Visual marker for speech enabled links

• US 20070038923A1
• Filed: 08/10/2005
• Published: 02/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Patel, Paritosh
• Granted Patent: US 7,707,501 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/167 Audio in a user interface, e.g. using voice commands for navigating, audio feedback
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue

Abstract

A method for notifying a user that a link is enabled for activation through voice input. The method can display a visual marker for a hyperlink to indicate that the hyperlink is activatable thorough voice input. The visual marker is not displayed for the hyperlink when the hyperlink is not activatable through voice input even if the hyperlink is activatable through other forms of user input. Visual markers can include such indicators as double underlining the hyperlink, surrounding the hyperlink with a box, and altering the background color of the hyperlink.

Claims

1. A method for notifying a user that a link is enabled for activation through voice input comprising:

displaying a visual marker for a hyperlink to indicate that the hyperlink is activatable thorough voice input, where the visual marker is not displayed for the hyperlink when the hyperlink is not activatable through voice input even if the hyperlink is activatable through other forms of user input.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the visual marker includes double underlining the hyperlink.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the visual marker includes surrounding the hyperlink with a box.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the visual marker includes altering the background color of the hyperlink.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

presenting a user interface for a user to configure characteristics of the visual marker, wherein configurable characteristics include a user configurable font adjustment for the visual marker.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the font adjustment includes a user configurable adjustment for at least one of font color, background color, font type, font size, font underlining characteristics, and font border.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a user selection of an interface option for enabling visual markers for hyperlinks; and

responsive to receiving the user selection, selectively toggling an enablement state for displaying the visual markers, wherein when the enablement state is enabled visual markers are displayed and when the enablement state is disabled visual markers are not displayed.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the interface option is a button having at least two visual display states, wherein one of the visual display states indicates enablement and wherein another of the visual display states indicates disablement.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the interface option is an overloaded interface option having at least one function unrelated to enabling visual markers.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the visual marker and the hyperlinks are contained within a Web page that is displayed within a Web browser.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the visual marker is used to indicate that other visual elements within the Web browser are enabled to accept voice input, said other visual elements including at least one of a menu option and an interface button.

12. A machine readable storage, having stored thereon a computer program having a plurality of code sections executable by a machine for causing the machine to perform the step of:

displaying a visual marker for a hyperlink to indicate that the hyperlink is activatable thorough voice input, where the visual marker is not displayed for the hyperlink when the hyperlink is not activatable through voice input even if the hyperlink is activatable through other forms of user input.

13. A visual interface comprising:

at least one visual marker for a hyperlink to indicate that the hyperlink is activatable thorough voice input, where the visual marker is not displayed for the hyperlink when the hyperlink is not activatable through voice input even if the hyperlink is activatable through other forms of user input.

14. The visual interface of claim 13, wherein the interface is an interface of a Web browser.

15. The visual interface of claim 14, wherein the Web browser is a multi-modal Web browser enabled for speech input, keyboard input, and mouse input.

16. The visual interface of claim 13, further comprising:

an interface option for permitting a user to selectively enable the display of the at least one visual marker within the interface.

17. The visual interface of claim 16, wherein the interface option is a displayed button within the interface having at least two button states, where different button states are displayed depending on whether the interface option is enabled or disabled.

18. The visual interface of claim 13, further comprising:

a user configuration interface that permits a user to configure a font adjustment associated with the visual marker.

19. The visual interface of claim 18, wherein the font adjustment includes a user configurable adjustment for at least one of font color, background color, font type, font size, font underlining characteristics, and font border.

20. The visual interface of claim 18, wherein the visual marker is used to indicate that other visual elements within the interface are enabled to accept voice input, said other visual elements including at least one of a menu option and an interface button.