Voice output device and voice output method

Abstract

The present invention provides a "voice output device and a voice output method" that enable a user to easily understand the content of messages for each sender even when multiple messages are received from different senders in a short period of time. When a vehicle-mounted device (2) as a voice output device receives three or more messages during a monitoring period, and when there are repeated messages from senders among the three or more received messages, the messages are voice-outputted in a continuous order of the repeated messages from the sender. Thus, even when messages from different senders are received alternately during the monitoring period, multiple messages from a common sender are continuously aggregated and voice-outputted.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a voice output device and a voice output method, and is particularly suitable for a voice output device and a voice output method for voice outputting received messages. Background Art

[0002] In the past, there was a voice output device, which is a device mounted on a vehicle and is configured to receive messages in a chat application and messages (mails) in an email system, and when a message is received, the content thereof is outputted in voice. This voice output device usually outputs the messages in the order in which the messages are received. In addition, Patent Document 1 describes the following technology: when outputting multiple voice messages, one or more voice messages are selected from the voice messages in such a way that the total playback time is within a predetermined time limit, and the playback order of each voice message is determined based on the attribute information of each voice message.

[0003] Prior art literature:

[0004] Patent Literature:

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2014-63054 Summary of the invention

[0006] However, the above-mentioned conventional voice output device has the following problem. That is, in the conventional voice output device, messages are always output in the order in which they are received. Therefore, when multiple messages are received from different senders in a short period of time, even if multiple related messages are received from a certain sender, messages from different senders may be output alternately by voice. When this happens, it is difficult for the user to grasp the content of the message for each sender, and for example, it is necessary to perform a laborious operation such as re-listening to the messages received in the past for each sender.

[0007] The present invention is made to solve this problem, and its purpose is to enable the user to easily understand the content of the message according to each sender even when a plurality of messages are received from different senders in a short period of time.

[0008] In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, in the present invention, when three or more messages are received during the monitoring period, and when there are repeated messages from the sender among the three or more received messages, the messages are voice-outputted in the order in which the repeated messages from the sender are continuous.

[0009] Effect of the invention:

[0010] According to the present invention constructed as described above, when three or more messages are received from different senders during the monitoring period, and when the three or more messages include multiple messages from a common sender, the multiple messages from the common sender are continuously collected and output by voice. Therefore, it is easy for the user to understand the content of the message according to each sender. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Figure 1 This is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the speech output system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0012] Figure 2 It is a diagram showing the content of message data.

[0013] Figure 3 This is a diagram for explaining the processing of the order determination unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] Figure 4 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 5 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] Figure 6 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 7 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the first modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 8 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the second modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Fig. 9 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the third modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Fig.10 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the fourth modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Fig.11 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the fifth modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] Fig.12 This is a diagram showing the start timing and end timing of voice output of a plurality of message voice data.

[0023] Fig.13This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the sixth modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] Fig.14 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the seventh modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] Fig.15 This is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the speech output system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] Fig.16 This is a diagram for explaining the processing of the order determination unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Fig.17 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Fig.18 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Description of Reference Numerals

[0030] 2.2A Vehicle-mounted device (voice output device)

[0031] 11 Message receiving unit

[0032] 12.12A Receiving judgment unit

[0033] 13.13A Duplicate sender judgment unit

[0034] 14.14A Sequence determination unit

[0035] 15.15A Voice output unit DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] <First embodiment>

[0037] Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings. Figure 1 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the speech output system 1. Figure 1 As shown, the voice output system 1 includes a vehicle-mounted device 2 of this embodiment (equivalent to the "voice output device" in the claims) and a portable terminal 3. The vehicle-mounted device 2 is a device mounted on a vehicle, and as an example, a so-called car navigation can function as the vehicle-mounted device 2. The vehicle-mounted device 2 is connected to a voice processing device 4 provided in the vehicle. The voice processing device 4 includes a D / A converter, an amplifier, and a speaker provided in the vehicle, and performs D / A conversion on an input voice signal and amplifies it, and then outputs it as voice from the speaker.

[0038] The portable terminal 3 is a portable terminal brought into the vehicle by the passengers of the vehicle. As an example, a so-called smart phone, a portable phone other than a smart phone, or a tablet computer can function as the portable terminal 3. A text chat application (hereinafter referred to as a "chat application") that can exchange messages with others in the form of a chat is installed in the portable terminal 3. In addition to the function of providing a user interface related to text chat in the portable terminal 3, the chat application also has a function of sending message data MD to the vehicle-mounted device 2 based on the reception of the message (this function will be described in detail later). Hereinafter, the owner of the portable terminal 3 is referred to as a "user". In the present embodiment, the user listens to the message output by voice of the vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0039] like Figure 1 As shown, the vehicle-mounted device 2 includes a vehicle-mounted device side communication unit 10, a message receiving unit 11, a receiving judgment unit 12, a duplicate sender judgment unit 13, an order determination unit 14, and a voice output unit 15 as a functional structure. In addition, the portable terminal 3 includes a portable terminal side communication unit 16 and a chat application execution unit 17 as a functional structure. Each of the above functional blocks 10 to 17 can be composed of hardware, DSP (Digital Signal Processor), and software. For example, in the case of being composed of software, each of the above functional blocks 10 to 17 is actually composed of a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc. of a computer, and is realized by operating a program stored in a recording medium such as RAM, ROM, hard disk or semiconductor memory. The above content is also the same as the second embodiment described later. In addition, the portable terminal 3 includes a portable terminal side storage unit 18 as a storage medium. The portable terminal side storage unit 18 stores a registrant database 19. The registrant database 19 will be described later.

[0040] The vehicle-mounted device side communication unit 10 of the vehicle-mounted device 2 and the portable terminal side communication unit 16 of the portable terminal 3 perform wireless communication in accordance with the prescribed communication standard for wireless communication. The communication standard for wireless communication is, for example, the communication standard of Bluetooth (registered trademark) or wireless LAN. In addition, it is also possible to have the following configuration, that is, the vehicle-mounted device 2 and the portable terminal 3 are connected by wire, and the vehicle-mounted device side communication unit 10 and the portable terminal side communication unit 16 perform wired communication in accordance with the prescribed communication standard for wired communication. The chat application execution unit 17 of the portable terminal 3 performs various processes by reading and executing the chat application and the program attached to the chat application (including a program that is part of the OS, API) through hardware such as the CPU.

[0041] The following describes in detail the processing of the portable terminal 3 and the vehicle-mounted device 2 after the portable terminal 3 receives the text chat message.

[0042] The portable terminal 3 is capable of accessing a network N including the Internet. Access to the network N can be performed by directly accessing a mobile communication network or indirectly accessing the mobile communication network using a tethering function of a portable router. If a text chat message is sent to the portable terminal 3 from another terminal on which a chat application is installed, the chat application execution unit 17 of the portable terminal 3 receives it. In the present embodiment, messages can basically only be received from persons registered in the registrant database 19 (hereinafter referred to as "registrants"). Based on the reception of the message, the chat application execution unit 17 performs voice output or vibrates the housing of the portable terminal 3 to notify the user of the receipt of the message, or performs predetermined processing such as displaying the required information on the display device of the portable terminal 3.

[0043] In addition to this processing, the chat application execution unit 17 of the present embodiment controls the portable terminal side communication unit 16 to transmit the message data MD to the portable terminal 3 . Figure 2 is a diagram showing the contents of message data MD. Figure 2 As shown, the message data MD includes a message ID, a sender ID, a receiving date and time information, and text data for voice output. The message ID is identification information uniquely assigned to each message, and is generated by the chat application execution unit 17 whenever a message is received. The sender ID is identification information uniquely assigned to each sender, and is managed in the registrant database 19 of the portable terminal side storage unit 18 for each registrant who can become a sender. The receiving date and time information is information indicating the date and time when the message was received.

[0044] The text data for voice output is data in which output message information is recorded in text, and the output message information is composed of supplementary information and the message body. As described below, the information recorded as text in the text data for voice output is finally output by voice by the vehicle-mounted device 2. Moreover, the supplementary information is information used to supplement and convey matters related to the message body before the message body is output as voice. In the present embodiment, the supplementary information is information including the name of the sender and the date and time of receiving the message. For example, it is assumed that the chat application execution unit 17 receives the message body "Hello." from the sender named "AA" at "October 1st 13:30". Therefore, the information recorded as text in the text data for voice output becomes "October 1st 13:30. From AA. Hello.". The text data for voice output is generated by the chat application execution unit 17. When the message body contains symbols, stamps, and graphic characters, the chat application execution unit 17 performs omission or conversion to information expressed as text according to predetermined rules. In the registered person database 19 of the portable terminal side storage unit 18, the name of the sender is managed for each of the registered persons who can become the sender.

[0045] When the chat application execution unit 17 sends the message data MD, the message receiving unit 11 of the vehicle-mounted device 2 controls the vehicle-mounted device side communication unit 10 to receive the message data MD and store it in the first buffer 22. The first buffer 22 is a storage area formed in a working area such as a RAM. The message data MD is an object received as a message by the message receiving unit 11, which is equivalent to the "message" in the claims.

[0046] As a result of the above processing between the chat application execution unit 17 and the message receiving unit 11, the message data MD is immediately stored in the first buffer 22 in response to the reception of the message by the chat application execution unit 17. Therefore, when the chat application execution unit 17 receives a plurality of (e.g., five) messages in a short period of time, the message data MD corresponding to all the messages are stored in the first buffer 22 in the short period of time. In addition, the date and time of receiving one message is synchronized with the date and time when the message data MD corresponding to the one message is stored in the first buffer 22.

[0047] The reception determination unit 12 of the vehicle-mounted device 2 determines whether three or more messages have been received by the message receiving unit 11 during the monitoring period. The processing of the reception determination unit 12 will be described in detail below.

[0048] It is assumed that the current period is not a monitoring period (described later). During the period not being a monitoring period, the reception determination unit 12 monitors whether the message data MD is newly received by the message receiving unit 11. In addition, the reception determination unit 12 refers to the first buffer 22 and monitors whether the message data MD is newly stored in the first buffer 22, thereby monitoring whether the message data MD is received.

[0049] When the message data MD is newly received by the message receiving unit 11, the reception determination unit 12 sets a predetermined time from the timing of receiving the message data MD as a monitoring period. In the present embodiment, the monitoring period is set to "5 seconds". Hereinafter, the message data MD newly stored in the first buffer 22 during a period other than the monitoring period is referred to as "initial storage data".

