JP2009080372A - Karaoke device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a karaoke device having a new and entertaining game function which is executed in synchronization with the output of songs. <P>SOLUTION: The karaoke device includes: a user picture extracting means 90 which extracts a part corresponding to a user's picture 106 in a picture photographed by a CCD camera 64; an icon display-controlling means 88 which makes a picture-displaying device 30 display a plurality of icons 104 corresponding to musical instruments; an icon-designating means 92 for designating at least one icon from among the icons 104 displayed by the icon display-controlling means 88 in synchronization with musical performances; a contact determining means 94 which determines whether at least a part of the user's picture 106 contacts the designated icon 104; and an evaluation means 96 which evaluates a game performance according to the result of the determination by the contact determining means 94. Accordingly, quite a new game is achieved, in which a user's picture 106 touches a musical instrument icon 104 sequentially designated in synchronization with the output of songs. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a karaoke apparatus used in a karaoke box or the like, and more particularly to a new game function that is executed in conjunction with the output of a performance song.

  2. Description of the Related Art Music playback apparatuses that output a predetermined performance song selected from a large number of performance songs are known. For example, a karaoke device used in a karaoke box or the like. According to such a karaoke apparatus, music information of a predetermined karaoke performance song selected from a large number of karaoke performance songs stored in advance in a storage device is output, and an image including lyrics information of the karaoke performance song is output. Karaoke performance of a desired song can be enjoyed by displaying it on the screen in synchronization with.

  As one aspect of the karaoke apparatus, there has been proposed one that executes a game related to karaoke performance in conjunction with the output of a performance song. For example, it is a karaoke apparatus described in Patent Document 1. According to such a karaoke apparatus, by comparing the voice information input from the microphone with the performance information of the karaoke performance song based on the pitch, tempo, volume, etc., the evaluation of the singing according to the input voice information Can be scored.

JP-A-9-101794

  However, in recent years, with the widespread use of karaoke apparatuses having a performance evaluation function, the performance evaluation function according to the conventional technique is not particularly new. For this reason, there has been a demand for the development of a karaoke apparatus having a new game function with high entertainment that is executed in conjunction with the output of a performance song.

  The present invention has been made against the background of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a karaoke apparatus having a new highly entertaining game function that is executed in conjunction with the output of a performance song. There is to do.

  In order to achieve such an object, the gist of the present invention is to output a predetermined performance song selected from a large number of performance songs and display a video related to the performance song on a predetermined video display device. A karaoke apparatus for capturing an image of a user's image, a user image extracting means for extracting a portion corresponding to the user's image in an image captured by the image capturing device, and a plurality of musical instruments Icon display control means for displaying on the video display device an icon corresponding to each, and an icon for designating at least one of a plurality of icons displayed by the icon display control means in conjunction with the output of the performance song At least a user's video extracted by the user video extracting means is designated by the designation means and the icon designated by the icon designation means. A contact determination means for determining whether or not parts are in contact, and evaluation means for evaluating a game result in accordance with the determination result of the contact determining means, characterized in that it comprises.

  In this way, the imaging device for capturing the user's video, the user video extraction means for extracting the portion corresponding to the user's video in the video captured by the imaging device, and the plurality of instruments Icon display control means for displaying respective corresponding icons on the video display device, and icon designation for designating at least one of a plurality of icons displayed by the icon display control means in conjunction with the output of the performance song A contact determination means for determining whether or not at least a part of the user's video extracted by the user video extraction means has touched the icon specified by the icon specifying means; and the contact determination means Since it is provided with an evaluation means for evaluating the game result according to the determination result of the karaoke performance, it is displayed on the video display device. In the play the video that is, it is possible to realize a completely new game, which results in that the user of the video to the instrument icon that is specified sequentially in conjunction with the output of the musical piece is going to touch is evaluated. That is, it is possible to provide a karaoke apparatus having a new game function with high entertainment that is executed in conjunction with the output of a performance song.

  Here, preferably, the contact determination unit determines whether or not a hand in the user image extracted by the user image extraction unit has touched the icon specified by the icon specifying unit. Is. In this way, in the performance video displayed on the video display device during the karaoke performance, the user's hand in the video of the user touches the instrument icon that is sequentially specified in conjunction with the output of the performance song. It is possible to realize a game in a practical manner in which the grade is evaluated.

