# US 10,121,457 B2 · Method and apparatus for waking-up violin and other string instruments > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,121,457 B2 - Document ID: US10121457B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/423,313 - Filed: 2017-02-02 - Published: 2018-08-02 - Granted: 2018-11-06 - Earliest claimed: 2017-02-02 - Assignees: John Gilbert - Applicants: John Gilbert - Inventors: John Gilbert - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10121457B2 ## CPC - G10D 3/22: Material for manufacturing stringed musical instruments; Treatment of the material - G10D 1/02: Bowed or rubbed string instruments, e.g. violins or hurdy-gurdies - G10H 3/125: {Extracting or recognising the pitch or fundamental frequency of the picked up signal} - G10H 3/24: incorporating feedback means, e.g. acoustic - G10D: STRINGED MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; WIND MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; ACCORDIONS OR CONCERTINAS; PERCUSSION MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; AEOLIAN HARPS; SINGING-FLAME MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR (organs, harmoniums or similar wind musical instruments with associated blowing apparatus G10B; pianos, harpsichords, spinets or similar stringed musical instruments with one or more keyboards G10C; automatic musical instruments G10F; electrophonic musical instruments in which tones are generated by electromechanical means G10H) - G10H: ELECTROPHONIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; INSTRUMENTS IN WHICH THE TONES ARE GENERATED BY ELECTROMECHANICAL MEANS OR ELECTRONIC GENERATORS, OR IN WHICH THE TONES ARE SYNTHESISED FROM A DATA STORE ## Abstract Waking-up a violin or other instrument by determining naturally resonating features of a particular instrument by applying tones and analyzing the instrument's responses, and then applying vibrations (e.g., continuously and/or in patterns, such as alternating on/off, staccato, etc.) corresponding to the most responsive (resonant) portions of the instrument's responses (e.g., peaks of the analyzed instrument's response) fully breaking in the various parts of the instrument. The applied vibrations are continued until the instrument's amplitude response plateaus. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of waking up a Bow String Instrument (BSI), comprising the steps of: determining at least one frequency response peak of the BSI; and applying a primarily non-acoustical break-in vibration to the BSI instrument at or near the at least one frequency response peak; wherein the non-acoustical break-in vibration is transmitted to the BSI through a primarily vibrational pathway utilized by the BSI when it is being played. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one frequency response peak comprises a plurality of frequency response peaks in a lower frequency range of the BSI. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one frequency response peak comprises a plurality of frequency response peaks at or below 500 Hz. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of measuring a response of the BSI to the break-in vibration, and utilizing the measured response to determine a break-in state of the BSI. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, further comprising: repeating the steps of applying and measuring until the measured amplitude response is stable. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, wherein the method is completed after the measured amplitude response becomes stable. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method according to claim 6, further comprising the step of ending the method when the measured response shows no variation or less than 1% variation over a predetermined time period. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the method is completed when a response to the applied vibration is stable or does not exhibit change over a predetermined time interval. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method according to claim 8, wherein the time interval comprises approximately one hour. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one frequency response peak comprises at least one high point in a frequency response of the BSI when responding to a test vibration from between 1 and 500 Hz. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, wherein the frequency response of the BSI comprises volume. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of determining at least one frequency response peak comprises applying a range of vibrations to the BSI and measuring an acoustic response of the BSI across the range of vibrations and determining the frequency response peak from the measured response. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method according to claim 12, wherein the frequency response peaks comprise regions of the measured response that have a higher volumetric response than immediately surrounding regions. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method according to claim 13, wherein the regions comprise increments of approximately 100 Hz. ### Claim 15 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, wherein the steps of determining, applying, and measuring are automated. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) A performance comprising at least one BSI, wherein the BSI has been subjected to break-in according to claim 1. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) A Bow String Instrument constructed in a process comprising claim 1. ### Claim 18 A process, comprising the steps of: determining peak response frequencies of an acoustical device; applying input stimulus corresponding to the peak response frequencies; over time, measuring the acoustical device's response to the applied input stimulus; and completing the method when the measured response is stable. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) A bow string instrument subjected to the process according to claim 18. ### Claim 20 A computer readable media and a set of instructions stored by the computer readable media that, when loaded into a computer, cause the computer to perform the steps of: applying a break-in vibration to a Bow String Instrument (BSI) at the at least one frequency response peak into the BSI via a primarily non-acoustical vibrational pathway utilized by th BSI when it is being played; measuring a response of the BSI to the break-in vibration; utilizing the measured response to determine a break-in state of the BSI; and continuing to apply the break-in vibration until the measured response reaches a desired quality. ### Claim 21 A method of waking up a Bow String Instrument (BSI), comprising the steps of: determining a plurality of frequency response peaks of the BSI; and applying break-in vibrations to the BSI instrument via a mechanical coupling to the BSI; wherein the break-in vibrations are at or near at least one of the plurality of frequency response peaks. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The method according to claim 21, wherein the plurality of frequency response peaks comprises at least 3 peaks at 600 Hz or less. ### Claim 23 (depends on 21) The method according to claim 21, wherein the break-in vibrations are derived from one or more BSI instruments and applied to a BSI of similar design.