[0050] Next, the reception determination unit 12 waits until the monitoring period has passed, and after the monitoring period has passed, determines whether three or more message data MD including the first stored data have been received by the message receiving unit 11 during the monitoring period. If three or more message data MD are not stored in the first buffer 22 after the monitoring period has passed (if two or less message data MD are stored), the reception determination unit 12 outputs the normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15.

[0051] On the other hand, when the message receiving unit 11 receives three or more message data MD after the monitoring period has elapsed, the reception determination unit 12 outputs the first plurality of reception notification information to the duplicate sender determination unit 13 .

[0052] When the reception determination unit 12 determines that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender determination unit 13 of the vehicle-mounted device 2 determines whether there is a message with a duplicate sender among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period. The processing of the duplicate sender determination unit 13 is described in detail below.

[0053] When the first plurality of reception notification information is input from the reception judgment unit 12, the duplicate sender judgment unit 13 refers to the sender IDs of the three or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 to judge whether there is one or more sets of message data MD with the same sender ID value. For example, regarding five message data MD, the sender IDs are set to "S01", "S02", "S03", "S04", and "S05", respectively. In this case, since there is no set of message data MD with the same sender ID value, the duplicate sender judgment unit 13 judges that there is no set of message data MD with the same sender ID value.

[0054] Furthermore, for example, regarding five message data MD, the sender IDs are respectively set to "S01", "S01", "S01", "S03", and "S04". In this case, there is one group of message data MD with the same sender ID value (three groups of "S01"), and therefore the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is more than one group of message data MD with the same sender ID value. Furthermore, for example, regarding five message data MD, the sender IDs are respectively set to "S01", "S01", "S02", "S03", and "S03". In this case, since there are two groups of message data MD with the same sender ID value (two groups of "S01" and two groups of "S03"), the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is more than one group of message data MD with the same sender ID value.

[0055] When no set of message data MD having the same sender ID value exists, the duplicate sender determination unit 13 outputs normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15 .

[0056] On the other hand, when there is one or more sets of message data MD having identical sender ID values, the duplicate sender determination unit 13 outputs the first duplicate notification information to the order determination unit 14 .

[0057] When the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the sequence determination unit 14 of the vehicle-mounted device 2 determines the voice output order of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period so that the duplicate sender messages are continuous. The processing of the sequence determination unit 14 is described in detail below.

[0058] When the first duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13, the order determination unit 14 determines the voice output order of the three or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 by the following method. The voice output order means the order of voice output when the voice output unit 15 voice outputs the output message information described in the voice output text data of the message data MD. In the following description, for the sake of convenience, the case of voice outputting the output message information described in the voice output text data of the message data MD is sometimes described as "voice outputting the message data MD" or "voice outputting the message voice data" (the message voice data will be described later).

[0059] That is, the order determination unit 14 groups the message data MD according to the sender ID. It is also possible that there is only one group to which the message data MD belongs. For example, Figure 3 The five message data MD11 to MD15 shown in (A) are stored in the first buffer 22. Figure 3 In the example of (A), the sender ID of the message data MD11 and MD13 is "X01", the sender ID of the message data MD12 and MD14 is "X02", and the sender ID of the message data MD15 is "X03". In this case, the sequence determination unit 14 groups the message data MD into three groups: the group to which the sender ID of the message data MD11 and MD13 belongs is "X01", the group to which the sender ID of the message data MD12 and MD14 belongs is "X02", and the group to which the sender ID of the message data MD15 belongs is "X03".

[0060] Next, the order determination unit 14 determines the date and time of receipt of the message data MD having the earliest date and time of receipt in each group (hereinafter referred to as "the earliest date and time of receipt in the group"). Figure 3In the example of (A), the sequence determination unit 14 determines the date and time of receipt of the message data MD11 (10 / 1 / 13:00:00.001) as the first date and time of receipt of the group for the group whose sender ID is "X01", determines the date and time of receipt of the message data MD12 (10 / 1 / 13:00:00.050) as the first date and time of receipt of the group for the group whose sender ID is "X02", and determines the date and time of receipt of the message data MD15 (10 / 1 / 13:00:03.050) as the first date and time of receipt of the group for the group whose sender ID is "X03".

[0061] Next, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in the order of the earliest received date and time, and sorts the message data MD in each group in the order of the received date and time, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order. Figure 3 In the example of (A), the sequence determination unit 14 arranges the groups in order in the order of <group with sender ID "X01" (the first received date and time of the group is "10 / 1 / 13:00:00.001")> → <group with sender ID "X02" (the first received date and time of the group is "10 / 1 / 13:00:00.050")> → <group with sender ID "X03" (the first received date and time of the group is "10 / 1 / 13:00:03.050")>, and arranges the message data MD in order of the received date and time from early to late within each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order. As a result, if Figure 3 As shown in (B), the order of voice output is "MD11→MD13→MD12→MD14→MD15".

[0062] By the above method, the order determination unit 14 determines the voice output order, so that in the voice output order, the message data MD with repeated senders (= the same sender ID value) becomes continuous. After determining the voice output order, the order determination unit 14 outputs the first voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15.

[0063] The audio output unit 15 performs audio output of three or more messages received during the monitoring period based on the audio output order determined by the order determination unit 14. The processing of the audio output unit 15 will be described in detail below.

[0064] When the normal output instruction information is input, the voice output unit 15 reads the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 in the order in which it is stored in the first buffer 22, and performs voice output in a normal manner. This process is omitted. In addition, when the message data MD is read from the first buffer 22, it is deleted from the first buffer 22.

[0065] On the other hand, when the voice output unit 15 receives the first voice output sequence information from the sequence determination unit 14, it reads the message data MD from the first buffer 22 according to the voice output sequence indicated by the first voice output sequence information. Whenever the voice output unit 15 reads the message data MD, it generates voice data (hereinafter referred to as "message voice data") for outputting the output message information recorded as text in the voice output text data as voice based on the voice output text data contained in the message data MD, and stores it in the second buffer 23. As an example, the message voice data is data of a voice waveform obtained by sampling the voice at a predetermined sampling period (as an example, 16kHz). The second buffer 23 is a storage area formed in a working area such as a RAM. In addition, the generation of the message voice data can be appropriately performed using a voice synthesis technology or other existing technologies. As a result, the message voice data corresponding to each of the message data MD is stored in the second buffer 23 according to the voice output sequence determined by the sequence determination unit 14.

[0066] Next, the voice output unit 15 reads the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 in the order in which they are stored (=voice output order), and outputs a voice signal based on the message voice data to the voice processing device 4, so that the voice processing device 4 voice outputs the voice based on the message voice data. As a result, the three or more message data MD received during the monitoring period are voice-outputted in sequence according to the voice output order determined by the order determination unit.

[0067] Here, in the present embodiment, the length of the monitoring period is set to "5 seconds". This is for the following reasons. That is, in the case where a certain message data MD is received during a period other than the monitoring period, the monitoring period starts from the timing when the message data MD is received, and the message data MD will not be output by voice at least during the monitoring period. Therefore, the longer the length of the monitoring period, the longer the time lag between the timing of receiving the message data MD and the timing of outputting the message data MD. On the other hand, if the monitoring period is too short, the possibility of receiving multiple message data MD from a common sender during one monitoring period is reduced. Accordingly, the length of the monitoring period is set to "5 seconds". However, the length of the monitoring period can be set in consideration of the above situation, and may be a length other than "5 seconds".

[0068] As described in detail above, when the vehicle-mounted device 2 of the present embodiment receives three or more message data MD (messages) during the monitoring period, and when there is repeated message data MD of the sender among the three or more message data MD received, the vehicle-mounted device 2 performs voice output on each message data MD in an order that makes the repeated message data MD of the sender continuous.

[0069] According to this configuration, when three or more messages are received from different senders during the monitoring period, and when the three or more messages include multiple messages from a common sender, the multiple messages from the common sender are continuously collected and output as voice. Therefore, it is easy for the user to understand the content of the message according to each sender.

[0070] Next, the operation of the vehicle-mounted device 2 of this embodiment will be described using a flowchart. Figure 4 The operation of the main parts of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is described in the flowchart FA. Figure 4 As shown, the reception judgment unit 12 judges whether three or more message data MD are received by the message receiving unit 11 during the monitoring period (step SA1). When the reception judgment unit 12 judges that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit 13 judges whether there is a message with a duplicate sender among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period (step SA2).

[0071] When the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the sequence determination unit 14 determines the voice output order of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period so that the duplicate sender messages are continuous (step SA3). The voice output unit 15 performs voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in accordance with the voice output order determined by the sequence determination unit 14 (step SA4).

[0072] Next, the detailed operation of the vehicle-mounted device 2 will be described using a flowchart. Figure 5 The flowchart FB of (A) is a flowchart showing the operation of the message receiving unit 11. The message receiving unit 11 repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FB. Figure 5 As shown in (A), the message receiving unit 11 monitors whether the message data MD is received (step SB1). When received (step SB1: Yes), the message receiving unit 11 stores the received message data MD in the first buffer 22 (step SB2).

[0073] Figure 5 Flowchart FC of (B) is a flowchart showing the operation of the reception judgment unit 12. The reception judgment unit 12 repeatedly executes the processing of flowchart FC. In addition, the start time of flowchart FC is set to be a period other than the monitoring period. Figure 5As shown in (B), the reception determination unit 12 monitors whether the message data MD is newly received by the message receiving unit 11 (whether the message data MD is newly stored in the first buffer 22) (step SC1). In the case of receiving (step SC1: Yes), the reception determination unit 12 sets a predetermined time (in this embodiment, "5 seconds") from the timing when the new message data MD is stored as a monitoring period (step SC2). Next, the reception determination unit 12 waits during the monitoring period, and during the monitoring period, determines whether three or more message data MD including the first stored data are received by the message receiving unit 11 (step SC3).

[0074] When three or more message data MD are not received after the monitoring period has elapsed (step SC3: No), the reception determination unit 12 outputs the normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15 (step SC4). On the other hand, when three or more message data MD are received after the monitoring period has elapsed, the reception determination unit 12 outputs the first plurality of reception notification information to the duplicate sender determination unit 13 (step SC5).

