Patents by Inventor Mazin G. Rahim
Mazin G. Rahim 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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Publication number: 20110179006Abstract: A system and method for providing a natural language interface to a database or the Internet. The method provides a response from a database to a natural language query. The method comprises receiving a user query, extracting key data from the user query, submitting the extracted key data to a data base search engine to retrieve a top n pages from the data base, processing of the top n pages through a natural language dialog engine and providing a response based on processing the top n pages.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 29, 2011Publication date: July 21, 2011Applicant: AT&T Corp.Inventors: Richard Vandervoort Cox, Hossein Eslambolchi, Behzad Nadji, Mazin G. Rahim
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Patent number: 7949525Abstract: A spoken language understanding method and system are provided. The method includes classifying a set of labeled candidate utterances based on a previously trained classifier, generating classification types for each candidate utterance, receiving confidence scores for the classification types from the trained classifier, sorting the classified utterances based on an analysis of the confidence score of each candidate utterance compared to a respective label of the candidate utterance, and rechecking candidate utterances according to the analysis. The system includes modules configured to control a processor in the system to perform the steps of the method.Type: GrantFiled: June 16, 2009Date of Patent: May 24, 2011Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Dilek Z. Hakkani-Tur, Mazin G. Rahim, Gokhan Tur
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Patent number: 7933766Abstract: A method of generating a natural language model for use in a spoken dialog system is disclosed. The method comprises using sample utterances and creating a number of hand crafted rules for each call-type defined in a labeling guide. A first NLU model is generated and tested using the hand crafted rules and sample utterances. A second NLU model is built using the sample utterances as new training data and using the hand crafted rules. The second NLU model is tested for performance using a first batch of labeled data. A series of NLU models are built by adding a previous batch of labeled data to training data and using a new batch of labeling data as test data to generate the series of NLU models with training data that increases constantly. If not all the labeling data is received, the method comprises repeating the step of building a series of NLU models until all labeling data is received.Type: GrantFiled: October 20, 2009Date of Patent: April 26, 2011Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Narendra K. Gupta, Mazin G. Rahim, Gokhan Tur, Antony Van der Mude
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Patent number: 7933774Abstract: A system and method is provided for rapidly generating a new spoken dialog application. In one embodiment, a user experience person labels the transcribed data (e.g., 3000 utterances) using a set of interactive tools. The labeled data is then stored in a processed data database. During the labeling process, the user experience person not only groups utterances in various call type categories, but also flags (e.g., 100-200) specific utterances as positive and negative examples for use in an annotation guide. The labeled data in the processed data database can also be used to generate an initial natural language understanding (NLU) model.Type: GrantFiled: March 18, 2004Date of Patent: April 26, 2011Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Lee Begeja, Mazin G. Rahim, Allen Louis Gorin, Behzad Shahraray, David Crawford Gibbon, Zhu Liu, Bernard S. Renger, Patrick Guy Haffner, Harris Drucker, Steven Hart Lewis
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Patent number: 7921091Abstract: A system and method for providing a natural language interface to a database or the Internet. The method provides a response from a database to a natural language query. The method comprises receiving a user query, extracting key data from the user query, submitting the extracted key data to a data base search engine to retrieve a top n pages from the data base, processing of the top n pages through a natural language dialog engine and providing a response based on processing the top n pages.Type: GrantFiled: December 16, 2004Date of Patent: April 5, 2011Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Richard Vandervoort Cox, Hossein Eslambolchi, Behzad Nadji, Mazin G. Rahim
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Patent number: 7869998Abstract: A voice-enabled help desk service is disclosed. The service comprises an automatic speech recognition module for recognizing speech from a user, a spoken language understanding module for understanding the output from the automatic speech recognition module, a dialog management module for generating a response to speech from the user, a natural voices text-to-speech synthesis module for synthesizing speech to generate the response to the user, and a frequently asked questions module. The frequently asked questions module handles frequently asked questions from the user by changing voices and providing predetermined prompts to answer the frequently asked question.Type: GrantFiled: December 19, 2002Date of Patent: January 11, 2011Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Giuseppe Di Fabbrizio, Dawn L Dutton, Narendra K. Gupta, Barbara B. Hollister, Mazin G Rahim, Giuseppe Riccardi, Robert Elias Schapire, Juergen Schroeter
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Patent number: 7860713Abstract: Systems and methods for annotating speech data. The present invention reduces the time required to annotate speech data by selecting utterances for annotation that will be of greatest benefit. A selection module uses speech models, including speech recognition models and spoken language understanding models, to identify utterances that should be annotated based on criteria such as confidence scores generated by the models. These utterances are placed in an annotation list along with a type of annotation to be performed for the utterances and an order in which the annotation should proceed. The utterances in the annotation list can be annotated for speech recognition purposes, spoken language understanding purposes, labeling purposes, etc. The selection module can also select utterances for annotation based on previously annotated speech data and deficiencies in the various models.Type: GrantFiled: July 1, 2008Date of Patent: December 28, 2010Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Tirso M. Alonso, Ilana Bromberg, Dilek Z. Hakkani-Tur, Barbara B. Hollister, Mazin G. Rahim, Giuseppe Riccardi, Lawrence Lyon Rose, Daniel Leon Stern, Gokhan Tur, James M. Wilson
