Multiple language capability in an interactive system

• US 5,375,164 A
• Filed: 08/12/1992
• Issued: 12/20/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Jennings, Terry D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dwyer, James L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): TSANG, FAN S
• Application Number:
  US07/928,381
• Time in Patent Office: 860 Days
• Field of Search: 379/88, 379/89, 379/67, 364/419.01, 364/419.02, 364/419.05, 364/419.08, 364/419.16, 434/157, 434/156, 434/185, 434/307, 434/308, 381/43, 381/51, 340/721
• US Class Current: 379/88.05
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/027 Concept to speech synthesisers; Generation of natural phrases from machine-based concepts generation of parameters for speech synthesis out of text G10L13/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6505 storing speech in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/58 including a multilanguage function
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/487 Arrangements for providing information services, e.g. recorded voice services or time announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 Voice mail systems

Abstract

The data entry portion of a voice messaging system is constructed to be language, culture, or market segment independent. In particular, the design of the voice messaging system is based upon "semantic expressions," which are used to evaluate any language, culture, or market specific data that is entered by a user. In particular, each type of data entry is treated as a "semantic expression" having an identifier. This identifier is mapped into a plurality of rules, each rule providing instructions on how to interpret the input data for a particular language, culture, or market segment. The rules can recursively call other rules to provide additional flexibility in interpreting information that is entered by a user.

Claims

1. A voice messaging system comprising:

receiving means for providing a string of input data;

means for storing a set of announcements, each announcement represented by an identifier, each identifier associated with a plurality of rules, each rule associated with a format; and

means for interpreting the string of input data to provide an output data string in a predetermined format by evaluating said string of input data in accordance with one of the plurality of rules associated with said predetermined format;

wherein at least one of the plurality of rules comprises a representation of variable information and a construction rule, wherein the variable information includes an identifier associated with another announcement.

2. A voice messaging system for providing announcements in a plurality of languages, the system comprising:

means for storing a set of announcements, the announcement set comprising a first subset of announcements and a second subset of announcements, where each announcement in the first subset is represented by an identifier, each identifier associated with a plurality of rules, each rule associated with a particular language for constructing said announcement, and where each announcement in the second subset is represented by an identifier, each identifier associated with a plurality of rules, each rule associated with a particular format for evaluating an input data string;

means for storing a plurality of language specific data bases, each language specific data base comprising a plurality of language specific output information;

means for providing an announcement, from the first subset of announcements, to a user in a selected one of said plurality of languages by selecting ones of the plurality of language specific output information from the respective language specific data base in accordance with the one of the plurality of rules associated with said selected language and said announcement; and

means for interpreting an input data string from the user to provide an output data string in a particular format, the input data string associated with an announcement from the second subset of announcements and the output data string constructed in accordance with one of the plurality of rules associated with said particular format and said announcement taken from the second subset of announcements.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the language specific output information is a language specific voice fragment and the means for providing an announcement plays the plurality of language specific voice fragments to provide the announcement in the selected one of said languages to the user.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein said voice fragments are obtained from the data base of the selected language.

5. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein at least one of the rules comprises a representation of a variable and a construction rule.

6. A voice messaging system for providing announcements in a plurality of languages, the system comprising:

means for storing the plurality of languages, each language comprising a plurality of voice fragments;

second means for storing a first set of voice announcements and a second set of data announcements, where each voice announcement in the first set is represented by an identifier, each identifier associated with a plurality of rules, each rule associated with one of the plurality of languages, and where each data announcement in the second set is represented by an identifier, each identifier associated with a plurality of rules, each rule associated with one of a plurality of formats;

means first providing one of the voice announcements to a user in a particular language by playing ones of the plurality of language specific voice fragments that are selected in accordance with the one of the plurality of rules associated with the voice announcement in the particular language; and

means for interpreting an input data string from the user to provide an output data string in a particular format by associating with the input data string a data announcement and then evaluating the input data string in accordance with the one of the plurality of rules associated with the data announcement and the particular format.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein at least one of the rules comprises a representation of a variable and a construction rule.

8. Voice messaging apparatus comprising:

receiving means to provide an input data string;

means for storing a) a plurality of voice fragments in a first language and a plurality of first language rules, each first language rule associated with one of a plurality of voice announcements and including a reference to ones of the plurality of voice fragments, and b) a plurality of data announcements, each data announcement associated with a plurality of format rules, each format rule including information for parsing an input data string; and

processing means for a) providing a first language specific output to a user and b) for storing an output data string in a particular format;

where the first language specific output is representative of the plurality of voice fragments that are chosen in accordance with one of the plurality of first language rules associated with one of the plurality of announcements, and where the input data string is associated with one of the plurality of data announcements and the output data string is constructed in accordance with the one of the plurality of format rules corresponding to said particular format taken from the associated data announcement.

9. A method for providing an output data string in a selected one of a plurality of formats, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving an input data string;

retrieving an announcement identifier associated with an announcement from a data base;

translating the announcement identifier to retrieve a set of rules for the announcement from the data base, the set of rules comprising a plurality of rules, each one of the plurality of rules associated with a respective one of the plurality of formats;

selecting one of the plurality of rules associated with the selected one of the plurality of formats;

constructing the output data string in the selected one of the plurality of formats by formatting said input data string in accordance with the selected one of the plurality of rules; and

storing the output data string in a memory location;

wherein the selected one of the plurality of rules includes information representative of variable information and construction information and the variable information includes a second announcement identifier associated with a second announcement.

10. A method for use in a voice messaging system comprising the steps of:

storing a set of voice announcements, each voice announcement represented by an identifier, each identifier associated with a plurality of rules, each rule associated with a language and including a representation of some of a plurality of voice fragments in the language, the plurality of rules representing a plurality of languages;

storing a set of data announcements, each data announcement represented by an identifier, each identifier associated with a plurality of rules, each rule associated with a format;

storing a plurality of language specific data bases, each language specific data base comprising the plurality of language specific voice fragments;

selecting one of the set of voice announcements to provide as output to a user;

selecting one of the plurality of languages;

selecting one of the plurality of rules from the selected one of the set of voice announcements as a function of the selected one of the plurality of languages;

constructing a language specific voice announcement by providing the plurality of language specific voice fragments that are selected in accordance with the selected one of the plurality of rules taken from said voice announcement;

providing the language specific voice announcement to a user;

receiving from the user an input data string;

selecting one of the set of data announcements to interpret the input data string;

selecting one of the plurality of formats;

selecting one of the plurality of rules from the selected one of the set of data announcements as a function of the selected one of the plurality of formats; and

storing an output data string that is constructed in accordance the selected one of the plurality of rules taken from said selected data announcement.