[0075] Figure 5 Flowchart FD of (C) is a flowchart showing the operation of the duplicate sender determination unit 13. The duplicate sender determination unit 13 repeatedly executes the processing of flowchart FD. Figure 5 As shown in (C), the duplicate sender determination unit 13 monitors whether the first plurality of reception notification information is input from the reception determination unit 12 (step SD1). If the first plurality of reception notification information is input (step SD1), the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines whether there is one or more message data MD having the same sender ID value among the three or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 (step SD2).

[0076] When no set of message data MD having the same sender ID value exists (step SD2: No), the duplicate sender determination unit 13 outputs the normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15 (step SD3). On the other hand, when more than one set of message data MD having the same sender ID value exists (step SD2: Yes), the duplicate sender determination unit 13 outputs the first duplicate notification information to the order determination unit 14 (step SD4).

[0077] Figure 6 Flowchart FE of (A) is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence determination unit 14. The sequence determination unit 14 repeatedly executes the processing of flowchart FE. Figure 6As shown in (A), the order determination unit 14 monitors whether the first duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13 (step SE1). If the first duplicate notification information is input (step SE1: Yes), the order determination unit 14 groups the message data MD according to the sender ID (step SE2). Next, the order determination unit 14 determines the first receiving date and time of each group (step SE3).

[0078] Next, the sequence determination unit 14 sorts the groups in the order of the earliest received date and time, and arranges the message data MD in the order of the received date and time in each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order (step SE4). Next, the sequence determination unit 14 outputs the first voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15 (step SE5).

[0079] Figure 6 Flowchart FF of (B) is a flow chart showing the operation of the voice output unit 15. The voice output unit 15 repeatedly executes the processing of flowchart FF. Figure 6 As shown in (B), the voice output unit 15 monitors whether the normal output instruction information is input from the reception judgment unit 12 or the duplicate sender judgment unit 13 (step SF1), and monitors whether the first voice output sequence information is input from the sequence determination unit 14 (step SF2). When the normal output instruction information is input (step SF1: Yes), the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 is voice-outputted in a normal manner according to the order in which the message data MD is stored in the first buffer 22 (step SF3).

[0080] When the first voice output sequence information is input (step SF2: Yes), the voice output unit 15 reads the message data MD from the first buffer 22 according to the voice output sequence indicated by the first voice output sequence information, generates message voice data based on the read message data MD, and stores it in the second buffer 23 (step SF4). Next, the voice output unit 15 sequentially reads the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23, and outputs a voice signal to the voice processing device 4, thereby causing the output message information to be voice-outputted (step SF5).

[0081] <First Modification of First Embodiment>

[0082] Next, cite Figure 1 The first variant of the first embodiment is described. In the case where the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is a duplicate sender message among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant analyzes the content of the duplicate sender message and makes the messages continuous when the content relevance is high. The processing of the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant is described in detail below.

[0083] The sequence determination unit 14 groups the three or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 according to the sender IDs, similarly to the first embodiment. Next, the sequence determination unit 14 performs the following processing on the group to which the plurality of message data MD belongs. That is, the content of the message body contained in the plurality of message data MD (hereinafter referred to as "the content of the message data MD") is analyzed, and the message data MD having the high correlation in the content of the message body is further grouped so as to belong to one group.

[0084] The order determination unit 14 determines the relevance of the contents of the plurality of message data MD, for example, by the following method. That is, the order determination unit 14 performs morpheme analysis, syntactic analysis, and meaning analysis on the contents of each message data MD using existing technologies related to natural language processing. Furthermore, the order determination unit 14 performs context analysis on the contents of the plurality of message data MD as an object, analyzes the relevance of the contents of one message data MD with the contents of other message data MD, and calculates a score indicating the relevance. The analysis of the relevance takes into account the grammatical or lexical connection and context (not only the relevance of the article itself, but also the concept of the environment including the cultural environment and the situation) of the contents of each message data MD, and is performed based on existing technologies related to natural language processing. Furthermore, the order determination unit 14 determines that the relevance is high when the score indicating the relevance is above a threshold, and determines that the relevance is low when it is below the threshold. In addition, the illustrated method is an example, and the relevance may be analyzed by other methods. For example, when the message body contains a subject name, the order determination unit 14 may also determine that the relevance is high when the subject name has commonality.

[0085] For example, when the message data MD is grouped according to the sender ID, it is grouped into three groups, namely, group A, B, and C. Four message data MD belong to group A, and the four message data MD belonging to group A are set to be first data MS1, second data MS2, third data MS3, and fourth data MS4. In this case, among the four message data MD belonging to group A, the order determination unit 14 determines that the correlation between the first data MS1 and the second data MS2 is high, and the correlation between the third data MS3 and the fourth data MS4 is high. Therefore, the order determination unit 14 further groups the four data in such a way that the first data MS1 and the second data MS2 belong to a certain group, and the third data MS3 and the fourth data MS4 belong to another group.

[0086] Afterwards, the order determination unit 14 sorts each group in the order of the first receiving date and time of the group by the same method as the first embodiment, and sorts the message data MD in each group in the order of the receiving date and time from the earliest to the latest, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order.

[0087] According to this modification, during the monitoring period, for a plurality of message data MD that are common to the sender and have highly correlated message text contents, even if other message data MD is received between the timings of receiving each data, the plurality of message data MD that are common to the sender and have highly correlated message text contents are continuously gathered together and output by voice. Therefore, it is easy for the user to grasp the contents of such a plurality of message data MD.

[0088] Figure 7 The flowchart FG is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence determination unit 14 of this modification. The sequence determination unit 14 repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FG. Figure 7 As shown, the order determination unit 14 monitors whether the first duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13 (step SG1). If the first duplicate notification information is input (step SG1: Yes), the order determination unit 14 groups the message integrated data MS according to the sender ID (step SG2).

[0089] Next, the sequence determination unit 14 further groups the groups to which the plurality of message data MD belong so that the message data MD with high relevance in the content of the message body belongs to one group (step SG3). Next, the sequence determination unit 14 determines the first reception date and time of each group (step SG4). Next, the sequence determination unit 14 sorts the groups in the order of the first reception date and time of the group from early to late, sorts the message data MD in the order of the reception date and time from early to late within each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order (step SG5). Next, the sequence determination unit 14 outputs the first voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15 (step SG6).

[0090] <Second Modification of First Embodiment>

[0091] Next, cite Figure 1 The second variant of the first embodiment is described. In the case where the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there are duplicate senders among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant analyzes the interpersonal relationship between the senders of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period and the user, and prioritizes the voice output order of the messages of the senders with high interpersonal relationships. The processing of the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant is described in detail below.

[0092] In this modification, the message data MD generated and sent by the chat application execution unit 17 includes interpersonal relationship information in addition to the information of the message data MD of the first embodiment. Interpersonal relationship information refers to the position of the registrant to the user, which is pre-set by the user for each registrant and registered in the registrant database 19. In addition, selectable values ​​of interpersonal relationship information are prepared in advance, and the user selects a certain value. As an example, the value of interpersonal relationship information is family, friends, boss, colleague, and no attribute (the user has not set the interpersonal relationship information).

[0093] The order determination unit 14 is the same as the first embodiment, and groups more than three message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 according to the sender ID. Next, the order determination unit 14 does not determine the first receiving date and time for each group as in the first embodiment, but performs the following processing. That is, the order determination unit 14 sorts each group in the order of the interpersonal relationship between the sender of the group and the user from high to low. This processing is equivalent to giving priority to the voice output order of the message of the sender with a high interpersonal relationship. The interpersonal relationship degree means the strength of the interpersonal connection between the user and the registrant, and is pre-sorted according to the value of each interpersonal relationship information. As an example, when the values ​​of the interpersonal relationship information include family, friends, boss, colleague, and no attribute (the user has not set the interpersonal relationship information), the interpersonal relationship degree is sorted as "family>friends>boss>colleague>no attribute".

[0094] In addition, when the values ​​of interpersonal relationship information of different groups are the same, the order determination unit 14 determines the first receiving date and time of these groups, and gives priority to the group with the earlier first receiving date and time. In addition, the method of judging the level of interpersonal relationship of multiple senders is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment.

[0095] For example, when the message data MD is grouped according to the sender ID, it is assumed that the message data MD is grouped into three groups, namely, group A, group B, and group C. It is assumed that the value of the interpersonal relationship information of the sender of group A is "boss", the value of the interpersonal relationship information of the sender of group B is "friend", and the value of the interpersonal relationship information of the sender of group C is "family". The level of interpersonal relationship is assumed to be family>friend>boss. In this case, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in the order of group C→group B→group A.

[0096] The order determination unit 14 sorts the groups by the above method, and arranges the message data MD in order of reception date and time from earliest to latest within each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order.

[0097] According to this variant, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. That is, it is assumed that the user wishes to recognize the content of the message data MD of a sender with a high degree of interpersonal relationship with the user earlier than the message data MD of a sender with a low degree of interpersonal relationship. Therefore, according to this variant, it is possible to respond to such user wishes and improve user satisfaction.

[0098] Figure 8 Flowchart FH is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence determination unit 14 of this modification. The sequence determination unit 14 repeatedly executes the processing of flowchart FH. Figure 8 As shown, the order determination unit 14 monitors whether the first duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13 (step SH1). If the first duplicate notification information is input (step SH1: Yes), the order determination unit 14 groups the message integrated data MS according to the sender ID (step SH2).

[0099] Next, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups according to the interpersonal relationship between the sender of each group and the user, and sorts the message data MD in the order of receiving date and time from early to late within each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order (step SH3). Next, the order determination unit 14 outputs the first voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15 (step SH4).

[0100] <Third Modification of First Embodiment>

[0101] Next, cite Figure 1 The third variant of the first embodiment is described. In the case where the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant analyzes the contents of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period and prioritizes the voice output order of the message with a high degree of urgency. The processing of the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant is described in detail below.

[0102] In this modification, the message data MD generated and sent by the chat application execution unit 17 includes urgency information in addition to the information of the message data MD of the first embodiment. The urgency information is information indicating the urgency (degree of urgency) of the content of the message data MD, and is set as additional information when the sender sends the message. In this embodiment, high, medium, and low are prepared as values ​​of the urgency information (wherein the urgency is in the order of "high>medium>low" from high to low).

