Method and system for voice based media search

#Embodiments of the invention generally relate to techniques for using voice-based input to operate a media device and to search for media content.

#The approaches described in this section are approaches that could be pursued, but not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches described in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their inclusion in this section.

#Digital Video Recording systems (“DVRs”) and other similar media devices enable users to consume a wide variety of media and have revolutionized the way users watch and record multimedia content. In general, user interface systems found in DVRs and other media devices communicate with a display screen and display an interactive interface on a display device. Users typically interact with such user interface systems using remote controls and other physical input devices. A drawback of these physical input devices is that it is often cumbersome for a user to express commands and queries to find and interact with multimedia content available to the user. For example, if a user desires to search for movies that contain the user's favorite actor, the user may be required to manually key in, using a remote control or similar device, the actor's name and other elements of a relevant search command.

#The present invention is illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings and in which like reference numerals refer to similar elements and in which:

#FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating an example system in accordance with an embodiment;

#FIG. 1B is a block diagram illustrating an example media device in accordance with an embodiment;

#In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the present invention.

#Several features are described hereafter that can each be used independently of one another or with any combination of the other features. However, any individual feature might not address any of the problems discussed above or might only address one of the problems discussed above. Some of the problems discussed above might not be fully addressed by any of the features described herein. Although headings are provided, information related to a particular heading, but not found in the section having that heading, may also be found elsewhere in the specification.

#Example features are described according to the following outline: 1.0 General Overview 2.0 System Architecture 3.0 Example Media Device 4.0 Receiving Voice Input 5.0 Processing Voice Input 5.1 Speech-To-Text Translation Service 5.2 User Modification of Translated Voice Input 5.3 Device Lexicon Cache 5.4 Natural Language Processing Cache 5.5 Natural Language Processing 5.6 Media Content Search 6.0 Processing Voice Input Search Results 6.1 Search Result Weighting 6.2 Presentation and User Selection of Results 6.3 Collection of Audience Research and Measurement Data 7.0 Hardware Overview 8.0 Extensions and Alternatives 1.0 General Overview