Musical instrument tuner

Abstract

A frequency detection and display device includes a body having a vibratory portion configured for vibrating at a predetermined frequency. In this manner, the vibratory portion provides a visible indication corresponding to the predetermined frequency in response to vibration of an object, such as a stringed musical instrument, to which the frequency detection and display device is attached.

Claims

1. A frequency detection and display device powered only by mechanical vibration comprising: a body including a first section having a first thickness and a second section directly attached to the first section and having a second thickness different than the first thickness such that a vibration received by the body at a first predetermined frequency vibrates the second section at an amplitude different than an amplitude at which the vibration received by the body at the first predetermined frequency vibrates the first section thereby providing a visible indication corresponding to the first predetermined frequency, wherein the body further includes a third section having a third thickness and a fourth section directly attached to the third section and having a fourth thickness different than the third thickness such that a vibration received by the body at a second predetermined frequency vibrates the fourth section at an amplitude different than an amplitude at which the vibration received by the body at the second predetermined frequency vibrates the third section thereby providing a visible indication corresponding to the second predetermined frequency.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the first thickness is defined by a distance between a first surface of the body and a second surface of the body separated from the first surface, the second thickness is defined by a distance between a third surface of the body and the second surface of the body, and the difference between the first thickness and the second thickness is less than or equal to 20 nm.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the first thickness is defined by a distance between a first surface of the body and a second surface of the body separated from the first surface, the second thickness is defined by a distance between a third surface of the body and the second surface of the body, and the difference between the first thickness and the second thickness is less than or equal to 10 nm.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the first section and the second section each define a groove in or embossment of the body.

5. The device of claim 4, wherein the groove or embossment is in the shape of a letter.

6. The device of claim 4, wherein the groove or embossment is in the shape of an oval, a line, or a polygon.

7. The device of claim 4, wherein the groove or embossment is curvilinear.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the first thickness is defined by a distance between a first surface of the body and a second surface of the body separated from the first surface, the second thickness is defined by a distance between a third surface of the body and the second surface of the body, and the third surface is formed by atomic layer etch (ALE).

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the third surface is formed by the removal of at least two layers using ALE.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the first section and the third section are the same section.

11. The device of claim 1, wherein a vibration received by the body at the second predetermined frequency vibrates the fourth section at an amplitude greater than an amplitude at which the vibration received by the body at the second predetermined frequency vibrates the third section, and wherein a vibration received by the body at the first predetermined frequency vibrates the second section at an amplitude greater than an amplitude at which the vibration received by the body at the first predetermined frequency vibrates the first section.

12. The device of claim 1, wherein the body is attachable to a separate object such that the body receives vibration from the separate object.

13. The device of claim 12, wherein the separate object is a stringed musical instrument.

14. The device of claim 12, further comprising an intermediate attachment device attached to the body for attachment to the separate object.

15. The device of claim 1, wherein the body is in the form of a patch.

16. A musical tuning combination comprising: a stringed musical instrument that vibrates at a range of frequencies including the first predetermined frequency and the second predetermined frequency; and the frequency detection and display device of claim 2 attached to the stringed musical instrument such that the vibration of the stringed musical instrument at the first predetermined frequency vibrates the second section of the frequency detection and display device at an amplitude different than an amplitude at which the vibration of the stringed musical instrument at the first predetermined frequency vibrates the first section of the frequency detection and display device and such that vibration of the stringed musical instrument at the second predetermined frequency vibrates the fourth section of the frequency detection and display device at an amplitude different than an amplitude at which the vibration of the stringed musical instrument at the second predetermined frequency vibrates the third section of the frequency detection and display device.

17. A musical instrument comprising: the frequency detection and display device of claim 1, the body a body of the musical instrument.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) An appreciation of the subject matter of the present technology and various advantages thereof may be realized by reference to the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is an elevation view of a body defining grooves in accordance with an embodiment of the technology;

(3) FIG. 2 is a plan view of a musical instrument tuner in accordance with another embodiment of the technology;

(4) FIG. 3 is a plan view of a musical instrument tuner in accordance with yet another embodiment of the technology;

(5) FIG. 4 is a plan view of a musical instrument in accordance with yet another embodiment of the technology; and

(6) FIGS. 5-7 are perspective views of respective musical instruments in accordance with further embodiments of the technology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(7) As used above and further herein, the term “naked human eye” refers to a human eye that is seeing objects without the use of any magnification device or other magnification means.

