Abstract & Overview
Music is a popular form of entertainment for human beings. Instruments are often played by experts in studios or at live performances. Digital or digitised (computer) music is also popular amongst today's listeners. However, there are subtle differences between the sound of a real instrument and digital music. Moreover, the physical movement of real instruments creates a different atmosphere. Hence, this paper addresses the development of a robotic pan flute that enables a real instrument to be played by non-expert musicians. The various subsystems of the low-cost prototype solution are detailed and its performance is evaluated. Experimental results indicate that the system can produce the desired (theoretical) music notes and is robust to variations in compressed air pressure over the tested range.