JP6369225B2 - Karaoke device and karaoke program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a karaoke apparatus that can enjoy singing according to automatic performance of music and a karaoke program that can be executed by various information processing apparatuses. It is related with the karaoke apparatus and karaoke program which can perform a user's singing assistance especially.

  Conventionally, karaoke that enjoys singing along with the automatic performance of music has been popular in social situations. A karaoke apparatus that performs automatic performance is provided with a singing assistance function that assists a user who enjoys karaoke. In such a singing assistance function, it is well known that lyric characters to be sung are displayed on the screen in synchronization with the automatic performance. There is also a singing assistance function for reproducing a guide melody when the user cannot sing.

  In Patent Document 1, as such a singing assistance function, when the user's singing voice falls below a preset volume level, the music reproduction for assisting the user's singing voice by increasing the volume of the guide melody An apparatus is disclosed. Further, it is also disclosed that in this music playback apparatus, it is determined whether or not the user's singing voice is out of the guide melody, and when it is determined that the user's singing voice is out of the guide melody, the volume of the guide melody is increased. As described above, in the music playback device described in Patent Document 1, when the user cannot sing or sings out of the pitch, the user's singing is assisted by increasing the volume of the guide melody. Has been done.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-52963

  By the way, in karaoke that enjoys singing, a posting service is provided in which singing voices are recorded and posted on the Internet as posting information. The posted information is used for singing together by publishing on the Internet or by distributing it to a karaoke device.

  One object of the present invention is to perform singing assistance using post information posted by a user when singing in a karaoke apparatus. It is expected that the skill of singing in the posted information posted by the user varies. Therefore, when singing assistance using post information is performed, it is considered that the singing of post information cannot be performed when singing assistance is required.

  Moreover, in the music reproduction apparatus described in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to monitor the volume or pitch of the user's singing voice during the period of reproducing the music tune. In addition, since it is a real-time control that increases the volume of the guide melody when it becomes impossible to sing, or when it goes out of the pitch, the volume control of the guide melody follows the user's singing well in music playback devices with low processing power It is possible not to. Further, depending on the user's singing situation, a situation in which the volume of the guide melody repeatedly increases or decreases can be considered. In such a situation where the volume of the guide melody fluctuates, it becomes uncomfortable in terms of hearing. Therefore, it is conceivable that the user is less likely to sing and does not function as a singing aid. Another object of the present invention is to realize a singing assistance function that allows a user to easily sing.

Therefore, the karaoke apparatus according to the present invention employs the following configuration.
A karaoke apparatus comprising a reproduction unit and a control unit,
The reproduction unit can reproduce and output music information,
The controller is
About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music to the playback unit, and at least in the singing auxiliary section, performing playback processing to play and output the received post information ,
In the singing assistance section determination process, the singing assistance section is determined based on the pitch limit value defined in the user information of the user who specified the music and the music pitch of the specified music.

Furthermore, the karaoke apparatus according to the present invention is
A karaoke apparatus comprising a reproduction unit and a control unit,
The reproduction unit can reproduce and output music information,
The controller is
About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music to the playback unit, and at least in the singing auxiliary section, performing playback processing to play and output the received post information ,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, the selection process for presenting the user with related information related to posting information whose singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition, and for selecting the posting information to be reproduced and output in the reproduction process. Execute.

Also, the karaoke program according to the present invention is
About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music and causing the computer to execute a playback process for playing and outputting the received post information at least in the singing auxiliary section ,
In the singing assistance section determination process, the singing assistance section is determined based on the pitch limit value defined in the user information of the user who specified the music and the music pitch of the specified music.
Also, the karaoke program according to the present invention is
About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music and causing the computer to execute a playback process for playing and outputting the received post information at least in the singing auxiliary section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, the selection process for presenting the user with related information related to posting information whose singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition, and for selecting the posting information to be reproduced and output in the reproduction process. Is executed.

  According to the karaoke apparatus and the karaoke program according to the present invention, in the singing assistance section where the user who sings needs assistance, the posted information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies the predetermined condition, that is, the posted information that can be sung in the singing assistance section By using, singing assistance can be performed accurately. According to such a configuration, unlike the conventional uniform singing assistance using a guide melody, it is possible to enjoy singing assistance using a variety of post information.