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Publication number: 20100217597Abstract: Systems and methods for using an annotation guide to label utterances and speech data with a call type are disclosed. A method embodiment monitors labelers of speech data by presenting via a processor a test utterance to a labeler, receiving input from the labeler that selects a particular call type from a list of call types and determining via the processor if the labeler labeled the test utterance correctly. Based on the determining step, the method performs at least one of the following: revising the annotation guide, retraining the labeler or altering the test utterance.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 3, 2010Publication date: August 26, 2010Applicant: AT&T Intellectual Property II, LP via a transfer from AT&T Corp.Inventors: Lee Begeja, Richard Vandervoort Cox, Harris Drucker, David Crawford Gibbon, Allen Louis Gorin, Patrick Guy Haffner, Steven H. Lewis, Zhu Liu, Mazin G. Rahim, Bernard S. Renger, Behzad Shahraray
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Patent number: 7752036Abstract: Recognizing a stream of speech received as speech vectors over a lossy communications link includes constructing for a speech recognizer a series of speech vectors from packets received over a lossy packetized transmission link, wherein some of the packets associated with each speech vector are lost or corrupted during transmission. Each constructed speech vector is multi-dimensional and includes associated features. After waiting for a predetermined time, speech vectors are generated and potentially corrupted features within the speech vector are indicated to the speech recognizer when present. Speech recognition is attempted at the speech recognizer on the speech vectors when corrupted features are present. This recognition may be based only on certain or valid features within each speech vector. Retransmission of a missing or corrupted packet is requested when corrupted values are indicated by the indicating step and when the attempted recognition step fails.Type: GrantFiled: December 29, 2008Date of Patent: July 6, 2010Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Richard Vandervoort Cox, Stephen Michael Marcus, Mazin G. Rahim, Nambirajan Seshadri, Robert Douglas Sharp
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Patent number: 7729902Abstract: A method is disclosed for designing a labeling guide for use by a labeler in labeling data used for training a spoken language understanding (SLU) module for an application. The method comprises a labeling guide designer selecting domain-independent actions applicable to an application, selecting domain-dependent objects according to characteristics of the application, and generating a labeling guide using the selected domain-independent actions and selected domain-dependent objects. An advantage of the labeling guide generated in this manner is that the labeling guide designer can easily port the labeling guide to a new application by selecting a set of domain-independent action and then selecting the domain-dependent objects related to the new application.Type: GrantFiled: October 30, 2007Date of Patent: June 1, 2010Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Narendra K. Gupta, Barbara B. Hollister, Mazin G. Rahim, Giuseppe Riccardi
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Patent number: 7711566Abstract: Systems and methods for using an annotation guide to label utterances and speech data with a call type. A method embodiment monitors labelers of speech data by presenting via a processor a test utterance to a labeler, receiving input from the labeler that selects a particular call type from a list of call types and determining via the processor if the labeler labeled the test utterance correctly. Based on the determining step, the method performs at least one of the following: revising the annotation guide, retraining the labeler or altering the test utterance.Type: GrantFiled: August 14, 2007Date of Patent: May 4, 2010Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, LPInventors: Lee Begeja, Richard Vandervoort Cox, Harris Drucker, David Crawford Gibbon, Allen Louis Gorin, Patrick Guy Haffner, Steven H. Lewis, Zhu Liu, Mazin G. Rahim, Bernard S. Renger, Behzad Shahraray
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Publication number: 20100098224Abstract: A system and method provides a natural language interface to world-wide web content. Either in advance or dynamically, webpage content is parsed using a parsing algorithm. A person using a telephone interface can provide speech information, which is converted to text and used to automatically fill in input fields on a webpage form. The form is then submitted to a database search and a response is generated. Information contained on the responsive webpage is extracted and converted to speech via a text-to-speech engine and communicated to the person.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 22, 2009Publication date: April 22, 2010Applicant: AT&T Corp.Inventors: Srinivas Bangalore, Mazin G. Rahim, Junlan Feng
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Publication number: 20100049519Abstract: A system and a method are provided. A speech recognition processor receives unconstrained input speech and outputs a string of words. The speech recognition processor is based on a numeric language that represents a subset of a vocabulary. The subset includes a set of words identified as being for interpreting and understanding number strings. A numeric understanding processor contains classes of rules for converting the string of words into a sequence of digits. The speech recognition processor utilizes an acoustic model database. A validation database stores a set of valid sequences of digits. A string validation processor outputs validity information based on a comparison of a sequence of digits output by the numeric understanding processor with valid sequences of digits in the validation database.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 5, 2009Publication date: February 25, 2010Applicant: AT&T Corp.Inventors: Mazin G. Rahim, Giuseppe Riccardi, Jeremy Huntley Wright, Bruce Melvin Buntschuh, Allen Louis Gorin