  Preferably, the karaoke device outputs the performance tune based on performance information including score information corresponding to at least one musical instrument, and the icon display control means outputs a predetermined performance tune. At this time, an icon of a musical instrument corresponding to the musical score information included in the performance information of the performance music is displayed on the video display device. In this way, it is possible to realize a game closely related to the musical piece by displaying the icon of the musical instrument used to play the target musical piece.

  Preferably, the icon designating unit designates an icon of a musical instrument corresponding to the musical score information based on the musical score information included in the performance information of the musical performance when outputting a predetermined musical performance. In this way, by designating the icon of the musical instrument corresponding to the performance in conjunction with the output of the target performance song, a game more closely related to the performance song can be realized.

  Preferably, based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means, the output of the performance sound corresponding to at least one piece of music score information among the plurality of music score information included in the performance music related to the performance after the evaluation is prohibited. To do. If it does in this way, the result of a game can be reflected in the output of the performance music after the next in a practical aspect.

  Preferably, based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means, musical score information corresponding to a predetermined musical instrument is added to the performance piece related to the performance after the evaluation. If it does in this way, the result of a game can be reflected in the output of the performance music after the next in a practical aspect.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a karaoke system 10 to which the present invention is preferably applied. As shown in FIG. 1, in the karaoke system 10, a plurality of private rooms 14 a, 14 b, 14 c,... In a store 12 such as a karaoke box, a snack, an inn, etc. Karaoke apparatuses 16a, 16b, 16c,... (Hereinafter referred to simply as karaoke unless otherwise specified), each of which is one or more (one in FIG. 1). (Referred to as device 16). The plurality of karaoke devices 16 are connected to a communication line 18 such as a public telephone line via a router 28, and are connected to a server device (center device) 20 of a karaoke service providing company connected to the communication line 18. Information can be communicated with each other via the communication line 18. The server device 20 is a server that performs basic control of storage and input / output management of digital contents (Digital Contents) such as karaoke information (music data), background video information, and information between songs. The content is regularly distributed to the karaoke device 16 via the karaoke device 16 and a predetermined function control program is transmitted in response to a request from the karaoke device 16. The karaoke system 10 includes a plurality of electronic quick sample devices 22a, 22b, 22c,... (Hereinafter simply referred to as the electronic quick sample device 22 unless otherwise distinguished). In use, one electronic quick sample device 22 is lent for each user (group) and used as a remote control device for the karaoke device 16 in each private room 14 as will be described later. A LAN 24 for connecting the plurality of karaoke apparatuses 16 to each other is laid in the store 12, and an input to the karaoke apparatus 16 from the electronic quick sample apparatus 22 is made via a predetermined access point 26 and the LAN 24. This is performed by LAN communication or the like.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the karaoke apparatus 16. As shown in FIG. 2, the karaoke device 16 includes a video display device 30 such as a CRT (Cathode-ray Tube) or a TFT (Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal), a video output control unit 32 such as a CRT controller, and a video. Processes input signals from information decoder 34, video mixer 36, synthesizer 38 as a sound source, microphone 40 as an audio input device, amplifier mixer 42, speaker 44, operation panel 46, operation panel 46, and the like An input / output interface 48, a CPU 50 that is a central processing unit, a ROM 52 that is a read-only memory, a RAM 54 that is a write / read memory as needed, a hard disk 56 that is a storage device, a modem 58, and a LAN port 60. , Receiving remote control signals from input devices such as the electronic sample device 22 and the remote control device 66 A remote control reception unit 62 of the order, and a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) camera 64 which is an image pickup apparatus is configured to include.

  The video output control unit 32 functions as a character video output device that outputs a character video (telop) such as a lyric character video generated by the CPU 50, and also displays for controlling various video displays by the video display device 30. It is a control device. Further, a musical instrument icon is output based on information stored in the icon database 70 of the hard disk 56, or a user's video extracted from the video taken by the CCD camera 64 is output, as will be described later. Various video display control related to the karaoke game to be performed is performed.

  The video information decoder 34 is a background video playback device that plays back (decodes) a predetermined background video based on background video information stored in the hard disk 56 when a user sings a song while referring to lyrics. The background video information is, for example, MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) format data, and the background video reproduced by the video information decoder 34 based on the MPEG data is sent to the video mixer 36. The video mixer 36 synthesizes the character video generated by the CPU 50 and output from the video output control unit 32 with the background video reproduced by the video information decoder 34 to the video display device 30. This is a video composition device to be displayed. In a karaoke game, which will be described later, in addition to the background video and character video, a musical instrument icon and a user video output by the video output control unit 32 are similarly synthesized in the video mixer 36.

