Method for converting character text messages to audio files with respective titles determined using the text message word attributes for their selection and reading aloud with mobile devices

• US 9,699,297 B2
• Filed: 02/14/2012
• Issued: 07/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cerence Operating Company (Cerence Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Gktekin, Cneyt
• Primary Examiner(s): Kazeminezhad, Farzad
• Application Number:
  US13/372,524
• Publication Number:
  US 20120215540A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,967 Days
• Field of Search: 704260, 704258
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/58 Use of machine translation, e.g. for multi-lingual retrieval, for server-side translation for client devices or for real-time translation
• 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: H04B 1/082 to be used in vehicles H04B1/086 takes precedence; holding or mounting accessories B60R11/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6075 adapted for handsfree use in a vehicle H04M1/6058 takes precedence; arrangements for holding telephones in a vehicle B60R11/0241
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for selecting and downloading content from a content provider which is accessible via an IP/DNS/URL address to a mobile device, the content being any text information data, for converting the text information data to at least one audio message and for storing the at least one audio message as at least one audio file on the mobile device, wherein the at least one audio file is playable and discernable as a music file. Said method implemented on a mobile phone enables controlling and playing the audio messages as music files by determining a short title associated with the audio file using word underline and size attributes of the text, for user selection on the mobile'"'"'s graphical user interface, for instance also in a car environment with a car kit enabling a control and a selection of one or more of said at least one audio files for playing from the mobile phone.

Claims

1. Method for downloading to a mobile device content from a content provider which is accessible via an IP address or an associated DNS-/URL-address to the mobile device, the content being information data including character text, for converting the character text to at least one audio message and for storing the at least one audio message as at least one audio file on the mobile device, the method being executed by the mobile device and comprising:

a) reading the IP address or the associated DNS-/URL-address from a memory in the mobile device;

b) connecting to the content provider via the IP address or the associated DNS-/URL-address and downloading the content from said IP address or the associated DNS-/URL-address to the mobile device, same the content being information data and the information data including the character text;

c) recognizing the character text within the information data and determining by a text message determination rule at least one text message from the character text;

d) determining by a short title determination rule at least one short title which is information related to the at least one text message and which is used as at least one file name for the at least one audio file of the at least one text message, the determining further including;

determining at least one headline by a headline determination rule, the at least one headline informing a listener at a beginning of a playing of the at least one audio message about a source of the text message, and wherein determining the at least one headline to be played at the beginning of the audio message further includes computationally taking into account at least one of;

the respective IP address or the respective associated DNS-/URL-address as a source, or a character string of a database table assigned to the IP address or to the associated DNS-/URL-address, and attributes of words within the at least one text message, wherein the attributes include at least one of;

big words, underlined words;

e) converting the at least one text message by a Text-to-Speech software (TTS) to the respective at least one audio message;

f) storing the respective at least one audio message as the at least one audio file on the mobile device with the respective short title as the file name, and

g) enabling playing of said at least one audio file, the playing enabled via a graphical user interface displaying the at least one short title and the playing in response to user selection of the at least one short title corresponding to the at least one audio file.

2. Method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of:

in a) the memory is an address table, a bookmark table, a register, a database or a data file wherein the at least one IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address is stored;

in b) the connection to the IP address or the associated DNS-/URL-address is established via wire or wirelessly; and

the IP address or the associated DNS-/URL-address is related to a content server associated to the content provider providing email content, the content server being a POP/IMAP, a Microsoft Exchange email server, or a Send-mail email server.

3. Method according to claim 2, wherein the IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address is a first IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address and the method further comprising:

obtaining a second IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address from the information data as a web-link in the form of a return from a search engine or from the content provider in response to providing a keyword to the search engine or the content provider, wherein the search engine is accessed or the content provider is connected based on the first IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address already stored in the memory.

4. Method according to claim 1, wherein determining the at least one headline by a headline determination rule further includes using the at least one headline to inform the listener at the beginning of the playing of the audio message about at least one of the source of the text message, a date of the text message, a content of the text message, and a keyword, and wherein the headline determination rule takes into account:

the respective IP address or the respective associated DNS-/URL-address as a source;

the character string of a database table assigned to the IP address or to the associated DNS-/URL-address;

the character text;

the text message;

the first sentence of the text message;

attributes of words within the at least one text message, wherein the attributes include at least one of;

bold words, big words, underlined words, the date connected to the respective at least one text message, and the keyword.