[0103] The sequence determination unit 14 is the same as the first embodiment, and groups more than three message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 according to different sender IDs. Next, the sequence determination unit 14 does not determine the first receiving date and time of each group as in the first embodiment, but performs the following processing. That is, the sequence determination unit 14 determines the urgency for each group. In addition, for a group containing multiple message data MD, the sequence determination unit 14 sets the urgency of the message data MD with the highest urgency as the urgency of the group. For example, when a group contains message data MD with urgency: "high" and message data MD with urgency: "small", the sequence determination unit 14 sets the urgency of the group to "high". In addition, for a group containing one message data MD, the sequence determination unit 14 sets the urgency of the one message data MD to the urgency of the group.

[0104] Next, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in descending order of urgency. This process is equivalent to giving priority to the voice output order of messages with high urgency. In addition, the method for determining the urgency of each group is not limited to the method illustrated in this embodiment. As an example, the order determination unit 14 can also analyze the content of the message data MD belonging to each group through natural language processing and determine the composition of the urgency.

[0105] For example, when the message data MD is grouped according to the sender ID, it is assumed that the message data MD is grouped into three groups, namely, group A, group B, and group C. The urgency of group A is "low", the urgency of group B is "medium", and the urgency of group C is "high". In this case, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in the order of group C → group B → group A.

[0106] The order determination unit 14 sorts the groups by the above method, and sorts the message data MD in each group in order of reception date and time from earliest to latest, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order.

[0107] According to this variation, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. That is, it is assumed that the user wants to recognize the content of the message data MD with high urgency earlier than the message data MD with low urgency. Therefore, according to this variation, it is possible to respond to such user wishes and improve user satisfaction.

[0108] Fig. 9 The flowchart FI is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence determination unit 14 of this modification. The sequence determination unit 14 repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FI. Fig. 9As shown, the order determination unit 14 monitors whether the first duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13 (step SI1). If the first duplicate notification information is input (step SI1: Yes), the order determination unit 14 groups the message integrated data MS according to the sender ID (step SI2).

[0109] Next, the order determination unit 14 determines the urgency of each group (step SI3). Next, the order determination unit 14 sorts each group in descending order of urgency based on the urgency determined in step SI3, and sorts the message data MD in descending order of reception date and time within each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order (step SI4). Next, the order determination unit 14 outputs the first voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15 (step SI5).

[0110] <Fourth Modification of First Embodiment>

[0111] Next, cite Figure 1 The fourth variant of the first embodiment is described. When the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is a duplicate sender message among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant detects the environment of the user's current location and analyzes the contents of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, so that the voice output order of the message with a high degree of relevance to the environment of the user's current location is prioritized. The processing of the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant is described in detail below.

[0112] The order determination unit 14 groups the three or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 according to the sender IDs as in the first embodiment. Next, the order determination unit 14 performs the following processing instead of determining the first reception date and time for each group as in the first embodiment.

[0113] That is, the sequence determination unit 14 inputs information indicating the current position of the vehicle from a GPS unit (not shown) provided in the vehicle-mounted device 2, and detects the current position of the vehicle. In addition, the user is riding in the vehicle, and the current position of the vehicle is the same as the current position of the user. In addition, the GPS unit may be provided in a device different from the vehicle-mounted device 2, or the sequence determination unit 14 may obtain the current position of the user by other methods. Other methods include, for example, a method in which the sequence determination unit 14 inputs information indicating the current position of the portable terminal from the portable terminal and detects the current position of the user when the portable terminal 3 has a function of detecting the current position of the portable terminal (= the current position of the user).

[0114] Next, the sequence determination unit 14 obtains the place name of the area where the user is located (= the area where the vehicle is located) as the environment of the user's current location. In addition, in the present embodiment, the place name of the area is, for example, the name of each hierarchical administrative region (administrative place name). In China, for example, it is the name of each province, prefecture, county, and township. In Japan, for example, it is the name of each prefecture, city, town, and village, and the name of the administrative region below the city, town, and village. Here, the vehicle-mounted device 2 stores a database for each area, which establishes a correspondence between the area on the map and its name. Based on the database, the sequence determination unit 14 determines the area to which the user's current location belongs and obtains the name of the area. In addition, the database may also store other devices (which may also be a portable terminal 3) that can communicate with the vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0115] Next, the order determination unit 14 analyzes the content of the message data MD belonging to each group based on the name of the region obtained as the environment of the user's current location, and determines the environmental relevance for each group. The environmental relevance means the degree of correlation between the environment of the user's current location and the content of the message data MD, and in particular, in this embodiment, it means the degree of probability that the content of the message data MD takes the region to which the user's current location belongs as a topic. In this embodiment, the environmental relevance takes a value between "high" and "low" (wherein the environmental relevance is in the order of "high>low" from high to low).

[0116] In the present embodiment, the order determination unit 14 determines that the environmental relevance of a group is "high" when the name of a region acquired as the environment of the user's current location is included in any of the message texts of the message data MD belonging to the group, and determines that the environmental relevance of the group is "low" when the name of the region is not included. This is because when the name of the region to which the user's current location belongs is included in the message text, it is very likely that the message text uses the region as a topic.

[0117] After determining the environmental relevance, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in order of environmental relevance from high to low. This process is equivalent to giving priority to the voice output order of messages with content that is highly relevant to the environment of the user's current location. In addition, when the values ​​of the environmental relevance of multiple different groups are the same, the first reception date and time of these groups are determined, so that the group with the earliest first reception date and time is given priority. For example, when the message data MD is grouped according to different sender IDs, it is set to be grouped into two groups, Group A and Group B, and the environmental relevance of Group A is "low" and the environmental relevance of Group B is "high". In this case, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in the order of Group B → Group A.

[0118] The order determination unit 14 sorts the groups by the above method, and sorts the message data MD in each group in order of reception date and time from earliest to latest, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order.

[0119] According to this variation, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. That is, it is assumed that when the message data MD uses the region to which the user's current location belongs as a topic, the user's interest is more strongly attracted than when the region is not used as a topic. Therefore, it is assumed that the user wants to recognize the content of the message data MD that uses the region to which the user's current location belongs as a topic earlier. Therefore, according to this variation, it is possible to respond to such user wishes and improve user satisfaction.

[0120] Fig.10 The flowchart FJ is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence determination unit 14 of this modification. The sequence determination unit 14 repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FJ. Fig.10 As shown, the order determination unit 14 monitors whether the first duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13 (step SJ1). If the first duplicate notification information is input (step SJ1: Yes), the order determination unit 14 groups the message integrated data MS according to the sender ID (step SJ2).

[0121] Next, the order determination unit 14 detects the current position of the vehicle (= the current position of the user) (step SJ3). Next, the order determination unit 14 obtains the name of the area where the user is located (= the area where the vehicle is located) as the environment of the user's current position (step SJ4). Next, the order determination unit 14 analyzes the content of the message data MD belonging to each group based on the name of the area obtained as the environment of the user's current position, and determines the environmental relevance for each group (step SJ5).

[0122] Next, the sequence determination unit 14 sorts each group in the order of environmental relevance from high to low (step SJ6). In addition, when the values ​​of environmental relevance of different multiple groups are the same, the first receiving date and time of these groups are determined, so that the group with the earliest receiving date and time is given priority to become the upper position. Next, the sequence determination unit 14 sorts the message data MD in the order of receiving date and time from early to late in each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order (step SJ7). Next, the sequence determination unit 14 outputs the first voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15 (step SJ8).

[0123] In addition, in the present modification, the environment of the user's current location is the name of the administrative area to which the user's current location belongs, but the environment of the user's current location is not limited to the exemplified content.

[0124] For example, the environment of the user's current location may also be the name of a facility (which may also include natural objects such as mountains and rivers) located in the vicinity of the user's current location. In this case, the sequence determination unit 14 obtains the name of the facility located in the vicinity of the user's current location, for example, based on a database that establishes a correspondence between the location of the facility and the name of the facility. In addition, in this case, the sequence determination unit 14 determines the environmental relevance based on, for example, whether the name of the facility is included in the message body. According to this example, the following effect is achieved. That is, it is assumed that for message data MD with facilities located in the vicinity of the user's current location as a topic, the user wants to recognize its content earlier. Accordingly, according to this example, it is possible to respond to such user wishes and improve user satisfaction.

[0125] In addition, for example, the environment of the user's current location may also include natural phenomena such as the weather, temperature, day and night at the user's current location. In this case, the sequence determination unit 14 obtains the status of the natural phenomenon from an external server, for example, and also obtains the status of the natural phenomenon based on the detection values ​​of various sensors provided in the vehicle. In this case, the sequence determination unit 14 determines the environmental relevance based on, for example, whether the message body contains words representing natural phenomena. According to this example, the following effect is achieved. That is, it is assumed that regarding the message data MD with the natural phenomena at the user's current location as the topic, the user wishes to recognize its content earlier. Accordingly, according to this example, it is possible to respond to such user wishes and improve user satisfaction.

[0126] <Fifth Modification of First Embodiment>

[0127] Next, cite Figure 1 The fifth variant of the first embodiment is described. In the case where the duplicate sender determination unit 13 determines that there is a duplicate sender message among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the sequence determination unit 14 of this variant detects the environment of the user's current location and gives priority to the voice output order of the message with a high correlation between the user's current location environment and the sender. The sequence determination unit 14 of this variant is described below.

[0128] In this variation, the message data MD generated and sent by the chat application execution unit 17 includes the sender's place name information in addition to the information of the message data MD of the first embodiment. The sender's place name information is information indicating the place name originating from the sender, and is pre-registered by the user in the registrant database 19 for each registrant. For example, the user pre-registers the sender's place name indicating the place name of the sender's birthplace, the place name of the place where the sender works, and the place name of the area that the sender has said he likes.

[0129] The order determination unit 14 groups the three or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 according to the sender IDs as in the first embodiment. Next, the order determination unit 14 performs the following processing instead of determining the first reception date and time for each group as in the first embodiment.

[0130] That is, the order determination unit 14 obtains the place name of the area where the user is located as the environment of the user's current location by the method described in the fourth variant of the first embodiment. Next, the order determination unit 14 compares the place name of the area obtained as the environment of the user's current location with the place name of the area indicated by the sender's source place name information, and determines the environment sender relevance for each group based on the comparison result. The environment sender relevance means the degree of relevance between the environment of the user's current location and the sender, and in particular, in the present embodiment, it means the strength of the relevance between the area to which the user's current location belongs and the sender. In the present embodiment, the environment sender relevance takes a value between "high" and "low" (wherein the environment sender relevance is in the order of "high>low" from high to low).

