System and method for automatic voice message processing

• US 6,651,042 B1
• Filed: 08/31/2000
• Issued: 11/18/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Mann, Robert James, Field, Graham Ashley
• Primary Examiner(s): Knepper, David D.
• Application Number:
  US09/653,342
• Time in Patent Office: 1,174 Days
• Field of Search: 704/270, 704/270.1, 704/275, 704/260, 704/235, 379/88, 379/88.01, 379/88.02, 379/100.05, 379/88.16, 725/116, 725/129, 455/344, 455/351, 340/7.53, 340/7.63
• US Class Current: 704/270
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6505 storing speech in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/658 Means for redirecting recorded messages to other extensions or equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/60 Medium conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4536 Voicemail combined with text-based messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53333 Message receiving aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5335 Message type or catagory, e.g. priority, indication

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system and methods for automatic voice message processing and in particular to a system and method for processing voice messages to convert the voice mail to email and prioritise the e-mail according to acoustic features in the voice mail. Performing speech to text conversion on a voice message and then categorising the text has its problems. A keyword for the categorisation may not be present in the text if the speaker was in too much of a hurry when leaving a message, for instance if it was urgent or important. If the speaker talked too quickly or does not match the speech pattern word vocabulary then the keyword may not be recognised. It is not known to categorise a voice message based on the way in which a voice message is spoken or delivered by a caller.

Claims

1. A method of processing a voice message within a messaging system comprising:

receiving a voice-message;

determining a characteristic associated with the acoustic delivery of the voice message;

determining a category based on the characteristic;

associating the category with the voice message; and

prioritizing the voice message against other similarly categorised messages according to their respective categories.

2. The method as in claim 1 wherein the delivery characteristic is the ratio of the number of words in the voice message to the time taken to deliver the message.

3. The method as in claim 2 wherein the number of words is determined by counting the silent parts of the voice message.

4. The method as in claim 2 wherein the number of words is determined by counting the whole words in a text conversion of the voice message.

5. The method as in claim 1 wherein the delivery characteristic is the volume of the voice message.

6. The system for processing a voice message comprising:

means for receiving a voice message;

means for determining a characteristic associated with the acoustic delivery of the voice message;

means for determing a category based on characteristic;

means for associating the category with the voice message; and

means for prioritising the voice message against other similarly categorised messages according to their respective categories.

7. The system as in claim 6 wherein the delivery characteristic is the ratio of the number of words in the voice message to the time taken to deliver the message.

8. The system as in claim 6 wherein the number of words is determined by counting the silent parts of the voice message.

9. The system in claim 6 wherein the number of words is determined by counting the whole words in a text conversion of the voice message.

10. The system as in claim 6 wherein the delivery characteristic is the volume of the voice message.

11. A machine readable storage, having stored thereon a computer program having a plurality of code sections executable by a machine for causing the machine to cause the steps of:

receiving a voice message;

determining a characteristic associated with the acoustic delivery of the voice message;

determining a category based on the characteristic;

associating the category with the voice message; and

prioritizing the voice message against other similarly categorized messages according to their respective categories.

12. The machine readable storage according to claim 11, wherein the delivery characteristic is the ratio of the number of words in the voice message to the time taken to deliver the message.

13. The machine readable storage according to claim 12, wherein the number of words is determined by counting the silent parts of the voice message.

14. The machine readable storage according to claim 12, wherein the number of words is determined by counting the whole words in a text conversation of the voice message.

15. The machine readable storage according to claim 11, wherein the delivery characteristic is the volume of the voice message.