KR102502345B1 - System for foreign language practice - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is a customized native speaker matching-based foreign language practice system comprising an online practice platform for foreign language learning and practice. The online practice platform of the system comprises: a member management unit registering learners and native speakers as members and managing profiles thereof; a learning support unit streaming foreign language lecture content based on an on-demand service through mobile applications running on mobile devices of learner members; a learner interest prediction unit analyzing facial expressions by receiving facial images of the learner members from the mobile applications of the learner members while the on-demand service is provided to the learner members, mapping an analysis result to lecture topics of the foreign language lecture content and registering the same in a database, automatically selecting the interests of the learner members based on the analysis results by the lecture topics accumulated in the database and reflecting the same in the profiles of the learner members; a practice matching unit managing one-on-one matching of native speaking members to the learner members based on the profiles of the learner members who applied for foreign language mobile practice and the profiles of the native speaking members; and a foreign language practice unit including a mobile practice unit that allows foreign language practice to be performed by video-connecting the matched learner members and native speaking members through the mobile apps running on the respective mobile devices. The present invention can increase the satisfaction of the learners with the foreign language practice by matching the customized native speakers to the learners.

Description

Customized native speaker matching-based foreign language practice system {System for foreign language practice}

The present invention is intended to provide a foreign language learning service, and more particularly, to providing a service enabling one-on-one practice with a native speaker by matching a learner with a native speaker.

Korean Patent Registration No. 10-1073574 discloses a foreign language learning content providing system and method. This system and method rearranges the learner's learning contents according to Ebbinghaus's forgetting curve theory so that the learner can receive the best learning effect. Specifically, this system and method provide a learner with a plurality of learning contents according to learning goal information composed of a plurality of learning contents item information → performance evaluation for each of a plurality of learning contents according to the execution of the plurality of learning contents. Step of determining achievement level by implementing → Calculate a weighted forgetting rate for each learning content using the achievement information for each of the plurality of learning contents and the information on when to provide the plurality of learning contents, and calculate the weighted forgetting rate for each learning content re-evaluating the achievement level for each learning content according to the above, and calculating the weighted difficulty for each learning content based on the weighted forgetting rate for each learning content and the difficulty for each learning content → The step of changing the learning target information by rearranging the provision time is performed.

On the other hand, no matter how hard a learner learns a foreign language other than their mother tongue, the learning effect is bound to be limited unless they actually have experience of conversation due to the nature of language. In other words, in order to maximize the learning effect, it should not end with simple learning, but should be followed by practice. To this end, a one-to-one phone connection or video connection service for conversation with a native speaker is already well known. However, for such a service, it is important to appropriately match learners and native speakers to increase learner satisfaction, but in the past, such importance has not been sufficiently considered. In addition, although learning Chinese can be done in public places such as libraries or study cafes, it is not the case in practice, so there are many cases where learning does not lead directly to practice.

Korean Registered Patent Publication No. 10-1073574 (published on October 14, 2011)

An object of the present invention is to provide a new business model for foreign language practice as well as a method to increase the learner's satisfaction with foreign language practice by matching a learner with a customized native speaker.

The online practice platform system of a customized native speaker matching-based foreign language practice system including an online practice platform for foreign language learning and practice according to one aspect may include a member management unit, a learning support unit, a learner interest prediction unit, a practice matching unit, and a foreign language practice unit. there is. The membership management unit can register learners and native speakers as members and manage their profiles, the learning support unit can stream foreign language lecture content based on an on-demand service through a mobile app running on the learner member's mobile terminal, and the learner interest prediction unit can While the on-demand service is provided to the learner member, the learner member's facial image is received from the learner member's mobile app, the facial expression is analyzed, the analysis result is mapped to the lecture topic of the foreign language lecture content, and registered in the database. Based on the results of analysis by topic of accumulated lectures, interests of learners can be automatically selected and reflected in the learner member's profile. In addition, the practice matching unit can match and manage learner members and native speaking members one-to-one based on the profiles of learner members who have applied for foreign language mobile practice and the profiles of native speaking members. It may include a mobile practice unit that allows foreign language practice to be performed by video connection through a mobile app running on a mobile terminal.