  The synthesizer 38 is a sound source that generates a music signal such as a musical instrument performance signal based on performance information of a karaoke performance song read from the hard disk 56 and sent. The performance information is, for example, data in MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) format, and the music signal generated by the synthesizer 38 based on the MIDI data is converted into an analog signal and sent to the amplifier mixer 42. The amplifier mixer 42 mixes the transmitted music signal and the user's singing voice input via the microphone 40, and those signals are electrically amplified and output from the speaker 44.

  The operation panel 46 allows the user of the karaoke apparatus 16 to select a karaoke performance song that the user wants to sing, adjust the pitch of the performance song, adjust the volume balance between the performance and the song, and perform echo and volume. , An input device provided with operation buttons (switches) or knobs for performing various adjustments such as tone. Further, the karaoke device 16 is provided with a remote control device 66 that functions as an input device for remotely executing some functions of the operation panel 46, and the remote control receiving unit 62 is connected to the remote control device 66. A remote control signal to be transmitted is received and supplied to the CPU 50. In addition, the association (sticking) processing between the karaoke device 16 and the electronic quick sample device 22 is also performed via the remote control receiving unit 62, and thus the electronic quick sample device associated with the karaoke device 16. 22 also functions as an input device.

  The CCD camera 64 is an imaging device that captures an image with a charge coupled device (CCD), and the image captured by the CCD camera 64 is directly or via a predetermined converter (not shown). It is input to the control unit of the device 16. The CCD camera 64 is preferably provided in a fixed position in advance at a position where an image of a user performing a karaoke performance can be taken by the karaoke device 16.

  The CPU 50 is a so-called microcomputer that processes and controls electronic information based on a predetermined program stored in advance in the ROM 52 while using the temporary storage function of the RAM 54. The electronic quick sample device 22 and the remote control device 66 are used. When a predetermined karaoke performance song is selected by the above or the like, the selected karaoke performance song is registered in the reserved song table 72 provided in the RAM 54 or from the hard disk 56 according to the performance order of the reserved song table 72. The performance information and lyrics information, etc. of the selected karaoke performance song are read out to the RAM 54, or the performance information is transmitted from the RAM 54 to the synthesizer 38 as the performance of the karaoke performance song progresses, or based on the lyrics information. Generate lyric text and send it to the video output controller 32. Sometimes a song title character video is generated and sent to the video output control unit 32, or the video information decoder 34 is controlled to reproduce a predetermined background video. In addition to basic control such as information communication control such as information communication, song selection ranking, store advertisement, etc. and information communication control with the server device 20 via the communication line 18, a karaoke game described later Various controls related to the control are executed.

  The modem 58 is a device for connecting the karaoke device 16 to a communication line 18 such as a public telephone line, converts a digital signal output from the CPU 50 into an analog signal and sends it to the communication line 18. An analog signal transmitted via the communication line 18 is converted into a digital signal and supplied to the CPU 50. In addition, the aspect by which any karaoke apparatus 16 is equipped with the function of the said router 28 among the several karaoke apparatuses 16 with which the said store 12 was equipped, and is connected to the said communication line 18 as a master commander is also considered, In that case, The modem 58 is required for the karaoke device 16 that functions as the master commander, but is not necessarily provided for other karaoke devices 16 that communicate information with the server device 20 via the master commander. Not necessary.

  The LAN port 60 is a connector for connecting the karaoke device 16 to other devices such as the other karaoke device 16 and the electronic quick sample device 22 via the LAN 24, and the karaoke device 16 is connected as such. By being connected via the LAN 24, information can be transmitted / received to / from other devices such as the other karaoke device 16 and the electronic quick sample device 22. For example, the music selection input from the electronic quick sample device 22 received via the access point 26 is accepted and stored in the reserved music table 72 provided in the RAM 54, or the karaoke device via the access point 26. The mutual exchange of information between the karaoke device 16 and the electronic quick sample device 22 is performed via radio waves, such as transmitting predetermined information from the electronic device 16 to the electronic quick sample device 22.

