Method for increasing dialect precision and usability in speech recognition and text-to-speech systems
First Claim
1. A method for generating a dialect specific pronunciation lexicon, the method comprising the steps of:
- a) constructing an encoded pronunciation lexicon, said encoded pronunciation lexicon including a plurality of nonlinear baseforms encoded nonlinearly to include one of dialectal and pronunciation alternatives;
b) inputting one or more user specified dialects;
c) selecting phonological rule sets from a rule set database responsive to said one or more user specified dialects; and
d) decoding the encoded pronunciation lexicon by applying the phonological rule sets to the encoded pronunciation lexicon yielding a dialect specific decoded pronunciation lexicon including a plurality of linear dialect specific baseforms.
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Abstract
In accordance with the present invention, a method for increasing both dialect precision and usability in speech recognition and text-to-speech systems is described. The invention generates non-linear (i.e. encoded)baseform representations for words and phrases from a pronunciation lexicon. The baseform representations are encoded to incorporate both pronunciation variations and dialectal variations. The encoded baseform representations may be later expanded (i.e. decoded) into one or more linear dialect specific baseform representations, utilizing a set of dialect specific phonological rules.
The method comprises the steps of: constructing an encoded pronunciation lexicon having a plurality of encoded and unencoded baseforms; inputting one or more user specified dialects; selecting dialect specific phonological rules from a rule set database; and decoding the encoded pronunciation lexicon using the dialect specific phonological rules to yield a dialect specific decoded pronunciation lexicon.
61 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A method for generating a dialect specific pronunciation lexicon, the method comprising the steps of:
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a) constructing an encoded pronunciation lexicon, said encoded pronunciation lexicon including a plurality of nonlinear baseforms encoded nonlinearly to include one of dialectal and pronunciation alternatives;
b) inputting one or more user specified dialects;
c) selecting phonological rule sets from a rule set database responsive to said one or more user specified dialects; and
d) decoding the encoded pronunciation lexicon by applying the phonological rule sets to the encoded pronunciation lexicon yielding a dialect specific decoded pronunciation lexicon including a plurality of linear dialect specific baseforms. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
retrieving rule sets from said rule set database corresponding to said user specified dialects; and
applying each of said rules contained within said retrieved rule sets to each of said plurality of encoded baseforms to yield a plurality of decoded baseforms.
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13. A dialect specific pronunciation lexicon generating apparatus comprising:
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means for constructing an encoded pronunciation lexicon, said pronunciation lexicon including a plurality of baseforms encoded nonlinearly to include one of dialectal and pronunciation alternatives.;
means for inputting one or more user specified dialect preferences; and
means for decoding the encoded pronunciation lexicon. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17)
the construction means encodes one or more phones of a plurality of linear baseforms with dialectal and pronunciation variations.
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15. The dialect specific pronunciation lexicon generating apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein:
the input means comprises a microphone for characterizing a speaker'"'"'s accent through the use of diagnostic phrases.
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16. The dialect specific pronunciation lexicon generating apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein:
the input means comprises a touch screen display for displaying maps of a speaker'"'"'s residence history.
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17. The dialect specific pronunciation lexicon generating apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the decoding means further comprises:
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means for selecting one or more dialect specific phonological rule sets from a rule set database;
means for applying said one or more dialect specific phonological rule sets to said encoded pronunciation lexicon.
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18. A computer program device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for generating a dialect specific pronunciation lexicon, the method comprising the steps of:
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a) constructing an encoded pronunciation lexicon, said encoded pronunciation lexicon including a plurality of nonlinear baseforms encoded nonlinearly to include one of dialectal and pronunciation alternatives;
b) inputting one or more user specified dialects;
c) selecting phonological rule sets from a rule set database responsive to said one or more user specified dialects; and
d) decoding the encoded pronunciation lexicon by applying the phonological rule sets to the encoded pronunciation lexicon yielding a dialect specific decoded pronunciation lexicon including a plurality of linear dialect specific baseforms. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
retrieving rule sets from said rule set database corresponding to said user specified dialects; and
applying each of said rules contained within said retrieved rule sets to each of said plurality of encoded baseforms to yield a plurality of decoded baseforms.
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Specification