1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a supporting structure for an electronic pad of a percussion instrument.
The present application claims priority on Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-51841, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, percussion instruments including as electronic cymbals or electronic high-hat cymbals are equipped with electronic pads serving as electronic cymbals instead of acoustic cymbals. Impact sensors are installed in electronic pads so as to detect impacts applied to electronic pads, thus generating electric signals which are used to generate musical sounds. When excessive rotational displacements unexpectedly occur in electronic pads, wiring cords may be caught by some parts of percussion instruments, or striking positions of electronic pads may be significantly deviated from the positions of impact sensors, thus degrading detection precisions of impact sensors. For this reason, engineers have devised supporting structures including rotary stopper mechanisms for electronic pads of percussion instruments.
Patent Literature Document 1 (PLT 1) discloses an electronic pad of a percussion instrument with a rotation stop hole and a rotation stop pin arranged in the support section of a high-hat pad body. Patent Literature Document 2 (PLT 2) discloses a holder for a percussion musical instrument with a rotation-preventing assembly which is used to prevent rotation of a percussion musical instrument such as a cymbal.
In the supporting structure of PLT 1, an engaging member such as a pin which is arranged in the support section of a pad body is engaged with an engaged part such as a hole which is formed in a pad body, thus regulating a rocking range of a pad body. A gap is formed between the engaging member and the engaged part to secure an adequate rocking range. This gap serving as a play allows a pad body to rotate in a rotating direction.
In the supporting structure of PLT 1, it is possible to regulate the rotation range within a certain range of play as long as a rotary force applied to a pad body falls within a certain range of force during performance of a percussion instrument. When an excessive rotary force is applied to a pad body, an excessive load may be applied to either the fitting member or the fitted part, thus causing a failure or damage in a percussion instrument. To prevent a failure or damage occurring in a percussion instrument, it is necessary to implement any measures, for example, in which engagement-related parts are made of highly-rigid materials such as metals; but this may increase the overall weight of a percussion instrument or the manufacturing cost thereof.
During performance of an electronic pad with a stick, a player (or a user) may not always swing a stick down towards a pad body in a vertical direction but may swing a stick in a slanted direction or a horizontal direction. This playing technique may cause a pad body to excessively rotate with a relatively large angle. The electronic pad of PLT 1 is equipped with the supporting structure which suddenly stops rotation of a pad body at a rotation-regulated position; this may cause unnatural movement of a pad body, or a player may feel discomfort in striking a pad body with a stick. Additionally, it is necessary to consider rotary forces which may be applied to pad bodies during manufacturing and adjustments of percussion instruments in addition to rotary forces which are applied to pad bodies during performance of percussion instruments.
Patent Literature Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2009-128800
Patent Literature Document 2: U.S. Pat. No. 5,969,281
It is an object of the present invention to provide a supporting structure which prevents a failure or damage occurring on an electronic pad of a percussion instrument due to an excessive force applied to an electronic pad in a rotating direction.
The present invention is directed to a percussion instrument which generates an electronic musical sound in response to a striking operation applied to an electronic pad resembling a cymbal with a stick.
In a first aspect of the present invention, a supporting structure for an electronic pad of a percussion instrument includes a pad member, a first engaging part, a second engaging part, and a connecting part. The pad member is supported by a support member in a rotatable manner about the rotation center and subjected to a striking operation. The first engaging part is arranged independently of the pad member or is unified with the pad member. The second engaging part is engaged with the first engaging part. The second engaging part is arranged independently of the support member or is unified with the support member. The second engaging part is pressed to rotate about the rotation center via the first engaging part in response to a rotary force applied to the pad member. The connecting part establishes at least one of a connection between the pad member and the first engaging part or a connection between the support member and the second engaging part. The connecting part connects a first object and a second object to relatively rotate about the rotation center. The connecting part includes a reaction generator which generates a reactive force against a rotary force by which the second object disposed at the initial position relative to the first object is displaced from the initial position in a rotating direction. When the rotary force is released, the connecting part allows the second object to be restored to the initial position, thus disappearing the reactive force generated by the reaction generator.
