Disabling and enabling of subvocabularies in speech recognition systems

• US 6,571,209 B1
• Filed: 11/12/1998
• Issued: 05/27/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Cohen, Paul S., Rao, Srinivasa P., Ward, Robert T.
• Primary Examiner(s): MCFADDEN, SUSAN IRIS
• Application Number:
  US09/190,974
• Time in Patent Office: 1,657 Days
• Field of Search: 704/251, 704/252, 704/254, 704/255, 704/270
• US Class Current: 704/251
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/183 using context dependencies, e.g. language models
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/193 Formal grammars, e.g. finite state automata, context free grammars or word networks
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/0631 Creating reference templates; Clustering
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/228 of application context

Abstract

A method for designating a subvocabulary for speech recognition systems includes the steps of providing a vocabulary of words each having a flag with a first value, selecting words to be eliminated from the vocabulary, setting the flags of the selected words to a second value and processing speech based on words having the flag set to the first value. A program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for disabling and enabling of subvocabularies in speech recognition systems, the method steps include providing a vocabulary of words each having a flag with a first value, selecting words to be eliminated from the vocabulary, setting the flags of the selected words to a second value and processing speech based on words having the flag set to the first value.

Claims

1. A method for designating a subvocabulary for speech recognition systems comprising the steps of:

providing a vocabulary of words each word having a flag with a first value;

authorizing a user to select individual words and word combinations to be eliminated from the vocabulary, the words and word combinations to be eliminated being disabled for use in the vocabulary;

setting the flags of the selected words to a second value to disable individual words and word combinations; and

processing only words having the flag set to the first value.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the step of authorizing a user to select words includes the step of selecting a group of words grouped together in at least one subvocabulary.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the at least one subvocabulary includes a subvocabulary having words directed to a particular subject.

4. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the at least one subvocabulary includes a subvocabulary having words directed to a particular reading level.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the flag is a bit and the first value is one of zero and one and the second value is the other of zero and one.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of permitting access to selected words by providing a password.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of reselecting words having the flag with the second value to return the flag to the first value thereby including the words in the vocabulary.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of eliminating words having the flag with the second value from speech recognition processes.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

selecting word combinations to be eliminated from the vocabulary; and

checking speech recognized word combinations to eliminate the selected word combinations from being output.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the subvocabulary includes vulgarities.

11. A method for removing words from speech recognition systems comprising the steps of:

providing a vocabulary of words each word having a flag value;

grouping words with a same flag value to form subvocabularies of words, wherein each subvocabulary includes words and word combinations having the same flag value;

authorizing a user to select subvocabularies, individual words and/or word combinations to be eliminated from the vocabulary;

setting flags of the selected subvocabularies, words and/or word combinations to be different from the flag value of the words in the vocabulary to disable subvocabularies, individual words and word combinations; and

processing only words having the flag value set to the value of the vocabulary.

12. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein at least one subvocabulary includes words directed to a particular subject.

13. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein at least one subvocabulary includes words directed to a particular reading level.

14. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein the flag includes a binary representation of a number.

15. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising the step of permitting access to selected subvocabularies by providing a password.

16. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising the step of reselecting subvocabularies and words to change the flag value.

17. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising the step of eliminating words having the flag with the second value speech recognition processes.

18. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising the steps of:

selecting word combinations to be eliminated from the vocabulary; and

checking speech recognized word combinations to eliminate the selected word combination from being output.

19. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the step of authorizing a user to select subvocabularies includes the step of selecting additional words to be eliminated from the vocabulary.

20. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein the subvocabulary includes vulgarities.

21. A program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for disabling and enabling of subvocabularies in speech recognition systems, the method steps comprising:

providing a vocabulary of words each word having a flag with a first value;

authorizing a user to select individual words and word combinations to be eliminated from the vocabulary, the words and word combinations to be eliminated being disabled for use in the vocabulary;

setting the flags of the selected words to a second value to disable individual words and word combinations; and

processing only words having the flag set to the first value.

22. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, wherein the at least one subvocabulary includes a subvocabulary having words directed to a particular reading level.

23. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, wherein the flag is a bit and the first value is one of zero and one and second value is the other of zero and one.

24. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, further comprising the step of permitting access to selecting words by providing a password.

25. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, further comprising the step of reselecting words having the flag with the second value to return the flag to the first value thereby including the words in the vocabulary.

26. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, further comprising the step of eliminating words having the flag with the second value from speech recognition processes.

27. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, further comprising the steps of:

selecting word combinations to be eliminated from the vocabulary; and

checking speech recognized word combinations to eliminate the selected word combinations from being processed.

28. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, wherein the step of authorizing a user to select words includes the step of selecting a group of words grouped together in at least one subvocabulary.

29. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, wherein the at least one subvocabulary includes a subvocabulary having words directed to a particular subject.

30. The program storage device as recited in claim 21, wherein the subvocabulary includes vulgarities.