Yamaha Corporation

Yasuo Kageyama

Takashi Suzuki

Junichi Fujimori

Youji Semba

Shinji Koezuka

Shigeki Fujii

Yasushi Ohtani

Hiroshi Mino

Yashikoi Okamura

Takeshi Funada

Sampled sound data is compressed with a vector quantizing technique and then transmitted via a communication line. Received sound data is decoded, compressed with an ADPCM technique, and then stored into a memory. In response to a request for reproduction, the ADPCM sound data is read out, decoded, and then sounded. As another example, in a karaoke device, sample sound data is supplied after being compressed with the vector quantizing technique, in addition to MIDI-form music performance data. A music sound is reproduced on the basis of the MIDI-form music performance data, and at the same time a sound is reproduced by decoding the vector-quantized sound data. As another example, in a karaoke device, data obtained by compressing sampled sound data with the vector quantizing technique is mixed with data obtained by compressing sampled data with the ADPCM technique, and in reproduction, a predetermined decoding process is executed after identifying with which of technique is compressed data to be reproduced. As still another example, in a game device, sampled sound data, of human voice, effect sound, etc. are prestored after being compressed with the vector quantizing technique, so that in accordance with progression of a game, the data are read out and decoded for reproductive sounding.

Audio recompression from higher rates for karaoke, video games, and

A karaoke apparatus is constructed to reproduce a karaoke music piece according to karaoke data composed of setup data and performance data. The karaoke apparatus utilizes a pair of sound source devices each of which is initialized according to the setup data and is then operated to reproduce the karaoke music piece according to the performance data so that the sound source devices can be alternately operated with each other to successively reproduce a plurality of karaoke music pieces. In the karaoke apparatus, a first control device operates when one of the sound source devices reproduces a preceding one of the karaoke music pieces for providing the other of the sound source devices with setup data contained in karaoke data corresponding to a succeeding one of the karaoke music pieces so as to initialize the other sound source device before the one sound source device finishes reproduction of the preceding karaoke music piece. Further, a second control device operates when the one sound source device finishes the reproduction of the preceding karaoke music piece for providing the other sound source device with performance data of the succeeding karaoke music piece so as to operate the other sound source device to reproduce the succeeding karaoke music piece immediately after the one sound source device finishes the reproduction of the preceding karaoke music piece.

Karaoke apparatus alternately driving plural sound sources for

A karaoke apparatus produces a karaoke accompaniment which accompanies a singing voice of a player. A memory device stores primary characteristics of a model vowel contained in a model voice. An input device collects an input singing voice of the player containing a pair of a lead consonant component and a subsequent vowel component. A separating device separates the lead consonant component and the subsequent vowel component from each other. An extracting device extracts secondary characteristics of the subsequent vowel component separated from the lead consonant component. A creating device creates a substitutive vowel component according to the primary characteristics and the secondary characteristics so that the separated subsequent vowel component is converted into the substitutive vowel component while modified by the model vowel. A synthesizing device combines the separated lead consonant component with the substitutive vowel component in place of the separated subsequent vowel component to synthesize an output singing voice of the player. An output device produces the output singing voice together with the karaoke accompaniment.

Karaoke apparatus modifying live singing voice by model voice

A karaoke apparatus produces a karaoke accompaniment which accompanies a singing voice of an actual player, and concurrently creates a harmony voice originating from a virtual player. In the karaoke apparatus, a memory device stores voice information of the virtual singer. An input device collects the singing voice of the actual player. An analyzing device analyzes an audio frequency of the collected singing voice. A synthesizing device processes the stored voice information based on the analyzed audio frequency to synthesize the harmony voice having another audio frequency which is set in harmony with the analyzed audio frequency. An output device mixes the collected singing voice and the synthesized harmony voice with each other, and outputs the mixed singing and harmony voices along with the karaoke accompaniment. In one preferred embodiment, the memory device stores the voice information in the form of a sequence of phonetic elements that are successively sampled syllable by syllable from a singing voice of the virtual player.

Karaoke apparatus using frequency of actual singing voice to synthesize

In an audio signal processor, an input device inputs a polyphonic audio signal containing a plurality of melodic parts which constitute a music composition. A detecting device detects a particular one of the melodic parts contained in the input polyphonic audio signal. An extracting device extracts the detected melodic part from the input polyphonic audio signal. A harmony generating device shifts a pitch of the extracted melodic part to generate a harmony audio signal representative of an additional harmony part. An output device mixes the generated harmony audio signal to the input polyphonic audio signal so as to sound the music composition which contains the additional harmony part derived from the particular one of the melodic parts.

Audio signal processor selectively deriving harmony part from polyphonic

A data transmission system includes a main controlling unit for producing pieces of address information, each piece of address information being indicative of a first address for a data source and a second address for a destination. The data transmission system further includes a plurality of component units assigned individual addresses, respectively, and a timing controlling unit sequentially supplying the pieces of address information to the component units at predetermined timings. In operation, one of the component units with the individual address matched with the first address serves as the data source and another component unit with the individual address matched with the second address serves as the destination communicating with the data source.

Data transmission system selecting both source and destination using

Tone waveform data is divided into plural data segments, so that frequency and magnitude of respective spectra contained therein are analyzed for each of the data segments. Analyzation parameters indicative of the frequency and magnitude of the respective spectra for each said data segment which has been obtained through the analyzation is stored into a memory. The analyzation parameter for each data segment is sequentially read out from the memory, and the tone waveform data is reanalyzed on the basis of the read-out parameter. To control the frequency of a resulting tone, a data shift circuit may be provided which serves to shift the value of the frequency data contained in the analyzation parameters. Further, an interpolation circuit may be provided which performs interpolations between frequency data and/or magnitude data of respective spectra of a certain waveform, and frequency data and/or magnitude data of respective spectra of another waveform, so as to form frequency data and magnitude data of respective spectra of a new waveform.

Growing community of inventors

Hamamatsu, Japan

Yasuo Kageyama