In the above, the reactive force becomes larger as the rotational displacement of the second object from the initial position becomes larger.
Preferably, the connecting part includes a rotation-regulating unit which regulates the rotational displacement of the second object within the predetermined regulation range when a rotational torque less than the predetermined value is applied to the second object disposed at the initial position relative to the first object. When a rotational torque above the predetermined value is applied to the second object disposed at the initial position, the rotational displacement of the second object becomes higher than the predetermined regulation range, thus shifting the regulation range of the rotation-regulating unit. When the rotational torque above the predetermined value is released, the rotation-regulating unit allows the second object to be restored to a new initial position which is shifted from the initial position.
In a second aspect of the present invention, a supporting structure for an electronic pad of a percussion instrument includes a pad member, a first engaging part, a second engaging part, and a connecting part. The pad member is supported by a support member in a rotatable manner about the rotation center and subjected to a striking operation. The first engaging part is arranged independently of the pad member or unified with the pad member. The second engaging part is engaged with the first engaging part. The second engaging part is arranged independently of the support member or unified with the support member. The second engaging part is pressed to rotate about the rotation center via the first engaging part in response to a rotary force applied to the pad member. The connecting part establishes at least one of a connection between the pad member and the first engaging part or a connection between the support member and the second engaging part. The connecting part connects a first object and a second object to relatively rotate about the rotation center. The connecting part includes a rotation-regulating unit which regulates the rotational displacement of the second object within the predetermined regulation range when a rotational torque less than the predetermined value is applied to the second object disposed at the initial position relative to the first object. The second object is restored to the initial position when the rotational torque less than the predetermined value is released. When a rotational torque above the predetermined value is applied to the second object disposed at the initial position, the rotational displacement of the second object becomes higher than the predetermined regulation range, thus shifting the regulation range of the rotation-regulating unit. When the rotational torque above the predetermined value is released, the rotation-regulating unit allows the second object to be restored to a new initial position which is shifted from the initial position.
In the invention, it is possible to prevent a failure or damage occurring on an electronic pad which receives an excessive force in a rotating direction while preventing a player (or a user) from feeling discomfort in striking an electronic pad with a stick.
Since the present invention is designed to increase a rotation-regulating force in proportion to a force applied to an electronic pad in a rotating direction, it is possible to further prevent a failure or damage occurring on an electronic pad while preventing a player from feeling discomfort in striking an electronic pad with a stick.
These and other objects, aspects, and embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the following drawings.
The present invention will be described in further detail by way of examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.
An electronic pad of the present embodiment can be designed as a high-hat electronic pad (which substitutes for a high-hat cymbal) or a cymbal-shaped electronic pad.
The outline of the high-hat pad body PDT will be described below. As shown in
The high-hat pad body PDT is supported horizontally by a support member 50 in a freely-rocking manner. The support member 50 is fixed to a “movable” leg 90 which is vertically disposed on a stand (not shown). The leg 90 is descended down along with a depressing operation which is applied to a pedal (not shown) by a player's foot. Upon releasing a depressing operation on a pedal, the leg 90 is ascended up by means of a pressing mechanism (not shown). Therefore, the support member 50 is moved up or down together with the leg 90 which is moved up or down due to an operation of a pedal (hereinafter, simply referred to as a “pedal operation”).
In addition to a striking operation applied to the upper face of the high-hat pad body PDT, the percussion instrument of the present embodiment accommodates a specific pedal operation, which is specifically employed by a high-hat cymbal, in which the operation detection unit UNT of the high-hat pad body PDT is brought into contact with the bottom base 80.
As shown in
A through-hole 40da and a first engaging part K1 are formed in a supported part 40d which is formed in the center area of the frame 40 in a radius direction. An insertion hole 51c1 which the leg 90 is inserted into is formed to run through the felt support 51c in a vertical direction. An external thread 51d is formed in the external periphery of the felt support 51c. The felt support 51c runs through the through-hole 40da of the supported part 40d of the frame 40 with a clearance. Therefore, the high-hat pad body PDT including the pad member pd is supported by the leg 90 about a rotation center C0 (which corresponds to an axial center of the insertion hole 51c1) via the support member 50 in a horizontal direction in a rotation-free manner.
