Patents by Inventor Yoko Futagi
Yoko Futagi 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: 10255820Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for determining a susceptibility of a computer-implemented automated scoring engine to gaming strategies. A plurality of responses to a prompt are provided to a computer-implemented automated scoring engine to receive a first set of scores. A first transformation is performed on each of the plurality of responses to generate a first set of transformed responses. The first set of transformed responses is provided to the computer-implemented automatic scoring engine to receive a second set of scores, and a gaming susceptibility metric is determined based on the first set of scores and the second set of scores.Type: GrantFiled: March 26, 2014Date of Patent: April 9, 2019Assignee: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Derrick Higgins, Isaac Bejar, Michael Heilman, Yoko Futagi, Michael Flor
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Patent number: 8888493Abstract: A computer-implemented method, system, and computer program product for automatically assessing text difficulty. Text reading difficulty predictions are expressed on a scale that is aligned with published reading standards. Two distinct difficulty models are provided for informational and literary texts. A principal components analysis implemented on a large collection of texts is used to develop independent variables accounting for strong intercorrelations exhibited by many important linguistic features. Multiple dimensions of text variation are addressed, including new dimensions beyond syntactic complexity and semantic difficulty. Feedback about text difficulty is provided in a hierarchically structured format designed to support successful text adaptation efforts.Type: GrantFiled: July 24, 2013Date of Patent: November 18, 2014Assignee: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Kathleen Marie Sheehan, Irene Kostin, Yoko Futagi
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Patent number: 8892421Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for determining a difficulty level of a text. A determination is made as to a number of cohesive devices present in a text. A further determination is made as to a number of cohesive devices expected in the text. A cohesiveness metric is calculated based on the number of cohesive devices present in the text and the number of cohesive devices expected in the text, where the cohesiveness metric is used to identify a difficulty level of the text.Type: GrantFiled: December 7, 2011Date of Patent: November 18, 2014Assignee: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Kathleen Marie Sheehan, Irene Kostin, Yoko Futagi
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Publication number: 20140295399Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for determining a susceptibility of a computer-implemented automated scoring engine to gaming strategies. A plurality of responses to a prompt are provided to a computer-implemented automated scoring engine to receive a first set of scores. A first transformation is performed on each of the plurality of responses to generate a first set of transformed responses. The first set of transformed responses is provided to the computer-implemented automatic scoring engine to receive a second set of scores, and a gaming susceptibility metric is determined based on the first set of scores and the second set of scores.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 26, 2014Publication date: October 2, 2014Applicant: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Derrick Higgins, Isaac Bejar, Michael Heilman, Yoko Futagi, Michael Flor
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Publication number: 20130309639Abstract: A computer-implemented method, system, and computer program product for automatically assessing text difficulty. Text reading difficulty predictions are expressed on a scale that is aligned with published reading standards. Two distinct difficulty models are provided for informational and literary texts. A principal components analysis implemented on a large collection of texts is used to develop independent variables accounting for strong intercorrelations exhibited by many important linguistic features. Multiple dimensions of text variation are addressed, including new dimensions beyond syntactic complexity and semantic difficulty. Feedback about text difficulty is provided in a hierarchically structured format designed to support successful text adaptation efforts.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 24, 2013Publication date: November 21, 2013Inventors: Kathleen Marie Sheehan, Irene Kostin, Yoko Futagi
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Patent number: 8517738Abstract: A computer-implemented method, system, and computer program product for automatically assessing text difficulty. Text reading difficulty predictions are expressed on a scale that is aligned with published reading standards. Two distinct difficulty models are provided for informational and literary texts. A principal components analysis implemented on a large collection of texts is used to develop independent variables accounting for strong intercorrelations exhibited by many important linguistic features. Multiple dimensions of text variation are addressed, including new dimensions beyond syntactic complexity and semantic difficulty. Feedback about text difficulty is provided in a hierarchically structured format designed to support successful text adaptation efforts.Type: GrantFiled: January 30, 2009Date of Patent: August 27, 2013Assignee: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Kathleen Marie Sheehan, Irene Kostin, Yoko Futagi
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Patent number: 8478597Abstract: The present disclosure presents a useful metric for assessing the relative difficulty which non-native speakers face in pronouncing a given utterance and a method and systems for using such a metric in the evaluation and assessment of the utterances of non-native speakers. In an embodiment, the metric may be based on both known sources of difficulty for language learners and a corpus-based measure of cross-language sound differences. The method may be applied to speakers who primarily speak a first language speaking utterances in any non-native second language.Type: GrantFiled: January 10, 2006Date of Patent: July 2, 2013Assignee: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Derrick Higgins, Klaus Zechner, Yoko Futagi, Rene Lawless
