JP7513514B2 - Karaoke equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a karaoke device.

One of the games offered by karaoke machines is the Intro Quiz. Intro Quiz is a quiz in which a part (the beginning or middle part) of a piece of music or video work (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "content") is played and the participant must guess the name of the song or work. Note that video works can be composed of only video or video and music.

Patent document 1 discloses a karaoke machine equipped with an intro guessing quiz function that automatically selects songs to be played.

On the other hand, the number of providers offering services that distribute content to personally owned mobile devices such as smartphones is also increasing. As a result, it is now possible to play a huge amount of content on mobile devices. In particular, users who sign up for flat-rate (subscription-based) distribution services want to make the most of the content they can view.

JP 2002-041071 A

The object of the present invention is to provide a karaoke device that allows users to play intro quizzes using content played on their own mobile terminals.

One invention for achieving the above-mentioned object is a karaoke device capable of communicating with a portable terminal capable of playing music or video content, the karaoke device having: a designation unit that designates attributes of content for which an intro quiz is to be conducted; a generation unit that generates question information including identification information of a certain content based on a list of content that can be played on the portable terminal and the designated attributes of the content; an instruction unit that instructs the portable terminal to play the certain content based on the question information; a provision unit that provides the played content to a user as an intro quiz; a reception unit that accepts input of the user's answer to the intro quiz; and a judgment unit that judges the result of the intro quiz based on the generated question information and the input answer and notifies the judgment result via an alarm means.
Other features of the present invention will become apparent from the following specification and drawings.

According to the present invention, an intro quiz can be conducted using content played on a user's mobile device.

1 is a diagram showing a karaoke device according to a first embodiment; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a karaoke main unit according to the first embodiment. 5 is a flowchart showing a process of the karaoke apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a table of playback speeds according to difficulty levels in accordance with Modification 2. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a table of playback start positions according to difficulty levels in accordance with Modification 2. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a table of playback end positions according to difficulty levels in accordance with Modification 2. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a table of playback speeds, playback start positions, and playback end positions according to difficulty levels in accordance with Modification 2. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a determination result according to the second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a determination result according to the second embodiment.

First Embodiment
A karaoke device according to a first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

== Karaoke machine and mobile terminal ==
The karaoke device K is a device for playing karaoke songs and for a user to sing karaoke. The mobile terminal M1 is a smartphone or the like owned by the user U1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the karaoke device K includes a karaoke main unit 10, a speaker 20, a display device 30, a microphone 40, and a remote control device 50.

The karaoke machine main unit 10 performs various controls related to karaoke performance and karaoke singing, such as karaoke performance control of the selected song, display control of lyrics and background images, and processing of audio signals input through the microphone 40. The speaker 20 is configured to emit sound based on a sound emission signal from the karaoke machine main unit 10. The speaker 20 is an example of an "alert means". The display device 30 is configured to display an image on a screen based on a signal from the karaoke machine main unit 10. The display device 30 is an example of an "alert means". The microphone 40 is configured to convert the user's voice into an analog audio signal and input it to the karaoke machine main unit 10. The microphone 40 is an example of an "audio collection means". The remote control device 50 is a device for performing various operations on the karaoke machine main unit 10.

The karaoke device K is able to communicate with the mobile terminal M1 by pairing with it. Pairing can be performed using a known method. Communication may be performed using a public line or short-range wireless communication.

Dedicated application software (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a "content app") for playing desired music or video works is installed on the mobile terminal M1. The content app is for using a content distribution service with which the user U1 has a personal contract, for example. The user U1 starts the content app on the mobile terminal M1 and selects the desired music or video work. The server device (not shown) of the content distribution service transmits a signal corresponding to the selected music or video work to the mobile terminal M1 by streaming. The user U1 can play the music or video work on the mobile terminal M1. The content app may be for playing music or video works that have been downloaded to the mobile terminal M1 in advance.

==Karaoke unit==
2, the karaoke machine 10 according to the present embodiment includes a storage means 10a, a communication means 10b, an input means 10c, a playing means 10d, and a control means 10e. Each of the components is connected to a bus B via an interface (not shown).