5. Method according to claim 4, wherein in c) the determination of the at least one text message according to the text message determination rule depends on the keyword which is searched for, in order to get only such at least one text message that comprises at least the keyword, and wherein said keyword is preferably stored in a Setup table, and wherein said keyword and the respective IP addresses or associated DNS-/URL-address are downloadable from another electronic device into the mobile device.

6. Method according to claim 1, wherein after the storage of a new at least one audio file in f) the reception of at least one new text message is indicated to the user of the mobile device by displaying text through a car infotainment system, by playing a respective audio message, or by playing the new at least one text message or by parts thereof.

7. Method according to claim 6, wherein the indication of the new at least one audio file stored within f) is only indicated if it comprises a certain keyword or sender address, which gets detected.

8. Method according to claim 1, wherein in g) the selection and playing of the selected at least one audio file is controlled by the mobile device or by a car infotainment or audio system in a same manner as music data files.

9. Method according to claim 8, wherein the mobile device communicates with the car infotainment or audio system via a directly wired connection or wirelessly or via an adaptor, wherein the adaptor comprises a communication interface and a communication link to the car infotainment or audio system, wherein the communication link is a separate wire or is a controller area network (CAN) bus or another vehicle bus.

10. Method according to claim 1, wherein the memory contains a plurality of IP addresses or associated DNS-/URL-addresses and wherein a)-f) are executed recursively for each IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address contained in the memory.

11. Method according to claim 1, wherein prior to a) a control function is executed, the control function detecting selection by a user of a control audio file and playing of the control audio file, whereupon the control function initiates, based on a unique file name of the control audio file, an execution of a)-g) with a certain IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address which is retrieved from the memory based on the unique file name of the control audio file, and wherein the detection of the selection and playing of the control audio file is done by polling.

12. Method according to claim 1, wherein in f) the audio file gets stored in an already available folder, directory, or database structure in a same manner as a music file.

13. Method according to claim 1, wherein the mobile device is a smart-phone, a mobile phone, a music player, a laptop, or a PC, and wherein the mobile device comprises means for at least one of a wired and a wireless data connection.

14. Method according to claim 1, wherein in d) the short title determination rule takes into account:

already existing audio files based on a root name and an incremented number related to already stored audio files of a same kind, an information source based on the IP address or the associated DNS-/URL-address, an email sender, a name from a connected database table associated with the IP address or to the associated DNS-/URL-address, a content or a date of the text message, a keyword, a content of a respective headline of the text message or parts thereof, in order to build a descriptive audio file name understandable for a respective selection for a playing, the descriptive audio file name having a length suitable for displaying on the mobile device.

15. Method according to claim 1, wherein c) includes at least one of:

determining at least two text messages by the text message determination rule, wherein the text message determination rule is based on a recognition of different paragraphs by detection of one or more of;

line spacing, bold, underlined words, big sized words, keywords, and whereupon each of the determined at least two text messages are extracted as a separate text message, in order to generate by d) through g) from each separate text message the at least one audio message and audio file, respectively, and

the text message determination rule taking into account old text messages from a same IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address, detecting which information is new, taking the new information as the text message, and rejecting the text messages which are already part of already existing converted audio files.

16. Method according to claim 1 including:

in a) the at least one IP address or associated DNS-/URL-address is an email address, an instant messaging or a social network address;

in b) at least one email with or without data attachment, an instant message or a social network feed message gets downloaded; and

wherein one or more of a source or a sender, a reference line, a date of reception is taken into account for the determination of the short title and within a headline determination rule.

17. Method according to claim 1, wherein in f) the at least one audio file gets stored in an already available directory, folder, album or playlist structure on the mobile device according to a file storage rule, wherein the file storage rule is programmable by a Setup menu, the file storage rule determining in which directory, folder, playlist, or album the at least one audio file gets stored, and the file storage rule determining how the file name is generated by using the short title, and

wherein after the audio file is played once, the audio file is dragged to another storage place or an attribute of the audio file is changed.

18. Method according to claim 1, wherein in b) the information data comprise image data of the at least one text message, the image data being in a standard JPEG, PDF, TIF, GIF or hand written form converted by a camera to the image data, wherein the image data is detected and converted by optical character recognition (OCR) conversion software to obtain character text.

19. Method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one audio file is stored in at least one of the following standard music data file formats:

MP3, WAV, OggVorbis, iPhone, Apple iPod format, WMA, PCM or an ITU-T standard.

20. Method according to claim 1, wherein the audio output of the mobile device is led through a car infotainment or a car audio system in a same manner as music data files.