The present invention creates an effect that allows learners to increase satisfaction with foreign language practice by matching learners with customized native speakers. In addition, the present invention presents a new business model of providing a foreign language screen practice service using a practice room, so that service providers can expect to create new demand, and from the point of view of service users, learning → practice can be easily performed, as well as Just by entering, you can connect to a native speaker member suitable for you and practice a foreign language.

1 is a block diagram of a foreign language practice system based on customized native speaker matching according to an embodiment.
2 is a diagram illustrating an offline learning space.
3 is a block diagram of a non-face-to-face system according to an embodiment.
4 is a block diagram illustrating a computing device configuration for a server.

The foregoing and further aspects of the present invention will become more apparent through preferred embodiments described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail so that those skilled in the art can easily understand and reproduce the present invention through these embodiments.

1 is a block diagram of a foreign language practice system based on customized native speaker matching according to an embodiment. A customized native speaker matching-based foreign language practice system (hereinafter referred to as a 'foreign language practice system' for short) includes at least some of the components shown in FIG. 1 . The first terminal 100 is a communicable computing device used by learners who want to learn or practice a foreign language, and the second terminal 200 is a communicable computing device used by native speakers to help learners practice. The first terminal 100 and the second terminal 200 merely classify terms for convenience according to whether the user is a learner or a native speaker, and a mobile terminal such as a smartphone or tablet may be used as an example.

A mobile application (this is referred to as a 'learner app') 110 for providing foreign language learning and practice services to learner members is installed and executed on the first terminal 100, and the second terminal 200 has a native speaker member as a learner. A mobile application (this is referred to as a 'native speaker app') 120 is installed and executed so that the learner member can practice a foreign language through video connection with the member. The learner app 110 and the native speaker app 210 may or may not be substantially the same application. That is, the learner app 110 and the native speaker app 210 may simply be terms classified for convenience depending on whether the user is a learner member or a native speaker member, or may be separate applications divided into learner and native speaker applications.

The online practice platform 300 is a server system that includes one or more servers and can be operated under various operating systems, including or not including Windows-based operating systems, MacOS, Java, UNIX, or LINUX. . Such an online practice platform 300 provides foreign language learning and practice services to learner members in conjunction with the learner app 110 and the native speaker app 210, and in particular, Chinese learning and practice services. As shown in FIG. 1, the online practice platform 300 includes a member management unit 310, a learning support unit 320, a learner interest prediction unit 330, a practice matching unit 340, a foreign language training unit 350, and a native speaker It includes at least a part of the interest verification unit 360, the access control unit 370, and the practice preparation unit 380. All of these are functional components that can be implemented in software, and can be executed by one or more processors, which are hardware components of the online practice platform 300, to perform the corresponding role.

The member management unit 310 registers learners and native speakers as members and manages their profiles. The member management unit 310 requests and receives membership registration information from learners through the learner app 110, registers as a member, manages the learner member's profile, and requests and inputs membership registration information from native speakers through the native speaker app 210. Receive and register as a member to manage the profile of native speaking members. In addition to basic information such as name, name, age, mobile phone number, and region of residence, the member profile may also include information such as foreign language learning level and propensity obtained through an MBTI test. At least some of the information in this member profile is used to select native speaking members to practice the learner members.

The learning support unit 320 provides a service of streaming foreign language (Chinese) lecture content through the learner app 110 to learner members. The learner can access the online practice platform 300 through the learner app 110 and select desired lecture content from among various Chinese lecture contents, and the learning support unit 320 transfers the selected Chinese lecture content to the learner app 110. ) to provide real-time streaming. That is, the learning support unit 320 provides streaming lecture content to learners based on an on-demand service. Therefore, the learner can learn Chinese while watching lecture contents anytime, anywhere.

