CN111063321A

CN111063321A - Keyboard musical instrument

Info

Publication number: CN111063321A
Application number: CN201910878693.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 星野晓久; 谷口弘和
Original assignee: Casio Computer Co Ltd
Current assignee: Casio Computer Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-10-17
Filing date: 2019-09-18
Publication date: 2020-04-24
Anticipated expiration: 2039-09-18
Also published as: JP2020064183A; CN111063321B; JP2023090912A; JP7280548B2

Abstract

A keyboard musical instrument is provided with a hammer member for each key, the hammer member being provided at one end side with a force point portion having a contact member that is pressed at the time of key pressing by being brought into contact with the key, and at the other end side with a hammer portion that applies a load to the key that is pressed, the contact member having a groove portion provided on an upper surface of the contact member along a longitudinal direction of the key so as not to be brought into contact with the key at the time of key pressing, and both end portions projecting upward from the groove portion at both end sides of the groove portion in an arrangement direction of the key so as to be brought into contact with the key at the time of key pressing.

Description

Keyboard musical instrument

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a keyboard musical instrument having a keyboard device such as an electronic piano.

Background

Conventionally, in an electronic keyboard instrument such as an electronic piano, a keyboard device for realizing a keyboard operation feeling similar to that of an acoustic piano is known as disclosed in, for example, japanese patent laid-open No. 2012-145728. In the keyboard apparatus, there are keys (white keys, black keys) supported on a keyboard base frame rotatably in the up-down direction and hammer members; the hammer member is rotated in conjunction with key depression operation to apply an operating load to the key, and a projection provided on the key side is configured to move in sliding contact with a bottom surface of a recess of a coupling member (or a receiving member) attached to the hammer member side in a coupling portion between the key and the hammer member. Here, the coupling member (or the receiving member) is made of a flexible material in order to suppress the generation of abrasion and noise due to sliding contact in the coupling portion.

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

In the keyboard device having the above-described structure, since only the tip of the protrusion on the key side is moved in sliding contact with one surface (bottom surface of the recess) of the coupling member on the hammer member side at all times, the connecting member having flexibility is worn by friction, or is deformed or dropped by a strong impact at the time of key pressing, and the hammer member cannot normally rotate, which may cause troubles such as abnormal vibration or abnormal noise at the time of key pressing.

According to the present invention, there is an advantage that it is possible to suppress occurrence of a trouble at the time of pressing a key and perform a stable key operation.

Means for solving the problems

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an external view showing a keyboard instrument according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a keyboard unit to which the keyboard instrument of the first embodiment is applied.

Fig. 3 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism of a white key applied to the keyboard instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism applied to a black key of the keyboard instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a white key applied to the keyboard instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a black key applied to the keyboard instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a hammer unit applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 8 is a schematic view showing a hammer member applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram showing a hammer cap for white keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 10 is a schematic view showing a hammer cap for black keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 11 is a schematic view showing a coupling structure of hammer members and keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the first embodiment.

Fig. 12 is a schematic view showing a hammer cap applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the second embodiment.

Fig. 13 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism of a white key applied to a keyboard instrument of the second embodiment.

Fig. 14 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism applied to a black key of a keyboard instrument of the second embodiment.

Fig. 15 is a schematic diagram showing a connected state of hammer members and keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the second embodiment.

Description of reference numerals

10 keyboard chassis

12 hammer unit

20 white key

24. 34 hammer connecting part (lower part)

23. 33 mallet pressing part (lower pressing part)

29. 36 key side projection

30 black key

40 mallet component

44 hammer main body

46 hammer

48 cover mounting part

50 key connecting part (force point part)

51 mallet cap (contact component)

52 opening part

53 top surface

54 groove part

54a groove part (first groove part)

54b groove part (second groove part)

55 end side protruding part (both ends)

56 bottom surface projection

57 groove projection (center projection)

60 hammer holder

100 keyboard musical instrument

102 musical instrument main body

104 keyboard unit

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

< embodiment 1 >

(keyboard musical instrument)

Fig. 1 is an external view showing a keyboard instrument according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a keyboard unit applied to the keyboard instrument of the present embodiment. Here, although an electronic piano is described as an example of a keyboard musical instrument, the keyboard musical instrument may be another electronic keyboard musical instrument as long as it is a device that generates musical tones in accordance with key operations of a user (player).

As shown in fig. 1, for example, the appearance of a keyboard instrument 100 according to the present invention includes: a keyboard unit 104 having a plurality of keys as performance operators for designating pitches on an upper portion of one surface side (front side in the drawing) which becomes a user side with respect to the instrument main body 102; a top plate 106 covering the upper surface of the instrument main body 102 accommodating therein a speaker (not shown) on the rear side (the back side in the drawing) of the keyboard unit 104; a music stand 108 attached to the top plate 106; and a piano pedal 110 for adjusting the echo of the sound at the time of key pressing, mainly at the lower part of the instrument main body 102 which becomes the foot of the user. Although not shown in the drawings, the keyboard instrument 100 may be provided with switches for performing operations such as volume adjustment and tone selection, a display panel for displaying information on music being played, various setting information, and the like around the keyboard unit 104.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the keyboard unit 104 is formed by regularly arranging a plurality of white keys 20 and black keys 30 in a predetermined order in the left-right direction (left-right direction in the drawing; arrangement direction of the keys) of the keyboard instrument 100. Here, the keyboard unit 104 has a total of 88 white keys 20 and black keys 30 arranged therein. The rear side (the back side in the drawing) of the keyboard unit 104 is housed inside the instrument main body 102, and the region on the front side (the front side in the drawing) exposed from the instrument main body 102 becomes a region where the user performs a key operation. In the present specification, the term "key" refers to a common matter between white and black keys unless otherwise specified. In the following description, the white key will be described in detail, and the black key has the same or the same configuration and operation as the white key, and the description thereof will be simplified or omitted.

Fig. 3 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism of a white key applied to the keyboard instrument of the present embodiment. Fig. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism applied to a black key of the keyboard instrument of the present embodiment. Here, fig. 3 (a) and 4 (a) are diagrams showing an initial state in which a key operation is not performed, and fig. 3 (b) and 4 (b) are diagrams showing a state in which a key operation is being performed.

