Entries Tagged 'voice Recognition' ↓

Researchers at California State University-Northridge and UCLA Olive View Medical Center are developing a powerful new machine that uses brain-interface technology to help those with physical disabilities.

The product, a motorized wheelchair that can be navigated with a user’s brainwaves, is not yet market-ready. The technology, however, has the potential to provide a new degree of freedom to disabled users.

Brain-computer interface, or BCI, already was being used for a variety of purposes. Gamers have long been familiar with BCI headsets, for example, which allow them to navigate virtual universes.

Dr. C.T. Lin, a professor of mechanical engineering at CSUN, wanted to see if BCI could be used to assist paraplegics or other users who had lost the use of their limbs.

“I thought, ‘Well, why not take the existing available device and explore the possibility of whether that device can be used for any engineering application?’”

The project began in earnest in August 2010. Lin and his team, which includes undergraduates as well as graduate students, developed a wheelchair equipped with a laser sensor, a laptop computer and a headset. Electrodes on the headset are able to absorb brainwaves, which are then translated into “motion commands” such as left, right, forward or backward.

The wheelchair can operate in an autonomous mode in which the computer makes navigating decisions or in a hybrid mode where the user gives commands.

Lin says that the real challenge going forward will be trying to marry human behavior, which is often erratic and unpredictable, with the neat and often unyielding precision of computers.

“The difficulty really comes with the fact that the human is involved,” says Lin. “And humans are not consistent.”

BCI technology, by its very nature, requires the brain and the computer to interact; therefore, the two may clash, producing widely divergent results.

“If you are turning a corner,” explains Lin, “and you generate the thoughts too early or too late, you will have a turn that is going to become awkward.”

Certain users with cognitive disabilities also may have difficulty maneuvering the device, he says. Users will have to be trained to use the wheelchair.

“The role of technology in higher education for students with disabilities has had a phenomenally positive impact on the inclusion and participation of students in higher education,” says John Bennett, director of disability resources and services at Temple University.

He calls the new wheelchair a potentially “phenomenal” development, but he also expresses concerns about its practicality.

“What needs to be really considered is the human interface with this technology,” he says. “How usable and affordable is it?”

Bennett says that, as the technology develops, researchers must consider that most people, regardless of physical disability, have what he calls “a very average” technology competence.

“When we take, for example, voice recognition [software],” he says, “it was an extremely expensive piece of technology.

“And few people had access to it. and today it’s a very widely used piece of technology with low cost and high impact.”

Lin says that Lesson No. 1 of product marketing is that anything too complicated will be rejected by users.

“Whenever you’re trying to design a medical device, you have to really include the user in the design cycle before you finalize your design decision,” he says.

The prototype was tested with a CSUN student and a faculty member who both have physical impairments.

The project is being funded by an assistive technology grant, the Ethel Louis Foundation Endowment, which awards up to $20,000 for faculty-student collaborative projects at CSUN.

In coming months, Lin expects the wheelchair to undergo an initial round of assessments. It will be tested for safety, practicality, and ease of use. a model is expected to be ready for manufacture in about two years, and Lin hopes that its cost will be kept between $5,000 and $8,000.

Lin says his goal is to develop a product that is both sophisticated and simple.

“It’s like a black box,” he says. “The user doesn’t need to know what’s going on inside the box. They only need to interact with what is really transparent to the user in terms of generating commands and expecting an outcome.”

i am currently using microsoft voice recognition as I have a motor disability that makes typing difficult I am able to use it quite well in word for just inputting text. I was wondering if anyone knows how you do commands like save with your voice? I have tyred saying the words but they just come up on the screen. also

other than Microsoft or Dragon what others are there

trry saying Control S…. cause that is the buttons you press to save it

I am looking for a software program i can use to do this.
I ask it a question via voice. and it will respond with with varios audio files i choose.
Example I ask my computer "how are you?" it then responds by randomly choosing 1 0f 5 audio files that pertain to the particular question. i.e "I am well and how are you, or not to bad, or i feel good thank you for asking.
I want to use audio files of my choosing so i can have any voice i choose.

Any answers to this would be greatly apprceiated. I would also like it if this software had a demo available

Nobody talks on the phone anymore, but people are talking at their phones. Speech recognition is simply an expectation on smartphones these days, as well as in car navigation systems and your web browser. We’re all learning how to talk to machines, but we could be better at it. Here’s a pocket dictionary for dictating to your devices.