[Storage means, communication means, input means, performance means]
The storage means 10a is a large-capacity storage device that stores various data. The communication means 10b provides an interface for communication with the remote control device 50 and the mobile terminal M1. The input means 10c is configured to allow the user U1 to input various instructions. The input means 10c is a button or the like provided on the karaoke main unit 10. Alternatively, the remote control device 50 may function as the input means 10c. The performance means 10d performs karaoke performance of a song and processes a singing voice signal input through the microphone 40 based on the control of the control means 10e.

[Control Means]
The control means 10e performs various controls in the karaoke device K. The control means 10e includes a CPU and a memory (neither of which are shown in the figures). The CPU realizes various functions by executing programs stored in the memory.

In this embodiment, the CPU executes a program stored in the memory, causing the control means 10e to function as a designation unit 100, a generation unit 200, an instruction unit 300, a provision unit 400, a reception unit 500, and a determination unit 600.

(Designation part)
The designation unit 100 designates the attributes of the content for which the intro quiz is to be conducted.

Content attributes are elements common to the content that provides the intro quiz. For example, attributes of music content include the song title, singer name, genre, and year of release. Attributes of video content include the title of the work, the names of the actors appearing in the work, the genre, and year of release.

The attribute can be specified in various ways. For example, the user inputs an arbitrary attribute (e.g., the singer's name) as voice via the microphone 40. Alternatively, the user selects an arbitrary attribute from among a plurality of attribute icons displayed on the remote control device 50. The designation unit 100 designates the attribute of the content for which the intro quiz is to be performed based on the input or selection of the attribute. The designation unit 100 outputs the designated attribute of the content to the generation unit 200. The designation unit 100 may also automatically select one attribute from a plurality of pre-set attributes, regardless of the user's input or selection.

In addition, after an intro quiz mode (an intro quiz using content that can be played on a mobile terminal) is selected via a remote control device 50 or the like, the karaoke device K allows the attributes of the content to be specified.

It is also possible to specify multiple attributes. For example, the user selects two attributes, "singer name" and "release year", from among multiple attribute icons displayed on the remote control device 50. In this case, the specification unit 100 specifies "singer name" and "release year" as attributes of the content for which the intro quiz is to be conducted.

(Generation section)
The generating unit 200 generates question information including identification information of a certain content based on a list of content that can be played back on the mobile terminal and the attributes of the specified content.

The content list is a list of music and video works distributed by a content distribution service, i.e., music and video works that can be played on a mobile terminal of a user who has subscribed to the content distribution service. The content list is stored in the mobile terminal. The content list includes identification information (described later) and attributes for each piece of content. The content list is automatically transmitted from the mobile terminal M1 to the karaoke device K, for example, when a content application is executed on the mobile terminal M1 after the mobile terminal M1 and the karaoke device K are paired. Alternatively, when an intro quiz mode is selected, the karaoke device K may request the paired mobile terminal M1 to transmit the content list. In this case, the mobile terminal M1 executes the content application in response to the request and transmits the content list to the karaoke device K.

The content identification information is unique information for identifying each piece of content, such as a content ID. The content identification information is assigned to each piece of content in advance.

The generating unit 200 extracts from the content list the content having the attribute output from the specifying unit 100, and generates question information including identification information of the extracted content (i.e., "certain content"). The generating unit 200 outputs the generated question information to the instructing unit 300.

In addition, when multiple attributes are specified as described above, the generation unit 200 extracts content that has all of the specified attributes from the content list.

Note that there may be cases where multiple pieces of content having the attributes output from the designation unit 100 are extracted. In this case, the generation unit 200 selects one piece of content from the multiple pieces of content extracted, and generates question information that includes identification information for that piece of content.

When selecting one piece of content from the extracted multiple pieces of content, various methods can be used. For example, the generating unit 200 can randomly select one piece of content from the extracted multiple pieces of content. The generating unit 200 may also obtain related information related to the attributes of the content from an external server device (not shown) and select one piece of content based on the related information. For music, the related information is, for example, information on the popularity or singing frequency ranking of karaoke machines nationwide, and for video works, it is, for example, box office revenue or broadcast period. For music that is well known or video works that have high box office revenue, it is highly likely that users are familiar with the music or video works. Therefore, the difficulty level of an intro quiz based on such content is low. Conversely, for music that is low in the singing frequency ranking or video works that have a short broadcast period, it is highly likely that users are not familiar with the music or video works. Therefore, the difficulty level of an intro quiz based on such content is high.

