SYSTEM AND COMPUTER PROGRAM FOR VIRTUAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

• US 20110316793A1
• Filed: 10/08/2010
• Published: 12/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Digitar World, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Digitar World, Inc.
• Inventors: Fushiki, Ikko
• Application Number:
  US12/901,080
• Publication Number:
  US 20110316793A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0575 using a data store from which the envelope is synthesized tones synthesized from a data store G10H7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/24 for selecting plural preset register stops
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/34 Switch arrangements, e.g. keyboards or mechanical switches specially adapted for electrophonic musical instruments
• 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 1/344 Structural association with individual keys electrically operated wind-actuated organs G10B3/22
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/348 Switches actuated by parts of the body other than fingers
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/46 Volume control
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/155 Musical effects
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/565 Manual designation or selection of a tonality
• 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 2220/111 for graphical orchestra or soundstage control, e.g. on-screen selection or positioning of instruments in a virtual orchestra, using movable or selectable musical instrument icons soundstage sound field effects G10H2210/305
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/135 Musical aspects of games or videogames; Musical instrument-shaped game input interfaces game background music G10H2210/026; musical game scoring or performance evaluation G10H2210/091
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/201 for movement interpretation, i.e. capturing and recognizing a gesture or a specific kind of movement, e.g. to control a musical instrument
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/241 on touchscreens, i.e. keys, frets, strings, tablature or staff displayed on a touchscreen display for note input purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/361 Mouth control in general, i.e. breath, mouth, teeth, tongue or lip-controlled input devices or sensors detecting, e.g. lip position, lip vibration, air pressure, air velocity, air flow or air jet angle
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/391 Angle sensing for musical purposes, using data from a gyroscope, gyrometer or other angular velocity or angular movement sensing device angles measured by an accelerometer or gravimeter G10H2220/395; angles calculated from 3D position sensing G10H2220/401; player body joint angle sensing G10H2220/321
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/395 Acceleration sensing or accelerometer use, e.g. 3D movement computation by integration of accelerometer data, angle sensing with respect to the vertical, i.e. gravity sensing. conductor baton movement sensing G10H2220/206, angle sensing without reference to gravity G10H2220/391; player body joint angle sensing G10H2220/321
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/015 PDA [personal digital assistant] or palmtop computing devices used for musical purposes, e.g. portable music players, tablet computers, e-readers or smart phones in which mobile telephony functions need not be used touch-screen interfaces G10H2220/096
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/045 : Special instrument [spint], i.e. mimicking the ergonomy, shape, sound or other characteristic of a specific acoustic musical instrument category
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/055 : Spint toy, i.e. specifically designed for children, e.g. adapted for smaller fingers or simplified in some way; Musical instrument-shaped game input interfaces with simplified control features
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/061 : Spint organ, i.e. mimicking acoustic musical instruments with pipe organ or harmonium features; Electrophonic aspects of acoustic pipe organs or harmoniums; MIDI-like control therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/065 : Spint piano, i.e. mimicking acoustic musical instruments with piano, cembalo or spinet features, e.g. with piano-like keyboard; Electrophonic aspects of piano-like acoustic keyboard instruments; MIDI-like control therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/081 : Spint viola
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/135 : Spint guitar, i.e. guitar-like instruments in which the sound is not generated by vibrating strings, e.g. guitar-shaped game interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/155 : Spint wind instrument, i.e. mimicking musical wind instrument features; Electrophonic aspects of acoustic wind instruments; MIDI-like control therefor. wind instrument sound synthesis G10H2250/461; mouth control, e.g. breath G10H2220/361; natural aerodynamic noise synthesis, e.g. wind G10H2250/431
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/175 : Spint trumpet, i.e. mimicking cylindrical bore brass instruments, e.g. bugle
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/195 : Spint flute, i.e. mimicking or emulating a transverse flute or air jet sensor arrangement therefor, e.g. sensing angle, lip position, etc, to trigger octave change; input breath G10H2220/361; end-blown flutes G10H2230/161
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/211 : Spint harmonica, i.e. mimicking mouth operated wind instruments with multiple tuned free reeds, a.k.a. harmonica, blues harp, mouth organ, pitch pipe, ChengGong, free reed instruments not operated by mouth, e.g. accordion G10H2230/245
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/221 : Spint saxophone, i.e. mimicking conical bore musical instruments with single reed mouthpiece, e.g. saxophones, electrophonic emulation or interfacing aspects therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/245 : Spint accordion, i.e. mimicking accordions; Electrophonic instruments with one or more typical accordion features, e.g. special accordion keyboards or bellows, electrophonic aspects of mechanical accordions, Midi-like control therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/265 : Spint maracas, i.e. mimicking shells or gourds filled with seeds or dried beans, fitted with a handle, e.g. maracas, rumba shakers, shac-shacs
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/275 : Spint drum
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/281 : Spint drum assembly, i.e. mimicking two or more drums or drumpads assembled on a common structure, e.g. drum kit multi-toned percussion instruments G10H2230/255
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/331 : Spint cymbal hihat, e.g. mimicking high-hat cymbal; Details of the pedal interface, of the pedal action emulation or of the generation of the different sounds resulting from this pedal action
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2230/365 : Ergonomy of electrophonic musical instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/145 : Sound library, i.e. involving the specific use of a musical database as a sound bank or wavetable; indexing, interfacing, protocols or processing therefor
• 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

