Patents by Inventor John Brian Pickering
John Brian Pickering has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 11956300Abstract: A communication system includes a server and a client that transmits messages to the server. The messages include data and descriptive tags and may be in XML format. The server initiates a negotiation with the client relating to message format switching. If the client indicates that the client can accept message format switching, the server instructs the client to switch further messages to a simpler message format including solely data.Type: GrantFiled: August 28, 2019Date of Patent: April 9, 2024Assignee: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATIONInventors: William Bittles, David Granshaw, John Brian Pickering
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Publication number: 20190387045Abstract: A communication system includes a server and a client that transmits messages to the server. The messages include data and descriptive tags and may be in XML format. The server initiates a negotiation with the client relating to message format switching. If the client indicates that the client can accept message format switching, the server instructs the client to switch further messages to a simpler message format including solely data.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 28, 2019Publication date: December 19, 2019Inventors: William Bittles, David Granshaw, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 10412146Abstract: A communication system includes a server and a client that transmits messages to the server. The messages include data and descriptive tags and may be in XML format. The server initiates a negotiation with the client relating to message format switching. If the client indicates that the client can accept message format switching, the server instructs the client to switch further messages to a simpler message format including solely data.Type: GrantFiled: April 27, 2010Date of Patent: September 10, 2019Assignee: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATIONInventors: William Bittles, David Granshaw, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 9502024Abstract: An automatic speech recognition (ASR) system includes a speech-responsive application and a recognition engine. The ASR system generates user prompts to elicit certain spoken inputs, and the speech-responsive application performs operations when the spoken inputs are recognized. The recognition engine compares sounds within an input audio signal with phones within an acoustic model, to identify candidate matching phones. A recognition confidence score is calculated for each candidate matching phone, and the confidence scores are used to help identify one or more likely sequences of matching phones that appear to match a word within the grammar of the speech-responsive application. The per-phone confidence scores are evaluated against predefined confidence score criteria (for example, identifying scores below a ‘low confidence’ threshold) and the results of the evaluation are used to influence subsequent selection of user prompts.Type: GrantFiled: February 26, 2014Date of Patent: November 22, 2016Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: John Brian Pickering, Timothy David Poultney, Benjamin Terrick Staniford, Matthew Whitbourne
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Publication number: 20140249816Abstract: An automatic speech recognition (ASR) system includes a speech-responsive application and a recognition engine. The ASR system generates user prompts to elicit certain spoken inputs, and the speech-responsive application performs operations when the spoken inputs are recognised. The recognition engine compares sounds within an input audio signal with phones within an acoustic model, to identify candidate matching phones. A recognition confidence score is calculated for each candidate matching phone, and the confidence scores are used to help identify one or more likely sequences of matching phones that appear to match a word within the grammar of the speech-responsive application. The per-phone confidence scores are evaluated against predefined confidence score criteria (for example, identifying scores below a ‘low confidence’ threshold) and the results of the evaluation are used to influence subsequent selection of user prompts.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 26, 2014Publication date: September 4, 2014Applicant: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: John Brian Pickering, Timothy David Poultney, Benjamin Terrick Staniford, Matthew Whitbourne
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Patent number: 8694316Abstract: An automatic speech recognition (ASR) system includes a speech-responsive application and a recognition engine. The ASR system generates user prompts to elicit certain spoken inputs, and the speech-responsive application performs operations when the spoken inputs are recognized. The recognition engine compares sounds within an input audio signal with phones within an acoustic model, to identify candidate matching phones. A recognition confidence score is calculated for each candidate matching phone, and the confidence scores are used to help identify one or more likely sequences of matching phones that appear to match a word within the grammar of the speech-responsive application. The per-phone confidence scores are evaluated against predefined confidence score criteria (for example, identifying scores below a ‘low confidence’ threshold) and the results of the evaluation are used to influence subsequent selection of user prompts.Type: GrantFiled: October 20, 2005Date of Patent: April 8, 2014Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: John Brian Pickering, Timothy David Poultney, Benjamin Terrick Staniford, Matthew Whitbourne
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Patent number: 8468266Abstract: A system, method, apparatus, and computer program product uses a plurality of message transmitters to achieve high availability message transmission. The plurality of message transmitters are each operable to transmit a message to a subscriber. In accordance with a determination, for example, of the value of the connections, the message is copied and transmitted to the plurality of the message transmitters so that at least one of the plurality of message transmitters transmits the copy to the subscriber. The at least one message transmitter may be selected by analyzing the message and determining an associated rule based on characteristics of the message.Type: GrantFiled: July 27, 2012Date of Patent: June 18, 2013Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Jose Emir Garza, Stephen James Hobson, John Brian Pickering, Timothy Vincent Pickrell, Steven Powell