The Basics: can it Hear you now?

On any platform, check your settings and helper guides to get an understanding of what your app or phone can actually do, as completely misunderstood responses from a speech app can be pretty infuriating. Android phones with Google’s Voice Search installed, for example, can make a phone call, compose email, send a text message, get directions, and pull up musical artists–but can’t launch applications from vocal commands. an iPhone, on its own, can only call contacts and play music when you hold down the home button, until you install a Dragon Dictation or go app on there.

On any mobile phone, check that the microphone space is clear and free of obstructions. This isn’t so much an issue on iPhones, but Androids and other phones can have pinhole-style microphones that can get gummed up or partially covered by awkward cases.

Intermediate: stop Slowing down, But Think Before Speaking

You need not talk like a robot to be understood by one, says Vlad Sejnoha, chief technical officer at Nuance, maker of the Dragon speech-to-text software for Windows, Macs, iPhones and iPads. Dragon’s software learns speech styles and tics over time, and you want to aim for a natural speaking flow. Still, Sejnoha says, it helps to think out what you’re going to say before you say it.

“If you think about how we talk to friends, we make a lot of what we call disfluencies,” Sejnoha told Fast Company via email. “We slur our words, stop and start, interrupt ourselves. Our software can deal with a certain amount of that, but the less there is, the better (the learning) is.”

Digging around Android forums and elsewhere, I found a good number of tesimonies from speech-to-text enthusiasts who saw better results from simply speaking at a normal clip. Google representative Nadja Blagojevic offered much the same advice for the search giant’s voice product in both Android and its Chrome browser: “Speak naturally and clearly, but don’t strain to enunciate too much or speak slowly.”

Training yourself to not slow down when you’re also trying to improve elocution takes some time, as Sejnoha said, but it eventually becomes a groove.

“There’s an element to just … becoming accustomed to generating text while speaking,” he said. “Some become very good at it, as part of their job. the rest of us are accustomed to generating text with a keyboard, which is a stop-and-go process … When our users relax, they realize they can speak in a reasonable way and get their message out faster.”

Advanced Dictation: Punctuation and Personalization

Another embarrassing thing you can stop doing is holding your phone or desktop microphone directly in front of your mouth. even in a crowded bar or with loud music, Sejnoha said, you “might be surprised at how well (Dragon) does.” if it’s a noise just outside your window, or from across the office, your Windows or Mac system itself might offer some help. In your Mac’s System Preferences, there’s a whole range of Speech options, sure; but check in the Input section of the Sound options, and you’ll find a check box to “Use ambient noise reduction,” which Google’s Blagojevic recommends for using the Chrome browser’s speech function. Windows offers similar mic control methods in its own Control Panel.

Wind, however, is a more problematic kind of noise. the best noise cancellation tools put in cars and hearing aids use multiple microphones to pinpoint the speaker and amplify their input, but your phone isn’t quite as refined an audio tool. if it’s a windy day, you might just have to type out what you want, provided you’re not driving.

Once you’re getting good at getting your words across, you’ll want to nail down punctuation, and maybe even emoticons–how else will you wield the passive-aggressive put-downs you’ve refined in years of typing? Punctuation is no different than words, as Dragon, Google, and most good voice recognition software will train itself to how you say “period,” “comma,” or even “smiley.” just be sure to actually go back and fix bad punctuation, as that’s often how the software learns.

Finally, if you’re using an Android phone, be sure that you’ve enabled Personalized Voice Recognition. That allows Google to keep key recordings of how you say things, and how you correct Google’s transcription, on Google’s servers. it benefits your speech-to-text on Android, in your browser, and, ultimately, your self-driving car.

[Image: Flickr user rossbreadmore]

I need something that is sensitive to voice so I can talk normally and use voice recognition software and will also have excellent sound quality. I will be needing to transcribe several hundred documents, some of them dozens of pages, that were recorded on audio tape. I have the tape set up, now I need help with the headset. thanks!

I don't quite get what you mean –

if you mean headphones –

Have you ever went to the apple store and they had those headphone's with the 'b' on it (not quite sure the brand) those have EXCELLENT sound quality.

if you mean speakers –

Bose. no doubt about it. (their new versions are very stylish.

if you mean recording stuff –

i don't exactly know.

But what i do know is that you will never find a speaker with a recorder with a headphone.

GOod luck!!!!!!