The learner interest prediction unit 330 is a facial image of the learner member from the learner app 110 while the on-demand service is provided to the learner member through the learning support unit 320, that is, while the learner member is learning Chinese while watching lecture content. is received and analyzed, and the result of the analysis is mapped to the subject of lecture content and registered in the database for management. To this end, the learner app 110 controls the camera of the first terminal 100 while the lecture content is being streamed in real time to acquire a facial image by periodically photographing the learner member in real time or in units of 1 second, and Upload the facial image to the online practice platform (300).

The learner interest prediction unit 330 analyzes the facial expression with the facial image of the learner member, and may analyze the facial expression in terms of a base face and a blending ratio of the base face. Here, the reference face can be set to representative human facial expressions such as surprise, fear, anger, disgust, happiness, sadness, and expressionless, and Genetic Algorithms and Simulated Annealing methods can be used for facial expression analysis. , the facial expression analysis method using these is already well known.

In one embodiment, the learner interest prediction unit 330, if the ratio of facial image frames whose facial expressions are analyzed as happy among all the facial image frames received from the learner app 110 is greater than or equal to a reference value, the lecture topic of the lecture content It is determined that the learner member is interested in, and if it is less than the standard value, it is determined that he is not interested, and the analysis result is mapped to the lecture topic and registered in the database. That is, interest, disinterest, and interest rate (ratio of facial image frames whose facial expression is analyzed as happy among all facial image frames) to the subject of the lecture are mapped and managed as analysis results. In addition, the learner interest prediction unit 330 selects the interest of the learner member based on the analysis result for each lecture accumulated in the database and reflects it to the learner member's profile. That is, a lecture topic with an interest rate higher than the standard value is predicted as a learner member's interest and reflected in the learner member's profile. If there is a limit to the number of interests that can be reflected in the profile, interests can be selected in order of interest rate and reflected in the learner member's profile.

The practice matching unit 340 is a component that matches learner members with native speaking members one-to-one for Chinese practice of learner members who have applied for Chinese mobile practice, and performs matching based on the profiles of learner members and native speaking members . At this time, the practice matching unit 340 may match only native speaking members having interests that match those of the learner member to the learner member. In other words, among the profiles, interests are considered the most important. Foreign language practice consists of conversations exchanged with each other, because the flow of conversation can proceed smoothly in the case of having the same interests.

The foreign language practice unit 350 allows Chinese learning to be performed online between learner members and native speaking members, and includes at least one of a mobile practice unit 351 and a screen practice unit 352. The mobile practice unit 351 connects the learner member and the native speaker member through a video connection through the learner app 110 and the native speaker app 210, which are their respective mobile apps, so that Chinese practice is performed. Matching by the practice matching unit 340 Video connection is made through the learner app 110 and the native speaker app 210 only for learned learner members and native speaking members. In addition, the mobile practice unit 351 may manage practice schedules between the learner member and the native speaker member, and may limit video connection to be made only for a time corresponding to the practice schedule.

Next, the native speaker interest verification unit 360 evaluates the knowledge of one or more interests (interest topics) for each native speaker member, and reflects the interest evaluated as having knowledge of a standard level or higher in the profile of the native speaker member. To this end, the native speaker interest verification unit 360 first presents a plurality of interest items and allows the native speaker member to select one or more items of interest. For example, interest items such as travel, history, economy, games, fashion, dance, cars, books, etc. may be presented and selected, and each item of interest may be classified into sub-items to be specifically selected.

When an interest is selected, the native speaker interest verification unit 360 evaluates the interest knowledge level of the native speaker member through Q&A on the selected interest. For example, the native speaker interest verifying unit 360 randomly selects some of a plurality of query items belonging to a query list mapped to the selected interest, sequentially presents them to the native speaker member, and receives a response from the native speaker for each presented query item. It is to quantify and evaluate the level of knowledge that a native speaker member has about a corresponding interest. The knowledge level may be divided, for example, from level 1, which is the highest level, to level 10, which is the lowest level, and the knowledge level of the native speaker is determined through evaluation. When the evaluation of the level of knowledge about the interest is completed, the native speaker interest verifier 360 reflects the interest in the profile of the native speaker member only when the level is evaluated at a standard level (eg, level 5) or higher. That is, the native speaker interest verifying unit 360 performs interest verification on native speaking members so that learner members can be matched with interest-customized native speaking members.