  In the hard disk 56, a karaoke database 68 for storing a large number of karaoke data (music data) for outputting karaoke performance music, and an icon database 70 for storing information for displaying musical instrument icons described later (see FIG. 3). ) And other databases. Among a plurality of karaoke devices 16 provided in a store such as a karaoke box, a predetermined karaoke device 16 such as the karaoke device 16a is connected to the communication line 18 via the modem 58, and the plurality of karaoke devices. 16, new music data and the like are distributed from the server device 20 via the communication line 18 at any time so that a new music can always be played by 16 or a new musical instrument icon can be displayed. It is stored in the karaoke database 70 of the hard disk 56 or the like. In addition, communication is performed via the LAN 24 between the karaoke device 16 a that has acquired information from the server device 20 and the other karaoke devices 16, and is stored in the hard disk 56 of each karaoke device 16. Information is shared, and the contents of the karaoke database 70 and the like are equivalent.

  The karaoke database 68 stores a large number (for example, tens of thousands of songs) of karaoke information for performing a karaoke performance by the karaoke apparatus 16. This karaoke information is composed of performance information for generating a performance sound and lyric information for generating a lyric character image (lyric telop), and is identified by a music selection number unique to each performance tune which is a content ID. The The performance information preferably includes, for example, MIDI format data for outputting musical performance sound of the corresponding musical instrument based on the musical score information, including musical score information corresponding to at least one musical instrument. The icon database 70 stores icon information for causing the video display device 30 to display icons corresponding to a plurality of musical instruments via the video output control unit 32 or the like. Preferably, icon information for displaying icons of some or all of a plurality of musical instruments that can be selected as musical instruments corresponding to each track or channel in the MIDI data is stored. Each icon in the present embodiment is a figure that represents a predetermined musical instrument, and is displayed on the screen of the video display device 30 in a karaoke game described later (see FIG. 5 and the like). The icon information is image information in, for example, a png (Portable Network Graphics) format or a transparent GIF (Transparent Graphic Interchange Format) format, and is preferably a still image, but may be a moving image.

  FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram illustrating a main part of the control function provided in the CPU 50 of the karaoke apparatus 16. The karaoke performance control means 80 shown in FIG. 3 controls the output of a performance tune when the karaoke device 16 performs the karaoke performance. Specifically, the karaoke information corresponding to the music selection number of the performance music stored in the reserved music table 72 is read out from the karaoke database 68 in the order of performance in the reserved music table 72 stored in the RAM 54 or the like, and the karaoke information is obtained. The output of the performance music is controlled based on the performance information included in. That is, on the basis of MIDI data as performance information, the synthesizer 38 outputs musical instrument performance sounds (music information) corresponding to tracks or channels as musical score information in the MIDI data, and the amplifier mixer 42 is used to output the performance data. Output from the speaker 44.

  The video display control means 82 controls the video displayed on the video display device 30 during the karaoke performance by the karaoke device 16. In order to perform such control, background video display control means 84, lyrics character video display control means 86, icon display control means 88, and user video extraction means 90 are included. Hereinafter, video display control by these control functions will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The background video display control means 84 controls the display of the background video 100 on the video display device 30 during the karaoke performance by the karaoke device 16. Specifically, when karaoke performance of a predetermined performance piece is performed, background video information designated in the karaoke information corresponding to the performance piece is read from a background video database (not shown) stored in the hard disk 56 or the like, and the background video information is read out. Is reproduced by the video information decoder 34 or the like and input to the video mixer 36. The background video 100 reproduced by the background video display control means 84 is preferably synthesized as the backmost layer of the performance video in the video mixer 36.

  The lyric character image display control means 86 controls the display of the lyric character image 102 on the image display device 30 during karaoke performance by the karaoke device 16. Specifically, at the time of karaoke performance of a predetermined performance song, the lyric character image 102 based on the lyric information included in the karaoke information corresponding to the performance song is generated in conjunction with the output of the performance song by the karaoke performance control means 80. Then, the lyric character image 102 is output by the image output control unit 32 and input to the video mixer 36. FIG. 4 exemplifies a video in which the background video 100 and the lyrics character video 102 are synthesized in the video mixer 36. As shown in FIG. 4, the lyric character image 102 generated by the lyric character image display control means 86 is preferably in a layer on the front side of the background image 100 reproduced by the background image display control means 84. Synthesized.

