US 5,857,170 A · Control of speaker recognition characteristics of a multiple speaker speech synthesizer

Abstract

A speech synthesizing apparatus for varying a speech characteristic condition is adapted to accept a speech request that does not have a speech characteristic condition and to synthesize a speech responsive thereto. A controlling portion accepts a plurality of speech requests; a speech synthesizing portion switches a plurality of speech characteristics for speech synthesis; a speaker outputs a speech corresponding to an output signal of the speech synthesizing portion; and a synthesizer characteristic table stores speech characteristic conditions synthesized by the speech synthesizing portion. The controlling portion can accept a speech request that does not have a speech characteristic condition. Then, the controlling portion selects an available speech characteristic condition from a synthesizer characteristic table and sends the selected speech characteristic condition to the speech synthesizer. While requirements of each speech request are satisfied, the user can be prevented from confusing the synthesized speech with other speech.

Claims12

Dependent claims

A speech synthesizer comprising;

a synthesizing portion for synthesizing speech with different speaker characteristics;
a storing portion for storing tables of speaker characteristics for different synthetic speakers;
a first controller portion (31) for controlling speaker recognition by a full list of default speaker characteristics obtained from a speech characteristic recording table (45);
a second controller portion (31) for dynamically enhancing speaker recognition by changing a partial list of the speaker characteristics recorded on said recording table (45);
and
a third controller portion (31) for further enhancing speaker recognition by changing the first controller portion of background speaker characteristics prior to changing selected values of the second controller portion of foreground speaker characteristics.

3 more elements

A speech synthesizing apparatus, comprising:

means including a speech synthesizing portion for synthesizing speakers with different speech characteristics;
means including a speaker characteristics storing portion for storing speaker characteristics which are synthesized by said speech synthesizing portion in order to create a speech sound;
means including a speaker characteristics recording portion for recording the speaker characteristics for each of speech request;
means including an aural speaker difference recognizability parameter calculation portion for calculating the difference between a value of an item without the aural speaker characteristics and a value of the corresponding item with each of the speaker characteristics of said speech request recorded in said speaker characteristics recording portion;
and
means including a controlling portion for accepting a type of speech request composed of a plurality of speaker characteristics, accepting a type of speech request that has an item without a designated speaker difference recognizability parameter;
for causing said speaker difference recognizability parameter calculating portion to calculate the speaker difference recognizability parameter between a value of the item without the speaker characteristics and a value of the corresponding item with each of the speaker characteristics of said speech request recorded in said speech characteristic recording portion;
for determining the value of the item without the speaker characteristics condition corresponding to the calculated result;
for designating speaker characteristics corresponding to a predetermined method with reference to the speaker characteristics stored in said synthesizer characteristic storing portion;
and for issuing a command representing the designated speaker characteristics to said speech synthesizing portion.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Control of speaker recognition characteristics of a multiple speaker speech synthesizer

Life of this patent

Control of speaker recognition characteristics of a multiple speaker speech synthesizer

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims12