Abstract: Methods, apparatus, and computer program products are described for invoking tapered prompts in a multimodal application implemented with a multimodal browser and a multimodal application operating on a multimodal device supporting multiple modes of user interaction with the multimodal application, the modes of user interaction including a voice mode and one or more non-voice modes. Embodiments include identifying, by a multimodal browser, a prompt element in a multimodal application; identifying, by the multimodal browser, one or more attributes associated with the prompt element; and playing a speech prompt according to the one or more attributes associated with the prompt element.

Abstract: Establishing a preferred mode of interaction between a user and a multimodal application, including evaluating, by a multimodal application operating on a multimodal device supporting multiple modes of interaction including a voice mode and one or more non-voice modes, user modal preference, and dynamically configuring multimodal content of the multimodal application in dependence upon the evaluation of user modal preference.

Abstract: Dynamically generating a vocal help prompt in a multimodal application that include detecting a help-triggering event for an input element of a VoiceXML dialog, where the detecting is implemented with a multimodal application operating on a multimodal device supporting multiple modes of interaction including a voice mode and one or more non-voice modes, the multimodal application is operatively coupled to a VoiceXML interpreter, and the multimodal application has no static help text. Dynamically generating a vocal help prompt in a multimodal application according to embodiments of the present invention typically also includes retrieving, by the VoiceXML interpreter from a source of help text, help text for an element of a speech recognition grammar, forming by the VoiceXML interpreter the help text into a vocal help prompt, and presenting by the multimodal application the vocal help prompt through a computer user interface to a user.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and products for testing a grammar used in speech recognition for reliability in a plurality of operating environments having different background noise that include: receiving recorded background noise for each of the plurality of operating environments; generating a test speech utterance for recognition by a speech recognition engine using a grammar; mixing the test speech utterance with each recorded background noise, resulting in a plurality of mixed test speech utterances, each mixed test speech utterance having different background noise; performing, for each of the mixed test speech utterances, speech recognition using the grammar and the mixed test speech utterance, resulting in speech recognition results for each of the mixed test speech utterances; and evaluating, for each recorded background noise, speech recognition reliability of the grammar in dependence upon the speech recognition results for the mixed test speech utterance having that recorded background noise.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, and computer program products are described for establishing a multimodal personality for a multimodal application that include selecting, by the multimodal application, matching vocal and visual demeanors and incorporating, by the multimodal application, the matching vocal and visual demeanors as a multimodal personality into the multimodal application.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, and products are disclosed for adjusting a speech engine for a mobile computing device based on background noise, the mobile computing device operatively coupled to a microphone, that include: sampling, through the microphone, background noise for a plurality of operating environments in which the mobile computing device operates; generating, for each operating environment, a noise model in dependence upon the sampled background noise for that operating environment; and configuring the speech engine for the mobile computing device with the noise model for the operating environment in which the mobile computing device currently operates.

Abstract: Exemplary methods, systems, and products are disclosed for synchronizing visual and speech events in a multimodal application, including receiving from a user speech; determining a semantic interpretation of the speech; calling a global application update handler; identifying, by the global application update handler, an additional processing function in dependence upon the semantic interpretation; and executing the additional function. Typical embodiments may include updating a visual element after executing the additional function. Typical embodiments may include updating a voice form after executing the additional function. Typical embodiments also may include updating a state table after updating the voice form. Typical embodiments also may include restarting the voice form after executing the additional function.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for modifying a grammar of a hierarchical multimodal menu that include monitoring a user invoking a speech command in a first tier grammar, and adding the speech command to a second tier grammar in dependence upon the frequency of the user invoking the speech command. Adding the speech command to a second tier grammar may be carried out by adding the speech command to a higher tier grammar or by adding the speech command to a lower tier grammar. Adding the speech command to a second tier grammar may include storing the speech command in a grammar cache in the second tier grammar.

