JP3666268B2 - Telephone device with voice response function - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the present invention, when a call signal from an external communication line is detected, if the voice input from the microphone is recognized as the predetermined voice via the voice recognition unit, the off-hook operation is not performed. The present invention relates to a telephone device with a voice response function having a voice response function capable of starting a hands-free call through a microphone and a speaker, and in particular, notifying that a voice response has been accepted for a voice response by a user. The present invention relates to a telephone device with a voice response function that can improve usability.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, when a ringing signal from an external communication line is detected, a ring tone is sounded, and for example, “Hi” is replied to the ringing tone, so that hands-free communication with a communication partner is possible. A telephone device with a voice response function having a voice response function capable of starting a call has been put into practical use.
[0003]
In this type of telephone device with a voice response function, in order to distinguish a voice response by a user from various noises around the telephone device, a length of approximately 0.2 seconds to 0.8 seconds, 400 Hz to 1500 Hz. Only when a voice having a frequency of -30 dB or higher is recognized, a hands-free call is started.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the conventional telephone device with a voice response function, even if the answer to the ring tone is “Hi”, there is no voice response from the telephone device side, and the user is not in a place where the user can check the display of the telephone device. Depending on whether or not the ringer stops ringing, it was necessary to determine whether or not the “Hi” response was accepted.
[0005]
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and even when the user is not near the telephone device, the voice response to the voice response by the user is accepted by voice. It is an object to provide a telephone device with a voice response function that is easy to use by notifying.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
To achieve the above object, the telephone device with a voice response function according to claim 1 detects a call signal from a microphone for inputting voice, a speaker for outputting voice, and an external communication line. Voice recognition means for determining whether or not the voice input from the microphone is a predetermined voice; and when the voice input from the microphone is determined to be the predetermined voice via the voice recognition means A call response information recognizing means for recognizing caller information relating to the communication partner in a telephone device with a voice response function, comprising: a communication start means capable of starting communication with a communication partner via the microphone and speaker; And a notification sound output means for outputting a predetermined notification sound from the speaker, and when the first sound input from the microphone is determined to be the predetermined first sound through the sound recognition means The notification sound output means outputs the caller information recognized through the caller information recognition means by voice, and the output of the ringtone is stopped in the state where the output of the ringtone is stopped. When the second sound input again from the microphone is determined to be the predetermined second sound via the sound recognition means, the notification sound output means outputs a communication start sound from the speaker, and When communication with a communication partner is started via a microphone and a speaker, and the second sound input again from the microphone is not determined to be the predetermined second sound via the voice recognition means, It is characterized by judging whether the 1st audio | voice was newly input from the microphone.
[0007]
According to this telephone device with a voice response function, when the call signal from the external communication line is detected, it is determined that the first voice input from the microphone is the predetermined first voice through the voice recognition means. In the case of a failure, a predetermined notification sound is output via the notification sound output means. Accordingly, even when the user is not near the telephone device, it can be easily determined based on the predetermined notification sound whether or not the voice response by the user has been accepted, which is very convenient.
[0008]
Further, when it is determined that the first voice input from the microphone is the predetermined first voice through the voice recognition unit when the call signal from the external communication line is detected, the notification sound output unit is set. The caller information of the communication partner is output via voice. Thereby, since it is possible to confirm who the caller is based on the caller information output by voice through the notification sound output means, even when the user is not in the vicinity of the telephone device, It is possible to grasp in advance who the communication is started in advance, and it is very convenient.
[0009]
In addition, when it is determined that the first voice input from the microphone is the predetermined first voice through the voice recognition unit when the call signal from the external communication line is detected, the ring tone output unit is set. The output of the ringing tone is stopped via the voice signal, and the caller information of the communication partner is outputted by voice via the notification sound output means. As a result, the output of the ringtone is stopped via the ringtone output means, and the caller information output by voice via the notification sound output means is checked to determine who is the caller. Therefore, even though it is desired to refuse communication with the caller, the ring tone does not continue to ring, which is very convenient.
[0010]
Furthermore, after confirming who the caller is based on the caller information output by voice through the notification sound output means, a voice response is made to start communication with the caller. It is very easy to use. Moreover, even if the user is not in the vicinity of the telephone device, whether or not communication with the communication partner is started according to the voice response from the user can be easily determined based on the communication start sound. When starting a hands-free call, smooth response is possible and it is very convenient to use.
[0011]
The telephone device with a voice response function according to claim 2 is the telephone device with a voice response function according to claim 1, wherein the second voice input from the microphone is a predetermined second voice via the voice recognition means. When it is determined that there is, the notification sound output means outputs a communication start sound to start communication with the communication partner via the communication start means.