  Further, in the karaoke apparatus and the karaoke program according to the present invention, since the singing auxiliary section is determined before singing, conventionally, during the singing period, it was possible to sing, or based on monitoring that the pitch was deviated. There is no delay for singing assistance as in the case of real-time processing.

The figure explaining the outline | summary of the karaoke contribution which concerns on embodiment of this invention The figure which shows the structure of the karaoke system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the top screen which concerns on embodiment of this invention The figure which shows the user information which concerns on embodiment of this invention The figure explaining transmission / reception of the user information of this embodiment The figure which shows the active user top screen of this embodiment Flow chart showing the music selection process of this embodiment The figure which shows the music confirmation screen of this embodiment The figure which shows the music confirmation screen (at the time of singing assistance setting) of this embodiment The figure which shows the music confirmation screen (at the time of singing assistance setting) of this embodiment The figure which shows the data structure of the various information of this embodiment The flowchart which shows the singing assistance area determination process of this embodiment The figure for demonstrating the decision of a song auxiliary block Flow chart showing post information selection processing of this embodiment Flow chart showing music reservation processing of the present embodiment Flow chart showing the music playback process of this embodiment Diagram showing the display form of the monitor during music playback (normal) The figure which shows display form A of the monitor at the time of music reproduction (at the time of singing assistance) The figure which shows the display form B of the monitor at the time of music reproduction (at the time of singing assistance) The figure which shows the display form C of the monitor at the time of music reproduction (at the time of singing assistance) The figure which shows the display form C of the monitor at the time of music reproduction (at the time of singing assistance)

  The karaoke apparatus of the present embodiment is used in a karaoke posting system that can enjoy duets, choruses, and the like in karaoke. FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the outline of this karaoke posting system. The flow of karaoke posting will be briefly described using this figure. Here, a case where singing voice is recorded will be described, but in reality, video recorded using a camera is accompanied.

  First, the singer performs singing according to the performance at a place where the karaoke system is installed, such as a karaoke box, and the singing voice is recorded (a). The karaoke system is composed of a karaoke device (also called “commander”), a lyric image output from the karaoke device, a monitor on which a background image is displayed, and a remote control device that transmits the operation from the operator to the karaoke device. The singing voice is recorded as first posting information in recording means such as a hard disk built in the karaoke apparatus.

  The singer can also reproduce the first posted information in order to confirm the recorded singing voice (b). If the singer wishes, the first posting information is uploaded on the host device and can be disclosed via the Internet (c). The published first posted information is downloaded by the karaoke system by the singer who wants to sing along with the singer (d).

  The content of the downloaded first posted information can be confirmed by playing it along with the music (e). The downloaded first posting information is reproduced together with the music on the karaoke device, and the singer can enjoy a duet with the first posting information recorded in advance. Furthermore, the singing voice of the singer who sang together with the first post information is recorded in the karaoke apparatus as the second post information (f). The recorded second posted information can be reproduced in synchronization with the first posted information and the music, and the singer can check his / her song in a duet format (g).

  The singer can upload the second posting information to the host device as a new posting. The second posted information can be reproduced together with the first posted information. However, since the first posted information is stored in the host device, only the second posted information is transmitted. The second posting information is given identification information of the second posting information in order to be associated with the first posting information (h).

  The first posting information and the second posting information stored in the host device are downloaded to a PC (personal computer) or a karaoke system according to a request from the user, and are based on the first posting information, the second posting information, and the music information. It is possible to enjoy collaboration among multiple singers (i). As mentioned above, although the collaboration based on the 1st contribution information and the 2nd contribution information was explained, the collaboration of two or more persons becomes possible by repeating (d) and (f)-(h).

  As described above, in the karaoke posting system of this embodiment, duet and choral can be enjoyed with a partner who is not present on the spot. Here, only the singing voice has been described, but when applied to the present invention, shooting with a camera and recording of video information are performed together with the singing voice in the karaoke apparatus.

  Next, an embodiment of a karaoke system that enables photographing by the camera 45 together with the recording of the song will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of the karaoke system according to the embodiment of the present invention. The karaoke system in this embodiment includes a karaoke device 2 (commander) and a remote control device 1. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the remote controller 1a, the remote controller 1b, and the two remote controllers 1 are used for one karaoke apparatus 2. Since these remote control devices 1a and 1b have the same configuration, the remote control device 1 will be described. The karaoke device 2 and the remote control device 1 are connected so as to form a network using the LAN 100 and the access point 110.

