Speaking words language instruction system and methods

• US 20060166172A1
• Filed: 10/01/2003
• Published: 07/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Allegra A. May
• Original Assignee: Allegra A. May
• Inventors: May, Allegra A.
• Application Number:
  US10/676,509
• Publication Number:
  US 20060166172A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 434/185
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/04 Speaking with audible presentation of the material to be studied G09B5/04

Abstract

A computer-based information handling system comprises a processor for executing an application program, audio output device, and video display device including a display screen for displaying a word in a language for audible playback. A pointing device controls a cursor movable on the display screen in response to a user operating the pointing device. A memory is provided for storing a digital recording of the word for audible playback and a rollover region is associated with the word for playback, defined at a position on the display screen overlapping a position of said word for playback on the display screen. The rollover region is configured to cause audible playback of the word in the on-screen language when at least a portion of the cursor is moved over the rollover region. In further aspects, a method, computer-readable medium, language instruction system, markup language document, and method for developing a language instruction system are also provided.

Claims

1. A computer-based language instruction system, comprising:

a processor for executing a language instruction program;

a video display device including a display screen for displaying a word in a first language for audible playback on the display screen;

a pointing device for controlling a cursor movable on the display screen of the video display device in response to a user operating the pointing device;

an audio output device;

a digital recording of said word for playback;

a memory for storing said digital recording;

a rollover region on the display screen associated with said word for playback and defined at a position on the display screen selected from a position overlapping a position of said word and a position visually associated with said word, said rollover region configured to cause audible playback of said word in said first language when at least a portion of the cursor is moved over the rollover region;

an on-screen object selectable with said pointing device and associated with said word displayed on said display screen; and

said on-screen object configured to trigger audio playback of said displayed word in a second language different from the first language.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the rollover region is not visible to the user.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the rollover region is substantially contiguous with a set of pixels occupied by said word on the display screen.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said language instruction program is a web-based language instruction program.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first language is a new language to be learned by the user and the second language is a primary language of the user.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said displayed word is part of a multiword phrase or sentence in said first language appearing on said display screen.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein each word of said multiword phrase or sentence is individually selectable with the pointing device.

12. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of displayed words for playback appearing on said display screen, said plurality of displayed words appearing as individual words, multiword phrases or sentences, or a combination thereof; and

a distinct rollover region associated with each of said words, each distinct rollover region defined at a position on the display screen overlapping a position on the display screen of said word with which the rollover region is associated and configured to cause audible playback of said word in said first language when at least a portion of the cursor is over the rollover region.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein audible playback of a word is suppressed when at least a portion of the cursor moves over the rollover region during a time in which said audio output device is already causing audible playback.

14. The system of claim 1, further comprising an on-screen visual cue which appears during audible playback.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the pointing device is a transparent touch screen overlaying said display screen.

19. The system of claim 4, further comprising:

an HTML page comprising an embedded web object, said embedded web object for playing said digital recording of said word for playback.

33. The system of claim 19, wherein said embedded web object is a SWF file and said digital recording is an MP3 file.

8. A computer-based language instruction system, comprising;

a processor for executing a language instruction program;

a video display device including a display screen for displaying a word in a first language for audible playback on the display screen, wherein said word is part of a multiword phrase or sentence;

a pointing device for controlling a cursor movable on the display screen of the video display device in response to a user operating the pointing device;

an audio output device;

a digital recording of said word for playback;

a memory for storing said digital recording;

a rollover region on the display screen associated with said word for playback and defined at a position on the display screen selected from a position overlapping a position of said word and a position visually associated with said word, said rollover region configured to cause audible playback of said word in said first language when at least a portion of the cursor is moved over the rollover region;

a first on-screen object selectable with said pointing device and associated with said multiword phrase or sentence displayed on said display screen, said first on-screen object configured to trigger audio playback of said multiword phrase or sentence in said first language; and

a second on-screen object selectable with said pointing device and associated with said multiword phrase or sentence displayed on said display screen, said second on-screen object configured to trigger audio playback of said multiword phrase or sentence in a second language different from said first language.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein each word of said multiword phrase or sentence is individually selectable with said pointing device.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein all words of said multiword phrase or sentence are contained in a single digital audio file.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein said language instruction program is a web-based language instruction program.

35. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

an HTML page including an embedded web object, said embedded web object for playing said digital recording.

16. A computer-based language instruction system, comprising:

a processor for executing a language instruction program;

a video display device including a display screen for displaying a word in a first language for audible playback on the display screen;

a pointing device for controlling a cursor movable on the display screen of the video display device in response to a user operating the pointing device;

an audio output device;

a digital recording of said word for playback;

a memory for storing said digital recording;

a rollover region on the display screen associated with said word for playback, said rollover region configured to cause audible playback of said word in said first language when at least a portion of the cursor is moved over the rollover region; and

said rollover region selected from;

a region defined by a rectangular box equal in size to and enclosing said word; and

a region defined by a rectangular box with top and side boundaries that are aligned with the top and sides of said word and a bottom boundary that extends a predetermined number of pixels below the bottom of said word.

