Biasing a musical performance input to a part

• US 8,465,366 B2
• Filed: 05/29/2009
• Issued: 06/18/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Harmonix Music Systems Incorporated (Epic Games, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Harmonix Music Systems Incorporated (Epic Games, Inc.)
• Inventors: Applewhite, Douglas Robert, Foster, Christopher Joseph, Stoddard, Joshua Forrest, Dubrofsky, Sylvain
• Primary Examiner(s): Such, Matthew W
• Assistant Examiner(s): CARPENTER, ROBERT K
• Application Number:
  US12/474,811
• Publication Number:
  US 20100304863A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,481 Days
• Field of Search: 463/36, 463/37, 844/77.R, 846/10, 846/19
• US Class Current: 463/36
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/215 comprising means for detecting acoustic signals, e.g. using a microphone
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/245 specially adapted to a particular type of game, e.g. steering wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/424 involving acoustic input signals, e.g. by using the results of pitch or rhythm extraction or voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/537 using indicators, e.g. showing the condition of a game character on screen
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/67 adaptively or by learning from player actions, e.g. skill level adjustment or by storing successful combat sequences for re-use
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/814 Musical performances, e.g. by evaluating the player's ability to follow a notation
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/847 Cooperative playing, e.g. requiring coordinated actions from several players to achieve a common goal
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6027 using adaptive systems learning from user actions, e.g. for skill level adjustment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6072 of an input signal, e.g. pitch and rhythm extraction, voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8047 Music games
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0058 Transmission between separate instruments or between individual components of a musical system G10H1/0083 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/368 displaying animated or moving pictures synchronized with the music or audio part
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/091 for performance evaluation, i.e. judging, grading or scoring the musical qualities or faithfulness of a performance, e.g. with respect to pitch, tempo or other timings of a reference performance
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/005 Non-interactive screen display of musical or status data
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/145 Multiplayer musical games, e.g. karaoke-like multiplayer videogames
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/151 Musical difficulty level setting or selection

Abstract

Described are methods, systems, and apparatuses, including computer program products, for biasing a musical performance input of a player of a rhythm-action game to a part in the game. In one aspect this is accomplished by providing, by a game platform, a history of a degree of matching between a prior music performance input data and a prior music data associated with a first part in a musical composition. Then, on a display, a plurality of target music data, each associated with a respective part in the musical composition, is displayed, with one of the plurality being associated with the first part. Music performance input data is received by the game platform via an input device, such as a microphone, and, based on the history, the received music performance input is assigned to the target music data of the plurality that is associated with the first part.

Claims

1. A method executed on a game platform in signal communication with a display and an input device, the method comprising:

providing, by the game platform, a history of a degree of matching between prior music performance input data and prior music data associated with a first part in a musical composition;

displaying, on the display, a plurality of target music data, each associated with a respective part in the musical composition, wherein one of the plurality of target music data is associated with the first part;

receiving, by the game platform, music performance input data via the input device; and

biasing an assignment of the received music performance input to the one of the plurality of the target music data associated with the first part when the history of the degree of matching indicates that the prior music performance input data were associated with the prior music data associated with the first part.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining that the music performance input data is within a tolerance threshold of each of at least two target music data of the plurality of target music data.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising assigning a score for the received music performance input data compared to each of the plurality of target music data.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the input device is a microphone.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the input device is a game controller simulating a guitar.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the input device is a game controller simulating a drum.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the history of the degree of matching comprises determining the history of the degree of matching based on a score assigned to the prior music performance input data with respect to the prior music data.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the history of the degree of matching comprises determining the history of the degree of matching based on whether the prior music performance input data was within a tolerance threshold of the prior music data.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the history of the degree of matching comprises determining the history of the degree of matching based on a proximity of a visual representation of the prior music performance input data to a visual cue associated with the prior music data.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the history of the degree of matching comprises determining the history of the degree of matching based on an amount of silence in the prior music performance input data.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the history of the degree of matching further comprises storing the history in a memory buffer.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the history of degree of matching further comprises storing a predetermined period of history of the degree of matching.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein biasing includes examining the history of the degree of matching over a time period to determine whether the history of the degree of matching indicates that the prior music performance input data were associated with the prior music data associated with the first part.

