Yamaha Corporation

Nippon Gakki Seizo Kabushiki Kaisha

Yasuhiro Hinago

Akira Nakada

Takeo Shibukawa

Junichi Mishima

An electronic musical instrument comprises a plurality of keys being displaceable relative to a support member therefor in response to depression thereof. A CPU detects velocity of depression of each of the keys from displacement of the each key caused by depression thereof, and also detects a pressure force or an impact force with which the each key urgingly contacts a stationary member at or near termination of depression of the each key. The CPU is responsive to the detected velocity of depression and pressure force or impact force, for determining initial touch information for a musical tone to be generated or at least one musical tone parameter, and for controlling the musical tone to be generated, based on the determined initial touch information.

Electronic musical apparatus for controlling musical tone using initial

An electronic musical instrument can perform a musical-tone control according to a playing-style. In the instrument, a touch sensor is provided for each key on a keyboard, and pressure sensors are also provided under the keys. Each touch sensor detects a speed data corresponding to a depression speed of the key, and each pressure sensor detects a pressure data corresponding to an initial peak of a depression pressure after the start of the depression of the key. The instrument operates according to the speed data and the pressure data for discriminating between a standard playing-style which touches the key from an upside remote position and a push playing-style which starts depression of the key from a state where the key is touched. Values of the pressure data from the respective pressure sensors are different even if the speed data from the respective touch sensors are the same, so that the judgment is made as to which playing-style is performed on the corresponding key based on the speed data and the pressure data, thereby performing the musical-tone control according to the detected playing-style.

Playing-style detecting apparatus and electronic musical instrument

This invention relates to a touch response sensor for an electronic musical instrument capable of producing a signal responsive to a key depressing speed upon depression of a key. In order to produce such a signal from the sensor, the latter comprises two switches which are operated in turn by a single drive piece with a time lag determined by the key depressing speed. The secondarily operated switch may be a switch capable of producing a signal responsive to a key depressing pressure and including a resistant member and a resilient member having a conductive portion facing the resistant member thereby, upon depression of the resilient member through the key, to produce a resistance variation signal responsive to the key depressing pressure.

Touch response sensor for an electronic musical instrument

A keyboard arrangement in electronic musical instrument comprising playing keys movable to cover a predetermined distance in normal play and also being able to move farther in excess of said distance in accordance with the pressure applied to the keys, a movable arm arranged at position corresponding to each key at its depressed position, and a sensor means provided for said arm to detect the amount of the excessive distance covered by the movable arm and the speed thereof to generate a signal to be used for the control of expression such as tone volume, tone color and the like. The keyboard arrangement preferably further includes a deformable cushion means normally nondeformingly contacting, at its upper end, the bottom surface of the movable arm member during the normal movement of the positionally corresponding key but is deformed when the key makes a movement in excess of the normal distance to be covered by the key. Thus, the arm is inhibited to develop undesirable vibrations during its movements and precise detection of the amount of its movement can be made.

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Hamamatsu, Japan

Yasuhiro Hinago