JP2002175079A - Keyboard instrument - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent variations in the generation timing of musical tones during key touch, even if variations in the accuracy of components in production occurs, and to improve the repeated playing. SOLUTION: Keys 2 turnably disposed on a keyboard chassis 1 are elastically provided with elastic hitting sections 7. The elastic hitting sections 7 are elastically deformed according to key touch force to thrust switch members 4. Accordingly, even if variations occur in the accuracy of the components, such as the keys 2 and the switching members 4, the generation timing of the musical tones during normal playing is set to the positions slightly lower than the positions, where the keys 2 are pushed in most deeply according to the elastic force of the elastic hitting sections 7, by which the variations in the generation timing of the musical tones in the key touch are prevented. More particularly the elastic hitting sections 7 are elastically deformed, when the keys 2 are strongly touched, by which the musical tones are generated when the keys 2 are most deeply pushed in, so that repeated playing to repeatedly touch the same keys 2 is carried out at a high speed and the repeated playability is improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a keyboard device used for an electronic keyboard instrument such as an electronic piano.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in an electronic keyboard musical instrument such as an electronic piano, a plurality of keys are mounted on a keyboard chassis so as to be vertically rotatable, and a rubber switch or the like is attached to the keyboard chassis at a location corresponding to each key. A switch member is provided, and in this state, a pressing portion formed on each key presses the switch member in accordance with a key pressing operation of each key to turn on the switch member, thereby generating a musical tone corresponding to the pressed key. ing.

[0003]

However, in such an electronic keyboard musical instrument, it is preferable in terms of performance to generate a musical tone when the key is depressed most deeply, as in an acoustic piano. When mass-producing such components, the dimensional accuracy of the components varies, and this variation causes the key operation position at the time of key depression, that is, the position where the key pressing portion presses the switch member to be different for each key. Also, there is a problem that the timing at which the switch member is turned on to generate a musical tone varies.

Therefore, in the conventional electronic keyboard musical instrument, when the key pressing portion presses the switch member at a position slightly shallower than the position where the key is pressed deepest, the timing of generating musical tones varies. The electronic keyboard instrument with such a structure does not have to play a musical tone when a key is pressed, regardless of the normal playing method or the continuous playing method of continuously pressing the same key. Since the generation timing is fixed at the shallow position of the key operation position, there is a problem when performing a high-speed repeated playing with the same key that repeats the key operation of releasing the key and releasing the sound after pressing the key to generate the musical tone However, there is a problem that high-speed continuous playing cannot be performed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to prevent variations in timing of generation of a musical tone when a key is depressed, and to improve continuous tapping performance, even if variations in component accuracy occur during production.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a keyboard chassis, a plurality of keys arranged in parallel on the keyboard chassis and provided to be rotatable in a vertical direction, and a plurality of keys respectively corresponding to the plurality of keys. A switch member provided at a location of the keyboard chassis to be switched by a key pressing operation of the key, wherein the plurality of keys each have an elastic pressing portion for pressing the switch member when the key is pressed. Are provided so as to be elastically deformable in accordance with the key pressing force of the key.

According to the present invention, since the elastic pressing portion provided on the key so as to be elastically deformable in accordance with the key pressing force presses the switch member, the accuracy of parts such as the key and the switch member varies during production. However, by setting the tone generation timing during normal performance to a position slightly shallower than the position where the key is pressed deepest in accordance with the elastic force of the elastic pressing part, the variation in the timing of the tone generation when the key is pressed can be achieved. Can be prevented, and the continuous deformation can be improved by the elastic deformation of the elastic pressing portion.

In this case, the elastic pressing portion elastically deforms when the key is strongly pressed, thereby generating a musical sound when the key is pressed deepest. At the time of a continuous tapping performance in which a key operation of releasing a key and then silencing after generating a musical tone by keying is performed with the same key, the performance can be performed at high speed. In addition, since the elastic pressing portion is formed integrally with the key, the number of parts does not increase, and the assembling work is not complicated, and the elastic pressing portion can be easily manufactured. .

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a keyboard device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 1, this keyboard device includes a keyboard chassis 1 made of a synthetic resin incorporated in a musical instrument case, and a plurality of keys made of a synthetic resin mounted on the keyboard chassis 1 so as to be vertically rotatable. 2, a hammer arm 3 that rotates and displaces in the vertical direction in accordance with the key pressing operation of the plurality of keys 2 to apply an action load to each key 2, and a switch corresponding to the key pressing operation of each key 2. A switch member 4 that operates to output an ON signal.

[0010] As shown in FIG.
a and a black key 2b, which are arranged in parallel on the keyboard chassis 1. In this case, the black key 2b is replaced by the white key 2
The length of the white key 2a is shorter than the length of the white key 2a, and is substantially the same as that of the white key 2a. Therefore, in the following description, the white key 2a is described as the key 2. These keys 2 are, as shown in FIG.
The rear end (the left end in the figure) is rotatably mounted on a key support 5 provided on the rear end (the left end in the figure) of the keyboard chassis 1 by a shaft 6. It is configured to rotate in the vertical direction about the center, and an elastic pressing portion 7 described later formed substantially in the middle of each key 2 to press the switch member 4.