17. In a computer-based information handling system having a video display, an audio output device for audio output of prerecorded sounds, a pointing device for positioning a cursor on the video display, a method of providing language instruction to a student, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

providing an interface for displaying a word in a first language on the video display;

prerecording a digital sound recording of said word being spoken in said first language;

associating a designated hot region on the video display for triggering audio output of the recording of said word in the first language, said hot region defined at a position on the video display selected from a location which at least partially overlies said word on the video display and a location visually associated with said word;

positioning at least a portion of the cursor over the hot region in response to a user using the pointing device;

causing the audio output device to audibly output the recording of said word in the first language, the audio output being caused by the cursor being positioned over the hot region;

providing an on-screen object selectable with said pointing device and associated with said word displayed on said display screen; and

said on-screen object configured to trigger audio playback of said displayed word in a second language different from the first language.

34. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

creating a web object including said digital sound recording; and

embedding said web object in an HTML page.

18. A computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer-based information handling system to perform method steps for audio playback of a word appearing on a display device of said information handling system, said method steps comprising:

providing an interface for displaying a word in a first language on the video display;

prerecording a digital sound recording of said word being spoken in said first language;

associating a designated hot region on the display device for triggering audio output of the recording of said word in the first language, said hot region defined at a position on the video display selected from a location which at least partially overlies said word on the video display and a location visually associated with said word;

positioning at least a portion of the cursor over the hot region in response to a user using a pointing device for causing movement of a cursor on the display device;

causing the audio output device to audibly output the recording of said word in the first language, the audio output being caused by the cursor being positioned over the hot region;

providing an on-screen object selectable with said pointing device and associated with said word displayed on said display screen; and

said on-screen object configured to trigger audio playback of said displayed word in a second language different from the first language.

20. A method for developing a language instruction system, comprising:

designing a spoken words interface including one or more words in viewable form;

creating a digital sound recording of said one or more words for audible playback;

for each of said one or more words, defining a rollover region on said spoken words interface and associating at least a portion of said digital sound recording with each rollover region so as to cause audible playback of at least a portion of said digital sound recording in response to user input comprising positioning at least a portion of an on-screen cursor over the rollover region;

each rollover region defined on the spoken words interface at an on-screen location selected from a location which at least partially overlies an on-screen location of an associated one of said one or more words, and a location visually associated with said word;

creating a set of one or more user selectable on-screen objects for triggering bilingual playback of said one or more words;

associating each of said on-screen objects with a selected one or group of said one or more words and placing each of said one or more on-screen objects on the spoken words interface proximate the selected one or group of said one or more words; and

optionally, creating an action viewable on a display screen by a user and associating said action with said one or more on-screen objects.

26. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

said spoken words interface including a background image and text of said one or more words; and

creating a digital image representation of the background;

27. The method of claim 20, wherein said one or more words includes a multiword phrase or sentence, said method further comprising:

creating a digital sound recording of said multiword phrase or sentence being spoken in a fluent manner;

creating an on-screen object for triggering playback of said digital sound recording of said multiword phrase or sentence;

associating said on-screen object with said multiword phrase or sentence and placing the object on the spoken words interface proximate said multiword phrase or sentence; and

optionally, creating an action viewable on a display screen by a user and associating said action with on-screen object.

28. The method of claim 20, wherein the rollover region includes human-viewable indicia which allows transvisualization of the word.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the rollover region is transparent.

32. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

embedding an HTML object for playing said digital sound recording in an HTML page.

21. A method for developing a language instruction system, comprising:

designing a spoken words interface comprising a background image and text of one or more words for audible playback;

creating a digital image representation of the background;

creating a digital sound recording of said one or more words for audible playback;

for each of said one or more words, defining a rollover region on said spoken words interface and associating at least a portion of said digital sound recording with each rollover region so as to cause audible playback of at least a portion of said digital sound recording in response to user input comprising positioning at least a portion of an on-screen cursor over the rollover region;

each rollover region defined on the spoken words interface at an on-screen location selected from a location which at least partially overlies an on-screen location of an associated one of said one or more words, and a location visually associated with said word;

creating a FLASH document including said background image and said digital sound recording

creating a FLASH format (SWF) from the FLASH document.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

prior to creating the SWF file, testing the FLASH document.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising embedding the SWF file as an object in said HTML page and, optionally:

testing the HTML page on one or more targeted platforms; and

publishing the HTML page on the web.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein the background is selected from one or more of scanned photographs, digital photographs, scanned artwork, and digital artwork, or any combination thereof.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein the background bears a thematic relationship to the text and/or the text and background combine to tell a story.

36. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

storing said background image and said digital sound recording into a document library of said FLASH document;

placing said background image on a first layer of said document; and

placing said digital sound recording on a second layer of said document.

30. A markup language document stored on a computer-readable medium to provide interactive language instruction, comprising:

a word in a first language viewable on a video display;

a rollover region on the video display for triggering audio playback of a prerecorded digital recording of said word in the first language in response to a user moving at least a portion of an on-screen cursor over said rollover region, said rollover region selected from a position overlapping a position of said word and a position visually associated with said word on the video display;

an on-screen object selectable with said pointing device and associated with said word displayed on said display screen; and

said on-screen object configured to trigger audio playback of said displayed word in a second language different from the first language.

31. The markup language document of claim 30, further comprising one or both of:

an embedded object embedded in said markup language document said embedded object including said prerecorded digital sound recording; and

a background image viewable on the video display and including said word in said first language.