Patent Application
20230032630
Many electric stringed instruments have controls for various electronics parameters. Such controls can include, for example, volume and tone controls and switches for selecting between sets of pickups.
Some musicians, including some guitarists, use additional electronic equipment with their electric instruments, such as various distortion devices and other effects pedals, that have controls that allow a musician to control the additional electronic equipment without interrupting their playing of their instrument. Some music-related electronic equipment is Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) compatible.
The present disclosure describes an electric stringed instrument that is remotely controllable, as well as a remote control for configuring the electronics of the instrument.
The present disclosure also describes a system comprising a remotely controllable electric stringed instrument, a remote control for configuring the instrument, a MIDI controller, and cords interconnecting the system.
The above summary is not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the present disclosure.
The present disclosure describes remote operation of controls for electric stringed instruments. Such electric instruments can include, but are not limited to, guitars, bass guitars, banjos, etc. Although specific embodiments may describe, for example, electric guitars, the invention should not be limited to any particular electric stringed instrument.
Electric guitar players, for example, often use various amplifiers (or amps), effects (reverb, overdrive, distortion, etc.), etc. to change the electronic output, and so the sound, of their instruments. A single electric guitar can be made to generate very different sounds, aside from just different tones played using the guitar’s strings, by incorporating different combinations of these electronics. At least some of these electronics can be controlled using remote controls, e.g., by a player’s foot on a floor controller, such as a pedal controller, which allow the instrument’s player to switch between combinations of the electronics without using the player’s hands. This allows the player to dedicate the use of their hands to manipulating the guitar’s strings. Sometimes the switching between the combinations of electronics must be done in a brief moment between particular beats in the song, for example, between a verse and a guitar solo. In these and other situations, the player needs to be able to switch the settings of the electronics without interrupting the playing of the guitar with their hands.
Besides its strings, an electric guitar can have a number of electronics controls that a guitar player can manipulate with his hands. However, as discussed, using a player’s hands to adjust these controls can be problematic. This can occupy the player’s hands at the moment those hands may be needed to manipulate the guitar’s strings.
This disclosure describes systems and methods for controlling an electric stringed instrument’s electronics remotely, that is, off-instrument. Such control can be implemented on a purpose-built instrument or by modifying an existing instrument.
In some embodiments, these controls can include a pickup selector switch. An electric guitar may have multiple sets of pickups, which convert the movement of the guitar’s strings into one or more electrical signals, and some guitars have switches that allow for selecting which of the pickups-and so which signals-to use. A musician may prefer one set of pickups for a certain portion of music, for example, the chorus of a particular song, but prefer another set of pickups for other portions, such as a verse or bridge of that or other songs. A system capable of remotely selecting the pickups allows the musician uninterrupted use of his hands for manipulating the guitar’s strings while he switches out one set of pickups for the preferred set.
Similarly, these controls can, in some embodiments, include volume or tone control knobs. A musician may prefer higher volume settings for some portions, e.g., guitar solos, and lower settings for other portions, e.g., rhythm or backup portions. A system capable of remotely controlling the volume allows the musician uninterrupted use of his hands for manipulating the guitar’s strings while he or another operator, such as another member of his band, adjusts the volume setting. The remote volume setting can be an analog adjustment, such as with a potentiometer or rheostat, or digital. The remote setting can be implemented to allow for continuous adjustments or can be set to one or more discrete levels. Such adjustments and levels can be “presets,” to be used to program the controls for particular portions of the music to be played.
Tone controls are often similar to volume controls on many electric guitars and can be implemented similarly. For example, a tone control might adjust circuitry affecting the frequency response of an electric guitar. This might be done by varying the resistance of a tone potentiometer that is part of a frequency filter.
A system capable of remotely controlling the guitar’s electronics can be operated by the musician playing the guitar or by another operator, such as another member of his band. The control can be by, e.g., electromechanical switch or by other methods. The remote control can be implemented in an integrated system that controls other instruments, devices, or electronics. In this way, the guitar’s settings can be adjusted in concert with other devices, such as amps or effects, without the need to interrupt the playing of the music.