  The karaoke apparatus 2 installed in a store such as a karaoke box includes an acoustic control unit 25 as a performance unit for playing music. Moreover, the karaoke apparatus 2 is provided with the operation part 21 which receives the various inputs from a user. The karaoke apparatus 2 includes an operation processing unit 22 that interprets an input from the operation unit 21 and transmits it to the CPU 30. The karaoke apparatus 2 includes an HDD 32 (hard disk) as a storage unit that stores various types of information. The karaoke apparatus 2 includes a LAN communication unit 24 interface unit 24 as a communication unit that connects to the LAN 100 and joins the network.

  Further, the karaoke apparatus 2 includes video reproduction means for displaying lyrics video and background video on the monitor 41. This video playback means includes a video playback unit 29 that plays back video based on video information, a video RAM 28 that temporarily stores the video to be played back, a superposition of lyrics telop on the played back video, and a video control unit that provides video effects 31 is comprised.

  Further, in this karaoke apparatus 2, various information can be displayed on the touch panel monitor 33 in addition to the monitor 41 connected to the outside. The touch panel monitor 33 is configured by superimposing a display unit 35 that displays video information input from the video control unit 31 and a touch panel 34 that outputs a touch input position to the operation processing unit 22. The touch panel monitor 33 functions as an input unit, like the operation unit of the karaoke device 2 or the touch panel monitor 11 of the remote control device 1. The user can perform various operations on the karaoke apparatus 2 such as making the karaoke apparatus 2 make a reservation directly by selecting music on the touch panel monitor 33.

  Furthermore, the karaoke apparatus 2 includes a CPU 30 for controlling each component in an integrated manner and a memory 27 for temporarily storing information necessary for executing various programs.

  With such a configuration, the karaoke apparatus 2 executes various processes, but as a main function of the karaoke apparatus 2, a music reservation process, a music reproduction process, and the like can be executed. The music reservation process is a process for designating and reserving music based on designation from the user, and is executed in cooperation with the remote control device 1. The reservation information designated by the input unit such as the remote control device 1 is registered in the reservation table in the memory 27 by a user operation. The music reproduction process is a process of reproducing a reserved music, and the music performance process and the lyrics reproduction process are executed in synchronization.

  The music performance process is a process for causing the acoustic control unit 25 to perform a performance based on the performance information included in the music information. The music played by the acoustic control unit 25 is emitted from the speaker 42 together with the singing voice input from the singing microphones 44a and 44b. The lyric reproduction process is a process of performing singing assistance by displaying the lyric information included in the music information on the monitor 41. A background video display process for superimposing a background video on the lyrics displayed in the lyrics reproduction process may be executed.

  A camera 45 is connected to the karaoke apparatus 2 as an imaging means for photographing the state of singing. The camera video from the camera 45 can be recorded on the HDD 32 as a recording means and displayed on the monitor 41 in real time via the video control unit 31 responsible for video input / output.

  On the other hand, the remote control device 1 can execute a music selection process for selecting a song to be sung and can transmit various instructions to the karaoke device 2 such as reservation information. The remote control device 1 can also receive various information from the karaoke device 2 or the host device 5 connected to the Internet, and provide the user with various information. In the present embodiment, an operation unit 17 and a touch panel monitor 11 are provided as user interfaces for receiving various instructions from the user. The touch panel monitor 11 includes a display unit 11a and a touch panel 11b, displays various interfaces on the display unit 11a, and can accept a touch input from a user.

  Furthermore, the remote control device 1 controls the memory 14 and the configuration as a storage unit for storing a database, various programs required for music search, and various types of information generated during program execution. Remote control side control unit. The remote control side control unit interprets inputs from the CPU 15, the video control unit 13 that forms video to be displayed on the touch panel monitor 11, the video RAM 12 that temporarily stores video information to be displayed, the touch panel monitor 11, or the operation unit 17. Thus, an operation processing unit 18 for transmitting to the CPU 15 is included.

  Further, the remote control device 1 is connected to a network constituted by the LAN 100 by being wirelessly connected to the access point 110 by the wireless LAN communication unit 16. Each remote control device 1 is associated with a specific karaoke device 2 in advance. Various commands output from the remote control device 1 are received by the associated karaoke device 2.

