The Wurlitzer Company

William R Hoskinson

Anthony C Ippolito

William V Machanian

Peter E Solender

Harold O Schwartz

Joseph C Carley

George S Klaiber

Edward K Miguel

Dennis E Kidd

A non-volatile memory system for an electronic musical instrument having a plurality of player actuatable instrument controls, comprises a readable, writable memory. The memory includes addressing inputs and data input/outputs. The data input/outputs are coupled with at least selected ones of the plurality of player actuatable instrument controls. Player actuatable memory controls are also provided for selecting either the memory or the selected ones of the player actuatable instrument controls for control of the instrument.

Non-volatile memory system for an electronic musical instrument

A record operated control system is provided for use with a vending machine and a record reading/writing apparatus having a read/write head for reading and writing data on a record during relative movement between the record and the read/write head. The control system includes a decoding circuit coupled with the read/write head for decoding data read from the record thereby. A data storage circuit is coupled with the decoding circuit for receiving and storing the decoded data. A comparing circuit compares at least a portion of the stored data to predetermined data and produces a compare signal if these data compare. A data altering circuit is responsive to the compare signal for altering the stored data in accordance with the amount of credit required to vend a selected item. An encoding circuit is coupled with the storage circuit and with the read/write head for causing writing of the altered stored data onto the record. A vend enable circuit is responsive to the compare signal and to the altering circuit and said encoding circuit for enabling the vending of said selected item only after the altering and writing of the stored data. A control circuit controls the sequence of operation of the control system in the foregoing sequence.

Record operated control system for a vending machine

A detuning control circuit is provided for producing a pitch variation effect in an electronic musical instrument. The instrument includes at least one integrated circuit tone generator chip having at least one tone generator and a detuning circuit responsive to a predetermined detuning control signal for detuning the signals produced by the tone generator. The detuning control circuit comprises a detuning control signalling circuit for producing a predetermined detuning control signal and for selectively applying the predetermined detuning control signal to the detuning circuit of the tone generator chip so as to produce a predetermined pitch variation effect.

Production of detuning effects in an electronic musical instrument

Most of the circuitry of an electronic organ is made up of a plurality of digital large scale integrated (LSI) circuit chips. Certain of the chips can be duplicated or substituted for others of like type to provide an organ with more or less tone generators, more or less features, etc., whereby organs of various price levels can be constructed from the same basic parts. In operation, essentially all of the organ functions and features are provided by carrying out logical and arithmetic operations on digital pulse trains generated under control of a master clock.

Modular, expandable digital organ system

A touch responsive tonal envelope waveshape control system is provided for an electronic musical instrument which includes cooperating tone generating and keying circuits which are responsive to actuation of a key for initiating the generation and keying of a corresponding tone. The system of the invention includes encoding circuits responsive to the actuation of a key for producing encoded signals corresponding to the intensity of player actuation of the key and an amplitude control circuit responsive to these encoded intensity signals and cooperative with the keying circuits for controlling the peak amplitude of the tonal envelope waveshape in accordance with the intensity of player actuation of the key for initiating that tone.

Touch responsive envelope control for electronic musical instrument

A control system for a vending machine which accepts coins or bills of different denominations assigns a given amount of credit to each such monetary unit (i.e., a coin or a bill) accepted. The novel structure of the invention allows operation with monetary units in different monetary systems and alterations of the amount of credit assigned to each monetary unit accepted to be effected easily and simply. The control system responds in the same fashion to either a request for refund or change or a selection of an article to be vended: by comparing the accumulated credit from monetary units accepted with the price of each selected article and the request for a refund or change and allowing or inhibiting the dispensing of an article and/or dispensing of a refund or change accordingly. The pricing of articles may also be readily altered to accommodate different articles or changed prices. The control system is embodied in a special purpose computer or microprocessor, cooperating with an encoder circuit for monetary unit valuation and article pricing which comprises a programmable matrix array such as a ROM. Suitable interfacing circuits between the computer or microprocessor and other elements of the control system and of the vending machine itself are also provided.

Control system for vending machine

An accompaniment system for an electronic musical instrument is selectively actuatable for producing accompaniment effects such as arpeggio in accordance with selectable notes or chords and with selectable rhythm patterns. The electronic musical instrument includes one or more conventional keyboards, a set of chord switches for selecting one of a plurality of predetermined chords and a set of rhythm switches for selecting one of a plurality of predetermined rhythm patterns, respectively. The accompaniment system includes a ROM containing note position signals arranged in a plurality of groups, each group corresponding to one of the selectable rhythm patterns. An electronic circuit selects one of the groups in response to activation of one of the rhythm pattern selector switches and sequentially combines each note position signal in the group with a chord displacement signal developed in response to actuation of one of the keyboard notes or chord selection switches. The electronic circuit then produces electronic signals corresponding to selected notes of the chromatic scale in accordance with the selected note or chord and rhythm pattern. The ROM further contains a note decay characteristic control signal associated with each of the note signals. The accompaniment system also includes another electronic circuit responsive to the electronic note signals and their associated note decay signals for directing the electronic musical instrument to sound notes to produce an accompaniment effect in accordance with the selected note or chord, with the selected rhythm pattern and with the predetermined decay characteristics of each note.

