Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
  • H04M1/56—Arrangements for indicating or recording the called number at the calling subscriber's set
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
  • H04M1/57—Arrangements for indicating or recording the number of the calling subscriber at the called subscriber's set
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
  • H04M1/253—Telephone sets using digital voice transmission
  • H04M1/2535—Telephone sets using digital voice transmission adapted for voice communication over an Internet Protocol [IP] network
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
  • H04M1/60—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers including speech amplifiers
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
  • H04M1/72—Mobile telephones; Cordless telephones, i.e. devices for establishing wireless links to base stations without route selection
  • H04M1/724—User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
  • H04M1/72448—User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones with means for adapting the functionality of the device according to specific conditions
  • H04M1/72454—User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones with means for adapting the functionality of the device according to specific conditions according to context-related or environment-related conditions
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M9/00—Arrangements for interconnection not involving centralised switching
  • H04M9/08—Two-way loud-speaking telephone systems with means for conditioning the signal, e.g. for suppressing echoes for one or both directions of traffic
  • H04M9/082—Two-way loud-speaking telephone systems with means for conditioning the signal, e.g. for suppressing echoes for one or both directions of traffic using echo cancellers

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the automatic control of a setting of a telecommunication terminal according to a current communication context.
• this adjustment control can aim for example the number of acoustic sensors to be activated for acquisition (for example more than one microphone for transmitting a sound environment), or the number of speakers to be activated for playback (more a speaker for example for a musical content to be restored). It may also cover post-acquisition treatment such as:
• the invention relates in particular to the optimization of integrated and pre-existing processing in the terminals according to a telecommunication context, notwithstanding the fact that a telecommunication context can be scalable and solicit treatment constraints that can even to be contradictory.
• the invention provides for example a differentiation of the processing according to a communication with a speech recognition server, or a communication with another terminal, or depending on the nature of networks supporting telecommunications.
• the treatments integrated in the current terminals are fixed and deterministic. They depend on the features offered by the terminal, and can be activated by the user, usually through menus that the terminal offers. Nevertheless, it is indicated that the coding function, depending on the terminals, is of course chosen according to the type of remote terminal during the capacity exchange phase (in particular on networks of IP (for "Internet Protocol") or ISDN type for "Digital Network Integration Services").
• a processing switchover in the terminal is rather activated by a user's action on a key (for example for the passage in amplified or "hands-free” listening, triggering in particular the activation of a module of echo processing).
• the terminal performs the same processing whether it is in communication with a voice recognition server, a terminal on the switched network (or "PSTN") or on the Internet in context of "voice over IP” (for " Internet Protocol "), or in communication with a mobile.
• PSTN switched network
• IP Internet Protocol
• the present invention proposes an automatic adaptation of the configuration of the terminal and the processing it performs in the telecommunication context.
• an echo canceller can be configured as an acoustic echo canceller (or AEC for "Acoustic Echo Cancel"), or as a canceller. electrical echo, or both.
• This reconfiguration is done according to the mode of operation of the terminal, either in communication with a remote terminal, or in interplionie with a local terminal.
• the application described in this document is for a DECT type wireless terminal, involving the handsets and the base station.
• the reconfiguration is not done automatically but manually, according to a user action on the terminal, for example by simply pressing a key, in exactly the same way as for a passage in "hands free” on a telephone.
• the choice is deterministic, and does not solve, inter alia, the problem of setting in communication with a voice recognition server, or with a remote terminal.
• the existing systems are not intended to switch during a call, during a call transfer, for example when placing a call with a correspondent following the reception of the caller by a server voice.
• the settings for use in "speech recognition" during a communication with a voice platform is not the same as for a use corresponding to a communication between physical interlocutors .
• the speech recognition algorithms are relatively insensitive to a weak echo residue, they are however very disturbed by a strong gain variation function on the signal from a microphone of the terminal.
• the perception of an echo is, on the contrary, troublesome, whereas a strong variation of gain is less, since the speech of the distant speaker is "masked" by the own speech of the speaker using the terminal , in case of double speech in particular.
• the feeling of "annoyance” of the echo is dependent on the delay of the echo itself.
• the maximum delay is less than 10ms, while in an IP network, it is greater than 100ms. In the latter case, the perception of an echo residue is much more troublesome, even if the echo is very weak.
• European and international standards for acoustic echo return specify different values on PSTN and IP networks.
• the sound is directive (only one active sensor), or better superdirective (multiple sensors), during the man / machine dialogue phase, for a better efficiency of voice recognition, and then go to a "group" sound for communication with one or more physical interlocutors.
• the quality of the perceived communication can be very degraded by the presence of noise emitted around the mobile, sound situation with high level ambient noise.
• the present invention improves the situation.
