System and method for audible text center subsystem

• US 8,401,848 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2009
• Issued: 03/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Genesis Star Management Limited
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Dowlatkhah, Sangar
• Primary Examiner(s): MCFADDEN, SUSAN IRIS
• Application Number:
  US12/638,583
• Publication Number:
  US 20110144989A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,190 Days
• Field of Search: 704/235
• US Class Current: 704/235
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/08 Text analysis or generation of parameters for speech synthesis out of text, e.g. grapheme to phoneme translation, prosody generation or stress or intonation determination
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/5628 Programming or writing circuits; Data input circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 2211/5621 Multilevel programming verification
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/39 using speech synthesis speech synthesis per se G10L13/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5322 for recording text messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0048 where the text-based messaging service is a Short Message Service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup

Abstract

A system, method, and computer-readable storage device for sending a spoken message as a text message. The method includes initiating a connection with a first subscriber, receiving from the first subscriber a spoken message and spoken disambiguating information associated with at least one recipient address. The method further includes converting the spoken message to text via an audible text center subsystem (ATCS), and delivering the text to the recipient address. The method can also include verifying a subscription status of the first subscriber, or delivering the text to the recipient address based on retrieved preferences of the first subscriber. The preferences can be retrieved from a consolidated network repository or embedded within the spoken message. Text and the spoken message can be delivered to the same or different recipient addresses. The method can include updating recipient addresses based on a received oral command from the first subscriber.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving from a subscriber, through a network, a spoken message directed to a recipient and spoken disambiguating information indicating how to deliver the spoken message to the recipient;

converting, via a processor, the spoken message to text via an audible text center subsystem;

determining a recipient address associated with the recipient based at least in part on the spoken disambiguating information; and

transmitting the text to the recipient address via the network.

2. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising verifying a subscription status of the subscriber.

3. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising:

retrieving preferences of the subscriber, to yield retrieved preferences; and

transmitting the text to the recipient address based at least in part on the retrieved preferences.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the retrieved preferences are retrieved from a consolidated network repository.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the retrieved preferences are embedded within the spoken message.

6. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising transmitting the spoken message and the text to the recipient address.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the audible text center subsystem comprises a media converter module and a media storage module.

8. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising updating the recipient address based on a received oral command from the subscriber.

9. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising transmitting the text to the recipient address based on delivery mode input from the subscriber.

10. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a computer-readable storage device having instructions stored which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform a method comprising;

receiving from a subscriber, through a network, a spoken message directed to a recipient and spoken disambiguating information indicating how to deliver the spoken message to the recipient;

converting the spoken message to text via an audible text center subsystem;

determining a recipient address associated with the recipient based at least in part on the spoken disambiguating information; and

transmitting the text to the recipient address via the network.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the system receives the spoken message from a mobile switching center.

12. The system of claim 10, the computer-readable storage device having additional instructions stored which result in the method further comprising:

retrieving preferences of the subscriber, to yield retrieved preferences; and

transmitting the text to the recipient address based at least in part on the retrieved preferences.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the text is transmitted through a short message service center.

14. A computer-readable storage device having instructions stored which, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform a method comprising:

receiving from a subscriber, through a network, a spoken message directed to a recipient and a spoken disambiguating information indicating how to deliver the spoken message to the recipient;

a text message by steps comprising;

converting the spoken message to text via an audible text center subsystem;

determining a recipient address associated with the recipient based at least in part on the spoken disambiguating information; and

transmitting the text to the recipient address via the network.

15. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, the computer-readable storage device having additional instructions stored which result in the method further comprising:

retrieving preferences of the subscriber, to yield received preferences; and

transmitting the text to the recipient address based on the retrieved preferences.

16. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the received preferences are retrieved from a consolidated network repository.

17. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, the computer-readable storage device having additional instructions stored which result in the method further comprising delivering the spoken message to the recipient with the text.

18. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the received preferences are embedded within the spoken message.

19. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein a user input from the subscriber is received through a secondary communications device.

20. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein receiving the spoken message occurs independent of input from the recipient to receive the spoken message.