Accompaniment system for electronic musical instrument

In an electronic organ or the like constructed of a plurality of large scale integrated circuit (LSI) chips, the present disclosure relates to a generator chip. The chip is operative over one octave of notes, and a string of chips is cascaded to provide as many octaves as there are in the instrument.

Large scale integrated circuit generator chip for electronic organ

The notes of an accompaniment manual of an electronic keyboard musical instrument such as an electronic organ are multiplexed. The key switches are sequentially scanned and the serial information produced is fed into a shift register. Digital circuitry reads the position of data in the shift register to determine whether a recognized chord has been played. After recognition of a recognized chord a counter operating in conjunction with the shift register clock input operates in connection with comparators and frequency generators to produce the necessary notes for the chord played. An automatic mode of operation also is provided in which only the key corresponding to the root partial of a chord need be played. By utilizing the mathematic relationships in a chord, the simple note played by depression of one key is extrapolated into a chord.

Production of chord notes in a digital organ

In a digital electronic organ or the like external waves of controllable duty cycle are used to control the on time of a field effect transistor (FET) through which a capacitor is charged. A similar rectangular wave of controllable duty cycle is applied to a second FET to control the on time thereof for controlling the discharge of said capacitor. The state of charge of said capacitor is used to control the conductivity of yet another FET through which a desired frequency is conducted to effect enveloping of such frequency with the desired attack and decay characteristics.

Digital control of attack and decay

In a modular, expandable organ system comprising a plurality of large scale integrated circuit (LSI) chips an LSI chip is provided which produces chord and bass frequency generation and identification. It automatically coordinates with another chip in rhythm production. It incorporates frequency generators, identifies a chord played, and provides keyers for chord notes.

Large scale integrated circuit chip for an electronic organ

A plurality of rectangular waves of selected duty cycles and fundamental frequencies are generated. Selected ones of these waveforms are then added at selected amplitude ratios. Such additions provide resultant waveforms of desired fundamental frequencies and having desired harmonic contents or spectra, for simulating the characteristic sounds of acoustical musical instruments.

Waveform synthesis for an electronic musical instrument

In accordance with the present invention, twelve different partials for a bass rhythm pattern are stored in only four columns of a ROM (Read Only Memory). The first three columns comprise a straight binary encoding of six different partials including the bass root, as well as no bass, while the fourth column is used for determining which of two octaves is to be played.

Means for storing bass rhythm patterns

A tri-state encoding circuit for use with an electronic musical instrument encodes one of three possible states of a device such as a switch, utilizing only a single input line from that device. The tri-state encoding circuit includes, in the case of a single-pole, double-throw switch, a first signal source which feeds signals of like frequency and duty cycle, but 180.degree. out of phase to the respective fixed contacts of the switch. A first gating element is interposed between a source of biasing signal and the movable contact of the switch. Second and third gating elements receive control signals from a further signal source, these control signals being of like frequency and duty cycle but 180.degree. out of phase. These second control signals are also of the same frequency as the first control signals, but may have a different duty cycle. The second and third gating elements are responsive to these control signals for controlling application of the signal on the movable contact to first and second associated outputs.

Tri-state encoding circuit for electronic musical instrument

A portamento system is disclosed for use with an electronic musical instrument, and particularly with a monotonic keyboard instrument which utilizes master oscillator/divider elements for tone generation. The portamento system utilizes a voltage controlled oscillator, and an oscillator control circuit comprising a unique combination of a phase/frequency detector and a circuit for varying and controlling lock up rate and expanding the frequency range of the system which may be either a ramp and hold circuit or a frequency tachometer circuit. The voltage controlled oscillator is thus locked on to the input frequency from the electronic musical instrument with substantially zero phase and frequency error. The system is capable of reaching the input frequency as slowly or as rapidly as desired and will operate over a wide frequency range. A unique system control and interfacing system is also provided whereby the portamento system may be utilized with a plurality of voices of the electronic musical instrument and several modes of operation may be selectively utilized.

Growing community of inventors

Geneva, IL, United States of America

William R Hoskinson