Broadcast system using text to speech conversion

• US 9,263,027 B2
• Filed: 06/01/2011
• Issued: 02/16/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Europe Limited (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Europe Limited (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Hopkins, Huw, Edmunds, Timothy
• Primary Examiner(s): YEN, ERIC L
• Application Number:
  US13/150,669
• Publication Number:
  US 20120016675A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,721 Days
• Field of Search: 704/258, 704/260
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/047 Architecture of speech synthesisers
• 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

Abstract

A broadcast signal receiver comprises a text data receiver for receiving broadcast text data for display to a user in relation to a user interface; a text-to-speech (TTS) converter for converting received text data into an audio speech signal, the TTS converter being operable to detect whether a word for conversion is included in a stored list of words for conversion and, if so, to convert that word according to a conversion defined by the stored list; and if not, to convert that word according to a set of predetermined conversion rules; a conversion memory storing the list of words for conversion by the TTS converter; and an update receiver for receiving additional words and associated conversions for storage in the conversion memory.

Claims

1. A broadcast signal receiver comprising:

a text data receiver configured to receive broadcast text data and to transmit the broadcast text data to a user interface, wherein the broadcast text data includes at least one word;

a text-to-speech (TTS) converter configured to convert received text data into an audio speech sound, wherein the TTS converter is configured to;

detect whether the at least one word is also included in a stored list of words, and

when the at least one word is also included in the stored list of words, convert the at least one word according to a conversion defined by the stored list, and

when the at least one word is not included in the stored list of words, convert the at least one word according to a set of predetermined conversion rules;

a conversion memory configured to store the list of words as initial data;

an update receiver configured to receive, from a conversion repository, and via a network connection, update data, wherein the update data includes updated words, associated conversions, and updated conversion rules,

and configured to store, in the conversion memory, the update data;

and a commander circuitry configured to control an operation of the broadcast signal receiver, wherein the commander circuitry is configured to receive a user control input, wherein the user control input indicates an incorrect conversion carried out by the TTS converter; and

wherein the broadcast signal receiver is configured to, in response to the user control input, send a message to a data provider, and thereby request update data, wherein the message indicates a conversion problem and indicates text which was converted, by the TTS converter, into speech.

2. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein:

the TTS converter is configured to generate the audio speech sound by assembling speech components relating to words or relating to portions of words; and

the conversion memory defines, for each word stored in the conversion memory, a respective sequence of speech components which is to be used in a conversion.

3. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein the update receiver is configured to receive the update data as a broadcast update signal.

4. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein the broadcast signal receiver is a television signal receiver configured to receive a television signal, wherein the television signal has a video signal component and an audio signal component.

5. The receiver according to claim 4, wherein the broadcast text data includes electronic programme guide data and/or teletext data.

6. The receiver according to claim 5, further configured to receive the electronic programme guide data as digital service broadcast service information data.

7. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein the conversion problem corresponds to converted text that includes a predetermined number of words that were converted, before the user control input is received by the commander circuitry, into speech, or that includes words that were converted, during a predetermined period, into speech, wherein the predetermined period precedes a time when the commander circuitry receives the user control input.

8. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein a conversion made using the update data overrides a conversion made using initial data.

9. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein the update data includes update acronyms and update abbreviations.

10. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein the update data is issued in response to any one of:

a scheduled data provider update, an automated request from the broadcast signal receiver, a manual request from the broadcast signal receiver, an automated request from a user of the broadcast signal receiver, or a manual request from a user of the broadcast signal receiver.

11. The receiver according to claim 1, further comprising:

a message generator configured to track whether the at least one word is converted according to a conversion defined by the stored list or is converted according to the set of predetermined conversion rules.

12. The receiver according to claim 11, wherein the broadcast signal receiver is further configured to request, when performing a conversion defined by the stored list, update words and associated conversion rules, and to request, when performing a conversion according to the set of predetermined conversion rules, updated conversion rules.

13. The receiver according to claim 11, further comprising:

a buffer configured to capture a predetermined allocation of recently converted words,

wherein the message generator is further configured to generate a capture message that includes the captured predetermined allocation.

14. The receiver according to claim 13, wherein the message generator is further configured to transmit, to a data provider and via a network connection, the capture message.

15. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein the commander circuitry is remote from the broadcast signal receiver.

16. A method of broadcast signal reception, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving broadcast text data, and transmitting the broadcast text data to a user interface, wherein the broadcast text data includes at least one word;

converting received text data into an audio speech sound, wherein the converting step includes;

detecting whether the at least one word is also included in a stored list of words, and

when the at least one word is also included in the stored list of words, converting the at least one word according to a conversion defined by the stored list, and,

when the at least one word is not included in the stored list of words, converting the at least one word according to a set of predetermined conversion rules;

storing, in a conversion memory, the list of words as initial data;

receiving, from a conversion repository, and via a network connection, update data, wherein the update data includes updated words, associated conversions, and updated conversion rules, and storing, in the conversion memory, the update data;

receiving a user control input, wherein the user control input indicates an incorrect conversion carried out by a text-to-speech (TTS) converter; and

,

in response to the user control input, sending a message to a data provider, and thereby requesting update data, wherein the message indicates a conversion problem and indicates text which was converted, by the TTS converter, into speech.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer readable instructions thereon which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform he method according to claim 16.

18. A broadcast signal receiver comprising:

a text data receiver configured to receive broadcast text data and to transmit the broadcast text data to a user interface, wherein the broadcast text data includes at least one word;

a text-to-speech (TTS) converter configured to convert received text data into an audio speech sound, wherein the TTS converter is configured to;

detect whether the at least one word is also included in a stored list of words, and

when the at least one word is also included in the stored list of words, convert the at least one word according to a conversion defined by the stored list, and

when the at least one word is not included in the stored list of words, convert the at least one word according to a set of predetermined conversion rules;

a conversion memory configured to store the list of words as initial data;

an update receiver configured to receive, from a conversion repository, and via a network connection, update data, wherein the update data includes updated words, associated conversions, and updated conversion rules,

wherein the receiving of the update data is triggered by;

receiving a signal, from a remote device, at the broadcast signal receiver, and

in response to receiving the signal, sending, via the broadcast signal receiver, a message to a data provider, and thereby requesting update data, wherein the message indicates a conversion problem and indicates text which was converted, by the TTS converter, into speech.