Text-to-speech system and method
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsChristel Amato, Hubert Crepy, Stephane Revelin, Claire Waast-Richard
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method for generating synthetic speech, which operates in a computer implemented Text-To-Speech system. The system comprises at least a speaker database that has been previously created from user recordings, a Front-End system to receive an input text and a Text-To-Speech engine. The Front-End system generates multiple phonetic transcriptions for each word of the input text, and the TTS engine uses a cost function to select which phonetic transcription is the more appropriate for searching the speech segments within the speaker database to be concatenated and synthesized.
Claims20
A Text-To-Speech system comprising:
- means for storing a plurality of speech segments;
- means for creating a plurality of phonetic transcriptions for each word of an input text;
- and
- means coupled to the storing means and to the creating means for selecting preferred phonetic transcriptions by operating a cost function on the plurality of speech segments.
A method for selecting preferred phonetic transcriptions of an input text in a Text-To-Speech system, the method comprising the steps of:
- storing a plurality of speech segments;
- creating a plurality of phonetic transcriptions for each word of an input text;
- computing a cost score for each phonetic transcription by operating a cost function on the plurality of speech segments;
- and
- sorting the plurality of phonetic transcriptions according to the computed cost scores.
A machine-readable storage having stored thereon, a computer program having a plurality of code sections, said code sections executable by a machine for causing the machine to perform the steps of:
- storing a plurality of speech segments;
- creating a plurality of phonetic transcriptions for each word of an input text;
- computing a cost score for each phonetic transcription by operating a cost function on the plurality of speech segments;
- and
- sorting the plurality of phonetic transcriptions according to the computed cost scores.
The machine-readable storage computer system for generating synthetic speech comprising the step of:
- normalizing the input text before creating the plurality of phonetic transcriptions.
A computer system for generating synthetic speech comprising:
- (a) a speaker database to store speech segments;
- (b) a front-end interface to receive an input text made of a plurality of words;
- (c) an output interface to audibly output the synthetic speech;
- and
- (d) computer readable program means executable by the computer for performing actions, including:
- (i) creating a plurality of phonetic transcriptions for each word the input text;
- (ii) computing a cost score for each phonetic transcription by operating a cost function on the plurality of speech segments;
- and
- (iii) sorting the plurality of phonetic transcriptions according to the computed cost scores.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.