On the other hand, the practice room system 400 is built in an offline learning space and linked with the online practice platform 300 to provide non-face-to-face foreign language practice services to learner members. As an offline learning space, a foreign language academy or a study cafe can be exemplified. As shown in FIG. 2, the offline learning space includes a learning room, which is a common learning space for users, and a plurality of practice rooms available only to learner members among users. And, the practice room system 400 is built in each practice room.

The practice room system 400 includes a digital door lock 410, an infrared sensor 420, and a non-face-to-face system 430. The digital door lock 410 is an access control means for allowing only learner members to access the practice room among users using the offline learning space. To this end, a member access code for access to the practice room is issued to the learner member. The member access code may be NFC data and is issued to the learner app 110 to enable the learner member to unlock the digital door lock 410 by tagging the digital door lock 410 with NFC. The infrared sensor 420 is a sensor installed to detect a human body in each laboratory, and may be a well-known Passive Infrared Sensor (PIR) sensor.

The non-face-to-face system 430 is a configuration for providing a non-face-to-face foreign language practice service to learner members at a specific place. As shown in FIG. 3, the non-face-to-face system 430 includes a camera 431, a microphone 432, a speaker 433, and a communication unit so that a non-face-to-face video connection between a learner member and a native speaker member allows a conversation. 434, a screen 435, and a control unit 436 for overall control thereof. Here, the communication unit 434 is for data communication with the online practice platform 300 and is well known in itself, and other components for non-face-to-face video connection are also well known. In addition, the digital door lock 410 and the infrared sensor 420 may also be connected to the non-face-to-face system 430 and placed under the control of the controller 436.

Returning to FIG. 1 again, the access control unit 370, practice preparation unit 380, and screen practice unit 352 of the foreign language practice unit 350 belonging to the online practice platform 300 are configurations related to the practice room system 400. admit. In other words, these are all configurations for providing non-face-to-face foreign language practice services to learner members in the practice room. The access controller 370 remotely controls the digital door lock 410 to be locked or unlocked. In one embodiment, when the learner member performs NFC tagging on the digital door lock 410 of the practice room, the digital door lock 410 transfers the member access code of the learner member obtained through tagging to the online practice platform 300, and accesses to it The control unit 370 authenticates the member access code received from the digital door lock 410 and remotely unlocks the digital door lock 410 when authentication is successful.

In addition, direct communication may be made between the digital door lock 410 and the online practice platform 300, or communication may be made through the non-face-to-face system 430. In the latter case, the controller 436 of the non-face-to-face system 430 may receive the member access code from the digital door lock 410 and transmit it to the online practice platform 300 through the communication unit 434, and the online practice platform 300 When a command to unlock the digital door lock 410 is received from the access control unit 370 of ), the digital door lock 410 may be unlocked. Additionally, the controller 436 may activate the infrared sensor 420 . That is, the infrared sensor 420 is usually in an inactive state, and can be switched to a horaseonghwa state only when the digital door lock 410 is unlocked.

The practice preparation unit 380 is configured to prepare and complete foreign language practice as soon as it is confirmed that the learner member has entered the practice room so that the learner member can use the non-face-to-face foreign language practice service. Specifically, if the human body is detected by the infrared sensor 420 within a predetermined time (eg, 5 seconds) after the digital door lock 410 is unlocked, the practice preparation unit 380 provides native speakers registered in the real-time available list. One native speaker is selected from among the members to complete the preparation for foreign language practice. Here, the real-time available list can be managed by the member management unit 310, and native speaking members can register themselves or unregister themselves on the real-time available list at any time through their respective native speaker apps 210. That is, the member management unit 310 manages native speaking members who can be immediately connected to learner members through a real-time available list.

