Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Other

Adapx, Inc.

Microsoft Corporation

Philipp Heinz Schmid

Ralph A Lipe

Robert L Chambers

Edward W Connell

Adrian James Garside

Marieke Watson Iwema

David R McGee

Michael B Robin

Erik Castedo Ellerman

Paulo Barthelmess

Phil Cohen

Qiang Wu

David Mowatt

Bo-June Hsu

Michael D Plumpe

Robert I Brown

Erik M Erikson

Rachel Imogen Morton

Robert Edward Dewar

Ricky Dee Loynd

David Jeremy Guy Wood

Oscar H Newkerk, Iii

Alex A Arthur

Ira Smith

R Matthews Wesson

Edward Conell

Ralph Lipe

A digital paper-enabled product includes digital paper with a digital pattern that spatially cooperates with one or more features or boundaries printed on the pattern. More specifically, a system cooperating with the product may include spatial information systems that manage the features or boundaries and communicates with a writing instrument that was used to effect changes to the digital paper-enabled product. In one embodiment, the digital paper-enabled product may take the form of a sheet of digital paper bearing a digital pattern and where action icons (e.g. user intended actions) and/or features (e.g. such as map features) or a spatial reference frame are printed onto the digital pattern and where at least one action palette is printed onto the digital pattern, correlated therewith, and usable to effect changes to the product. Other embodiments include a method of making the digital-enabled product, a method of processing information obtained from the digital paper-enabled product, and a method of using the digital paper-enabled product.

Digital paper-enabled products and methods relating to same

A digital palette and a digital pen device are used to create or manipulate a digital document to provide complex information using features, such as graphical features selected from stencils, shapes, and connectors and possibly to apply one or more attributes to the digital document. The digital palette may have a custom layout. The features on the digital palette may be selected from a variety of sources, such as digital stencil libraries. The digital palette and digital document may be arranged on the same or different sheets of digital paper overlying one or more digital patterns. Information communicated from the digital palette to the digital document may be uploaded, processed, reviewed, changed and stored in a computer. Lastly, the digital document may be finalized and printed to incorporate all changes previously made using the digital palette, the digital pen device and the computer.

Systems and methods for using a digital palette to produce a digital document

The present invention provides a method and apparatus that utilize a context-free grammar written in a markup language format. The markup language format provides a hierarchical format in which grammar structures are delimited within and defined by a set of tags. The markup language format also provides grammar switch tags that indicate a transitions from the context-free grammar to a dictation grammar or a text buffer grammar. In addition, the markup language format provides for the designation of code to be executed when particular grammar structures are recognized from a speech signal.

Utilizing speech grammar rules written in a markup language

Intelligent speech recognition is used to provide users with the ability to utter more user friendly commands. Satisfaction is increased when a user can vocalize a subset of a formal command name and still have the intended command identified and processed. Moreover, greater accuracy in identifying a command application from a user's utterance can be achieved by ignoring command choices associated with unlikely user utterances. An intelligent speech recognition system can identify differing acceptable verbal command phrase forms, e.g., but not limited to, complete commands, command subsequences and command subsets, for different commands supported by the system. Subset blocking words are identified for assistance in reducing the ambiguity in matching user verbal command phrases with valid commands supported by the intelligent speech recognition system.

Intelligent speech recognition of incomplete phrases

Speech recognition utilizing categories and prefixes is disclosed. Categories identify types of recognition and allow different grammars and prefixes for each category. Categories can be directed to specific applications and/or program modules. Uttering a prefix allows users to easily direct text to specific grammars for enhanced recognition, and also to direct the recognized text to the appropriate application/module.

Speech recognition using categories and speech prefixing

A computer-loadable data structure is provided that represents a state-and-transition-based description of a speech grammar. The data structure includes first and second transition entries that both represent transitions from a first state. The second transition entry is contiguous with the first transition entry in the data structure and includes a last-transition value. The last-transition value indicates that the second transition is the last transition from the first state in the data structure.

Speech recognition using a state-and-transition based binary speech grammar with a last transition value

Method and apparatus utilizing speech grammar rules written in a markup language

The present invention provides an application-independent and engine-independent middleware layer () between applications () and engines (). The middleware provides speech-related services to both applications () and engines (), thereby making it far easier for application vendors and engine vendors to bring their technology to consumers.

Middleware layer between speech related applications and engines

A computer-loadable data structure is provided that represents a state-and-transition-based description of a speech grammar. The data structure includes first and second transition entries that both represent transitions from a first state. The second transition entry is contiguous with the first transition entry in the data structure and includes a last-transition value. The last-transition value indicating that the second transition is the last transition from the first state in the data structure. A method is also provided for retrieving information from a binary grammar. The method includes receiving an index into a set of transition entries and converting the index into a memory offset relative to the beginning of the binary grammar, where the offset is based on a memory offset to the beginning of the set of transition entries, the fixed size of each transition entry and the index.

Compact easily parseable binary format for a context-free grammar

A user interface is described that informs the user as to the status of the operation of a voice recognition application. The user interface displays an indicator, such as a volume bar, each time that the voice recognition application records and identifies a volume event. The user interface also displays an indicator when the voice recognition application recognizes a volume event corresponding to a displayed volume event indicator. The interface thus confirms to a user that the voice recognition application is both recording and recognizing the words being spoken by the user. It also graphically informs the user of the delay the application is currently experiencing in recognizing the words that the user is speaking.

Speech recognition status feedback of volume event occurrence and recognition status

The present invention includes a context-free grammar (CFG) engine which communicates through an exposed interface with a speech recognition engine. The context-free grammar engine, in one illustrative embodiment, handles loading and unloading of grammars, as well as maintaining a desired activation state of the grammars which are loaded. Further, the CFG engine represents all loaded grammars, and their corresponding activation states, as a single grammar to the speech recognition engine.

Context free grammar engine for speech recognition system

The present invention provides an application-independent and engine-independent middleware layer between applications and engines. The middleware provides speech-related services to both applications and engines, thereby making it far easier for application vendors and engine vendors to bring their technology to consumers.

A speech platform architecture is described that provides standardized methods of interaction for users across multiple speech-enabled applications. Listener objects corresponding to speech-enabled applications are used to provide speech functionality to the speech-enabled applications. A common 'What Can I Say?' user interface allows users to easily understand what voice commands are available for a particular speech-enabled application. A common configuration user interface is provided that allows users to configure each listener object. Utilization of particular interfaces provides for the common functionality described. As a result of providing common interfaces, users can more easily learn and use multiple speech-enabled applications utilized with a speech system.

Speech platform architecture

The present invention is directed to a system and method of notifying a speech related application of events generated by a speech related engine. A middleware layer receives a notification selection from the application. The notification selection is indicative of a selected notification mechanism for notifying the application of the events. The middleware component receives an event indication from the engine. The event indication is indicative of an event generated by the engine. The event indication is transferred to the application according to the selected notification mechanism.

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

Philipp Heinz Schmid