×

Method and apparatus for speech synthesis based on prosodic analysis

  • US 5,384,893 A
  • Filed: 09/23/1992
  • Issued: 01/24/1995
  • Est. Priority Date: 09/23/1992
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
Patent Images

1. A system for synthesizing a speech signal from strings of words, comprising:

  • means for entering into the system strings of characters comprising words;

    a first memory, wherein predetermined syntax tags are stored in association with entered words and phonetic transcriptions are stored in association with the syntax tags;

    parsing means, in communication with the entering means and the first memory, for grouping syntax tags of entered words into phrases according to a first set of predetermined grammatical rules relating the syntax tags to one another and for verifying the conformance of sequences of the phrases to a second set of predetermined grammatical rules relating the phrases to one another, wherein the sequences of the phrases correspond to the entered words;

    first means, in communication with the parsing means, for retrieving from the first memory the phonetic transcriptions associated with the syntax tags grouped into phrases conforming to the second set of rules, for translating predetermined strings of entered characters into words, and for generating strings of phonetic transcriptions and prosody markers corresponding to respective strings of entered and translated words;

    second means, in communication with the first means, for adding markers for rhythm and stress to the strings of phonetic transcriptions and prosody markers and for converting the strings of phonetic transcriptions and prosody markers into arrays having prosody information on a diphone-by-diphone basis;

    a second memory, wherein predetermined diphone waveforms are stored; and

    third means, in communication with the second means and the second memory, for retrieving diphone waveforms corresponding to the entered and translated words from the second memory, for adjusting the retrieved diphone waveforms based on the prosody information in the arrays, and for concatenating the adjusted diphone waveforms to form the speech signal.

View all claims
  • 1 Assignment
Timeline View
Assignment View
    ×
    ×