  The icon display control means 88 controls the display of the icon 104 on the video display device 30 during the karaoke game by the karaoke device 16. This karaoke game is executed in conjunction with the karaoke performance by the karaoke device 16, that is, the output control of the performance tune by the karaoke performance control means 80, and is photographed by the CCD camera 64 as described in detail below. In this game, the user's video 106 is displayed on the screen of the video display device 30 and the designated one of the icons 104 displayed on the screen is touched by the user's video 106. . The icon display control means 88 displays the icon 104 on the video display device 30 for such a karaoke game. Preferably, when performing a karaoke performance of a predetermined performance song, the performance information of the performance song is displayed. An icon 104 of at least one musical instrument corresponding to the score information included is output based on the information stored in the icon database 70 and input to the video mixer 36. FIG. 5 illustrates a video in which the background video 100, the lyrics character video 102, and the icon 104 are combined in the video mixer 36. As shown in FIG. 5, the icon 104 output by the icon display control means 88 is preferably in front of the background video 100 reproduced by the background video display control means 84 in the video mixer 36. And is combined with a layer on the back side of the lyric character image 102 generated by the lyric character image display control means 86. In FIG. 5, five types of musical instrument icons 104, that is, an acoustic guitar icon 104a, a bass icon 104b, a crash cymbal icon 104c, a bass drum icon 104d, and a hi-hat icon 104e are illustrated. The screen shown in FIG. 5 is displayed at the time of outputting a performance song having MIDI data having tracks or channels corresponding to at least acoustic guitar, bass, crash cymbal, bass drum, and hi-hat as performance information.

  The user video extraction means 90 extracts a portion corresponding to the user video 106 in the video shot by the CCD camera 64 during the karaoke game by the karaoke device 16. Specifically, it corresponds to an image 106 of a user having a head, a hand, an arm, a torso, and a leg from a whole image taken by the CCD camera 64 in accordance with a predetermined image extraction algorithm. A portion determined to be extracted is extracted, subjected to video processing such as adjusting its contour, and then input to the video mixer 36. FIG. 6 exemplifies a video in which the background video 100, the lyrics text video 102, the icon 106, and the user video 106 are combined in the video mixer 36. As shown in FIG. 6, the user video 106 extracted by the user video extraction means 90 is preferably more than the icon 104 output by the icon display control means 88 in the video mixer 36. It is combined with a layer on the front side and on the back side of the lyric character image 102 generated by the lyric character image display control means 86.

  Returning to FIG. 3, the icon designating unit 92 designates at least one of the plurality of icons 104 displayed by the icon display control unit 88 in conjunction with the output of a performance song in the karaoke game by the karaoke device 16. To do. This designation continues for at least a predetermined time, and a plurality of icons 104 are sequentially designated in conjunction with the output of the performance music. The icon designating unit 92 preferably designates an icon of a musical instrument corresponding to the musical score information based on the musical performance information of the musical performance, that is, the musical score information included in the MIDI data, when outputting a predetermined musical performance. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the video display device 30 is used to output a performance tune having MIDI data as performance information having tracks or channels corresponding to at least acoustic guitar, bass, crash cymbal, bass drum, and hi-hat. When the icon 104 corresponding to each musical instrument is displayed, the icon 104 corresponding to the musical instrument related to the output of the performance sound at that time is designated. The icon display control means 88 changes the display of the icon 104 designated by the icon designation means 92 so that the designation can be visually recognized. For example, the designated icon 104 is blinked or displayed in a different color. FIG. 7 illustrates a state in which the icon 104a corresponding to the acoustic guitar is designated in the performance video (karaoke game video) shown in FIG. 6, and the icon 104a is blinked.

  The contact determination unit 94 determines whether at least a part of the user image 106 extracted by the user image extraction unit 90 has touched the icon 104 specified by the icon specifying unit 92. Preferably, it is determined whether or not the hand portion 106h of the user's video 106 is in contact. The hand portion 106h is, for example, a portion that is recognized as a tip portion of both arm portions (portions protruding longitudinally from the substantially upper end of the torso portion) in the user's image 106. FIG. 8 shows that in the performance video (karaoke game video) in which the icon 104a corresponding to the acoustic guitar is designated as shown in FIG. 7, the user's video 106 touches the icon 104a, and the contact is determined. A state in which a character image of “Touch!” Is displayed is shown. When contact is determined in this way, the designation of the target icon 104 is cancelled. Note that the contact determination unit 94 may determine contact when the user's video 106 touches the icon 104 even a little, or the user's video 106 is predetermined for the icon 104. The contact may be determined when the predetermined area or more overlaps.

