Speech Recognition HOWTO
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3. Introduction

3.1. Speech Recognition Basics

Speech recognition is the process by which a computer (or other type of machine) identifies spoken words. Basically, it means talking to your computer, AND having it correctly recognize what you are saying.

The following definitions are the basics needed for understanding speech recognition technology.

Utterance

An utterance is the vocalization (speaking) of a word or words that represent a single meaning to the computer. Utterances can be a single word, a few words, a sentence, or even multiple sentences.

Speaker Dependance

Speaker dependent systems are designed around a specific speaker. They generally are more accurate for the correct speaker, but much less accurate for other speakers. They assume the speaker will speak in a consistent voice and tempo. Speaker independent systems are designed for a variety of speakers. Adaptive systems usually start as speaker independent systems and utilize training techniques to adapt to the speaker to increase their recognition accuracy.

Vocabularies

Vocabularies (or dictionaries) are lists of words or utterances that can be recognized by the SR system. Generally, smaller vocabularies are easier for a computer to recognize, while larger vocabularies are more difficult. Unlike normal dictionaries, each entry doesn't have to be a single word. They can be as long as a sentence or two. Smaller vocabularies can have as few as 1 or 2 recognized utterances (e.g."Wake Up"), while very large vocabularies can have a hundred thousand or more!

Accuract

The ability of a recognizer can be examined by measuring its accuracy - or how well it recognizes utterances. This includes not only correctly identifying an utterance but also identifying if the spoken utterance is not in its vocabulary. Good ASR systems have an accuracy of 98% or more! The acceptable accuracy of a system really depends on the application.

Training

Some speech recognizers have the ability to adapt to a speaker. When the system has this ability, it may allow training to take place. An ASR system is trained by having the speaker repeat standard or common phrases and adjusting its comparison algorithms to match that particular speaker. Training a recognizer usually improves its accuracy.

Training can also be used by speakers that have difficulty speaking, or pronouncing certain words. As long as the speaker can consistently repeat an utterance, ASR systems with training should be able to adapt.

3.2. Types of Speech Recognition

Speech recognition systems can be separated in several different classes by describing what types of utterances they have the ability to recognize. These classes are based on the fact that one of the difficulties of ASR is the ability to determine when a speaker starts and finishes an utterance. Most packages can fit into more than one class, depending on which mode they're using.

Isolated Words: Isolated word recognizers usually require each utterance to have quiet (lack of an audio signal) on BOTH sides of the sample window. It doesn't mean that it accepts single words, but does require a single utterance at a time. Often, these systems have "Listen/Not-Listen" states, where they require the speaker to wait between utterances (usually doing processing during the pauses). Isolated Utterance might be a better name for this class.
Connected Words: Connect word systems (or more correctly 'connected utterances') are similar to Isolated words, but allow separate utterances to be 'run-together' with a minimal pause between them.
Continuous Speech: Continuous recognition is the next step. Recognizers with continuous speech capabilities are some of the most difficult to create because they must utilize special methods to determine utterance boundaries. Continuous speech recognizers allow users to speak almost naturally, while the computer determines the content. Basically, it's computer dictation.
Spontaneous Speech: There appears to be a variety of definitions for what spontaneous speech actually is. At a basic level, it can be thought of as speech that is natural sounding and not rehearsed. An ASR system with spontaneous speech ability should be able to handle a variety of natural speech features such as words being run together, "ums" and "ahs", and even slight stutters.
Voice Verification/Identification: Some ASR systems have the ability to identify specific users. This document doesn't cover verification or security systems.

3.3. Uses and Applications

Although any task that involves interfacing with a computer can potentially use ASR, the following applications are the most common right now.

Dictation: Dictation is the most common use for ASR systems today. This includes medical transcriptions, legal and business dictation, as well as general word processing. In some cases special vocabularies are used to increase the accuracy of the system.
Command and Control: ASR systems that are designed to perform functions and actions on the system are defined as Command and Control systems. Utterances like "Open Netscape" and "Start a new xterm" will do just that.
Telephony: Some PBX/Voice Mail systems allow callers to speak commands instead of pressing buttons to send specific tones.
Wearables: Because inputs are limited for wearable devices, speaking is a natural possibility.
Medical/Disabilities: Many people have difficulty typing due to physical limitations such as repetitive strain injuries (RSI), muscular dystrophy, and many others. For example, people with difficulty hearing could use a system connected to their telephone to convert the caller's speech to text.
Embedded Applications: Some newer cellular phones include C&C speech recognition that allow utterances such as "Call Home". This could be a major factor in the future of ASR and Linux. Why can't I talk to my television yet?

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