In one embodiment, when the practice preparation unit 380 selects one native speaking member from among the native speaking members registered in the real-time available list, the access control unit 370 identifies the learner member with a member access code authenticated Based on the profile of the identified learner member and the profile of the native speaker member, a native speaker member is selected, and a native speaker member having an interest that matches the learner member's interest is searched and selected. At this time, the training preparation unit 380 selects the native speaker member if the native speaker member matched with the learner member is registered in the real-time available list, and only if it is not registered, the interest that matches the learner member's interest You can search for and select native speaking members with In addition, when there are a plurality of searched native speakers, a native speaker member having the highest knowledge level of interest may be selected, and when there are many native speaking members having the highest knowledge level of interest, a random selection may be made among them. In addition, the practice preparation unit 380 may inform the non-face-to-face system 430 that the practice preparation is complete and command to activate the camera 431, the microphone 432, the speaker 433, and the screen 435, Accordingly, the control unit 436 of the non-face-to-face system 430 may activate the corresponding components.

When the preparation for foreign language practice is completed by the practice preparation unit 352, the screen practice unit 352 video connects the learner member with the native speaker member selected by the practice preparation unit 380 through the non-face-to-face system 430 of the practice room. Provide non-face-to-face foreign language practice. In one embodiment, the screen practice unit 352 forms a data channel between the non-face-to-face system 430 and the native speaker app 210 so that a video connection is made.

According to the above, when a learner member uses a study cafe, etc., he or she can move to the practice room at any time and practice a foreign language with a customized native speaker member through the screen 435 even while learning a foreign language in a common study room. In particular, the learner member can practice by being directly connected online with a native speaking member just by entering the practice room.

4 is a block diagram of a computing device for a server according to one embodiment. The components of the above-described online practice platform 300 may be executed by one or more computing devices, and may be specifically executed by one or more processors belonging to the computing devices. As shown in FIG. 4 , a computing device may include a processor 910 , a memory 920 , a storage device 930 , an input/output interface 940 , and a communication interface 940 . The processor 910 may include a central processing unit (CPU), a graphical processing unit (GPU), or a microprocessor having one or more similar processing cores.

The memory 920 may store data, instructions, and programs for execution by the processor 910 . Memory 920 may include one or more of volatile and non-volatile memory, and may be internal or distributed memory. The storage device 930 may be a storage medium for a database and may include non-transitory storage. The storage device 930 may include at least some of a hard disk drive, a flash memory, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a universal serial bus (USB) drive, and the like.

Communications interface 940 may provide one or more interfaces for network communication (eg, packet-based communication) with one or more other computing devices. For example, the communication interface 940 may include a network interface controller (NIC) or network adapter for communication over an Ethernet or other wire-based network, or a wireless NIC or wireless adapter for communication over a wireless network such as Wi-Fi.

Meanwhile, the bus may include hardware, software, or both of them connecting components of a computing device to each other. For example, a bus can be an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) or other graphics bus, an Enhanced Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, a front-side bus (FSB), a hypertransport (HT) interconnect, an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, and an INFINIBAND interconnect. , low-pin-count (LPC) bus, memory bus, Micro Channel Architecture (MAC) bus, Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus, PCI-Express (PCIe) bus, serial technology attachment (SATA) bus, VESA Local (VL) bus , a Video Electronics Standards Association Local (VESA) bus, another suitable bus, or a combination thereof. The above components of FIG. 4 are exemplary, and the computing device may include only a part of the components of FIG. 4 and may also include other components not shown.

So far, the present invention has been looked at with respect to its preferred embodiments. Those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains will be able to understand that the present invention can be implemented in a modified form without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the disclosed embodiments should be considered from an illustrative rather than a limiting point of view. The scope of the present invention is shown in the claims rather than the foregoing description, and all differences within the equivalent range should be construed as being included in the present invention.

