Electronic fingerboard for stringed instrument

• US 20090100992A1
• Filed: 09/26/2008
• Published: 04/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Clifford S. Elion
• Original Assignee: Clifford S. Elion
• Inventors: Elion, Clifford S.
• Granted Patent: US 8,003,877 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 84/646
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0066 using a MIDI interface
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/342 for guitar-like instruments with or without strings and with a neck on which switches or string-fret contacts are used to detect the notes being played electric guitars in which the tones are generated by the vibration of strings G10H3/18
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/096 using a touch screen touch screen note input, e.g. using a displayed keyboard G10H2220/241; personal digital assistant [PDA] G10H2230/015
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/301 Fret-like switch array arrangements for guitar necks

Abstract

An electronic musical instrument for producing musical notes comprises an onset signal sensor for sensing the initiation of a note played on the musical instrument. An electronic fingerboard determines the pitch of the note sensed by the sensor. The electronic fingerboard comprises a first layer of film, a second layer of film and a spacer member between the first and second layers of film. The first and second layers are movable relative to each other between a first inactive position in which the first and second layers are separate from each other along their respective lengths and a second active position in which the first and second layers are in contact with each other at a user selected point along their respective lengths. The pitch is determined by the resistance between the first and second layers at the user selected point.

Claims

1. An electronic musical instrument for producing musical notes comprising:

an onset signal sensor for sensing the initiation of a note played on the musical instrument,

an electronic fingerboard for determining pitch of the note sensed by the sensor, the electronic fingerboard comprising a first layer of film, a second layer of film and a spacer member between the first and second layers of film, the first and second layers being movable relative to each other between a first inactive position in which the first and second layers are separate from each other along their respective lengths and a second active position in which the first and second layers are in contact with each other at a user selected point along their respective lengths, the pitch being determined by the resistance between the first and second layers at the user selected point.

2. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein the onset signal sensor comprises a piezo-electric sensor.

3. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein the onset signal sensor comprises an optical sensor.

4. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein:

the musical instrument is a guitar;

the fingerboard is mounted on an elongate neck;

frets are formed transversely on the neck;

elongate structures corresponding to guitar strings are configured on the neck; and

a first layer, second layer and spacer member are formed below each of the elongate structures.

5. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first layer is a conductive strip, and the second layer is a resistive strip.

6. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 5 wherein the conductive strip is comprised of silver ink with carbon overlay for durability and the resistive strip is comprised of carbon.

7. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 6 wherein the conductive strip is on top, the resistive strip is below the conductive strip and the spacer member is formed therebetween.

8. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 5 wherein the conductive strip is comprised of two electrodes which interlock with each other.

9. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 4 wherein the elongates structures corresponding to guitar strings comprise linear raised ribs on the on the fingerboard.

10. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein quantized mode, legato mode, or absolute mode is utilized to determine the pitch of the note.

11. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein user selected point provides a controllable resistance representing pitch of the note according to the location of the point on the fingerboard.

12. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein the onset signal sensor is triggered by plucking a string on the musical instrument.

13. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a microprocessor for sequentially reading and processing signals from the signal sensor and the electronic fingerboard respectively to determine when a note is played, as well as the volume and pitch of the note.

14. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 13 wherein the microprocessor sends data on the note played to a MIDI interface.

15. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 13 wherein the microprocessor sends data on the note played to an internal wavetable synthesizer.

16. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first and second layers have a terminal at one end thereof and voltage at the terminal is determined by the user selected point.

17. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 16 wherein the voltage at the terminal is proportional to the user selected point along the first and second layers, at which point the first and second layers are shorted together.

18. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 4 wherein the frets are spaced from each other based on the preferences of the user, the electronic fingerboard being suitably programmed to play the note with the correct pitch based on the preferred spacing between the frets.

19. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein first and second layers comprise a force sensing resistor whereby the resistance will vary as pressure on the user selected point changes, the higher the pressure on the user selected point causing more area contact between the first and second layers.

20. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein the spacer member holds the first and second layers together but in a spaced apart relationship while permitting the first and second layer to contact each other upon application of pressure.

21. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 4 wherein each elongate structure corresponding to the strings has first and second layers of film comprised of electrodes.

22. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein measurement of a played note is repeated a programmed number of times to determine an accurate pitch of played note.

23. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein the fingerboard comprises multiple conductive electrode planes, each plane for detecting the pitch of a note at one or more predetermined locations on the fingerboard.

24. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 23 comprising two alternating electrode planes, each of the two planes being responsive to the user selected point when located at alternating frets of the fingerboard.

25. An electronic musical instrument for producing musical notes comprising:

an electronic fingerboard for determining pitch of the note, the electronic fingerboard comprising a first layer of film, a second layer of film and a spacer member between the first and second layers of film, the first and second layers being movable relative to each other between a first inactive position in which the first and second layers are separate from each other along their respective lengths and a second active position in which the first and second layers are in contact with each other at a user selected point along their respective lengths, the pitch being determined by the resistance between the first and second layers at the user selected point.

26. A method of playing an electronic musical instrument which produces musical notes, the method comprising:

activating an onset signal sensor for sensing the initiation of a note played on the musical instrument,

applying pressure to one or more user selected points on an electronic fingerboard which determines the pitch of the note sensed by the sensor, the electronic fingerboard comprising a first layer of film, a second layer of film and a spacer member between the first and second layers of film, the first and second layers being moved relative to each other between a first inactive position in which the first and second layers are separate from each other along their respective lengths and a second active position in which the first and second layers are in contact with each other at the user selected point along their respective lengths, the pitch being determined by the resistance between the first and second layers at the user selected point.