The second engaging part K2 runs through the first engaging part K1 such that the upper portion thereof is exposed. The first engaging K1 is a through-hole which functions as a rotary stopper. Due to a rotating force applied to the pad member pd, the second engaging part K2 receives a pressing force which is exerted in a rotating direction about the rotation center C0 via the first engaging K1. Due to a very small rotation torque applied to the pad member pd, it is possible to regulate a rotation angle range of the high-hat pad member PDT within a range of play between the second engaging part K2 and the first engaging K1 since the second engaging part K2 comes in contact with the left and right sides of the interior wall of the first engaging K1. Due to a high rotation torque applied to the pad member pd, the second engaging part K2 can be subjected to rotational displacement relative to the base 51 as shown in
The doughnut-shaped felts 53, 52 are sequentially attached to the support member 50 above the mounting base 51a at the predetermined positions sandwiching the supported part 40d of the frame 40. The felt support 51c is inserted into the holes of the felts 53, 52. The nuts 56, 57 (in which the nut 56 is not necessarily essential but used to prevent loosening) are engaged with the external thread 51d of the felt support 51c above the felt 52. By applying an appropriate force between the nut 57 and the mounting base 51a, it is possible to tightly hold the felts 52, 53 above and below the supported part 40d of the frame 40. This makes it possible for the high-hat pad body PDT to be rocked about the felt support 51c via the “elastic” felts 52, 53. Owing to the engagement between the second engaging part K2 and the first engaging K1, it is possible to regulate a rocking angle range of the high-hat pad body PDT.
The leg-fixing member 59 is divided into an upper portion and a lower portion via a horizontal slot (not shown). A vertical slot (not shown) is arranged in the lower portion of the leg-fixing member 59, thus forming a pair of fastening elements 59b, 59c which are positioned close to each other (see
By fastening a knob 49 (see
As shown in
A pair of sheet sensors 31f, 31r is attached to an upper face 40a in the periphery of the frame 40 via an adhesive. Other sheet sensors (not shown) are arranged on the upper face 40a in the periphery of the supported part 40d of the frame 40 in a radius direction. These sheet sensors are film-shaped sensors which are able to independently output detection signals upon detecting pressure variations. As the sheet sensors, it is possible to employ any types of sensors such as piezoelectric sensors and capacitor sensors. A piezoelectric sensor 41 is attached to a rear face 40b of the frame 40 via an adhesive. As the piezoelectric sensor 41, it is possible to employ any types of configurations which can detect vibration by use of piezoelectric elements.
As shown in
A percussion instrument including the electronic pad of the present embodiment is equipped with a musical sound generating apparatus which includes a CPU, a musical sound controller with a memory device, an effect circuit, a sound source circuit, and a sound system. The musical sound generating apparatus generates musical sounds, which are controlled by a CPU, based on detection signals output from the signal output parts 32, 33.
A main strike area is an area of the surface of the rubber pad 30 which is positioned close to the position of the piezoelectric sensor 41. Due to an impact applied to the rubber pad 30, a plurality of sensors selected from among the piezoelectric sensor 41 and the sheet sensors 31f, 31r etc. may concurrently output a plurality of detection signals. It is possible to arbitrarily set a percussion instrument as to which of sensor signals is used to control a musical sound. For example, it is possible to select a sensor signal representing the largest sound volume in controlling a musical sound. Additionally, it is possible to use the sheet sensors 31f, 31r, which are arranged in the periphery of the frame 40, in detecting a mute operation or in detecting a striking operation.
The rear cover 70 includes a base 73 and three arms 71 (i.e. 71A, 71B, 71C), all of which are integrally unified. The base 73 is formed in the center area of the rear cover 70 in a radius direction, while the arms 71 are extended from the base 73 in a radial manner. The rear cover 70 is attached to the rear face 40b of the frame 40 via screws or adhesives.
