Method and apparatus for language translation using registered databases

• US 6,789,093 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2001
• Issued: 09/07/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Obuchi, Yasunari, Koizumi, Atsuko, Kitahara, Yoshinori, Mizutani, Seiki
• Primary Examiner(s): Metjahic, Safet
• Assistant Examiner(s): GODDARD, BRIAN D
• Application Number:
  US09/811,560
• Publication Number:
  US 20020046206A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3, 707/9, 707/10, 707/104.1, 704/251, 704/277, 704/1, 704/7, 379/88.05, 379/88.06
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2061 Language aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42 Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers specially adapted for wireless communication networks H04W4/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A method and apparatus for providing an interpretation service are disclosed. The method includes the steps of receiving an incoming telephone call from a user, forming a plurality of databases, receiving at least one user information item via the incoming telephone call, searching at least one of the plurality of databases for at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one information item, outputting a translation from at least one of the plurality of databases of the at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one information item, and outputting, in audio on the incoming telephone call, the translation. The apparatus includes an interpreter and a registration service. The registration service includes a private information manager that receives an incoming telephone call from a user, wherein the private information manager manages a plurality of databases, wherein the plurality of databases includes at least one database of sentences registered to the individual user.

Claims

1. A method of providing an interpretation service, comprising:

receiving an incoming telephone call from a user;

extracting a plurality of databases, wherein the plurality of databases includes at least one database of selected sentences uniquely registered to an individual user, and wherein each of the plurality of databases comprises at least one translation of at least one sentence;

identifying and authenticating the user making the incoming telephone call as a registered user;

accessing, from the plurality of databases extracted in said extracting, ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user;

receiving at least one user information item via the incoming telephone call;

searching at least one of the accessed ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user for at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one user information item;

outputting, according to said searching, a translation, from at least one of the plurality of databases, of the at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one user information item; and

outputting, in audio on the incoming telephone call, the translation of the at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one user information item.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one user information item comprises at least one sentence spoken by the user, wherein said searching comprises subjecting the at least one sentence spoken by the user to speech recognition.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising registering for said identifying and authenticating.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the user has at least one sentence in the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user, and further comprising authorizing the user to access the at least one sentences.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said authorizing comprises identifying the registered user by at least one criteria selected from the group consisting of a telephone number on caller identification, a telephone push button username, a username spoken by the user, a telephone push button password, and a password spoken by the user.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving a registered sentence manipulation command from the registered user; and

manipulating the at least one sentences according to the registered sentence manipulation command from the user.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said receiving a registered sentence manipulation command from the user comprises receiving via at least one registered sentence manipulation command selected from the group consisting of an email, a browser connection, and the incoming telephone call, and wherein said manipulating comprises at least one action selected from the group consisting of adding a new sentence to the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user, deleting a sentence from the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user, and editing a sentence in the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user, to thereby form a manipulated sentence, the method further comprising:

registering the manipulated sentence into the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

outputting of a foreign language translation of the manipulated sentence;

making known to the registered user a relative reliability of the foreign language translation of the manipulated sentence; and

sending the manipulated sentence to a human translator upon receipt of a request from the registered user for a foreign language translation having increased relative reliability.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

detecting whether a sentence similar to the manipulated sentence is included in one of the plurality of databases; and

assessing the relative reliability of the foreign language translation to be high if a sentence similar to the manipulated sentence is included in one of the plurality of databases.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein said searching comprises first searching the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an additional registration command from the user, wherein the additional registration command is directed to at least one sentence not in the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user;

registering the at least one sentence not in the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user into the ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the accessed ones of the plurality of databases correspondent to the registered user comprise at least one public database.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein said identifying and authenticating comprises:

detecting an identifier telephone number of the incoming call; and

seeking a user registration associated with the identifier.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the identifier is at least one identifier selected from the group consisting of a detected telephone number of the incoming call, a push button entry, and a spoken entry.

15. An interpretation service system, comprising:

a private information manager that receives an incoming contact from a registered user;

a plurality of databases communicatively connected to and controlled by said private information manager, wherein the plurality of databases includes at least one database of selected sentences uniquely registered to the user;

an interpretation server that receives at least one user information item via an incoming telephone call from the user, wherein said interpretation server searches at least the at least one database of sentences registered to the user of the plurality of databases for at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one user information item;

a translation output that outputs, from at least one of the plurality of databases, at least one matched sentence correspondent to the at least one user information item, in audio on the incoming telephone call.

16. The interpretation service system of claim 15, wherein the plurality of databases additionally includes a public sentence database.

17. The interpretation service system of claim 15, wherein the plurality of databases additionally includes an additionally registered sentence database, wherein the additionally registered sentence database is accessed through said private information management server via the incoming contact.

18. The interpretation service system of claim 17, wherein the incoming contact is at least one contact selected from the group consisting of voice, email, intranet, and internet.

19. The interpretation service system of claim 17, wherein the user accesses the additionally registered sentence database and creates at least one additional registered sentence, wherein the additional registered sentence comprises new sentences not in the at least one database of sentences registered to the user, edited versions of sentences in the at least one database of sentences registered to the user, or deleted sentences from the at least one database of sentences registered to the user.

20. The interpretation service system of claim 17, further comprising:

an authentication server that identifies the user as a user authorized to access at least one of the registered sentence databases.