JPS627558B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an electronic musical instrument such as a so-called Music Synthesizer, and in particular to an electronic musical instrument such as a so-called music synthesizer, in which operation information of a large number of operators is stored in a storage device, read out as needed, and based on the read information. The amount of operation or the position of operation for each operator is displayed to facilitate the operation of each operator.

An electronic musical instrument generally known as a Musical Synthesizer generates a group of musical tone control information by variably controlling a large number of controls arranged on the panel surface, and generates a desired musical tone based on this group of musical tone control information. However, it is difficult, especially for beginners, to operate each controller to obtain the desired tone, and it is difficult to easily set even common tones such as piano, harpsichord, and flute. I couldn't do it.

An object of the present invention is to provide a new electronic musical instrument that greatly simplifies the operation of each operator so that a desired tone can be easily obtained.

The electronic musical instrument according to the present invention stores operation information of a large number of operators in a storage device, reads it out as appropriate, and displays the operation amount or operation position of each operator on the panel surface based on the read information. Hereinafter, embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings will be described in detail.

FIG. 1 shows a voltage-controlled electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which the musical tone forming section is not shown and the operation information storage/display section is shown in detail.

The data reading device 10 reads, for example, operation data for one tone color regarding a piano sound from a magnetic card 11 as an external recording medium, and the reading timing is controlled by a reading command switch 12 consisting of a self-resetting switch. Ru. On the magnetic card 11, a digital word indicating the operation amount or operation position necessary to obtain a piano tone is recorded for each operator, and a clock signal φ is recorded at the beginning of the data corresponding to each operator. is also recorded. When the magnetic card 11 is inserted into the socket of the data reading device 10 and the reading command signal is set to “1” by the reading command switch 12, the data reading device 10
sequentially reads and sends out the operation data OPD for each operator. At the same time, it reads and sends out the clock signal φ, determines the duration of the clock signal φ, and generates the data output timing signal DOT which takes the "1" level during that period.
Note that instead of the magnetic card 11, an external recording medium such as a magnetic tape, paper tape, or punched card may be used.

Operation data sent from the data reading device 10
OPD is random access memory (RAM) 1
3 and stored. At this time, the data output timing signal DOT sent from the data reading device 10 is supplied to the RAM 13 as a write command signal WT to control the write mode of the RAM 13, and the clock signal φ sent from the data reading device 10 is It is input as a clock input CK to address counter 15 via OR gate 14 to enable address counter 15 to supply address signal AD to RAM 13 to designate a write address for each operator. In this way, when all the operation data of the magnetic card 11 is transferred to the RAM 13 and stored, the output timing signal DOT changes from "1" to "0". Since this signal DOT is supplied to the differentiating circuit 17 via the inverter 16, the differentiating circuit 17 generates a timing pulse in synchronization with the change of the signal DOT from "1" to "0". This timing pulse is provided as a clear input CL to address counter 15 through OR gate 18, causing counter 15 to be cleared or reset.

The operation data for each operator written in the RAM 13 is read out and displayed in the following manner. That is, first, the read command switch 19 consisting of a self-returning pushbutton switch is operated to set its state signal to "1", and this signal is supplied to the RAM 13 as the read command signal RD via the OR gate 14, while the address Clock input CK to counter 15
Enter it as Since the address counter 15 generates the address signal AD so as to advance the address by one each time a pulse is input as the clock input CK, the first operation of the switch 19 causes the address signal AD to Specify the first address of RAM13. Therefore, the operation data at the first address is read from the RAM 13, and in the same manner, data at other addresses are sequentially read out each time the switch 19 is operated. By the way, the state signal of this read command switch 19 is also supplied to the latch circuit 20 as the load command signal LD, so that the latch circuit 20 can read operation data corresponding to a specific operator from the RAM 13. It acts to latch the operation data every time the operation is performed. The latched data is then supplied to the display control circuit 21, and the display control circuit 21 drives the operation amount display 22 based on the input data to display the operation amount or operation position of a specific operator. Display 2
2 is composed of a 7-segment type multi-digit display in the illustrated example, but it is not limited to this and can be a digital display.
The data may be converted into an analog quantity and displayed using a pointer type meter, or the digital data may be displayed as a change in the light emitting position of a line of light emitting elements.

