Speech signal processing for determining psychological or physiological characteristics using a knowledge base
First Claim
1. A psychological assessment system comprising:
- a knowledge base including at least one speech model corresponding to at least one psychological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, wherein the speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters; and
signal processing circuitry for comparing the at least one speech model with test speech parameters of a test subject.
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Abstract
A speech-based system for assessing the psychological, physiological, or other characteristics of a test subject is described. The system includes a knowledge base that stores one or more speech models, where each speech model corresponds to a characteristic of a group of reference subjects. Signal processing circuitry, which may be implemented in hardware, software and/or firmware, compares the test speech parameters of a test subject with the speech models. In one embodiment, each speech model is represented by a statistical time-ordered series of frequency representations of the speech of the reference subjects. The speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters associated with the voice or speech. The system includes speech parameterization circuitry for generating the test parameters in response to the test subject'"'"'s speech. This circuitry includes speech acquisition circuitry, which may be located remotely from the knowledge base. The system further includes output circuitry for outputting at least one indicator of a characteristic in response to the comparison performed by the signal processing circuitry. The characteristic may be time-varying, in which case the output circuitry outputs the characteristic in a time-varying manner. The output circuitry also may output a ranking of each output characteristic. In one embodiment, one or more characteristics may indicate the degree of sincerity of the test subject, where the degree of sincerity may vary with time. The system may also be employed to determine the effectiveness of treatment for a psychological or physiological disorder by comparing psychological or physiological characteristics, respectively, before and after treatment.
206 Citations
63 Claims
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1. A psychological assessment system comprising:
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a knowledge base including at least one speech model corresponding to at least one psychological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, wherein the speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters; and signal processing circuitry for comparing the at least one speech model with test speech parameters of a test subject. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for psychological assessment comprising the steps of:
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providing a knowledge base including at least one speech model corresponding to at least one psychological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, wherein the speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters; and comparing the at least one speech model with test speech parameters of a test subject. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A physiological assessment system comprising:
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a knowledge base including at least one speech model corresponding to at least one physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, wherein the speech model includes information concerning the vocal tracts of the reference subjects; and signal processing circuitry for comparing the at least one speech model with test speech parameters of a test subject. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A method for physiological assessment comprising the steps of:
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providing a knowledge base including at least one speech model corresponding to at least one physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, wherein the speech model includes information concerning the vocal tracts of the reference subjects; and comparing the at least one speech model with test speech parameters of a test subject. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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39. In a system for assessing at least one psychological or physiological characteristic of a test subject, a knowledge base comprising:
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at least one speech model corresponding to at least one characteristic, wherein the at least one speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters, and a statistical time-ordered series of frequency representations of the speech of a plurality of reference subjects within the at least one speech model. - View Dependent Claims (40)
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41. In a method for assessing at least one psychological or physiological characteristic of a test subject, a method for creating a knowledge base comprising the steps of:
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forming at least one speech model corresponding to at least one characteristic, wherein the at least one speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters, and generating a statistical time-ordered series of frequency representations of the speech of a plurality of reference subjects within the at least one speech model. - View Dependent Claims (42)
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43. A physiological assessment system comprising:
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a knowledge base including at least one speech model corresponding to at least one physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, wherein the at least one speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters; and signal processing circuitry for comparing the at least one speech model with test speech parameters of a test subject. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50)
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51. A method for physiological assessment comprising the steps of:
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providing a knowledge base including at least one speech model corresponding to at least one physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, wherein the at least one speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters; and comparing the at least one speech model with test speech parameters of a test subject. - View Dependent Claims (52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58)
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59. In a system for assessing at least one physiological characteristic of a test subject, a knowledge base comprising:
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at least one speech model corresponding to each characteristic, wherein the speech model includes information concerning the vocal tracts of the reference subjects; and a statistical time-ordered series of frequency representations of the speech of a plurality of reference subjects within the at least one speech model.
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60. A system for assessing at least one psychological or physiological characteristic of a test subject, the system comprising:
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speech parameterization circuitry for generating test speech parameters in response to the test subject'"'"'s speech; and signal processing circuitry for comparing the test speech parameters with at least one speech model from a knowledge base, wherein the at least one speech model corresponds to at least one psychological or physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, and the at least one speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters.
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61. A system for assessing at least one physiological characteristic of a test subject, the system comprising:
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speech parameterization circuitry for generating test speech parameters in response to the test subject'"'"'s speech; and signal processing circuitry for comparing the test speech parameters of with at least one speech model from a knowledge base, wherein the at least one speech model corresponds to at least one physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, and includes information concerning the vocal tracts of the reference subjects.
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62. A method for assessing at least one psychological or physiological characteristic of a test subject, the method comprising the steps of:
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generating test speech parameters in response to the test subject'"'"'s speech; and comparing the test speech parameters with at least one speech model from a knowledge base, wherein the at least one speech model corresponds to at least one psychological or physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, and the at least one speech model is independent of a priori knowledge of style parameters.
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63. A method for assessing at least one physiological characteristic of a test subject, the method comprising the steps of:
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generating test speech parameters in response to the test subject'"'"'s speech; and comparing the test speech parameters with at least one speech model from a knowledge base, wherein the at least one speech model corresponds to at least one physiological characteristic of a plurality of reference subjects, and includes information concerning the vocal tracts of the reference subjects.
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Specification