The evaluation unit 96 evaluates the game result according to the determination result of the contact determination unit 94. Specifically, the game result is evaluated based on the number N ₂ of times that the contact determination means 94 determines contact with the icon 104 with respect to the number N ₁ with which the icon 104 is specified with the icon specifying means 92. The higher the ratio N ₂ / N _{1 of the} number of times, the higher the evaluation, and the case where N ₂ / N ₁ = 1 is the highest evaluation. For example, the game score may be scored with a maximum score of 100, or may be a simple score such that one of five grades is scored. Furthermore, a point addition method or a deduction method may be used. Further, the evaluation may be performed a plurality of times from the start to the end of the output of the performance music, and the final evaluation result may be calculated at the end of the performance. The evaluation result by the evaluation means 96 is preferably stored in the evaluation result table 74 in the RAM 54 or the like.

  The karaoke performance control means 80 preferably reflects the evaluation result by the evaluation means 96 stored in the evaluation result table 74 in the RAM 54 or the like in the output of the performance tune by the karaoke apparatus 16. For example, based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means 96, for example, when the evaluation is less than a predetermined value, a plurality of pieces of score information (tracks or channels) included in the performance music related to the performance after the evaluation The output of performance sound corresponding to at least one piece of musical score information is prohibited. That is, in the performance after the next time, the performance sound corresponding to one or a plurality of tracks or channels among the plurality of tracks or channels defined in the MIDI data corresponding to the performance information is not output. Preferably, based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means 96, for example, when the evaluation is equal to or higher than a predetermined value, the musical score information corresponding to the predetermined musical instrument is a performance piece related to the performance after the evaluation. Add (track or channel). The addition of the musical score information may be to cancel the prohibition when the output of the predetermined musical score information is prohibited as described above, or to add a track or channel that is not output as a bonus track in a normal performance. It may be added.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining a main part of the karaoke game execution control by the CPU 50 of the karaoke apparatus 16 and is repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle.

  First, in step (hereinafter, step is omitted) S1, it is determined whether or not the instrument touch karaoke mode, that is, the mode for executing the karaoke game of the present embodiment. If the determination at S1 is negative, the routine is terminated accordingly. If the determination at S1 is affirmative, the routine is stored at the highest position in the reserved music table 72 such as the RAM 54 in S2. It is determined whether or not the performance of the performance music is started and the performance of the performance music is started. If the determination in S2 is negative, the routine is terminated accordingly. If the determination in S2 is affirmative, in S3, the karaoke information corresponding to the performance piece related to the performance start is the karaoke information. In addition to reading from the database 68, an instrument corresponding to a track or channel in MIDI data as performance information of the performance music is read. Next, in S4, the evaluation result in the previous karaoke game stored in the evaluation result table 74 such as the RAM 54 is read out, and the track in the MIDI data of the performance tune according to the current output is read according to the evaluation result. Control such as channel reduction or addition of a track or channel corresponding to a new musical instrument is performed. Next, in S5, the musical instrument icon 104 corresponding to the track or channel in the MIDI data as performance information of the performance tune related to the start of output is read from the icon database 70, and is transmitted via the video output control unit 32 and the like. It is displayed on the video display device 30.

  Next, in S6 corresponding to the operations of the karaoke performance control means 80, the background video display control means 84, and the lyric character video display control means 86, karaoke performance control and performance video display control of the performance music relating to the output are performed. . Specifically, a predetermined performance sound is output from the synthesizer 38 based on the MIDI data of the target karaoke information, and is output from the speaker 44 via the amplifier mixer 42 and the like. Further, in conjunction with (synchronizing with) the output of the performance music, display control of the background video 100, the lyrics character video 102, and the like is performed based on the background video designation information and the lyrics information of the target karaoke information. Next, in S 7 corresponding to the operation of the user video extraction means 90, the user video 106 in the video shot by the CCD camera 64 is extracted and synthesized in the video mixer 36. Next, in S8, it is determined whether or not it is time to designate a predetermined icon 104. If the determination in S8 is negative, the processing from S13 is executed. If the determination in S8 is affirmative, a predetermined icon 104 is specified in S9, and the icon 104 is specified. For example, color change display is performed so as to be visible. Next, in S10 corresponding to the operation of the contact determination means 94, it is determined whether or not the contact of the user image 106 with the designated icon 104 has been determined. If the determination in S10 is negative, the processing from S11 is executed, but if the determination in S10 is positive, the processing from S12 is executed.