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Publication number: 20120290685Abstract: A system, method, apparatus, and computer program product uses a plurality of message transmitters to achieve high availability message transmission. The plurality of message transmitters are each operable to transmit a message to a subscriber. In accordance with a determination, for example, of the value of the connections, the message is copied and transmitted to the plurality of the message transmitters so that at least one of the plurality of message transmitters transmits the copy to the subscriber. The at least one message transmitter may be selected by analyzing the message and determining an associated rule based on characteristics of the message.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 27, 2012Publication date: November 15, 2012Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATIONInventors: Jose Emir Garza, Stephen James Hobson, John Brian Pickering, Timothy Vincent Pickrell, Steven Powell
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Patent number: 8307114Abstract: A system, method, apparatus, and computer program product uses a plurality of message transmitters to achieve high availability message transmission. The plurality of message transmitters are each operable to transmit a message to a subscriber. In accordance with a determination, for example, of the value of the connections, the message is copied and transmitted to the plurality of the message transmitters so that at least one of the plurality of message transmitters transmits the copy to the subscriber. The at least one message transmitter may be selected by analyzing the message and determining an associated rule based on characteristics of the message.Type: GrantFiled: May 21, 2008Date of Patent: November 6, 2012Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Jose Emir Garza, Stephen James Hobson, John Brian Pickering, Timothy Vincent Pickrell, Steven Powell
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Patent number: 8190430Abstract: A method and system for using input signal quality in an automatic speech recognition system. The method includes measuring the quality of an input signal into a speech recognition system and varying a rejection threshold of the speech recognition system at runtime in dependence on the measurement of the input signal quality. If the measurement of the input signal quality is low, the rejection threshold is reduced and, if the measurement of the input signal quality is high, the rejection threshold is increased. The measurement of the input signal quality may be based on one or more of the measurements of signal-to-noise ratio, loudness, including clipping, and speech signal duration.Type: GrantFiled: August 9, 2011Date of Patent: May 29, 2012Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: John Doyle, John Brian Pickering
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Publication number: 20120004912Abstract: A method and system for using input signal quality in an automatic speech recognition system. The method includes measuring the quality of an input signal into a speech recognition system and varying a rejection threshold of the speech recognition system at runtime in dependence on the measurement of the input signal quality. If the measurement of the input signal quality is low, the rejection threshold is reduced and, if the measurement of the input signal quality is high, the rejection threshold is increased. The measurement of the input signal quality may be based on one or more of the measurements of signal-to-noise ratio, loudness, including clipping, and speech signal duration.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 9, 2011Publication date: January 5, 2012Applicant: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: John Doyle, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 8064573Abstract: A method and apparatus for generating appropriate confirmatory prompts in a speech-enabled, interactive computer system. The method can be incorporated in an interactive voice response system that includes receiving an input audio stream over a voice channel from a users, performing keyword recognition on received input audio as subsequent input audio is being received, and prompting the user with an acknowledgement of the keyword or keywords as subsequent input audio is being received. In another aspect of the method, the volume of the speech input can be continuously monitored. In a further aspect of the method, recognition results and associated confidence values can be combined to select different confirmatory prompts, and the volume is tailored to be the same as, louder than or quieter than the volume of the speech input, so that different types of confirmation can be automatically generated to produce a natural speech-enabled interface.Type: GrantFiled: July 15, 2008Date of Patent: November 22, 2011Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: George Murdoch Clelland, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 8000962Abstract: A method and system for using input signal quality in an automatic speech recognition system. The method includes measuring the quality of an input signal into a speech recognition system and varying a rejection threshold of the speech recognition system at runtime in dependence on the measurement of the input signal quality. If the measurement of the input signal quality is low, the rejection threshold is reduced and, if the measurement of the input signal quality is high, the rejection threshold is increased. The measurement of the input signal quality may be based on one or more of the measurements of signal-to-noise ratio, loudness, including clipping, and speech signal duration.Type: GrantFiled: May 19, 2006Date of Patent: August 16, 2011Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: John Doyle, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 7983701Abstract: A method and system for processing a free format short message service (SMS) text message for alerting a mobile phone's user to significant information in the message received by the mobile phone from a sender. Program code stored in memory on the mobile phone executes the method on a processor. A theme, a rheme, at least one structural component, and a sentence type of the normalized message are generated from which a FEATURE FACTOR priority