Alternatively, the generation unit 200 can select a piece of content based on the singing history of a user who has input or selected an attribute. The singing history can be obtained from a server device (not shown) of the online karaoke system. The singing history includes information about songs that the user has sung karaoke. For example, a song that has been sung many times is likely to be well known by the user. Therefore, the difficulty level of an intro quiz based on content corresponding to this song will be low. Conversely, a song that has been sung infrequently is likely to be well known by the user. Therefore, the difficulty level of an intro quiz based on content corresponding to this song will be high.

When multiple pieces of content having the attributes output from the specification unit 100 are extracted, the generation unit 200 may generate multiple pieces of question information corresponding to each of the multiple pieces of content.

(Instruction section)
The instruction section 300 instructs the mobile terminal to reproduce a certain content based on the question information.

The instruction unit 300 transmits question information to the paired mobile terminal and instructs the mobile terminal to play the content corresponding to the content identification information included in the question information. In this case, the mobile terminal is executing a content application. The instruction unit 300 also causes a timing means (not shown) included in the karaoke device K to start timing.

The mobile terminal that receives the question information requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute the content based on the content identification information. The mobile terminal transmits the audio and/or video signals of the content distributed in streaming format from the server device to the karaoke device K.

In this embodiment, the user takes an intro quiz using the karaoke device K. Therefore, when a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the start of timing by the timing means, the instruction unit 300 instructs the paired mobile terminal to stop playing the content. Based on the instruction to stop, the mobile terminal stops transmitting the audio signal and/or video signal of the content to the karaoke device K. The predetermined period is preset to a period suitable for an intro quiz, such as 3 seconds or 5 seconds after the start of timing.

(Providing Department)
The providing unit 400 provides the reproduced content to the user as an intro quiz.

The providing unit 400 acquires an audio signal and/or a video signal transmitted from a paired mobile terminal. The acquisition of the audio signal and/or the video signal can be performed by a known method (for example, Miracast (registered trademark)).

When an audio signal is acquired, the providing unit 400 causes the speaker 20 to emit audio based on the acquired audio signal as an intro quiz. When a video signal is acquired, the providing unit 400 causes a video based on the video signal to be displayed on the display screen of the display device 30 as an intro quiz. The providing unit 400 may also acquire the audio signal and/or the video signal via a wired connection (for example, mirroring using an HDMI (registered trademark) cable, etc.).

(Reception Department)
The receiving unit 500 receives input of the user's answer to the introduction quiz.

Answers can be input in a variety of ways. For example, the user inputs the answer to the intro quiz (e.g., the title of a piece of music) as voice via microphone 40. Alternatively, the user selects an arbitrary answer from among a number of answer icons displayed on remote control device 50. Reception unit 500 accepts the answer to the intro quiz based on the input or selection of the answer. Reception unit 500 outputs the accepted answer to determination unit 600. The answer can be output in text format, for example.

If the user does not know the answer to the intro quiz, the user cannot input or select an answer within the time limit. In this case, the receiving unit 500 outputs a signal to the determining unit 600, instead of an answer, indicating that no input or selection has been made. The time limit is a preset time, such as the time while the intro quiz is being provided by the providing unit 400 (i.e., while the content is being played back) or until a predetermined time (e.g., 10 seconds) has elapsed after the content playback has ended.

The receiving unit 500 can also output a signal to the instruction unit 300 to end the introduction quiz when the answer is input. In this case, the instruction unit 300 transmits the signal to the mobile terminal to instruct it to end the playback of the content.

(Determination unit)
The determining unit 600 determines the result of the introduction quiz based on the generated question information and the input answer, and notifies the user of the determination result via the notifying unit.

The result of the intro quiz is determined by comparing the generated question information with the input answer. The result will be either when the question and answer match (correct answer), when the question and answer do not match (incorrect answer), or when the answer is not given within the time limit (time up). The result of the determination can be notified, for example, by emitting the result as a sound from the speaker 20 or by displaying it on the display screen of the display device 30.

Specifically, suppose that the user inputs the title of a piece of music as a voice via the microphone 40 as an answer to the music intro quiz. In this case, the reception unit 500 outputs the received song title in text format to the determination unit 600.

