Automated voice synthesis employing enhanced prosodic treatment of text, spelling of text and rate of annunciation
First Claim
1. A method of synthesizing human audible speech from restricted text having a predetermined information content and predetermined format characteristics, the method comprising the steps of:
- generating prosody indica for the restricted text as a function of the predetermined information content and predetermined format characteristics by performing the steps of;
a) identifying major prosodic groupings within the restricted text by utilizing major demarcation features which are a function of the predetermined format characteristics to define the beginning and end of the major prosodic groupings;
b) identifying prosodic subgroupings within the major prosodic groupings according to prosodic rules for analyzing the restricted text as a function of the predetermined information content for predetermined textual markers indicative of prosodically isolatible subgroupings not delineated by the major demarcations dividing the prosodic major groupings;
c) identifying within the prosodic subgroupings prosodically separable subgroup components;
d) generating prosodic indica which include salience signifiers, the salience signifiers controlling the salience of segments of the synthesized speech, the step of generating the prosodic indica including the steps of;
(i) generating salience signifiers within the prosodic subgroupings in accordance with predetermined salience placement rules relating to the components of the subgroupings themselves;
(ii) modifying the salience at the beginning and end of each prosodic subgroup; and
(iii) modifying the salience at the beginning and end of each major prosodic grouping; and
generating and outputting audible speech from the restricted text and prosodic indica.
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Abstract
Improved automated synthesis of human audible speech from text is disclosed. Performance enhancement of the underlying text comprehensibility is obtained through prosodic treatment of the synthesized material, improved speaking rate treatment, and improved methods of spelling words or terms for the sysstem user. Prosodic shaping of text sequences appropriate for the discourse in large groupings of text segments, with prosodic boundaries developed to indicate conceptual units within the text groupings, is implemented in a preferred embodiment.
295 Citations
29 Claims
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1. A method of synthesizing human audible speech from restricted text having a predetermined information content and predetermined format characteristics, the method comprising the steps of:
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generating prosody indica for the restricted text as a function of the predetermined information content and predetermined format characteristics by performing the steps of; a) identifying major prosodic groupings within the restricted text by utilizing major demarcation features which are a function of the predetermined format characteristics to define the beginning and end of the major prosodic groupings; b) identifying prosodic subgroupings within the major prosodic groupings according to prosodic rules for analyzing the restricted text as a function of the predetermined information content for predetermined textual markers indicative of prosodically isolatible subgroupings not delineated by the major demarcations dividing the prosodic major groupings; c) identifying within the prosodic subgroupings prosodically separable subgroup components; d) generating prosodic indica which include salience signifiers, the salience signifiers controlling the salience of segments of the synthesized speech, the step of generating the prosodic indica including the steps of; (i) generating salience signifiers within the prosodic subgroupings in accordance with predetermined salience placement rules relating to the components of the subgroupings themselves; (ii) modifying the salience at the beginning and end of each prosodic subgroup; and (iii) modifying the salience at the beginning and end of each major prosodic grouping; and generating and outputting audible speech from the restricted text and prosodic indica. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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26. A method of synthesizing human audible speech from text including a predetermined information content and having predetermined format characteristics, the method comprising the steps of:
generating prosody indica for the text as a function of the predetermined information content and predetermined format characteristics of the text by performing the steps of; a) identifying major prosodic groupings within the restricted text by utilizing major demarcation features which are a function of the predetermined format characteristics to define the beginning and end of the major prosodic groupings; b) identifying prosodic subgroupings within the major prosodic groupings according to prosodic rules for analyzing the restricted text as a function of the predetermined information content for predetermined textual markers indicative of prosodically isolatible subgroupings not delineated by the major demarcations dividing the prosodic major groupings; c) identifying within the prosodic subgroupings prosodically separable subgroup components, at least one subgroup component being a word in the name; d) generating prosodic indica which include salience signifiers, the salience signifiers controlling the salience of segments of the synthesized speech, the step of generating the prosodic indica including the steps of; (i) generating salience signifiers within the prosodic subgroupings in accordance with salience placement rules solely relating to the components of the subgroupings themselves; (ii) modifying the generated salience signifiers to increase the salience at the start of each prosodic subgroup and to further signify the salience at the end of each prosodic subgroup; and (iii) further modifying the salience signifiers to further increase the salience of the beginning of the major prosodic grouping and further signify the salience of the end of the major prosodic grouping. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28)
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29. An apparatus for synthesizing human audible speech from a machine readable representation of restricted text having a predetermined information content and predetermined format characteristics, comprising:
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prosody preprocessor means for receiving the restricted text and for generating prosody indica by assigning the prosody indica on the basis of the predetermined informational content of the restricted text, means for; a) identifying major prosodic groupings by utilizing major demarcation features to define the beginning and end of the major prosodic groupings; b) identifying prosodic subgroupings within the major prosodic groupings according to prosodic rules for analyzing the text for predetermined textual markers indicative of prosodically isolatible subgroupings not delineated by the major demarcations dividing the prosodic major groupings; c) identifying within the prosodic subgroupings prosodically separable subgroup components; and d) generating prosodic indicia which include salience signifiers utilizable by the speech synthesizer means to vary the salience of segments of the synthesized speech such that; (i) the salience signifiers within the prosodic subgroupings are first generated in accordance with predetermined salience placement rules solely relating to the components themselves, (ii) thereafter the first generated salience signifiers are modified to increase the salience at the start of the prosodic subgroup and further signify the salience at the end of the prosodic subgroup, and (iii) the salience signifiers arc subsequently further modified to further increase the salience of the beginning of the major prosodic grouping and further signify the salience of the end of the major prosodic grouping; and speech synthesizer means for synthesizing human audible speech from text, the speech synthesizer means including means for generating prosody indica on unrestricted text and for interpreting and executing prosody indica received from the prosody preprocessor means, the prosody indica from the prosody preprocessor means being used to override and supplement the prosody indica generated by the internal prosody indica generating means.
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Specification