Patent ID: 9489864
Filing Date: 2016-11-08
CPC Classification: G09B,G10L

Claim Text:
1. A computer-implemented method of assessing non-native speech proficiency, comprising: receiving, using a sound receiving device, a non-native speech sample uttered by a user; generating, using a processing system, word hypotheses for the non-native speech sample uttered by a user, the word hypotheses being generated by an automatic speech recognition software; generating, using the processing system, time alignments between the word hypotheses and corresponding sounds of the non-native speech sample, the time alignments being generated by a time alignment software; identifying, using the processing system, a plurality of vowel sound boundaries in the non-native speech sample using the word hypotheses and the time alignments; analyzing, using the processing system, portions of the non-native speech sample within the vowel sound boundaries to extract first vowel characteristics associated with a first vowel sound and second vowel characteristics associated with a second vowel sound represented in the non-native speech sample, wherein the first vowel sound and the second vowel sound form a set of phonetically similar vowel sounds, and wherein the first vowel sound and the second vowel sound are uttered by the user; computing, using the processing system, a distance measurement using the first vowel characteristics and the second vowel characteristics, the distance measurement representing a difference between the first vowel characteristics and the second vowel characteristics, to determine whether the non-native speech sample exhibits a distinction in pronunciation of the first vowel sound and the second vowel sound; generating, using the processing system, an assessment of speech proficiency based on the distance measurement; and outputting the assessment of speech proficiency through a display interface.