Voice response apparatus and method of providing automated voice responses with silent prompting

• US 7,260,187 B1
• Filed: 05/11/1999
• Issued: 08/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Services Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: McAllister, Alexander I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsang, Fan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Phan, Joseph T
• Application Number:
  US09/309,274
• Time in Patent Office: 3,024 Days
• Field of Search: 379 8801- 8804, 379/88.18, 379/88.22, 379/88.23, 704/256, 704/257, 704/275
• US Class Current: 379/88.04
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/14 Delay circuits; Timers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals

Abstract

A voice response unit (VRU) includes a silent prompt feature in the form of an intentional delay inserted after a message is given to a caller, during which delay the caller may invoke alternative processing or interrupt current processing. If appropriate alternative or interrupt commands are not received during the delay period, then processing continues as provided in accordance with the previously played message. The duration of this silent prompt delay is carefully selected to provide sufficient response time for the caller to request alternative processing, while avoiding a perceptible or objectionable delay to the average caller not requiring alternative processing. Optimally, this delay period should be within a range of one to two and one-half seconds and, preferably, within a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds, an optimal time being 1.8 seconds.

Claims

1. A method of providing voice responses to commands comprising the steps of:

receiving a first command;

associating said first command with a subscriber to be called;

selecting a first processing option in response to said first command;

providing a first outgoing voice message indicative of said first processing option selected including identification of said subscriber;

providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration immediately subsequent to a completion of said step of providing said first outgoing voice message; and

selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing in response to a receipt of a second command input during said silent delay period, said alternate processing selected from the set of actions consisting of (a) providing spoken listing information for said subscriber, (b) providing a spoken alternate telephone number for said subscriber, (c) receiving and recording an incoming voice message for said subscriber, and (d) forwarding said subscriber to access their voice mail system, and

(ii) initiating said first processing option in response to an absence of said second command input for a duration of said silent delay period to thereby initiate a call to said subscriber.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds.

3. The method according to claim 2 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

4. The method according to claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

pseudorandomly selecting one of a group of content equivalent messages; and

playing the selected message to provide said first outgoing voice message.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein said first command comprises a speech input.

6. A method of telephone dialing using a voice activated dialer including a directory of subscriber names and telephone numbers, the method comprising the steps of:

selecting one of said subscribers most closely corresponding to a first speech input;

providing a speech output corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers;

providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration immediately subsequent to a completion of said step of providing said speech output; and

,

selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing in response to a receipt of a command input during said silent delay period, said alternate processing selected from the set of actions consisting of (a) announcing one of said telephone numbers associated with the selected one of said subscribers, (b) announcing an alternate telephone number of said selected one of said subscribers, (c) recording a voice mail for the selected one of said subscribers, and (d) connecting said subscriber to access their voice mail account and

(ii) dialing the telephone number corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers immediately after said delay period and in response to an absence of said command input for a duration of said silent delay period.

7. The method according to claim 6 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

9. The method according to claim 6 further comprising the steps of:

pseudorandomly selecting one of a group of content equivalent messages; and

playing the selected message to provide said speech output.

10. The method according to claim 6 wherein said command input comprises a DTMF audio signal.

11. The method according to claim 6 wherein said command input comprises a second speech input and said method further comprises a step of listening for said second speech input.

12. The method according to claim 11 wherein said second speech input comprises a predetermined spoken command.

13. The method according to claim 11 wherein said second speech input comprises one of a plurality of predetermined spoken commands.

14. The method according to claim 11 wherein said step of listening includes recognizing said second speech input to provide speech content data and comparing said speech content data with a list of alternative processing commands.

15. The method according to claim 11 further comprising the steps of:

receiving said first speech input;

recognizing a content of said first speech input; and

comparing said content with said directory.

16. The method according to claim 15 wherein said command input comprises a second speech signal and said method further comprises a step of listening for said second speech input.

17. The method according to claim 16 wherein said step of listening includes the steps of:

receiving said second speech input;

recognizing a content of said second speech input; and

comparing said content with a list of alternative processing commands.

18. The method according to claim 16 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds.

19. The method according to claim 18 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

20. The method according to claim 19 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is 1.8 seconds.

21. The method according to claim 16 wherein said step of providing a speech output includes retrieving audio data corresponding to said selected one of said subscribers and converting said audio data into said speech output.

22. The method according to claim 21 wherein said step of converting said audio data into said speech output includes decoding said audio data.

23. The method according to claim 21 wherein said step of converting said audio data into said speech output includes concatenating a plurality of phonemes.

24. The method according to claim 21 wherein said step of converting said audio data into said speech output includes a step of synthesizing speech from said audio data.

25. The method according to claim 6 wherein said alternate processing includes providing a speech output corresponding to the telephone number of said selected one of said subscribers.

26. The method according to claim 6 wherein said alternate processing includes providing an alternate telephone number of said selected one of said subscribers.

27. The method according to claim 26 including dialing said alternate telephone number of said selected one of said subscribers and supplying a data signal corresponding to said selected one of said subscribers to a remote system.