[0131] The order determination unit 14 determines that the environmental sender relevance of a group is "high" when the place name indicated by the sender source place name information of the sender of the group (the sender source place name information included in the message data MD belonging to the group) is consistent with the place name of the region to which the user's current location belongs, and determines that the environmental sender relevance of the group is "low" when there is no consistency. This is because, when the place name indicated by the sender source place name information of a certain sender is consistent with the place name of the region to which the user's current location belongs, it can be said that the current user is in the region originating from the sender, and in this case, it can be said that the region to which the user's current location belongs has a strong relevance to the sender.

[0132] After determining the environmental sender relevance, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in order of environmental sender relevance from high to low. This process is equivalent to giving priority to the voice output order of messages with high relevance to the sender in the environment of the user's current location. In addition, when the values ​​of the environmental sender relevance of multiple different groups are the same, the first receiving date and time of these groups are determined, and the group with the earliest group receiving date and time is given priority. For example, when the message data MD is grouped according to different sender IDs, it is grouped into two groups, Group A and B, and the environmental sender relevance of Group A is "low", and the environmental urgency of Group B is "high". In this case, the order determination unit 14 sorts the groups in the order of Group B→Group A.

[0133] The order determination unit 14 sorts the groups by the above method, and sorts the message data MD in each group in order of reception date and time from earliest to latest, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order.

[0134] According to this variant, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. That is, it is assumed that the message data MD of a sender with a strong correlation with the region to which the user's current location belongs is more interesting to the user than the message data MD of a sender with a weak correlation. This is because there is a possibility that the sender knows that the user is in the region from which the user originates through some method, and thus conveys matters related to the region and suggestions related to driving the vehicle. Therefore, it is assumed that the user wants to recognize the content of the message data MD sent by the sender with a strong correlation with the region to which the user's current location belongs earlier. Therefore, according to this variant, it is possible to respond to such user wishes and improve user satisfaction.

[0135] Fig.11 The flowchart FK is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence determination unit 14 of this modification. The sequence determination unit 14 repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FK. Fig.11 As shown, the order determination unit 14 monitors whether the first duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13 (step SK1). If the first duplicate notification information is input (step SK1: Yes), the order determination unit 14 groups the message integrated data MS according to the sender ID (step SK2).

[0136] Next, the order determination unit 14 detects the current position of the vehicle (= the current position of the user) (step SK3). Next, the order determination unit 14 obtains the place name of the area where the user is located (= the area where the vehicle is located) as the environment of the user's current position (step SK4). Next, the order determination unit 14 compares the place name obtained as the environment of the user's current position with the place name of the area indicated by the sender source place name information of the sender of each group, and determines the environment sender relevance for each group based on the comparison result (step SK5).

[0137] Next, the sequence determination unit 14 sorts each group in the order of the environmental sender relevance from high to low (step SK6). In addition, when the values ​​of the environmental sender relevance of different multiple groups are the same, the group's first receiving date and time are determined, so that the group with the earliest group receiving date and time is given priority to become the upper position. Next, the sequence determination unit 14 sorts the message data MD in the order of the receiving date and time from early to late within each group, and sets the arrangement order at this time as the voice output order (step SK7). Next, the sequence determination unit 14 outputs the first voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15 (step SK8).

[0138] In addition, in this modified example, the sequence determination unit 14 determines the relevance between the environment of the user's current location and the sender based on the consistency between the region to which the user's current location belongs and the region from which the sender originated. However, the method for determining the relevance between the environment of the user's current location and the sender is not limited to the illustrated method. As an example, the following structure may be adopted: the sequence determination unit 14 obtains the name of a facility located in the vicinity of the user's current location as the environment of the user's current location, and further obtains the name of a facility from the sender, and determines the relevance between the environment of the user's current location and the sender based on the consistency or correlation between the facilities located in the vicinity of the user's current location and the facilities from the sender.

[0139] <Sixth Modification of First Embodiment>

[0140] Next, cite Figure 1 The sixth variant of the first embodiment is described. The voice output unit 15 of this variant obtains the first pre-control timing as the output start timing of each message when three or more messages received during the monitoring period are voice-outputted in the receiving order, and obtains the first post-control timing as the output start timing of each message when three or more messages received during the monitoring period are voice-outputted in the voice output order determined by the sequence determination unit. In the case where there is a message whose first post-control timing is later than the first pre-control timing, the output speed of the message higher than the message is accelerated, so that the timing of actually starting the voice output of the message is close to the first pre-control timing. The processing of the voice output unit 15 of this variant is described in detail below.

[0141] The voice output unit 15 of this modification example, when the first voice output sequence information is input from the sequence determination unit 14, stores the message voice data of each message data MD in the second buffer 23 according to the voice output sequence, and then performs the following processing. That is, the voice output unit 15 calculates the length of time required from the start of voice output to the end of voice output when voice output is performed based on the message voice data for each message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 (hereinafter referred to as "output time length"). For example, regarding the output time length of a message voice data, the voice output unit 15 identifies the number of samples of the message voice data and converts the number of samples into the output time length.

[0142] Next, the voice output unit 15 obtains the output start timing of each message voice data when the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 is voice-outputted in the order of receiving the corresponding message data MD (hereinafter referred to as "first pre-control timing"). For example, three message voice data corresponding to three message data MD are stored in the second buffer 23, and these three message voice data are respectively set as the first voice data S1, the second voice data S2, and the third voice data S3. And, if the message voice data are arranged in the order of receiving the corresponding message data MD, it becomes "first voice data S1→second voice data S2→third voice data S3".

[0143] Fig.12 (A) is a diagram schematically showing the timing of the start and end of the voice output of each message voice data when the voice output of each message voice data is performed in the order of "first voice data S1 → second voice data S2 → third voice data S3" using a graph with the passage of time as the horizontal axis. Fig.12 (A) In the above case, the voice output unit 15 obtains the timing TO as the first pre-control timing for the first voice data S1, obtains the timing TA as the first pre-control timing for the second voice data S2, and obtains the timing TB as the first pre-control timing for the third voice data S3. The voice output unit 15 recognizes the timing TA and the timing TB as the elapsed time from the timing TO, for example.

[0144] Furthermore, the voice output unit 15 obtains the output start timing (hereinafter referred to as "first post-control timing") of each message voice data when the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 is voice-outputted in the voice output order indicated by the first voice output order information. Fig.12 The first voice data S1, the second voice data S2, and the third voice data S3 of (A) are assumed to be output in the order of "first voice data S1 -> third voice data S3 -> second voice data S2". Fig.12 (B) is a diagram showing the start timing and end timing of voice output when each message voice data is voice-output in the order of "first voice data S1 → third voice data S3 → second voice data S2". Fig.12 As shown in (B), the audio output unit 15 obtains timing TO as the first post-control timing for the first audio data S1, obtains timing TA as the first post-control timing for the third audio data S3, and obtains timing TC as the first post-control timing for the second audio data S2.

[0145] Next, the voice output unit 15 determines whether there is message voice data whose first post-control timing is later than the first pre-control timing. Fig.12 In the examples (A) and (B), the first post-control timing (timing TC) of the second voice data S2 is later than the first pre-control timing (timing TA). Therefore, in this example, the voice output unit 15 determines that there is message voice data whose first post-control timing is later than the first pre-control timing. Hereinafter, the message voice data whose first post-control timing is later than the first pre-control timing is referred to as "first delayed data".

[0146] When the first delay data exists, the voice output unit 15 increases the output speed of the message voice data higher than the first delay data when performing voice output of each message voice data, so that the timing of actually starting the voice output of the first delay data approaches the first pre-control timing of the first delay data. Fig.12 In the examples of (A) and (B), in the order of voice output, the first voice data S1 and the third voice data S3 exist in the data that is higher than the second voice data S2 which is the first delayed data. Therefore, when the voice output unit 15 performs voice output on the first voice data S1 and the third voice data S3, it increases the output speed. The method of increasing the output speed of the voice output may be any method, for example, it may be configured as follows: the voice output unit 15 increases the output speed of both the first voice data S1 and the third voice data S3 by about 10 to 20% and performs voice output. In addition, the output speed of the first voice data S1 and the third voice data S3 may be increased in such a manner that the timing of the actual start of the voice output of the second voice data S2 (the first delayed data in this example) becomes the same as the first pre-control timing of the second voice data S2.

[0147] Fig.12 (C) shows the start timing and end timing of voice output of each data when the output speed of the first voice data S1 and the third voice data S3 is accelerated, when the voice output of each message voice data is performed in the order of "first voice data S1→third voice data S3→second voice data S2" (voice output order). Fig.12 As shown in (C), the timing at which the voice output of the second voice data S2 actually starts is the timing TD, which is closer to the timing TA than the timing TC.

[0148] According to this variation, with respect to the first delayed data, the time lag between the timing of starting output when voice output is performed as usual in the order of reception and the timing of actually starting output of the first delayed data can be reduced, and the user's discomfort that may be caused when the time lag is large can be reduced.

[0149] Fig.13The flowchart FL is a flowchart showing the operation of the voice output unit 15. The voice output unit 15 repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FL. Fig.13 As shown, the voice output unit 15 monitors whether the normal output instruction information is input from the reception judgment unit 12 or the duplicate sender judgment unit 13 (step SL1), and monitors whether the first voice output sequence information is input from the sequence determination unit 14 (step SL2). When the normal output instruction information is input (step SL1: yes), the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 is voice-outputted in a normal manner according to the order in which the message data MD is stored in the first buffer 22 (step SL3).

[0150] When the first voice output sequence information is input (step SL2: Yes), the voice output unit 15 reads the message data MD from the first buffer 22 according to the voice output sequence indicated by the first voice output sequence information, generates message voice data based on the read message data MD, and stores them in the second buffer 23 (step SL4). Next, the voice output unit 15 calculates the output time length for each message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 (step SL5). Next, the voice output unit 15 obtains the first control pre-timing of each message voice data (step SL6).

[0151] Next, the voice output unit 15 obtains the first post-control timing of each message voice data (step SL7). Next, the voice output unit 15 determines whether there is first delay data (step SL8). In the case where there is no first delay data (step SL8: No), the voice output unit 15 reads the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 in the order in which the message voice data is stored in the second buffer 23 and outputs a voice signal based on the message voice data to the voice processing device 4 (step SL9). In step SL9, the voice output unit 15 sets all voice outputs based on the message voice data to the normal output speed.

