System and method for configuring voice synthesis

• US 8,620,668 B2
• Filed: 11/23/2011
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Interactions, LLC
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rosen, Kenneth H., Creswell, Carroll W., Farah, Jeffrey J., Bansal, Pradeep K., Syrdal, Ann K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Opsasnick, Michael N
• Application Number:
  US13/303,405
• Publication Number:
  US 20120072223A1
• Time in Patent Office: 769 Days
• Field of Search: 704/275
• US Class Current: 704/275
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/02 Methods for producing synthetic speech; Speech synthesisers
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/033 Voice editing, e.g. manipulating the voice of the synthesiser

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing synthesized speech in a manner that takes into account the environment where the speech is presented. A method embodiment includes, based on a listening environment and at least one other parameter associated with at least one other parameter, selecting an approach from the plurality of approaches for presenting synthesized speech in a listening environment, presenting synthesized speech according to the selected approach and based on natural language input received from a user indicating that an inability to understand the presented synthesized speech, selecting a second approach from the plurality of approaches and presenting subsequent synthesized speech using the second approach.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving an instruction to play, via a processor, synthesized speech;

receiving an environmental speech template from a historical suggestion database comprising speech presentation suggestions corresponding to matrices of environmental conditions, wherein the environmental speech template was selected by a process comprising;

ranking the speech presentation suggestions according to a correlation of the matrices of environmental conditions and environmental data, to yield a ranked list of presentation suggestions;

selecting a top ranked presentation suggestion from the ranked list of presentation suggestions; and

returning the top ranked presentation suggestion as the environmental speech template;

modifying the synthesized speech based on the environmental speech template, to yield a modified synthesized speech; and

playing the modified synthesized speech.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving feedback from a user associated with the modified synthesized speech; and

modifying the modified synthesized speech based on the feedback, to yield user modified synthesized speech.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

recording the user modified synthesized speech in the historical suggestion database.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the modified synthesized speech comprises phonemes modified according to the environmental speech template.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the historical suggestion database further comprises environmental speech templates based on one of a connection type, a bandwidth available, and an abnormal human perception.

6. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a storage device having instructions stored which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

receiving an instruction to play, via a processor, synthesized speech;

receiving an environmental speech template from a historical suggestion database comprising speech presentation suggestions corresponding to matrices of environmental conditions, wherein the environmental speech template was selected by a process comprising;

ranking the speech presentation suggestions according to a correlation of the matrices of environmental conditions and environmental data, to yield a ranked list of presentation suggestions;

selecting a top ranked presentation suggestion from the ranked list of presentation suggestions; and

returning the top ranked presentation suggestion as the environmental speech template;

modifying the synthesized speech based on the environmental speech template, to yield a modified synthesized speech; and

playing the modified synthesized speech.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the modifying is based on an input received from a user.

8. The system of claim 7, the storage device having further instructions stored which result in the operations further comprising:

recording the modified synthesized speech in the historical suggestion database.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the modified synthesized speech comprises phonemes modified according to the environmental speech template.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the historical suggestion database further comprises environmental speech templates based on one of a connection type, a bandwidth available, and an abnormal human perception.

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

receiving an instruction to play, via a processor, synthesized speech;

receiving an environmental speech template from a historical suggestion database comprising speech presentation suggestions corresponding to matrices of environmental conditions, wherein the environmental speech template was selected by a process comprising;

ranking the speech presentation suggestions according to a correlation of the matrices of environmental conditions and environmental data, to yield a ranked list of presentation suggestions;

selecting a top ranked presentation suggestion from the ranked list of presentation suggestions; and

returning the top ranked presentation suggestion as the environmental speech template;

modifying the synthesized speech based on the environmental speech template, to yield a modified synthesized speech; and

playing the modified synthesized speech.

12. The computer-readable storage device of claim 11, wherein the historical suggestion database further comprises environmental speech templates based on one of a connection type, a bandwidth available, and an abnormal human perception.

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

recording the user modified synthesized speech in the historical suggestion database.

14. The computer-readable storage device of claim 11, wherein the modified synthesized speech comprises phonemes modified according to the environmental speech template.