28. The method according to claim 27 wherein said data signal represents said telephone number of said selected one of said subscribers.

31. The method according to claim 28 further comprising the steps of:

pseudorandomly selecting one of a group of content equivalent messages; and

playing the selected message to provide said speech output.

29. A method of telephone dialing using a voice activated dialer including a directory of subscriber names and telephone numbers, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a first speech input;

recognizing said first speech input to provide first speech content data;

selecting one of said subscribers most closely corresponding to said first speech content data;

providing a speech output corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers;

providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration within a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds immediately subsequent to a completion of said step of providing said speech output;

listening for a second speech input during said silent period;

recognizing said second speech input to provide second speech content data; and

selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing in response to said second speech content data including an alternate processing command, said alternate processing selected from the group of actions consisting of (a) announcing a telephone number of the selected one of said subscribers, (b) identifying and announcing an alternative telephone number of the selected one of said subscribers, and (c) recording a voice mail to the selected one of said subscribers, and, otherwise,

(ii) dialing the telephone number corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers immediately after said delay period.

30. The method according to claim 29 wherein said predetermined duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

32. A voice response unit comprising:

means for receiving a first command;

means for selecting a first processing option in response to said first command including identification of a subscriber to be called;

means for providing a voice message indicative of said first processing option selected;

means for providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration immediately subsequent to a completion of providing said voice message; and

means for selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing in response to a receipt of a second command input during said silent delay period, said alternate processing selected from the group of actions consisting of (a) announcing a telephone number of said subscriber, (b) identifying and announcing an alternative telephone number of said subscriber, and (c) recording a voice mail for said subscriber, and

(ii) initiating said first processing option in response to an absence of said second command input for a duration of said silent delay period to thereby initiate a call to said subscriber at a primary telephone number.

33. The voice response unit according to claim 32 wherein said predetermined duration is in a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds.

34. The voice response unit according to claim 33 wherein said predetermined duration is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

35. The voice response unit according to claim 33 wherein said predetermined duration of said silent delay period is 1.8 seconds.

36. A voice activated dialer comprising:

a memory storing a directory of subscriber names and telephone numbers;

comparison means for selecting one of said subscribers most closely corresponding to a first speech input;

speech output means for providing a speech output of one of said subscriber names corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers;

timer means for providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration immediately subsequent to a completion of providing said speech output; and

control means for selectively (i) initiating alternate processing in response to a receipt of a spoken command input during said silent delay period, said alternative processing including recording a voice message for said subscriber, and (ii) calling the telephone number corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers immediately after said delay period and in response to an absence of said command input for a duration of said silent delay period.

37. The voice activated dialer according to claim 36 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds.

38. The voice activated dialer according to claim 37 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

39. The voice activated dialer according to claim 36 further comprising:

selection means for pseudorandomly selecting one of a group of content equivalent messages, wherein said speech output means provides a speech prompt using said selected one of said messages.

40. The voice activated dialer according to claim 36 wherein said command input comprises a DTMF audio signal.

41. The voice activated dialer according to claim 36 wherein said command input comprises a second speech input and said voice activated dialer further speech recognizer means for listening for said second speech input.

42. The voice activated dialer according to claim 41 wherein said speech recognizer means is responsive to a predetermined spoken command.

43. The voice activated dialer according to claim 41 wherein said speech recognizer means is responsive to a plurality of predetermined spoken commands.

44. The voice activated dialer according to claim 41 wherein said recognizer means includes means for processing said second speech input to provide speech content data and means for comparing said speech content data with a list of alternative processing commands.

45. The voice activated dialer according to claim 36 further comprising:

input means receiving said first speech input;

speech recognition means for recognizing a content of said first speech input; and

processing means for comparing said content with said directory.

46. The voice activated dialer according to claim 45 wherein said command input comprises a second speech signal and said voice activated dialer further includes speech recognition means for recognizing said second speech input.

47. The voice activated dialer according to claim 46 wherein said speech recognition means includes:

an input receiving said second speech input;

speech processing means for recognizing a content of said second speech input; and

processor means for comparing said content with a list of alternative processing commands.

48. The voice activated dialer according to claim 47 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds.

49. The voice activated dialer according to claim 48 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

50. The voice activated dialer according to claim 49 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is 1.8 seconds.

51. The voice activated dialer according to claim 36 wherein said speech output means includes a memory storing audio data corresponding to said selected one of said subscribers and audio player means for converting said audio data into said speech output.

52. A voice activated dialer comprising:

a memory storing a directory of subscriber names and telephone numbers;

a speech recognition engine receiving a speech input and providing content data derived from said speech input signal;

a processor responsive to said content data for selecting one of said subscribers;

an audio output providing a first outgoing speech signal corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers; and

a timer providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration immediately subsequent to a completion of providing said first outgoing speech signal,

wherein said processor selectively

(i) initiates alternate processing in response to a receipt of a command input during said silent delay period, said alternate processing selected from the group of actions consisting of (a) providing a second outgoing speech signal corresponding to one of said telephone numbers associated with the selected one of said subscribers, (b) identifying an alternate telephone number associated with the selected one of said subscribers, and (c) recording a voice mail for said selected one of said subscribers, and

(ii) initiates a dialing of the telephone number corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers immediately after said delay period and in response to an absence of said command input for a duration of said silent delay period.