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Patent number: 8473278Abstract: Systems and methods for detecting collocation errors in a text sample using a reference database from a corpus are provided. Collocation candidates are identified within the text sample based upon syntactic patterns in the text sample. Whether a given collocation candidate contains a collocation error is detected, the detecting including: determining a first association measure using the reference database for the given collocation candidate; determining whether the first association measure satisfies a predetermined condition and identifying the given collocation candidate as proper if the first association measure satisfies the predetermined condition; determining an additional association measure for a variation of the given collocation candidate using the reference database; and determining whether or not the collocation candidate contains an error based upon the additional association measure of the variation.Type: GrantFiled: July 24, 2009Date of Patent: June 25, 2013Assignee: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Yoko Futagi, Paul Douglas Deane, Martin Sanford Chodorow
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Publication number: 20120150534Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for determining a difficulty level of a text. A determination is made as to a number of cohesive devices present in a text. A further determination is made as to a number of cohesive devices expected in the text. A cohesiveness metric is calculated based on the number of cohesive devices present in the text and the number of cohesive devices expected in the text, where the cohesiveness metric is used to identify a difficulty level of the text.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 7, 2011Publication date: June 14, 2012Applicant: EDUCATIONAL TESTING SERVICEInventors: Kathleen Marie Sheehan, Irene Kostin, Yoko Futagi
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Patent number: 7778834Abstract: The present disclosure presents a useful metric for assessing the relative difficulty which non-native speakers face in pronouncing a given utterance and a method and systems for using such a metric in the evaluation and assessment of the utterances of non-native speakers. In an embodiment, the metric may be based on both known sources of difficulty for language learners and a corpus-based measure of cross-language sound differences. The method may be applied to speakers who primarily speak a first language speaking utterances in any non-native second language.Type: GrantFiled: August 11, 2008Date of Patent: August 17, 2010Assignee: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Derrick Higgins, Klaus Zechner, Yoko Futagi, Rene Lawless
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Publication number: 20100036654Abstract: Systems and methods for detecting collocation errors in a text sample using a reference database from a corpus are provided. Collocation candidates are identified within the text sample based upon syntactic patterns in the text sample. Whether a given collocation candidate contains a collocation error is detected, the detecting including: determining a first association measure using the reference database for the given collocation candidate; determining whether the first association measure satisfies a predetermined condition and identifying the given collocation candidate as proper if the first association measure satisfies the predetermined condition; determining an additional association measure for a variation of the given collocation candidate using the reference database; and determining whether or not the collocation candidate contains an error based upon the additional association measure of the variation.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 24, 2009Publication date: February 11, 2010Applicant: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Yoko Futagi, Paul Douglas Deane, Martin Sanford Chodorow
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Publication number: 20090197225Abstract: A computer-implemented method, system, and computer program product for automatically assessing text difficulty. Text reading difficulty predictions are expressed on a scale that is aligned with published reading standards. Two distinct difficulty models are provided for informational and literary texts. A principal components analysis implemented on a large collection of texts is used to develop independent variables accounting for strong intercorrelations exhibited by many important linguistic features. Multiple dimensions of text variation are addressed, including new dimensions beyond syntactic complexity and semantic difficulty. Feedback about text difficulty is provided in a hierarchically structured format designed to support successful text adaptation efforts.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 30, 2009Publication date: August 6, 2009Inventors: Kathleen Marie Sheehan, Irene Kostin, Yoko Futagi
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Publication number: 20080294440Abstract: The present disclosure presents a useful metric for assessing the relative difficulty which non-native speakers face in pronouncing a given utterance and a method and systems for using such a metric in the evaluation and assessment of the utterances of non-native speakers. In an embodiment, the metric may be based on both known sources of difficulty for language learners and a corpus-based measure of cross-language sound differences. The method may be applied to speakers who primarily speak a first language speaking utterances in any non-native second language.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 11, 2008Publication date: November 27, 2008Applicant: Educational Testing ServiceInventors: Derrick Higgins, Klaus Zechner, Yoko Futagi, Rene Lawless
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Publication number: 20060155538Abstract: The present disclosure presents a useful metric for assessing the relative difficulty which non-native speakers face in pronouncing a given utterance and a method and systems for using such a metric in the evaluation and assessment of the utterances of non-native speakers. In an embodiment, the metric may be based on both known sources of difficulty for language learners and a corpus-based measure of cross-language sound differences. The method may be applied to speakers who primarily speak a first language speaking utterances in any non-native second language.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 10, 2006Publication date: July 13, 2006Inventors: Derrick Higgins, Klaus Zechner, Yoko Futagi, Rene Lawless