The rotation-regulating unit 100 includes an external member 108, a ring cover 111, a stopper 112, and a connecting part CN (see
As described above, the base 51 includes the mounting base 51a which is disposed at the lowermost position, the felt support 51c including the insertion hole 51c1, and an intermediate cylinder 51b which connects between the mounting base 51a and the felt support 51c (see
The external member 108 includes an external cylinder 110 from which the second engaging part K2 is projected outwardly. The upper portion of the second engaging part K2 is extended upwardly. Four projections 110a are formed along the interior circumference of the external cylinder 110 with equal spaces (see
The intermediate member 105 includes a horizontal flange 106 above which a cylindrical projection 102 is formed. A window opening 107 is formed in the cylindrical projection 102. The opposite ends of the window opening 107 in the circumferential direction are used as a first driver e1 and a second driver e2. A plurality of recesses 106a, which are inwardly recessed in a radius direction, is entirely formed on the external circumference of the flange 106 with equal spaces. A plurality of peaks 106b which are peaked outwardly is formed between a plurality of recesses 106a such that each peak 106b is formed between a pair of recesses 106a which are positioned adjacent to each other. The external arc-shape of the projection 110a is engaged with the internal arc-shape of the recess 106a. The number of the recesses 106a is an integral multiple of the number of the projections 110a. For example, it is possible to form twenty-four recesses 106a with equal angular spacing of 15°.
A pair of a first groove m1 and a second groove m2 which are vertically positioned in parallel is formed along the external circumference of an intermediate cylinder 51b. The spring 103 is formed by folding a single wire in a ring shape, the opposite ends of which are inwardly projected to form a first end t1 and a second end t2. The first end t1 and the second end t2 of the spring 103 are positioned vertically with the same vertical distance as the vertical distance between the first groove m1 and the second groove m2.
After assembling the rotation-regulating unit 100, the intermediate member 105 is engaged with the intermediate cylinder 51b while the flange 106 is brought into contact with the upper end of the mounting base 51a (see
In the above condition, the first end t1 and the second end t2 of the spring 103 are brought into contact with the first driver e1 and the second driver e2 of the window opening 107. Thus, the first end t1 and the second end t2 of the spring 103 are weakly pre-tensioned by the first driver e1 and the second driver e2 such that they will approach each other.
The external member 108 is mounted on the upper side of the connecting part CN which is assembled as described above. Herein, the projections 110a of the external cylinder 110 are engaged with the recesses 106a of the intermediate member 105 (see
The ring cover 111 is mounted on the upper side of the external member 108. The stopper 112 is mounted on the ring cover 111. It is possible to prevent the ring cover 111 from being fallen off from the rotation-regulating unit 100 via the stopper 112 which is engaged with the leg 90 inserted into the insertion hole 51c1.
When a pressing force in a rotating direction (i.e. a rotational torque) is applied to the second engaging part K2 via the first engaging part K1, it is transmitted to the intermediate member 105 from the external cylinder 110 via the engagement between the projections 110a and the recesses 106a. The present embodiment uses the spring 103 serving as a reaction generator, whereby the second engaging part K2 is restored to an initial position P0 (see
The reactive force of the spring 103 may be proportional to the displacement of the window opening 107 in the middle of the displacement.
Until the second position of the window opening 107 shown in
The third position of the window opening 107 shown in
Due to a large rotational torque which is increased such that the window opening 107 will overpass the third position of
Suppose that, due to a rotational torque above the predetermined value, the second engaging part K2 is displaced to the intermediate position between the position P3 and the position P4 since the projection 110 overpasses one peak 106b, and then the rotational torque is released. In this case, a “new” initial position is set to the position P1, which is shifted from the “original” initial position P0, and therefore the second engaging part K2 will be restored to the position P1. When a rotational torque is released after the second engaging part K2 is displaced to the intermediate position between the positions P5 and P6, a “new” initial position is set to the position P3.