The white key 20 of the keyboard unit 104 has a keyboard mechanism such as that shown in fig. 3, and further, the black key 30 has a keyboard mechanism such as that shown in fig. 4. As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the keyboard mechanism of the white key 20 and the black key 30 specifically includes: a common keyboard chassis 10 such that the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 are rotatably mounted in the up-down direction; a hammer unit 12 for imparting an action load in accordance with respective key operations on white keys 20 and black keys 30 mounted on the keyboard chassis 10; and a switch unit 14 that performs an on operation in response to a key operation on the white key 20 and the black key 30. Here, the keyboard unit 104 is housed inside the instrument body 102, except for the white keys 20 and the black keys 30.

As shown in fig. 3 (a) and (b), a front leg portion 202 is provided on a front end portion (right end portion in the figure) on the user side of the keyboard chassis 10 at a portion of the keyboard chassis 10 to which the white key 20 is attached, so as to protrude from the bottom of the keyboard chassis 10 toward the white key 20 upward in the figure. On the upper part of the front leg portion 202, white key guide portions 204 are provided corresponding to the respective white keys 20, and the white key guide portions 204 prevent lateral runout in the key arrangement direction (direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet) when the white keys 20 are rotated. Further, an upper limit stopper 206 and a lower limit stopper 208 are provided on the upper portion and the lower portion of the front leg portion 202 of the keyboard chassis 10 on the front side (right side in the drawing), and the upper limit stopper 206 and the lower limit stopper 208 are used for limiting the upper limit position and the lower limit position when the white key 20 is rotated in accordance with the key operation on the white key 20. Further, a unit mounting portion 210 is provided on the rear side (left side in the drawing) of the front leg portion 202 of the keyboard chassis 10, and the hammer unit 12 described later is mounted on the unit mounting portion 210 so as to protrude from the bottom of the keyboard chassis 10 at a height equal to the front leg portion 202.

Further, a board mounting portion 212 is provided on the rear side (left side in the drawing) of the unit mounting portion 210 of the keyboard chassis 10, a sound emission board 214 is mounted on the board mounting portion 212, and the switch portion 14 that is opened in response to a key operation on the white key 20 is mounted on the sound emission board 214. Here, the sound emission substrate 214 is provided in common to the plurality of white keys 20 and black keys 30 arranged, and the plurality of switch units 14 are mounted on the sound emission substrate 214 so as to individually correspond to the white keys 20 and black keys 30. The sound emission substrate 214 is provided with a sound emission unit (not shown) that generates musical sound information based on an on signal output from the switch unit 14 and emits musical sound from a speaker housed in the instrument body 102 based on the musical sound information, and the switch unit 14 is turned on in response to a key operation on the white key 20.

Further, a white key mounting portion 216 is provided on the rear side (left side in the drawing) of the substrate mounting portion 212 of the keyboard chassis 10, and a rear end portion (left end portion in the drawing) of the white key 20 is mounted to the white key mounting portion 216 via a support shaft 218, and the support shaft 218 supports the white key 20 rotatably in the up-down direction.

Further, a rear leg portion 220 is provided at a rear end portion (left end portion in the drawing) of the keyboard chassis 10 on the rear side (left side in the drawing) of the white key mounting portion 216, and the rear leg portion 220 hangs down from the upper portion of the keyboard chassis 10 where the white key mounting portion 216 is provided toward the bottom portion. Upper and

lower limit stoppers

222 and 224 for limiting upper and lower limit positions at which the hammer member 40 of the hammer unit 12 is rotated in accordance with a key operation on the white key 20, which will be described later, are provided at upper and lower portions of the rear leg portion 220. An elastic member such as felt is applied to the upper limit stopper 206 and the lower limit stopper 208 provided to the front leg portion 202 and the upper limit stopper 222 and the lower limit stopper 224 provided to the rear leg portion 220 of the keyboard chassis 10.

On the other hand, in the portion of the keyboard chassis 10 to which the black keys 30 are attached, as shown in fig. 4 (a) and (b), a black key guide 232 is provided corresponding to each black key 30 on the upper portion of the unit mounting portion 210 of the keyboard chassis 10 shown in fig. 3 (a) and (b), and the black key guide 232 prevents lateral runout in the key arrangement direction (direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet) when the black keys 30 are rotated. The board mounting portion 212 and the sound emission board 214 provided on the rear side (left side in the drawing) of the unit mounting portion 210 of the keyboard chassis 10, and the rear leg portion 220, the upper limit stopper portion 222, and the lower limit stopper portion 224 provided on the rear end portion (left end portion in the drawing) of the keyboard chassis 10 are the same as or the same as the keyboard chassis 10 shown in fig. 3 (a) and (b).

Further, a black key mounting portion 234 is provided on the rear side (left side in the drawing) of the substrate mounting portion 212 of the keyboard chassis 10, and similarly to the keyboard chassis 10 shown in fig. 3 (a) and (b), the rear end portion (left end in the drawing) of the black key 30 is mounted to the black key mounting portion 234 via a support shaft 236, and the support shaft 236 supports the black key 30 rotatably in the up-down direction. Here, the white key attaching portions 216 and the black key attaching portions 234 are provided separately at equal intervals along the arrangement direction (direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet) in which the plurality of white keys 20 and black keys 30 are arranged.

Fig. 5 is a schematic view showing white keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the present embodiment, and fig. 6 is a schematic view showing black keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the present embodiment. Here, as shown in fig. 5 (a) and 6 (a), the key is a perspective view, and fig. 5 (b) and 6 (b) are sectional views of the key.

As shown in fig. 3 and 5, the upper surface 21 pressed by the user of the white key 20 extends from the front side (the right side of fig. 3 and 5 (b), and the front side of fig. 5 (a)) which is the user side to the rear side (the left side of fig. 3 and 5 (b), and the back side of fig. 5 (a)) which is the inner side of the instrument body 102, and the rear end portion (the left end portion of fig. 3 and 5 (b), and the back end portion of fig. 5 (a)) is attached to the white key attachment portion 216 of the keyboard chassis 10 via a support shaft 218, and the support shaft 218 supports the white key 20 rotatably in the up-down direction.

A switch pressing portion 22 is provided to protrude from the lower surface side of the white key 20 toward the keyboard chassis 10 below the drawing surface toward the rear (the left-right direction of fig. 3 and 5 b) of the center of the long side direction in which the white key 20 extends (the left-right direction of fig. 3 and 5 b), the switch pressing portion 22 is configured to press and open the switch portion 14 when the white key 20 is pressed, and the switch portion 14 is attached to the substrate attachment portion 212 of the keyboard chassis 10.