• the process according to the invention comprises:
• the present invention also relates to the telecommunication terminal itself, comprising a control module for implementing the method according to the invention.
• a control module for implementing the method according to the invention.
• Such a module then comprises:
• a memory mapping a plurality of terminal settings adapted to respective communication contexts, with at least a respective plurality of calling or called number types, and - Control means of the terminal adjustment means for selecting a setting of the terminal at least according to the type of calling or called number, given by the aforementioned interface.
• the present invention also aims at such a control module.
• the invention makes it possible to improve the quality of communication and listening comfort offered by a terminal by detecting a communication context and automatically activating the processing to be performed by this terminal during a communication. with terminals or services (voice servers or other).
• terminals or services voice servers or other.
• typically the first digits of a terminal number indicate whether it is a mobile terminal, a fixed terminal or a service platform.
• the settings concerned may advantageously consist of processing (for example an acoustic or electrical echo cancellation, a denoising, a voice activity detection, or other) which are judiciously parameterized according to the communication context and thus aim at an optimal quality of the speech processing, perceived or transmitted, and / or optimal transmission quality on the network.
• processing for example an acoustic or electrical echo cancellation, a denoising, a voice activity detection, or other
• the aforementioned settings may also relate to the number of microphones to activate in sound acquisition and / or the number of speakers to activate in playback.
• FIG. 1 schematically illustrates the internal architecture of a terminal, involving an "intelligent" control module CI, within the meaning of the invention
• FIG. 2 diagrammatically illustrates the steps of intervention of the module CI
• FIG. 3 illustrates a mapping of the terminal settings adapted to respective communication contexts (column C2), in particular with different types of calling or called numbers (column C1).
• the terminals adapt to the context and the type of communication in progress, and this, automatically and “intelligent”.
• the present invention proposes an "intelligent" control module for selecting a treatment adapted to the communication, among several predefined and integrated processing at the terminal. This module selects the most appropriate treatments for the overall configuration of the terminal, as well as the associated optimal parameter values.
• such an IC module is at the heart of an architecture comprising: an IA interface with AC acoustic sensors for the acquisition and with HP loudspeakers for the reproduction,
• a human / machine interface HMI for entering / displaying instructions from a user UT of the terminal
• an interface NA managing NIN calling numbers and numbers called NOUT (in particular for displaying or for mapping a name in a digital address book stored in a memory of the terminal, or other),
• an IR network interface to a PSTN type network, or of IP, ISDN or other type,
• a module such as an addressable memory MA comprising a plurality of instruction sets, each specific to a processing such as: the acoustic echo cancellation AEC,
• the IA interface controls the number of active AC acoustic sensors, for acquisition. Typically, it may be preferable to activate a single microphone in "standard sound recording" configuration when communicating with a voice-recognition server, as will be seen later, or, conversely, to activate several microphones, in particular for a microphone. sound of superdirective or for an atmosphere in communication with one or more physical interlocutors.
• the interface IA also controls the number of active speakers HP, for the restitution, for example a plurality of active speakers for a spatialized reproduction including a musical content, in which case a sound spatialization module can also be activated, as well as for multi-participant communication. More generally, it will be understood that the "acoustic" interface IA can control a plurality of predetermined configurations in acquisition and / or playback, such as for example:
• the HMI interface offered to the user of the terminal UT controls the control of an input keyboard, a set of command keys, a voice recognition module, or other, typically to compose a call, but also , in the context of the invention, to cancel or modify advantageously a setpoint which has been decided automatically by the CI Intelligent Module.
• the user can impose a unidirectional sound, despite detection by the IC module of a communication context conducive to a spatialized sound.
• the NA interface for managing incoming and outgoing call numbers typically makes it possible to display such numbers on a screen, for example, or to announce the numbers on loudspeaker (s) in spatialized mode or not, after passing through a summary module from the ASCII text of the displayed number. Its intervention in the context of the invention preferably resides in that it is possible to identify at least the first digits of such numbers and communicate this information to the intelligent module CI. For example, in France, the mobile terminal numbers start with the digits 06. In this case, the interface NA indicates to the control module CI at least the first two digits of the number, ie "06". The CI module is then able to control the processing acquisition and / or playback that are appropriate for communication with a mobile terminal and will be described later.
• voice platform numbers for services that mostly implement speech recognition start in France with 08 numbers.
• the CI module is able to control the processing of acquisition and / or restitution which are suitable for speech-enabled communication and will be described later.
• other numbers following a number can also be useful to the CI module to define an acquisition / reproduction configuration adapted to the communication context.
• subscriber numbers for some Voice over IP operators can be identified by the third digit of the number.
• the interface NA can still indicate to the control module CI the choice to be adopted for the processing to be performed for voice over IP or for communication on the switched network RTC.