On the other hand, the address signal AD from the address counter 15 is decoded by a decoder 23 and supplied to a display control circuit 24, and the display control circuit 24 includes a light emitting diode, etc. installed near each operator. An operator display device 25- consisting of
1, 25-2...25-n (n is an integer corresponding to the number of operators) are driven to light up in accordance with the output of the decoder 23. As previously mentioned,
Since there is a correspondence between the address indicated by the address signal AD sent from the address counter 15 and the operator, for example, when reading the operation data at the first address, the address signal also indicates the first operator. There will be. Therefore, if the decoder 23 decodes the address signal AD and lights up the indicators 25-1 to 25-n corresponding to each control, the operation data of the control whose attached display is lit will be stored in the RAM 13. It can be seen that the data is being read out from and displayed on the display 22. In other words, the display 25-
By lighting one of 1 to 25-n, the corresponding one of the operators can be displayed, and the amount of operation or the operation position of that operator can be displayed on the display 22. Therefore, the performer operates the read command switch 19 to display the operation amount or operation position of a certain operator, sets that operator to the appropriate position based on the display, and also sets the operator to the appropriate position. By repeating similar operations, tone setting operations can be performed easily, accurately, and quickly.

In the above description, the read command is generated from the push button switch 19, but it may also be generated automatically by operating the automatic read command switch 26. That is, switch 26
consists of a normally open switch, so close it and
One input signal of AND gate 27 is set to "1". As the other input signal of the AND gate 27, a pulse signal of a low frequency (for example, 1/60 [Hz]) determined corresponding to the read speed of the RAM 13 is supplied from a low frequency oscillator (LFO) 28. One input signal of AND gate 27 is “1”
As a result, the other low frequency pulse signal (output of LFO 28) is transmitted. AND
The output signal of the gate 27 is supplied to one input terminal of an AND gate 29, and the other input terminal of the AND gate 29 is connected to a stop switch 30, which is a self-resetting pushbutton switch for stopping the tone setting instruction.
A status signal is applied via an inverter 31. Assuming that the stop switch 30 is in the open state, the output signal of the inverter 31 is at the "1" level, and the output signal of the AND gate 27 is sent to the OR gate 14 via the AND gate 29, and then to the OR gate 14. 14 to address counter 15 as clock input CK. Therefore, a clock pulse is automatically applied to the counter 15 at a period corresponding to the oscillation period of the LFO 28, and the counter 15 uses the address signal AD to advance the address one by one in accordance with the clock pulse. occurs. Also,
The same low frequency pulse signal (output of OR gate 14) input to the address counter 15 is applied to the RAM
13 as a read command signal RD, and also to the latch circuit 20 as a load signal LD. Therefore, instead of pressing the manual switch 19 described above, the operation data for each operator is automatically read out from the RAM 13 in response to the pulses generated by the LFO 28, and the displays 25-1 to 25-n indicate that the operator is
The operation amount or operation position is displayed correspondingly on the display 22. Incidentally, if it is desired to stop reading or displaying data that is sequentially progressing as described above, the AND gate 29 is closed by closing the stop switch 30 and setting the status signal supplied to the inverter 31 to "1". inverter 3
1 may be set to "0" to stop supplying the low frequency pulse signal from the LFO 28 to the RAM 13, address counter 15, and latch circuit 20.

When the data in the RAM 13 is read and displayed based on either the manual or automatic read command described above and the position setting of all controls is completed,
The end switch 32, which is a self-resetting pushbutton switch, is operated to set the status signal supplied to the OR gate 18 to "1", and the address counter 15 is cleared or reset by the output of the OR gate 18, and a series of After completing the tone setting operation, you can move on to performance.

FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the present invention, in which the same parts as in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals and detailed explanation thereof will be omitted. The electronic musical instrument according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is different from the one shown in FIG. Address generation circuit 41 for controlling data reading
and tone color command switches 44, 45, and 46 for specifying the tone color of the read data, so that operation data regarding the tone specified by one of the tone color specifying switches 44 to 46 is read from the ROM 40 for each operator and displayed. This is what I did. i.e. ROM
40, the read command signal RD is connected to the read command switch 19
The address signal AD is also applied from the address generation circuit 41. This address generation circuit 41 is connected to a counter 4 which is supplied with the state signal of the read command switch 19 as a clock input CK.
2 and an encoder 43 for encoding the status signals of the tone color command switches 44 to 46, and the output of the counter 42 and the output of the encoder 43 are added to form an address signal AD. The encoder 43 outputs a signal specifying the address of the memory block corresponding to each tone in the ROM 40, and the counter 42 outputs a signal specifying the address corresponding to each operator in each memory block of the ROM 40, so that both The address signal AD, which is the sum of the outputs of , specifies which memory block (which tone) and which address (which operator) data is to be read out. For example, if the tone designation switches 44, 45, and 46 correspond to piano, harpsichord, and guitar, respectively,
When the switch 44 is closed and its status signal becomes "1", the address signal AD specifies a memory block corresponding to the piano tone in the ROM 40, and when the switch 45 is similarly closed, the address signal AD specifies the memory block corresponding to the piano tone. Switch 46 to store a memory block corresponding to the sound.
When the memory block is closed, each memory block corresponding to the guitar sound is specified. The address corresponding to each operator in each memory block is determined depending on how many times the read command switch 19 is operated, as in the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. By repeating the operation of the switch 19 several times for each tone color, the operator data regarding all the operators can be read from the ROM 40. Note that the end switch 32 is activated at the end of reading.
Clearing the counter 42 is the same as in the previous example.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 described above, the ROM 40
In place of the data reading device 10 and RAM shown in FIG.
By providing a device compatible with 13, operation data for a plurality of tones recorded on an external recording medium may be selectively taken in and displayed. Also,
In addition to the manual read command switch 19, an automatic read command circuit as shown in FIG. 1 may be provided.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the panel layout of the electronic musical instrument according to the present invention, where 50 is a keyboard section and 51 is a front section. A large number of operators (specifically, variable resistors and switch knobs) are arranged on the left side of the keyboard section 50 and on the front side 51, and the aforementioned display 25- is arranged near each operator. 1-25-n
A corresponding display is placed. These indicators are indicated by hatched circles M for convenience. Further, the numbers N written in italics near some of the operators are scales for making it easier to judge the amount of operation. Further, on the right side of the front section 51, there are provided an operation amount display 22 and a magnetic card receptacle 10A of the data reading device 10 shown in FIG.

According to the electronic musical instrument of the present invention detailed above,
By repeating the operation of setting the controls near the illuminated display to the position indicated by the operation amount display, tone setting operations can be performed easily, accurately, and quickly, allowing users to become familiar with this type of electronic musical instrument. It is effective. In addition, in this invention, since the operation amount or operation position is displayed on the display 22 common to a plurality of operators, the panel surface and display control circuit are required to be displayed compared to the case where a display is provided for each operator. This has the advantage that the configuration can be significantly simplified. The electronic musical instrument of this invention can be used for teaching purposes, and is useful not only for beginners but also for experienced users, as it allows for a wider variety of tone settings and frees up time to focus on the actual performance. This will bring great benefits, such as an increase in

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a storage/display section of an electronic musical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a storage/display section of an electronic musical instrument according to another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 3 is a front view showing an example of the panel layout of the electronic musical instrument according to the present invention. 13...Random access memory, 15...
... Address counter, 19 ... Read command switch, 22 ... Manipulated amount display, 25-1 to 25-n
...Operator display, 26...Automatic read command switch, 40...Read only memory, 41...
...Address generation circuit, 44-46...Tone designation switch.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A plurality of operators arranged on a panel surface, means for generating musical tone control information according to the operation amount or operation position of these operators, and a means for generating musical tones based on the musical tone control information. In an electronic musical instrument equipped with musical tone synthesis means for synthesizing, (a) a plurality of pieces of operation information corresponding to each of the plurality of operators, the amount of operation required for each operator to obtain a desired musical tone; (b) reading means for reading out the plurality of pieces of operation information one after another from the storage means; (c) each time the operation information is read from the storage means; (d) a display means provided to be used commonly by the plurality of operators, the display means being provided for common use by the plurality of operators, each time the operation information is read from the storage means; A device is provided to display the operation amount or operation position according to the operation information, so that when an instruction is given by the instruction means for each operator, a setting operation can be performed according to the display content of the display means. An electronic musical instrument characterized by: 2. The electronic musical instrument according to claim 1, wherein the reading means includes a switch, and the operation information is read out each time the switch is operated. 3. In the electronic musical instrument according to claim 1, the readout means includes an oscillator that generates pulses at a cycle corresponding to a desired information readout speed, and reads operation information every time each pulse is generated. An electronic musical instrument characterized by being adapted to read out sounds. 4 A plurality of operators arranged on a panel surface, a means for generating musical tone control information according to the operation amount or operation position of these operators, and a musical tone synthesizing means for synthesizing musical tones based on the musical tone control information. (a) A plurality of pieces of operation information corresponding to each of the plurality of operators, which indicates the amount of operation or operation position required for each operator to obtain a desired tone; (b) timbre selection means; (c) reading means for successively reading out a plurality of pieces of operation information regarding the timbre selected in the timbre selection from the storage means; (d) (e) a display means provided to be commonly used by the plurality of operators; and displaying the operation amount or operation position according to the operation information each time the operation information is read from the storage means, and the instruction means gives an instruction for each operator regarding the selected tone. An electronic musical instrument characterized in that a setting operation can be performed according to the display content of the display means.