US4653100A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Audio response terminal for use with data processing systems
Assignee: International Business Machines Corp
•
Filing: 1983-01-24
•
Granted: 1987-03-24
•
Expires: 2003-01-24
Abstract
Abstract An audio response terminal for a data processing system which provides an audio output for data that is displayed on a video display unit. The terminal has a control unit that is separate from the display controls, but receives inputs from the display buffer and a separate key pad. The control unit gives the user the ability to specify which rows or columns of a screen of data are to be spoken and also four modes of speech, spell, phonetic spell, speak with punctuation or plain speech. A microprocessor using a translator examines each alphanumeric character and provides a string of digitized phonemes which drive a speech synthesizer. The speech synthesizer provides an audio output signal to a loudspeaker or headphone socket.
Inventors
- 👤 Christopher J. Barnett
- 👤 Mark P. Dyche
- 👤 Victor G. Golding
- 👤 Yat H. Ng
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-25 07:50
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06F; G06F3/00; G06F3/16; G09; G09B; G09B21/00; G09B21/001; G09B21/006
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 4
Claim 1
Independent Claim
208 words
An audio response unit for use with a display unit which is continually refreshed from a display buffer on a row by row basis, the improvement comprising: selector means to select a row of data stored in said display buffer and responsive to a change of data in said display buffer, said selector means including: a register to store an indication of the current cursor position, a comparison unit for comparing the cursor row position and the current row address of data being read from said display buffer to refresh said display unit, means to transfer a copy of said data into a random access store whenever the cursor row address and display refresh row address coincide; a second random access store into which a selected row of data is transferred and a second comparison unit to compare the selected row of data with the previously stored row of data and means to allow the transfer of data to said random access store only when the data has changed; translator means to translate the selected data into a string of digitized phoneme signals; a voice synthesizer for converting said digitized phoneme signals into audio output signals; and means to connect the audio output signals to an audio device.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
208 words
An audio response unit for use with a display unit which is continually refreshed from a display buffer on a row by row basis, the improvement comprising: selector means to select a row of data stored in said display buffer and responsive to a change of data in said display buffer, said selector means including: a register to store an indication of the current cursor position, a comparison unit for comparing the cursor row position and the current row address of data being read from said display buffer to refresh said display unit, means to transfer a copy of said data into a random access store whenever the cursor row address and display refresh row address coincide; a second random access store into which a selected row of data is transferred and a second comparison unit to compare the selected row of data with the previously stored row of data and means to allow the transfer of data to said random access store only when the data has changed; translator means to translate the selected data into a string of digitized phoneme signals; a voice synthesizer for converting said digitized phoneme signals into audio output signals; and means to connect the audio output signals to an audio device.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
50 words
An audio response unit as claimed in claim 1 in which said second random access store stores a row of message data and said selector means generates an output signal whenever the message data stored in said second random access store is different from that read from said display buffer.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
35 words
An audio response unit as claimed in claim 2 including means to inhibit the output of data from said audio unit when such data is not normally output from said data buffer to said display.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US4163120A
Cited
US4328562A
Cited
DE2909154A1
Cited
US4423290A
Cited
US4418412A
Cited
US4454608A
Cited
US4579533A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1990-03-23 | 1990-09-22 | 1991-03-24 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1994-03-23 | 1994-09-22 | 1995-03-24 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1998-03-23 | 1998-09-22 | 1999-03-24 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |