Spoken user interface for speech-enabled devices

• US 6,519,479 B1
• Filed: 03/31/1999
• Issued: 02/11/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Garudadri, Harinath, Dejaco, Andrew P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Legree, Tracy
• Application Number:
  US09/283,340
• Time in Patent Office: 1,413 Days
• Field of Search: 455/563, 455/564, 455/556, 455/569, 455/414, 455/418, 455/412, 704/270, 704/273, 704/275, 379/88.03, 379/355, 379/356, 379/88.01, 379/88.02, 379/88.04, 379/88.08, 379/88.12, 379/355.01, 379/355.02, 379/355.04, 379/355.07, 379/356.01, 379/360, 379/142.01, 379/142.02, 379/93.23, 379/354
• US Class Current: 455/563
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/0638 Interactive procedures
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/271 controlled by voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/56 Arrangements for indicating or recording the called number at the calling subscriber's set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/57 Arrangements for indicating or recording the number of the calling subscriber at the called subscriber's set at the operator set in a manual exchange H04M5/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4938 comprising a voice browser which renders and interprets, e.g. VoiceXML

Abstract

A spoken user interface for speech-enabled devices includes a processor and a set of software instructions that are executable by the processor and stored in nonvolatile memory. A user of the speech-enabled device is prompted to enter a voice tag associated with an entry in a call history of the speech-enabled device. The call history includes lists of incoming and outgoing email messages, and incoming and outgoing telephone calls. The user is prompted to enter a voice tag after associated with a telephone number or email address in the call history after a user-selected number of telephone calls has been sent from the speech-enabled device to that telephone number, or has been sent from the telephone with that telephone number to the speech-enabled device, or after a user-selected number of email messages has been sent from the speech-enabled device to that email address, or has been sent from that email address to the speech-enabled device. The user may populate a phonebook of the speech-enabled device with email addresses by sending an email message to the speech-enabled device from a computer and including additional email addresses in the To: field and/or the CC: field of the email message.

Claims

1. A speech-enabled device, comprising:

at least one mechanism configured to enable a user to exchange information bidirectionally with the speech-enabled device; and

a software agent coupled to the at least one mechanism and configured to automatically prompt the user through the at least one mechanism, in response to occurrence of a user-defined event, to speak a voice tag to be associated with an entry in an automatically generated call history of the speech-enabled device, wherein automatically is without manual user intervention.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the logic comprises a processor and a nonvolatile memory containing a set of software instructions executable by the processor.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the call history includes at least one of the following lists:

incoming pages to the device, outgoing email messages from the device, incoming telephone calls to the device, and outgoing telephone calls from the device.

4. The device of claim 1, further comprising a storage medium configured to store a user phonebook, wherein the device comprises a wireless telephone configured to receive telephone calls, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of telephone calls to the device from a particular telephone number, and the entry comprises the particular telephone number, wherein the entry is stored in the user phonebook.

5. The device of claim 1, further comprising a storage medium configured to store a user phonebook, wherein the device is configured to receive email messages, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of pages to the device from a particular email address, and the entry comprises the particular email address, wherein the entry is stored in the user phonebook.

6. The device of claim 1, further comprising a storage medium configured to store a user phonebook, wherein the device comprises a wireless telephone configured to send telephone calls, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of telephone calls from the device to a particular telephone number, and the entry comprises the particular telephone number, wherein the entry is stored in the user phonebook.

7. The device of claim 1, further comprising a storage medium configured to store a user phonebook, wherein the device is configured to send email messages, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of email messages from the device to a particular email address, and the entry comprises the particular email address, wherein the entry is stored in the user phonebook.

8. A speech-enabled device, comprising:

means for enabling a user to exchange information bidirectionally with the speech-enabled device; and

means for automatically via a software agent prompting the user, in response to occurrence of a user-defined event, to speak a voice tag to be associated with an entry in an automatically generated_call history of the speech-enabled device, wherein automatically is without manual user intervention.

9. The device of claim 8, wherein the means for prompting comprises a processor and a nonvolatile memory containing a set of software instructions executable by the processor.

10. The device of claim 8, wherein the call history includes at least one of the following lists:

incoming pages to the device, outgoing email messages from the device, incoming telephone calls to the device, and outgoing telephone calls from the device.

11. The device of claim 8, further comprising means for storing a user phonebook, wherein the device comprises a wireless telephone configured to receive telephone calls, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of telephone calls to the device from a particular telephone number, and the entry comprises the particular telephone number, wherein the entry is stored in the means for storing.

12. The device of claim 8, further comprising means for storing a user phonebook, wherein the device is configured to receive email messages, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of pages to the device from a particular email address, and the entry comprises the particular email address, wherein the entry is stored in the means for storing.

13. The device of claim 8, further comprising means for storing a user phonebook, wherein the device comprises a wireless telephone configured to send telephone calls, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of telephone calls from the device to a particular telephone number, and the entry comprises the particular telephone number, wherein the entry is stored in the means for storing.

14. The device of claim 8, further comprising means for storing a user phonebook, wherein the device is configured to send email messages, the user-defined event comprises occurrence of a user-defined number of email messages from the device to a particular email address, and the entry comprises the particular email address, wherein the entry is stored in the means for storing.

15. A method of automatically prompting a user to enter a voice tag into a telephone, comprising the steps of:

receiving a user-defined number of messages on the telephone from a particular source; and

prompting the user, automatically via a software agent, to enter a voice tag associated with the particular source into the telephone after the receiving step has occurred, wherein automatically is without manual user intervention.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the messages comprise telephone calls and the particular source comprises a telephone number.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the messages comprise pages and the particular source comprises an email address.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of sending an email message to the telephone from a remote location, the email message being sent concurrently to at least one other email address.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of sending an email message to the telephone from a remote location, the email message being copied concurrently to at least one other email address.

20. A method of automatically prompting a user to enter a voice tag into a telephone, comprising the steps of:

sending a user-defined number of messages on the telephone to a particular destination; and

prompting the user, automatically via a software agent, to enter a voice tag associated with the particular destination into the telephone after the sending step has occurred, wherein automatically is without manual user intervention.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the messages comprise telephone calls and the particular destination comprises a telephone number.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the messages comprise pages and the particular destination comprises an email address.

23. The method of claim 20, further comprising the step of sending an email message to the telephone from a remote location, the email message being sent concurrently to at least one other email address.

24. The method of claim 20, further comprising the step of sending an email message to the telephone from a remote location, the email message being copied concurrently to at least one other email address.

25. A user interface for automatically prompting a user to enter a voice tag into a telephone, comprising:

means for receiving a user-defined number of messages on the telephone from a particular source number; and

means for prompting the user, automatically via a software agent, to enter a voice tag associated with the particular source into the telephone after the user-defined number of messages from the particular source number has been received, wherein automatically is without manual user intervention.

26. The user interface of claim 25, wherein the messages comprise telephone calls and the particular source comprises a telephone number.

27. The user interface of claim 25, wherein the messages comprise pages and the particular source comprises an email address.

28. A user interface for automatically prompting a user to enter a voice tag into a telephone, comprising:

means for sending a user-defined number of messages on the telephone to a particular destination; and

means for prompting the user, automatically via a software agent, to enter a voice tag associated with the particular destination into the telephone after the user-defined number of messages to the particular destination has been sent, wherein automatically is without manual user intervention.

29. The user interface of claim 28, wherein the messages comprise telephone calls and the particular destination comprises a telephone number.

30. The user interface of claim 28, wherein the messages comprise pages and the particular destination comprises an email address.