2 includes an upper tube 2A and a lower tube 2B, each having a plurality of keys 5 arranged on its outer surface, and a bell 2C. In the wind instrument 1 (clarinet) of FIG. 1, the mouthpiece 3, barrel 4, upper tube 2A, lower tube 2B, and bell 2C are connected in order. In the wind instrument 1 of this embodiment, the wind instrument body 2 and barrel 4 are the same components as those of a regular clarinet.

[0011] 2, the mouthpiece 3 has the same external shape as a conventional mouthpiece and, together with a single reed (not shown), constitutes a blowing section for blowing air into the wind instrument 1. The mouthpiece 3 has a cylindrical wall portion 10 formed with an inlet 101 and an outlet 102. The inlet 101 opens in a partial area of ​​the outer cylindrical surface 10b of the cylindrical wall portion 10 facing outward, on a table 10b1 that is formed flat and on which the reeds are stacked.

[0012] As shown in Figures 2 to 4, the cylindrical wall portion 10 is provided with an inner wall 11, an outer wall 12, and an infill pattern 13. The inner wall 11 forms the inner cylindrical surface 10a of the cylindrical wall portion 10 facing inward. The outer wall 12 forms the outer cylindrical surface 10b of the cylindrical wall portion 10. The outer wall 12 is positioned at a distance from the inner wall 11 in the thickness direction of the cylindrical wall portion 10. In the example shown in Figures 3 and 4, the inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12 are provided on a portion of the cylindrical wall portion 10. The inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12 may be provided, for example, in a portion of the cylindrical wall portion 10 where the thickness dimension is relatively large, or may be provided, for example, on the entire cylindrical wall portion 10.

[0013] The infill pattern 13 is a structure for filling the inside of various shaped objects. The infill pattern 13 refers to a shape that is predetermined and reproducible before the mouthpiece 3 (a wind instrument component) is manufactured using a 3D printer or the like. Therefore, for example, it is possible to manufacture multiple mouthpieces 3 each having an infill pattern 13 of exactly the same shape. Specific shapes of the infill pattern 13 include lines (straight lines, curved lines), lattices, polygons such as triangles, stars, honeycombs, and spirals.

[0014] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , in the mouthpiece 3, the infill pattern 13 is formed in the space S1 between the inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12. The infill pattern 13 of this embodiment includes a plurality of protrusions 131 protruding from the inner surfaces 11a, 12a of the opposing inner wall 11 and outer wall 12. In this embodiment, the protrusions 131 are formed in a columnar shape with both ends connected to the inner surface 11a of the inner wall 11 and the inner surface 12a of the outer wall 12. In FIG. 3 , the plurality of columnar protrusions 131 are arranged at intervals. Also, in FIG. 3 , adjacent columnar protrusions 131 are parallel to each other. In FIG. 4 , the columnar protrusions 131 are arranged so as to intersect or be parallel to each other. The columnar protrusions 131 may be in any columnar shape, such as a rectangular prism, a triangular prism, or a cylindrical shape.

[0015] The cylindrical wall portion 10 including the infill pattern 13 has a laminated structure. That is, the cylindrical wall portion 10 is formed by stacking multiple layers. The laminated structure will be described below with reference to the photographs in Figures 5 and 6.

[0016] The photograph in FIG. 5 shows an example of a mouthpiece 3 including a cylindrical wall portion 10 formed with a laminated structure. The photograph in FIG. 6 is an enlarged photograph of region VI in the photograph in FIG. 5. The interval between the graduations on the scale shown in the photograph in FIG. 6 is 1 mm. The arrow D1 in FIGS. 5 and 6 indicates the stacking direction of the multiple layers. As shown in FIG. 6, since the cylindrical wall portion 10 is formed with a laminated structure, stacking marks 14 appear on the outer cylindrical surface 10b of the cylindrical wall portion 10. The stacking marks 14 are streaks (lines) indicating the boundaries between adjacent layers in the stacking direction D1. In the photograph in FIG. 6, the stacking marks 14 are arranged in the stacking direction D1 at intervals of approximately 0.1 mm. Although not shown, the stacking marks 14 also appear on the inner cylindrical surface 10a of the cylindrical wall portion 10.