[0152] On the other hand, when the first delay data exists (step SL8: Yes), the voice output unit 15 reads the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 in the order in which the message voice data is stored in the second buffer 23 and outputs a voice signal based on the message voice data to the voice processing device 4 (step SL10). In step SL10, the voice output unit 15 adjusts the output of the voice signal for the voice output based on the message voice data higher than the first delay data to increase the output speed.

[0153] <Seventh Modification of First Embodiment>

[0154] Next, cite Figure 1The seventh variant of the first embodiment is described. The voice output unit 15 of this variant obtains the pre-control timing as the output end timing of each message when three or more messages received during the monitoring period are voice-outputted in the receiving order, and obtains the post-control timing as the output end timing of each message when three or more messages received during the monitoring period are voice-outputted in the voice output order determined by the sequence determination unit 14. In the case where there is a message whose post-control timing is later than the pre-control timing, the output speed of the message itself or a message higher than the message is accelerated under the voice output order determined by the sequence determination unit 14, so that the timing of the actual end of the voice output of the message is close to the pre-control timing. The processing of the voice output unit 15 of this variant is described in detail below.

[0155] The voice output unit 15 of this modification example, when receiving the first voice output order information from the order determination unit 14, stores the message voice data of each message data MD in the second buffer 23 according to the voice output order, and then performs the following processing. That is, the voice output unit 15 calculates the output time length for each message voice data stored in the second buffer 23.

[0156] Next, the audio output unit 15 obtains the output end timing of each message audio data (hereinafter referred to as “second pre-control timing”) when audio outputting the message audio data stored in the second buffer 23 in the order of receiving the corresponding message data MD.

[0157] For example, Fig.12 In the example (A), the audio output unit 15 obtains timing TA as the second pre-control timing for the first audio data S1, obtains timing TB as the second pre-control timing for the second audio data S2, and obtains timing TE as the second pre-control timing for the third audio data S3.

[0158] Furthermore, the voice output unit 15 obtains the output end timing (hereinafter referred to as "second post-control timing") of each message voice data when the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 is voice-outputted in the voice output order indicated by the first voice output order information. Fig.12 In case (B), the audio output unit 15 obtains timing TA as the second post-control timing for the first audio data S1, obtains timing TC as the second post-control timing for the third audio data S3, and obtains timing TE as the second post-control timing for the second audio data S2.

[0159] Next, the voice output unit 15 determines whether there is message voice data whose second post-control timing is later than the second pre-control timing. Fig.12In the examples of (A) and (B), the second post-control timing (timing TE) of the second voice data S2 is later than the second pre-control timing (timing TB). Therefore, in this example, the voice output unit 15 determines that there is message voice data whose second post-control timing is later than the second pre-control timing. Hereinafter, the message voice data whose second post-control timing is later than the second pre-control timing is referred to as "second delayed data".

[0160] In the presence of second delayed data, when the voice output unit 15 performs voice output on each message voice data, it speeds up the output speed of at least one of the second delayed data itself and the message voice data that is higher than the second delayed data, so that the timing at which the voice output of the second delayed data actually ends is close to the second control pre-timing regarding the second delayed data. Fig.12 (D) shows the start timing and end timing of the voice output of each data when the voice output of each message voice data is performed in the order of "first voice data S1→third voice data S3→second voice data S2" (voice output order), and the output speed of both the second voice data S (delayed data itself) and the first voice data S1 and the third voice data S3 (message voice data higher than the delayed data) is accelerated.

[0161] like Fig.12 As shown in (D), the timing when the voice output of the second voice data S2 actually ends is the timing TF, which is closer to the timing TB than the timing TE. In addition, the method for increasing the output speed of the voice output can be any method, for example, the voice output unit 15 Fig.12 In the example (D), the output speed of the voice output is accelerated for all the first voice data S1, the second voice data S2, and the third voice data S3, but the output speed of the voice output may be accelerated for one or two of these data. In addition, the output speed of other message voice data may be accelerated in such a manner that the timing of the actual end of the voice output of the second voice data S3 (the second delayed data in this example) becomes the same as the second pre-control timing for the second voice data S3.

[0162] According to this variation, for the second delayed data, the time lag between the timing at which the output is completed when the voice is output in the order of reception as usual and the timing at which the output of the second delayed data is actually completed can be reduced, thereby reducing the user's discomfort that may occur when the time lag is large.

[0163] Fig.14 The flowchart FM is a flowchart showing the operation of the voice output unit 15. The voice output unit 15 repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FM. Fig.14As shown, the voice output unit 15 monitors whether the normal output instruction information is input from the reception judgment unit 12 or the duplicate sender judgment unit 13 (step SM1), and monitors whether the first voice output sequence information is input from the sequence determination unit 14 (step SM2). When the normal output instruction information is input (step SM1: yes), the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 is voice-outputted in a normal manner according to the order in which the message data MD is stored in the first buffer 22 (step SM3).

[0164] When the first voice output sequence information is input (step SM2: Yes), the voice output unit 15 reads the message data MD from the first buffer 22 according to the voice output sequence indicated by the first voice output sequence information, generates the message voice data based on the read message data MD, and stores it in the second buffer 23 (step SM4). Next, the voice output unit 15 calculates the output time length for each message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 (step SM5). Next, the voice output unit 15 obtains the second pre-control timing of each message voice data (step SM6). Next, the voice output unit 15 obtains the second post-control timing of each message voice data (step SM7). Next, the voice output unit 15 determines whether there is second delay data (step SM8). When there is no second delay data (step SM8: No), the voice output unit 15 reads the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 in the order in which the message voice data is stored in the second buffer 23 and outputs the voice signal based on the message voice data to the voice processing device 4 (step SM9). In step SM9, the voice output unit 15 sets the normal output speed for all voice outputs based on the message voice data.

[0165] On the other hand, when the second delayed data exists (step SM8: Yes), the voice output unit 15 reads the message voice data stored in the second buffer 23 in the order in which the message voice data is stored in the second buffer 23 and outputs a voice signal based on the message voice data to the voice processing device 4 (step SM10). In step SM10, the voice output unit 15 speeds up the output speed of at least one of the second delayed data itself and the message voice data higher than the second delayed data.

[0166] <Other Modifications of the First Embodiment>

[0167] Next, other variations of the first embodiment are described. The receiving judgment unit 12 may also be configured as follows: the monitoring period is set in such a way that the monitoring period of a specified time (for example, 5 seconds) is continuous, and whether three or more message data MD are received during each monitoring period. For example, the length of the monitoring period is determined to be 5 seconds. The receiving judgment unit 12 sets a monitoring period of 5 seconds (set as the "first monitoring period") with a certain timing as the starting point. The receiving judgment unit 12 monitors whether three or more message data MD are received by the message receiving unit 11 during the first monitoring period. If the first monitoring period ends, the receiving judgment unit 12 immediately sets a new monitoring period (set as the "second monitoring period") thereafter, and monitors whether three or more message data MD are received by the message receiving unit 11 during the second monitoring period. In this case, the monitoring period is set every 5 seconds, and the receiving judgment unit 12 monitors whether three or more message data MD are received during each monitoring period.

[0168] <Second embodiment>

[0169] Next, a second embodiment will be described. Fig.15 1A is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the speech output system 1A according to the present embodiment. Fig.15 As shown, the voice output system 1A includes a vehicle-mounted device 2A instead of the vehicle-mounted device 2 of the first embodiment. In addition, the vehicle-mounted device 2A is different from the first embodiment in that it includes a reception determination unit 12A instead of the reception determination unit 12, a duplicate sender determination unit 13A instead of the duplicate sender determination unit 13, a sequence determination unit 14A instead of the sequence determination unit 14, and a voice output unit 15A instead of the voice output unit 15.

[0170] When the message receiving unit 11 receives a message during a period other than the monitoring period, the reception determination unit 12A instructs the voice output unit 15A to output the message, sets the period during which the voice output unit 15A outputs the message as the monitoring period, and determines whether three or more messages including the message are received during the monitoring period. The processing of the reception determination unit 12A is described in detail below.

[0171] At present, it is assumed that it is not a monitoring period. The reception judgment unit 12A refers to the first buffer 22 and monitors whether the message data MD is newly stored in the first buffer 22 during the period that is not a monitoring period. In the case of storage, the reception judgment unit 12A obtains the sender ID of the stored message data MD and outputs the initial output instruction information to the voice output unit 15A. Similar to the first embodiment, the message data MD newly stored in the first buffer 22 during the period that is not a monitoring period is referred to as "initial storage data". In addition, the sender ID of the first storage data is referred to as "initial sender ID".

[0172] When the voice output unit 15A receives the initial output instruction information, it reads the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 at that moment, generates the message voice data based on the message data MD, and outputs the voice of the message voice data. In particular, when the voice output unit 15A generates the message voice data based on the initial output instruction information, it performs the following processing. That is, the voice output unit 15A calculates the output time length for generating the message voice data. Since the generation of the message voice data and the voice output are executed immediately, the voice output of the message voice data is executed within the output time length from the current moment. Then, the voice output unit 15A outputs the output time length information indicating the output time length to the reception judgment unit 12A.

[0173] Thus, in this embodiment, if the message data MD is received when it is not the monitoring period, the voice output of the message data MD is immediately performed, which is different from the first embodiment. According to this embodiment, the voice output of the message data MD received when it is not the monitoring period is immediately performed without waiting for the monitoring period, so the user can recognize the content of the message data MD earlier, which can improve the user's satisfaction.

[0174] If the output time length information is input, the reception determination unit 12A sets the output time length indicated by the output time length information from the current time as the monitoring period. That is, in this embodiment, the monitoring period is a period during which the voice of the message data MD received when not in the monitoring period is output.

[0175] Next, the reception determination unit 12A determines whether three or more messages including the first storage data are received during the monitoring period. That is, the reception determination unit 12A determines whether two or more message data MD are received by the message receiving unit 11 in addition to the first storage data during the monitoring period. When two or more message data MD are not received in addition to the first storage data at the time when the monitoring period has passed (= when only one or less message data MD is received), and when a message data MD different from the first storage data is received, the reception determination unit 12A outputs the normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15A. When the normal output instruction information is input, the voice output unit 15A outputs the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 at this time in the same way as the first embodiment. In addition, when the message data MD other than the first storage data is not received during the monitoring period, the reception determination unit 12A does not perform any operation.

[0176] When two or more message data MD are received in addition to the first accumulated data after the monitoring period has elapsed, the reception determination unit 12A outputs the first sender ID and the second plurality of reception notification information to the duplicate sender determination unit 13A.