14. A computer program product, tangibly embodied in a computer-readable storage medium, the computer program product including instructions operable to cause a data processing apparatus to:

provide a history of a degree of matching between prior music performance input data and prior music data associated with a first part in a musical composition;

display, on a display in signal communication with the data processing apparatus, a plurality of target music data, each associated with a respective part in the musical composition, wherein one of the plurality of the target music data is associated with the first part;

receive music performance input data via an input device in signal communication with the data processing apparatus; and

biasing an assignment of the received music performance input to the one of the plurality of the target music data associated with the first part when the history of the degree of matching indicates that the prior music performance input data were associated with the prior music data associated with the first part.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the data processing apparatus to examine the history of the degree of matching over a time period to determine whether the history of the degree of matching indicates that the prior music performance input data were associated with the prior music data associated with the first part.

16. A system for dynamically assigning a music performance input to target music data, the system comprising:

a data processing apparatus configured to;

provide a history of a degree of matching between prior music performance input data and prior music data associated with a first part in a musical composition;

display, on a display in signal communication with the data processing apparatus, a plurality of target music data, each associated with a respective part in the musical composition, wherein one of the plurality of target music data is associated with the first part;

receive music performance input data via an input device in signal communication with the data processing apparatus; and

biasing an assignment of the received music performance input to the one of the plurality of the target music data associated with the first part when the history of the degree of matching indicates that the prior music performance input data were associated with the prior music data associated with the first part.

17. An apparatus comprising:

means for providing a history of a degree of matching between prior music performance input data and prior music data associated with a first part in a musical composition;

means for displaying, on a display in signal communication with the system, a plurality of target music data, each associated with a respective part in the musical composition, one of the plurality associated with the first part;

means for receiving music performance input data via an input device in signal communication with the data processing apparatus; and

means for biasing an assignment of the received music performance input to the one of the plurality of the target music data associated with the first part when the history of the degree of matching indicates that the prior music performance input data were associated with the prior music data associated with the first part.

18. A method executed on a game platform, the game platform in signal communication with a display and an input device, the method comprising:

storing, by the game platform, a history of first music performance input data being within a tolerance threshold of a first part associated with a musical composition;

displaying, on the display, the first part and a second part associated with the musical composition;

receiving, by the game platform, second music performance input data via the input device; and

biasing an assignment of the second music performance input data to the first part based on the history of the first music performance input data being within the tolerance threshold of the first part.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising the first part tolerance threshold overlapping the second part tolerance threshold.

20. A computer program product, tangibly embodied in a computer-readable storage medium, the computer program product including instructions operable to cause a data processing apparatus to:

store a history of first music performance input data being within a tolerance threshold of a first part associated with a musical composition;

display, on a display in signal communication with the data processing apparatus, the first part and a second part associated with the musical composition;

receive second music performance input data via an input device in signal communication with the data processing apparatus; and

biasing an assignment of the second music performance input data to the first part based on the history of the first music performance input data being within the tolerance threshold of the first part.

21. A system comprising:

a data processing apparatus configured to;

store a history of first music performance input data being within a tolerance threshold of a first part associated with a musical composition;

display, on a display in signal communication with the data processing apparatus, the first part and a second part associated with the musical composition;

receive second music performance input data via an input device in signal communication with the data processing apparatus; and

biasing an assignment of the second music performance input data to the first part based on the history of the first music performance input data being within the tolerance threshold of the first part.

22. An apparatus comprising:

means for storing a history of first music performance input data being within a tolerance threshold of a first part associated with a musical composition;

means for displaying, on a display in signal communication with the apparatus, the first part and a second part associated with the musical composition;

means for receiving second music performance input data via an input device in signal communication with the apparatus; and

means for biasing an assignment of the second music performance input data to at least one of the first and second parts based on the history of the first music performance input data being within the tolerance threshold of the first part.