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Publication number: 20100042404Abstract: A method of generating a natural language model for use in a spoken dialog system is disclosed. The method comprises using sample utterances and creating a number of hand crafted rules for each call-type defined in a labeling guide. A first NLU model is generated and tested using the hand crafted rules and sample utterances. A second NLU model is built using the sample utterances as new training data and using the hand crafted rules. The second NLU model is tested for performance using a first batch of labeled data. A series of NLU models are built by adding a previous batch of labeled data to training data and using a new batch of labeling data as test data to generate the series of NLU models with training data that increases constantly. If not all the labeling data is received, the method comprises repeating the step of building a series of NLU models until all labeling data is received.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 20, 2009Publication date: February 18, 2010Applicant: AT&T Corp.Inventors: Narendra K. Gupta, Mazin G. Rahim, Gokhan Tur, Antony Van der Mude
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Patent number: 7660400Abstract: A system and method provides a natural language interface to world-wide web content. Either in advance or dynamically, webpage content is parsed using a parsing algorithm. A person using a telephone interface can provide speech information, which is converted to text and used to automatically fill in input fields on a webpage form. The form is then submitted to a database search and a response is generated. Information contained on the responsive webpage is extracted and converted to speech via a text-to-speech engine and communicated to the person.Type: GrantFiled: December 19, 2003Date of Patent: February 9, 2010Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Srinivas Bangalore, Junlan Feng, Mazin G. Rahim
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Publication number: 20090292529Abstract: Disclosed is a system and method for training a spoken dialog service component from website data. Spoken dialog service components typically include an automatic speech recognition module, a language understanding module, a dialog management module, a language generation module and a text-to-speech module. The method includes converting data from a structured database associated with a website to a structured text data set and a structured task knowledge base, extracting linguistic items from the structured database, and training a spoken dialog service component using at least one of the structured text data, the structured task knowledge base, or the linguistic items. The system includes modules configured to implement the method.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 31, 2009Publication date: November 26, 2009Applicant: AT&T Corp.Inventors: Srinivas Bangalore, Junlan Feng, Mazin G. Rahim
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Patent number: 7624015Abstract: A system and a method are provided. A speech recognition processor receives unconstrained input speech and outputs a string of words. The speech recognition processor is based on a numeric language that represents a subset of a vocabulary. The subset includes a set of words identified as being for interpreting and understanding number strings. A numeric understanding processor contains classes of rules for converting the string of words into a sequence of digits. The speech recognition processor utilizes an acoustic model database. A validation database stores a set of valid sequences of digits. A string validation processor outputs validity information based on a comparison of a sequence of digits output by the numeric understanding processor with valid sequences of digits in the validation database.Type: GrantFiled: March 2, 2006Date of Patent: November 24, 2009Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Mazin G. Rahim, Giuseppe Riccardi, Jeremy Huntley Wright, Bruce Melvin Buntschuh, Allen Louis Gorin
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Patent number: 7620550Abstract: A method of generating a natural language model for use in a spoken dialog system is disclosed. The method comprises using sample utterances and creating a number of hand crafted rules for each call-type defined in a labeling guide. A first NLU model is generated and tested using the hand crafted rules and sample utterances. A second NLU model is built using the sample utterances as new training data and using the hand crafted rules. The second NLU model is tested for performance using a first batch of labeled data. A series of NLU models are built by adding a previous batch of labeled data to training data and using a new batch of labeling data as test data to generate the series of NLU models with training data that increases constantly. If not all the labeling data is received, the method comprises repeating the step of building a series of NLU models until all labeling data is received.Type: GrantFiled: October 3, 2007Date of Patent: November 17, 2009Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P.Inventors: Narendra K. Gupta, Mazin G. Rahim, Gokhan Tur, Antony Van der Mude
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Publication number: 20090254344Abstract: A spoken language understanding method and system are provided. The method includes classifying a set of labeled candidate utterances based on a previously trained classifier, generating classification types for each candidate utterance, receiving confidence scores for the classification types from the trained classifier, sorting the classified utterances based on an analysis of the confidence score of each candidate utterance compared to a respective label of the candidate utterance, and rechecking candidate utterances according to the analysis. The system includes modules configured to control a processor in the system to perform the steps of the method.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 16, 2009Publication date: October 8, 2009Applicant: AT&T Corp.Inventors: Dilek Z. Hakkani-Tur, Mazin G. Rahim, Gokhan Tur
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Patent number: 7580842Abstract: Disclosed is a system and method for generating a spoken dialog service from website data. Spoken dialog components typically include an automatic speech recognition module, a language understanding module, a dialog management module, a language generation module and a text-to-speech module. These components are capable of being automatically trained from processed website data. A website analyzer converts a website into structured text data set and a structured task knowledge base. The website analyzer further extracts linguistic items from the website data. The dialog components are automatically trained from the structured text data set, structured task knowledge base and linguistic items.Type: GrantFiled: October 30, 2007Date of Patent: August 25, 2009Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II, LP.Inventors: Srinivas Bangalore, Junlan Feng, Mazin G. Rahim