[0017] The mouthpiece 3 including such a cylindrical wall portion 10 is produced using a 3D printer. When producing the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment using a 3D printer, the shape of the mouthpiece 3 including the cylindrical wall portion 10 is determined in advance. The material to be used to produce the mouthpiece 3 is selected. The layer pitch of the mouthpiece 3 to be produced is also set. The infill pattern 13 included in the cylindrical wall portion 10 is also set. The infill density of the cylindrical wall portion 10 (or the mouthpiece 3) is also set. In the mouthpiece 3 illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 4, the infill density may be set to 20%, for example. The order of these steps is not particularly limited. The mouthpiece 3 is then produced by molding the mouthpiece 3 according to the previously set shape, layer pitch, and infill pattern 13 of the mouthpiece 3.

[0018] As described above, the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment has an infill pattern 13 in the space S1 between the inner wall 11 and outer wall 12 of the cylindrical wall portion 10. Therefore, the acoustic characteristics of the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment differ from those of a regular mouthpiece that does not have the space S1. This allows the acoustic characteristics of the wind instrument 1 to be easily changed simply by replacing the regular mouthpiece with the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment. Furthermore, the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment has the same appearance as a regular mouthpiece. This allows the acoustic characteristics of the wind instrument 1 to be changed without changing the playing style of the wind instrument 1.

[0019] Furthermore, in the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment, the cylindrical wall portion 10 including the infill pattern 13 is formed in a laminated structure. Such a mouthpiece 3 can be produced using a 3D printer. This allows the cylindrical wall portion 10 including the infill pattern 13 to be easily formed even if the shape of the infill pattern 13 is complex.

[0020] Furthermore, because the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment is produced using a 3D printer, the infill density of the cylindrical wall portion 10 (or the mouthpiece 3) can be adjusted as needed. A decrease in the infill density reduces the rigidity of the cylindrical wall portion 10 (or the mouthpiece 3). As a result, the muting effect of the wind instrument 1 increases, and the volume generated by the wind instrument 1 decreases. Therefore, by adjusting the infill density, the volume generated by the wind instrument 1 using the mouthpiece 3 can be adjusted.

[0021] Furthermore, in the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment, the infill pattern 13 includes protrusions 131 protruding from at least one of the inner surfaces 11a, 12a of the inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12. Therefore, the protrusions 131 can improve the rigidity of the inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12. This ensures the strength of the inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12 even if the inner wall 11 and the outer wall 12 are thin. Furthermore, the acoustic characteristics of the mouthpiece 3 can be changed depending on the configuration (size, position, etc.) of the protrusions 131. Therefore, mouthpieces 3 with various acoustic characteristics can be provided.

[0022] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the mouthpiece 3 is a cylindrical part of the wind instrument 1 that is relatively easy to replace. Therefore, by employing the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment, it becomes possible to easily change the acoustic characteristics of the wind instrument 1.

[0023] Below, with reference to the experimental results shown in Figures 7 to 9, we will explain the differences in acoustic characteristics between the mouthpiece 3 of this embodiment (hereinafter referred to as the mouthpiece 3 of the example) and a regular mouthpiece (hereinafter referred to as the mouthpiece of the comparative example).

[0024] Fig. 7 is a time series graph of the volume when an alto saxophone, a type of woodwind instrument, is played in a long tone using the mouthpiece 3 of the embodiment. Fig. 8 is a time series graph of the volume when an alto saxophone is played in a long tone using the mouthpiece of the comparative example. That is, the graphs of the embodiment and the comparative example shown in Figs. 7 and 8 are time series graphs of the same woodwind instrument (alto saxophone) played in the same playing style (long tone). In the graphs of Figs. 7 and 8, the horizontal axis represents time corresponding to the playing time, and the vertical axis represents the gauge pressure (Pa) corresponding to the volume of the alto saxophone.

[0025] As shown in Figure 8, when the comparative mouthpiece was used, the pressure value corresponding to the volume was generally greater than ±0.5 (Pa). On the other hand, as shown in Figure 7, when the mouthpiece 3 of the embodiment was used, the pressure value corresponding to the volume was less than ±0.5 (Pa). In other words, when the mouthpiece 3 of the embodiment was used, the volume was lower than that of the comparative mouthpiece when played using the same playing method. Therefore, it became clear that the volume of an alto saxophone can be easily reduced by simply replacing the comparative mouthpiece with the mouthpiece 3 of the embodiment. Such a reduction in volume (sound suppression) is one of the changes in acoustic characteristics.

[0026] 9 is a graph showing the frequency characteristics of an alto saxophone using the mouthpiece 3 of the embodiment and the frequency characteristics of an alto saxophone using the mouthpiece of the comparative example. The horizontal axis of the graph in Fig. 9 represents frequency, and the vertical axis represents sound pressure level.

