DEVICE AND METHOD FOR GENERATING A NOTE SIGNAL UPON A MANUAL INPUT

• US 20110100198A1
• Filed: 12/07/2010
• Published: 05/05/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forsching E.V., Technische Universitã¤T Ilmenau
• Original Assignee: Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forsching E.V., Technische Universitã¤T Ilmenau
• Inventors: GATZSCHE, Gabriel, MEHNERT, Markus, GATZSCHE, David
• Granted Patent: US 8,173,884 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 84/615
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0008 Associated control or indicating means
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/383 Chord detection and/or recognition, e.g. for correction, or automatic bass generation
• 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 2220/106 using icons, e.g. selecting, moving or linking icons, on-screen symbols, screen regions or segments representing musical elements or parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/295 Switch matrix, e.g. contact array common to several keys, the actuated keys being identified by the rows and columns in contact

Abstract

An embodiment of a device for generating a note signal upon a manual input includes an operator to enable a user of the same as an input to define one or several points as an input signal, and a controller which is implemented to receive the input signal and to generate a note signal based on the input signal and an allocation function. The allocation function allocates one single or no tone to each point of a two-dimensional definition amount with a tone quality axis and a frequency axis. The definition amount has a plurality of base points. Here, exactly one tone is allocated to each of the base points.

Claims

1. A device for generating a note signal upon a manual input, comprising:

an operator which is implemented to enable, as an input, a user of the same to define one or several points as an input signal; and

a controller implemented to receive the input signal and to generate a note signal based on the input signal and an allocation function,

wherein the allocation function allocates one single or no tone to each point of a two-dimensional definition amount determined via an affine coordinate system and comprising a tone quality axis and a frequency axis;

wherein the definition amount comprises a plurality of base points;

wherein to each of the base points exactly one tone is allocated, which may be uniquely determined by a tone quality and a frequency;

wherein to base points comprising the same coordinate on the tone quality axis tones comprising the same tone quality are allocated;

wherein at least two of the base points comprising an identical coordinate on the tone quality axis exist which comprise different coordinates on the frequency axis; and

wherein to each point of the definition amount which is not a base point either no tone or a tone associated to a base point is associated and, if there is a point which is not a base point and to which a tone is associated, this tone belongs to a simply connected area of the definition amount in which further a base point is located and in which the same tone is associated to all points,

wherein the operator is implemented to enable a user of the same to select an area so that the point or the several points of the input signal are given by the area,

wherein tones on the frequency axis are arranged in an order corresponding to the tone pitch, wherein an area of any form may be selected, wherein by shifting this area along the frequency axis, automatically an inversion of a chord may be formed defined by the area.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the controller is implemented so that the affine coordinate system is a Cartesian coordinate system.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein a tone distance between a tone quality of a tone associated to a base point and a tone quality of a tone of a neighboring base point closest with respect to the tone quality axis is a prime, a small third, a major third, a fourth or a fifth.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the operator is implemented to enable a user to select the area by a designated point, a tone quality interval and a frequency interval or by the selection of two designated points which are characteristic for the area with regard to the underlying coordinate system.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein the operator is further implemented to enable a user of the same to generate a changeover signal, and wherein the controller is implemented to receive the changeover signal and to modify the allocation function to acquire a modified allocation function.

6. The device according to claim 5, wherein the controller is implemented to acquire an allocation function shifted with respect to the tone quality axis, the frequency axis or the tone quality axis and the frequency axis as a modified allocation function.

7. The device according to claim 5, wherein the controller is implemented so that the definition amount of the modified allocation function comprises a first point to which the same tone is allocated via the allocation function as via the modified allocation function, and

wherein the definition amount of the modified allocation function comprises a second point to which via the modified allocation function a tone with a tone quality is allocated which is different from a tone quality of a tone allocated to a point with the same coordinate on the tone quality axis via the allocation function.

8. The device according to claim 4, wherein the controller is implemented so that to points with a common coordinate on the tone quality axis via the modified allocation function tones are allocated which comprise a common tone quality deviating via the allocation function from a common coordinate.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein the operator is implemented to enable a user of the same to generate an influencing signal, and wherein the controller is implemented to generate the note signal upon the influencing signal with tones which are transposed as a whole by a number of semitones with respect to tones based on the input signal and the allocation function, wherein the influencing signal comprises information with respect to the number of the semitones.

10. The device according to claim 1, wherein the controller is implemented to generate the note signal such that the note signal comprises volume information and wherein the controller is implemented so that the allocation function allocates volume information for the respective tone to each point to which a tone is allocated.