[0177] When the receiving judgment unit 12A judges that three or more messages have been received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit 13A judges whether there is a message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message among two or more messages other than one message (initial storage data). The processing of the duplicate sender judgment unit 13A is described in detail below.

[0178] When the first sender ID and the second plurality of reception notification information are input from the reception judgment unit 12A, the duplicate sender judgment unit 13A judges whether there is data having a sender ID having the same value as the first sender ID among the two or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22. When there is no message data MD having a sender ID having the same value as the first sender ID, the duplicate sender judgment unit 13A outputs normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15A. When the normal output instruction information is input, the voice output unit 15A outputs the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 at this time in a voice in the same way as the first embodiment.

[0179] On the other hand, when there is message data MD having a sender ID having the same value as the first sender ID, duplicate sender determination unit 13A outputs the second duplicate notification information to order determination unit 14A.

[0180] The order determination unit 14A determines the order of voice output of two or more messages other than one message (initial storage data). On the other hand, when determining the order of voice output, if the duplicate sender determination unit 13A determines that there is a message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message among the two or more messages other than the one message, the message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message is made the highest in the order of voice output, and voice output of multiple messages related to the sender of the one message is performed continuously. The processing of the order determination unit 14A is described in detail below.

[0181] When the sequence determination unit 14A receives the second duplicate notification information from the duplicate sender determination unit 13A, it determines the voice output sequence by the following method. That is, the sequence determination unit 14A determines the voice output sequence for two or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 in such a manner that the voice output sequence of the message data MD having a sender ID having the same value as the value of the initial sender ID (hereinafter referred to as "the same sender data") becomes the highest. In addition, when there are multiple same sender data, the sequence determination unit 14A makes the one with an earlier reception date and time become the highest. In addition, for the message data MD other than the same sender data, the sequence determination unit 14A makes the one with an earlier reception date and time become the highest within the sequence range lower than the same sender data group.

[0182] For example, set Fig.16 (A) The four message data MD21 to MD24 illustrated are stored in the first buffer 22 in the order of MD21 → MD22 → MD23 → MD24. The message ID of the message data MD21 is "P01", and the sender ID is "Q02". The message ID of the message data MD22 is "P02", and the sender ID is "Q01". The message ID of the message data MD23 is "P03", and the sender ID is "Q03". The message ID of the message data MD24 is "P04", and the sender ID is "Q01". In addition, the value of the initial sender ID is set to "Q01".

[0183] exist Fig.16 In the case of example (A), the sequence determination unit 14A places the message data MD22 and MD24 whose sender ID value is the same as the value of the initial sender ID ("Q01") at the top in the voice output order. However, the sequence determination unit 14A sets MD22 to the first place and MD24 to the second place according to the reception order. Furthermore, the sequence determination unit 14A sets MD21 to the third place and MD23 to the fourth place for the message data MD21 and MD23 according to the reception order. As a result, Fig.16 As shown in (B), the audio output sequence becomes "MD22→MD24→MD21→MD23".

[0184] After determining the speech output order, the order determination unit 14A outputs second speech output order information indicating the speech output order to the speech output unit 15A.

[0185] When the second voice output order information is input from the order determining unit 14A, the voice output unit 15A voice-outputs the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 in the voice output order indicated by the second voice output order information in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

[0186] As described in detail above, the vehicle-mounted device 2A (voice output device) of this embodiment makes the same sender data (message data MD whose sender is the same as the first sender) be placed at the top in the voice output order. As a result, after the first stored data is voice-outputted, the same sender data is voice-outputted continuously therewith. Therefore, in the unique configuration of this embodiment in which if a certain message data MD is received when it is not during the monitoring period, the message data MD is immediately voice-outputted, when the message data MD from the same sender as the message data MD is received during the monitoring period, the multiple message data MD sent by these common senders are continuously collected and voice-outputted. Therefore, it is easy for the user to grasp the content of the message data MD of the first sender.

[0187] Next, the operation of the vehicle-mounted device 2A will be described in detail using a flowchart. Fig.17 Flowchart FN of (A) is a flowchart showing the operation of the reception judgment unit 12A. The reception judgment unit 12A repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FN. In addition, the start time of the flowchart FN is set to a period other than the monitoring period. Fig.17 As shown in (A), the reception determination unit 12A monitors whether the message data MD is newly stored in the first buffer 22 (step SN1). If it is stored (step SN1: Yes), the reception determination unit 12A obtains the initial sender ID from the initial storage data (step SN2), and outputs the initial output instruction information to the voice output unit 15A (step SN3).

[0188] Next, the reception determination unit 12A monitors whether the output time length information is input (step SN4). If it is input (step SN4: Yes), the reception determination unit 12A sets the time of the output time length indicated by the output time length information from the current time as the monitoring period (step SN5). Next, the reception determination unit 12A waits during the monitoring period and determines whether three or more message data MD including the initial storage data are received during the monitoring period (step SN6).

[0189] When two or more message data MD are not received except the first stored data after the monitoring period has passed (step SN6: No), the reception determination unit 12A determines whether a message data MD different from the first stored data is received (step SN7). If received (step SN7: Yes), the reception determination unit 12A outputs the normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15A (step SN8). If not received (step SN7: No), the reception determination unit 12A does not perform any operation and ends the processing of the flowchart FN.

[0190] On the other hand, when two or more message data MD are received in addition to the initially stored data after the monitoring period has passed (step SN6: yes), the reception judgment unit 12A outputs the initial sender ID and the second plurality of reception notification information to the duplicate sender judgment unit 13A (step SN9).

[0191] Fig.17 Flowchart FO of (B) is a flowchart showing the operation of the duplicate sender determination unit 13A. The duplicate sender determination unit 13A repeatedly executes the processing of flowchart FO. Fig.17 As shown in (B), the duplicate sender determination unit 13A monitors whether the second plurality of reception notification information is input from the reception determination unit 12A (step SO1). If the second plurality of reception notification information is input (step SO1: Yes), the duplicate sender determination unit 13A determines whether there is data having a sender ID having the same value as the value of the initial sender ID among the two or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 (step SO2). If there is no data (step SO2: No), the duplicate sender determination unit 13A outputs the normal output instruction information to the voice output unit 15A (step SO3). If there is data (step SO2: Yes), the duplicate sender determination unit 13A outputs the second duplicate notification information to the order determination unit 14A (step SO4).

[0192] Fig.18 The flowchart FP of (A) is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence determination unit 14A. The sequence determination unit 14A repeatedly executes the processing of the flowchart FP. Fig.18 As shown in (A), the order determination unit 14A monitors whether the second duplicate notification information is input from the duplicate sender determination unit 13A (step SP1). If the second duplicate notification information is input (step SP1: Yes), the order determination unit 14A determines the voice output order for the two or more message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 so that the order of the same sender data becomes the highest (step SP2). Then, the order determination unit 14A outputs the second voice output order information indicating the voice output order to the voice output unit 15A (step SP3).

[0193] Fig.18 Flowchart FQ of (B) is a flow chart showing the operation of the speech output unit 15A. The speech output unit 15A repeatedly executes the processing of the flow chart FQ. Fig.18 As shown in (B), the voice output unit 15A monitors whether the initial output indication information is received from the receiving judgment unit 12A (step SQ1), and further monitors whether the normal output indication information is input from the receiving judgment unit 12A or the repeated sender judgment unit 13A (step SQ2), and further monitors whether the second output sequence information is input from the sequence determination unit 14A (step SQ3).

[0194] When the initial output instruction information is input (step SQ1: Yes), the voice output unit 15A voice-outputs the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22, and outputs the output time length information to the reception determination unit 12A (step SQ4).

[0195] When normal output instruction information is input (step SQ2), the audio output unit 15A outputs the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 in a normal audio format in the order in which the message data MD are stored in the first buffer 22 (step SQ5).

[0196] When the second output order information is input (step SQ3: Yes), the audio output unit 15A performs audio output of the message data MD stored in the first buffer 22 in accordance with the audio output order indicated by the second audio output order information (step SQ6).

[0197] The second embodiment has been described above, but each modification of the first embodiment can be applied to the second embodiment. Hereinafter, an example of processing of the vehicle-mounted device 2A when each modification of the first embodiment is applied to the second embodiment will be described.

[0198] <An example of processing when the first modification example of the first embodiment is applied>

[0199] The order determination unit 14A of this example makes the same sender data the highest in the voice output order only when the correlation between the content of the first stored data and the content of the same sender data is high. That is, the order determination unit 14A outputs the message data MD of the first sender received during the monitoring period by voice after the voice output of the first stored data only when the correlation between the content of the first stored data and the content of the same sender data is high.

[0200] <An example of processing when the second modification example of the first embodiment is applied>

[0201] In the second embodiment, the order determination unit 14A prioritizes message data MD with an earlier reception date and time within a lower order range than the group with the same sender data, for message data MD other than the same sender data. On the other hand, the order determination unit 14A of this example prioritizes message data MD with a higher degree of interpersonal relationship with the user, for message data MD other than the same sender data, within a lower order range than the group with the same sender data.

[0202] <An example of processing when the third modification example of the first embodiment is applied>

[0203] In the second embodiment, the order determination unit 14A prioritizes message data MD with an earlier reception date and time within a lower order range than the group of the same sender data, for message data MD other than the same sender data. On the other hand, the order determination unit 14A of this example prioritizes message data MD with a higher degree of urgency within a lower order range than the group of the same sender data, for message data MD other than the same sender data.

[0204] <An example of processing when the fourth modification of the first embodiment is applied>

[0205] In the second embodiment, the order determination unit 14A prioritizes message data MD with an earlier reception date and time in a lower order range than the group with the same sender data, for message data MD other than the same sender data. On the other hand, the order determination unit 14A of this example prioritizes the voice output order of message data MD with a high degree of relevance to the environment of the current location of the user in a lower order range than the group with the same sender data, for message data MD other than the same sender data.

[0206] <An example of processing when the fifth modification of the first embodiment is applied>

[0207] In the second embodiment, the order determination unit 14A prioritizes the message data MD with an earlier reception date and time in the lower order range than the group of the same sender data, for message data MD other than the same sender data. On the other hand, the order determination unit 14A of this example prioritizes the voice output order of the message data MD with a high correlation between the environment of the user's current location and the sender, for message data MD other than the same sender data, in the lower order range than the group of the same sender data.

