Patent ID: 8315873

Claim:
An apparatus for voice synthesis comprising: a word database to store data of a plurality of registered words and a plurality of registered word voices corresponding to the registered words, respectively; a syllable database to store data of a plurality of syllables and a plurality of syllable voices corresponding to the syllables, respectively; a processor to execute a process of: extracting a plurality of words from a document, determining whether each word of the plurality of words extracted from the document is included in the word database, extracting a registered word voice from the word database that is associated with one of the words extracted from the document, generating a voice signal based on the registered word voice, extracting one or more syllable voices from the syllable database that is associated with one or more syllables included in an other word extracted from the document, when the other word extracted from the document is not found in the word database, synthesizing an other voice signal based on the one or more extracted syllable voices, outputting one or more of voice signals, and other voice signals to a speaker that outputs voice, based on the voice signals and the other voice signals, selectively displaying for a determined duration an other word not found in the word database, when an other voice signal is output by the speaker, and when the other voice signal based upon the one or more extracted syllables is synthesized, setting a display start time for starting the displaying of the other word not found in the word database when the other voice signal is output.