Abstract: An integrated active control system includes gaming devices, a server, and a network connecting the server and gaming devices. The gaming devices include gaming terminals and gaming tables. The integrated active control system aggregates gaming transaction information from the gaming devices and determines, for example, the effectiveness of the gaming establishment's floor configuration. Based on this effectiveness determination, at least one of the gaming devices are instructed to change their configuration. Staffing information may also be considered and reconfigured. The integrated active control system further monitors and configures gaming chips. The gaming chips are programmable, and may store monetary chip value and chip identification information. The programmable gaming chips are monitored for tracking the wagers made with the chips as well as for detecting their location.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for communicating between virtual agents associated with users of electronic devices connected via at least one network. A first user may instruct an associated first virtual agent to invoke a communication session with a second virtual agent associated with a second user. To invoke the communication session, the first virtual agent may send an outgoing communication to the second virtual agent and the outgoing communication may instruct the second virtual agent to perform at least one action on behalf of the first user. Virtual agents associated with different users may alternatively communicate with each other in the absence of user interaction to perform a collaborative action.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for communicating between virtual agents associated with users of electronic devices connected via at least one network. A first user may instruct an associated first virtual agent to invoke a communication session with a second virtual agent associated with a second user. To invoke the communication session, the first virtual agent may send an outgoing communication to the second virtual agent and the outgoing communication may instruct the second virtual agent to perform at least one action on behalf of the first user. Virtual agents associated with different users may alternatively communicate with each other in the absence of user interaction to perform a collaborative action.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for communicating between virtual agents associated with users of electronic devices connected via at least one network. A first user may instruct an associated first virtual agent to invoke a communication session with a second virtual agent associated with a second user. To invoke the communication session, the first virtual agent may send an outgoing communication to the second virtual agent and the outgoing communication may instruct the second virtual agent to perform at least one action on behalf of the first user. Virtual agents associated with different users may alternatively communicate with each other in the absence of user interaction to perform a collaborative action.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for communicating between virtual agents associated with users of electronic devices connected via at least one network. A first user may instruct an associated first virtual agent to invoke a communication session with a second virtual agent associated with a second user. To invoke the communication session, the first virtual agent may send an outgoing communication to the second virtual agent and the outgoing communication may instruct the second virtual agent to perform at least one action on behalf of the first user. Virtual agents associated with different users may alternatively communicate with each other in the absence of user interaction to perform a collaborative action.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for communicating between virtual agents associated with users of electronic devices connected via at least one network. A first user may instruct an associated first virtual agent to invoke a communication session with a second virtual agent associated with a second user. To invoke the communication session, the first virtual agent may send an outgoing communication to the second virtual agent and the outgoing communication may instruct the second virtual agent to perform at least one action on behalf of the first user. Virtual agents associated with different users may alternatively communicate with each other in the absence of user interaction to perform a collaborative action.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for communicating between virtual agents associated with users of electronic devices connected via at least one network. A first user may instruct an associated first virtual agent to invoke a communication session with a second virtual agent associated with a second user. To invoke the communication session, the first virtual agent may send an outgoing communication to the second virtual agent and the outgoing communication may instruct the second virtual agent to perform at least one action on behalf of the first user. Virtual agents associated with different users may alternatively communicate with each other in the absence of user interaction to perform a collaborative action.

Abstract: A system and method for transmitting speech activity in a distributed voice recognition system. The distributed voice recognition system includes a local VR engine in a subscriber unit and a server VR engine on a server. The local VR engine comprises a feature extraction (FE) module that extracts features from a speech signal, and a voice activity detection module (VAD) that detects voice activity within a speech signal. Indications of voice activity are transmitted ahead of features from the subscriber unit to the server.

Abstract: A speech recognition system plays prompts to a user in order to obtain information from the user. If the user begins to speak, the prompt should stop. However, the system may receive sounds other than speech from the user while playing a prompt, in which case the prompt should continue. The system temporarily stops a prompt when it detects a sound or when it preliminarily determines that a detected sound may be a target sound (such as words from the user). The system then determines whether the received sound is a target sound or some other sound (such as coughing or a door shutting). If the received sound is not determined to be a target sound, then the prompt is resumed. The prompt can be resumed at any appropriate point, such as the point where it was stopped, a prior phrase boundary, or the beginning of the prompt.

Abstract: An arrangement is provided for generating a reduced unit database of a desired size to be used in text to speech operations. A reduced unit database with a desired size is generated based on a full unit database. The reduction is carried out with respect to a text database with a plurality of sentences. Units from the full database are pruned to minimize an overall cost associated with using alternative units other than the units in the reduced unit database.

Abstract: A speech recognition system plays prompts to a user in order to obtain information from the user. If the user begins to speak, the prompt should stop. However, the system may receive sounds other than speech from the user while playing a prompt, in which case the prompt should continue. The system temporarily stops a prompt when it detects a sound or when it preliminarily determines that a detected sound may be a target sound (such as words from the user). The system then determines whether the received sound is a target sound or some other sound (such as coughing or a door shutting). If the received sound is not determined to be a target sound, then the prompt is resumed. The prompt can be resumed at any appropriate point, such as the point where it was stopped, a prior phrase boundary, or the beginning of the prompt.

Abstract: A system and method for transmitting speech activity in a distributed voice recognition system. The distributed voice recognition system includes a local VR engine in a subscriber unit and a server VR engine on a server. The local VR engine comprises a feature extraction (FE) module that extracts features from a speech signal, and a voice activity detection module (VAD) that detects voice activity within a speech signal. Indications of voice activity are transmitted ahead of features from the subscriber unit to the server.