11. The device according to claim 10, wherein volume information for the points comprised in the area is allocated to one, a plurality, a multitude or all connected areas of the definition amount, wherein the information is based on the coordinates of the points with respect to the tone quality axis and the frequency axis and a single tone volume function.

12. The device according to claim 1, wherein the operator is implemented to enable a user of the same to define an area as an input signal, wherein the area comprises a tone quality interval and wherein the tone quality interval depends on a smallest frequency of all points of the area.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein the operator is implemented to reduce the tone quality interval from a first value above a cutoff frequency to a second value below a cutoff frequency, wherein the second value is smaller than the first value.

14. The device according to claim 1, further comprising a further operator which is implemented to enable a user of the same as an input to define one or several points as a further input signal,

wherein the operator and the further operator are implemented to enable a user to select one area each comprising one tone quality interval and one frequency interval each,

wherein the tone quality interval of the area which may be selected via the operator is larger than the tone quality interval of the area which may be selected via the further operator, and

wherein a smallest frequency for the area which may be selected on the operator is larger than a smallest frequency of the area which may be selected on the further operator.

15. The device according to claim 1, wherein the operator comprises a key, a touchscreen, a touch-sensitive area, a joystick, a mouse, a keypad or an acceleration sensor to enable the input to the user.

16. The device according to claim 1, wherein the operator comprises a keypad with a two-dimensional raster of keys, wherein a point is allocated to each key, so that either at least one tone or no tone is allocated to the keys via the allocation function of the controller and the two-dimensional raster of keys reproduces the allocation function.

17. The device according to claim 16, wherein either no tone, one tone, or a plurality of tones is allocated to each key of the keypad in a pre-stored way, so that such tones, which are allocated via the allocation function to a plurality of points via a connected area, are allocated at least to each key to which a plurality of tones is allocated, wherein the point allocated to the keys is part of the area.

18. A method for generating a note signal upon a manual input into an operator, including:

receiving an input signal defining one or several points; and

generating a note signal on the basis of an allocation function and the input signal,

wherein the allocation function allocates one single or no tone to each point of a two-dimensional definition amount determined via an affine coordinate system and comprising a tone quality axis and a frequency axis;

wherein the definition amount comprises a plurality of base points;

wherein exactly one tone which may be uniquely determined by a tone quality and a frequency is allocated to each of the base points;

wherein to base points comprising the same coordinate on the tone quality axis tones with the same tone quality are allocated;

wherein at least two of the base points with an identical coordinate on the tone quality axis exist which comprise different coordinates on the frequency axis; and

wherein either no tone or a tone allocated to a base point is allocated to each point of the definition amount which is not a base point and, if there is a point which is not a base point and to which a tone is allocated, this tone belongs to a simply connected area of the definition amount in which a base point is further located and in which the same tone is allocated to all points,

wherein the operator is implemented to enable a user of the same to select an area so that the point or the several points of the input signal are given by the area,

wherein tones on the frequency axis are arranged in an order corresponding to the tone pitch, wherein an area of any form may be selected, wherein by shifting this area along the frequency axis, automatically an inversion of a chord may be formed defined by the area.

19. A non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon a computer program comprising program code for executing a method for generating, when the computer program is executed on a processor, a note signal upon a manual input into an operator, the method including:

receiving an input signal defining one or several points; and

generating a note signal on the basis of an allocation function and the input signal,

wherein the allocation function allocates one single or no tone to each point of a two-dimensional definition amount determined via an affine coordinate system and comprising a tone quality axis and a frequency axis;

wherein the definition amount comprises a plurality of base points;

wherein exactly one tone which may be uniquely determined by a tone quality and a frequency is allocated to each of the base points;

wherein to base points comprising the same coordinate on the tone quality axis tones with the same tone quality are allocated;

wherein at least two of the base points with an identical coordinate on the tone quality axis exist which comprise different coordinates on the frequency axis; and

wherein either no tone or a tone allocated to a base point is allocated to each point of the definition amount which is not a base point and, if there is a point which is not a base point and to which a tone is allocated, this tone belongs to a simply connected area of the definition amount in which a base point is further located and in which the same tone is allocated to all points,

wherein the operator is implemented to enable a user of the same to select an area so that the point or the several points of the input signal are given by the area,

wherein tones on the frequency axis are arranged in an order corresponding to the tone pitch, wherein an area of any form may be selected, wherein by shifting this area along the frequency axis, automatically an inversion of a chord may be formed defined by the area.