Web-based interactive radio environment: WIRE

• US 6,018,710 A
• Filed: 12/13/1996
• Issued: 01/25/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Siemens Corp. (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens Corporate Research Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Wynblatt, Michael J., Hsu, Arding, Benson, Daniel C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hudspeth, David R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chawan, Vijay B
• Application Number:
  US08/768,046
• Time in Patent Office: 1,138 Days
• Field of Search: 704/260, 704/275, 704/243, 395/793, 395/785, 707/3, 707/10
• US Class Current: 704/260
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/16 Sound input; Sound output speech processing G10L
• 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 3/4938 comprising a voice browser which renders and interprets, e.g. VoiceXML
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A system for providing a primarily audio environment for world wide web access includes a system for rendering structured documents using audio, an interface for information exchange to users, a non-keyword based WWW search system and a few miscellaneous features. The system for rendering structured documents using audio includes a pre-rendering system which converts a HTML document into an intermediate document and a rendering system which actually generates an audio output. The interface includes a non-visual browsing system and an interface to users for visual browsing environments.

Claims

1. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web comprising:

a system for rendering structured documents on the world-wide web using audio, the structured documents comprising documents in which formatting and structural instructions are co-mingled with text content;

an interface for information exchange to users; and

,

a non-keyword based world-wide web search system.

2. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:

an E-mail support system;

an audio files and streaming support system; and

,

a radio and commercials during document download system.

3. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 1 wherein said system for rendering structured documents using audio comprises:

a pre-rendering system which converts a structured document into an intermediate document; and

an audio rendering system which generates an audio output.

4. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 3 wherein said pre-rendering system comprises:

a segmenting document system for dividing said structured document into logical segments;

a categorizing document system for categorizing said logical segments as either navigation segments or content segments;

a document sectioning system for determining section structure of said structured document; and

,

a speech mark-up information system for creating said intermediate document which can be interpreted by a text-to-speech engine.

5. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 4 wherein said document sectioning system comprises:

hierarchically sectioning means wherein sections are defined hierarchically using header tags as boundaries with top-level sections forming a top of a hierarchy and said header tags denoting subsections, sub-subsections and as many further gradations as are necessary to account for a number of prominence values present in said structured document.

6. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 4 wherein:

said speech mark-up information system also determines which text shall be presented to said users.

7. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 4 wherein said speech mark-up information system comprises:

meta-information generation means for producing meta-information in a form of commands which will cause said text-to-speech engine to vary voice, tone, rate, and other parameters to adequately convey information within said structured document.

8. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 3 wherein:

said pre-rendering system and said audio rendering system work concurrently.

9. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 1 wherein said interface for information exchange to users comprises:

a non-visual browsing system; and

,

an interface to said users for visual browsing environments.

10. A non-visual browsing environment for the word-wide-web as claimed in claim 1, wherein the structured documents include HyperText Markup Language (HTML) documents.

11. A non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web comprising:

a system for rendering structured documents using audio;

an interface for information exchange to users; and

,

a non-keyword based search system;

wherein said system for rendering structured documents using audio comprises;

a pre-rendering system which converts a structured document into an intermediate document; and

,

an audio rendering system which actually generates an audio output;

wherein said pre-rendering system comprises;

a segmenting document system for dividing said structured document into logical segments;

a categorizing document system for categorizing said logical segments as either navigation segments or content segments;

a document sectioning system for determining section structure of said structured document; and

,

a speech mark-up information system for creating said intermediate document which can be interpreted by a text-to-speech engine;

wherein said categorizing document system comprises;

calculation means for calculating a link density of each of said logical segments according to the formula;

##EQU2## where D is said link density,

C_HREF is a number of non-tag characters in each of said logical segments which appear inside of HREF tags,

C is a total number of non-tag characters in each of said logical segments,

L_I is a number of hyperlinks within image maps in each of said logical segments and

K represents a weight given to image map links.

12. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web comprising the steps of:

rendering structured documents on the world-wide web using audio, the structured documents comprising documents in which formatting and structural instructions are co-mingled with text content;

providing an interface for information exchange to users; and

,

providing a non-keyword based world-wide web search system.

13. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 12 further comprising the steps of:

providing an E-mail support system;

providing an audio files and streaming support system; and

,

providing a radio and commercials during document download system.

14. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 12 wherein rendering structured documents using audio comprises the steps of:

performing a pre-rendering process which converts a structured document into an intermediate document; and

,

performing an audio rendering process which actually generates an audio output.

15. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 14 wherein performing a pre-rendering process comprises the steps of:

dividing said structured document into logical segments;

categorizing said logical segments as either navigation segments or content segments;

determining section structure of said structured document; and

,

creating said intermediate document which can be interpreted by a text-to-speech engine.

16. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 15 wherein determining section structure comprises the step of:

defining sections hierarchically using header tags as boundaries with top-level sections forming a top of a hierarchy and said header tags denoting subsections, sub-subsections and as many further gradations as are necessary to account for a number of prominence values present in said structured document.

17. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 15 wherein creating said intermediate document comprises the step of:

producing meta-information in a form of commands which will cause said text-to-speech engine to vary voice, tone, rate, and other parameters to adequately convey information within said structured document.

18. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web as claimed in claim 12 wherein providing an interface for information exchange to users comprises the steps of:

providing a non-visual browsing system; and

,

providing an interface to users for visual browsing environments.

19. A non-visual browsing environment for the word-wide-web as claimed in claim 12, wherein the structured documents include HyperText Markup Language (HTML) documents.

20. A method for providing a non-visual browsing environment for the world-wide web comprising the steps of:

rendering structured documents using audio;

providing an interface for information exchange to users; and

,

providing a non-keyword based world-wide web search system;

wherein rendering structured documents using audio comprises the steps of;

performing a pre-rendering process which converts a structured document into an intermediate document; and

,

performing an audio rendering process which actually generates an audio output;

wherein performing a pre-rendering process comprises the steps of;

dividing said structured document into logical segments;

categorizing said logical segments as either navigation segments or content segments;

determining section structure of said structured document; and

,

creating said intermediate document which can be interpreted by a text-to-speech engine;

wherein categorizing said logical segments comprises the step of;

calculating a link density of each of said logical segments according to the formula;

##EQU3## where D is said link density,

C_HREF is a number of non-tag characters in each of said logical segments which appear inside of HREF tags,

C is a total number of non-tag characters in each of said logical segments,

L_I is a number of hyperlinks within image maps in each of said logical segments and

K represents a weight given to image map links.

21. A method for non-visual browsing of the world-wide web comprising the steps of:

providing audio feedback from a browser to a user, the audio feedback including audio playback of at least one hyperlink anchor of a world-wide web document;

selecting a most recently played hyperlink anchor;

controlling volume of the audio feedback using an audio volume dial;

selecting at least one of a plurality of browsing modes wherein each mode provides a specific kind of audio rendering of a world-wide web document and wherein all modes begin a world-wide web document by speaking a title of said world-wide web document;

scrolling through a world-wide web document using scan-forward, scan-reverse and pause controls;

maintaining a traditional world wide web browser history list; and

,

providing for immediate access to a number of user selected world wide web documents.

22. A non-visual browsing environment, comprising:

a system for rendering structured documents on a global computer network using audio, the structured documents comprising

documents in which formatting and structural instructions are co-mingled with text content;

an interface for information exchange to a user, wherein the interface provides audio output to the user according to the audio rendering of a structured document and wherein the interface allows the user to input commands to navigate through the audio rendering of the structured document; and

,

a non-keyword based system for searching the global computer network.