  In S <b> 11, it is determined whether it is time to cancel the designation of the icon 104 that has been designated so far. If the determination in S11 is negative, the processes in and after S10 are executed again. If the determination in S11 is positive, the processes in and after S13 are executed. In S <b> 12, a predetermined point is added according to the contact of the user image 106 with the designated icon 104. Next, in S13, it is determined whether or not the karaoke performance has ended. If the determination in S13 is negative, the processes in and after S6 are executed again. However, if the determination in S13 is positive, the points accumulated in S12 and the like are totaled in S14, and finally The game result is calculated. The game results are displayed on the video display device 30. Next, in S15, after the game score calculated in S14 is stored in the evaluation result table 74 such as the RAM 54, this routine is terminated. In the above control, S5 and S9 correspond to the operation of the icon display control means 88, S8, S9 and S11 correspond to the operation of the icon designation means 92, and S12 and S14 correspond to the operation of the evaluation means 96, respectively.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the CCD camera 64 that is an imaging device for capturing the user's video and the portion corresponding to the user's video 106 in the video captured by the CCD camera 64 are extracted. User image extraction means 90 (S7), icon display control means 88 (S5 and S9) for causing the video display device 30 to display icons 104 respectively corresponding to a plurality of musical instruments, and output of the performance music. The icon designating unit 92 (S8, S9, and S11) for designating at least one of the plurality of icons 104 displayed by the icon display control unit 88, and the icon 104 designated by the icon designating unit 92 are used. , It is determined whether or not at least a part of the user image 106 extracted by the user image extracting means 90 has touched. Since it includes the contact determination means 94 (S10) and the evaluation means 96 (S12 and S14) for evaluating the game results according to the determination result of the contact determination means 94, a video display device for performing karaoke performance In the performance video displayed on the screen 30, a completely new game in which the score is evaluated by touching the user's video 106 to the musical instrument icon 104 sequentially designated in conjunction with the output of the performance music is realized. Can do. That is, it is possible to provide the karaoke apparatus 16 having a new game function with high entertainment that is executed in conjunction with the output of the performance music.

  The contact determination means 94 determines whether or not the hand 104h in the user image 106 extracted by the user image extraction means 90 has touched the icon 104 specified by the icon specifying means 92. Therefore, in the performance video displayed on the video display device 30 during the karaoke performance, the hand 106h in the user's video 106 touches the musical instrument icon 104 that is sequentially designated in conjunction with the output of the performance music. It is possible to realize a game in a practical manner in which the results are evaluated by following the steps.

  The karaoke device 16 outputs the performance tune based on performance information including score information corresponding to at least one musical instrument, and the icon display control means 88 is configured to output a predetermined performance tune. Since the musical instrument icon 104 corresponding to the musical score information included in the performance information of the musical performance is displayed on the video display device 30, the musical instrument icon 104 used for the performance of the target musical performance is displayed. Thus, a game closely related to the performance music can be realized.

  The icon designating unit 92 designates the musical instrument icon 104 corresponding to the musical score information based on the musical score information included in the performance information of the musical performance when outputting a predetermined musical performance. By designating the musical instrument icon 104 corresponding to the performance in conjunction with the output of the performance music to be, a game more closely related to the performance music can be realized.

  Further, based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means 96, the output of the performance sound corresponding to at least one score information among the plurality of score information included in the performance piece related to the performance after the evaluation is prohibited. Therefore, the game result can be reflected in the output of the performance music after the next time in a practical manner.

  In addition, based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means 96, score information corresponding to a predetermined musical instrument is added to the performance piece related to the performance after the evaluation. It can be reflected in the output of the performance music after the next time.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and may be implemented in other modes.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the icon display control means 88 displays the icon 104 as a video (image) relatively imitating the shape of a musical instrument, as illustrated in FIGS. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an icon such as a more deformed symbol mark may be displayed. Furthermore, a photograph of an actually photographed musical instrument may be displayed as an icon.

  In the above-described embodiment, the contact determination unit 94 determines whether or not the user has touched the icon 104 for the video 106 for one user. The presence or absence of such contact may be determined for an image. In this case, the user image extracting means 90 may extract images of two or more users, or user image extracting means for the number of users for individually extracting the images of each user. It may be provided. Moreover, you may image | photograph a user's image | video with a some imaging device.