Further, a hammer pressing portion 23 is provided on the front side (the right side in fig. 3 and 5 (b)) of the switch pressing portion 22 of the white key 20 so as to project from the lower surface side of the white key 20 toward the keyboard base frame 10 below the drawing surface, the hammer pressing portion 23 is provided with a hammer connecting portion 24, and the hammer connecting portion 24 has a through hole. In the through hole of the hammer coupling portion 24, a key-side projecting portion 29 is provided, and the key-side projecting portion 29 continuously projects along the through direction of the through hole (the longitudinal direction of the key) in the vicinity of the center in the key arrangement direction (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of fig. 3 and 5 b) of the upper inner wall. Then, a key connecting portion 50, which is a force point portion of the hammer member 40 of the hammer unit 12 to be described later, is inserted into the through hole of the hammer connecting portion 24, and is engaged with the inner wall of the through hole in a sliding contact manner.

Further, a front leg portion 25 protruding from the upper surface 21 of the white key 20 toward the keyboard chassis 10 below the drawing is provided at a front end portion (a right end portion in fig. 3 and 5 b, and a near front end portion in fig. 5 a) of the white key 20. The front leg portion 25 is provided with a guide surface 26 and

stopper surfaces

27 and 28, the guide surface 26 being in sliding contact with a white key guide portion 204 of the keyboard chassis 10, the white key guide portion 204 being provided for preventing lateral runout when the white key 20 is rotated in accordance with a key operation, the stopper surfaces 27 and 28 being in contact with an upper limit stopper 206 and a lower limit stopper 208 of the keyboard chassis 10, the upper limit stopper 206 and the lower limit stopper 208 being for regulating upper and lower limit positions of the rotated white key 20.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 4 and 6, the black key 30 has a pressed upper surface 31 extending from the front (the right side in fig. 4 and 6 b, the front side in fig. 6 a) to the rear (the left side in fig. 4 and 6 b, the rear side in fig. 6 a) and a rear end (the left end in fig. 4 and 6 b, the rear end in fig. 6 a) attached to the black key mounting portion 234 of the keyboard chassis 10 via a support shaft 236, and the support shaft 236 supports the black key 30 rotatably in the vertical direction.

In the vicinity of the center in the longitudinal direction (the left-right direction in fig. 4 and 6 b) in which the black key 30 extends, a switch pressing portion 32 is provided so as to protrude from the lower surface side of the black key 30 toward the keyboard chassis 10 below the drawing surface, the switch pressing portion 32 is configured to press and open the switch portion 14 when the black key 30 is pressed, and the switch portion 14 is attached to the substrate attachment portion 212 of the keyboard chassis 10.

Further, at the front end portion (right end portion of fig. 4, 6 (b), near front end portion of fig. 6 (a)) of the black key 30, a hammer pressing portion 33 is provided to protrude from the upper surface 31 of the black key 30 toward the keyboard chassis 10 below in the figure. The hammer pressing portion 33 is provided with a hammer coupling portion 34 having a through hole and a guide surface 35, the guide surface 35 being in sliding contact with a black key guide portion 232 of the keyboard chassis 10, the black key guide portion 232 being provided for preventing lateral runout when the black key 30 is rotated in accordance with a key operation. In the through hole of the hammer coupling portion 34, a key-side projecting portion 36 is provided, and the key-side projecting portion 36 continuously projects in the through direction of the through hole (the longitudinal direction of the key) near the center in the key arrangement direction (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of fig. 4 and 6 b) of the upper inner wall. Further, a key connecting portion 50, which is a force point portion of the hammer member 40 of the hammer unit 12 to be described later, is inserted into the through hole of the hammer connecting portion 34, and is engaged with the inner wall of the through hole in a sliding contact manner.

Here, for the white bond 20 and the black bond 30, for example, a synthetic resin member such as ABS resin (acrylonitrile, butadiene, styrene copolymer synthetic resin) is applied.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a hammer unit applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the present embodiment. Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a hammer member applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the present embodiment. Here, fig. 8 (a) and (b) are diagrams showing hammer members for white keys, and fig. 8 (c) and (d) are diagrams showing hammer members for black keys. Fig. 9 is a schematic view showing a hammer head for white keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the present embodiment, and fig. 10 is a schematic view showing a hammer head for black keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the present embodiment. Here, fig. 9 (a) and 10 (a) are perspective views of the hammer case, and fig. 9 (b) and 10 (b) are side and sectional views of the hammer case.

As shown in fig. 3, 4, and 7, the hammer unit 12 is provided with a plurality of hammer members 40 and hammer holders 60, the hammer members 40 being rotated in accordance with key operations on the respective white keys 20 and black keys 30 to impart an action load to the respective keys, the hammer holders 60 being provided commonly to the plurality of aligned white keys 20 and black keys 30, the hammer members 40 corresponding to the respective keys being rotatably supported via support shafts 42, respectively. The hammer holder 60 is mounted to the lower face side of the unit mounting portion 210 of the keyboard chassis 10.

As shown in fig. 7 and fig. 8 (a) and (c), the hammer member 40 includes: a hammer main body 44 made of a metal material; a key connecting portion 50 as a force point portion provided on one end side (right end side in fig. 8) of the hammer main body 44; a hammer portion 46 as a load point portion provided on the other end side (left end side in fig. 8) of the hammer body 44; and a support shaft 42, provided between the hammer portion 46 of the hammer main body 44 and the key connecting portion 50, rotatably supporting the hammer main body 44. Here, as shown in fig. 7 and fig. 8 (a), (c), the hammer member 40 for white keys and the hammer member 40 for black keys have substantially the same appearance, but the size, shape, and the like from the support shaft 42 to the hammer portion 46, the key connecting portion 50 are designed to be slightly different depending on the characteristics and the like at the time of key depression of the white keys 20 and the black keys 30.

As shown in fig. 7 and 8, the weight 46 of the hammer member 40 is set to have a planar shape when viewed from the key arrangement direction and a thickness in the key arrangement direction larger than the hammer main body 44 located between the weight 46 and the support shaft 42, thereby giving a predetermined operating load to the keys.