  With such a configuration of the remote control device 1, various inputs from the user are received from the touch panel monitor 11 or the operation unit 17, and video information is provided to the karaoke device 2 by displaying various information on the touch panel monitor 11. On the other hand, it is possible to give various instructions such as music reservation.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a top screen of this embodiment, that is, a screen immediately after starting the remote control device 1. In the present embodiment, various information is provided to the user who operates the remote control device 1 by displaying on the display unit 11a of the remote control device 1.

  The karaoke system of the present embodiment can log in by inputting authentication information (user identification information and password described later) from the touch panel monitor 11 of each remote control device 1. In particular, in the karaoke system of the present embodiment, a plurality of users can be logged in, and information regarding the logged-in users (logged-in users) is always displayed at the top of the screen. A login user field 103 is provided for displaying a logged image (avatar) of the logged-in user. In addition to the image imitating a person or a character, various forms such as figures and symbols can be adopted as the portrait image.

  In addition, a guest icon 102 for a user who does not have an account and a user changeover switch 101 for switching the user are displayed. The logged-in user can receive various services using his / her user information by selecting a portrait image displayed in the logged-in user column 103 or operating the user changeover switch 101. Further, a user who does not have an account can receive a general service such as music selection by operating the guest icon 102. Note that when switching users, authentication using a password or the like may be performed, but switching may be performed simply without performing authentication.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining user information stored in the host device 5 for each user. In the present embodiment, the user information includes various information related to the user such as personal information, a my song table, a my artist table, and a history table. User information is stored and managed in the storage unit 51 of the host device 5. The user information includes authentication information (user identification information and password) for the user to log in. The personal information includes a user name (not limited to an actual name but may be a nickname), gender, age, song age, and range information. These various types of information can be set by logging in using the remote control device 1 or a personal computer (not shown) connected to a network such as the Internet or a portable information terminal.

  The range information included in the personal information is information for storing a range in which the user can sing, and is information defined by the highest pitch value and the lowest pitch value. This sound range information can be input by the user or measured in the sound range measurement process. As the range measurement processing, for example, in the karaoke apparatus 2, it is conceivable to measure the maximum pitch value and the minimum pitch value that the user can output by making the user speak in accordance with the pitch. Alternatively, it is conceivable to use the scoring function of the karaoke apparatus 2 to measure the maximum pitch value and the minimum pitch value that can be output by the user when the scoring process is performed during the music reproduction process. In the present embodiment, the range information formed by the highest pitch value and the lowest pitch value is used, but either the highest pitch value or the lowest pitch value (pitch limit value in the present invention) can be used. It is. In the present embodiment, this range information is used, and during song playback, singing assistance is performed for a singing location that exceeds at least the user's singable range.

  The My Uta table is a table that stores music registered by the user, and includes music identification information, pitch adjustment values, past scoring information (highest score or multiple past scores), and the like. ing. Based on this My Uta table, the user can call, reserve, and play a favorite song registered in the past. At that time, by using the registered pitch adjustment value, it is possible to perform (reproduce) at a pitch suitable for the singing.

  The my artist table is a table for storing artists (singer) registered by the user, and includes singer identification information. Based on this My Artist table, the user can call, reserve, and perform a favorite favorite artist's song (a song or a related song).

  The history table is information in which various types of information related to the music played by the user in the past are recorded. In the present embodiment, the music identification information of the music played for the music played by the user in the past in the past. Singing date and time indicating date and time, scoring information, etc. are included. Based on this history table, the user can call a song played in the past and sing again.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing how user information is transmitted and received. A user who visits a karaoke store inputs authentication information composed of his / her user identification information and password, or causes the IC card reader provided in the remote control device 1 or the like to read the authentication information stored in the IC card. Thus, the authentication process (S101) is executed. The karaoke device 2 or the remote control device 1 transmits authentication information to the host device 5 (S102), and the host device 5 that has received the authentication information extracts user information of the corresponding user from the database stored in the storage unit 51. (S121), it transmits to the karaoke device 2 or the remote control device 1 inquired (S122).

  On the karaoke device 2 side that has received the user information (S103), various service processes such as a music reservation process and a music reproduction process are provided based on the received user information (S104). When logout is requested by the user (S105), the service processing is interrupted, and various histories (logs) generated during the service processing or user information reflecting setting changes by the user are transmitted to the host device 5 (S106). . Here, user information may transmit only the updated difference other than transmitting all information. In the host device 5 that has received the user information (S123), the database stored in the storage unit 51 is updated based on the received user information (S124).