  In the above-described embodiment, the icon designating unit 92 designates one of the plurality of icons 104 displayed on the video display device 30. It may be specified at the same time. In this case, the contact determination means 94 performs control such as determining whether or not both hands 106h in the user's video 106 touch the icon 104 at the same time. In this way, it is possible to realize a karaoke game that requires more complicated body movements.

  In the above-described embodiment, the video display control means 82 displays the user's video 106 extracted by the user video extraction means 90 on the video display device 30. A video of a predetermined avatar may be displayed on the video display device 30 as a video corresponding to the video of the user extracted by the video extraction means 90.

  In the above-described embodiment, the karaoke performance control means 80 reflects the previous karaoke game evaluation result stored in the evaluation result table 74 in the subsequent karaoke performance. May be performed for each user. In this case, the reserved music table 72 stores user identification information associated with the music selection number as the reserved music, and the evaluation means 96 evaluates the karaoke game for each user identified by the identification information. I do. The evaluation result is stored in the evaluation result table 74 in association with the identification information of each user.

  In addition, although not illustrated one by one, the present invention is implemented with various modifications within a range not departing from the gist thereof.

It is the schematic explaining the karaoke system to which the karaoke apparatus of this invention is applied suitably. It is a block diagram which illustrates the composition of the karaoke device which is one example of the present invention. It is a functional block diagram explaining the principal part of the control function with which CPU of the karaoke apparatus shown in FIG. 2 was equipped. 3 illustrates an image in which a background image and a lyric character image are combined in the video mixer of the karaoke apparatus shown in FIG. 2. 3 illustrates a background video, a lyric character video, and a video in which a plurality of icons are combined in the video mixer of the karaoke apparatus shown in FIG. 2. 3 illustrates a video in which a background video, a lyric text video, a plurality of icons, and a video of a user are combined in the video mixer of the karaoke apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 6 shows an example in which an icon corresponding to an acoustic guitar is designated in the performance video shown in FIG. 6 and the icon is blinked. As shown in FIG. 7, in the performance video in which the icon corresponding to the acoustic guitar is designated, the user's video touches the icon and the character video indicating that the touch is determined is displayed. is doing. It is a flowchart explaining the principal part of the karaoke game execution control by CPU of the karaoke apparatus shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

16: Karaoke device 30: Video display device 64: CCD camera (imaging device)
88: Icon display control means 90: User image extraction means 92: Icon designation means 94: Contact determination means 96: Evaluation means 104: Icon 106: User image 106h: Hand part

Claims (6)

A karaoke device that outputs a predetermined performance song selected from a large number of performance songs and displays a video related to the performance song on a predetermined video display device,
An imaging device for capturing video of the user;
User video extraction means for extracting a portion corresponding to the video of the user in the video shot by the imaging device;
Icon display control means for causing the video display device to display icons respectively corresponding to a plurality of musical instruments;
Icon designation means for designating at least one of a plurality of icons displayed by the icon display control means in conjunction with the output of the performance music;
Contact determining means for determining whether or not at least a part of the user's video extracted by the user video extracting means has contacted the icon specified by the icon specifying means;
A karaoke apparatus comprising: an evaluation unit that evaluates a game result according to a determination result of the contact determination unit.   The contact determination means determines whether or not a hand in the user image extracted by the user image extraction means has touched the icon specified by the icon specifying means. The karaoke device described.   The karaoke device outputs the performance tune based on performance information including score information corresponding to at least one musical instrument, and the icon display control means outputs the performance tune when outputting the predetermined performance tune. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an icon of a musical instrument corresponding to musical score information included in performance information is displayed on the video display apparatus.   The karaoke according to claim 3, wherein the icon designating means designates an icon of a musical instrument corresponding to the musical score information based on musical score information included in the performance information of the musical performance piece when outputting a predetermined musical piece. apparatus.   The output of a performance sound corresponding to at least one piece of musical score information among a plurality of pieces of musical score information included in a musical performance piece related to the performance after the evaluation is prohibited based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means. The karaoke apparatus according to 3 or 4.   6. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 3, wherein score information corresponding to a predetermined musical instrument is added to a performance piece related to the performance after the evaluation based on the evaluation of the game result by the evaluation means. .