Title :
An experimental study of synthesized speech intelligibility using text created by telecommunication device for the deaf (TDD) users
Author :
Schmitt, Deborah G. ; Slowiaczek, Maria L.
Author_Institution :
Bellcore, Morristown, NJ, USA
Abstract :
An experiment that was conducted to assess the feasibility of using automatic text-to-speech translation in a message relay service for the deaf is described. Five conditions manipulated telecommunication device for the deaf (TDD) text to create improvements that could be implemented automatically. The manipulations included preprocessing changes such as expanding abbreviations, use of an automatic spelling corrector, and providing rules to users about how to generate more comprehensible text. The results show that, overall, subjects understood the symbolic speech messages very well and that the text manipulations resulted in improved performance. It is shown that a combined condition, which uses the preprocessing changes, the spelling corrections, and the rules to users, resulted in the best performance. These results indicate that speech synthesis can be a viable alternative to relay operator translation
Keywords :
handicapped aids; speech intelligibility; speech synthesis; word processing; TDD text; automatic text-to-speech translation; comprehensible text; message relay service; speech synthesis; spelling corrections; symbolic speech messages; synthesized speech intelligibility; telecommunication device for the deaf; text manipulations; text preprocessing; Auditory system; Communication channels; Deafness; Displays; Legislation; Privacy; Relays; Speech synthesis; Synthesizers; Telephony;
Conference_Titel :
Global Telecommunications Conference, 1990, and Exhibition. 'Communications: Connecting the Future', GLOBECOM '90., IEEE
Conference_Location :
San Diego, CA
Print_ISBN :
0-87942-632-2
DOI :
10.1109/GLOCOM.1990.116652