Abstract:
A technique for creating polyphonic audio signals of telecommunication devices such that the technique may be performed quickly without a user needing music theory knowledge. A midi-composer application includes a graphical user interface for assisting a user in creating the polyphonic audio signal. The graphical user interface includes at least one track for receiving placement of at least one music block and a plurality of bars within the at least one track for relating the at least one music block with a selected time period. The at least one music block includes at least one type of music block representing an audio loop or sample.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    This U.S. Patent Application incorporates herein by reference, and claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application 60/343,775 filed Oct. 19, 2001. 
     
    
     
       TECHNICAL FIELD  
         [0002]    The present invention relates to audio signals of electronic devices, and more particularly, to an improved procedure for creating and editing polyphonic audio signals for an electronic device.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    Many electronic devices are capable of giving audio signals to alert a user of new voicemail, new email, instant messages, or incoming calls. A personal computer, for example, alerts a user to new email or instant messages with an audio signal via an audio component such as a speaker.  
           [0004]    Other electronic devices, such as mobile stations or PDAs, are generally provided with an audio component for producing a audio signal in order to announce an incoming call, or alert the mobile station user of new voicemail or a scheduled appointment. The mobile station is often provided with a set of prestored audio signals, from which the user may choose a more individualized audio signal for one or more of the actions of the mobile station that require an audible alert. Similarly, computers are often provided with a pre-stored set of audio signals for alerting the user to new email or other actions. The prestored audio signals usually have ordinary ringing tones, as well as melodies from familiar pieces of music.  
           [0005]    The use of mobile stations in public areas, as well as the number of computers in a confined area, have increased rapidly in recent years, causing the apparent risk that one or more neighboring electronic devices may produce the same audio signal, causing confusion as to which electronic device is producing the audio signal. Even though the number of prestored audio signals has increased, users are still constrained to a standard set of audio signal choices as programmed by the manufacturer of the electronic device. Hence, confusion may still arise from neighboring electronic devices producing the same audio signal.  
           [0006]    Presently, mobile stations offer the ability to program an individualized audio signal by entering notes onto a staff. The mobile station then determines the tones to be played based on the location of the notes placed on the staff. However, one of the disadvantages to the above-mentioned technique is that the user is assumed to have extensive knowledge of music theory in order to create a melody on a staff. In addition, the task of placing notes on a staff can be laborious and time consuming for longer ring signals.  
           [0007]    In an alternative approach, a new audio signal may be acoustically input by the user through a microphone attached to the mobile station. The acoustic input is sampled, converted into digital form, and stored in a memory. Subsequently, this digitally stored audio signal may be converted into analog signals and supplied to a speaker for announcing, for example, an incoming call. This approach also has its drawbacks in that the stored digital audio signal is essentially an exact representation of the original acoustic input. The input will have a less than perfect quality, and even if digital data compression is applied to the stored audio signal, the data will still require a significant amount of memory.  