The determination unit 600 refers to the list of content and identifies the title of the music provided as the intro quiz based on the content identification information included in the question information. The determination unit 600 compares the text of the song title output from the reception unit 500 with the song title of the identified content.

If the text of the song title and the song title of the content match completely, the determination unit 600 determines that the result of the intro quiz is "correct." The determination unit 600 causes the speaker 20 to emit a sound such as "Congratulations! You got it right," and causes the display screen of the display device 30 to display text such as "The song title for the current intro quiz is ●●. Your answer was ●●, which was correct."

On the other hand, if the text of the song title does not match the song title of the content, the determination unit 600 determines that the result of the intro quiz is "incorrect." The determination unit 600 causes the speaker 20 to emit a sound such as "Unfortunately, that's incorrect," and causes the display screen of the display device 30 to display text such as "The song title for the current intro quiz is ●●. Your answer was XX, which is incorrect."

If no answer is given within the time limit, the judgment unit 600 judges that the result of the intro quiz is "time up." The judgment unit 600 causes the speaker 20 to emit a sound such as "There was no answer" and causes the display screen of the display device 30 to display text such as "The title of the song in the current intro quiz is ●●. You did not give an answer."

Data corresponding to the voice or text of the above-mentioned judgment result can be stored in advance in the storage means 10a. In addition, the judgment unit 600 may notify the judgment result from both the speaker 20 and the display device 30.

==Operation of Karaoke Device K==
Next, a specific example of the operation of the karaoke device K in this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a flow chart showing an example of the operation of the karaoke device K. In this example, it is assumed that a user U1 who owns a portable terminal M1 uses the karaoke device K. It is also assumed that a content application is being executed on the portable terminal M1. It is also assumed that the karaoke device K and the portable terminal M1 are capable of communicating with each other, and the karaoke device K receives a list of contents from the portable terminal M1.

User U1 selects an intro quiz mode using playable content on mobile terminal M1 via remote control device 50. User U1 then voice-inputs singer name X via microphone 40. Singer name X is an example of a "content attribute."

The designation unit 100 designates "singer name X" as an attribute of the content for which the intro quiz is to be conducted (designating content attributes; step 10).

The generating unit 200 extracts songs X01 to X10 sung by the singer X specified in step 10 from the list of playable content on the mobile terminal M1. The generating unit 200 selects song X08 from the extracted songs, and generates question information Q1 including identification information ID***X08 of song X08 (generating question information; step 11).

The instruction unit 300 transmits question information Q1 to the mobile terminal M1 and instructs it to play the song X08 (instructs the mobile terminal to play the song; step 12). The mobile terminal M1 requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute the song X08 based on the identification information ID***X08 of the song X08 contained in the question information Q1. The mobile terminal M1 transmits the audio signal of the song X08, which is distributed from the server device in streaming format, to the karaoke device K.

The providing unit 400 provides the song X08 played on the mobile terminal M1 to the user U1 as an intro quiz (provide an intro quiz; step 13).

User U1 inputs answer A1 to the intro quiz as voice via microphone 40. The reception unit 500 receives input of answer A1 from user U1 to the intro quiz (receiving answer input; step 14).

The determination unit 600 determines the result of the introduction quiz based on the question information Q1 generated in step 11 and the answer A1 entered in step 14, and notifies the result of the determination via the notification means (notifying the result of the introduction quiz; step 15).

For example, if the text of the song title of song X08 based on the identification information I***X08 included in the generated question information exactly matches the text of the input answer A1 (if the input answer A1 is the song title of song X08), the determination unit 600 determines that the result of the intro quiz is "correct." On the other hand, if the text of the song title of song X08 based on the identification information I***X08 included in the generated question information does not match the text of the input answer A1 (if the input answer A1 is the song title of a song other than song X08), the determination unit 600 determines that the result of the intro quiz is "incorrect."

As is clear from the above, the karaoke device K according to this embodiment can communicate with a mobile terminal M1 capable of playing music or video content. The karaoke device K has a designation unit 100 that designates the attributes of the content for which an intro quiz is to be performed, a generation unit 200 that generates question information including identification information of a certain content based on a list of content playable on the mobile terminal M1 and the attributes of the designated content, an instruction unit 300 that instructs the mobile terminal M1 to play a certain content based on the question information, a provision unit 400 that provides the played content as an intro quiz to the user U1, a reception unit 500 that receives input of the user's answer to the intro quiz, and a determination unit 600 that determines the result of the intro quiz based on the generated question information and the input answer, and notifies the user of the determination result via the speaker 20 and/or the display device 30.

