Method for editing non-verbal information by adding mental state information to a speech message

• US 6,334,106 B1
• Filed: 08/29/2000
• Issued: 12/25/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
• Inventors: Mizuno, Osamu, Nakajima, Shinya
• Primary Examiner(s): SMITS, TALIVALDIS IVARS
• Application Number:
  US09/650,761
• Time in Patent Office: 483 Days
• Field of Search: 704/260
• US Class Current: 704/260
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/033 Voice editing, e.g. manipulating the voice of the synthesiser
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/04 Details of speech synthesis systems, e.g. synthesiser structure or memory management

Abstract

A three-layered prosody control description language is used to insert prosodic feature control commands in a text at the positions of characters or a character string to be added with non-verbal information. The three-layered prosody control description language is composed of: a semantic layer (S layer) having, as its prosodic feature control commands, control commands each represented by a word indicative of the meaning of non-verbal information; an interpretation layer (I layer) having, as its prosodic feature control commands, control commands which interpret the prosodic feature control commands of the S layer and specify control of prosodic parameters of speech; and a parameter layer (P layer) having prosodic parameters which are objects of control by the prosodic feature control commands of the I layer. The text is converted into a prosodic parameter string through synthesis-by-rule. The prosodic parameters corresponding to characters or character string to be corrected are corrected by the prosodic feature control commands of the I layer, and speech is synthesized from a parameter string containing the corrected prosodic parameters.

Claims

1. A method for editing non-verbal information by adding information of mental states to a speech message synthesized by rules in correspondence to a text, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) extracting from said text a prosodic parameter string of speech synthesized by rules;

(b) correcting that one of prosodic parameters of said prosodic parameter string corresponding to the character or character string to be added with said non-verbal information, through the use of at least one of basic prosody control rules defined by modification of at least one of pitch patterns, power patterns and durations characteristic of a plurality of predetermined pieces of non-verbal information, respectively, said basic prosody control rules including a plurality of modifications of the plural-sectioned pitch contour of an utterance and being in a memory in correspondence to predetermined mental states, respectively, said modifications of said pitch contour including upwardly projecting and downwardly projecting modifications of its shape from the beginning of a first vowel to the maximum pitch; and

(c) synthesizing speech from said prosodic parameter string containing said corrected prosodic parameter and outputting a synthetic speech message.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein said basic prosody control rules include scaling of the duration of said utterance.

4. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein said modifications of said pitch contour include enlarging and narrowing modifications of the pitch dynamic range.

5. The method of claim 1 or 2, further comprising a step of analyzing input speech containing non-verbal information to obtain a prosodic parameter string and storing, as said basic prosody control rules, patterns of characteristic prosodic parameters represented by respective non-verbal information.

2. A method for editing non-verbal information by adding information of mental states to a speech message synthesized by rules in correspondence to a text, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) extracting from said text a prosodic parameter string of speech synthesized by rules;

(b) correcting that one of prosodic parameters of said prosodic parameter string corresponding to the character or character string to be added with said non-verbal information, through the use of at least one of basic prosody control rules defined by modification of at least one of pitch patterns, power patterns and durations characteristic of a plurality of predetermined pieces of non-verbal information, respectively, said basic prosody control rules including a plurality of modifications of the plural-sectioned pitched contour of an utterance and being in a memory in correspondence to predetermined mental states, respectively, said modifications of said pitch contour including monotonously rising and monotonously declining modifications of its shape from a final vowel to the terminating end of said pitch contour; and

(c) synthesizing speech from said prosodic parameter string containing said corrected prosodic parameter and outputting a synthetic speech message.