  The flow from the authentication process (login process) to logout has been described above. However, in the karaoke apparatus 2 and the remote control apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, a plurality of authenticated users (authenticated users) log in at the same time. It is possible to use in the state. By using the user interface described with reference to FIG. 3, it is possible to switch and use a user who provides a service (hereinafter referred to as “active user”).

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an active user top screen according to the present embodiment. As shown in this figure, when a plurality of users are logged in, the logged-in user column 103 displays the logged-in images 103a to 103e (face portions in this embodiment) of the logged-in user. In the logged-in user column 103, the user whose background is highlighted (white) at the right end is the active user 103e (Mr. A), and in the state shown in the figure, the service for the active user 103e, that is, the active user The service using the user information 103e is being executed. On this active user top screen, a search based on a singer name and a song name can be performed by selecting “Find a song”.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the music selection process executed in the remote control device 1. The music selection process may be executable not only on the remote control device 1 but also on the karaoke device 2. In that case, the same screen display as that of the remote control device 1 is displayed on the touch panel monitor 33 of the karaoke device 2, and designation of music by the user is accepted. When the music is designated using the touch panel monitor 11 of the remote controller 1 (S101: Yes), a music confirmation screen for confirming the details of the designated music is displayed (S102).

  FIG. 8 shows a music confirmation screen of the present embodiment. When a song is selected as an active user, the song confirmation screen displays the song name, singer name, singing, etc. to make the user confirm whether there is a mistake in the song to be reserved. In the music confirmation screen of this embodiment, a pitch setting field 105 and a singing auxiliary setting field 106 are provided. The pitch setting column 105 is a setting column for adjusting the pitch so that the user can easily sing when performing, and by operating the change button displayed at the lower right of the pitch setting column 105, the pitch is set. A sub-screen for setting (not shown) is displayed, and a pitch adjustment value can be set for the music to be reserved.

  The singing assistance setting field 106 is a setting field in which singing assistance is performed for a singing location exceeding the singable sound range of the user, or a singing assistance mode can be set. By operating the change button displayed at the lower right of the singing assistance setting field 106, the sub screen 107 for singing assistance setting shown in FIG. 9 is displayed, and various settings relating to singing assistance are performed for the music to be reserved. Is possible. The sub-screen 107 displays an on / off button for setting whether or not to perform singing assistance, a button for transitioning to a sub-screen for selecting post information, and a slide bar for setting a singing auxiliary volume. When singing assistance is performed, the user activates the singing assistance function by operating the ON button. When the singing assistance function is validated, the user operates a button that transitions to a sub-screen for selecting post information, and transitions to the sub-screen.

  A slide bar for setting the singing auxiliary volume is provided on the sub screen for singing auxiliary setting. The user can set the volume at the time of singing assistance (reproduction volume of singing auxiliary information) by operating this slide bar (1: minimum volume, 5: maximum volume).

  When it is designated to perform singing assistance (S103: Yes), the remote control device 1 executes singing assistance section determination processing (S200). The singing auxiliary section determination process is a process for determining a singing auxiliary section that is a section that assists the user's singing using the posted information. In this embodiment, the singing auxiliary section determination process uses the range information in the user information. The singing auxiliary section estimated that the user cannot sing is determined. In addition to such a form, it is conceivable that the user himself / herself inputs the singing assistance section. Alternatively, singing evaluation information is recorded by performing the user's singing evaluation process for each section, the singing evaluation information of the same music sung in the past is referred to, and a section having a low singing evaluation information is determined as a singing auxiliary section. It is also possible to adopt other forms.

  FIG. 11 shows the data structure of various information used in this embodiment. FIG. 11A shows the data structure of music information used in this embodiment. The music information includes meta information, which is various information related to the music information, and actual information for executing various processes such as performance. The meta information includes song identification information for identifying song information, song name, singer name, songwriter name, composer name, and block information. The block information is information defining a block corresponding to the time progress of the performance information. It is conceivable that the block adopts various forms such as a form in which performance information is divided at predetermined time intervals and a form in which the performance information is divided at a bar position or a group of phrase positions.

