Word recognition system which alters code executed as a function of

Abstract

A word recognition system detects the computational resources available to it, such as the speed or number of processors, or whether there is DSP hardware, and alters the instructions it executes in response. The system can be a word recognition program designed to run on different computers having different computational resources. The program receives user generated word signals representing words to be recognized; performs pattern matching on them to select which vocabulary words most probably correspond to such word signals; detects if certain computational resources are available; and varies the instructions it executes in response. In many embodiments the system is a speech recognition program. The word recognition program can vary the computational intensity of its signal processing as a function of available computational resources. Preferably it can match the same word models against representations of word signals produced both by its more and less intensive signal processing. For example, the more intense signal processing might take more frequent FFTs, but average them over the same time period at which the less intense signal processing takes FFTs, so both can represent word signals with the same data structure. If the program detects both a CPU and a DSP processor, it can cause the DSP to determine when the program should interrupt the CPU. The program can also vary the rate at which it filters relatively low scoring words out of consideration during the recognition process as a function of the level of available computational resources.