[0012]
According to this telephone device with a voice response function, when it is determined that the voice input from the microphone is a predetermined voice via the voice recognition means when the call signal from the external communication line is detected, A communication start sound for starting communication with the communication partner is output via the notification sound output means. As a result, it is possible to easily determine whether or not communication with the communication partner is started in response to a voice response from the user based on the communication start sound even when the user is not in the vicinity of the telephone device. As a result, smooth response is possible when starting a hands-free call, which is very convenient.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a cordless parent / child telephone apparatus having a voice response function according to the present invention. This cordless parent / child telephone apparatus is connected to an external communication line as shown in FIG. 1 and a slave unit 50 that can communicate with the master unit 10 via a wireless communication line as shown in FIG.
[0014]
The base unit 10 provided in the cordless parent / child phone device is a multi-function phone device having various functions such as an answering machine function, a facsimile function, a copy function, a scanner function, and a printer function. As main components, The parent device controller 11, the parent device operation panel 13, the parent device liquid crystal display (LCD) 15, the parent device calling bell 17, the scanner 19, the printer 21, the encoder / decoder 23, the modem 25, the line control circuit ( NCU) 27, handset 29, base unit speaker 31, base unit microphone 33, base unit wireless communication control circuit 35, base unit antenna 37, and switch 39.
[0015]
The master controller 11 is a logical operation circuit including a CPU, ROM, RAM, EEPROM, timer, voice recognition unit 12, caller information recognition unit 14, and the like, and by the CPU, various controls such as voice response processing to be described later. Execute the process. It should be noted that various control processing programs executed by the CPU, data necessary for the control processing, and the like are stored in advance in the ROM. The RAM is used as a work area and a buffer in various control processes. Further, the EEPROM is provided for storing information such as telephone directory registration. The timer is used for processing such as measuring the duration of voice in voice response processing. Furthermore, the voice recognition unit 12 determines whether or not the length, frequency, and magnitude of the voice are within the applicable range for the voice input from the parent microphone 33 or the slave microphone 63 described later. Is provided. In addition, the caller information recognition unit 14 is provided for recognizing caller information (such as a telephone number) transmitted via an external communication line.
[0016]
The base unit operation panel 13 includes a numeric keypad used for inputting a telephone number and a facsimile number, a confirmation key pressed when registering a telephone book, and the like for communication via an external communication line. The master LCD 15 is provided for displaying a function selection when the facsimile transmission function is activated, and for displaying a telephone number of a communication partner corresponding to the number display service. Further, when the master unit call bell 17 detects a call signal from the external communication line, it repeats ringing for one second and no ringing for two seconds to notify the user around the base unit 10 of the incoming call signal. Is provided.
[0017]
The scanner 19 is provided for reading a document when performing facsimile transmission or copying. The printer 21 is provided to execute a copy function for printing out facsimile data received from an external communication line on recording paper, or printing out image data of a document read by the scanner 19 on recording paper. It has been.
[0018]
The encoder / decoder 23 encodes the image data read by the scanner 19 during facsimile transmission into a data format for facsimile transmission such as G3 compression format, or the printer 21 outputs the compressed format image data received by facsimile. It is provided for decomposing data into possible formats.
[0019]
The modem 25 and the NCU 27 are provided for communication with a communication partner via an external communication line or for facsimile transmission / reception. The modem 25 also functions as a DSP that performs digital signal processing based on voice input from the main unit microphone 33 or a sub unit microphone 63 described later when a call signal from the external communication line is detected. Based on the digital signal obtained via the modem 25, the voice recognition unit 12 provided in the parent device controller 11 determines whether a voice response has been made around the parent device 10 or the child device 50. ing.
[0020]
When the handset 29 detects a call signal from the external communication line, it performs communication via the external communication line by going off-hook. The master speaker 31 outputs caller information and a voice to start communication to the user during a hands-free call, in order to output the voice of the communication partner or during a voice response process to be described later. It is provided for output. Furthermore, the base unit microphone 33 is provided for inputting the voice of the user or a voice around the base unit 10 when detecting a call signal from an external communication line during a hands-free call. ing. The base unit wireless communication control circuit 35 is provided for performing wireless communication between the base unit 10 and the handset 50 via the base unit antenna 37. Further, the switch 39 is for switching and inputting either the voice input from the base unit microphone 33 or the voice input from the handset microphone 63 received through the base unit antenna 37 to the modem 25. .
[0021]
The slave unit 50 includes, as main components, a slave unit controller 51 that controls the center of the control, a slave unit operation panel 53, a slave unit liquid crystal display (LCD) 55, a slave unit call bell 57, a slave unit speaker 61, and a slave unit microphone. 63, a slave unit radio communication control circuit 65 and a slave unit antenna 67 are provided.