One embodiment of an electric stringed instrument capable of being remotely controlled can be made by modifying an existing electric guitar. Such a guitar can be made to operate as it did prior to modification, with local control of the guitar, but also to allow for remote control with an enabling switch on the guitar. For example, the existing tone-control knob can be replaced with a similar knob but with a push-pull feature such that when in its normal, down position, the electric guitar operates as before modification. When pulled up, however, the new knob can switch the guitar into its remotely operable mode wherein the remote controls are enabled and the local controls are deselected. The electronics of such an embodiment can be set up to allow for remote implementation of various circuits, including but not limited to volume control, tone control, and the selection of sets of pickups. These controls can be fit into the space already used for the guitar’s electronics or into another space, either already existing or made for this use.
Another embodiment could be designed and made with these controls in mind from the beginning, rather than modifying a conventional electric guitar.
The electronic controls used in a remote control can duplicate those in the electric guitar or can be different, e.g., specially designed for use in a particular application or controller. For the sake of familiarity, ease of use, availability, or other reasons, the same switches, knobs, etc., can be used, and in the same way, as on the electric guitar to be controlled. On the other hand, different components can be used to optimize for certain applications or controllers. For example, stomp switches can be used in floor controllers to enable remote control or to choose between selectable electronic configurations, e.g., such as choices of pickups or perhaps of preset volume levels. Pedals, knobs, etc. can be used in floor or other controllers to adjust electronic configurations, either between a finite number of discrete levels or along an infinite, continuous spread of analog levels. Potentiometer or rheostats can be used, as can simple voltage dividers, to enable various selectable electronic configurations. More complex electronics can be used as desired. For example, a controller can be made to be programmable by another remote controller, such as either an existing or a specially designed MIDI device. Likewise, the guitar’s remote control can be designed to be a MIDI controller and also control other devices. Other, simple or complex, MIDI or otherwise, electronics can be used.
Similar electronics can be used to modify the existing controls in a remotely controllable guitar or can be implemented in a newly designed or built guitar.
Systems, with or without a switch to enable a remote control, can have one or more indicators that show the selected condition of the system. For example, a guitar can have a light that turns on (or changes color) when remote control is enabled. In some embodiments, other indicators that show selected conditions may include haptic feedback patterns (e.g., vibration patterns at an instrument, pedal, seat, smart phone, etc.), audio or text notifications to a computing device (e.g., smart phone, computing system, control board, etc.), or the like. Similarly, a light can be installed on the remote control instead of, or in addition to, a light on the electric guitar. Likewise, either or both the guitar and remote control can have one or more indicators, such as various colored lights or digital indicators, to show the selected state of the electronic controls. For example, different colored lights or digital indicators can indicate different sets of pickups selected by the remote control, or selected discrete volume or tone levels. Selected electric states or conditions, such as volume or tone levels, can be indicated by lit or unlit lights or their brightness or color. Similarly, digital indicators or strings of lights, e.g., Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), can show approximations of continuous, analog controls.
One embodiment of a remote control for an electric stringed instrument could be a simple floor controller. Such a controller could be a pedal controller. Such a controller could have one or more stomp switches. A single switch could have one or more positions for selecting certain parameters, such as selected pickups, or volume or tone levels. Certain positions can correspond to certain selections, or a switch or other control can toggle or cycle between selections.
