An intelligent automated assistant system engages with the user in an integrated, conversational manner using natural language dialog, and invokes external services when appropriate to obtain information or perform various actions. The system can be implemented using any of a number of different platforms, such as the web, email, smartphone, and the like, or any combination thereof. In one embodiment, the system is based on sets of interrelated domains and tasks, and employs additional functionally powered by external services with which the system can interact.

Intelligent Automated Assistant

A virtual assistant uses context information to supplement natural language or gestural input from a user. Context helps to clarify the user's intent and to reduce the number of candidate interpretations of the user's input, and reduces the need for the user to provide excessive clarification input. Context can include any available information that is usable by the assistant to supplement explicit user input to constrain an information-processing problem and/or to personalize results. Context can be used to constrain solutions during various phases of processing, including, for example, speech recognition, natural language processing, task flow processing, and dialog generation.

Using context information to facilitate processing of commands in a virtual assistant

A camera array captures plural component images which are combined into a single scene In one embodiment, each camera of the array is a fixed digital camera The images from each camera are warped to a common coordinate system and the disparity between overlapping images is reduced using disparity estimation techniques

Method and system for compensating for parallax in multiple camera systems

A method for detecting direction when interfacing with a computer program is provided. The method includes capturing an image presented in front of an image capture device. The image capture device has a capture location in a coordinate space. When a person is captured in the image, the method includes identifying a human head in the image and assigning the human head a head location in the coordinate space. The method also includes identifying an object held by the person in the image and assigning the object an object location in coordinate space. The method further includes identifying a relative position in coordinate space between the head location and the object location when viewed from the capture location. The relative position includes a dimension of depth. The method may be practiced on a computer system, such as one used in the gaming field.

Methods and systems for enabling depth and direction detection when interfacing with a computer program

A method and apparatus are provided for building an intelligent automated assistant. Embodiments of the present invention rely on the concept of “active ontologies” (e.g., execution environments constructed in an ontology-like manner) to build and run applications for use by intelligent automated assistants. In one specific embodiment, a method for building an automated assistant includes interfacing a service-oriented architecture that includes a plurality of remote services to an active ontology, where the active ontology includes at least one active processing element that models a domain. At least one of the remote services is then registered for use in the domain.

Method and apparatus for building an intelligent automated assistant

A teleconferencing system (100) is disclosed having a video camera for generating a video signal representative of a video image of a first station B. A microphone array (150, 160) is also provided in the first station for receiving a sound from one or more fixed non-overlapping volume zones (151-159) into which the first station is divided. The microphone array is also provided for generating a monochannel audio signal (170) representative of the received sound and a direction signal indicating, based on the sound received from each zone, from which of the volume zones the sound originated. The teleconferencing system also includes a display device (120A) at a second station A for displaying a video image of the first station. A loudspeaker control device (140) is also provided at the second station for selecting a virtual location (121) on the displayed video image depending on the direction signal, and for generating stereo sound from the monochannel audio signal which stereo sound emanates from the virtual location on the displayed video image.

Sound localization system for teleconferencing using self-steering microphone arrays

A system for combining a plurality of video signals and various forms of still imagery such as text or graphics into a single high resolution display is disclosed. The invention system utilizes a multiport memory and a key based memory access system to flexibly compose a multiplicity of video signals and still images into a full color high definition television display comprising a plurality of overlapping windows.

Raster assembly processor

A method for enabling format independent communication of visual information between diverse computers, work stations, and terminals is disclosed. The inventive method relies on a universal format which can be used to represent the data comprising any raster display. Illustratively, the data comprising a raster display is first translated from the native format of an originating system into the universal format. When in the universal format, it is possible to convert the raster from one type to another (e.g., from color to pseudo-color or grey to pseudo-color) so that the raster can be displayed by a receiving system which comprises equipment different from that of the originating system.

Format independent visual communications

A system for combining a plurality of video signals and various forms of still imagery such as text or graphics into a single high resolution display is disclosed. The inventive system utilizes a multiport memory and a key based memory access system to flexibly compose a multiplicity of video signals and still images into a full color high definition television display comprising a plurality of overlapping windows.

Memory system for high definition television display

This paper describes two ASIC devices which are the building blocks for the memory management of an 8 Megabyte Video Memory system. The devices are used in tandem to synchronize, buffer, multiplex, and execute 256 million 4 byte I/O requests per second for a total transfer capacity of 8 Giga-bits per second. Requests are communicated to the memory over 16 asynchronous channels. The first device, the Memory Channel Interface (MCI), synchronizes, buffers, and routes incoming address, data, and control bits from the input/output channels to the second ASIC device, the Memory Module Interface (MMI). The MMI device interfaces the MCI with static memory chips, and produces the proper control signals for the memory's operation. The MCI and MMI devices allow the high performance Video Memory to be realized with approximately 150 devices.

John David Robbins

Papers

Sound localization system for teleconferencing using self-steering microphone arrays

Raster assembly processor

Format independent visual communications

Memory system for high definition television display

VLSI Memory Management for an Eight Gigabit/s Memory System