Electronic musical instrument and tone generator apparatus connectable thereto

• US 20060054004A1
• Filed: 08/29/2005
• Published: 03/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yamaha Corporation
• Inventors: Funaki, Tomoyuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,589,274 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 84/600
• 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 2240/285 USB, i.e. either using a USB plug as power supply or using the USB protocol to exchange data

Abstract

Tone generation control signal and sound signal are communicated between an electronic musical instrument and an external apparatus, using a communication interface capable of bidirectionally communicating one or more types of signals via a common communication path in accordance with a common communication standard. Thus, where the electronic musical instrument does not have its own internal tone generator while the external apparatus has its own tone generator, a sound signal of a tone, corresponding to the tone generation control signal output from the electronic musical instrument, can be generated by the external apparatus and supplied to the electronic musical instrument, so that the electronic musical instrument can sound the sound signal. Also, information of the electronic musical instrument is transmitted to the external apparatus so that input and output paths to and from the tone generator of the external apparatus can be automatically set, via the communication interface tom, in correspondence with the electronic musical instrument.

Claims

1. An electronic musical instrument connectable with an external apparatus for communication therewith, the external apparatus being capable of establishing a plurality of input/output paths between the external apparatus and another apparatus, said electronic musical instrument comprising:

a performance operation section that generates a tone generation control signal in response to performance operation;

a sound output device that outputs an audible sound in accordance with a given sound signal;

a communication interface capable of bidirectionally communicating one or more types of signals via a common communication path in accordance with a common communication standard; and

a control section that performs control to transmit the tone generation control signal, generated by said performance operation section, to the external apparatus via said communication interface and receive a sound signal from the external apparatus via said communication interface, the received sound signal being delivered to said sound output device,

wherein, when the external apparatus has been connected to said electronic musical instrument via said communication interface, said control section transmits, to the external apparatus, predetermined information for setting signal input/output paths in the external apparatus.

2. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein said tone generation control signal is encoded digital performance data including information indicative of a note of a tone to be generated, and said sound signal is digital waveform data of a sound to be generated.

3. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein said communication interface is a USB interface, and said electronic musical instrument is connected to the external apparatus via a removable USB cable.

4. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein said external apparatus includes a tone generator section that generates a sound signal of a tone indicated by the tone generation control signal, and wherein said external apparatus generates, by means of said tone generator section, a sound signal corresponding to the tone generation control signal given from said electronic musical instrument via said communication interface.

5. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 4 which further comprises:

an internal tone generator section that generates a sound signal of a tone indicated by the tone generation control signal; and

a switching section that performs switching as to whether or not to generate a sound signal using said internal tone generator section and switching as to whether or not to generate a sound signal using said tone generator section of said external tone generator apparatus.

6. An electronic musical instrument as claimed in claim 1 wherein said predetermined information is apparatus information of said electronic musical instrument.

7. A tone generator apparatus connectable with a plurality of external apparatus for communication therewith, said tone generator apparatus being capable of establishing a plurality of input/output paths between said tone generator apparatus and another apparatus, said tone generator apparatus comprising:

a tone generator section that generates a sound signal of a tone indicated by a tone generation control signal;

a communication interface capable of bidirectionally communicating one or more types of signals via a common communication path in accordance with a common communication standard;

a setting section that, when a given external apparatus has been connected to said tone generator apparatus via said communication interface, receives, from the given external apparatus, predetermined information for setting signal input/output paths in said tone generator apparatus and then automatically sets input and output paths between said tone generator section and said communication interface in accordance with the received predetermined information; and

a control section that, in accordance with settings by said setting section, performs control to receive a tone generation control signal from the external apparatus via said communication interface and transmit the sound signal, generated by said tone generator section, to the external apparatus, the received tone generation control signal being delivered to said tone generator section.

8. A tone generator apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein said tone generation control signal is encoded digital performance data including information indicative of a note of a tone to be generated, and said sound signal is digital waveform data of a sound to be generated.

9. A tone generator apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein said communication interface is a USB interface, and said electronic musical instrument is connected to the external apparatus via a removable USB cable.

