System and method for expressive language assessment
First Claim
1. A method of assessing a key child'"'"'s expressive language development, comprising:
- processing an audio recording taken in the key child'"'"'s language environment to identify segments of the recording that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations, wherein a computing device configured to perform the processing is used and the processing includes categorizing a plurality of segments of the audio recording into a plurality of categories, the plurality of categories including categories selected from the group consisting of vocalizations, cries, vegetative sounds, and fixed sounds, and determining which of the plurality of segments characterized as vocalizations are segments of the recording that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations by comparing the plurality of segments characterized as vocalizations to a plurality of models;
applying an adult automatic speech recognition phone decoder to segments of the key child'"'"'s vocalizations to identify each occurrence of each of a plurality of phone categories, wherein each of the phone categories corresponds to a pre-defined speech sound;
determining a distribution for the phone categories; and
using the distribution in an age-based model to assess the key child'"'"'s expressive language development.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Certain aspects and embodiments of the present invention are directed to systems and methods for monitoring and analyzing the language environment and the development of a key child. A key child'"'"'s language environment and language development can be monitored without placing artificial limitations on the key child'"'"'s activities or requiring a third party observer. The language environment can be analyzed to identify phones or speech sounds spoken by the key child, independent of content. The number and type of phones is analyzed to automatically assess the key child'"'"'s expressive language development. The assessment can result in a standard score, an estimated developmental age, or an estimated mean length of utterance.
-
Citations
36 Claims
-
1. A method of assessing a key child'"'"'s expressive language development, comprising:
-
processing an audio recording taken in the key child'"'"'s language environment to identify segments of the recording that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations, wherein a computing device configured to perform the processing is used and the processing includes categorizing a plurality of segments of the audio recording into a plurality of categories, the plurality of categories including categories selected from the group consisting of vocalizations, cries, vegetative sounds, and fixed sounds, and determining which of the plurality of segments characterized as vocalizations are segments of the recording that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations by comparing the plurality of segments characterized as vocalizations to a plurality of models; applying an adult automatic speech recognition phone decoder to segments of the key child'"'"'s vocalizations to identify each occurrence of each of a plurality of phone categories, wherein each of the phone categories corresponds to a pre-defined speech sound; determining a distribution for the phone categories; and using the distribution in an age-based model to assess the key child'"'"'s expressive language development. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
-
-
16. A method of assessing a key child'"'"'s expressive language development, comprising:
-
processing an audio recording using a computing device configured to determine a plurality of key child audio segments that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations, wherein the processing includes segmenting and assigning a segment ID indicating a source to a first plurality of audio segments derived from the audio recording, the segmenting and assigning performed using a Minimum Duration Gaussian Mixture Model (MD-GMM), wherein the MD-GMM includes a plurality of models used for matching to the first plurality of audio segments, the plurality of models including a noise model that includes characteristics of sound attributable to noise, a key child model that includes characteristics of sounds from a hypothetical key child, and an adult model that includes characteristics of sound from an adult, wherein the segmenting and assigning assigns a portion of the first plurality of audio segments to the plurality of key child audio segments; receiving the plurality of key child audio segments that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations; determining a distribution for each of a plurality of phone categories for the key child audio segments, wherein each of the phone categories corresponds to a pre-defined speech sound; selecting an age-based model, wherein the selected age-based model corresponds to the key child'"'"'s chronological age and the age-based model includes a weight associated with each of the phone categories; and using the distribution in the selected age-based model to assess the key child'"'"'s language development. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
-
-
25. A system for of assessing a key child'"'"'s language development, comprising:
a processor-based device executing software comprising; an application having an audio engine configured to process an audio recording taken in the key child'"'"'s language environment to identify segments of the recording that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations; an adult automatic speech recognition phone decoder configured to process segments that correspond to a key child'"'"'s vocalizations to identify each occurrence of each of a plurality of phone categories, wherein each of the phone categories corresponds to a pre-defined speech sound; and an expressive language assessment component configured to determine a distribution for the phone categories and using the distributions in an age-based model to assess the key child'"'"'s expressive language development, wherein the age-based model is selected based on the key child'"'"'s chronological age and the age-based model includes a weight associated with each of the phone categories. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
-
31. A method of assessing a key child'"'"'s expressive language development, comprising:
-
processing an audio recording taken in the key child'"'"'s language environment to identify segments of the recording that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations; applying an adult automatic speech recognition phone decoder to segments of the key child'"'"'s vocalizations to identify each occurrence of each of a plurality of phone categories, wherein each of the phone categories corresponds to a pre-defined speech sound, wherein applying an adult automatic speech recognition phone decoder comprises identifying occurrences of a plurality of non-phone categories, wherein each of the non-phone categories corresponds to a pre-defined non-speech sound; determining a distribution for the phone categories; and using the distribution in an age-based model to assess the key child'"'"'s expressive language development. - View Dependent Claims (32)
-
-
33. A method of assessing a key child'"'"'s expressive language development, comprising:
-
processing an audio recording taken in the key child'"'"'s language environment to identify segments of the recording that correspond to the key child'"'"'s vocalizations; applying an adult automatic speech recognition phone decoder to segments of the key child'"'"'s vocalizations to identify each occurrence of each of a plurality of phone categories, wherein each of the phone categories corresponds to a pre-defined speech sound; determining a distribution for the phone categories; and using the distribution in an age-based model to assess the key child'"'"'s expressive language development, wherein the age-based model is selected based on the key child'"'"'s chronological age and the age-based model includes a weight associated with each of the phone categories. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36)
-
Specification