Patent ID: 8099277

Claim:
A speech-duration detector comprising: a characteristic extracting unit that extracts a characteristic of an input acoustic signal; a starting-end detecting unit that detects a starting end of a first duration where the characteristic is equal to or greater than a threshold value as a starting end of a speech-duration, when the first duration continues for a first time length; a trailing-end-candidate detecting unit that detects a starting end of a second duration where the characteristic is lower than the threshold value as a candidate point for a trailing end of speech, when the second duration continues for a second time length; and a trailing-end-candidate determining unit that (i) determines the candidate point as a trailing end of the speech-duration, when a third duration where the characteristic is equal to or greater than the threshold value does not continue for a preset time length while a third time length elapses from measurement at the candidate point, and (ii) cancels the candidate point as a trailing end of the speech-duration, when the third duration where the characteristic is equal to or greater than the threshold value continues for more than the preset time length while the third time length elapses from measurement at the candidate point.