           [0008]    Therefore, there is a need for a system that a non-musician can use, without having music theory knowledge, to generate their own unique audio output signal.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    The present invention overcomes the foregoing and other problems with a midi-composer application and associated method for creating polyphonic audio signals. The midi-composer application includes a graphical user interface for assisting a user in creating the polyphonic audio signal. The graphical user interface of the midi-composer application includes at least one track for receiving placement of at least one music block and a plurality of bars within the at least one track for relating the at least one music block with a selected time period. The midi-composer application also includes at least one music block of at least one type representing an audio loop or audio sample. The at least one music block is located within at least one bar of the at least one track. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]    A more complete understanding of the method and apparatus of the present invention may be obtained by reference to the following Detailed Description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying Drawings wherein:  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device including a midi-composer according to the present invention;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 2 illustrates examples of music block libraries for use with the user interface in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 3A is an exemplary view of a user interface for a midi-composer in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 3B is an exemplary view of the creation of a polyphonic audio signal using the user interface of FIG. 3A;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 3C is an exemplary view of a completed polyphonic audio signal using the user interface of FIG. 3A;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating generation of a polyphonic audio signal according to a preferred method of the present invention; and  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of a mobile station incorporating the midi-composer according to the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0018]    Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1, an exemplary block diagram of an electronic device  10  including a midi-composer according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. The electronic device may comprise a mobile telephone, computer, PDA, pager or any other device providing audio alerts. The electronic device  10  enables a user to compose a customized polyphonic audio signal by utilizing a midi-composer application  20 . The midi-composer  20  allows a user to select, using a navigation tool  50 , from pre-recorded musical loops or samples  30  represented by music blocks  202 , to compose the polyphonic audio signal. The navigation tool  50  may comprise of a mouse, touch screen and joystick, etc. The midi-composer application  20  enables presentation of a graphical user interface  300  on a display  302  of the electronic device  10 . A user browses through at least one music library  200  stored in a memory  40  to select a music block  202  of interest. The selected music block  202  is placed by using a drag and drop operation, cut and paste operation, or other similar techniques, onto a particular location of the user interface  300  as may be more fully described in a moment. The technique used to place a music block onto a location depends on the type of electronic device  10  used. For example, a computer may use a copy and paste operation, whereas a PDA may use a drag and drop operation. In addition, the user may drag and drop, or copy and paste, one or more music blocks  202  at a time. The user continues to place music blocks  202  onto specific locations of the user interface  300  with the navigation tool  50  until the desired polyphonic audio signal is created.  
         [0019]    Now referring to FIG. 2, examples of music libraries  200  for use with a graphical user interface  300  of the midi-composer  20  is illustrated. The music blocks  202  represent pre-recorded musical loops or samples  30  that can be melodies or other sounds from a variety of sources or instruments. The musical loops or samples  30  can be divided into different music libraries  200  and presented to the user via the graphical user interface  300 . The music libraries  200  can be organized to correspond to the type of music loops or samples  30  stored therein. For example, a rhythm library  200 A includes a variety of musical loops or samples  30  from drums, cymbals, maracas, or other rhythm instruments from which the user may select. A bass library  200 B includes a collection of bass loops or samples  30  pre-recorded from, for instance, a bass guitar, piano bass, or tuba. A accompaniment library  200 C includes accompaniment loops or samples  30  pre-recorded from, for example, an electric or acoustic guitar, or a trumpet. Each user can also create music loops or samples  30  of any recordable sound such as a melody including voice, piano, or trumpet, and store the music loops or samples  30  in solo blocks  202 D. The solo blocks  202 D can be stored in a solo library  200 D, and used to create or edit the polyphonic audio signal. The music libraries  200  may also be purchased or loaded from alternate sources and have additional libraries such as jazz, symphony, dance, and other types of sounds.  
         [0020]    The user browses through any of the music libraries  200  to select a music block  202  to insert into the polyphonic audio signal the user is creating or editing. For example, a user may want to compose an audio signal with a block  202 A. The user then selects the rhythm library  200 A using the navigation tool  50 , and browses through rhythm blocks  202 A comprising different ready-mixed sequenced loops or samples of drums, cymbals, or maracas.  
         [0021]    The blocks  202  represent midi, wav, or files of other formats for storing audio files. The music blocks  202  may comprise a single bar of music, or stretch over several bars. A bar is a unit of time used in music, and therefore each music block may vary in the length of time that each particular music block  202  lasts.  
         [0022]    The user browses the rhythm blocks  202 A with the navigation tool  50  in order to highlight a specific rhythm block  202 A. The user highlights a specific rhythm block  202 A by using the navigation tool  50  to move a cursor or marker to the specific music block  202  of interest. When a specific rhythm block  202 A is highlighted, the electronic device  10  outputs an audio signal to an audio component  60  to play the rhythm loop or sample represented by the rhythm block  202 A. The user hears the selected rhythm loop or sample  30  being played by the audio component  60 . The user can select the highlighted block  202 A, for placement in the GUI  300  or navigate to a different block  202 A to hear a different loop or sample. The user selects a block by, for example, pressing a button on a joystick or mouse. A copy of the selected block  202 A is made in order to drag and drop, or copy and paste, the block  202 A onto a location of the graphical user interface  300 . One music block  202  may be dragged and dropped, or copied and pasted, from the music library  200  to the graphical user interface  300  at a time, or alternatively, several music blocks  202  from a music library  200  can be selected and dropped onto the chosen location of the graphical user interface  300 . The user repeats the same process for browsing, selecting, and dropping any music block  202  from any of the music libraries  200  onto the graphical user interface  300 .  