[0022]
The slave controller 51 is a logical operation circuit including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an EEPROM, and the like, and executes various control processes by the CPU. It should be noted that various control processing programs executed by the CPU, data necessary for the control processing, and the like are stored in advance in the ROM. The RAM is used as a work area and a buffer in various control processes. Further, the EEPROM is provided for storing information such as telephone directory registration.
[0023]
The slave unit operation panel 53 performs communication via an external communication line, a numeric keypad used to input a telephone number and a facsimile number, and a call for performing an off-hook operation when a call signal from the external communication line is detected. A start key, a confirmation key to be pressed when registering a phone book, and the like are provided. The slave LCD 55 is for displaying a telephone number of a communication partner corresponding to the number display service, displaying various messages, and the like. Further, when the handset call bell 57 detects a call signal from the external communication line, it repeats ringing for 1 second and no ringing for 2 seconds to notify the user around the handset 50 of the incoming call signal. Is provided.
[0024]
The handset speaker 61 is used to make a call with a communication partner via an external communication line, or to output caller information or a voice to start communication to a user during a voice response process to be described later. Is provided. The handset microphone 63 is provided for inputting voice from the user during communication with an external communication line or an extension call. The handset microphone 63 also has a role of inputting voice around the handset 50 when a call signal from the external communication line is detected. Furthermore, the slave unit wireless communication control circuit 65 is provided for performing wireless communication between the slave unit 50 and the master unit 10 via the slave unit antenna 67.
[0025]
Next, voice response processing when a call signal from an external communication line is detected will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
[0026]
First, when a call signal from the external communication line is detected via the NCU 27 provided in the parent device 10 (S1: YES), the parent device call bell 17 and the child device provided in the parent device 10 and the child device 50 are detected. The ringing of the calling bell 57 is started (S3). Thereafter, the user confirms whether or not the off-hook operation has been performed via the call start key provided on the handset 29 provided on the parent device 10 or the operation panel 53 of the child device 50 (S5). When the communication is performed (S5: YES), the communication between the parent device 10 or the child device 50 on which the off-hook operation has been performed and the communication partner is closed (S29), and communication is performed with the communication partner and the receiver held. Is started (S31). This communication is terminated when an on-hook operation is performed by the user (S33: YES) (S35), the line with the communication partner is released (S37), and this voice response process is terminated.
[0027]
On the other hand, when an off-hook operation by the user is not detected in S5 (S5: NO), it is determined whether or not a first voice response is made from the user via the parent microphone 33 or the child microphone 63. Confirm (S7). Here, when it is determined that there is no voice response from the parent device microphone 33 or the child device microphone 63 (S7: NO), the process proceeds to S5 again. Note that either one of the voices input via the main unit microphone 33 or the sub unit microphone 63 is selectively input to the modem 25 via the switch 39 and digital signal processing is performed via the modem 25 or the like. The voice recognition unit 12 provided in the parent device controller 11 determines whether the digital data is a voice having a predetermined length, frequency, and size, and the voice response from the parent device microphone 33 or the child device microphone described above. The state in which it is determined that there is no sound (S7: NO) indicates a time when the length, frequency, or volume of the sound does not conform to the predetermined value.
[0028]
In S7, when a voice having a predetermined length, frequency, and volume is confirmed via the master microphone 33 or the slave microphone 63 (S7: YES), the master call bell 17 and the slave call The ringing of the bell 57 is stopped (S9) and transmitted from the external communication line via the parent device speaker 31 or the child device speaker 61 provided in the parent device 10 or the child device 50 in which the voice response is confirmed. Based on the data, the caller information recognized through the caller information recognition unit 14 is output by voice (S11). When the caller information is output as voice, the telephone number is output as voice as it is based on the telephone number information sent from the external communication line. If the phone number information has been registered in advance in association with the telephone number and the caller name via the master unit operation panel 13 or the slave unit operation panel 53, a call corresponding to the phone number information is made. The name of the person is voiced as “Mr. XX”, or when the phone number information is not notified, the voice is output as “Anonymous”.
[0029]
Next, after the caller information is output by voice (S11), it is confirmed whether or not a second voice response is received from the user via the master microphone 33 or the slave microphone 63 (S13). When it is determined that there is no voice response from the machine microphone 33 or the child machine microphone 63 (S13: NO), the process proceeds to S5 again.