(8) A frequency detection and display device in accordance with an aspect of the technology includes a body that may have one or more vibratory portions configured for vibrating at a first predetermined frequency to provide a first visible indication corresponding to the first predetermined frequency in response to a first vibration received by the body. Any one or any combination of these same vibratory portions or another one or other vibratory portions may be configured for vibrating at a second predetermined frequency to provide a second visible indication corresponding to the second predetermined frequency in response to a second vibration received by the body. In this manner, the frequency detection and display device is powered passively, utilizing only mechanical vibration received by the body.

(9) In some arrangements, the vibratory portions of the body configured for vibration to provide a visible indication may have different chemical or physical properties from other adjacent portions of the body. For example, a vibratory portion may be made of a different material, and thus may have a different density or other physical property, than an adjacent portion or adjacent portions of the body. In another example, a vibratory portion may have a different thickness than an adjacent portion or adjacent portions of the body. Such different thicknesses may be formed by removing or adding material to an existing surface of the body by any appropriate process, such as but not limited to deposition processes including chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and physical vapor deposition (PVD) or etch processes including chemical etching. For applications requiring high resolution tuning, material may be added to or removed from the existing surface of the body by a very small amount, which may be at an atomic level. For example, a precise amount of material may be removed from an existing surface of the body using atomic layer etch (ALE) or using an atomic level chemical etching process, and a precise amount of material may be added to an existing surface of the body using atomic layer deposition (ALD). In this manner, precise changes in input frequencies to the body may be detected. In some arrangements, a small amount of a different material, which may be at an atomic level, may replace the existing surface of the body.

(10) In some arrangements, the frequency detection and display device, i.e., unit, may be in the form of a patch or other small unit constituting a body, although the preparation of larger units are within the scope of this technology as needed, e.g., for the detection and identification of predetermined frequencies on bridges, buildings, and other architectural structures. Such a unit may be attachable to a device to be tuned, e.g., a tunable musical instrument, or another device for which frequency is to be detected and identified. The unit may be attached to the other device to be tuned using any type of attachment mechanism, such as by but not limited to being by any one of or any combination of an adhesive and one or more fasteners such as screws. Due to the ability of such a unit to be of relatively small size, the unit may be attached to the other device at a location such that the unit is out of plain view.

(11) In such arrangements in which the frequency detection and display device is in the form of a patch, vibratory portions may be formed into or onto an existing surface of the body. The vibratory portions may be formed such that they vibrate at respective predetermined frequencies to provide visible indications corresponding to the predetermined frequencies in response to vibration of the device to which the body of the frequency detection and display device is attached, i.e., in response to the same input frequency. Any vibratory portion may be in the form of a line, a regular shape such as an oval, a circle, or a polygon, or an irregular shape, e.g., a musical clef or a hazard or other danger symbol. In some arrangements, a collection of vibratory portions configured to vibrate at the same or approximately the same amplitude in response to the same input frequency may be placed adjacent to each other such that the collection together resemble a shape, e.g., a collection of lines that together resemble the letter “A.”

(12) In some arrangements, the frequency detection and display device may be integrated and thus inseparable from a device for which frequency is to be detected and identified, e.g., for tuning such device. In some such arrangements, vibratory portions may be formed into or onto the device for which frequency is to be detected and identified in the same manner such portions may be formed into or onto the body when the frequency detection and display device is in the form of a patch or other separate unit. For example, one or more grooves may be formed into a surface of a stringed musical instrument, e.g., a guitar, such that the one or more grooves vibrate at a predetermined frequency to provide a visible indication corresponding to the predetermined frequency in response to vibration of the stringed musical instrument.