As shown in fig. 8, the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 is mounted with a hammer cap (contact member) 51 in such a manner as to cover the cover mounting portion 48 of one end side of the hammer body 44. The hammer caps 51 are made of an elastic member such as an elastic body or silicone having elasticity higher than that of the white keys 20 and black keys 30, and the white keys 20 and black keys 30 have the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 with which the key connecting portions 50 are engaged. Here, as shown in fig. 8 (b) and (d), fig. 9, and fig. 10, the hammer caps 51 have substantially the same appearance for the white keys and for the black keys, but are designed to have slightly different appearance shapes, sizes, and the like according to the characteristics and the like at the time of key pressing of the white keys 20 and the black keys 30. As shown in fig. 8 (b) and (d), the tip portion of the cover mounting portion 48 of the hammer main body 44 to which the hammer cap 51 is attached has a shape bent in an L-shape toward the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51 (upward in the drawing) to be described later.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 9 and 10, the hammer cap 51 includes: an opening 52 into which the cover mounting portion 48 of the hammer main body 44 is inserted and mounted; a top face (upper face in the drawing) 53 contacting the upper inner wall of the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34, the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 being provided to the

hammer pressing portion

23, 33 of the white key 20 or black key 30; a groove portion 54 provided along the longitudinal direction of the keys of the top surface 53 in the central region in the key arrangement direction of the top surface 53 (the left-right direction in fig. 9 (b), fig. 10 (b)); end side protruding portions (both end portions) 55 provided along the groove portions 54 of the top surface 53 so as to protrude above the groove portions 54; and a bottom surface protruding portion 56 provided on the bottom surface that contacts the inner wall of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 on the lower side of the through hole.

As shown in the sectional views of fig. 9 (b) and 10 (b), the opening 52 of the hammer cap 51 has the following shape: corresponding to the shape of the cover mounting portion 48 of the hammer body 44, there is an internal shape in which the front end portion of the cover mounting portion 48 is latched in a state in which the hammer cap 51 is mounted to the cover mounting portion 48. As shown in fig. 9 and 10, the top surface 53 has a curved surface protruding outward (upward in the drawing), and the groove portion 54 is formed by a continuous recessed portion recessed from the curved surface along the top surface 53 with respect to the top surface 53. As shown in fig. 9 (b) and 10 (b), the end side protrusion 55 is formed as follows: the top surface 53 projects upward (the direction of the normal to the curved top surface 53 in the center view of fig. 9 (b) and 10 (b)) from the groove portions 54 at both ends adjacent to the arrangement direction of the keys of the groove portions 54, and projects in the arrangement direction of the keys of the hammer cap 51 (the left and right directions in fig. 9 (b) and 10 (b)), and is formed of a continuous projecting portion along the curved surface of the top surface 53 as shown in fig. 9 (a) and 10 (a). As shown in fig. 9 b and 10 b, the bottom surface projection 56 is formed on the bottom surface (lower surface) of the hammer cap 51 by a projection that projects from the central region in the key arrangement direction and continues in the penetration direction (the longitudinal direction of the key) of the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34.

Fig. 11 is a schematic view showing a connecting structure between hammer members and keys applied to the keyboard musical instrument of the present embodiment. Here, fig. 11 (a) and (b) are a plan view and a sectional view showing a white key side connection structure, and fig. 11 (a) and (b) are a plan view and a sectional view showing a black key side connection structure.

The coupling structure of the key coupling portion 50 of the hammer member 40 and the

hammer coupling portions

24, 34 of the white or

black keys

20, 30 having the above-described shape is as shown in fig. 11, and the hammer cap 51 at one end side of the hammer member 40 is inserted into and engaged with the through hole of the

hammer coupling portions

24, 34. Here, the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51 is provided with a groove 54 along the curved surface of the top surface 53 in the longitudinal direction of the key in the central region in the key arrangement direction, and end side protruding portions 55 protruding upward from the groove 54 on both end sides of the groove 54 of the top surface 53 are provided. The end portion side protruding portion 55 is also provided so as to protrude in the key arrangement direction (the left-right direction of fig. 11 (a) and (c)), so that the top surface portion of the end portion side protruding portion 55 is formed to have a wide width. Further, a bottom surface protruding portion 56 that continuously protrudes in the through hole penetrating direction of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 is provided on the bottom surface of the hammer cap 51.

Thereby, the top surface portions of the end portion side protruding portions 55 of the hammer cap 51 contact with the upper

inner walls

24a, 34a of the through holes of the

hammer coupling portions

24, 34 with a large area. Further, the gap (clearance) between the side surface portion adjacent to the top surface portion of the end portion side protruding portion 55 of the hammer cap 51 and the

inner walls

24b, 34b on the side (key arrangement direction) of the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 is set small, and the both are maintained in a state of being very close to each other, or a state in which the side surface portion of the end portion side protruding portion 55 is in contact with either one of the

inner walls

24b, 34 b. Further, the bottom surface protruding portion 56 of the hammer cap 51 contacts the lower

inner walls

24c, 34c of the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 in a small area as a linear or dot-shaped region of the protruding apex of the bottom surface protruding portion 56.

That is, the length in the direction of the arrangement of the keys on the upper surface side (upper side) of the hammer cap 51 (contact member) is longer than the length in the direction of the arrangement of the keys on the lower surface side (lower side) of the hammer cap 51 (contact member). By thus forming the upper portion of the hammer cap 51 depressed by the key to be wider than the lower portion of the hammer cap 51, there are advantages in that an action load can be favorably given to the key and in that the cost of the amount of members used for forming the hammer cap 51 can be reduced.

Further, focusing on the cover mounting portion 48 in each hammer member 40, as shown in fig. 8 (b) and (d), the length in the vertical direction of one end side (right side) in the longitudinal direction of the key of the cover mounting portion 48 is longer than the length in the vertical direction of the other end side (left side) of the cover mounting portion 48. That is, the length in the vertical direction of one end side in the longitudinal direction of the key of the mounting portion of the contact member of the hammer member is longer than the length in the vertical direction of the other end side of the mounting portion of the contact member. Correspondingly, the space provided inside one end side (right side) of the long side direction of the key of the hammer cap 51 (contact member) is larger than the space provided inside the other end side (left side). As shown in fig. 11 (b), (d), with these shapes, there is an advantage that the hammer cap 51 is not easily escaped from the hammer member 40 at the time of key pressing.

Next, the operation of the keyboard instrument including the keyboard mechanism will be described with reference to fig. 3 and 4.

