Method and apparatus for generating an a priori advisor for a speech recognition dictionary
First Claim
1. A method for generating a speech recognition dictionary suitable for use in a speech recognition unit of a directory assistance system, said method comprising:
- providing a plurality of records of call transactions, a record including a first data element indicative of a geographical locality and a second data element indicative of at least a portion of a telephone number dialed on a terminal to access a directory assistance function;
generating from the plurality of records an a priori data structure including a plurality of probability data elements, the plurality of probability data elements being derived at least in part on the basis of the second data elements;
providing a set of vocabulary items potentially recognizable on a basis of a spoken utterance, each vocabulary item being indicative of a geographical locality;
associating at least some of the vocabulary items to probability data elements from said a priori data structure;
storing the vocabulary items and the associated probability data elements on a computer readable medium capable of being processed by the speech recognition unit of the directory assistance system to perform recognition of an utterance spoken by a user and indicative of a geographical locality, the recognition of the spoken utterance being conditioned on a basis of a telephone number dialed by the user to access a directory assistance function.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for automatically generating probability tables (histograms) for a speech recognition dictionary for use in a speech recognition system from a listing containing call records. The method comprises the step of generating histograms representing the probabilities of localities being requested based on the calling pattern collected on the field by either a human operator or via an automatic process during calls. The method is particularly useful for generating an a priori advisor for a speech recognition dictionary used in an automated system for locality recognition.
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Citations
28 Claims
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1. A method for generating a speech recognition dictionary suitable for use in a speech recognition unit of a directory assistance system, said method comprising:
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providing a plurality of records of call transactions, a record including a first data element indicative of a geographical locality and a second data element indicative of at least a portion of a telephone number dialed on a terminal to access a directory assistance function; generating from the plurality of records an a priori data structure including a plurality of probability data elements, the plurality of probability data elements being derived at least in part on the basis of the second data elements; providing a set of vocabulary items potentially recognizable on a basis of a spoken utterance, each vocabulary item being indicative of a geographical locality; associating at least some of the vocabulary items to probability data elements from said a priori data structure; storing the vocabulary items and the associated probability data elements on a computer readable medium capable of being processed by the speech recognition unit of the directory assistance system to perform recognition of an utterance spoken by a user and indicative of a geographical locality, the recognition of the spoken utterance being conditioned on a basis of a telephone number dialed by the user to access a directory assistance function. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An apparatus for generating a speech recognition dictionary suitable for use in a speech recognition unit of a directory assistance system, said apparatus comprising:
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a memory for holding a plurality of records of call transactions, a record including a first data element indicative of a geographical locality and a second data element indicative of at least a portion of a telephone number dialed on a terminal to access a directory assistance function; a processor in operative relationship with said memory; a program element suitable to be executed on said processor, said program element being operative for directing said processor to; a) generate from said plurality of records an a priori data structure including a plurality of probability data elements, the plurality of probability data elements being derived at least in part on the basis of the second data elements; b) map vocabulary items from a set of vocabulary items to probability data elements in said a priori data structure, the vocabulary items in the set of vocabulary items being potentially recognizable on a basis of a spoken utterance, each vocabulary item in the set of vocabulary items being indicative of a geographical locality. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A machine readable medium containing a program element for instructing a computer to generate a speech recognition vocabulary suitable for use in a speech recognition unit of a directory assistance system, said computer including:
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memory means for holding a plurality of records of call transactions, a record including a first data element indicative of a geographical locality and a second data element indicative of at least a portion of a telephone number dialed on a terminal to access a directory assistance function; a processor in operative relationship with said memory means; a program element suitable to be executed on said processor, said program element providing means for directing said processor to; a) generate from said plurality of records an a priori data structure including a plurality of probability data elements, the plurality of probability data elements being derived at least in part on the basis of the second data elements; b) map vocabulary items from a set of vocabulary items to probability data elements in said a priori data structure, the vocabulary items in the set of vocabulary items being potentially recognizable on a basis of a spoken utterance, each vocabulary item in the set of vocabulary items being indicative of a geographical locality.
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25. A method for generating an a priori data structure suitable for use in a speech recognition unit of a directory assistance system, said method comprising:
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a) recording a multitude of directory assistance call transactions occurring in a certain geographical zone subdivided in a plurality of localities; b) storing for each recorded directory assistance call transaction a record including a first data element indicative of a locality identified by the user during the directory assistance call transaction and a second data element indicative of at least a portion of a telephone number dialed by the user to initiate the directory assistance call transaction; c) processing the records created at step b) to generate an a priori data structure including a plurality of probability data elements, said plurality of probability data elements being derived at least in part on the basis of said second data elements; d) providing a set of vocabulary items, each vocabulary items being potentially recognizable on a basis of a spoken utterance; e) associating vocabulary items form said set of vocabulary items to probability data elements of said a priori data structure, whereby allowing utilization of the probability data elements during selection of vocabulary item from said set of vocabulary items as a potential match to a spoken utterance by a user.
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26. A speech recognition unit for use in a directory assistance service, said speech recognition unit comprising:
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a) a first input for receiving a first signal derived from a spoken utterance indicative of a geographical locality; b) a second input for receiving a second signal indicative of at least a portion of a telephone number dialed by a user to access a directory assistance function; c) a processing unit coupled to said first and to said second inputs for performing speech recognition on the first signal, the speech recognition being conditioned on the second signal; d) an output coupled to said processing unit for releasing a signal representative of a vocabulary item identified by said processing unit as being a match to the spoken utterance. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28)
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Specification