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

The various methods and devices described herein relate to devices which, in at least certain embodiments, may include one or more sensors for providing data relating to user activity and at least one processor for causing the device to respond based on the user activity which was determined, at least in part, through the sensors. The response by the device may include a change of state of the device, and the response may be automatically performed after the user activity is determined.

Automated Response to and Sensing of User Activity in Portable Devices

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 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

Among other things, techniques and systems are disclosed for implementing contextual voice commands. On a device, a data item in a first context is displayed. On the device, a physical input selecting the displayed data item in the first context is received. On the device, a voice input that relates the selected data item to an operation in a second context is received. The operation is performed on the selected data item in the second context.

Contextual voice commands

The present invention relates to a method and system for synthesizing speech utilizing a periodic waveform decomposition and relocation coding scheme. According to the scheme, signals of voiced sound interval among original speech are decomposed into wavelets, each of which corresponds to a speech waveform for one period made by each glottal pulse. These wavelets are respectively coded and stored. The wavelets nearest to the positions where the wavelets are to be located are selected from stored wavelets and decoded. The decoded wavelets are superposed to each other such that original sound quality can be maintained and duration and pitch frequency of speech segment can be controlled arbitrarily.

Speech segment coding and pitch control methods for speech synthesis systems

La presente invention se refere a une technologie concernant un systeme de synthese de parole, et utilise un procede de decomposition en formes d'onde periodiques et de repositionnement qui est un procede de codage dans lequel des signaux d'un intervalle de son voise dans la parole originale sont decomposes en vaguelettes dont chacune correspond a une forme d'onde de parole pour une periode creee par chaque impulsion glottale et les vaguelettes sont respectivement codees et memorisees, technologie au moyen de laquelle les vaguelettes les plus proches des positions ou doivent etre positionnees les vaguelettes sont choisies parmi des vaguelettes memorisees, puis decodees et superposees l'une a l'autre de sorte que la qualite du son d'origine peut etre conservee et que la duree et la frequence de hauteur du segment de parole peuvent etre commandees a volonte.

Procedes de codage de segments de paroles et de commande de hauteur pour des systemes de synthese de la parole.

la presente invention concerne une technologie relative a un systeme de synthese de la parole et utilise une decomposition en forme d'ondes periodiques et un procede de reeinsertion qui concerne un procede de codage dans lequel des signaux d'intervalles de sons sonores faisant partie d'un discours original sont decomposes en ondelettes dont chacune correspond a une forme d'ondes de parole pour une periode realisee par chaque impulsion glottale et les ondelettes sont respectivement codees et mises en memoire, et concerne une technologie par laquelle les ondelettes les plus proches des positions dans lequelles les ondelettes doivent etre inserees sont selectionnees a partir d'ondelettes mises en memoire, decodees et superposees l'une a l'autre de telle sorte que la qualite du son original puisse etre maintenue et que la duree et la frequence du pas des segments de discours puissent etre reglees de maniere arbitraire.

Lee Chong Rak

Papers

Speech segment coding and pitch control methods for speech synthesis systems

Procedes de codage de segments de paroles et de commande de hauteur pour des systemes de synthese de la parole.

Methodes de codage de segments du discours et de reglage du pas pour des systemes de synthese de la parole.