Yamaha Corporation

Kei Kunisada

Takashi Fujita

Masao Kondo

Ryuichi Izumi

Takashi Kato

Hiromi Hikida

An electronic keyboard musical instrument capable of performing delicate sound board vibration control based on outputs generated individually for respective ones of transducers, thereby realizing production of natural sounds with sufficient volume, and an easy tone quality adjustment. A sound board is fixed to a frame, and the transducers are mounted to the sound board so as to be spaced from one another. In accordance with first and second performance signals generated in response to a key operation of a keyboard and a damper pedal operation, driving signals for the transducers are individually generated in consideration of characteristics and mounting positions of the transducers, and the driving signals are supplied to the transducers. The sound board is thereby caused to vibrate at a frequency varying according to a tone pitch, thus producing a musical tone and/or a damper tone.

Electronic keyboard musical instrument

An instrument main body has a keyboard including a plurality of keys and sound generators (for example, speakers) at a rear of the keyboard. At the rear of the keyboard, an upper surface cover portion composed of an upper panel, a operating panel, and so on is provided to cover an upper portion of the instrument main body. In the operating panel, tone escape portions are provided at right and left regions separated in a direction in which the keys of the instrument main body are arranged. Further, a rear panel is erected on the upper panel at a rear of the tone escape portions and having a width equal to or larger than the entire width of the keyboard in the direction in which the keys are arranged and a height larger than the length of the key in its longitudinal direction.

Keyboard instrument

An electronic musical instrument such as an electronic piano has a musical tone generation structure that closely simulates and reproduces musical tones with nuances of musical expressions with fidelity to acoustic musical instruments such as acoustic pianos. In the casing of the electronic piano, speakers are attached to a speaker attachment plate, which is placed substantially horizontal, such that front sides of the speakers are directed upwards. The sounds radiated from the front sides of the speakers are reflected by a reflector board which is hinged to close or open at a prescribed angle of inclination with respect to a top board, so that reflected sounds are transmitted towards the audience. Enclosures are provided inside of the casing below the speaker attachment plate and contain mufflers having a relatively small thickness therein. Through holes whose openings are directed downwards are formed to penetrate through a bottom plate of the enclosures, wherein the total area of openings of the through holes is larger than the total area of the speakers. Sounds radiated from the backsides of the speakers propagate through the enclosures and are transmitted towards the floor via the through holes, so that reflected sounds are transmitted towards the audience through the air. Further, the electronic piano as a whole vibrates in response to vibrations caused by the speakers. Thus, the electronic piano produces mixed sounds that reproduce acoustic musical tones having the nuances of musical expression of an acoustic piano.

Growing community of inventors

Hamamatsu, Japan

Kei Kunisada