[0208] <An example of processing when the sixth modification of the first embodiment is applied>

[0209] The voice output unit 15A of this example obtains the pre-control timing as the output start timing of each data when the voice output is performed in the received order, and obtains the post-control timing as the output start timing of each data when the voice output is performed in the voice output order determined by the order determination unit 14A, for the message data MD received during the monitoring period except for the first storage data. Furthermore, when there is a message data MD whose post-control timing is later than the pre-control timing, the voice output unit 15A speeds up the output speed of the message data MD higher than the message data MD in the voice output order determined by the order determination unit 14A, so that the timing of the actual start of the voice output of the message data MD approaches the pre-control timing.

[0210] <An example of processing when the seventh modification of the first embodiment is applied>

[0211] The voice output unit 15A of this example obtains the pre-control timing as the output end timing of each data when the voice output is performed in the received order, and obtains the post-control timing as the output end timing of each data when the voice output is performed in the voice output order determined by the order determination unit 14A, for the message data MD other than the first storage data received during the monitoring period. Furthermore, when there is a message whose post-control timing is later than the pre-control timing, the voice output unit 15A speeds up the output speed of the message data MD itself or the message data MD higher than the message data MD in the voice output order determined by the order determination unit 14, so that the timing of the actual end of the voice output of the message approaches the pre-control timing.

[0212] Two embodiments (including variations) are described above, but each of the embodiments is only an example of a specific implementation of the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention is not limited by this. That is, the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from its purpose or its main features.

[0213] For example, in the first embodiment described above, the vehicle-mounted device 2 functions as the "voice output device" in the claims. However, it is also possible to install all functions of each functional block of the vehicle-mounted device 2 in the portable terminal 3, and the portable terminal 3 functions as the "voice output device". In addition, it is also possible to install a part of the functions of each functional block of the vehicle-mounted device 2 in the portable terminal 3, and the vehicle-mounted device 2 and the portable terminal 3 function as the "voice output device". This is also the same for the second embodiment.

[0214] In the first embodiment, the chat application is installed in the portable terminal 3, but the chat application may be installed in the vehicle-mounted device 2, and messages sent from other terminals may be received by the vehicle-mounted device 2. This also applies to the second embodiment.

[0215] In addition, in each of the above-mentioned embodiments, messages are exchanged in text chat, but the messages are not limited to this, and may be, for example, emails.

Claims

1. A voice output device, mounted on a vehicle, characterized in that: have: A message receiving unit, receiving messages; a reception determination unit, which determines whether three or more messages are received by the message receiving unit during a monitoring period; A duplicate sender determination unit, which determines whether there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, when the receiving determination unit determines that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period; A sequence determination unit, which determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the repeated sender messages are continuous, when the repeated sender determination unit determines that there is a repeated sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; as well as a voice output unit that outputs voices of three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the voice output order determined by the order determination unit, When a message is received by the message receiving unit during a period other than the monitoring period, the reception determination unit instructs the voice output unit to output the message, sets the period during which the voice output unit outputs the message as the monitoring period, and determines whether three or more messages including the message are received during the monitoring period. When the reception judgment unit judges that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit judges whether there are two or more messages other than the one message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message. The sequence determination unit determines the voice output sequence of two or more messages other than the one message. On the other hand, when determining the voice output sequence, when the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message among the two or more messages other than the one message, the message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message is made the highest in the voice output sequence, and voice output of multiple messages about the sender of the one message is performed continuously.

2. A voice output device, mounted on a vehicle, characterized in that: have: A message receiving unit, receiving messages; a reception determination unit, which determines whether three or more messages are received by the message receiving unit during a monitoring period; A duplicate sender determination unit, which determines whether there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, when the receiving determination unit determines that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period; A sequence determination unit, which determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the repeated sender messages are continuous, when the repeated sender determination unit determines that there is a repeated sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; as well as a voice output unit that outputs voices of three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the voice output order determined by the order determination unit, When the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a duplicate sender message among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit analyzes the content of the duplicate sender message and makes the duplicate sender messages consecutive when the content correlation is high.

3. A voice output device, mounted on a vehicle, characterized in that: have: A message receiving unit, receiving messages; a reception determination unit, which determines whether three or more messages are received by the message receiving unit during a monitoring period; A duplicate sender determination unit, which determines whether there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, when the receiving determination unit determines that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period; A sequence determination unit, which determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the repeated sender messages are continuous, when the repeated sender determination unit determines that there is a repeated sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; as well as a voice output unit that outputs voices of three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the voice output order determined by the order determination unit, The voice output unit obtains a pre-control timing as an output start timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of reception for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, and obtains a post-control timing as an output start timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of voice output determined by the order determination unit for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, In the case where there is a message whose post-control timing is later than the pre-control timing, i.e., a delayed message, the voice output unit, under the voice output order determined by the sequence determination unit, speeds up the output speed of messages higher than the delayed message, thereby making the actual start timing of the voice output of the delayed message close to the pre-control timing.

4. A voice output device, mounted on a vehicle, characterized in that: have: A message receiving unit, receiving messages; a reception determination unit, which determines whether three or more messages are received by the message receiving unit during a monitoring period; A duplicate sender determination unit, which determines whether there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, when the receiving determination unit determines that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period; A sequence determination unit, which determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the repeated sender messages are continuous, when the repeated sender determination unit determines that there is a repeated sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; as well as a voice output unit that outputs voices of three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the voice output order determined by the order determination unit, The voice output unit obtains a pre-control timing as an output end timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of reception for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, and obtains a post-control timing as an output end timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of voice output determined by the order determination unit for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, In the case where there is a message whose post-control timing is later than the pre-control timing, i.e., a delayed message, the voice output unit speeds up the output speed of the delayed message itself and at least one of the messages higher than the delayed message, so that the timing at which the voice output of the delayed message actually ends is close to the pre-control timing.

5. The speech output device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that: When a message is received by the message receiving unit during a period other than the monitoring period, the reception judgment unit does not instruct the voice output unit to output the message, but sets a period of a specified time from the timing of receiving the message as the monitoring period, and judges whether three or more messages including the message are received during the monitoring period.

6. The speech output device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: In the case where the duplicate sender judgment unit determines that there are duplicate sender messages among more than three messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit analyzes the interpersonal relationship between the senders of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period and the user, and gives priority to the voice output order of the messages from senders with higher interpersonal relationships.

7. The speech output device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: When the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a message with a duplicate sender among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit analyzes the contents of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period and gives priority to the voice output order of the message with a higher urgency.

8. The speech output device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: In a case where the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a message with a duplicate sender among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit detects the environment of the user's current location and analyzes the contents of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, so that the voice output order of the message with a content that is highly relevant to the environment of the user's current location is given priority.

9. The speech output device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: When the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a message with a duplicate sender among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit detects the environment of the user's current location and gives priority in the voice output order of messages whose environment of the user's current location is highly relevant to the sender.

10. A speech output method, characterized in that: Include: The step of the reception determination unit of the voice output device determining whether three or more messages are received within a monitoring period; When the receiving judgment unit judges that more than three messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit of the voice output device judges whether there is a message with a duplicate sender among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; In a case where the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit of the voice output device determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the duplicate sender messages are continuous; as well as The audio output unit of the audio output device performs audio output for three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the audio output order determined by the order determination unit, When a message is received during a period other than the monitoring period, the reception determination unit instructs the voice output unit to output the message, sets the period during which the voice output unit outputs the message as the monitoring period, and determines whether three or more messages including the message are received during the monitoring period. When the reception judgment unit judges that three or more messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit judges whether there are two or more messages other than the one message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message. The sequence determination unit determines the voice output sequence of two or more messages other than the one message. On the other hand, when determining the voice output sequence, when the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message among the two or more messages other than the one message, the message whose sender is the same as the sender of the one message is made the highest in the voice output sequence, and voice output of multiple messages about the sender of the one message is performed continuously.

11. A speech output method, characterized in that: Include: The step of the reception determination unit of the voice output device determining whether three or more messages are received within a monitoring period; When the receiving judgment unit judges that more than three messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit of the voice output device judges whether there is a message with a duplicate sender among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; In a case where the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit of the voice output device determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the duplicate sender messages are continuous; as well as The audio output unit of the audio output device performs audio output for three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the audio output order determined by the order determination unit, When the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a duplicate sender message among three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit analyzes the content of the duplicate sender message and makes the duplicate sender messages consecutive when the content correlation is high.

12. A speech output method, characterized in that: Include: The step of the reception determination unit of the voice output device determining whether three or more messages are received within a monitoring period; When the receiving judgment unit judges that more than three messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit of the voice output device judges whether there is a message with a duplicate sender among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; In a case where the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit of the voice output device determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the duplicate sender messages are continuous; as well as The audio output unit of the audio output device performs audio output for three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the audio output order determined by the order determination unit, The voice output unit obtains a pre-control timing as an output start timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of reception for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, and obtains a post-control timing as an output start timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of voice output determined by the order determination unit for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, In the case where there is a message whose post-control timing is later than the pre-control timing, i.e., a delayed message, the voice output unit, under the voice output order determined by the sequence determination unit, speeds up the output speed of messages higher than the delayed message, thereby making the actual start timing of the voice output of the delayed message close to the pre-control timing.

13. A speech output method, characterized in that: Include: The step of the reception determination unit of the voice output device determining whether three or more messages are received within a monitoring period; When the receiving judgment unit judges that more than three messages are received during the monitoring period, the duplicate sender judgment unit of the voice output device judges whether there is a message with a duplicate sender among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period; In a case where the duplicate sender determination unit determines that there is a duplicate sender message among the three or more messages received during the monitoring period, the order determination unit of the voice output device determines the order of voice output of the three or more messages received during the monitoring period in such a way that the duplicate sender messages are continuous; as well as The audio output unit of the audio output device performs audio output for three or more messages received during the monitoring period according to the audio output order determined by the order determination unit, The voice output unit obtains a pre-control timing as an output end timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of reception for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, and obtains a post-control timing as an output end timing of each message when voice output is performed in the order of voice output determined by the order determination unit for three or more messages received during the monitoring period, In the case where there is a message whose post-control timing is later than the pre-control timing, i.e., a delayed message, the voice output unit speeds up the output speed of the delayed message itself and at least one of the messages higher than the delayed message, so that the timing at which the voice output of the delayed message actually ends is close to the pre-control timing.

Images