is determined. Semantic content of the normalized message is determined from which an EMOTIONAL FACTOR priority is determined. A TOTAL PRIORITY computed as a sum of the FEATURE FACTOR priority and the EMOTIONAL FACTOR priority is determined to exceed a predetermined threshold, from which it is determined that the received message is significant, which triggers overriding default handset settings of the mobile phone and alerting the user that the received message is significant.Type: GrantFiled: November 1, 2007Date of Patent: July 19, 2011Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: David Rowland Bell, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 7912721Abstract: A system and method for automatic recognition of foreign speakers by performing analysis of a speech sample to produce a signal representative thereof and attempting to match the representative signal to one of a plurality of predetermined sounds to produce recognition; and determining whether a gap exists in a table of predetermined sounds in a predetermined language and, if a gap exists, substituting for matching a sound from a position in the table near the gap. This automatic substitution of known foreign pronunciation characteristics improves and modifies the output from standard, monolingual automatic speech recognition. There is no requirement to implement either adaptation or to impose additional manual modification of the baseform pool on the application developer. In addition, the danger of increased ambiguity is removed by introducing an explicit accent and/or language checker which queries known differences across accents.Type: GrantFiled: December 29, 2005Date of Patent: March 22, 2011Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: Barry Neil Dow, Stephen Graham Copinger Lawrence, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 7865176Abstract: A method and system for processing a fixed format short message service (SMS) text message for alerting a user of a mobile phone to significant information in the message received by the mobile phone. Program code stored in memory on the mobile phone executes the method on a processor. A value of each preset variable of at least two preset variables is retrieved from the memory on the mobile phone. The mobile phone receives the message from a sender. The message is ascertained to be significant by ascertaining that the received message passes at least one test. Each test utilizes at least one aspect of the received message and the retrieved value of at least one preset variable. Responsive to the ascertaining, default handset settings of the mobile phone are overridden and the user is alerted by an audio tone or vibration that the received message is significant.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2007Date of Patent: January 4, 2011Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: David Rowland Bell, John Brian Pickering
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Publication number: 20100274846Abstract: A communication system includes a server and a client that transmits messages to the server. The messages include data and descriptive tags and may be in XML format. The server initiates a negotiation with the client relating to message format switching. If the client indicates that the client can accept message format switching, the server instructs the client to switch further messages to a simpler message format including solely data.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 27, 2010Publication date: October 28, 2010Applicant: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: William Bittles, David Granshaw, John Brian Pickering
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Patent number: 7725817Abstract: A parser is generated for parsing a marked up document. A template of a sample marked up document chosen by a user is extracted. The template comprises elements of the structural markup of the sample document with their data contents removed. The parser for parsing a marked up document is generated. The parser is generated in the form of code based on the extracted template in such a manner that the parser is adapted to extract any elements and associated data content of the marked up document to be parsed corresponding to the elements of the extracted template.Type: GrantFiled: December 13, 2005Date of Patent: May 25, 2010Assignee: International Business Machines CorporationInventors: Andrew McColl Krasun, John Brian Pickering, William Nicholas John Tindall
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Patent number: 7716051Abstract: A distributed voice recognition system (500) and method employs principles of bottom-up (i.e., raw input) and top-down (i.e., prediction based on past experience) processing to perform client-side and server-side processing by (i) at the client-side, replacing application data by a phonotactic table (504); (ii) at the server-side, tracking separate confidence scores for matches against an acoustic model and comparison to a grammar; and (iii) at the server-side using a contention resolver (514) to weight the client-side and server-side results to establish a single output which represents the collaboration between client-side processing and server-side processing.Type: GrantFiled: June 28, 2006Date of Patent: May 11, 2010Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.Inventors: Barry Neil Dow, Stephen Graham Lawrence, John Brian Pickering
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Publication number: 20090117922Abstract: A method and system for processing a free format short message service (SMS) text message for alerting a mobile phone's user to significant information in the message received by the mobile phone from a sender. Program code stored in memory on the mobile phone executes the method on a processor. A theme, a rheme, at least one structural component, and a sentence type of the normalized message are generated from which a FEATURE FACTOR priority is determined. Semantic content of the normalized message is determined from which an EMOTIONAL FACTOR priority is determined. A TOTAL PRIORITY computed as a sum of the FEATURE FACTOR priority and the EMOTIONAL FACTOR priority is determined to exceed a predetermined threshold, from which it is determined that the received message is significant, which triggers overriding default handset settings of the mobile phone and alerting the user that the received message is significant.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 1, 2007Publication date: May 7, 2009Inventors: David Rowland Bell, John Brian Pickering