The karaoke device K according to this embodiment can provide various intro quizzes using, for example, a huge amount of content distributed via a content distribution service to which the user has subscribed. In other words, the karaoke device K according to this embodiment can provide intro quizzes using content played on the user's mobile terminal.

<Modification 1>
The question information may include information other than the content identification information. Specifically, the generating unit 200 can generate question information including at least one of playback speed information, start position information, and end position information in addition to the content identification information.

The playback speed information indicates the playback speed of a certain content. The playback speed may be a preset speed (standard speed), 1.5 times the standard speed, double the standard speed, etc.

The start position information indicates the playback start position of a certain content. In the case of music, the playback start position may be the intro, verse, chorus, etc., and in the case of a video work, it may be the beginning, climax, ending, or a pre-set chapter position of the video. In the case of a video work, the beginning or ending may include the title of the work. Therefore, in the case of a video work, it is preferable that the start position information is a position that does not include the title of the work (for example, 10 minutes after the beginning of the video).

The end position information indicates the playback end position of a certain piece of content. The playback end position may be 1.5 seconds, 3.0 seconds, 6.0 seconds, etc., from the start of playback.

When the question information includes playback speed information, the instruction unit 300 in this modified example instructs the mobile terminal to play the content at the playback speed indicated by the playback speed information.

For example, suppose that the generation unit 200 generates question information Q2 including identification information ID***X02 and playback speed information Pb01 for song X02. The instruction unit 300 transmits the question information Q2 to the mobile terminal M1, instructing it to play song X02 at the playback speed indicated by the playback speed information Pb01. The mobile terminal M1 requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute song X02 based on the identification information ID***X02 for song X02 contained in the question information Q2. The mobile terminal M1 changes the playback speed of song X02, which is distributed in streaming format from the server device, according to the playback speed information Pb01, and transmits the audio signal to the karaoke device K.

In addition, when the question information includes start position information, the instruction unit 300 in this modified example instructs the mobile terminal to start playing a certain piece of content from the playback start position indicated by the start position information.

For example, suppose that the generation unit 200 generates question information Q3 including identification information ID ***X03 and start position information Sp01 for song X03. The instruction unit 300 sends question information Q3 to mobile terminal M1, instructing it to play song X03 from the playback start position indicated by the start position information Sp01. Mobile terminal M1 requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute song X03 based on the identification information ID ***X03 of song X03 included in the question information Q3. Mobile terminal M1 starts playback of song X03, which is distributed in streaming format from the playback start position indicated by the start position information Sp01, and transmits the audio signal to karaoke device K.

In addition, when the question information includes end position information, the instruction unit 300 in this modified example instructs the mobile terminal to end playback of the content at the playback end position indicated by the end position information.

For example, suppose that the generation unit 200 generates question information Q4 including identification information ID***X04 of song X04 and end position information Ep01. The instruction unit 300 sends question information Q4 to mobile terminal M1 and instructs it to play song X04. Mobile terminal M1 requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute song X04 based on the identification information ID***X04 of song X04 included in the question information Q4. Mobile terminal M1 starts playing song X04 distributed from the server device in streaming format, and transmits the audio signal to karaoke device K. Mobile terminal M1 then ends the playback of song X04 based on the end position information Ep01.

The question information may include two or more of the following information in addition to content identification information: playback speed information, start position information, and end position information.

For example, when the question information includes playback speed information, start position information, and end position information, the instruction unit 300 in this modified example instructs the mobile terminal to play a certain piece of content at the playback speed indicated by the playback speed information from the playback start position indicated by the start position information to the playback end position indicated by the end position information.

