Patents by Inventor Timothy David Poultney

Timothy David Poultney 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).

  • Patent number: 9502024
    Abstract: 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: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2016
    Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.
    Inventors: John Brian Pickering, Timothy David Poultney, Benjamin Terrick Staniford, Matthew Whitbourne
  • Publication number: 20140249816
    Abstract: 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: Application
    Filed: February 26, 2014
    Publication date: September 4, 2014
    Applicant: Nuance Communications, Inc.
    Inventors: John Brian Pickering, Timothy David Poultney, Benjamin Terrick Staniford, Matthew Whitbourne
  • Patent number: 8694316
    Abstract: 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: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 8, 2014
    Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.
    Inventors: John Brian Pickering, Timothy David Poultney, Benjamin Terrick Staniford, Matthew Whitbourne
  • Patent number: 8428944
    Abstract: A speech recognition system prompts a user to provide a first utterance, which is recorded. Speech recognition is performed on the first user utterance to yield a recognition result. The user is prompted to provide a second user utterance, which is recorded, processed and compared to the first utterance to detect a plurality of acoustic differences for each acoustic parameter. The acoustic model used by the speech recognition engine is modified as a function of the acoustic difference.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 7, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2013
    Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc.
    Inventors: Timothy David Poultney, Matthew Whitbourne, Kamourudeen Larry Yusuf
  • Patent number: 7706512
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for voice message editing, particularly a method and apparatus for splicing voicemails sections together. A system, method and computer program product are described for forming a voice message on an interactive voice response system (IVR) spoken by a user including recording a first voice message where the user speaks the first voice message but makes an error in a last portion of the first voice message. A second voice message is recorded where the user speaks the last portion again without the error. Splice points are determined in the first and second voice messages. The first and second voice messages are spliced at the splice points such that the spliced first and second voice message is a continuous voice message including the last portion but not including the error.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Steven Groeger, Stuart John Hayton, Jamie Lister, Timothy David Poultney
  • Patent number: 7470850
    Abstract: An interactive voice response method and system comprising a VoiceXML browser for processing an interaction with a user. A music score (for example a MIDI file) describing background music for playing during the interaction, and a music synthesizer for generating background music from the music score and from acoustic parameters are included. Acoustic parameters are generated whereby the music synthesizer may be controlled independently of the music score to change the audio environment during an interaction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Timothy David Poultney, David Seager Renshaw, Matthew Whitbourne
  • Publication number: 20040037401
    Abstract: An interactive voice response system (103) and a method for use in an interactive voice response system are provided. The interactive voice response system (103) has means for receiving telephone calls via a telephone network (102). The interactive voice response system (103) has means for accessing an application server (105) via a computer network (104) to obtain information in response to an audio input from a telephone call. A cookie (112) sent from an application server (105) relating to the access of the application server (105) in response to an audio input from a telephone call is linked to a telephone calling line identifier (110) and the cookie (112) is stored for use during subsequent telephone calls from the same telephone calling line.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 12, 2002
    Publication date: February 26, 2004
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Barry Neil Dow, Timothy David Poultney, David Seager Renshaw, Samuel Jonathan Smith