In a state where the user does not perform the key operation of the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 (initial state), that is, as shown in fig. 3 a and 4a, the hammer member 40 is biased to rotate counterclockwise about the support shaft 42 by the weight of the weight 46 as the load point portion, and the weight 46 of the hammer member 40 abuts against the lower limit stopper 224 provided in the keyboard chassis 10 to limit the lower limit position. In addition, the key connecting portions 50 of the hammer members 40 restrain the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 at the initial positions as the upper limit positions by pushing up the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 of the keys. Here, the upper limit position of the white key 20 is limited to the following position: the hammer 46 of the hammer member 40 is in abutment with the upper face of the lower limit stopper 224, and the stopper face 27 of the front leg portion 25 of the white key 20 is in abutment with the lower face of the upper limit stopper 206 of the keyboard chassis 10. The upper limit position of the black key 30 is limited to a position where the hammer portion 46 of the hammer member 40 abuts on the upper face of the lower limit stopper portion 224.

In this state, the top surface portions of the end portion side protruding portions 55 of the hammer caps 51 of the key connecting portion 50 are held in a state of being in contact with the upper

inner walls

24a, 34a of the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34. The

switch pressing portions

22 and 32 provided on the lower surface side of the keys are kept in a state separated from the switch portion 14 attached to the keyboard 10 in the upward direction.

Subsequently, in a state where the user presses the white key 20 or the black key 30 with a finger to perform a key operation, as shown in fig. 3 (b) and 4 (b), the white key 20 or the black key 30 rotates clockwise about the

support shafts

218, 236. Thus, the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 is pressed by the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 of the keys against the weight of the weight portion 46, which is the load point portion, and the hammer member 40 rotates clockwise about the support shaft 42 to raise the weight portion 46, and at the same time, applies an operating load to the keys. At this time, the hammer cap 51 of the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 slides in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 by pressing the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 downward. In this key operation, the lateral runout of the white key 20 or the black key 30 in the key arrangement direction is restricted by the white key guide 204 and the black key guide 232, and the white key 20 or the black key 30 moves in the vertical direction.

Further, when the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 is further depressed by the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 of the keys in accordance with the key operation, the hammer portion 46 of the hammer member 40 is further raised, and by abutting against the upper limit stopper 222 provided to the keyboard base 10, the rotation of the hammer member 40 is stopped, the upper limit position is restricted, and the lower limit positions of the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 are restricted (key lower limit state). Here, the lower limit position of the white key 20 is limited to the following positions: the hammer 46 of the hammer member 40 abuts against the lower surface of the upper limit stopper 222, and further the white key 20 is depressed, and the stopper surface 28 of the front leg portion 25 of the white key 20 abuts against the upper surface of the lower limit stopper surface 208 of the keyboard chassis 10. The lower limit position of the black key 30 is limited to a position where the hammer portion 46 of the hammer member 40 abuts against the lower face of the upper limit stopper portion 222. In the keyboard mechanism shown in the present embodiment, when the hammer member 40 is rotated about the support shaft 42 by key depression, the hammer member 40 is set to have a length of the hammer body 44 on the hammer portion 46 side of the support shaft 42 sufficiently longer than the key connecting portion 50 side in order to apply an operating load to the keys by the moment of inertia.

In this key operation, until the weight portion 46 of the hammer member 40 abuts against the upper limit stopper portion 222, the switch portion 14 attached to the keyboard chassis 10 is pressed by the

switch pressing portions

22, 32 of the key, and when the switch portion 14 performs an on operation and outputs a switch signal, musical tone information is generated and musical tone generation from the speaker is started.

Then, in the case where the user has finished the key-pressing operation by removing the finger from the white key 20 or black key 30, the hammer member 40 is rotated counterclockwise about the support shaft 42 by the weight of the hammer portion 46, the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 of the key are pushed up by the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40, and the hammer portion 46 abuts on the upper face of the lower limit stopper 224, whereby the white key 20 and black key 30 are again restricted to the initial positions as the upper limit positions.

In the key depression operation of the white key 20 and the black key 30, the hammer cap 51 of the hammer member 40 engaged with the through-holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 of the keys has the end-side projecting portions 55 having a width larger than the groove portions 54 provided along the curved surfaces of the top surfaces 53 to project toward both ends, and therefore, the top surface portions of the end-side projecting portions 55 are pressed in contact with the upper

inner walls

24a, 34a of the through-holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 over a large area, and slide while the contact positions change along the curved surfaces of the top surfaces 53. Further, since the gap between the end portion side protruding portion 55 of the hammer cap 51 and the side

inner walls

24b, 34b of the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 is set small, the end portion side protruding portion 55 slides on the side

inner wall

24b, 34b facing the inside of the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 at the side surface portion. Further, since the hammer cap 51 has the bottom surface protruding portion 56 that protrudes continuously from the bottom surface, the lower

inner walls

24c, 34c of the through holes relative to the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 slide while contacting with a small area.

In this way, in the present embodiment, in the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34, the hammer caps 51 of the key connecting portions 50 of the hammer member 40 can be made to contact with each other in a large area by the end side protruding portions 55 on the top surfaces 53 having curved surfaces, and the clearance of the side surfaces can be reduced, thereby enabling stable sliding, and further, the hammer caps 51 can be made to contact with each other in a small area by the bottom surface protruding portions 56 on the bottom surfaces, thereby enabling smooth sliding without generating large frictional resistance. This makes it possible to properly transmit the force associated with the key operation to the hammer member 40 by suppressing the occurrence of problems such as abnormal vibration and abnormal noise during key pressing, and by suppressing lateral rattling during the rotation of the hammer member 40 by rotating the hammer member 40 while maintaining the connected state of the hammer member 40 and the key.

In the present embodiment, even when the user presses the key with force or the like, the impact can be absorbed or relaxed by the end portion side protruding portions 55, which protrude toward both ends of the groove portions 54 provided in the hammer cap 51 made of the elastic member, and therefore, the deformation, rotation, falling-off, and the like of the hammer cap 51 can be suppressed. In particular, the front end portion of the cover mounting portion 48 of the hammer main body 44 to which the hammer cap 51 is mounted has a shape bent into an L-shape toward the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51, and therefore, even in the case where the hammer cap 51 is deformed, rotation, falling-off, and the like can be prevented well.

In addition, in the present embodiment, since the groove portion 54 is provided in the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51 of the hammer member 40 and the end portion side protruding portion 55 protruding in the key arrangement direction is provided, it is possible to realize the hammer cap 51 having the wide top surface 53 while suppressing friction due to sliding in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 without increasing the amount of molding material used for the hammer cap 51. In addition, by forming wide end side projections 55 on both end sides of the groove portion 54 of the top surface 53, the cushioning property (elasticity) of the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51 is increased to bend the hammer member 40, thereby increasing the moment of inertia of the hammer member 40.