In this case, each key 2 is urged upward by a hammer arm 3 which will be described later.
As shown in FIG. 2, an L-shaped stopper piece 8 vertically suspended from the front end (right end in the figure) of each key 2 is connected to an upper limit stopper 9 such as felt provided on the lower surface of the front end of the keyboard chassis 1. By contact, the position is regulated to a predetermined initial position (upper limit position). Each of these keys 2 rotates clockwise in FIG. 1 around the shaft 6 when the key is pressed, and as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an L-shaped stopper piece 8 is attached to the front end of the keyboard chassis 1. The position is restricted to a predetermined lower limit position by contacting a lower limit stopper 10 such as a felt provided at a lower portion of the portion. Each key 2 is a keyboard chassis 1
Are guided by a key guide 11 provided on the front end of the camera so as not to swing sideways.

The hammer arm 3 is, as shown in FIG.
An arm body 12 made of a synthetic resin, and a weight 13 attached to one end (the lower left end in the figure) of the arm body 12
And a hammer contact portion 14 provided at the other end of the arm main body 12 (the upper right end in the figure). The hammer arm 3 is disposed below the key support 5 through the opening 1 a of the keyboard chassis 1 along with the weight 13 so as to correspond to each key 2.
Of the keyboard chassis 1 is rotatably supported in the up-down direction by a shaft 16 and a hammer contact portion 14 contacts the lower surface of the key 2 and slides. It is configured to

In this case, as shown in FIG. 1, the hammer arm 3 usually has
Is urged counterclockwise in FIG.
Of the keyboard chassis 1 at the rear end of the side wall ribs 17 at the lower end of the side wall ribs 17 to contact the lower limit stopper 18 such as felt, thereby restricting the position to a predetermined lower limit position. 2 upward. Also,
When the key 2 is pressed against the weight of the weight 13, the hammer arm 3 rotates the arm main body 12 clockwise in FIG. 1, and as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. The lower end of the main body 12 abuts on an upper limit stopper 19 such as a felt provided on the lower surface of the keyboard chassis 1 located behind the key support 5, whereby the position is regulated to a predetermined upper limit position.

The switch member 4 comprises a rubber sheet 20 and a switch board 21, as shown in FIG. 1, and is disposed on the lower surface of the keyboard chassis 1 at a substantially intermediate portion. The rubber sheet 20 is formed in a band shape continuous in the direction in which the keys 2 are arranged, and a dome-shaped bulging portion 22 that can be elastically deformed is formed at a position corresponding to the elastic pressing portion 7 of each key 2. 22 is inserted from below into each through hole 1b of the keyboard chassis 1 and protrudes upward. Switch board 21
Is attached to the lower surface of the keyboard chassis 1 via a rubber sheet 20. As a result, when the swelling portion 22 of the rubber sheet 20 is pressed by the elastic pressing portion 7 in response to the key pressing operation, the switch member 4 causes the swelling portion 22 to elastically move as shown in FIGS. The movable contact provided therein is deformed and comes into contact with the fixed contact provided on the switch board 21, thereby outputting an ON signal.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 1, the elastic pressing portion 7 of the key 2 is
The lower end of the switch contact portion 23 is inclined obliquely downward and has a lower end curved in an arc shape and extends substantially in the horizontal direction. A switch contact portion 23 is formed in a portion extending in the horizontal direction. 2 and 3, when it comes into contact with the upper part of the bulging portion 22 of the switch member 4, the curved portion of the elastic pressing portion 7 is elastically deformed in accordance with the key pressing force of the key 2. Have been.

That is, the elastic pressing portion 7 is integrally formed on the lower surface of the key 2 so as to be elastically deformable, and the tone generation timing at the time of the normal performance of pressing the key 2 with a weak force or a moderate force is the key 2. Is set to be a little shallower than the deepest pressed position. As a result, when the key 2 is normally pressed with a weak or moderate force, the elastic pressing portion 7 is hardly elastically deformed as shown in FIG. Press 22
As shown in FIG. 3, when the key 2 is pressed strongly with a strong force, the swelling portion 2 of the switch member 4 is elastically deformed.
2 is pressed.

In such a keyboard device, when the key 2 is pressed against the weight of the weight 13 of the hammer arm 3, the key 2 rotates clockwise about the shaft 6 of the key support 5 in FIG. As a result, the hammer contact portion 14 abuts on the lower surface of the key 2 and is pushed down while sliding, whereby the hammer arm 3 is turned around the shaft 16 of the hammer support portion 15 in FIG. Rotate around. At this time, since an action load corresponding to the weight of the weight 13 of the hammer arm 3 is applied to the key 2, a key touch feeling similar to that of an acoustic piano can be obtained. When the key 2 is further rotated, the elastic pressing portion 7 of the key 2 presses the bulging portion 22 of the rubber sheet 20 of the switch member 4 to elastically deform as shown in FIG. As a result, the movable contact of the switch member 4 comes into contact with the fixed contact to output an ON signal, thereby generating a tone corresponding to the key 2 that has been pressed.