100: first terminal 110: learner app
200: second terminal 210: native speaker app
300: online practice platform 310: member management department
320: learning support unit 330: learner interest prediction unit
340: practice matching unit 350: foreign language practice unit
351: mobile practice unit 352: screen practice unit
360: native speaker interest verification unit 370: access control unit
380: practice preparation unit 400: practice room system
410: digital door lock 420: infrared sensor
430: non-face-to-face system 431: camera
432: microphone 433: speaker
434: communication unit 435: screen
436: control unit

Claims (3)

A first terminal for each learner member on which a learner app, which is a mobile application for providing learner members with Chinese learning and practice services, is installed and executed; A second terminal for each native speaker member in which a native speaker app, which is a mobile application for connecting a native speaker member with a learner member through video so that the learner member practices Chinese, is installed and executed; And in a customized native speaker matching-based foreign language practice system that includes an online practice platform for learning and practicing Chinese in conjunction with learner apps and native speaker apps,
In an offline learning space with multiple practice rooms, which are dedicated independent spaces for users’ shared learning rooms and learners’ members’ non-face-to-face Chinese practice, each practice room is installed to control access, and a member access code, which is NFC data for access to the practice room, is issued. A digital door lock that transmits the NFC data obtained through the tagging to the online practice platform when NFC tagging is performed from the received learner member;
An infrared sensor installed for human body detection in each laboratory and switched from an inactive state to an active state only when the digital door lock of the same laboratory is unlocked;
A non-face-to-face system including a camera, a speaker, a screen, and a control unit provided for non-face-to-face practice between learner members and native speaking members in each practice room; further comprising,
The online practice platform is:
a member management unit registering learners and native speakers as members, managing their profiles, and registering and managing native speaking members who can immediately video-connect with the learner members in a real-time available list;
A native speaker who selects one or more interests for each native speaker member, evaluates the knowledge level of the native speaker member's interest knowledge level through question and answer for each selected interest, and reflects that interest in the profile of the native speaker member only if the knowledge level of interest is higher than the standard level. interest verification department;
A learning support unit that provides real-time streaming of Chinese lecture contents to a learner app running on a first terminal of a learner member based on an on-demand service;
While the Chinese lecture contents are being streamed in real-time with the learner app, facial images taken periodically for learner members are received and analyzed from the learner app, and the percentage of facial image frames in which the facial expression is analyzed as happy among the total facial image frames is displayed. Analysis results including interest rates are mapped to the lecture topics of Chinese lecture contents and registered in the database. Based on the analysis results mapped by lecture topics cumulatively registered in the database, the interests of the learner members are automatically selected and reflected in the learner member's profile. However, within the number of interests that can be reflected in the profile, a learner's interest prediction unit selects interests in the order of highest interest rate and reflects them to the learner member's profile;
Based on the profiles of learner members who applied for Chinese mobile practice and the profiles of native speaking members, learner members are matched with native speaking members and managed by matching native speaking members with the same interests as the learner member to the learner member practice matching unit;
When NFC data is received from the digital door lock, the access control unit authenticates whether the received NFC data is the member access code issued to the learner member, and if authentication is successful, transmits a command to unlock the corresponding digital door lock to the non-face-to-face system. ;
If a human body is detected by an infrared sensor in the training room within 5 seconds after the digital door lock is unlocked, one native speaking member is selected from among the native speaking members registered in the real-time available list managed by the member management department, and the member access code is entered. A practice preparation unit that completes preparation for Chinese practice by selecting a native speaker member having interests that match the interests of the learner member based on the profile of the learner member identified through the above; and
The learner member and the native speaker member matched by the practice matching unit are video-connected through the learner app running on the first terminal and the native speaker app running on the second terminal so that Chinese practice is performed, but Chinese practice is performed between the learner member and the native speaker member. When the preparation for Chinese practice is completed by the mobile training unit, and the training preparation unit, which restricts video connection to be made only for the time corresponding to the training schedule managed for A foreign language practice unit including a screen practice unit that enables Chinese practice by video connection through a non-face-to-face system;
The learner app running on the first terminal controls the first terminal while the Chinese lecture content is being streamed in real time to periodically photograph the learner member, upload the facial image obtained through the shooting to the online practice platform,
The control unit of the non-face-to-face system unlocks the digital door lock when an unlock command is received from the access control unit, and activates the inactive infrared sensor according to the unlocking of the digital door lock. A customized native speaker matching-based foreign language practice system. delete delete

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