In the present embodiment, the groove portion 54 provided in the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51 is filled with and retains a lubricant, thereby allowing the lubricant to be used as a lubricant reservoir. When the hammer cap 51 of the hammer member 40 slides in the through-holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24 and 34, the key-

side projecting portions

29 and 36 projecting from the upper

inner walls

24a and 34a of the through-holes move in the groove portions 54, and the lubricant held in the groove portions 54 is pulled out, whereby the lubricant can be appropriately supplied to and permeate into the end-side projecting portions 55 adjacent to the groove portions 54, and the hammer cap 51 can be smoothly slid while suppressing wear of the hammer cap 51. Here, by setting the gap between the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 and the inner wall of the groove portion 54 of the hammer cap 51 to be larger than the gap between the side surface portion of the end-side projecting portion 55 of the hammer cap 51 and the

inner walls

24b, 34b of the through-holes of the

hammer coupling portions

24, 34, the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 can be moved without contacting the inner wall of the groove portion 54, and therefore, the sliding of the hammer cap 51 is not hindered by abrasion or resistance due to friction.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the end portion side protruding portion 55 protruding in the key arrangement direction is provided on the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51, but in order to insert and engage the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 into the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 well when assembling the keyboard unit 104, as shown in the right drawings of fig. 9 (a) and 9 (b) or fig. 10 (a) and 10 (b), a tapered shape in which the width dimension of the end portion side protruding portion 55 (the dimension protruding in the key arrangement direction) is reduced toward the insertion direction of the through hole (the direction toward the front of the drawing) may be applied.

< second embodiment >

Next, a second embodiment of the keyboard instrument of the present invention will be described. Here, the description of the same structure and operation as those of the first embodiment described above will be simplified.

In the first embodiment described above, the following configuration is explained: when the hammer cap 51 of the hammer member 40 slides in the through-holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 of the keys in accordance with key depression operation of the keys, the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 are moved without contacting the inner walls of the groove portions 54 of the hammer cap 51, and the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 are provided so as to project in the through-holes. In the second embodiment, the following configuration is provided: the groove 54 of the hammer cap 51 is provided with a projection, and when the hammer cap 51 slides in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34, the key-

side projections

29, 36 come into contact with the projection in the groove 54 with a predetermined resistance at a predetermined timing.

In the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 12, the hammer case 51 of the hammer member 40 is provided with a groove portion protruding portion (central protruding portion) 57 in addition to the structure equivalent to that of the hammer case shown in the first embodiment, and the groove portion protruding portion 57 is provided in a groove portion (corresponding to the groove portion 54 shown in the first embodiment, and in the present embodiment, located between the end portion side protruding portions 55, which means the whole groove portion provided with the groove portion protruding portions 57 described later, and is referred to as "groove portion 54" for convenience) provided along the longitudinal direction of the keys of the top face 53 (or the bending direction of the top face 53), and the end portion side protruding portions 55 formed on both end portions sides of the groove portion 54 are protruded so as to be connected to each other in the key arrangement direction (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in fig. 12 (b), (d)). Thus, the groove 54 provided in the top surface 53 is divided into two parts by the groove protruding portion 57, and a groove (first groove) 54a and a groove (second groove) 54b are formed along the longitudinal direction of the key.

Specifically, in the hammer cap 51 for white keys, for example, as shown in (a), (b) of fig. 12, the positions of the groove portions protruding portions 57 are set so that the respective sizes of the

groove portions

54a, 54b are substantially equal. Further, in the hammer cap 51 for black keys, for example, as shown in (c), (d) of fig. 12, the positions of the groove portions protruding portions 57 are set so that the groove portions 54b are larger than the groove portions 54 a. Alternatively, the position of the groove protruding portion 57 is set at one end portion (left end in fig. 12 (d)) of the groove 54 so that only the groove 54b is formed without the groove 54 a.

Here, as will be described in detail later, the arrangement position, the projection height, the sectional shape, and the like of the groove portion projecting portions 57 in the groove portion 54 are set so that the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 projecting in the through-holes of the hammer connecting portion 24 come into contact with a predetermined resistance (frictional resistance) at a predetermined timing when the hammer cap 51 of the hammer member 40 slides in the through-holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 of the key in accordance with the key depression operation.

In the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 12 (a) and (c), the groove portion protruding portions 57 are configured to connect the end portion side protruding portions 55 formed on both end sides of the groove portion 54 to each other in the key arrangement direction, but may be configured to protrude at least in the vicinity of the center in the key arrangement direction in the groove portion 54 so as to correspond to the positions, protruding heights, cross-sectional shapes, and the like of the key

side protruding portions

29 and 36 protruding in the through-holes. In addition, the groove portions 57 may be formed of the same elastic member as the hammer cap 51, or may be formed of a member having other characteristics (for example, higher rigidity than that of the hammer cap 51).

Next, the operation of the keyboard instrument including the keyboard mechanism will be described.

Fig. 13 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism of a white key applied to the keyboard instrument of the present embodiment. Fig. 14 is a schematic sectional view showing a keyboard mechanism of a black key applied to the keyboard instrument of the present embodiment. Here, fig. 13 (a) to (c) show the state of the keyboard mechanism before and after the escapement sense (let-off feel) of the white key, and fig. 14 (a) to (c) show the state of the keyboard mechanism before and after the escapement sense of the black key. In the present embodiment, the initial state (upper limit position) in which no key operation is performed and the lower limit position of the key during the key operation are the same as those in fig. 3 and 4 shown in the first embodiment, and therefore, the illustration thereof is omitted. Fig. 15 is a schematic view showing a state in which hammer members and keys are coupled to each other, which is applied to the keyboard musical instrument according to the present embodiment. Here, fig. 15 (a) to (c) are cross-sectional views showing changes in the connection state before and after the escapement of the white key, and fig. 15 (d) to (f) are cross-sectional views showing changes in the connection structure before and after the escapement of the black key.

As shown in fig. 13 and 14, in the same keyboard mechanism (refer to fig. 3 and 4) as the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 shown in the above-described first embodiment, the keyboard mechanism applied to the keyboard unit of the present embodiment applies a hammer cap 51 to the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40, and the hammer cap 51 is provided with a groove portion protruding portion 57 shown in fig. 12.

