# US 12,594,948 B2 · Apparatus and method for controlling vehicle message output

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 12,594,948 B2
- Document ID: US12594948B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/386,677
- Filed: 2023-11-03
- Published: 2024-12-19
- Granted: 2026-04-07
- Earliest claimed: 2023-06-13
- Assignees: Hyundai Motor Company; Kia Corporation
- Applicants: Hyundai Motor Company; Kia Corporation
- Inventors: Soo Joong Hwang
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12594948B2

## CPC

- B60W 50/14: Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
- G10L 13/033: Voice editing, e.g. manipulating the voice of the synthesiser
- G10L 13/04: Details of speech synthesis systems, e.g. synthesiser structure or memory management
- B60W 2050/143: {Alarm means}
- G10L 2015/088: {Word spotting}
- B60W: CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT
- G10L: SPEECH ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES OR SPEECH SYNTHESIS; SPEECH RECOGNITION; SPEECH OR VOICE PROCESSING TECHNIQUES; SPEECH OR AUDIO CODING OR DECODING

## Abstract

An apparatus and method for controlling a vehicle message output. The apparatus includes an input device that receives an input of a user, and a processor that generates a guide message and controls the guide message to be output by applying an emphasis scheme set by the input of the user to a keyword when determining that the keyword exists in the guide message.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An apparatus for controlling a vehicle message output, the apparatus comprising:
an input device configured to receive an input, including information on emphasis scheme applied to keyword of a guide message, from a user; and
a processor configured to:
generate the guide message, and
control to output the guide message by applying the emphasis scheme set by the information, to a first section including the keyword, based on whether the keyword exists in the guide message.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine that the keyword exists in the guide message when at least one of place name, person name, driving direction information, traffic law related information, or a combination thereof is included in the guide message.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to extract time information of the first section in which the keyword is uttered when determining that the keyword exists in the guide message.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the processor is configured to classify a section in which the guide message is uttered, and the section includes the first section and a second section excluding the first section.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processor is configured to control the first section and the second section to be output at different speeds when the emphasis scheme set by the user includes utterance speed control.

### Claim 6 (depends on 4)

The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processor is configured to control the first section to be repeatedly output a preset number of times when the emphasis scheme set by the user includes repetitive utterance.

### Claim 7 (depends on 4)

The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processor is configured to control the first section to be replaced with a pitch-adjusted sound source and output when the emphasis scheme set by the user includes pitch adjustment.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to summarize the guide message to regenerate a summary guide message and re-output the summary guide message when determining that the guide message is requested to be re-uttered after the guide message is output.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to apply changed output setting information and output the guide message when it is determined that output setting information set by the user to output the guide message is changed while the guide message is output.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processor is configured to control a message that checks whether to apply the changed output setting information when outputting a specified guide message to be output as an image when a number of times the output setting information is changed exceeds a threshold number of times when the specified guide message is output.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is configured to output the specified guide message by applying the changed output setting information when outputting the specified guide message when the user selects to apply the changed output setting information when outputting the specified guide message.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to:
set a utterance speed of the guide message to a specified speed, and
control the guide message to be output at the set utterance speed when:
the keyword does not exist in the guide message, and
the guide message is a response to a command of the user, a number of times the guide message is generated is greater than or equal to a specified number of times, or both.

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the input device is configured to receive an input corresponding to at least one of a touch, a gesture, a voice of the user, or a combination thereof.

### Claim 14

A method of controlling a vehicle message output, the method comprising:
receiving an input, including information on emphasis scheme applied to keyword of a guide message, of from a user;
generating, by a processor, a guide message; and
controlling, by the processor, the guide message to be output by applying the emphasis scheme set by the information, to a first section including the keyword, based on whether keyword exists in the guide message.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The method of claim 14, further comprising:
determining, by the processor, that the keyword exists in the guide message in response to at least one of place name, person name, driving direction information, traffic law related information, or a combination thereof being included in the guide message.

### Claim 16 (depends on 14)

The method of claim 14, further comprising:
extracting, by the processor and in response to the determining that the keyword exists in the guide message, time information of the first section in which the keyword is uttered.

### Claim 17 (depends on 16)

The method of claim 16, further comprising:
classifying, by the processor, a section in which the guide message is uttered into a first section that is at least one section in which the keyword is uttered and a second section excluding the first section.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The method of claim 17, further comprising:
controlling, by the processor, the first section and the second section to be output at different speeds when the emphasis scheme set by the user includes utterance speed control.

### Claim 19 (depends on 14)

The method of claim 14, wherein the input of the user includes an input corresponding to at least one of a touch, a gesture, a voice of the user, or a combination thereof.