Detecting pause in audible input to device

• US 10,163,455 B2
• Filed: 12/03/2013
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo PC International Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo Singapore Pte Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: VanBlon, Russell Speight, Beaumont, Suzanne Marion, Waltermann, Rod David
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Paras D
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le, Thuykhanh
• Application Number:
  US14/095,369
• Publication Number:
  US 20150154983A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,848 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 25/48 specially adapted for particular use
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 25/87 Detection of discrete points within a voice signal

Abstract

A device includes a processor and a memory accessible to the processor and bearing instructions executable by the processor to process an audible input sequence provided by a user of the device, determine that a pause in providing the audible input sequence has occurred at least partially based on a first signal from at least one camera communicating with the device, cease to process the audible input sequence responsive to a determination that the pause has occurred, determine that providing the audible input sequence has resumed based at least partially based on a second signal from the camera, and resume processing of the audible input sequence responsive to a determination that providing the audible input sequence has resumed.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

at least one processor; and

storage accessible to the processor and bearing instructions executable by the processor to;

initiate an audible input application for processing audible input, the audible input application being initiated in response to a determination that the device has been moved from outside a threshold distance to a user to inside the threshold distance;

receive an audible input sequence; and

process the audible input sequence;

determine that a pause in providing the audible input sequence has occurred;

responsive to the determination that the pause has occurred, cease to process the audible input sequence;

determine that providing the audible input sequence has resumed; and

responsive to a determination that providing the audible input sequence has resumed, resume processing of the audible input sequence;

wherein the pause comprises an audible sequence separator that is unintelligible to the device and wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to determine to cease to process the audible input sequence responsive to processing a signal from an accelerometer on the device except when also at least substantially concurrently therewith receiving the audible sequence separator.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the audible sequence separator is determined to be unintelligible at least in part based on execution of lip reading software on at least the first signal, the first signal generated by the camera responsive to the camera gathering at least one image of at least a portion of the user'"'"'s face.

3. The device of claim 1, comprising at least two sensors, wherein the determination that the device has been moved from outside a threshold distance to a user to inside the threshold distance based at least in part on at least one signal from each of the two sensors.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the at least two sensors are selected from the group consisting of:

an infrared sensor, a sonar sensor, a heat sensor.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the instructions are executable to:

determine that the user is about to provide the audible input sequence in response to the determination that the device has been moved from outside the threshold distance to inside the threshold distance and in response to a determination that the device is one or more of;

held still after being moved to inside the threshold distance, held at a predefined orientation after being moved to inside the threshold distance, and held at a constant distance from the user after being moved to inside the threshold distance.

6. A method, comprising:

receiving, at a device, a first portion of an audible input sequence, the audible input sequence being provided by a user;

identifying, subsequent to receiving the first portion, an audible input sequence separator spoken by the user;

receiving, at the device and subsequent to the audible input sequence separator being spoken, a second portion of an audible input sequence; and

processing the audible input sequence based on the first portion and the second portion but not processing the audible input sequence using the audible input sequence separator;

the method further comprising;

determining that the user has stopped providing the audible input sequence and subsequently determining that the user has resumed providing the audible input sequence, wherein the determining that the user has resumed providing the audible input sequence comprises determining that the user has resumed providing the audible input sequence responsive to determining that a threshold time has expired during which no touch input has been received at the display.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the determining that the user has stopped providing the audible input sequence comprises determining that the user has stopped providing audible input and determining that the user is engaging another operation of the device based on the input from the display.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the audible input sequence separator is identified based on a third portion of the audible input sequence being unintelligible.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the audible input sequence separator is identified based on a third portion of the audible input sequence being recognized as an utterance to be ignored, and wherein the third portion is recognized as an utterance to be ignored based on identification of an entry in a data table as corresponding to the utterance.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the audible input sequence separator is identified based on a third portion of the audible input sequence being recognized as a first utterance to be ignored, and wherein the third portion is recognized as a first utterance to be ignored based on identification of the first utterance as corresponding to a predefined utterance.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein the audible input sequence separator is identified based on a third portion of the audible input sequence being recognized as pertaining to a first language different from a second language corresponding to the first and second portions.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein the audible input sequence separator is identified based on a third portion of the audible input sequence being recognized as not being a word in the language in which the first and second portions are spoken by the user.

13. An apparatus, comprising:

a first processor;

a network adapter;

storage bearing instructions executable by a second processor for;

processing first audible input received from a user;

pausing processing of audible input based at least in part on a determination that audible input is no longer being received;

subsequently receiving second audible input from the user;

processing the second audible input;

based at least in part on the processing of the second audible input, determining whether at least a portion of the first audible input is incompatible with at least a portion of the second audible input; and

in response to determining that at least the portion of the first audible input is incompatible with at least the portion of the second audible input, executing a command based at least in part on the portion of the second audible input but not the portion of the first audible input that is incompatible with the portion of the second audible input;

wherein the first processor transfers the instructions to the second processor over a network via the network adapter.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions are executable for:

determining whether at least a portion of the first audible input is incompatible with at least a portion of the second audible input based on recognition of a key word provided in at least one of the first audible input and the second audible input.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions are executable for:

determining whether at least a portion of the first audible input is incompatible with at least a portion of the second audible input based on recognition of at least a first word from the first audible input as conflicting with at least a second word from the second audible input.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions are executable for:

determining whether at least a portion of the first audible input is incompatible with at least a portion of the second audible input based on recognition of at least a first word from the first audible input as being similar to at least a second word from the second audible input.

17. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions are executable for:

determining whether at least a portion of the first audible input is incompatible with at least a portion of the second audible input based on recognition of at least a first word from the first audible input as conflicting with at least a second word from the second audible input in that both the first word and the second word cannot be processed together to execute the command based on the first word and the second word.