In the present embodiment, the connecting part CN of the rotation-regulating unit 100 connects the external member 108 relative to the leg 90 in a rotatable manner. Upon receiving a pressing force due to an impact applied to the pad member pd, the second engaging part K2 of the external member 108 is displaced in a rotating direction from the initial position P0 together with the intermediate member 105, and therefore the spring 103 will generate a reactive force. When the pressing force is released, the second engaging part K2 is restored to the initial position P0, and therefore the reactive force will disappear. Thus, it is possible for the pad member pd to elastically absorb a rotational torque applied to the pad pd in a rotating direction. In particular, a rotation-regulating force becomes larger in response to a rotational torque in a rotating direction since a reactive force becomes larger as the rotational displacement of the second engaging part K2 becomes larger. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a failure or damage due to an excessive force in a rotating direction; hence, it is possible to restrain a player from feeling discomfort in striking the pad member pd with a stick.
When a rotational torque above the predetermined value is applied to the second engaging part K2 which is disposed at the initial position P0, the rotational displacement of the second engaging part K2 becomes larger than the predetermined regulation range, and therefore the regulation range of the rotation-regulating unit 100 will be shifted as shown in
In the normal condition of performance in which a rotational torque applied to the second engaging part K2 is maintained below the predetermined value, it is possible to prevent the main strike area of the pad member pd from being unexpectedly changed since the rotational displacement of the second engaging part K2 is regulated within the regulation range (i.e. ±45°); hence, it is possible to prevent wiring cords from being unexpectedly caught by some parts of a percussion instrument.
The present embodiment uses one spring 103 exemplifying a reaction generator which generates a reactive force to a rotational torque applied to the second engaging part K2; but this is not a restriction. It is possible to arrange two or more springs in the rotation-regulating unit 100.
For example, it is possible to modify the rotation-regulating unit 100 as shown in
In the modified example, the secondary spring starts to generate a reactive force at the second position of
When the rotation-regulating unit 100 is modified such that the rate of changing a reactive force against the rotational displacement of the second engaging part K2 will be changed in a stepwise manner, it is possible to enhance a rotation-regulating function, thus further suppressing the occurrence of a failure or damage in a percussion instrument.
The present embodiment is designed such that the second engaging part K2 is formed as a rod while the first engaging K1 is formed as a through-hole; but this is not a restriction.
In the present embodiment, the second engaging part K2 is connected to the leg 90 in a rotatable manner about the rotation center C0 via the connecting part CN furnished with a reaction generator and a rotation-regulating function; but this is not a restriction.
A rotational torque applied to the pad member pd is transmitted from the first engaging part K1 to the second engaging part K2 and the support member 121. Owing to the operation of the connecting part CN, the support member 121 receives a reactive force against a rotational torque via the leg 90. Herein, the initial position should be shifted due to an excessive rotational torque applied to the pad member pd.
In this connection, it is possible to arrange the second engaging part K2 independently of the leg 90 or to unify the second engaging part K2 with the leg 90 on the condition that the connecting part CN does not need to be arranged in proximity to the leg 90 and the second engaging part K2. Additionally, it is possible to arrange the first engaging part K1 independently of the pad member pd or to unify the first engaging part K1 with the pad member pd on the condition that the connecting part CN does not need to be arranged in proximity to the pad member pd and the first engaging part K1.
As the reaction generator installed in the rotation-regulating unit 100, it is possible to use any shapes or any materials, such as elastic materials other than the spring 103.
It is possible to redesign the present embodiment as an electronic pad resembling a cymbal as shown in
In the electronic pad resembling a cymbal shown in
The rotation-regulating unit 100 implements the foregoing functionality by means of a reaction generator which generates a reactive force due to the rotational displacement of the second engaging part K2 from the initial position, and a rotation regulator which regulates the rotational displacement of the second engaging part K2 within the predetermined regulation range when a rotational torque less than the predetermined value is applied to the second engaging part K2; but this is not a restriction. That is, the rotation-regulating unit 100 needs to include either a reaction generator or a rotation regulator in order to suppress the occurrence of a failure or damage due to an excessive rotational force applied to an electronic pad.
Lastly, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the foregoing embodiment and variations, which can be further modified in various ways within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. The technical features of the present invention can be summarized as follows.
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