A system and computer program for virtual musical instruments includes a touch-sensitive screen; a selection interface that presents a list of virtual instruments on the screen for the user to select a virtual instrument; and a performance interface that presents a plurality of virtual instrument input elements on the screen for the user to play the virtual instrument by touching the screen. The system utilizes the location and speed of the user'"'"'s touches to produce the sound, which may be a note produced with a sound effects library.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a first computer interface to select a virtual instrument; and

a second computer interface to receive a musical instrument input;

wherein the system measures a speed and an acceleration of the musical instrument input, identifies a location of the musical instrument input, and utilizes the speed, acceleration, and location to produce a sound.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a touch-sensitive screen that presents the first computer interface to a user, receives a selection from the user, and then presents the second computer interface to the user.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the touch-sensitive screen is velocity sensitive.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an accelerometer to measure an acceleration of the musical instrument input.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a gyroscope to measure the directional changes of the musical instrument.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a software module to identify the speed and acceleration of the musical instrument input by tracking a user'"'"'s finger movement.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a sound effects library, wherein the musical instrument input relates to a note, the system forms the note utilizing the sound effects library, and the sound includes the note.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the system utilizes the speed and location to interpret a volume and a pitch of a note for the selected virtual instrument.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the musical instrument input is provided by a plurality of fingers of a user, and the fingers press upon the second computer interface to identify a plurality of sounds at the same time.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the musical instrument input is provided by a plurality of body parts of a user, and the body parts press upon the second computer interface to identify a plurality of sounds at the same time.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the second computer interface displays a virtual instrument input element that indicates an area for the user to touch the interface.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the second computer interface displays a virtual string and the user touches and moves the string to indicate bending of a note.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the system records the sound and plays back the recorded sound.

14. A system for a user to produce a sound, comprising:

a touch-sensitive screen;

a selection interface that presents a list of virtual instruments on the screen for the user to select a virtual instrument; and

a performance interface that presents a plurality of virtual instrument input elements on the screen for the user to play the virtual instrument by touching the screen;

wherein the system utilizes the location and speed of the user'"'"'s touches to produce the sound.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the virtual instrument input elements are representation of strings, and the user touches the screen with a finger and moves the finger along the screen to indicate bending of a note of a virtual string instrument.

16. The system of claim 14, further comprising:

a software module that tracks the location and movement of the user'"'"'s touches to calculate the speed.

17. A method for producing a sound, comprising:

selecting a virtual instrument;

displaying a representation of a virtual instrument input element for the selected virtual instrument on a touch-sensitive screen;

receiving a touch on the screen;

identifying a location, a speed, and an acceleration of the touch; and

utilizing the location, speed, and acceleration to produce the sound.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

utilizing a sound effects library that includes the selected virtual instrument together with the location and speed of the touch to produce the sound.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the virtual instrument input element is a representation on the screen of a string, and the user touches the representation with a finger and moves the finger along the screen to indicate bending of a note or stroking of a bow.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the virtual input element is a representation including air exhale and inhale, the user touches the representation with lips, and the user tilts the device to indicate the exhaling and inhaling of the notes in the device.