The operation of the keyboard instrument including the keyboard mechanism of the present embodiment is changed between the following states, as in the first embodiment: an initial state (fig. 3 (a), fig. 4 (a)) in which the user does not perform a key operation but the key is located at the upper limit position; as shown in fig. 13 and 14, a state in which sound generation of musical tones is started in association with key operation; and a key lower limit state in which the key reaches the lower limit position by a key operation (fig. 3 (b), fig. 4 (b)).

In the initial state in which the user has not performed a key operation, as in the state shown in fig. 3 (a) and 4 (a), due to the weight of the hammer portion 46 of the hammer member 40, the hammer member 40 is restricted to the lower limit position at which the hammer portion 46 abuts against the lower limit stopper portion 224, and the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 of the keys are pushed up by the key connecting portions 50, and the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 are restricted to the upper limit positions (initial positions). At this time, the key connecting portions 50 of the hammer members 40 are connected to the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 of the white keys 20 and the black keys 30, and the top surface portions of the end portion side protruding portions 55 of the hammer caps 51 of the key connecting portions 50 are held in contact with the upper

inner walls

24a, 34a of the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34, as in the first embodiment. Further, the bottom surface protruding portion 56 provided on the bottom surface of the hammer cap 51 is held in a state of being in contact with the

inner walls

24c, 34c on the lower side of the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34.

In this initial state, the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 provided to project on the upper

inner walls

24a, 34a of the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 are located within the groove portions 54b provided on the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51, and do not contact the inner walls of the groove portions 54b or the groove portion projecting portions 57.

Next, in a state where the user performs a key operation to start sound generation of a musical sound, as shown in fig. 13 and 14, until the weight portion 46 of the hammer member 40 rises and comes into contact with the upper limit stopper portion 222, the switch portion 14 attached to the keyboard chassis 10 is pressed by the

switch pressing portions

22 and 32 provided on the lower surfaces of the white key 20 and the black key 30, the switch portion 14 performs an on operation to output a switch signal, and generation of musical sound information is started and sound generation of a musical sound from the speaker is started.

At this time, as shown in fig. 13 (a), 14 (a), and 15 (a) and (d), the hammer cap 51 is slid in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 in a state where at least the end portion side protruding portion 55 of the hammer cap 51 is in sliding contact with the upper

inner walls

24a, 34a of the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34, and the key

side protruding portions

29, 36 provided in the through hole are in contact with the groove portion protruding portion 57 in the longitudinal direction of the key from the groove portion 54b side of the hammer cap 51.

Next, as shown in fig. 13 (b), 14 (b), and 15 (b) and (e), when the hammer cap 51 is further slid in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34, the key-

side protrusions

29, 36 are brought into press contact with the groove-side protrusion 57 in the direction of pressing the key connecting portion 50. In this state, the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 provided in the through holes come into contact with the groove-side projecting portions 57 from the groove portion 54b side of the hammer cap 51 to generate a prescribed resistance.

Specifically, the key-

side projecting portions

29 and 36 come into sliding contact with and ride up along the surface of the groove portion projecting portion 57 from the state of coming into contact with the groove portion projecting portion 57 from the groove portion 54b side. Thereby, frictional resistance is generated between the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 and the groove portion projecting portion 57, and the hammer cap 51 slides within the through-hole in a state where the key connecting portion 50 is pressed down to bring the bottom surface projecting portion 56 of the hammer cap 51 into sliding contact with the lower

inner walls

24c, 34c of the through-hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34. At this time, the groove portions protruding portions 57 of the hammer cap 51 are pressed by the key-

side protruding portions

29, 36, and deformed centering around the protruding apexes.

Next, as shown in fig. 13 (c), 14 (c), and 15 (c) and (f), when the hammer cap 51 is further slid in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34, the key-

side protruding portions

29, 36 pass over the groove portion protruding portion 57. In this state, the key-

side protrusions

29, 36 provided in the through-holes are released at a time from the resistance generated with the groove-portion protrusions 57. At this time, impacts are generated on the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 and the key connecting portions 50, as a feeling of striking, transmitted to the user who puts fingers on the upper faces 21, 31 of the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 via the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33.

That is, when the key-

side projecting portions

29 and 36 are fitted to the groove projecting portions 57 (as shown in fig. 15 (b) and (e)) from the state of abutting against the groove projecting portions 57 (as shown in fig. 15 (a) and (d)), the load (operating load) with which the user presses the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 increases, the load is greatest near the projecting apexes of the groove projecting portions 57, and the load decreases as the user passes over the groove projecting portions 57 (as shown in fig. 15 (c) and (f)), thereby generating a click feeling. This knocking feeling is a unique operational feeling, i.e., escapement feeling, which is felt when the acoustic piano or the like is played by slowly plunging into the keyboard. That is, in the electronic keyboard instrument, the same operational feeling (escapement feeling) of the keyboard as that of the acoustic piano can be reproduced.

Here, as shown in fig. 15, the timing at which the key-

side projecting portions

29 and 36 provided in the through-hole come into contact with the groove-side projecting portion 57 is set to a period from before and after the timing at which the musical sound is generated to the key lower limit state during the key operation, as shown in fig. 13 and 14. The specific timing setting method is realized by the following method: at least one of the installation position and the cross-sectional shape of the groove portion protruding portion 57 in the longitudinal direction of the key (or the bending direction of the top surface 53) of the groove portion 54, the installation position and the cross-sectional shape of the key

side protruding portions

29 and 36 in the penetrating direction of the through hole (the longitudinal direction of the key), and the like is adjusted. Thus, the key-

side projecting portions

29 and 36 are brought into contact with the groove projecting portion 57 at an arbitrary timing in a period from before and after the timing of starting the sound generation of the musical sound to the key lower limit state, and the user can be given a feeling of tapping.

The click feeling transmitted to the user when the key-

side projecting portions

29 and 36 are in contact with the groove-side projecting portions 57 is set by the magnitude, the nature, and the like of the resistance generated when the key-

side projecting portions

29 and 36 are in contact with the groove-side projecting portions 57. The specific method for adjusting the knocking feeling is realized by the following steps: at least one of the projection height, the sectional shape, and the material (hardness) of the groove projection 57 provided in the groove 54, and the projection height, the sectional shape, the material (hardness) of the key-

side projections

29 and 36 provided in the through-holes is adjusted. This allows the user to arbitrarily set the touch sensation such as the intensity of the click sensation transmitted to the user.

