Sing-along data transmitting method and a sing-along data transmitting/receiving system

• US 6,062,868 A
• Filed: 10/18/1996
• Issued: 05/16/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Pioneer Electronic Corporation (Pioneer Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Pioneer Electronic Corporation (Pioneer Corporation)
• Inventors: Toriumi, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheng, Joe H.
• Application Number:
  US08/732,716
• Time in Patent Office: 1,306 Days
• Field of Search: 434/307 R-309, 434/318, 434/118, 434/365, 84/477 R, 84/609-613, 84/634-637, 84/644, 84/650-652, 84/662, 369/1, 369/2, 369/4, 369/48, 369/178, 369/192, 360/32, 360/72.2, 348/473, 348/595, 348/563, 348/564, 348/484, 348/478, 348/7, 348/12-14, 348/732, 348/488, 348/571, 386/96, 379/93, 370/95.1, 370/95.2, 370/85.8, 370/432, 370/535, 370/536, 370/437, 340/825.03, 340/825.08, 340/825.21, 340/825.07, 705/39, 485/4.2, 485/5.1, 485/6.3, 704/769, 455/66, 455/5.1, 455/4.2, 455/6.3, 455/3.1, 375/358
• US Class Current: 434/307.00A
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/365 the accompaniment information being stored on a host computer and transmitted to a reproducing terminal by means of a network, e.g. public telephone lines
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/368 displaying animated or moving pictures synchronized with the music or audio part
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/056 MIDI or other note-oriented file format
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/066 MPEG audio-visual compression file formats, e.g. MPEG-4 for coding of audio-visual objects
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/245 ISDN [Integrated Services Digital Network]
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/261 Satellite transmission for musical instrument purposes, e.g. processing for mitigation of satellite transmission delays
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/265 CATV transmission, i.e. electrophonic musical instruments connected to community antennas or cable television networks

Abstract

A sing-along data transmitting method includes the steps of providing a sing-along data center for supplying background video data and music data, and providing a plurality of sing-along data receiving terminals for receiving the background video data and music data fed from the sing-along data center. The next step is transmitting a plurality of background video data by way of a plurality of different channels, and transmitting music data of a plurality of melodies by way of at least one channel. The method further includes the step of transmitting a channel data indicating a channel through which said background video data corresponding to a selected music is being transmitted, with the channel data being transmitted together with music data. There is also provided a sing-along data transmitting/receiving system for carrying out the above sing-along data transmitting method.

Claims

1. A sing-along data transmitting method, comprising:

providing a sing-along data center for supplying background video data and music data;

providing a plurality of sing-along data receiving terminals for receiving the background video data and music data fed from the sing-along data center;

continuously transmitting a plurality of background video data by way of a plurality of different channels without receiving a request from a specific data receiving terminal of said plurality of data receiving terminals;

transmitting music data of a plurality of melodies by way of at least one channel; and

transmitting a channel data indicating a channel through which said background video data corresponding to a selected music is being transmitted, said channel data being transmitted together with music data;

wherein the music data contains music melody data and lyrics data, and wherein the music data is repeatedly transmitted.

2. The sing-along data transmitting method according to claim 1, wherein said music data are compressed so as to be transmitted in a sufficiently shortened time period less than real time.

3. A sing-along data transmitting/receiving system, comprising:

a sing-along data center for supplying background video data and music data;

a plurality of sing-along data receiving terminals for receiving the background video data and music data fed from the sing-along data center;

a data communication way for continuously transmitting the background video data and music data from the sing-along data center to the plurality of sing-along data receiving terminals;

wherein the sing-along data center comprises;

a video data supplying means for repeatedly reproducing a plurality of background video data;

a video data transmitting means for continuously transmitting the reproduced background video data by way of respective video data transmitting channels without a specific request from one data terminal of the plurality of data terminals;

a music data supplying means for repeatedly reproducing music data of a plurality of melodies;

a music data transmitting means for transmitting the reproduced music data by way of a predetermined music data transmitting channel;

wherein each of the sing-along data receiving terminals comprises;

an input means for designating a sing-along melody;

a music data receiving means for receiving the music data from the above predetermined music data transmitting channel; and

wherein the system further comprises a channel data producing means for producing channel data indicating a channel through which background video data corresponding to a music is being transmitted,

wherein each of the sing-along data receiving terminals further comprises a video data receiving means for receiving the video data from one of the above video data transmitting channels in accordance with the channel data transmitted together with the music data,

wherein music data contains music melody data and lyrics data, and wherein the music data is repeatedly transmitted.

4. A sing-along data transmitting/receiving system according to claim 3,

wherein the music data transmitting means is provided to transmit reproduced music data together with the produced respective channel data, and the music data receiving means is provided to extract music data of a sing-along melody designated by said input means and to extract channel data corresponding to the designated sing-along melody;

and

wherein the video data receiving means receives the video data from one of the video data transmitting channels, in accordance with the extracted channel data.

5. A sing-along data receiving system, adapted to receive background video data continuously transmitted through a plurality of video data transmitting channels without receiving a request from a specific data receiving terminal, to receive music data of a plurality of melodies by way of at least one music data transmitting channel, to receive a channel data indicating a channel through which said background video data corresponding to a selected music is being transmitted, said sing-along data receiving terminal comprises:

an input means for designating a sing-along melody;

a music data receiving means for selecting a music data transmitting channel to receive music data of a sing-along melody designated by the input means and channel data corresponding to the sing-along melody, so as to output the sing-along melody; and

a video data receiving means for selecting one of the video data transmitting channels in accordance with channel data received by the above music data receiving means, so as to receive the background video data, thereby outputting the background image,

wherein said channel data is transmitted together with said music data;

wherein said music data contains music melody data and lyrics data, and wherein the music data is repeatedly transmitted.