Voice Communication Management

• US 20120143596A1
• Filed: 12/07/2010
• Published: 06/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bhogal, Kulvir S., Hollinger, Michael C., King, Jennifer E., Lauridsen, Christina K., Peterson, Robert R.
• Granted Patent: US 9,253,304 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/9
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/632 Query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/10 Text processing natural language analysis G06F40/20; semantic analysis G06F40/30; processing or translation of natural language G06F40/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/40 Processing or translation of natural language natural language analysis G06F40/20; semantic analysis G06F40/30
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 25/00 Speech or voice analysis techniques not restricted to a single one of groups G10L15/00 - G10L21/00 muting semiconductor-based amplifiers when some special characteristics of a signal are sensed by a speech detector, e.g. sensing when no signal is present, H03G3/34
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 25/03 characterised by the type of extracted parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/74 with voice recognition means voice activated dialling H04M1/271; voice recognition algorithms G10L15/00

Abstract

A method, a computer program product, and an apparatus for managing a voice communication are provided. In one illustrative embodiment, an audio phrase produced by a first user is identified in the voice communication between the first user and a second user. A determination is made whether the audio phrase is present in a policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases. Responsive to a determination that the audio phrase is present in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases, a communication of the audio phrase is modified.

Claims

1. A method for managing a voice communication, the method comprising:

identifying an audio phrase produced by a first user in the voice communication between the first user and a second user;

determining whether the audio phrase is an undesirable audio phrase using a policy which prohibits a transmission of a set of undesired audio phrases; and

responsive to a determination that the audio phrase is present in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases, modifying a communication of the audio phrase.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmission is a first transmission, and wherein the step of modifying the communication of the audio phrase comprises inhibiting a second transmission of audio from the first user to the second user for a period of time.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

generating an alert for the first user that the communication of the audio phrase is being modified; and

prior to identifying the audio phrase produced by the first user in the voice communication between the first user and the second user, establishing the voice communication using a proxy server.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of identifying the audio phrase produced by the first user in the voice communication comprises:

generating text that corresponds to a plurality of words in the audio phrase.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of determining whether the audio phrase is present in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases comprises:

determining whether the text is present in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases, wherein the undesired audio phrases in the policy are stored in textual form.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio phrase is a first audio phrase and further comprising:

receiving audio data for a second audio phrase; and

storing the audio data in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases as the second audio phrase.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the step of determining whether the audio phrase is present in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases comprises:

determining whether the second audio phrase matches the first audio phrase in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio phrase is a first audio phrase and further comprising:

receiving a collection of text;

generating audio data for the collection of text; and

storing the audio data in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases as a second audio phrase.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of modifying communication of the audio phrase comprises:

generating a request for a third user to join the voice communication; and

responsive to the request for the third user to join the voice communication, adding the third user to the voice communication.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of generating the request for the third user to join the voice communication comprises:

generating an audio alert in the voice communication for the first user and the second user indicating that the third user is being requested to join the voice communication; and

sending the request to the third user with information about the second user, wherein the information comprises a telephone number for the second user.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the audio alert is audible to the first user and inaudible to the second user.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the voice communication is a telephone call.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of modifying the communication of the audio phrase comprises:

generating an alert audible to the first user and inaudible to the second user that the audio phrase has been identified.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmission is a first transmission, and wherein the step of modifying the communication of the audio phrase comprises:

inhibiting a second transmission of audio from the first user to the second user for a period of time, wherein the audio phrase is confidential information and the second user is an unauthorized recipient of the confidential information.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of modifying the communication of the audio phrase comprises:

generating an electronic communication to a third user, wherein the electronic communication is selected from a text message to a mobile device for the third user and an electronic mail to the third user.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of modifying the communication of the audio phrase comprises:

generating an alert on a mobile device of the first user that the audio phrase was identified.

17. A computer program product comprising:

a computer readable medium;

program code, stored on the computer readable medium, for identifying an audio phrase produced by a first user in a voice communication between the first user and a second user;

program code, stored on the computer readable medium, for determining whether the audio phrase is present in a policy which prohibits a transmission of a set of undesired audio phrases; and

program code, stored on the computer readable medium, for modifying a communication of the audio phrase responsive to a determination that the audio phrase is present in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the computer readable storage medium is in a data processing system, and the program code is downloaded over a network from a remote data processing system to the computer readable storage medium in the data processing system.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the computer readable storage medium is a first computer readable storage medium, wherein the first computer readable storage medium is in a server data processing system, and wherein the program code is downloaded over a network to a remote data processing system for use in a second computer readable storage medium in the remote data processing system.

20. A data processing system comprising:

a bus system;

a storage device connected to the bus system, wherein the storage device includes program code; and

a processor unit connected to the bus system, wherein the processing unit executes the program code to identify an audio phrase produced by a first user in a voice communication between a first user and a second user, determines whether the audio phrase is present in a policy which prohibits a transmission of a set of undesired audio phrases, and modifies a communication of the audio phrase responsive to a determination that the audio phrase is present in the policy which prohibits the transmission of the set of undesired audio phrases.