SYSTEM AND METHOD OF UBIQUITOUS LANGUAGE TRANSLATION FOR WIRELESS DEVICES

• US 20080021697A1
• Filed: 08/14/2007
• Published: 01/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cox, Richard, Isaacson, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 7,689,245 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/2
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2061 Language aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42229 Personal communication services, i.e. services related to one subscriber independent of his terminal and/or location diverting calls from one subscriber to another subscriber, i.e. two different subscriptions H04M3/54; selecting arrangements in intelligent networks H04Q3/005
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A system and method of providing a location-based translation service is disclosed. A wireless device receives from a wireless network an updated priority target language list according to the location of the wireless device. The wireless device and/or wireless network are capable of automatic speech recognition (ASR), text-to-speech (TTS) services and language translation services. A language and location database module associates probable target languages in a given area. The wireless network node receives the location of the wireless device through a network-based location means or through a GPS system and compares the location of the wireless device to the language and location database. The wireless network transmits to the wireless device an updated priority language list based on the data in the language and location database such that the wireless device pre-selects the most likely target language if the user launches the language translation application. When the user launches the language translation application, the selection of the target language is simplified since the most likely target language is pre-selected.

Claims

1. A system for providing location-based translation services through a wireless device, the system comprising:

a network node storing data related to probable languages spoken according to geographic location, the network node transmitting to the wireless device a prioritized list of target languages according to the location of the wireless device such that the prioritized list of target languages is displayed when a translation application is activated.

2. The system for providing location-based translation services through a wireless device of claim 1, wherein a user, from a status of being able to generally choose applications on the wireless device, may select the translation application via a single input to the wireless device and wherein a target translation language that is the most probable language for the location among the prioritized list of target languages_will be preselected.

3. A system for providing location-based translation services through a wireless device, the system being capable of receiving global positioning system information regarding a location of the wireless device, the system comprising:

a database of language information associating probable languages spoken in any given area; and

a network node that receives location information regarding the wireless device from the global positioning system and transmits to the wireless device a prioritized list of at least one probable target language based on the location of the wireless device, wherein the system is configured such that the prioritized list of at least one probable target language is displayed on the wireless device, and the most probable target language among the prioritized list is preselected when a translation services application is activated.

4. The system for providing location-based translation services through a wireless device of claim 3, wherein a translation language choice menu on the wireless device includes the prioritized list of at least one probable target language based on the location of the wireless device.

5. A method of providing location-based translation services on a wireless device, the method comprising:

determining a location of the wireless device by a location detection system;

associating at a network node the location of the wireless device with the most probable target language and with a prioritized list of probable target languages spoken at the location; and

preselecting the most probable target language and displaying the prioritized list of probable target languages at the wireless device, wherein when a user selects language translation services, the wireless device translates source speech into the target language without further user language selection action.

6. The method of providing location-based translation services on a wireless device of claim 5, wherein the prioritized list of probable target languages is displayed on the wireless device such that any one of the listed probable target languages is readily selectable by the user if the user indicates a desire for a language other than the preselected most probable language.

7. A method of providing location-based translation services on a wireless device, the method comprising:

determining a location of the wireless device by a location detection system;

associating at a network node the location of the wireless device with at least one_probable target language;

transmitting at the network node data associated with the at least one probable target language to the wireless device; and

prioritizing the at least one probable target language in a menu system on the wireless device, such that when a user selects a translation services application from a general application choice status, the most probable target language is preselected and a list of the at least one probable target language is displayed.

8. The method of providing location-based translation services on a wireless device of claim 7, wherein determining a location of the wireless device further comprises using a wireless network based location determining means.

9. The method of providing location-based translation services on a wireless device of claim 7, wherein determining a location of the wireless device further comprises using a global positioning system that determines the location of the wireless device.

10. The method of providing location-based translation services on a wireless device of claim 8, wherein associating the location of the wireless device with the at least one_probable target language further comprises comparing demographic data in a network node associated with cell sites served by the network node with the location of the wireless device.

11. The method of providing location-based translation services on a wireless device of claim 9, wherein associating the location of the wireless device with the at least one_probable target language further comprises comparing the location of the wireless device determined by the GPS system to a map of demographic data including target language information.

12. A method of providing location-based language translation service, the method comprising:

receiving via a wireless connection at the wireless device a group of prioritized probable languages spoken according to the location of the wireless device;

updating via a wireless connection at the wireless device a language translation menu according to the group of prioritized probable languages spoken received; and

upon a single click request from a user, presenting the user at the wireless device with a dialogue window for translation services for a most probable language spoken from the group of prioritized probable languages spoken, the dialog window including a list of the group of probable languages.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising presenting the user with a menu option to select other languages from the group of prioritized probable languages spoken.

14. A method of multi-modal interaction with users using a wireless device for language translation, the method comprising:

displaying at the wireless device a list of prioritized target languages associated with a location of the wireless device received via wireless connection, the location detected by a location detection system, when a translation application is activated on the wireless device;

receiving at the wireless device a first message in a first language;

providing at the wireless device associated first text of the received message in a first window; and

upon user approval of the first text, translating at a translation device in a network_the first text into a second language and providing second text in a second window in the second language, wherein the second language is selectable from the list of prioritized target languages associated with the location of the wireless device.

15. The method of multi-modal interaction with users using a wireless device for language translation of claim 14, further comprising:

audibly speaking from the device in the second language a translation of the first message.

16. The method of multi-modal interaction with users using a wireless device for language translation of claim 15, further comprising:

providing instructions in the second language for how to speak a message in the second language for translation into the first language.

17. A method of multi-modal interaction with a first user and a second user through a wireless device having a language translation application, the method comprising:

displaying at the wireless device a list of prioritized target languages associated with a location of the wireless device received via wireless connection, the location detected by a location detection system, when a translation services application is activated on the wireless device;

receiving at the wireless device a first message in a first language;

providing at the wireless device a first message text in the first language in a first window;

upon the first user approval of the first message text, translating at a translation device in a network the first message text into a second language and providing at the wireless device the first message text in a second window in the second language;

receiving at the wireless device a second message in the second language;

providing at the wireless device a second message text in the second window in the second language; and

upon the second user approval of the second message text, translating at the translation device in a wireless network the second message text into the first language and providing the second message text in the first window in the first language, wherein the second language is selectable from the list of prioritized target languages associated with the location of the wireless device.

18. The method of multi-modal interaction with a first of claim 17, wherein the second language is preselected according user and a second user through a wireless device having a language translation application to the location of the device.

19. The method of multi-modal interaction with a first user and a second user through a wireless device having a language translation application of claim 18, wherein the second language has the highest probability of needing translation in the location of the wireless device.