Patent ID: 6226614
Filing Date: 2001-05-01
Classification: G10L

Abstract:
A method for editing non-verbal information of a speech message synthesized by rules in correspondence to a text, said method comprising the steps of:(a) inserting in said text, at the position of a character or character string to be added with non-verbal information, a prosodic feature control command of a semantic layer (hereinafter referred to as an S layer) and/or an interpretation layer (hereinafter referred to as an I layer) of a multi-layered description language so as to effect prosody control corresponding to said non-verbal information, said multi-layered description language being composed of said S and I layers and a parameter layer (hereinafter referred to as a P layer), said P layer being a group of controllable prosodic parameters including at least pitch and power, said I layer being a group of prosodic feature control commands for specifying details of control of said prosodic parameters of said P layer, said S layer being a group of prosodic feature control commands each represented by a phrase or word indicative of an intended meaning of non-verbal information, for executing a command set composed of at least one prosodic feature control command of said I layer, and the relationship between each prosodic feature control command of said S layer and said set of prosodic feature control commands of said I layer and prosody control rules indicating details of control of said prosodic parameters of said P layer by said prosodic feature control commands of said I layer being prestored in a prosody control rule database;(b) extracting from said text a prosodic parameter string of speech synthesized by rules;(c) controlling that one of said prosodic parameters of said prosodic parameter string corresponding to said character or character string to be added with said non-verbal information, by referring to said prosody control rules stored in said prosody control rule database; and(d) synthesizing speech from said prosodic parameter string containing said controlled prosodic parameter and for outputting a synthetic speech message.