For example, suppose that the generating unit 200 generates question information Q5 including identification information ID ***X05, playback speed information Pb02, start position information Sp02, and end position information Ep02 of song X05. The instruction unit 300 transmits the question information Q5 to the mobile terminal M1, and instructs the mobile terminal M1 to play the song X05 at the playback speed indicated by the playback speed information Pb02 from the playback start position indicated by the start position information Sp02 to the playback end position indicated by the end position information Ep02. The mobile terminal M1 requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute the song X05 based on the identification information ID ***X05 of the song X05 contained in the question information Q5. The mobile terminal M1 starts playback of the song X05 distributed from the server device in streaming format from the playback start position indicated by the start position information Sp02 at the playback speed indicated by the playback speed information Pb02, and transmits the audio signal to the karaoke device K. Mobile device M1 then ends playback of song X05 based on end position information Ep02.

As is clear from the above, in the karaoke device K according to this modified example, the generation unit 200 generates question information including at least one of playback speed information indicating the playback speed of a certain content, start position information indicating the playback start position of a certain content, and end position information indicating the playback end position of a certain content. If the question information includes playback speed information, the instruction unit 300 instructs the mobile terminal to play the content at the playback speed indicated by the playback speed information, if the question information includes start position information, the instruction unit 300 instructs the mobile terminal to start playing the certain content from the playback start position indicated by the start position information, and if the question information includes end position information, the instruction unit 300 instructs the mobile terminal to end playing the content at the playback end position indicated by the end position information. Such a karaoke device K can provide intro quizzes of various patterns.

<Modification 2>
The faster the playback speed of the content is compared to the standard speed, the higher the difficulty of the intro quiz becomes, and the closer the playback speed is to the standard speed, the lower the difficulty of the intro quiz becomes. Also, if the playback start position is the chorus of a piece of music or the climax of a video work, the difficulty of the intro quiz becomes lower, and if the playback start position is the A-melody of a piece of music or the beginning of a video work, the difficulty of the intro quiz becomes higher. Also, if the interval between the playback start position and the playback end position is short, the difficulty of the intro quiz becomes higher, and if the interval between the playback start position and the playback end position is long, the difficulty of the intro quiz becomes lower.

Therefore, the generation unit 200 may generate question information including at least one of playback speed information, start position information, and end position information based on a preset difficulty level.

The difficulty level can be set in various ways. The storage means 10a of the karaoke device K can store, for example, a table of playback speeds (see FIG. 4), a table of playback start positions (see FIG. 5), and a table of playback end positions (see FIG. 6) corresponding to the difficulty level, or a table of playback speeds, playback start positions, and playback end positions (see FIG. 7) corresponding to the difficulty level. Note that although the tables in FIG. 4 to FIG. 6 show three levels of difficulty, it is sufficient to classify the levels into at least two levels.

When a user selects the intro quiz mode, along with inputting the content attributes, the user inputs, for example, "normal" as the difficulty level of the playback speed. In this case, the generating unit 200 generates question information including playback speed information indicating the playback speed (1.5 times the standard speed) determined based on the input playback speed difficulty level of "normal."

Alternatively, the difficulty levels of the playback speed, playback start position, and playback end position can be input all at once. For example, a user who selects the intro quiz mode inputs "normal" as the difficulty level along with the content attributes. In this case, the generation unit 200 refers to the table shown in FIG. 7 based on the input difficulty level of "normal" and generates question information including playback speed information indicating 1.5 times the standard speed, start position information indicating the introduction, and end position information indicating 2.0 seconds after the introduction.

As is clear from the above, in the karaoke device K according to this modified example, the generation unit 200 can generate question information including at least one of playback speed information, start position information, and end position information based on a preset difficulty level. With such a karaoke device K, intro quizzes of various difficulty levels can be provided.

Current audio signal processing technology makes it possible to change the tempo, pitch, and formant of an audio signal independently, and it is possible to change the pitch while maintaining the tempo and sound quality, and to fast-forward the audio signal to make it easier to listen to. On the other hand, when the intro quiz was first invented, it was conducted using a tape recorder. Intro quizzes using a tape recorder end up being more difficult because changing the playback speed also changes the pitch and formant of the output audio signal. Therefore, when the playback speed is changed in the karaoke device K of this modified example, it is possible to simulate an intro quiz using a tape recorder by changing the pitch and formant at the same time.

Second Embodiment
Next, a karaoke apparatus according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 8 and Fig. 9. In this embodiment, an example in which a plurality of people play an intro quiz will be described. Detailed description of the same parts as those in the first embodiment will be omitted.

(Reception Department)
The reception unit 500 according to this embodiment identifies the solver who input the answer based on the voice of the answer input via the sound collection means.