[0027] As shown in Figure 9, the frequency at which the peak of the sound pressure level appears (peak frequency) is almost the same whether the mouthpiece 3 of the Example or the mouthpiece of the Comparative Example is used. However, when the mouthpiece 3 of the Example is used, the sound pressure level at the peak frequency tends to be lower as the frequency increases compared to when the mouthpiece of the Comparative Example is used. This means that the timbre of the alto saxophone played using the mouthpiece 3 of the Example is lower in the volume of high-pitched sounds (sounds with high peak frequencies) compared to when the mouthpiece of the Comparative Example is used. This shows that the timbre of an alto saxophone can be easily changed by simply replacing the mouthpiece of the Comparative Example with the mouthpiece 3 of the Example. Such a change in timbre is one of the changes in acoustic characteristics.

[0028] Although the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0029] In the mouthpiece 3 of the above embodiment, the protrusions 131 constituting the infill pattern 13 may protrude from at least one of the inner wall 11 and the inner surface 11a, 12a of the outer wall 12. That is, the protrusions 131 may be formed, for example, in a columnar shape with both ends connected to the inner surface 11a of the inner wall 11 or the inner surface 12a of the outer wall 12. Alternatively, the protrusions 131 may be formed, for example, in a columnar shape extending from the inner surface 11a, 12a of the inner wall 11 or the outer wall 12, with the tip not reaching the inner surface 11a, 12a of the inner wall 11 or the outer wall 12. The columnar protrusions 131 may not necessarily extend linearly, but may also extend in a curved shape. The protrusions 131 may also be formed in other shapes, such as a hemispherical shape. The hemispherical protrusions 131 may protrude from the inner surface 11a of the inner wall 11 or the inner surface 12a of the outer wall 12.

[0030] The wind instrument component of the present invention is not limited to mouthpieces and may be applied to, for example, barrels. The barrel 4A shown in FIG. 10 has the same external shape as a conventional barrel, i.e., a circular cylindrical wall portion 20. The cylindrical wall portion 20 of the barrel 4A, like the mouthpiece 3 of the above embodiment, is provided with an inner wall 21 that forms the inner cylindrical surface 20a of the cylindrical wall portion 20, an outer wall 22 that forms the outer cylindrical surface 20b of the cylindrical wall portion 20, and an infill pattern 23 formed in the space S2 between the inner wall 21 and the outer wall 22. The infill pattern 23 shown in FIG. 10 includes a plurality of columnar protrusions 231, both ends of which are connected to the inner surface 21a of the inner wall 21 and the inner surface 22a of the outer wall 22, like the above embodiment. The barrel 4A shown in FIG. 10 achieves the same effects as the mouthpiece 3 of the above embodiment.

[0031] In the present invention, the cylindrical wall portion having the inner wall, outer wall, and infill pattern is not limited to wind instrument parts such as the mouthpiece 3 and barrel 4A, but may also be applied to components of the wind instrument body 2, such as the upper tube 2A, lower tube 2B, and bell 2C. In other words, the components such as the upper tube 2A, lower tube 2B, and bell 2C may also be wind instrument parts of the present invention.

[0032] The present invention is not limited to the clarinet and alto saxophone illustrated in the above embodiment, but can be applied to any woodwind instrument, including brass instruments.

[0033] 1...wind instrument, 2...wind instrument body, 3...mouthpiece (wind instrument part), 4...barrel, 4A...barrel (wind instrument part), 10, 20...cylindrical wall portion, 10a, 20a...inner cylinder surface, 10b, 20b...outer cylinder surface, 11, 21...inner wall, 11a, 21a...inner surface, 12, 22...outer wall, 12a, 22a...inner surface, 13, 23...infill pattern, 14...lamination marks, 131, 231...protrusions, S1, S2...space

Claims

1. A part for a wind instrument having a cylindrical wall portion, at least a portion of which is provided with: an inner wall that constitutes an inner cylindrical surface of the cylindrical wall portion; an outer wall that constitutes an outer cylindrical surface of the cylindrical wall portion and is positioned at a distance from the inner wall in the thickness direction of the cylindrical wall portion; and an infill pattern formed between the inner wall and the outer wall.

2. The wind instrument part according to claim 1, wherein said tubular wall portion including said infill pattern is formed of a laminated structure.

3. A wind instrument part according to claim 2, produced by a 3D printer.

4. A wind instrument part as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the infill pattern includes protrusions protruding from at least one of the inner surfaces of the opposing inner and outer walls.

5. A part for a wind instrument according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which is a mouthpiece or a barrel.

6. A wind instrument comprising a wind instrument body and a wind instrument part according to any one of claims 1 to 3 attached to the wind instrument body.

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