International Business Machines Corporation

Nuance Communications, Inc.

Roberto Vila

Oscar J Blass

Ciprian Agapi

Paritosh Dinubhai Patel

Brennan D Monteiro

Oswaldo Gago

Jonathan Palgon

Dwayne Dames

Ella Belisario

Musaed A Almutawa

Maria Elena Smith

Harvey M Ruback

Jie Z Zeng

Patrick Michael Commarford

Rodrigo Jose Pastrana

Arun K Ramamurthy

Lea T Leite

Men T Lien

Anatol Blass

A method for searching Web pages that begins with the identification of query criteria entered into a search provider. A set of Web pages that satisfies the query criteria are determined. Then, a page ranking is ascertained for each Web page in the set. The Web pages are presented in order by page ranking. The page ranking is based upon at least one relevancy factor that includes a browsing-time factor. The browsing-time factor can be calculated from browsing behavior exhibited by users, who provided similar query criteria. The set of users from which the browsing-time factor is calculated can include a current user, a set of users sharing characteristics with the current user, and/or a general set of users. Browsing behavior can include time spent at a Web page, where the browsed Web page is a page that was previously presented as a search result for the similar query criteria.

Results from search providers using a browsing-time relevancy factor

The present invention discloses a method for handling contact information in a communication device. The method can include a step of presenting content within a visual interface of the communication device. A contact detection algorithm can execute to detect contact items included in the content. A visual indication can be presented next to each detected contact item. User input can be received, which causes the communication device to perform a contact action relating to one of the contact items. The contact action can add contact information to an address book, can initiate a communication session, and/or can place the contact item in a memory space for later use by an application other than one in which the content was presented.

Interacting with phone numbers and other contact information contained in browser content

A method for state transition in voice systems including: generating one or more stackable state macros, each of the one or more stackable state macros including a plurality of commands; saving the current state before executing another macro; enabling restoring the previous state after a plurality of commands is completed, allowing a user to utter voice commands to restore the individual state of components or the voice systems as a whole to the previous state or to a known home state. The method further utilizes voice commands not specific to the current state and is used specifically for automatically controlling a plurality of components of a vehicle.

Enhancing environment voice macros via a stackable save/restore state of an object within an environment controlled by voice commands for control of vehicle components

A method for managing password strength including receiving a password on a data processing system for a user, filtering for personal information about the user from multiple independent data sources accessible across a computer network, computing the password strength by the data processing system using an algorithm which compares the password to the filtered personal information about the user, and presenting feedback to the user through a user interface on a data processing system display regarding the computed password strength.

Managing password strength

A system or computer usable program product for managing password strength including receiving a password on a data processing system for a user, filtering for personal information about the user from multiple independent data sources accessible across a computer network, computing the password strength by the data processing system using an algorithm which compares the password to the filtered personal information about the user, and presenting feedback to the user through a user interface on a data processing system display regarding the computed password strength.

Improving results from search providers using a browsing-time relevancy factor

A computer implemented method, system and/or computer program product dynamically display ancillary content on a webpage. A text entry is detected as an input to a find engine that locates and highlights the text entry within a main body of a webpage being displayed on a computer. A scope of the text entry is determined based on the textual context of the text entry and the type of webpage being displayed. An in-place adjustment is then utilized to automatically retrieve and display ancillary content on the webpage based on the textual context of the text entry and the type of webpage being displayed without refreshing the main body of the webpage.

Incorporating browser-based find functionality into customized webpage displays

A method for creating and editing an XML-based speech synthesis document for input to a text-to-speech engine is provided. The method includes recording voice utterances of a user reading a pre-selected text and parsing the recorded voice utterances into individual words and periods of silence. The method also includes recording a synthesized speech output generated by a text-to-speech engine, the synthesized speech output being an audible rendering of the pre-selected text, and parsing the synthesized speech output into individual words and periods of silence. The method further includes annotating the XML-based speech synthesis document based upon a comparison of the recorded voice utterances and the recorded synthesized speech output.

Methods and system for creating and editing an XML-based speech synthesis document

The present invention discloses a solution for assuring user-defined voice commands are unambiguous. The solution can include a step of identifying a user attempt to enter a user-defined voice command into a voice-enabled system. A safety analysis can be performed on the user-defined voice command to determine a likelihood that the user-defined voice command will be confused with preexisting voice commands recognized by the voice-enabled system. When a high likelihood of confusion is determined by the safety analysis, a notification can be presented that the user-defined voice command is subject to confusion. A user can then define a different voice command or can choose to continue to use the potentially confusing command, possibly subject to a system imposed confusion mitigating condition or action.

Performing a safety analysis for user-defined voice commands to ensure that the voice commands do not cause speech recognition ambiguities

A speech processing method can automatically and dynamically adjust speech grammar weights at runtime based upon usage data. Each of the speech grammar weights can be associated with an available speech command contained within a speech grammar to which the speech grammar weights apply. The usage data can indicate a relative frequency with which each of the available speech commands is utilized.

Dynamically adjusting speech grammar weights based on usage

A method for delivering a message to a recipient in an environment with ambient noise includes the steps of recording the ambient noise in the environment at a certain time interval, analyzing the recorded ambient noise to obtain an average power Por a RMS amplitude Aof the ambient noise, providing a predetermined desired SNR, calculating an average signal power Por a RMS amplitude Aof the message to be delivered based on the Por Aand the desired SNR, and adjusting a volume of the message to be delivered according to the Por A. Alternatively, the actual SNRwill be computed and the message will be repeated if the SNRfalls below the SNR. Systems for delivering a message to a recipient in an environment with ambient noise and computer-readable media having computer-executable instructions for carrying out the methods are also provided.

System and method for improving message delivery in voice systems utilizing microphone and target signal-to-noise ratio

The present invention discloses a system and a method for creating a reduced script, which is read by a voice talent to create a concatenative text-to-speech (TTS) voice. The method can automatically process pre-recorded audio to derive speech assets for a concatenative TTS voice. The pre-recording audio can include sets of recorded phrases used by a speech user interface (Sill). A set of unfulfilled speech assets needed for foil phonetic coverage of the concatenative TTS voice can be determined. A reduced script can be constructed that includes a set of phrases, which when read by a voice talent result in a reduced corpus. When the reduced corpus is automatically processed, a reduced set of speech assets result. The reduced set includes each of the unfulfilled speech assets. When this reduced corpus is combined with existing speech assets the result will be a voice with a complete set of speech assets.

Reducing recording time when constructing a concatenative TTS voice using a reduced script and pre-recorded speech assets

The present invention discloses a method for a voice-enabled computing environment. The method includes a step of receiving a series of voice commands related to an abstraction, wherein the voice command specifies an abstraction type. The method further includes responding to the voice command to replay the commands, executing at least one programmatic action related to the abstraction, where the programmatic action is executed demonstrating characteristics specific to the abstraction type associated with the voice command. The present method applies, but is not limited to, the execution of collections of commands that may have diverging timing characteristics.

Distinguishing among different types of abstractions consisting of plurality of commands specified by particular sequencing and or timing or no timing and sequencing using voice commands

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Hollywood, FL, United States of America

Roberto Vila