MIDI MALLET FOR TOUCH SCREEN DEVICES

Abstract

For music production, the velocity values with the purpose of creating dynamic percussion in cooperation with a value measuring surface (a touch screen tablet or touch screen phone) has the ability to simulate the tension of a percussion instrument thus tone values are correlated with X, Y values from a measuring surface and dynamics values are measured with velocity, all inclusive, wireless and cooperative with MIDI software.

Claims

1) An electronic percussion instrument, in the shape of a mallet, that has a measurement scope in 3 dimensions, where the force measurement is inclusive to the mallet, which is made of a force sensitive resistor that covers the top mallet, where the fore mentioned force measurement is sent to a personal computer through a Bluetooth wireless signal and distributed to a software program through a MIDI value.

2.

3.

4) An electronic percussion instrument as fore mentioned in claim 1, is constructed using a micro controller at its inner core which is attached to a force sensitive resistor, which reads the signal, which is sent by a Bluetooth chip to personal computer, where the Bluetooth chip is attached to the fore mentioned micro controller, and the micro controller is powered by a battery.

5) An electronic percussion instrument as fore mentioned in claim 1, has an electrically conductive coating that covers the outer casing of the mallet, when struck against a touch screen device, registers coordinate data that works in cooperation with a software program to generate a MIDI signal.

6. Where the spherical force sensitive resistor from claim 1 can be any 3 dimension shape example: a cylinder, a triangle, a hexagon, pentagon . . . etc.

7. Where the Power Source from claim 4 can be battery powered, rechargeable, or by universal serial bus port.

8. Where the low density core in claim 2 can be plastic, wood, or metal.

9. Where the transmittance of information mentioned in claim 4 can be by Universal serial bus or Bluetooth transmittance.

10. Where the outer layer mentioned in claim 5 can be any material that that an electrical force can pass though.

Description

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

[0028] FIG. 1aOverview of the midi mallet with a spherical head and a cylindrical base

[0029] FIG. 1bThe inner composition consisting of a battery, a micro controller, and a force sensitive resistor

[0030] FIG. 2aCircuitry of the micro controller to the power source

[0031] FIG. 2bCircuitry of the micro controller to the Bluetooth Chip

[0032] FIG. 2cCircuitry of the micro controller to the Force sensitive resistor

[0033] FIG. 3aLinear shape diagram of the Force Sensitive Resistor

[0034] FIG. 3bSpherical shape diagram of the Force Sensitive Resistor

[0035] FIG. 3cOverview of a Force Sensitive Resistor

[0036] FIG. 4Layered Diagram of the MIDI Mallet

[0037] FIG. 5aInterior core of the Midi Mallet and components

[0038] FIG. 5bExterior conductive wrap

THE MIDI MALLET

[0039] FIG. 1a is an overview of the invention FIG. 1a (1) is the head of the mallet which contains the force sensitive resistor and FIG. 1a (2) is the base which contains the circuitry and battery.

The Circuitry

[0040] FIG. 1b show the inner workings of the MIDI mallet, FIG. 1b (7) show the AAAA battery, which is attached by a conductive wire FIG. 1b (6) which is attached to an Arduino Micro controller FIG. 1b (5) with Bluetooth FIG. 2b (8) which attaches to a Force Sensitive Resistor FIG. 1b (3).

The Design

[0041] The core of the midi mallet (FIG. 5a) is composed to 2 separate pieces, the top mallet core FIG. 5b(15) which contains a male screw helix FIG. 5a(16) and the base piece FIG. 5b(14) which contains a female screw helix FIG. 5a(17) a hole for an on/off switch FIG. 5b(18) and a sliding battery door compartment FIG. 5a(19).

[0042] The mallet core FIG. 5a (14) is overlapped with a force sensitive resistor FIG. 4 (3), FIG. 3c, FIG. 3a and attached with a small amount of glue.

[0043] The outer conductive layer FIG. 4 (13), FIG. 5b (13) is a thin wrap made of an electrically conductive anti-static plastic that conducts electricity; alternatively it can also be a thin plastic wrap FIG. 5b (13) coated with conductive ink.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0044] The present invention has been made to optimize the use of a touch screen device in professional music production. The current limitations of previous inventions are as follows: devices are large, bulky and must be connected through a USB port. Devices are unable to recreate an effective drum tension that otherwise creates the subtle tone of a drum and USB MIDI controllers play more like a piano than a drum.

[0045] An object of the present invention is that it is designed to work with a touch screen device which eliminates the use of a bulky box or surface measuring device and at the same time gives the user more control of the subtle dynamics of percussion.

[0046] Another object of the current invention is the wireless capabilities and that it is battery powered.

[0047] A further object is that it not only replicates the timber and tone of a real drum, it plays like a real drum in the sense that you are striking something with a mallet.

[0048] For the fore mentioned invention to adequately simulate a real drum it must work in cooperation with a touch screen device, and a specific software designed with preloaded musical recordings which are called samples that are triggered based on 3 dimensional grid.

[0049] The 3 dimensional grid consist of an X and Y coordinate which is based on where the mallet touches the touch screen device and a Z coordinate which is dictated based on the force in which the device is struck. All combined X, Y and Z allows for a larger amount of different samples to be triggered. [0050] 1) Head of Midi Mallet [0051] 2) Base of Midi Mallet [0052] 3) Force Sensitive Resistor [0053] 4) On/Off switch [0054] 5) Arduino Board [0055] 6) Connecting wire [0056] 7) Battery [0057] 8) Bluetooth chip [0058] 9) Resistors [0059] 10) Substrate with semi-conductor [0060] 11) Space adhesive [0061] 12) Substrate with electrodes [0062] 13) Exterior soft semi-conductor [0063] 14) Interior low density plastic [0064] 15) Mallet head interior [0065] 16) Screw attachment male head of mallet [0066] 17) Screw attachment female base of mallet [0067] 18) Hole for On/Off switch interior [0068] 19) Battery door [0069] 20) Hole for on off switch exterior

SEQUENCE LISTING

[0070] NOT APPLICABLE