  The actual information of the music information includes performance information, lyric information, and reference pitch information. The performance information is composed of control information for an electronic musical instrument based on the MIDI standard, compressed audio information recording an actual performance, or the like, and is information for playing an accompaniment sound of karaoke. The lyric information is information that is displayed in synchronization with the performance information in order to assist the singing, and may be configured to change the color of the displayed lyrics in synchronization with the performance. The reference pitch information is information used for singing evaluation processing (scoring), and is control information defined based on the MIDI standard in the same manner as performance information. This reference pitch information can also be used for singing evaluation processing for comparison with the pitch of the singing voice signal input from the singing microphones 44a and 44b.

  In the present embodiment, such music information and the range information in the user information are used, and the singing auxiliary section that the user cannot sing or is estimated to be poor is determined. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the singing assistance section determination process (S200 in FIG. 7) of the present embodiment. In the singing assistance section determination process, the user identification information of the user who specified the music is referred to, and the range information in the user information is acquired (S201). Then, for the music specified on the music confirmation screen, the music identification information is referred to, and the reference pitch information of the specified music is acquired (S202). Then, the acquired range information is compared with the music pitch at the time of reproduction (S203), and the singing auxiliary section is determined (S203). The music pitch at the time of reproduction is information obtained based on the reference pitch information, and the music pitch information is used as it is when the pitch is not changed at the time of music reservation. On the other hand, if the pitch is changed at the time of music reservation, the music pitch can be calculated by shifting the music pitch information by the pitch adjustment value.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining determination of a singing assistance section. In the figure, the horizontal axis indicates the time progress from the music reproduction to the end of the music, and the vertical axis indicates the pitch. The music pitch is indicated by the transition of the pitch from the start to the end of the music. In the present embodiment, the music is divided into a plurality of blocks B1 to B8 for the time progression. In the present embodiment, blocks are defined based on block information included in music information. The music pitch range is defined from the lowest pitch value to the highest pitch value among the musical pitches. In addition, the singable range is a range between the highest pitch value and the lowest pitch value acquired from the user's range information. In the case of the example in FIG. 13, it can be seen that in blocks B <b> 7 and B <b> 8, the music sound range has a sound range excess portion that exceeds the singable sound range. In these blocks B7 and B8, the pitch of the music is too high for the user, and it is expected that the song cannot be sung. In the present embodiment, the blocks B7 and B8 are determined as singing assistance sections for singing assistance.

  In the example of FIG. 13, the lower limit of the music range does not exceed the lowest pitch of the singable range (not lower), but the lower limit of the musical range exceeds the lower limit of the singable range (below). The block including the part is determined as the singing auxiliary section. As described above, in the present embodiment, both the upper limit and the lower limit of the pitch are taken into consideration. However, the upper limit and the lower limit of the pitch may be considered.

  The block number (identification information) indicating the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process (S200) is included in the selection request information and transmitted to the host device 5 (S105). FIG. 11B shows the data structure of the selection request information. The selection request information is composed of the music identification information of the music designated on the music confirmation screen and the singing assistance section (block number in this embodiment) determined by the singing assistance section determination process. Based on the received selection request information, the host device 5 executes a posting information selection process for selecting posting information that is a candidate for singing assistance.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing post information selection processing according to the present embodiment. When the host apparatus 5 receives the selection request information (S301: Yes), the host apparatus 5 targets post information corresponding to the music identification information included in the post information, and the singing evaluation information of the singing auxiliary section included in the post information is a predetermined condition. Post information that satisfies the criteria is extracted. In this embodiment, the singing evaluation information for each section is given to the posting information. The singing evaluation information for each section may be given by performing a singing evaluation process in the karaoke device 2 when singing, or may be given by performing a singing evaluation process in the host device 5. It may be a thing. Moreover, as predetermined conditions, it is required that the singing evaluation information in the singing auxiliary section is equal to or more than a predetermined threshold, that is, the singing can be performed well in the singing auxiliary section. Since the posted information is a singing voice created by singing by a general user, its skill varies. Although it is conceivable to use post information that can be successfully sung in all sections of the music, in that case, post information that can be used for singing assistance is limited. In this embodiment, the posting information that can be sung well in the singing assistance section is set as the target of use, so that more posting information can be used as the usage target of the singing assistance.

  The host device 5 transmits related information about the extracted post information to the remote control device 1 (S303). FIG. 11C shows the data structure of the post related information. In this embodiment, the post-related information includes post identification information indicating post information, a thumbnail image extracted from a video captured at the time of posting, a post user name, and a post date. Returning to the music selection process in FIG. 7, the remote control device 1 that has received the related information of the candidate post information displays the related information of the post information and prompts the user to select post information to be used (S107).

