REMEDYING DISTORTIONS IN SPEECH AUDIOS RECEIVED BY PARTICIPANTS IN CONFERENCE CALLS USING VOICE OVER INTERNET (VOIP)

• US 20150170651A1
• Filed: 12/12/2013
• Published: 06/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Arenburg, Robert Thomas, Barillaud, Franck, Dutta, Shivanth, Mendoza, Alfredo V.
• Application Number:
  US14/104,167
• Publication Number:
  US 20150170651A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/20 Speech recognition techniques specially adapted for robustness in adverse environments, e.g. in noise, of stress induced speech G10L21/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4038 with floor control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS

Abstract

In a VOIP teleconference, the conference is monitored for speech distortion in either received or transmitted audio speech. Responsive to such distortion, a voice to text conversion is displayed on appropriate receiving terminals only for the time period of the audio speech distortion.

Claims

1. A computer controlled display method for conducting telecommunication conferences between a plurality of participants over a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) each participant respectively connected through a respective one of a corresponding plurality of display terminals comprising:

transmitting a speech audio from each display terminal to each other display terminal on the Internet through a central call center;

conducting a speech to text conversion of each speech audio;

determining if the speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions;

if said transmitted speech audio has distortions, commence displaying the text conversion representing said distorted speech audio on all of the other display terminals together with the received speech audio;

determining if a speech audio received by one of said display terminals has distortions; and

if said received speech audio has distortions, displaying the text representing said distorted speech only on the display terminal receiving the audio having distortions together with the received speech audio.

2. The method of claim 1, further including:

determining if said distortions in a speech audio have ended; and

if said distortions have ended, terminating said display of said text on the display terminals now receiving the undistorted speech audio.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said determining if a received speech audio received at one of said display terminals has distortions is controlled by a routine associated with each receiving display terminal, said routine comprising:

determining if the speech audio received by the display terminal has distortion; and

responsive to such a received speech audio distortion, displaying text representing said distorted speech on only the display terminal receiving the distorted speech audio together with the received speech audio.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said determining if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions is controlled by a routine associated with said call center, said routine comprising:

determining if audio transmitted from one of the display terminals has distortion; and

responsive to such an audio speech distortion, displaying text representing said distorted speech on all of the other display terminals together with the received speech audio.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of determining if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions is carried out by comparing the text conversion representing the text being transmitted to the call center from said display terminal for synchronization with text conversion being received at the call center.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of determining if a speech audio received by one of said display terminals has distortions is carried out by comparing the text conversion representing the text being transmitted from the call center for synchronization with text conversion being received at the display terminal.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein if any participant at a receiving display terminal hears distorted speech audio, enabling the participant to manually turn on the display of text representing said distorted speech on the participant'"'"'s display terminal.

8. A computer controlled display system for conducting telecommunication conferences between a plurality of participants over a VOIP, each participant respectively connected through a respective one of a corresponding plurality of display terminals, said system comprising:

a processor;

a computer memory holding computer program instructions that, when executed by the processor, perform the method comprising;

transmitting a speech audio from each display terminal to each other display terminal on the Internet through a call center;

conducting a speech to text conversion of each speech audio;

determining if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions;

if said transmitted speech audio has distortions, commencing displaying the text conversion representing said distorted speech on all of the other display terminals together with the received speech audio;

determining if a speech audio received by one of said display terminals has distortions; and

if said received speech audio has distortions, displaying the text representing said distorted speech only on the display terminal receiving the audio having distortions together with the received speech audio.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein said performed method further includes:

determining if said distortions in a speech audio have ended; and

if said distortions have ended, terminating said display of said text on the display terminals now receiving undistorted speech.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein said determining, in said performed method if a received speech audio received at one of said display terminals has distortions is controlled by a routine associated with each receiving display terminal, said routine comprising:

determining if a speech audio received by the display terminal has distortion; and

responsive to such a received speech audio distortion, displaying text representing said distorted speech on only the display terminal receiving the distorted speech audio together with the received speech audio.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein said determining, in said performed method, if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions is controlled by a routine associated with said call center, said routine comprising:

determining if audio transmitted from one of the display terminals has distortion; and

responsive to such an audio speech distortion, displaying text representing said distorted speech on all of the other display terminals together with the received speech audio.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the step, in the performed method, of determining if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions is carried out by comparing if text conversion representing the text being transmitted to the call center from said display terminal for synchronization with text conversion being received at the call center.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the step, in the performed method, of determining if a speech audio received by one of said display terminals has distortions is carried out by comparing the text conversion representing the text being transmitted from the call center for synchronization with text conversion being received at the display terminal.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein if any participant at a receiving display terminal hears distorted speech, the performed method enables the participant to manually turn on the display of text representing said distorted speech on the participant'"'"'s display terminal.

15. A computer usable storage medium having stored thereon a computer readable program for conducting telecommunication conferences between a plurality of participants over a VOIP, each participant respectively connected through a respective one of a corresponding plurality of display terminals, wherein the computer readable program, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to:

transmit a speech audio from each display terminal to each other display terminal on the Internet through a call center;

conduct a speech to text conversion of each speech audio;

determine if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions;

if said transmitted speech audio has distortions, commence displaying the text conversion representing said distorted speech on all of the other display terminals together with the received speech audio;

determine if a speech audio received by one of said display terminals has distortions; and

if said received speech audio has distortions, display the text representing said distorted speech only on the display terminal receiving the audio having distortions together with the received speech audio.

16. The computer usable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the computer program, when executed, further causes the computer to:

determine if said distortions in a speech audio have ended; and

if said distortions have ended, terminating said display of said text on the display terminals now receiving undistorted speech.

17. The computer usable storage medium of claim 16, wherein when the computer program causes the computer to determine if a received speech audio received at one of said display terminals has distortions, the program causes the computer to carry out a routine associated with each receiving display terminal, said routine causes the computer to:

determine if a speech audio received by the display terminal has distortion; and

responsive to such a received speech audio distortion to display text representing said distorted speech on only the display terminal receiving the distorted speech audio together with the received speech audio.

18. The computer usable storage medium of claim 17, wherein when the computer program causes the computer to determine if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions, the program causes the computer to carry out a routine associated with said call center, said routine causes the computer to:

determine if audio transmitted from one of the display terminals has distortion; and

responsive to such an audio speech distortion, to display text representing said distorted speech on all of the other display terminals together with the received speech audio.

19. The computer usable storage medium of claim 15 wherein, when the program causes the computer to determine if a speech audio transmitted from one of said display terminals has distortions, the program causes the computer to compare the text conversion representing the text being transmitted to the call center from said display terminal for synchronization with text conversion being received at the call center.

20. The computer usable storage medium of claim 19, wherein the step of determining if a speech audio received by one of said display terminals has distortions is carried out by causing the computer to compare the text conversion representing the text being received by the display terminal for synchronization with text conversion being received at the display terminal.

21. The computer usable medium of claim 15, wherein the program causes the computer to enable any participant at a receiving display terminal who hears distorted auditory speech, to manually turn on the display of text representing said distorted speech on the participant'"'"'s display terminal.