[0030]
On the other hand, when the second voice response from the user is confirmed (S13: YES), the voice response confirms the voice to start communication with the communication partner (for example, “pip, pip”). Then, the data is output via the parent device speaker 31 or the child device speaker 61 provided in the parent device 10 or the child device 50 (S15). Thereafter, the line with the communication partner is closed (S17), and communication with the communication partner in the hands-free state is started (S19). This hands-free communication is ended by detecting a communication end signal (S21: YES) (S23), the line with the communication partner is released (S25), and a voice indicating that the communication has ended (for example, “Pee”). Etc.) to the user (S27), and the voice response process is terminated.
[0031]
As described above, when a ringing signal from the external communication line is detected (S1: YES), ringing is started (S3), but by making a first voice response (S7: YES) Since the ring tone is stopped (S9) and the caller information is notified by voice (S11), the caller can be specified even from a location away from the telephone device and communication is not desired to start. Regardless of the caller, the ring tone does not continue to ring, which is very convenient.
[0032]
In addition, by making a second voice response (S13: YES), the start of communication is notified by voice (S15), so it is easy to confirm that the voice response by the user has been accepted, and hands-free communication starts. It is possible to take a good response at the start of hands-free communication without being confused as to whether or not it has been done.
[0033]
Note that the present invention is not limited to the present embodiment, and it is needless to say that various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, in the present embodiment, the cordless parent / child phone device, which is a multi-function phone device having various functions such as an answering machine function, a facsimile function, a copy function, a scanner function, and a printer function, is described as an example. The present invention is not limited to this, and it goes without saying that good effects can be obtained even when the present invention is implemented in a telephone device that does not have these functions or a telephone device that does not have a handset.
[0034]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the telephone device with a voice response function according to the first aspect, even when the user is not near the telephone device, whether or not the voice response by the user is accepted is based on the predetermined notification sound. It is easy to judge and very convenient to use.
[0035]
In addition, since it is possible to confirm who the caller is based on the caller information output by voice through the notification sound output means, even if the user is not in the vicinity of the telephone device, It is easy to use because it is possible to know who will start communication with.
[0036]
In addition, the output of the ringtone is stopped via the ringtone output means, and it is possible to confirm who the caller is based on the caller information output via the notification sound output means. Therefore, although it is desired to refuse communication with the caller, the ring tone does not continue to ring, which is very convenient.
[0037]
Furthermore, after confirming who the caller is based on the caller information output by voice through the notification sound output means, a voice response is made to start communication with the caller. It is very easy to use. Moreover, even if the user is not in the vicinity of the telephone device, whether or not communication with the communication partner is started according to the voice response from the user can be easily determined based on the communication start sound. When starting a hands-free call, smooth response is possible and it is very convenient to use.
[0038]
According to the telephone device with a voice response function according to claim 2, the user is not in the vicinity of the telephone device as to whether or not communication with the communication partner is started in response to a voice response from the user. Even in this case, since it can be easily determined based on the communication start sound, it is possible to smoothly respond to the start of the hands-free call, which is very convenient.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block configuration diagram of a cordless parent / child telephone apparatus having a voice response function according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing operation of voice response processing.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 Master unit 12 Voice recognition unit 14 Caller information recognition unit 15 Master unit LCD
25 Modem 31 Main Unit Speaker 33 Main Unit Microphone 50 Sub Unit 55 Sub Unit LCD
61 Master speaker 63 Slave microphone

Claims (2)

A microphone for voice input,
A speaker for outputting audio;
Voice recognition means for determining whether or not the voice input from the microphone is a predetermined voice when a call signal from an external communication line is detected;
Communication start means capable of starting communication with the communication partner via the microphone and speaker when it is determined that the sound input from the microphone is predetermined sound via the voice recognition means; In a telephone device with a voice response function,
Caller information recognition means for recognizing caller information related to the communication partner;
Notification sound output means for outputting a predetermined notification sound from the speaker,
When it is determined that the first voice input from the microphone is the predetermined first voice via the voice recognition means, the output of the ringtone is stopped, and the notification sound output means is the caller information. The caller information recognized through the recognition means is output by voice,
When it is determined that the second sound input again from the microphone in the state where the output of the ringtone is stopped is the predetermined second sound through the sound recognition means, the notification sound output means A communication start sound is output from the speaker, and communication with a communication partner is started via the microphone and the speaker.
If the second sound input again from the microphone is not determined to be the predetermined second sound via the voice recognition means, it is determined again whether the first sound is newly input from the microphone. A telephone device with a voice response function.   When the second sound input from the microphone is determined to be the predetermined second sound via the voice recognition means, the notification sound output means communicates with the communication partner via the communication start means. 2. The telephone device with a voice response function according to claim 1, wherein a communication start sound for starting communication is output.

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