SPEECH-SYNTHESIS DEVICE

• US 20070233493A1
• Filed: 03/22/2007
• Published: 10/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Nakao, Muneki
• Granted Patent: US 8,234,117 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/260
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/08 Text analysis or generation of parameters for speech synthesis out of text, e.g. grapheme to phoneme translation, prosody generation or stress or intonation determination

Abstract

In a speech-synthesis device, it is possible to determine whether or not a user dictionary that supports processing for reading aloud a specific phrase associated with specific reading should be used. The speech-synthesis device includes a speech-synthesis unit configured to perform read-aloud processing, a user dictionary provided to support processing for reading aloud a specific phrase associated with specific reading, and a control unit that includes a plurality of functions achieved by using information about the read-aloud processing, that determines whether or not the user dictionary should be used according to which of the functions is used so as to perform the read-aloud processing, and that makes the speech-synthesis unit perform the read-aloud processing.

Claims

1. A speech-synthesis device comprising:

a speech-synthesis unit configured to perform read-aloud processing;

a user dictionary provided so as to support read aloud processing of a specific phrase associated with a specific reading; and

a control unit that includes a plurality of functions achieved by using information about the read-aloud processing,

wherein the control unit determines whether or not the user dictionary should be used according to which of the functions is used, so as to perform the read-aloud processing, and controls the speech-synthesis unit to perform the read-aloud processing.

2. The speech-synthesis device according to claim 1, wherein the speech-synthesis unit has a mode of operating by using a combination of at least two dictionaries, and wherein the mode can be selected from at least one speech-synthesis function of calling up speech-synthesis processing.

3. The speech-synthesis device according to claim 1, wherein the speech-synthesis unit has two modes including a mode of performing the read-aloud processing by using the user dictionary and a mode of performing the read-aloud processing without using the user dictionary, and wherein each of the two modes can be selected from the plurality of functions.

4. The speech-synthesis device according to claim 1, wherein when the plurality of functions includes a mail function, the control unit makes the speech-synthesis unit perform the read-aloud processing so that mail distributed from a mail address registered with the speech-synthesis device in advance is read aloud by using the user dictionary and mail distributed from a mail address that is not registered with the speech-synthesis device is read aloud without using the user dictionary.

5. The speech-synthesis device according to claim 1, wherein when the plurality of functions includes at least one of a phone-call-reception function and a phone-directory function, the control unit makes the speech-synthesis unit perform the read-aloud processing for a phone call by using the user dictionary when a phone number of the phone call is registered with the speech-synthesis device in advance, and makes the speech-synthesis unit perform the read-aloud processing for the phone call without using the user dictionary when the phone number of the phone call is not registered with the speech-synthesis device in advance.

6. A method of controlling a speech-synthesis device using a user dictionary provided so as to support read aloud processing of a specific phrase associated with a specific reading, the control method comprising:

synthesizing speech so as to be able to perform read-aloud processing;

determining whether or not the user dictionary should be used according to which of a plurality of functions achieved by using information about the read-aloud processing is used; and

performing control so as to perform the read-aloud processing.

7. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions for controlling a speech-synthesis device configured to synthesize speech by using a user dictionary provided so as to support read aloud processing of a specific phrase associated with specific reading, the computer readable medium comprising:

computer-executable instructions for synthesizing speech so as to perform read-aloud processing;

computer-executable instructions for determining whether or not the user dictionary should be used according to which of a plurality of functions achieved by using information about the read-aloud processing is used; and

computer-executable instructions for performing control so as to perform the read-aloud processing.