Mapped meta-data sound-playback device and audio-sampling/sample-processing system usable therewith

• US 20060074649A1
• Filed: 10/04/2005
• Published: 04/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Europe (Amsterdam) BV (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony France SA (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Pachet, Francois, Aucouturier, Jean-Julien
• Granted Patent: US 7,709,723 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/229
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0066 using a MIDI interface
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2250/641 Waveform sampler, i.e. music samplers; Sampled music loop processing, wherein a loop is a sample of a performance that has been edited to repeat seamlessly without clicks or artifacts
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 7/02 in which amplitudes at successive sample points of a tone waveform are stored in one or more memories

Abstract

Audio samples corresponding to audio extracts or whole audio titles are automatically mapped to triggers 12 in a playable sound-producing device 1, the mapping being dependent on the meta-data associated with the audio samples. Thus, a user can play the sound-producing device and generate sounds derived from his favourite audio titles. It is possible to define different mappings between the audio samples and the playable domain of the sound-producing device: an audio sample selector 50 can select between different possible samples for playback by comparing the audio properties of the samples and the play-mode and/or characteristics of the user'"'"'s performance. An audio sampler/sample-processor 70 can automatically extract segments of an audio source file and map them to triggers in the sound-producing device 1.

Claims

1. A sample-based sound-producing system (1), comprising:

a set of triggers (12) each of which, when operated, causes an audio sample to be played back;

mapping means (70) for defining at least one mapping of audio samples, derived from audio source files, to triggers of said set;

wherein said mapping is dependent on the value of meta-data associated with the audio samples; and

a sample selector (50) adapted to respond to operation of one of said triggers (12) by selecting for playback an audio sample mapped to the operated trigger.

2. The sample-based sound-producing system according to claim 1, wherein each of said audio samples is an audio item.

3. The sample-based sound-producing system according to claim 1, wherein each of said audio samples is an extract from an audio item.

4. The sample-based sound-producing system according to claim 3, and comprising means (70) for extracting audio samples from said audio source files.

5. The sample-based sound-producing system according to claim 1, wherein the mapping means (70) is adapted to determine the at least one mapping of audio samples to triggers (12) automatically, based on the meta-data associated with the audio samples and on a mapping function defining a condition holding on audio-sample meta-data.

6. The sample-based sound-producing system according to claim 1, and comprising performance-assessing means (40) for determining a parameter indicative of the manner in which a user has operated a trigger (12);

wherein the mapping means (70) is adapted to define a plurality of mappings of said audio samples to triggers of said set, and the sample selector (50) is adapted to select an audio sample for playback dependent upon the output from the performance-assessing means (40).

7. The sample-based sound-producing system according to claim 1, and comprising means (70) for analyzing said audio samples whereby to generate meta-data therefore, wherein the mapping means is adapted to define said at least one mapping of audio samples to triggers based on meta-data generated by said analyzing means and on a mapping function defining a condition holding on audio-sample meta-data.

8. A user-interface for providing access to music in a music collection, the interface comprising:

a set of triggers (12) each of which, when operated, causes playback of a music item in said music collection;

mapping means for defining at least one mapping of music items in said music collection to triggers of said set;

wherein said mapping is dependent on the value of meta-data associated with the music items; and

a sample selector (50) adapted to respond to operation of one of said triggers (12) by selecting for playback a music item mapped to the operated trigger.

9. The user-interface according to claim 8, wherein the mapping means is adapted to determine the at least one mapping of music items to triggers automatically, based on the meta-data associated with the music items and on a mapping function defining a condition holding on audio-sample meta-data.

10. An audio-sampling/sample-processing system (70) for preparing audio samples for playback in a sample-based sound-producing device (1), the sound-producing device (1) having a plurality of selectable triggers (12) each of which, when selected, causing a sound to be generated based on an audio sample, the audio-sampling/sample-processing system (70) comprising:

input means for receiving an audio file;

sample-extraction means (72) for processing the audio file, automatically, so as to define a set of audio samples therein;

analysis means (76) for determining, automatically, data descriptive of the audio properties of each extracted audio sample; and

mapping means (78) for defining, automatically, a mapping of extracted audio samples to the selectable triggers (12) of the sample-based sound-producing device (1), said mapping being dependent on at least part of said data descriptive of the audio properties of the extracted audio sample and on a mapping function defining a condition holding on audio-sample meta-data.

11. An audio-sampling and sample-processing system (70) according to claim 10, wherein the analysis means (76) comprises means for determining the pitch of an extracted audio sample, and the mapping means (78) is adapted to map an extracted audio sample to one or more of said selectable triggers (12) dependent on the pitch of the extracted audio sample.

12. An audio-sampling and sample-processing system (70) according to claim 11, wherein the pitch-determining means comprises a bank of band-pass filters and a harmonic-pattern analyzer for analyzing the pattern of harmonics in the output from the bank of bandpass filters.

13. An audio-sampling and sample-processing system (70) according to claim 10, wherein the sample-extraction means (72) comprises a filter-bank mimicking the frequency resolution and frequency response of the human ear, means for generating the short-term spectrum of the audio sample after passage through said filter-bank, and means for analyzing the energy variations of the music'"'"'s waveform and means for analyzing the maxima and minima of said short-term spectrum.

14. An audio-sampling and sample-processing system (70) according to claim 10, and comprising means (74) for detecting zones of spectral stability in the extracted audio samples and generating data identifying said zones of spectral stability.

15. An audio-sampling and sample-processing system (70) according to claim 10, and comprising output means for outputting to a memory (60), a network, a storage medium or another device:

data representative of the extracted audio samples, data indicative of the mapping of extracted audio samples to selectable triggers of said sound-producing device (1) and data descriptive of the audio properties of the extracted audio samples.

16. A sample-based sound-producing system (1), comprising:

an audio-sampler/sample-processor (70) according to claim 10;

a set of selectable triggers (12) each of which, when selected, causes a sound to be generated based on an audio sample; and

an audio sample selector (50) adapted to respond to selection of one of said selectable triggers (12) by selecting for playback one of the audio samples extracted from an audio file by said audio sampler/sample-processor (70).

17. The sample-based sound-producing device (1) according to claim 16, wherein the audio sample selector (50) is adapted to select between a plurality of different extracted audio samples mapped to the same one of said selectable triggers (12), said selection comprising matching the audio properties of said plurality of different extracted audio samples with data indicative of the way in which said selectable trigger was selected.

18. The sample-based sound-producing device (1) according to claim 16, and comprising a time adjuster (80) for causing the duration of playback of an extracted audio sample to differ from the duration of said extracted audio sample, wherein the time adjuster (80) comprises a phase vocoder adapted, in the case where the time adjuster (80) is causing the duration of playback of the extracted audio sample to be longer than the duration of said sample, to synthesize extra frames and interpolate said extra frames between frames of said extracted audio sample only in spectrally-stable zones of said extracted audio sample.