Computer generating a time-variable icon for an audio signal
AssigneeMatsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
InventorTaizou Tsujimoto
Life of this patent
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Abstract
This invention provides a computer capable of displaying information in multiple windows and handling multiple audio signals in a manner convenient for a user. This is achieved in one embodiment of the present invention by audibly producing only one audio signal at a time, but allowing the user to monitor a second received audio signal by visually representing the second audio signal through a displayed icon. The display of the icon may vary over time, reflecting time-variable characteristics of the signal represented by the icon, thus enabling the user to monitor the audio signals that are received but not actually audibly produced. Examples of such time-variable characteristics include volume, semantics and pitch.
Claims15
A computer comprising:
- (a) a display unit for displaying different information on different windows assigned on its screen,
- (b) an audio information extract unit for extracting time-variable audio information from time-series amplitude information which is included in an audio real time signal received from the outside,
- (c) an icon image generator for changing one of the windows, which corresponds to the information included in the audio real time signal, to a time-variable icon having an image that conveys the time-variable audio information extracted from the audio real time signal, wherein the generated time-variable icon image varies reflective of variations in the time-variable audio information extracted from the audio real time signal, and
- (d) a display controller for controlling said display unit to display said generated time-variable icon image on the screen.
A computer comprising:
- (a) a display unit for displaying different information on different windows assigned on its screen,
- (b) an audio information extract unit for extracting time-variable audio information from time-series amplitude information which is included in an audio real time signal received from the outside,
- (c) an icon image generator for changing one of the windows, which corresponds to the information included in the audio real time signal, to a time-variable icon image that conveys the time-variable audio information extracted from the audio real-time signal, wherein the generated time-variable icon image varies reflective of variations in the time-variable audio information extracted from the audio real time signal,
- (d) a display controller for controlling said display unit to display said generated time-variable icon image on the screen, and
- (e) a comparator for comparing said time-variable audio information extracted from the audio real time signal with predetermined information and generating a signal indicating correspondence between the extracted time-variable audio information and the predetermined information, wherein said icon image generator and said display controller respond to the signal generated by the comparator.
A computer comprising:
- (a) a display unit for displaying different information on different windows assigned on its screen,
- (b) an audio information extract unit for extracting, from an audio signal received from the outside, semantic data resulting from recognizing speech with the second audio signal,
- (c) an icon image generator for generating a time-variable icon image in the form of a caption reflective of the extracted semantic data, and
- (d) a display controller for controlling said display unit to display said generated time-variable icon image on the screen.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.