Recording/reproducing apparatus including synthesized voice converter

• US 4,717,261 A
• Filed: 01/08/1986
• Issued: 01/05/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/1985
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: Kita, Kazunori, Shoji, Hideyuki, Aihara, Toshiharu
• Primary Examiner(s): Miska, Vit W.
• Application Number:
  US06/817,054
• Time in Patent Office: 727 Days
• Field of Search: 368/10, 368/63, 368/72-75, 368/250-251, 360/8, 360/32, 365/45, 369/20, 369/23, 364/900, 364/705, 364/710, 381/51
• US Class Current: 368/63
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 13/00 Producing acoustic time signals
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/00 Speech or audio signals analysis-synthesis techniques for redundancy reduction, e.g. in vocoders; Coding or decoding of speech or audio signals, using source filter models or psychoacoustic analysis in musical instruments G10H

Abstract

In a recording/reproducing apparatus, voice message information is encoded into voice message data by an encoder, and keyed in data information is converted into synthesizing speech data by a speech synthesizing circuit. Both the voice message data and the synthesized speech data are separately stored in a semiconductor memory. The speech data is independently read out from the semiconductor memory.

Claims

1. A recording/reproducing apparatus, comprising:

key input means operative for inputting digital input data;

speech synthesizing circuit means arranged to be coupled to said key input means for producing speech-synthesized data from the digital input data;

acoustic converter means for converting incoming speech sounds to a speech signal;

selecting means coupled to said speech synthesizing circuit means and said acoustic converter means for selecting one of said speech signal and said speech synthesized data;

encoding means coupled to said selecting means for encoding the one of said speech signal and said speech synthesized data which is selected by said selecting means, and producing corresponding encoded data;

encoded data storing means including a memory for storing said encoded data at a number of address regions;

addressing means coupled to said encoded data storing means for addressing the regions of said storing means;

readout control means associated with said addressing means for reading the speech encoded data out from said encoded data storing means by controlling the addressing operation of said addressing means;

decoding means coupled to said storing means for decoding the speech encoded data when read out by the readout control means, into a decoded speech signal; and

speech generating means coupled to said decoding means for generated the decoded speech signal in the form of audible speech.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:

temporary memory means for temporarily storing the speech encoded data when read out by said readout control means; and

memory control means for re-storing in said encoded data storing means, the speech encoded data stored in said temporary storing means.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:

means for generating time data;

alarm time storage means for storing pre-set alarm data;

means for displaying at least one of said time data and said alarm data; and

coincidence detection means coupled to said time data generating means and said alarm time storage means for detecting a coincidence between said time data and said alarm data to produce a coincidence signal,

wherein said readout control means is arranged to read the speech encoded data out from said encoded data storing means in response to said coincidence signal.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said acoustic converter means comprises a microphone and an amplifier.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, including a low-pass filter coupled to an output of said selecting means for supplying the selected one of said speech signal and said speech synthesized data to said encoding means.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:

presetting means for presetting a desired address into said addressing means; and

means for storing said speech encoded data at an address region of the memory in said encoded data storing means which is situated next adjacent to a preset address region.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said encoded data storing means comprises a semiconductor memory chip.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said encoded data storing means comprises a detachable card-shaped body, and a semiconductor memory chip embedded in said card-shaped body.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said semiconductor memory chip is a random access memory chip, and including a battery cell in said card-shaped body for energizing said memory chip.

10. A recording/reproducing apparatus, comprising:

key input means for inputting digital input data;

acoustic converting means for converting incoming speech sounds to a speech signal;

encoding means coupled to said acoustic converting means for encoding the converted speech signal to produce digital speech data;

selecting means coupled to said key input means and said encoding means for selecting one of said digital input data and said digital speech data;

selected data storing means for storing data identifying which digital data is selected by said selecting means;

digital data storing means for storing the digital data selected by said selecting means;

readout control means for reading out the digital data stored in said digital data storing means and the identifying data stored in said selected data storing means;

speech synthesizing circuit means for producing speech-synthesized data from the digital data read from said digital data storing means when the identifying data read out by said readout control means indictaes said digital input data;

decoding means for decoding the digital data read from said digital data storing means to speech data when the identifying data read out by said readout control means indicates said digital speech data; and

speech generating means associated with said speech synthesizing circuit means and said decoding means, for generating a selected one of said speech-synthesized data and said speech data in the form of audible speech.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said digital data storing means comprises a semiconductor memory chip.

12. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said digital data storing means comprises a detachable card-shaped body, and a semiconductor memory chip embedded in said card-shaped body.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said semiconductor chip is a random access memory chip, and including a battery cell in said card-shaped body for energizing said memory chip.

14. A recording/reproducing apparatus, comprising:

means for generating a reference signal;

time count means for counting the reference signal to obtain present time data;

display means for displaying said present time data;

acoustic converter means for converting incoming speech sounds to a speech signal;

coding means coupled to said acoustic converter means for encoding the converted speech signals into digital speech data;

storage means coupled to said coding means including at least firts and second storage regions, for temporarily storing said digital speech data in said first storage region;

recording control means for storing said present time data in the second storage region of said storage means when said digital speech data is temporarily stored in said first storage region;

readout control means for reading said present time data out from said second storage region when said digital speech data is read out from said first storage region;

display control means for displaying, on said display means, the present time data which is read by said readout control means;

means coupled to said storage means for decoding the digital speech data read out from the first storage region into an analog speech signal; and

means for converting said analog speech signal into a corresponding acoustic message sound.

15. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said time count means comprises means for producing time and date signals.

16. The apparatus according to claim 14, comprising:

means for storing preset time data; and

means for reading said digital speech data from the first storage region of said storage means when time data corresponding to the preset time data stored in said time data storing means is also stored in the second storage region of said storage means.

17. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said first storage means comprises a semiconductor memory chip.

18. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said first storage means comprises a detachable card-shaped body, and a semiconductor memory chip embedded in said card-shaped body.

19. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said semiconductor memory chip is a random access memory chip and including a battery cell in said card-shaped body for energizing said memory chip.

20. A recording/reproducing apparatus, comprising:

key input means operative for inputting digital input data;

acoustic converter means for converting incoming speech sounds to a speech message signal;

encoding means coupled to said converter means for encoding converted speech message signals into digital speech data;

selecting means for selecting one of said digital input data from said key input means, and said digital speech data from said encoding means;

digital data storing means including a number of address regions, for storing the digital data selected by said selecting means;

addressing means for addressing the regions of said digital data storing means, said addressing means including means for addressing a different region depending upon whether the digital data selected by said selecting means is said digital input data or said digital speech data;

readout control means for reading one of said digital input data and said digital speech data out from said digital data storing means by controlling operation of said addressing means and addressing a respective differet region of said storing means;

display means for displaying said digital input data when the digital data read by the readout control means corresponds to said digital input data;

decoding means for decoding said digital speech data as a speech signal when the digital data read by said readout control means is said digital speech data; and

speech generating means coupled to said decoding means for generating audible speech on the basis of said speech signal.

21. The apparatus according to claim 20, comprising:

means for generating time data based on self-oscillated reference clock pulse signals, and

means for selecting said time data and the digital data read out from said digital data storing means to permit display of at least one of said time data and said digital data.

22. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein said display means further displays recording conditions of said digital data storing means, for enabling visual recognition of whether or not said digital speech data can be recorded in said digital data storage means.

23. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein said addressing means includes means for sequentially addressing a number of address regions of said digital data storing means in one direction from a given address when said digital speech data is selected by said selecting means, and for sequentially addressing said number of address regions in an opposite direction from said given address when said digital input data is selected by said selecting means.