The reception unit 500 analyzes the input voice using a known voice recognition process and identifies the answerer (corresponding to any user). The reception unit 500 links the answer with the answerer.

For example, assume that user U1, who owns mobile terminal M1, and two other users (user U2 and user U3) are using karaoke device K to take an intro quiz. Also assume that mobile terminal M1 is running a content app. Furthermore, assume that karaoke device K and mobile terminal M1 are capable of communicating with each other, and that karaoke device K is receiving a list of content from mobile terminal M1.

User U1 selects an intro quiz mode using content that can be played on mobile terminal M1 via remote control device 50. User U1 then voice-inputs singer name Y via microphone 40. Singer name Y is an example of a "content attribute."

The designation unit 100 designates "singer name Y" as an attribute of the content for the intro quiz. The generation unit 200 extracts songs Y01 to Y10 sung by singer Y from a list of content that can be played on the mobile terminal M1. The generation unit 200 selects song Y01 from the extracted songs and generates question information Q10 including identification information ID***Y01 of song Y01. The instruction unit 300 transmits question information Q10 to the mobile terminal M1 and instructs it to play song Y01. The mobile terminal M1 requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute song Y01 based on the identification information ID***Y01 of song Y01 included in the question information Q10. The mobile terminal M1 transmits the audio signal of song Y01 distributed from the server device in streaming format to the karaoke device K.

The providing unit 400 provides the song Y01 played on the mobile terminal M1 as an intro quiz to the users U1 to U3.

Now, assume that user U1 inputs answer A10 to the introduction quiz as voice via microphone 40. In this case, the reception unit 500 accepts the input of answer A10 to the introduction quiz. The reception unit 500 also analyzes the voice of answer A10 and identifies answerer Ar1. The reception unit 500 links answer A10 and answerer Ar1 and outputs them to the judgment unit 600.

(Determination unit)
The determination unit 600 according to the present embodiment determines the result of the introduction quiz for each identified contestant.

In the above example, the judgment unit 600 judges the result of the introduction quiz based on the generated question information Q10 and the input answer A10. Answer A10 is linked to answerer Ar1. Therefore, the judgment result in this case is that of answerer Ar1.

After the intro quiz based on the question information Q10 is finished, the generation unit 200 selects a song Y03 other than song Y01 from the extracted songs Y01 to Y10, and generates question information Q11 including the identification information ID***Y03 of song Y03. The instruction unit 300 transmits the question information Q11 to the mobile terminal M1 and instructs it to play the song Y03. The mobile terminal M1 requests the server device of the content distribution service to distribute the song Y03 based on the identification information ID***Y03 of song Y03 included in the question information Q11. The mobile terminal M1 transmits the audio signal of song Y03 distributed in streaming format from the server device to the karaoke device K.

The providing unit 400 provides the song Y03 played on the mobile terminal M1 as an intro quiz to the users U1 to U3.

Now, assume that user U2 inputs answer A11 to the introduction quiz as voice via microphone 40. In this case, the reception unit 500 accepts the input of answer A11 to the introduction quiz. The reception unit 500 also analyzes the voice of answer A11. At this time, the reception unit 500 compares the analysis result of answerer Ar1, who has already been identified as an answerer, with the analysis result of the voice of answer A11. In this example, answerer Ar1 is user U1, and the answerer who input the voice of answer A11 is user U2. In other words, answerer Ar1 and the answerer who gave answer A11 are different, so the analysis results do not match. Therefore, the reception unit 500 links the answer A11 to a new answerer Ar2 and outputs it to the judgment unit 600.

The judgment unit 600 judges the result of the introduction quiz based on the generated question information Q11 and the input answer A11. Answer A11 is linked to answerer Ar2. Therefore, the judgment result in this case is that of answerer Ar2.

In this way, the karaoke device K repeats the intro quiz according to a preset number of questions, and notifies the judgement result for each contestant. When multiple contestants simultaneously input their answers, the reception unit 500 uses a known sound source separation technique to distinguish the voiceprints of the multiple contestants and identify the contestant who input the voice the earliest. In this case, it is preferable for the judgement unit 600 to judge the result of the intro quiz for the contestant who input the voice the earliest.