Abstract: Dynamically generating a vocal help prompt in a multimodal application that include detecting a help-triggering event for an input element of a VoiceXML dialog, where the detecting is implemented with a multimodal application operating on a multimodal device supporting multiple modes of interaction including a voice mode and one or more non-voice modes, the multimodal application is operatively coupled to a VoiceXML interpreter, and the multimodal application has no static help text. Dynamically generating a vocal help prompt in a multimodal application according to embodiments of the present invention typically also includes retrieving, by the VoiceXML interpreter from a source of help text, help text for an element of a speech recognition grammar, forming by the VoiceXML interpreter the help text into a vocal help prompt, and presenting by the multimodal application the vocal help prompt through a computer user interface to a user.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and products for testing a grammar used in speech recognition for reliability in a plurality of operating environments having different background noise that include: receiving recorded background noise for each of the plurality of operating environments; generating a test speech utterance for recognition by a speech recognition engine using a grammar; mixing the test speech utterance with each recorded background noise, resulting in a plurality of mixed test speech utterances, each mixed test speech utterance having different background noise; performing, for each of the mixed test speech utterances, speech recognition using the grammar and the mixed test speech utterance, resulting in speech recognition results for each of the mixed test speech utterances; and evaluating, for each recorded background noise, speech recognition reliability of the grammar in dependence upon the speech recognition results for the mixed test speech utterance having that recorded background noise.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, and computer program products are described for establishing a multimodal personality for a multimodal application that include selecting, by the multimodal application, matching vocal and visual demeanors and incorporating, by the multimodal application, the matching vocal and visual demeanors as a multimodal personality into the multimodal application.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, and computer program products are described for enabling global grammars for a particular multimodal application according to the present invention by loading a multimodal web page; determining whether the loaded multimodal web page is one of a plurality of multimodal web pages of the particular multimodal application. If the loaded multimodal web page is one of the plurality of multimodal web pages of the particular multimodal application, enabling global grammars typically includes loading any currently unloaded global grammars of the particular multimodal application identified in the multimodal web page and maintaining any previously loaded global grammars. If the loaded multimodal web page is not one of the plurality of multimodal web pages of the particular multimodal application, enabling global grammars typically includes unloading any currently loaded global grammars.

Abstract: Enabling grammars in web page frames, including receiving, in a multimodal application on a multimodal device, a frameset document, where the frameset document includes markup defining web page frames; obtaining by the multimodal application content documents for display in each of the web page frames, where the content documents include navigable markup elements; generating by the multimodal application, for each navigable markup element in each content document, a segment of markup defining a speech recognition grammar, including inserting in each such grammar markup identifying content to be displayed when words in the grammar are matched and markup identifying a frame where the content is to be displayed; and enabling by the multimodal application all the generated grammars for speech recognition.

Abstract: Dynamically defining a VoiceXML grammar of a multimodal application, implemented with the multimodal application operating on a multimodal device supporting multiple modes of interaction including a voice mode and one or more non-voice modes, the multimodal application operatively coupled to a VoiceXML interpreter, and the method includes loading the X+V page by the multimodal application, from a web server into the multimodal device for execution, the X+V page including one or more VoiceXML grammars in one or more VoiceXML dialogs, including at least one in-line grammar that is declared but undefined; retrieving by the multimodal application a grammar definition for the in-line grammar from the web server without reloading the X+V page; and defining by the multimodal application the in-line grammar with the retrieved grammar definition before executing the VoiceXML dialog containing the in-line grammar.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and products for dynamically creating a multimodal markup document are provided that include selecting a multimodal markup template, identifying in dependence upon the multimodal markup template a dynamic content module, instantiating the dynamic content module, executing a dynamic content creation function in the instantiated dynamic content module, receiving dynamic content from the dynamic content creation function, and including the dynamic content in the multimodal markup template. Selecting a multimodal markup template may be carried out by identifying a multimodal markup template from URI encoded data embedded in a request for a multimodal markup document from a multimodal browser. The multimodal markup template may include static content and the dynamic content may include XHTML+Voice content.

Abstract: A method for speech enabling an application can include the step of specifying a speech input within a speech-enabled markup. The speech-enabled markup can also specify an application operation that is to be executed responsive to the detection of the speech input. After the speech input has been defined within the speech-enabled markup, the application can be instantiated. The specified speech input can then be detected and the application operation can be responsively executed in accordance with the specified speech-enabled markup.

Abstract: A multimodal browser for rendering a multimodal document on an end system defining a host can include a visual browser component for rendering visual content, if any, of the multimodal document, and a voice browser component for rendering voice-based content, if any, of the multimodal document. The voice browser component can determine which of a plurality of speech processing configuration is used by the host in rendering the voice-based content. The determination can be based upon the resources of the host running the application. The determination also can be based upon a processing instruction contained in the application.

Abstract: Establishing a multimodal advertising personality for a sponsor of a multimodal application, including associating one or more vocal demeanors with a sponsor of a multimodal application and presenting a speech portion of the multimodal application for the sponsor using at least one of the vocal demeanors associated with the sponsor.

Abstract: A method (200) of building a grammar with baseforms generated dynamically from user utterances can include the steps of recording (205) a user utterance, generating (210) a baseform using the user utterance, creating or adding to (215) a grammar rule using the baseform, and binding (230) the grammar rule in a grammar document of a voice extensible markup language program. Generating a baseform can optionally include introducing a new element to VoiceXML with attributes that enable generating the baseform from a referenced recording such as the user utterance. In one embodiment, the method can be used to create (235) a phonebook and a grammar to access the phonebook by repeatedly visiting a form containing the grammar rule with attributes that enable generating the baseform from the referenced recording.

Abstract: Establishing a multimodal advertising personality for a sponsor of a multimodal application, including associating one or more vocal demeanors with a sponsor of a multimodal application and presenting a speech portion of the multimodal application for the sponsor using at least one of the vocal demeanors associated with the sponsor.