Talking paper authoring tools

• US 8,201,074 B2
• Filed: 10/08/2008
• Issued: 06/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Toyama, Kentaro, Chu, Gerald, Balakrishnan, Ravin
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Maikhanh
• Application Number:
  US12/247,891
• Publication Number:
  US 20100088582A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,343 Days
• Field of Search: 715/200, 715/201, 715/202, 715/204, 715/205, 715/209, 715/231, 715/234, 715/239, 715/249, 715/255, 715/256, 715/273, 715/274, 715/700, 715/719, 715/727, 715/728, 715/729, 715/731, 715/760, 715/210, 715/226, 715/229, 715/253, 715/762, 704/2, 704/4, 704/5, 704/200, 704/203, 704/251, 704/260, 704/269, 704/270.1, 704/277, 704/278
• US Class Current: 715/201
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4393 Multimedia presentations, e.g. slide shows, multimedia albums
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/065 Combinations of audio and video presentations, e.g. videotapes, videodiscs, television systems
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/031 Electronic editing of digitised analogue information signals, e.g. audio or video signals

Abstract

A range of unified software authoring tools for creating a talking paper application for integration in an end user platform are described herein. The authoring tools are easy to use and are interoperable to provide an easy and cost-effective method of creating a talking paper application. The authoring tools provide a framework for creating audio content and image content and interactively linking the audio content and the image content. The authoring tools also provide for verifying the interactively linked audio and image content, reviewing the audio content, the image content and the interactive linking on a display device. Finally, the authoring tools provide for saving the audio content, the video content and the interactive linking for publication to a manufacturer for integration in an end user platform or talking paper platform.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

under control of one or more processors configured with executable instructions;

creating an audio component;

creating an image component, wherein creating the audio component and the image component comprises;

converting a printed or computer document into audio and images using optical character recognition, text summarization and/or text-to-speech technology; and

providing a user interface for a user to customize the audio and the images to create the audio component and the image component;

interactively linking a portion of the audio component with a portion of the image component with a link;

reviewing the audio component, the image component and the link on an electronic viewing device, the reviewing comprising;

verifying whether the link between the audio component and the image component exists,

verifying whether the link between the audio component and the image component includes an end to avoid an infinite looping, and

verifying whether a link path of the link between the audio component and the image component is accessible; and

saving the audio component, the image component and the link to allow for integration into an end user platform, wherein the image component is presented in a printed or digital format upon integration in the end user platform and wherein the audio component is activated upon accessing the portion of the image component in the printed or digital format.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the interactively linking the portion of the audio component with the portion of the image component comprises physically linking the portion of the audio component and the portion of the image component.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the creating of the audio component further comprises recording the audio component to an audio file.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the creating of the audio component further comprises selecting a local or remote audio file.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the creating of the audio component further comprises downloading an audio file from a website.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the creating of the image component further comprises drawing a graphics image.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the creating of the image component further comprises importing a graphics image from a website.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising publishing the audio component, the image component and the link to an audio tourbook.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising publishing the audio component, the image component and the link to an educational talking book.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising publishing the audio component, the image component and the link to an electronic greeting card.

11. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

memory, communicatively coupled to the one or more processors, storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, configure the one or more processors to perform acts comprising;

creating an audio component and an image component, wherein creating the audio component and the image component comprises;

converting a printed or computer document into audio and images using optical character recognition, text summarization and/or text-to-speech technology; and

providing a user interface for a user to customize the audio and the images to create the audio component and the image component;

interactively linking a portion of the audio component with a portion of the image component with a link;

reviewing the audio component, the image component and the link on an electronic viewing device, the reviewing comprising;

verifying whether the link between the audio component and the image component exists,

verifying whether the link between the audio component and the image component includes an end to avoid an infinite looping, and

verifying whether a link path of the link between the audio component and the image component is accessible; and

saving the audio component, the image component and the link in a format to allow for integration into an end user platform, the saved format being selected from a plurality of formats and facilitating the image component to be presented in the printed or digital medium upon integration in the end user platform and the audio component to be activated upon accessing the portion of the image component in the printed or digital medium.

12. The system as recited in claim 11, the acts further comprising including a number or symbol on the image component to enable playing of the audio component when consuming the image component using a mobile device, the number or symbol being unique across all content at a page level, a specific content level or a global level in the end user platform.

13. One or more storage devices excluding signal configured with executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, configure the one or more processors to perform acts comprising:

under control of one or more processors configured with executable instructions;

creating an audio component;

creating an image component, wherein creating the audio component and the image component comprises;

converting a printed or computer document into audio and images using optical character recognition, text summarization and/or text-to-speech technology; and

providing a user interface for a user to customize the audio and the images to create the audio component and the image component;

interactively linking a portion of the audio component with a portion of the image component with a link;

reviewing the audio component, the image component and the link on an electronic viewing device, the reviewing comprising;

verifying whether the link between the audio component and the image component exists,

verifying whether the link between the audio component and the image component includes an end to avoid an infinite looping, and

verifying whether a link path of the link between the audio component and the image component is accessible; and

saving the audio component, the image component and the link to allow for integration into an end user platform, wherein the image component is presented in a printed or digital format upon integration in the end user platform and wherein the audio component is activated upon accessing the portion of the image component in the printed or digital format.

14. The one or more storage devices as recited in claim 13, wherein the interactively linking the portion of the audio component with the portion of the image component comprises physically linking the portion of the audio component and the portion of the image component.

15. The one or more storage devices as recited in claim 13, wherein the creating of the audio component further comprises recording the audio component to an audio file.

16. The one or more storage devices as recited in claim 13, wherein the creating of the audio component further comprises selecting a local or remote audio file.

17. The one or more storage devices as recited in claim 13, wherein the creating of the audio component further comprises downloading an audio file from a website.

18. The one or more storage devices as recited in claim 13, wherein the creating of the image component further comprises importing a graphics image from a website.

19. The one or more storage devices as recited in claim 13, further comprising publishing the audio component, the image component and the link to an audio tourbook, an educational talking book and/or an electronic greeting card.