• the IR network interface can also indicate to the CI module the type of network to which the remote terminal is connected (for example to the PSTN switched network, or on IP).
• the CI module can then identify, again, a communication context (via the PSTN switched network or via an IP network) and control acquisition / retrieval processing that is in line with this context.
• a communication context via the PSTN switched network or via an IP network
• control acquisition / retrieval processing that is in line with this context.
• different treatments will be applied, in particular an echo cancellation but with different parameters.
• the decision mechanism in the CI module can have for entry points, as non-limiting examples, the dialed numbers or the incoming call numbers, the command forced by the user through the HMI interface , the type of network of the remote terminal given by the IR network interface.
• Other signals may be used by the CI module, such as server or platform signaling messages, or number of tracks for spatialized rendering, or others.
• Each processing function block in particular the acoustic interface IA or the addressable memory MA, is connected to the intelligent control module CL This latter activates or not the processing module and requests a suitable functional block (acoustic echo canceller AEC or electrical EEC, DAV voice activity detection, denoising, etc.).
• a suitable functional block acoustic echo canceller AEC or electrical EEC, DAV voice activity detection, denoising, etc.
• the CI module gives the activation order of a function block for a given process (memory address MA)
• the module CI also transmits an appropriate operating mode and ad hoc parameters, as described hereinafter with reference to Figure 2.
• the IR network interface is concerned (reference 10 of Figure 2) and communicates (arrow 11) the IP network connection information to the CI module (reference 12).
• the interface NA giving the call number (reference 10) indicates to the CI module (arrow 11), by the first digits of the number, that the communication is moving towards a voice recognition server for a service on a telephone platform.
• the IC module for example activates an acoustic echo processing suitable for voice recognition (arrow 13) to a known memory address of the memory MA (reference 14), and further communicates (arrow 15) the parameters adapted to the voice recognition: typically acoustic echo cancellation with little gain variation.
• speech recognition can intervene (with such processing) for communication with a service platform typically involving a voice server.
• processing can also take place before the call, in particular to dial the number of a caller. remote terminal.
• control module IC controls the acoustic interface IA (arrow 16) to trigger a unidirectional sound recording (reference 17 of FIG. 2), so that a specific configuration of microphones, for example, activation of a single microphone, or better, activation of multiple microphones in combination for superdirective sound, can be selected and activated via the IA interface.
• the terminal is sufficiently sophisticated and has technical capabilities for speech recognition, it is possible to activate a speech pre-analysis module (for a calling / called distributed speech recognition).
• the service consulted redirects the call to a physical correspondent, it informs, by a signaling channel and in a conventional manner per se, the calling terminal of a change of communication context and the CI module. activates acoustic echo processing with parameters better adapted to interpersonal communication (arrow 15 in FIG. 2).
• the IR network interface can communicate to the IC module (arrow 11 of FIG. 2) the information that the communication is done via a cellular network (GSM or other).
• GSM cellular network
• the interface NA in reference 10 in FIG. 2 giving the calling or called numbers can confirm a communication with a mobile terminal according to the first digits of the current number.
• the CI control module decides the appropriate treatment (reference 12). In this case, an Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC) treatment will be chosen by pointing (arrow 13) to a predefined memory address of the MA (reference 14), with echo cancellation parameters communicated.
• AEC Acoustic Echo Cancellation
• the CI module (arrow 15) adapted for communication with a speaker (and typically different from those recommended for speech recognition, for example).
• the CI module (reference 12) intervenes (arrow 13) to activate appropriate processing in memory MA (reference 14) with the denoising parameters appropriate (voice activity detection, compression, etc.) (arrow 15).
• the IC module controls (arrow 16) a multidirectional sound tap via the acoustic interface IA (reference 17) which activates a plurality of microphones adapted for this communication.
• the parameters transmitted in particular for the echo cancellation can also be different, for example by applying more or less gain variation depending on the remote terminal (fixed, mobile or IP).
• the echo canceller and terminal microphones can be disabled.
• the user can manually enter a command corresponding to a "musical listening" mode via the HMI interface.
• a learning routine can be provided with the intelligent control module CI for receiving the current call number on the one hand and for receiving the manually entered instruction number on the other hand. user, so that for a future call to the same number, the same setting of the terminal setting will be imposed automatically by the CI module.
• the integration architecture of the CI module within the other modules of the terminal allows an evolution of the configuration of the terminal according to the services of the aforementioned type.
• the processing modules integrated in the terminal are in fact connected to the CI module for automatic or manual activation (via the HMI interface), this activation being, in any case, the most adapted to the context of use.