         [0023]    Now, with reference to FIG. 3A, the graphical user interface  300  of the midi-composer application  20  for creating or editing a polyphonic audio signal will be described. Once the user has selected at least one block  202  as described above, the user drags and drops, or copies and pastes, the block  202  into a track  302 . A track is an allotted position to which music is recorded. Several tracks may be layered together so that the tracks play at the same time, allowing, for example, a voice track to play at the same time as a accompaniment track. The user also places the block at a particular bar  304 . The position of the music block  202  within the bar  304  indicates the point in time at which the block  202  is played. The user can place a block  202  on any track  302  at any bar  304  using a navigation tool  50  to maneuver through the different tracks  302  and bars  304 .  
         [0024]    The user may create or edit a polyphonic audio signal with only one track  302 , or optionally the user may layer two or more tracks ( 302 A,  302 B,  302 C,  302 D) on top of each other so that a plurality of sounds can be played at one time. Preferably, one track  302  is used for each music library  200 , thereby simplifying the process of creating or editing the polyphonic audio signal. In addition, each music library can be color coded to further simplify the process. For instance, one track  302 A may be for the rhythm type of music blocks  202  and be colored red, another track  302 B may be for the accompaniment type of music blocks  202  and be colored green, and other tracks  302  may be used for additional libraries  200  and be denoted by different colors. The tracks  302  can be played at the same time to create the customized polyphonic audio signal. After the user has placed the music blocks  202  onto the graphical user interface  300 , a play button  306  may be pressed by the user to play the current music blocks  202  placed as they are presently arranged in the graphical user interface  300 . The user may also press a stop button  308  to cease playing of the music blocks  202 . The user may also navigate through the tracks  302  and bars  304  of the graphical user interface  300  by using a scrolling button  310 , which includes a forward button and a reverse button, in order to place a music block  202  at a certain location, or to listen to a certain bar of the graphical user interface  300 . The forward button allows a user to scroll forward through the signal and the reverse button allows a user to scroll back through the signal. A user may also choose a special music block  202  or specific location on the user interface  300  by pressing certain numbers on the keypad. For example, a user may choose a music block  202  with the label “58”. The user then selects that particular music block  202  by pressing the numbers  5  and  8  on the keypad.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 3B represents the graphical user interface  300  on which the user has begun to create or edit the polyphonic audio signal. As shown, the user has selected two blocks  202 A and drags and drops, or copies and pastes, them into a first track  302 A. The user has also chosen a bass block  202 B to play at the second bar  304 B concurrently with the second block  202 A. A accompaniment block  202 C has been selected for the third bar  304 C to play immediately after the concurrent block  202 A and bass block  202 B cease to play. The user can continue to add or delete music blocks  202 , or modify the placement of existing music blocks  202  on the tracks  302 , until the user is satisfied with the polyphonic audio signal.  
         [0026]    In the finished polyphonic audio signal, as shown in FIG. 3C, the user has selected a plurality of music blocks  202 , some one bar long, others two bars long. The user can also create a bar  304 K that does not play any music. The user may scroll through the entire polyphonic audio signal to ensure correctness and make any modifications. Once the polyphonic audio signal has been created or edited, the user may save the audio signal. Then the user may select the customized audio signal as the default setting for alerts such as an incoming call. The polyphonic audio signal may also be transmitted to another device via the Internet, Bluetooth protocols, or other similar means of transmission.  
