Point-of-sale customer order system utilizing an unobtrusive transmitter/receiver and voice recognition software

• US 7,110,963 B2
• Filed: 09/07/2001
• Issued: 09/19/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Manuel Negreiro
• Original Assignee: Manuel Negreiro
• Inventors: Negreiro, Manuel
• Primary Examiner(s): Hudspeth, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jackson, Jakieda R.
• Application Number:
  US09/948,881
• Publication Number:
  US 20020049598A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,838 Days
• Field of Search: 704/211, 704/275, 704/270, 704/16, 704/270.1, 345/716, 379/88.04, 379/96, 395/2.84
• US Class Current: 705/15
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/00 Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0621 Item configuration or customization
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence

Abstract

A point-of-sale order system utilizes a relatively non-obtrusive transmitter-receiver device which includes a microphone for receiving order information and a speaker for receiving confirmation of the order information. The system utilizes voice recognition software in order to control processing and data flow during order taking operations, and to receive order information from the server in real time during interaction with the customer. A relatively limited database of recognizable words define computing commands and order information. An audible feedback is provided to the server which is relatively unobtrusive, and which provides the server with a positive indication that the order information has been fully and correctly received and processed.

Claims

1. A method of using a speech recognition system for enabling a human server in entering restaurant food orders as a background task unobtrusive to a customer, comprising the steps of:

providing at least one server with a non-obtrusive receiver-transmitter device which includes at least a microphone for communicating order information from the server and a speaker for receiving confirmation of the order information by the server;

providing an order processor having a speech recognition software module for receiving the order information communication from the microphone of the server by listening in real time during the server'"'"'s interaction with the customer and for processing the communication from the server according to a previous spoken word training operation to provide order information to the order processor; and

confirming the order information to the server from the order processor by providing an echo back message to the server;

wherein communicating the order information and confirming the order information occur non-obtrusively as background tasks to an order dialog between the at least one server and the customer.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing a receiver-transmitter device further comprises the step of:

providing a receiver-transmitter electrically connected to an earpiece; and

combining the functions of the microphone device and the speaker device in the earpiece.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing an order processor further comprises the steps of:

training the speech recognition software module to recognize words spoken by a server associated with a server identification and corresponding to food items listed on a menu, computing commands, and order information.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing an order processor having a speech recognition software module further comprises the step of:

linking the speech recognition software module to a database having stored therein recognizable words that define food items listed on a menu, computing commands and order information.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing an order processor having a speech recognition software module further comprises the step of:

listening in the background, as the server speaks to a customer, and entering as an order a menu item corresponding to a word or words spoken by the server that are associated in a database therewith.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of listening further comprises the step of:

listening for command words spoken by the server that are masked as ordinary dialog between the server and a customer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of confirming further comprises the step of:

providing an audible feedback from the order processor to the server using the speaker of the receiver-transmitter device.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of providing further comprises the step of:

providing an echo back transmission of the server'"'"'s order information when the order information has been entered.

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

providing a communication system linking a point-of-sale device, a food expediter system, and a table management system; and

coupling the receiver-transmitter of each server to the communication system.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

operating the speech recognition software module in a scripted interaction between a customer and an automated telephonic order taking system coupled to the order processor.

11. Apparatus for entering restaurant food orders given to a human server as a background task unobtrusive to a customer, comprising:

a point-of-sale (POS) system having a speech recognition software module coupled to an order processor;

a wireless communication link, provided between the server and the order processor in the POS system, for providing order entry by listening in realtime during the server'"'"'s interaction with the customer and confirmation thereof in real time by providing an echo back message to the server unobtrusively as a background task to the dialog occurring between the server and the customer; and

a database coupled to the speech recognition software module for storing a set of key words corresponding to menu items and computing commands spoken by the server, the key words stored in association with a server identification according to a previous spoken word training operation.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the speech recognition software module further comprises:

a speech module having a text-to-speech device for parsing a text string retrieved from the database by the order processor and converting it to a spoken echo back to the server to confirm an order.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the wireless communication link further comprises:

an earpiece worn unobtrusively by the server, the earpiece coupled to the receiver-transmitter device worn by the server for non-obtrusive communication with the order processor in the POS system to enter an order and receive the echo back message confirmation of the order; and

a communication interface coupled to the order processor in the POS system for non-obtrusively receiving an order for entry from the server and transmitting the echo back message order confirmation to the server.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the earpiece further comprises:

a microphone for communicating order information from the server; and

a speaker for receiving confirmation of the order information by the server.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the communication interface further comprises:

an individual receiver associated with each server; and

a multiple channel transmitter for transmitting via an echo back message to the receiver-transmitter device worn by a server.

16. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the database further comprises:

stored recordings of the key words, spoken by individual servers during the training operation and corresponding to menu items and computing commands, in association with a server identification, and used by the order processor for entering and confirming an order and for causing other related operations responsive to commands spoken by the server.