In this case, during a normal performance in which the key 2 is pressed with a weak force or a medium force, even if the key 2 is pressed down and the elastic pressing portion 7 presses the bulging portion 22 of the switch member 4,
As shown in FIG. 2, since the elastic pressing portion 7 hardly elastically deforms and pushes down the bulging portion 22 of the switch member 4,
A musical tone is generated at a position slightly shallower than the position where the key 2 is pushed deepest.

In the case of a strong performance in which the key 2 is pressed with a strong force, when the key 2 is pressed down and the elastic pressing portion 7 presses the bulging portion 22 of the switch member 4, as shown in FIG. The elastic pressing portion 7 pushes down the bulging portion 22 of the switch member 4 and the elastic pressing portion 7 is also elastically deformed.
Generates a musical tone at the position where it is pushed deepest. For this reason, when the key 2 is repeatedly pressed with the same key 2 in which the key 2 is pressed strongly to generate a musical tone and then released and silenced, the elastic pressing portion 7 is elastically deformed and the key 2 is deformed. Since the musical tone is generated at the position where it is pushed deepest, the continuous performance can be performed at high speed.

Thus, according to this keyboard device, the key 2
Since the elastic pressing portion 7 provided to be elastically deformable according to the key pressing force presses the switch member 4, the key
Even when the accuracy of the components such as the switch member 4 and the like varies, the timing of generating the musical sound during the normal performance is set to a position slightly shallower than the position where the key 2 is pushed deepest according to the elastic force of the elastic pressing portion 7. By doing so, it is possible to prevent variations in the timing of generation of musical tones when a key is pressed. In particular, since the elastic pressing portion 7 is elastically deformed when the key 2 is strongly pressed, a musical tone is generated when the key 2 is pressed deepest. It is possible to improve the continuous hitting performance. In addition, since the elastic pressing portion 7 is formed integrally with the key 2, the number of components does not increase, and the assembling operation is not complicated, and the key 2 can be easily manufactured.

In the above-described embodiment, the hammer arms 3 are provided in correspondence with the respective keys 2, and the keyboard device that applies an action load when the keys are pressed by the hammer arms 3 has been described. The present invention can also be applied to a keyboard device in which spring members such as coil springs are provided between the key 2 and the keyboard chassis 1, and the respective springs bias each key 2 to the initial position. Also,
Not limited to this, each key 2 is integrally formed by forming a thin-walled elastic bent portion at the rear end of each key 2 and connecting and forming these elastic bent portions as hinge portions to a common connecting portion. Thus, the present invention can be applied to a simple keyboard device having an integrated key structure assembled on the keyboard chassis 1.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of keys rotatably provided on a keyboard chassis are elastically pressed to press a switch member provided on the keyboard chassis when each key is pressed. Since the parts are elastically deformable according to the key pressing force of the key, even if the accuracy of parts such as keys and switch members fluctuates during production, the musical tone during normal performance can be changed according to the elastic force of the elastic pressing part. By setting the generation timing to a position that is slightly shallower than the position where the key is pressed deepest, it is possible to prevent variations in the generation timing of musical sounds when the key is pressed, and to improve the continuous hitting performance due to the elastic deformation of the elastic pressing part Can also be achieved.

In this case, since the elastic pressing portion is elastically deformed when the key is strongly pressed, a musical tone is generated when the key is depressed most deeply. At the time of a continuous performance in which a key operation for silencing a key is repeated with the same key, the performance can be performed at high speed. In addition, since the elastic pressing portion is formed integrally with the key, the number of parts does not increase, and the assembling operation is not complicated, and the key can be easily manufactured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a non-key pressed state in an embodiment of a keyboard device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a key pressed state of the keyboard device of FIG. 1 with a weak force.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a key depressed state with a strong force in the keyboard device of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Keyboard chassis 2 key 4 Switch member 7 Elastic pressing part

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A keyboard chassis, a plurality of keys arranged in parallel on the keyboard chassis and provided so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction, and provided at positions of the keyboard chassis respectively corresponding to the plurality of keys. A keyboard member comprising a switch member that performs a switch operation by a key pressing operation of the key, wherein the plurality of keys each have an elastic pressing portion that presses the switch member at the time of key pressing to reduce the key pressing force of the key. A keyboard device which is provided so as to be elastically deformable in response to the request. 2. The keyboard device according to claim 1, wherein said elastic pressing portion elastically deforms when said key is strongly pressed. 3. The keyboard device according to claim 1, wherein said elastic pressing portion is formed integrally with said key.