10. A tone generator apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein said external apparatus is an electronic musical instrument, and

wherein said control section receives, via said communication interface, a tone generation control signal, output from the electronic musical instrument in response to performance operation on the electronic musical instrument, to thereby input the received tone generation control signal to said tone generator section and transmits a sound signal, generated by said tone generator section in accordance with the tone generation control signal, to the electronic musical instrument via said communication interface.

11. A tone generator apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein said predetermined information is apparatus information of said electronic musical instrument.

12. A tone generator apparatus as claimed in claim 7 which further comprises:

a storage section that stores tone generation control signals in accordance with a performance sequence of a music piece; and

an automatic performance section that reproduces, in accordance with the performance sequence, the tone generation control signals stored in said storage section,

wherein said tone generator section receives the tone generation control signals reproduced by said automatic performance section and generates sound signals corresponding to the received tone generation control signals.

13. A tone generator apparatus as claimed in claim 7 which further comprises an activation control section that detects whether the external apparatus has been connected to said tone generator apparatus via said communication interface and then automatically activates said tone generator section in accordance with the detection as to whether the external apparatus has been connected to said tone generator apparatus.

14. A tone generator apparatus as claimed in claim 7 which further comprises a restoration control section that, when the external apparatus has been connected to said tone generator apparatus via said communication interface, stores information indicative of signal input and output paths currently set with respect to said tone generator section, and that, when the external apparatus connected to said tone generator apparatus via said communication interface has been disconnected from said tone generator apparatus, restores previous settings of the signal input and output paths to and from said tone generator section on the basis of the stored information.

15. A program for causing a processor, provided in an electronic musical instrument, to perform a procedure, said electronic musical instrument being connectable with an external apparatus for communication therewith, the external apparatus being capable of establishing a plurality of input/output paths between the external apparatus and another apparatus, said electronic musical instrument including:

a performance operation section that generates a tone generation control signal in response to performance operation;

a sound output device that outputs an audible sound in accordance with a given sound signal; and

a communication interface capable of bidirectionally communicating one or more types of signals via a common communication path in accordance with a common communication standard, said procedure comprising;

a step of performing control to transmit the tone generation control signal, generated by said performance operation section, to an external apparatus via said communication interface and receive a sound signal from the external apparatus via said communication interface, the received sound signal being delivered to said sound output device; and

a step of, when the external apparatus has been connected to said electronic musical instrument via said communication interface, transmitting, to the external apparatus, predetermined information for setting signal input/output paths in the external apparatus.

16. A program for causing a processor, provided in a tone generator apparatus, to perform a procedure, said tone generator apparatus connectable with a plurality of external apparatus for communication therewith, said tone generator apparatus being capable of establishing a plurality of input/output paths between said tone generator apparatus and another apparatus, said tone generator apparatus including:

a tone generator section that generates a sound signal of a tone indicated by a tone generation control signal; and

a communication interface capable of bidirectionally communicating one or more types of signals via a common communication path in accordance with a common communication standard, said procedure comprising;

a setting step of, when a given external apparatus has been connected to said tone generator apparatus via said communication interface, receiving, from the given external apparatus, predetermined information for setting signal input/output paths in said tone generator apparatus and then automatically setting input and output paths between said tone generator section and said communication interface in accordance with the received predetermined information; and

a step of, in accordance with settings by said setting step, performing control to receive a tone generation control signal from the external apparatus via said communication interface and transmit the sound signal, generated by said tone generator section, to the external apparatus, the received tone generation control signal being delivered to said tone generator section.

17. An electronic musical instrument system in which an electronic musical instrument and a tone generator apparatus are interconnected via an Internet,

said electronic musical instrument comprising:

a performance operator unit that generates a tone generation control signal in response to user operation;

a control section that performs control to transmit the tone generation control signal, generated by said performance operator unit, to said tone generator apparatus connected to said electronic musical instrument via the Internet and receive a sound signal, corresponding to the tone generation control signal, from said tone generator apparatus; and

a sound output section that audibly generates a tone in accordance with the sound signal received from said tone generator apparatus, and

said tone generator apparatus comprising;

a tone generator that generates a sound signal in accordance with the tone generation control signal; and

a control section that performs control to receive the tone generation control signal from said electronic musical instrument connected to said tone generator apparatus via the Internet and transmit a sound signal, generated by said tone generator in accordance with the received tone generation control signal, to said electronic musical instrument.