One method of communicating between the electric stringed instrument and the remote control could be through one or another standard audio jacks. An enabling switch could be made to select between, for example, a pickup selector switch on a guitar or another pickup selector switch on a floor controller. If a TRS cord is used to connect the guitar to the floor controller, one set of pickups can be electrically connected to the Tip of the TRS cord (the ‘T’ in ‘TRS’) and another set of pickups can be connected to the Ring of the TRS cord (the ‘R’ in ‘TRS’). A TRS cord has at least three conductors, whereas a mono (or TS, for Tip-Sleeve) cord has only two. Further changes could be made to use the one or more additional rings in more-complex TRS cords, e.g., Tip-Ring-Ring-Sleeve (TRRS) or TRRRS cords (TRS cords with four and five conductors, respectively), etc., and matching TRS/audio jacks. These one or more additional rings could correspond to, for example, one or more additional pickup sets or to volume or tone controls. For example, one embodiment might use a TRRRS cord with the tip allocated to one set of pickups, e.g., a set of neck pickups, and the first ring allocated to another, e.g., a bridge set of pickups. The second ring could be for a tone lead and the third ring to a volume lead. Instead, the second ring could be for a third set of pickups and the third ring to a volume lead, or the second ring could be for a volume lead and the third ring for a third set of pickups. In this way, a standard electric guitar could be modified to allow for remote control without affecting its outward appearance through the use of a TRS cord with the requisite number of conductors.
A similar embodiment could be designed and made with these controls in mind from the beginning.
Communicating between the electric guitar and the remote control need not be by TRS cord. Some embodiments can, as in the TRS or TRRRS examples, port various portions of the electronics off of the instrument to the controller. Other embodiments can allow for remotely controlling the guitar’s electronics without requiring that, for example, the electrical signals from all of the pickups are sent to the remote control for selection there. One embodiment of a system could include digital electronics installed in an electric guitar with those electronics controlled either locally on-instrument or remotely, off-instrument. Such remote control could use a TRS cord, a MIDI or other cord, or any other communication method, e.g., a Radio Frequency (RF), Wireless Fidelity (WIFI), BLUETOOTH, or other channel. Even a single conductor in an analog cord could be repurposed to act as a serial line containing multiple serial bits communicating between digital control units in the guitar and a remote control.
One remote control embodiment for use with an electric stringed instrument could also control one or more other devices. Such devices could include, for example, amps or effects devices. These devices could be electrically connected to a guitar or to other instruments (such as guitars, keyboards, microphones, etc.), or both, or neither. This could allow remote control of one or more instruments, etc., separately or together, as convenient.
Another embodiment of a remote control for an electric stringed instrument could be MIDI capable (whether in a floor controller or not), that is, to be controlled by or otherwise interact with one or more other MIDI-capable devices. A guitar’s remote control can use the already described controls and incorporate additional controls to thereby control other devices, such as amps and effects devices, or other instruments, etc., either separately or in combination. In this way, the remote control need not be limited to controlling just an electric guitar or other instrument but can control other devices, including other instruments and devices being used by the guitar player and/or his band, enabling communication and better synchronization between the instruments and devices.
Turning now to the figures,
In other embodiments, the guitar’s remote floor controller 240 and its functions and capabilities could be incorporated into an integrated MIDI floor controller 270. In yet other embodiments, depending on the complexity of the desired controls, MIDI floor controller 270 can control remote floor controller 240 via one or more TRS cords, including TRRS or TRRRS cords, instead of or in addition to MIDI cable 267. For example, a three-conductor TRS cord and jack could be used to conduct control signals from the MIDI controller to the guitar’s remote control to select between one or the other set of pickups, or both sets, and a second three-conductor TRS cord and jack could be used, as necessary, to allow for more selections if, for example, another one or more sets of pickups are to be controlled. Alternately, TRS cords and jacks with more conductors, e.g. TRRS and TRRRS cords and jacks, could be used to accommodate added complexity.
Likewise, given the capability of generating an electric output, the systems described may be used for generating the electric outputs whether or not they are played audibly through, for example, an amplifier and speaker; the electric outputs can be used in other ways, e.g., for recording and later playback or mixing.
In other embodiments, the digital control or audio signal lines, or both, could be implemented using other methods. For example, RF signals and transceivers could be used instead of hardwiring an instrument to a remote.
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The block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of electric stringed instruments and remote controllers according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. In some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the blocks of the flowchart may occur out of the order noted in the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved.
The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present disclosure have been presented for purposes of illustration but are not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application or technical improvement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.