Figure 8 shows the results of the intro quiz for five songs selected from the extracted songs Y01 to Y10. The results show that, for example, in the first question, song Y01 was asked as the intro quiz and contestant Ar1 answered correctly, in the third question, song Y06 was asked as the intro quiz and contestant Ar3 (i.e., user U3), who is different from contestants Ar1 and Ar2, answered it incorrectly, and in the fourth question, song Y09 was asked as the intro quiz, but neither user was able to answer it. In addition, in the fifth question, song Y04 was asked as the intro quiz and contestant Ar2, whose answer matched the analysis result of the audio of answer A14, answered it correctly. By memorizing who answered each question, each user can keep track of the number of correct and incorrect answers for each user.

The judgment result is not limited to the example in FIG. 8. For example, points may be assigned in advance to each answer, such as correct answer (+1 point), incorrect answer (-1 point), and type up (0 point). The judgment unit 600 may tally up the points for each answerer according to the judgment result, and notify the result as the judgment result (see FIG. 9).

It is also possible to link the user identification information of each user with the voiceprint information obtained by analyzing the voice of each user in advance and store them in the storage means 10a. The user identification information is unique information for identifying each user, such as a user ID. The voiceprint information can be obtained by a known method.

In this case, the reception unit 500 can identify the user who answered the question by comparing the analysis results of the voice of the answer input via the sound collection means with the voiceprint information stored in the storage means 10a. In other words, the reception unit 500 can identify the user who is taking the introduction quiz as the answerer.

For example, as described above, assume that user U1 inputs answer A10 to the introduction quiz as voice via microphone 40. In this case, the reception unit 500 accepts the input of answer A10 to the introduction quiz. The reception unit 500 also analyzes the voice of answer A10 and identifies answerer Ar1. The reception unit 500 compares the voice of answerer Ar1 with multiple pieces of voiceprint information stored in storage means 10a, and identifies user U1 from the user identification information linked to the matching voiceprint information. The reception unit 500 links answer A10 and user U1 as answerer Ar1, and outputs them to the determination unit 600.

As is clear from the above, in the karaoke device K according to this embodiment, the reception unit 500 can identify the answerer who input the answer based on the voice of the answer input via the sound collection means, and the determination unit 600 can determine the result of the intro quiz for each of the identified answerers. With such a karaoke device K, multiple users can enjoy the intro quiz.

＜Other＞
The above embodiment is presented as an example and does not limit the scope of the invention. The above configurations can be implemented in appropriate combinations, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. The above embodiment and its modifications are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents as described in the claims, as well as the scope and gist of the invention.

100 Designation unit 200 Generation unit 300 Instruction unit 400 Provision unit 500 Reception unit 600 Determination unit K Karaoke device M1 Portable terminal

Claims (4)

A karaoke device capable of communicating with a mobile terminal capable of reproducing music or video content,
A designation unit for designating an attribute of the content for which the intro quiz is to be conducted;
a generating unit that generates question information including identification information of a certain content based on a list of content that can be played back on the mobile terminal and the attributes of the specified content;
an instruction unit that instructs the mobile terminal to reproduce the certain content based on the question information;
a providing unit for providing the reproduced certain content to a user as an intro quiz;
a reception unit that receives an input of the user's answer to the introduction quiz;
a determination unit that determines a result of the introduction quiz based on the generated question information and the input answer, and notifies the result of the determination via a notification unit;
A karaoke device having the above configuration. The generation unit generates the question information including at least one of playback speed information indicating a playback speed of the certain content, start position information indicating a playback start position of the certain content, and end position information indicating a playback end position of the certain content,
The instruction unit is
If the question information includes the playback speed information, instruct the mobile terminal to play back the certain content at a playback speed indicated by the playback speed information;
When the question information includes the start position information, instructing the mobile terminal to start playing the certain content from the playback start position indicated by the start position information;
2. The karaoke device according to claim 1, wherein, when the question information includes the end position information, the karaoke device instructs the mobile terminal to end the playback of the certain content at the playback end position indicated by the end position information. The karaoke device according to claim 2, characterized in that the generation unit generates the question information including at least one of the playback speed information, the start position information, and the end position information based on a preset difficulty level. The reception unit identifies a solver who has input the answer based on the voice of the answer input via a sound collection means,
4. The karaoke apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determining unit determines the result of the introduction quiz for each of the identified contestants.

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