53. The voice activated dialer according to claim 52 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds.

54. The voice activated dialer according to claim 53 wherein said duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

55. A voice activated dialer comprising:

a memory storing a directory of subscriber names and telephone numbers;

a speech recognition engine responsive to a speech input for providing speech content data; and

a processor responsive to said speech content data and to a set of instructions for

(i) selecting one of said subscribers most closely corresponding to first speech content data;

(ii) providing a speech output corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers;

(iii) providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration within a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds immediately after providing said speech output; and

(iv) selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing in response to second speech content data including an alternate processing command selected from the group of commands consisting of (a) providing a second speech output corresponding to one of said telephone numbers associated with the selected one of said subscribers, (b) identifying an alternate telephone number associated with the selected one of said subscribers, and (c) initiating a voice mail to the selected one of said subscribers, and, otherwise, and

(ii) dialing the telephone number corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers immediately after said delay period.

56. The voice activated dialer according to claim 55 wherein said predetermined duration of said silent delay period is in a range of 1.5 to 2.0 seconds.

57. The voice activated dialer according to claim 55 wherein said processor is further responsive to said set of instructions for:

selecting one of a group of content equivalent messages; and

playing the selected message to provide a spoken prompt.

58. A method of providing voice responses to commands comprising the steps of:

receiving a spoken identifier;

attempting recognition of said spoken identifier to identify a subscriber;

selecting a first processing option in connection with said subscriber;

providing a voice message indicative of said first processing option;

providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration immediately subsequent to a completion of said step of providing a voice message, and selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing in connection with said subscriber in response to a receipt of, and consistent with, a second command input during said silent delay period, said alternate processing selected from the group of actions consisting of (a) announcing a first telephone number associated with the subscriber, (b) announcing an alternate telephone number associated with the subscriber, and (c) initiating a voice mail to the subscriber, and

(ii) initiating said first processing option in connection with said subscriber in response to an absence of said second command input for a duration of said silent delay period.

59. A method of telephone dialing using a voice activated dialer including a directory of subscriber names and telephone numbers, the method comprising the steps of:

selecting one of said subscribers most closely corresponding to a first speech input;

providing a first speech output corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers;

providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration immediately subsequent to a completion of said step of providing a speech output; and

selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing related to the selected one of the subscribers in response to a receipt of a command input identifying said alternate processing during said silent delay period, said alternate processing selected from the group of actions consisting of (a) providing a second speech output corresponding to one of said telephone numbers associated with the selected one of said subscribers, (b) identifying an alternate telephone number associated with the selected one of said subscribers, and (c) initiating a voice message to said selected one of said subscribers, and

(ii) dialing the telephone number corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers immediately after said delay period and in response to an absence of said command input for a duration of said silent delay period.

60. A method of telephone dialing using a voice activated dialer including a directory of subscriber names and telephone numbers, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a first speech input;

recognizing said first speech input to provide first speech content data;

selecting one of said subscribers most closely corresponding to said first speech content data;

providing a first speech output corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers;

providing a silent delay period of a predetermined duration within a range of 1.2 to 2.3 seconds immediately subsequent to a completion of said step of providing a speech output;

listening for a second speech input during said silent period;

recognizing said second speech input to provide second speech content data; and

selectively

(i) initiating alternate processing related to the selected one of said subscribers in response to said second speech content data including an alternate processing command, said alternate processing selected from the group of actions consisting of (a) providing a second speech output corresponding to one of said telephone numbers associated with the selected one of said subscribers, (b) identifying an alternate telephone number associated with the selected one of said subscribers, (c) receiving a message for the selected one of said subscribers, and (d) initiating a voice mail to the selected one of said subscribers, and, otherwise,

(ii) dialing the telephone number corresponding to the selected one of said subscribers immediately after said delay period.

61. The method according to claim 60 wherein said error processing includes the steps of:

prompting for a third speech input;

performing speech recognition of said third speech input to reselect a designated subscriber;

playing a voice message indicative of said first processing option in connection with said reselected designated subscriber;

providing a second silent delay period immediately subsequent to a completion of said playing step in connection with said reselected designated subscriber; and

selectively (i) identifying a third processing option specified by a fourth speech input and, in response, automatically initiating said third processing option in connection with said reselected designated subscriber (ii) automatically initiating said first processing option in connection with said reselected designated subscriber is response to an absence of said fourth speech input during said second silent period.

62. The method according to claim 61 further comprising the steps of:

dialing a telephone number of said reselected designated subscriber in response to said step of automatically initiating said first processing option; and

performing said third processing in response to said step of automatically initiating said third processing option, said third processing selected from the group consisting of (i) providing a listing of said reselected designated subscriber, (ii) leaving a message for said reselected designated subscriber, and (iii) accepting a voice mail for said reselected selected subscriber.