  FIG. 10 shows a child screen 108 when singing assistance is set on the singing confirmation screen. This sub-screen 108 is a screen for selecting post information, and is displayed by operating a button that transitions to a sub-screen for selecting post information on the sub screen 107 for singing assistance setting in FIG. . On this child screen, a thumbnail image included in the post-related information received from the host device 5, the user name of the user who made the post, and the post date are displayed. In the present embodiment, it is possible to audition posted information by operating a preview button displayed superimposed on a thumbnail image. When the preview button is operated, the remote control device 1 transmits post identification information corresponding to the operated thumbnail image to the host device 5, receives the moving image information for preview from the host device 5, and performs playback. The user can select post information with reference to various types of information displayed on the sub-screen 108. The selected posting information is displayed in a thick frame (in FIG. 10, Mr. F's posting information is selected). In this state, the posting information used at the time of singing is determined by operating the determination button.

  The remote control device 1 transmits the reservation information to the karaoke device 2 when the posted information is selected (S108: Yes). FIG. 11D shows a data structure of reservation information used in the present embodiment. The reservation information includes the music identification information of the designated music, the user identification information of the user who designated the music, the pitch adjustment value, the post identification information indicating the selected post information, and the singing assistance section. The karaoke device 2 receives the reservation information transmitted from the remote control device 1 and executes a music reservation process. When the pitch is not changed, the pitch adjustment value is not included in the reservation information, and when the singing assistance is not performed, the post identification information is not included in the reservation information.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the music reservation process of this embodiment. When the karaoke device 2 receives the reservation information from the remote control device 1 or the like (S401: Yes), the received reservation information is registered in the reservation table stored and managed in the memory 27 of the karaoke device 2 (S402). At that time, if the posting information is specified in the reservation information, that is, if the reservation information includes the posting identification information (S403: Yes), the specified posting information is downloaded from the host device 5 (S404). As described above, in this embodiment, by downloading necessary post information before playing the music, it is not necessary to wait for the post information to be downloaded and it is possible to start playing the music quickly. Yes. Moreover, the post information to be downloaded may be only the singing assistance section. The download capacity can be reduced, the download time can be shortened, and the load on the host device 5 can be reduced. The post information may be acquired by streaming delivery from the host device 5 at the time of music reproduction, in addition to such a download form.

  FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing the music reproduction process of the present embodiment. When the music playback process is started, the reservation table stored in the memory 27 in the karaoke apparatus 2 is referred to, and the presence / absence of a music to be played next is determined (S501). If there is a music to be reproduced next in the reservation table (S502: Yes), reproduction of the music is started (S503). The music reproduction is performed in synchronization with a music performance process for causing the sound control unit 25 to reproduce the performance information in the music information and a lyrics reproduction process for reproducing the lyrics information in the music information.

  After the music starts to be played, it is determined whether or not the song is designated for singing assistance at the time of reservation (S504). If singing assistance is not designated (S504: No), the music performance process and the lyrics reproduction process are performed. The process is executed until the end (S505: Yes). On the other hand, when singing assistance is designated (S504: Yes), singing assistance is performed for the singing assistance section location. Specifically, it is determined whether or not the block currently being played is a singing auxiliary section, and if it is a singing auxiliary section (S506: Yes), the post information selected at the time of reservation and downloaded in the music reservation process is reproduced. (S507).

  On the other hand, when the block currently being reproduced is not the singing assistance section (S506: No), the posted information is not reproduced and is set in a non-output state (S508). Every time the block is switched (S509: Yes), the singing assistance section determination (S508) is performed, so that it is possible to perform singing assistance by reproducing the posted information for the block determined as the singing assistance section. The music performance process and the lyrics reproduction process are executed until the end (S510: Yes). In the music playback process of the present embodiment, post information is played back in the singing auxiliary section, but the post information only needs to be played back at least in the singing auxiliary section, and the post information is played back through the music. It is also possible to adopt a reproduction form.

  In the music reproduction process, the display form on the monitor 41 may be changed so that the user can understand that the singing assistance is performed. 17 to 21 are diagrams showing various display forms of the monitor 41 during the music reproduction process. FIG. 17 shows a display form at the normal time when singing assistance is not performed (S504: No) or at the time of reproduction other than the singing assistance section (S506: No). On the monitor 41, a lyric character 501 is superimposed and displayed on the background video. On the other hand, FIGS. 18-21 shows the various display forms at the time of reproduction | regeneration in a song assistance area (S506: Yes).