• the IC module can control, in addition to the processes described above such as acoustic echo cancellation, electrical echo cancellation, denoising, sound spatialization, unidirectional sound recording. or omnidirectional (with two sensors, binaural, or other), speech recognition (distributed or not), speech synthesis:
• the information supplied to the IC module are derived from the security network interface, of setting interface commom 'cation NA of the MMI user interface, and to determine the treatment to activate it with the best parameters adapted.
• the processes performed and responding to the communication context information, collected by the CI module are for example: the differentiated setting of the acoustic echo canceller in voice recognition mode or in communication mode with a physical interlocutor, the differentiated setting of the acoustic echo canceller in communication via a PSTN or IP network, the sound recording unidirectional voice recognition mode, spatialized sound reproduction if the received signal has multiple tracks (or "multichannel signal"), the binaural sound in the context of group communication including ambient sound recording.
• the intelligent control module CI can finally comprise a memory MEM storing a correspondence table between the called or calling numbers (or types of numbers) (column C1 of FIG. 3) and an acquisition configuration. / refund and processing to be performed (column C2).
• this memory MEM can be the same as the addressable memory MA represented in FIG. 1, or else different from this memory MA.
• FIG. 3 lists treatments to be performed in the event of communication with:
• a mobile terminal (whose number begins with the digits 06 in the example shown) and which consist, as indicated above, in an acoustic echo cancellation AEC, a voice activity detection, a denoising, etc., a fixed terminal (whose number begins with the digits 01 in the example shown), connected to the switched network RTC (indication given by the network interface IR), the processing here consisting of an acoustic echo cancellation AEC specific to the switched network , optionally the selection of a plurality of microphones and loudspeakers for communication and ambience reproduction, - a fixed terminal (the number of which still starts with the numbers 01 in the example shown), but connected here with an extensive network for IP channel communication (indication given by the IR network interface), the processing then consisting of AEC acoustic echo cancellation specific to the IP network (distinct from that operated for a communication via the PSTN network due to the different delays as indicated above), possibly selecting a plurality of microphones and loudspeakers for communication and ambience reproduction,
• a service platform (the number of which starts with the digits 08 in the example shown), connected for example to an IP network (indication which can still be given by the IR network interface), the processing then consisting of a cancellation voice recognition acoustic echo (AEC (VR)) (still distinct from that operated for communication with a physical interlocutor), the selection of a superdirective combination of microphones for unidirectional sound recording.
• AEC cancellation voice recognition acoustic echo
• the terminal comprises adjustment means adapted according to a communication context.
• These adjustment means comprise a plurality of processes intended to improve a quality of communication, among at least one acoustic echo cancellation, an electric echo cancellation, a denoising, a voice activity detection.
• the selection of a setting of the terminal during a communication in progress requires the selection of a treatment among this plurality of treatments.
• the memory MEM of FIG. maps a plurality of parameterized processes according to respective communication contexts, with a respective plurality of calling or called number types (AEC (VR) processing for the numbers 08 ..., in this example).
• AEC calling or called number types
• the selection of a setting of the terminal during communication (arrow SEL of Figure 3) then passes by the selection of a treatment that is set at least according to the type of calling or called number.
• the selection of a setting of the terminal during a call also depends on the selection of the microphones and / or the speakers to be activated, at least according to the type of number calling or called.
• the selection of an appropriate setting of the terminal can be based on the calling or called number indicated by the interface NA (numbers beginning with the digits 06, or 01, or 08). It can also rely on the indication of the type of network carrying the communication. In the example of Figure 3, it is clear, for a number beginning with the numbers "01", the case of a communication via the PSTN switched network of the case of a communication via an IP network.
• the IR network interface indicates for this purpose which type of network is used and the treatments to be provided are then different.
• the IR network interface included in the terminal gives an indication of a type of network conveying the current communication, and the selection of a setting of the terminal can be performed according to the type of number given by the interface NA and / or depending on the type of network indicated by the IR network interface.
• the terminal has an E interfaceM user interface
• the setting of the selected terminal as a function of the type of number (given by the interface NA) or the type of network (given by the IR interface) can be modified by a setpoint d a user of the terminal.
• the modification of the setting of the terminal by this user is stored in the memory MEM in correspondence with the current number indicated by the interface NA.
• the IC module is capable, according to a number previously identified and stored, to order a terminal adjustment command according to the wishes of the user.
• voice recognition can intervene outside of a communication with a service platform and, moreover, well before a connection, for example for the composition of a call from a terminal without a numeric keypad.
• AEC speech recognition

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• Signal Processing (AREA)
• Telephonic Communication Services (AREA)
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• 2007
  • 2007-09-11 EP EP07823810A patent/EP2070302A2/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2007-09-11 WO PCT/FR2007/051914 patent/WO2008031988A2/fr active Application Filing

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