Further, when the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 pass over the groove projecting portions 57 after coming into contact with the groove projecting portions 57, a force is generated in a direction in which the key connecting portion 50 is pressed against the lower

inner walls

24c, 34c of the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34. In the present embodiment, the bottom surface protruding portion 56 that protrudes continuously in the penetrating direction of the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34 is provided on the bottom surface of the hammer cap 51, so that a large frictional resistance is not generated between the bottom surface of the hammer cap 51 and the

inner walls

24c, 34c on the lower side of the through hole, and the hammer cap 51 of the key connecting portion 50 can be smoothly slid in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portion

24, 34.

Next, when the user further presses the key, the hammer portion 46 of the hammer member 40 further rises to abut against the upper limit stopper portion 222, is restricted to the upper limit position, and shifts to the key lower limit state in which the lower limit positions of the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 are restricted, as in the state shown in fig. 3 (b) and 4 (b). At this time, the state of the linkage between the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 and the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34 of the keys is the same as in the first embodiment described above, and the hammer cap 51 slides in the through-hole while the end-side projecting portion 55 and the bottom-side projecting portion 56 of the hammer cap 51 are in sliding contact with the upper

inner walls

24a, 34a and the lower

inner walls

24c, 34c of the through-hole of the

hammer connecting portions

24, 34.

In addition, in this key lower limit state, the key-

side projecting portions

29, 36 provided in the through-holes pass over the groove portion projecting portion 57 of the hammer cap 51, and contact with the inner wall of the groove portion 54a and the groove portion projecting portion 57 in the groove portion 54a without generating resistance or stress. Thereafter, when the user finishes the key operation, by the hammer portion 46 of the hammer member 40 descending, the key connecting portion 50 pushes up the

hammer pressing portions

23, 33 of the keys, the hammer portion 46 abuts against the lower limit stopper 224, whereby the white keys 20 and the black keys 30 are restricted again at the initial positions as the upper limit positions.

By changing the connection state between the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 and the

hammer connecting portions

24 and 34 of the keys in accordance with such key operation, as in the first embodiment, the hammer cap 51 of the key connecting portion 50 of the hammer member 40 is stably and smoothly slid in the through hole of the

hammer connecting portions

24 and 34, so that occurrence of troubles such as abnormal vibration and abnormal noise at the time of key pressing can be suppressed, and lateral rattling at the time of rotation of the hammer member 40 can be suppressed, and force accompanying the key operation can be appropriately transmitted to the hammer member 40. Even when the user strongly presses the key, the impact can be absorbed or relaxed by the end-side protruding portion 55 provided on the hammer case 51, and the deformation, rotation, and falling-off of the hammer case 51 can be suppressed.

In the present embodiment, the groove portions 54 of the top surface 53 of the hammer cap 51 are provided with the groove portion protrusions 57, and when the hammer cap 51 slides in the through holes of the

hammer connecting portions

24 and 34 in accordance with the key operation, the resistance generated by the contact between the key-

side protrusions

29 and 36 provided in the through holes and the end-side protrusions 55 is transmitted to the user as a click feeling, so that the operation feeling (escapement feeling) of the keyboard similar to that of an acoustic piano can be reproduced in the electronic keyboard instrument.

In the present embodiment, the groove portion 54 provided on the top surface 53 of the hammer case 51 is divided by the groove portion protruding portion 57, and the

groove portions

54a and 54b are surrounded by the wall surface constituted by the end portion side protruding portion 55 and the groove portion protruding portion 57, so that the outflow of the filled lubricant can be favorably prevented when the

groove portions

54a and 54b are applied as the lubricant reservoir.

In the present invention, as described in the first and second embodiments, the operational feeling (presence or absence of escapement feeling) of the keyboard can be set differently by a slight change in the shape of the member such as the presence or absence of the groove portion protrusion 57 in the hammer cap 51, and therefore, a product group having different specifications or characteristics can be provided easily without increasing the number of components or changing the manufacturing process.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and includes the inventions described in the claims and their equivalent ranges.

Claims

1. A keyboard musical instrument, wherein,

a hammer member provided for each key, the hammer member being provided at one end side with a force point portion having a contact member to be pressed at key pressing by contact with the key, at the other end side with a hammer portion to apply a load to the key pressed,

the contact member has a groove portion provided on an upper surface of the contact member along a longitudinal direction of the key so as not to contact the key at the time of the key pressing, and both end portions protruding upward from the groove portion at both end sides of the groove portion in an arrangement direction of the key so as to contact the key at the time of the key pressing.

2. The keyboard musical instrument according to claim 1,

the key has a pressing portion that presses the both end portions of the contact member when the key is pressed.

3. The keyboard musical instrument according to claim 2,

the key has a key-side protrusion at the center in the arrangement direction of the keys of the depressed portion, the key-side protrusion continuously protruding in the long-side direction of the key.

4. The keyboard musical instrument according to claim 3,

a central protrusion is provided in the groove portion of the contact member, the central protrusion being in contact with the key-side protrusion when the key is pressed.

5. The keyboard musical instrument according to claim 4,

the central protruding portion of the contact member continuously protrudes in the key arrangement direction, and the groove portion is divided into a first groove portion and a second groove portion by connecting the both end portions to each other.

6. The keyboard musical instrument according to claim 4,

the central protruding portion of the contact member is provided at an end portion on one side in a longitudinal direction of the key in the upper surface.

7. The keyboard musical instrument according to any one of claims 2 to 6,

the upper surface of the contact member has a curved surface, and positions of the both end portions of the contact member pressed by the pressing portion of the key change when the key is pressed.

8. The keyboard musical instrument according to any one of claims 1 to 6,

the contact member has a length in the arrangement direction of the keys on the upper surface side longer than a length in the arrangement direction of the keys on the lower surface side.

9. The keyboard musical instrument according to any one of claims 1 to 6,

the space inside the contact member on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the key is larger than the space inside the contact member on the other end side in the longitudinal direction of the key.

10. The keyboard musical instrument according to any one of claims 1 to 6,

the length in the vertical direction of one end side in the long side direction of the key of the mounting portion of the contact member in the hammer member is longer than the length in the vertical direction of the other end side in the long side direction of the key of the mounting portion of the contact member.

11. The keyboard musical instrument according to any one of claims 1 to 6,

the key is a white key or a black key,

the contact member for the hammer member corresponding to the white key and the contact member for the hammer member corresponding to the black key have different shapes.