  The display form A shown in FIG. 18 is a case where the video in the posting information is reproduced and displayed in the singing assistance section instead of the normal background video. The display form B shown in FIG. 19 is a case where the video in the posted information is reproduced and displayed in the sub-screen 503 on the normal background video. In any case, the singing voice information in the posted information is reproduced in the singing assistance section. The user can sing by relying on the singing voice information in the posted information reproduced in the singing assistance section. Moreover, in these display forms A and B, since the state of the singing by the contributor is displayed together, the user can also perform the singing with reference to the way of singing (how to open the mouth) and the like by the video. .

  The display form C shown in FIG. 20 and the display form D shown in FIG. 21 are forms using only the singing voice information in the posted information. In the display form C shown in FIG. 20, the singing assistance by currently reproducing the singing assistance information is performed by displaying the singing assistance mark 502 written as “singing support” on the upper right of the monitor 41. It is shown that. Moreover, in the display form D of FIG. 21, the lyrics character 501 is displayed larger than the normal time of FIG. 12, indicating that the singing assistance by the posted voice is performed. In the display form using the lyric character 501, not only the size of the lyric character 501 is changed in this way, but also the color of the lyric character (before or after color change) or the font is changed. It is conceivable to adopt various forms.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of the karaoke apparatus which enables singing assistance was described, in this embodiment, singing assistance using contribution information is enabled, and by using contribution information posted by a user, It is possible to perform a variety of singing assistance. At that time, in the singing assistance section where it is considered that the user's singing ability is not reached, the range of selection of post information that can be used is expanded by using post information that is singing well. .

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Remote control device 24 ... LAN communication part 11 ... Touch panel monitor 25 ... Acoustic control part 11a ... Display part 27 ... Memory 11b ... Touch panel 28 ... Video RAM
12 ... Video RAM 29 ... Video reproduction unit 13 ... Video control unit 30 ... CPU
14 ... Memory 31 ... Video control unit 15 ... CPU 32 ... HDD (hard disk)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 16 ... Wireless LAN communication part 41 ... Monitor 17 ... Operation part 42 ... Speaker 18 ... Operation processing part 44a, 44b ... Microphone for singing (microphone)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 19 ... Infrared communication part 45 ... Camera 2 ... Karaoke apparatus (commander) 5 ... Host apparatus 21 ... Operation part 51 ... Storage device 22 ... Operation processing part 100 ... LAN
23 ... Infrared communication unit 110 ... Access point

Claims (5)

A karaoke apparatus comprising a reproduction unit and a control unit,
The reproduction unit can reproduce and output music information,
The controller is
About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music to the playback unit, and at least in the singing auxiliary section, performing playback processing to play and output the received post information ,
The singing assistance section determination process is a karaoke apparatus that determines a singing assistance section based on a pitch limit value defined in user information of a user who has designated a song and a song pitch of the designated song . In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, the selection process for presenting the user with related information related to posting information whose singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition, and for selecting the posting information to be reproduced and output in the reproduction process. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 1. A karaoke apparatus comprising a reproduction unit and a control unit,
The reproduction unit can reproduce and output music information,
The controller is
About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music to the playback unit, and at least in the singing auxiliary section, performing playback processing to play and output the received post information ,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, the selection process for presenting the user with related information related to posting information whose singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition, and for selecting the posting information to be reproduced and output in the reproduction process. Karaoke device to perform . About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music and causing the computer to execute a playback process for playing and outputting the received post information at least in the singing auxiliary section ,
The singing assistance section determination process is a karaoke program that determines a singing assistance section based on a pitch limit value defined in user information of a user who has specified a song and a song pitch of the specified song . About the music designated by the user, the singing assistance section determination process for determining the singing assistance section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, a reception process for receiving post information in which the singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition;
Playing and outputting the music information of the designated music and causing the computer to execute a playback process for playing and outputting the received post information at least in the singing auxiliary section,
In the singing assistance section determined in the singing assistance section determination process, the selection process for presenting the user with related information related to posting information whose singing evaluation information satisfies a predetermined condition, and for selecting the posting information to be reproduced and output in the reproduction process. Karaoke program that runs .