         [0027]    Now with reference to FIG. 4, a method  400  for creating a polyphonic audio signal according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described. A user can browse through a variety of music blocks  202  and listen to each music block  202  until a particular music block  202  of interest is discovered. The user, at step  402 , selects the music block of interest. The particular music block  202  is selected with the navigation tool  50 , for example a joystick or mouse. When the button on the joystick or the mouse is pressed, the chosen music block  202  is highlighted. At step  404 , the user can listen to the highlighted music block  202  to determine if the highlighted music block  202  is, in fact, the music block  202  the user wants to select. If the user concludes that the highlighted music block  202  is correct at step  406 , then the music block  202  can be selected by pressing the button on the joystick or mouse again. If it is determined that the highlighted music block  202  is not wanted, then the user may simply continue to browse the music blocks  202  with the joystick. Although the preferred embodiment implements a joystick or mouse as the navigation tool, keypad buttons, a stylus, or a variety of other navigation tools may be used as well. For example, the user may select a music block  202  by pressing a stylus to the desired music block  202 . Alternatively, the user may also maneuver through the music blocks  202  by using keypad buttons.  
         [0028]    Once the music block  202  is selected, the user may drag and drop, or copy and paste, the music block  202  into a track  302  at step  408 . The preferred embodiment of the present invention positions the music block  202  onto the track  302  by first making a copy of the selected music block  202 . The copied music block  202  floats at the end of a marker depicting the position of the joystick on a screen of the electronic device. The floating music block  202  is then dragged, or copied and pasted, onto the track  302  by maneuvering the joystick to position the music block  202  at the desired location. The music block  202  is dropped onto the track  302  by releasing the button on the joystick or mouse again. It should be realized that use of a drag and drop operation is merely intended to be exemplary and other methods for transferring a copy of a music block into the graphical user interface, such as a copy and paste technique, may be used.  
         [0029]    Next, if it is determined that the polyphonic audio signal is complete at step  410 , then the procedure is ended at step  412 . If, for example, the user wishes to add another music block  202  at step  410 , then the procedure is repeated starting over at step  402 . The user may select as many music blocks  202  and tracks  302  as desired to complete the polyphonic signal.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 5 depicts a block diagram of a mobile station  500  incorporating a preferred embodiment of the present invention. A user browses, using the navigation tool  50  or keypad  502 , through at least one music library  200  or music block  202  stored in the memory  40 . The music libraries  200  and/or music blocks  202  are displayed to the user on a screen  504  of the mobile station  500 . When a music block  202  is selected using the navigation tool  50 , the user drags, or copies and pastes, the music block  202  on to a track of a graphical user interface  300  which is generated onto a screen  504  by the midi-composer application  20  and displayed on the screen  504 . Once the polyphonic audio signal is generated using the midi-composer application  20 , the polyphonic audio signal is stored in the memory  40 , and a default flag is set at the CPU  506  causing the polyphone audio signal to be played upon the occurrence of specified events such as an incoming call. The next occurrence of the specified event will actuate the new customized audio signal which is played through the speaker  60 . Although the preferred embodiment illustrates a navigation tool  50  in addition to a keypad  502 , those skilled in the art will understand that the keypad  502  may function as the navigation tool  50 , and therefore, the navigation tool  50  would be unnecessary.  
         [0031]    In an alternate embodiment, the mobile station  500  may also have the ability to record and store self-made audio loops or samples. In this case, the mobile station  500  may also include an audio sampler  508  for receiving audio signals. The self-made audio signals can be stored in the memory  40  in a solo library  200 D or elsewhere. The midi-composer application  20  can then create music blocks  202  for the self-made audio signals so that the user can incorporate the solo blocks  202  into the polyphonic audio signal.  
         [0032]    Although a preferred embodiment of the method and apparatus of the present invention has been illustrated in the accompanying Drawings and described in the foregoing Detailed Description, it is understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiment disclosed, but is capable of numerous rearrangements, modifications, and substitutions without departing from the spirit of the invention as set forth and defined by the following claims.