(13) As shown in FIG. 1, in one example of the present technology in the form of a patch, a small unit to clip onto a musical instrument or other vibration-controllable device, or even as part of a vibration-controllable device, body 10 includes first section 12 and second section 14 and further may include additional sections, such as additional section 16 shown in this example. First section 12 has a first thickness 12T, second section 14 has a thickness 14T and additional section 16 has a thickness 16T (thicknesses 14T and 16T not being drawn to scale relative to thickness 12T for purposes of illustration). Due to the differences in relative thickness between first section 12 and second section 14, when body 10 is vibrated at a first predetermined frequency, which preferably is a resonant frequency of second section 14, second section 14 vibrates at an amplitude greater than an amplitude that first section 12 vibrates. In this manner, second section 14 defines an indicium corresponding to only the first predetermined frequency. This passive and completely mechanical indicium is preferably visible to a naked human eye.

(14) Similarly, due to the differences in relative thickness between first section 12 and additional section 16, when body 10 is vibrated at an additional predetermined frequency, which preferably is a resonant frequency of additional section 16, additional section 16 vibrates at an amplitude greater than an amplitude that first section 12 vibrates. In this manner, additional section 16 defines an indicium corresponding to only the additional predetermined frequency. This indicium is preferably visible to a naked human eye. Moreover, due to the differences in relative thickness between second section 14 and additional section 16, second section 14 and additional section 16 may vibrate at different amplitudes at the first and the additional predetermined frequencies such that the indicium that second section 14 defines at the first predetermined frequency is detectable to a naked human eye only at the first predetermined frequency and the indicium that additional section 16 defines at the additional predetermined frequency is detectable to a naked human eye only at the additional predetermined frequency.

(15) As shown in the example of FIG. 1, edge 22A of first section 12 and first exposed surface 24 of section 14 may define a first groove. Similarly, edge 22B of first section 12 and additional exposed surface 26 of additional section 16 may define an additional groove. In this manner, the indicia defined by second section 14 and additional section 16 may be provided by vibration of first exposed surface 24 and additional exposed surface 26, respectively, when the second section and the additional section are excited by respective vibrations of the body. In some processes for preparing body 10, the first and the second groove may be prepared using an appropriate material removal process, such as an etching process including but not limited to the ALE process.

(16) In an alternative arrangement, the body may be configured to have a uniform thickness such that an entire surface or entire surfaces of the body vibrate visibly to the naked human eye when subjected to vibration at a predetermined frequency. In some such arrangements, the body may be configured such that a resonant frequency of the body is the predetermined frequency.

(17) Referring now to FIG. 2, in another example, body 100, which is in the form of a patch, includes first section 112 and additional sections 116A-116G which extend through a thickness of body 100, i.e., in a direction perpendicular to the top surface of body 100 shown in FIG. 2. In the same manner that second section 14 and additional section 16 vibrate relative to first section 12 of body 10 and vibrate relative to each other at the first and the additional predetermined frequencies, additional sections 116A-116G vibrate at respective predetermined frequencies with amplitudes that are greater than the amplitudes that the other sections including first section 112 vibrate at those predetermined frequencies. These larger vibrations of additional sections 116A-116G preferably may be visible to a naked human eye.

(18) As further shown, additional sections 116A-116G define grooves within first section 112 that are in the form of letters Like second section 14 and additional section 16 have different thicknesses relative to first section 12 of body 10 and relative to each other, additional sections 116A-116G have different thicknesses relative to first section 112 and relative to each other such that additional sectional sections 116A-116G vibrate at the respective predetermined frequencies with amplitudes that are greater than the amplitudes that the other sections including first section 112 vibrate at those predetermined frequencies.

(19) In the configuration shown, body 100 may be a musical instrument tuner and the respective predetermined frequencies at which additional sections 116A-116G vibrate may correspond to the tuning frequencies of notes A-G, e.g., 440 Hz for tuning reference note A. Body 100 may be attached to a stringed musical instrument, such as by any form of attachment known to those skilled in the art including but not limited to by one or more fasteners, by an adhesive, by being clipped onto the instrument, or by being snapped onto the instrument. Additional sections 116A-116G should be prepared, as necessary, to account for any alteration of the effect of input frequencies on the predetermined frequencies caused by the form of attachment. In this manner, body 100 may be used to tune the stringed musical instrument.

