Patent Document ID: 5467425
Application ID: 08023543
Patent Flag: 1

Claim One:
1. A computer based language modelling system receiving data in the form of training text divided into a series of n-grams, each n-gram comprising a series of "n" words, each n-gram having an associated count, the history of an n-gram being represented by the initial n-1 words of the n-gram, comprising: a language modelling means for determining a conditional probability of a predicted word given the previous (n-1) words, comprising: a memory means for storing the data; a separating means coupled to said memory means for examining each word within each n-gram and classifying each n-gram into one of one or more classes based upon one or more words in a given n-gram, each class having one or more similar n-grams associated with said class, said similar n-grams having the same predicted word and x previous words, where x varies from (n-1) to zero, to associate each n-gram with exactly one of said one or more classes, each class is identified with one of one or more sets based upon the value of x used when determining the class of the n-gram; a factor means coupled to the output of said separating means and to said memory means for determining a factor for each of said one or more classes, said factor representing the relative strength of predicting said predicted word given the previous (n-1) words, the value of each factor being approximately equal to the ratio of the sum of the counts of each n-gram associated with a given class over the sum of the counts of all (n-1)-grams which when followed by said predicted word would belong to said given class; and a conditional probability means coupled to the output of said factor means for determining said conditional probability of the occurrence of said predicted word given that a particular sequence of (n-1) previous words have occurred using said factors, said conditional probability approximately equal to the ratio of a first factor, said first factor associated with the class that a given n-gram is associated with, said given n-gram equal to said predicted word and the history of said predicted word, the history equal to a particular sequence of (n-1) previous words, over the sum of one or more factors, said one or more factors associated with all of the classes of n-grams obtained by using said particular sequence of (n-1) words followed by any word of the vocabulary.