(20) Referring now to FIG. 3, in yet another example, body 200 functions similarly to body 100 and is also in the form of a patch. In contrast to having grooves in the form of letters as in body 100, body 200 has grooves that are associated with letters (or which in alternative arrangements, could be other symbols or designations), in this example the letters A-G designated as 215A-215G, formed in the body without any significant deformation of the body. Central grooves 216A-216G within section 212 of body 200 define different respective thicknesses in a direction perpendicular to a top surface of body 200 shown in FIG. 3 that correspond to the tuning frequencies of notes A-G. Each central groove has two adjacent grooves on each side for a total of five grooves associated with each letter in which each of the adjacent grooves corresponds to a frequency that approximates but is not the same as the tuning frequencies. For example, central groove 216A has adjacent grooves 217W-217Z in which (i) groove 217W corresponds to a frequency greater than the frequency associated with groove 216A, (ii) groove 217X corresponds to a frequency less than the frequency to which groove 217W corresponds but still greater than the frequency associated with groove 216A, (iii) groove 217Y corresponds to a frequency less than groove 216A, and (iv) and groove 217Z corresponds to a frequency less than groove 217Y. For example, groove 217W may correspond to (and thus vibrate noticeably to a human naked eye at) a frequency of 444 Hz, groove 217X may correspond to a frequency of 442 Hz, groove 217Y may correspond to a frequency of 438 Hz, and groove 217Z may correspond to a frequency of 436 Hz when groove 216A corresponds to a frequency of 440 Hz to provide respective indicia at each of these frequencies noticeable to a human naked eye.

(21) In alternative arrangements, the letters designated as 215A-215G may be grooves in the same form as additional sections 116A-116G shown in the example of FIG. 2. In this manner, the grooved alternative arrangement of letters 215A-215G may be set at a depth such that the letters vibrate noticeably to a human naked eye preferably at the same frequency that corresponding grooves 216A-216G noticeably vibrate, although in further alternative arrangements, letters 215A-215G could be set to noticeably vibrate at other predetermined frequencies as desired.

(22) Referring now to FIG. 4, in another example, body 300 is a stringed musical instrument. Similar to the other bodies described previously herein, body 300 includes grooves 316A-316G within main section 312 that vibrate at respective predetermined frequencies to provide a visible indication. Although grooves 316A-316G are shown with a wave profile, they may have any other profile, e.g., a circle, an oval, a polygon, or an irregular shape. In some arrangements, light emitting devices may be placed in contact with grooves 316A-316G. For example, such light emitting devices may be placed into grooves 316A-316G. In this manner, vibration caused by grooves 316A-316G may cause light to be emitted by such light emitting devices. Light emitting devices as described herein may include but are not limited to including light emitting diodes (LEDs) along with piezoelectronic generators used to convert the mechanical energy produced by the vibration of the grooves into electrical energy to power the LEDs. In some arrangements, the vibration may stimulate electrical components to induce a current that causes the light to be emitted.

(23) As shown in FIG. 5, in another example, body 400 is another stringed musical instrument which includes groove 416 formed into main section 412 on a side of the body that, in a similar manner to other grooves and vibratory sections described previously herein, vibrates at a predetermined frequency to provide an indication visible to the naked human eye. In this manner, the provided visible indication may be visible only to the user of body 400. As in the example shown, groove 416 may be in the form of an “A” that vibrates to provide a visibly vibrating “A” upon vibration of body 400 at the predetermined frequency, which for example may be 440 Hz corresponding to the tuning frequency for reference note A. In some arrangements, as in the example shown in FIG. 5, main section 412 and groove 416 may be separable from the body, such as in the form of a patch attachable to the body.

(24) In an alternative arrangement to body 400, as shown in FIG. 6, body 500 is the same as body 400 with the exception that body 500 includes main section 512 forming the side of the body and groove 516 formed into the main section 512 such that the main section and the groove are integral and inseparable from body 500. In this configuration, groove 516 vibrates at a predetermined frequency in a similar manner to other grooves and vibratory sections described previously herein to provide an indication visible to the naked human eye. This configuration replaces the patch with main section 412 and groove 416.

(25) Referring now to FIG. 7, in another example, body 600 is another stringed musical instrument. Body 600 includes main sections 612A-612G and corresponding grooves 616A-616G formed into the respective main sections on a side of the body that, in a similar manner to other grooves and vibratory sections described previously herein, vibrate at respective predetermined frequencies to provide indications visible to the naked human eye. In this manner, these provided visible indications may be visible only to the user of body 600. As in the example shown, grooves 616A-616G may be in the form of the respective letters A-G and may vibrate to provide the respective visibly vibrating letters “A,” “B,” “C,” “D,” “E,” “F,” and “G” upon vibration of body 600 at the respective predetermined frequencies, which for example may be 440 Hz corresponding to the tuning frequency for reference note A. As in this example, main sections 612A-612G and grooves 616A-616G may be separable from the body, such as in the form of a patch attachable to the body, although in alternative arrangements, the main sections and the grooves may be integral with body 600 such that they are inseparable from the body.

(26) Sensors, which may be piezoelectric sensors, in contact with grooves 616A-616G detect vibration of grooves 616A-616G. The sensors are electrically connected to one end of respective wires 615A-615G. Display device 617 is attached to an opposing end of respective wires 615A-616G. Display device 617 may include a microcontroller that receives electrical signals corresponding to electrical signals transmitted over respective wires 615A-615G from the sensors. The microcontroller then instructs a visual display of display device 617 to display the note, i.e., letter, corresponding to the one of grooves 616A-616G that vibrated and caused the electrical signal to be transmitted over the respective wire. The visual display of display device 617 may, in some arrangements, cover most or all of a surface of an object such as a stringed musical instrument and may be but is not limited to being a liquid crystal display (LCD) device or LED display device. In the example shown in FIG. 7, the microcontroller instructed an “A” to be displayed on an LCD screen forming almost an entirety of a surface of a stringed musical instrument in response to body 600 receiving a vibration at the respective predetermined frequency associated with the letter “A,” which again may be 440 Hz corresponding to the tuning frequency for reference note A. As a result, the visual display of display device 617 shows an “A” over a large surface area of the guitar.

(27) In alternative arrangements of bodies 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, any of the grooves may be replaced with either or both of (i) deposited material applied to a body such that these sections rise above adjacent surfaces of these sections and (ii) a different material than the adjacent surfaces of these sections. Depositing material on the body may be used to avoid deforming the body. For applications requiring high resolution tuning, the material may be but is not limited to being deposited using either or both of an atomic level process such as ALD and a three-dimensional (3D) printing process. For other applications, other deposition processes, such as but not limited to CVD and PVD, may be sufficient.

(28) In some processes for preparing bodies 200, 300, 400, as in the process for preparing body 100, any one or any combination of the grooves may be prepared using an appropriate material removal process, such as an etching process including but not limited to any one or any combination of the ALE and atomic level chemical etching processes.

(29) In the examples of bodies 100, 200, 300, the bodies were used for signifying that specific musical notes had been produced by a stringed musical instrument. In other arrangements, this technology may allow for the detection and identification of specific frequencies to detect and identify the sizes or shapes of specific objects or for the detection of other features or characteristics of objects that be manifested at different input frequencies. In still other arrangements, this technology may allow for the detection of changes in frequencies of an object given the same input frequency. For example, a groove may be formed into a cutting tool in which the vibration of the groove may became greater as the tool wears and in which the groove may visibly vibrate at a frequency, e.g., a resonant frequency, generated when the tool has worn sufficiently to need replacement.

(30) It is to be understood that the disclosure set forth herein includes all possible combinations of the particular features set forth above, whether specifically disclosed herein or not. For example, where a particular feature is disclosed in the context of a particular aspect, arrangement, configuration, or embodiment, that feature can also be used, to the extent possible, in combination with and/or in the context of other particular aspects, arrangements, configurations, and embodiments of the invention, and in the invention generally.

(31) Although the invention herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the illustrative embodiments and that other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.