1253 results about "User intent" patented technology

Systems and processes are disclosed for controlling television user interactions using a virtual assistant. A virtual assistant can interact with a television set-top box to control content shown on a television. Speech input for the virtual assistant can be received from a device with a microphone. User intent can be determined from the speech input, and the virtual assistant can execute tasks according to the user's intent, including causing playback of media on the television. Virtual assistant interactions can be shown on the television in interfaces that expand or contract to occupy a minimal amount of space while conveying desired information. Multiple devices associated with multiple displays can be used to determine user intent from speech input as well as to convey information to users. In some examples, virtual assistant query suggestions can be provided to the user based on media content shown on a display.

A multi-modal human computer interface (HCI) receives a plurality of available information inputs concurrently, or serially, and employs a subset of the inputs to determine or infer user intent with respect to a communication or information goal. Received inputs are respectively parsed, and the parsed inputs are analyzed and optionally synthesized with respect to one or more of each other. In the event sufficient information is not available to determine user intent or goal, feedback can be provided to the user in order to facilitate clarifying, confirming, or augmenting the information inputs.

A system which allows a user to teach a computational device how to perform complex, repetitive tasks that the user usually would perform using the device's graphical user interface (GUI) often but not limited to being a web browser. The system includes software running on a user's computational device. The user “teaches” task steps by inputting natural language and demonstrating actions with the GUI. The system uses a semantic ontology and natural language processing to create an explicit representation of the task that is stored on the computer. After a complete task has been taught, the system is able to automatically execute the task in new situations. Because the task is represented in terms of the ontology and user's intentions, the system is able to adapt to changes in the computer code while still pursuing the objectives taught by the user.

Improved techniques are disclosed for permitting a user to employ more human-based grammar (i.e., free form or conversational input) while addressing a target system via a voice system. For example, a technique for determining intent associated with a spoken utterance of a user comprises the following steps / operations. Decoded speech uttered by the user is obtained. An intent is then extracted from the decoded speech uttered by the user. The intent is extracted in an iterative manner such that a first class is determined after a first iteration and a sub-class of the first class is determined after a second iteration. The first class and the sub-class of the first class are hierarchically indicative of the intent of the user, e.g., a target and data that may be associated with the target. The multi-stage intent extraction approach may have more than two iterations. By way of example only, the user intent extracting step may further determine a sub-class of the sub-class of the first class after a third iteration, such that the first class, the sub-class of the first class, and the sub-class of the sub-class of the first class are hierarchically indicative of the intent of the user.

An electronic device coupleable to a display screen includes a camera system that acquires optical data of a user comfortably gesturing in a user-customizable interaction zone having a z0 plane, while controlling operation of the device. Subtle gestures include hand movements commenced in a dynamically resizable and relocatable interaction zone. Preferably (x,y,z) locations in the interaction zone are mapped to two-dimensional display screen locations. Detected user hand movements can signal the device that an interaction is occurring in gesture mode. Device response includes presenting GUI on the display screen, creating user feedback including haptic feedback. User three-dimensional interaction can manipulate displayed virtual objects, including releasing such objects. User hand gesture trajectory clues enable the device to anticipate probable user intent and to appropriately update display screen renderings.

A multi-modal human computer interface (HCI) receives a plurality of available information inputs concurrently, or serially, and employs a subset of the inputs to determine or infer user intent with respect to a communication or information goal. Received inputs are respectively parsed, and the parsed inputs are analyzed and optionally synthesized with respect to one or more of each other. In the event sufficient information is not available to determine user intent or goal, feedback can be provided to the user in order to facilitate clarifying, confirming, or augmenting the information inputs.

A multi-modal multi-lingual mobile device that facilitates intelligently automating an action. The device can automatically synchronize a user schedule based upon a user state, intention, preference and / or limitation. The device can employ sensors to automatically detect criteria by which to automatically implement an action. Moreover, the system can interrogate a user thus converging upon a user intention and / or preference. An analyzer component can intelligently evaluate the compiled criterion in order to automatically perform an action. The multi-modal multi-lingual mobile device can automatically facilitate identification of an individual. Other actions that are automatically performed can include modifying personal information manager data, translating languages into a language comprehendible to a user, etc. Implementation of these actions can be based at least in part upon an environmental factor, a conversation, a location factor and a temporal factor.

Improved techniques are disclosed for permitting a user to employ more human-based grammar (i.e., free form or conversational input) while addressing a target system via a voice system. For example, a technique for determining intent associated with a spoken utterance of a user comprises the following steps / operations. Decoded speech uttered by the user is obtained. An intent is then extracted from the decoded speech uttered by the user. The intent is extracted in an iterative manner such that a first class is determined after a first iteration and a sub-class of the first class is determined after a second iteration. The first class and the sub-class of the first class are hierarchically indicative of the intent of the user, e.g., a target and data that may be associated with the target. The multi-stage intent extraction approach may have more than two iterations. By way of example only, the user intent extracting step may further determine a sub-class of the sub-class of the first class after a third iteration, such that the first class, the sub-class of the first class, and the sub-class of the sub-class of the first class are hierarchically indicative of the intent of the user.

A system which allows a user to teach a computational device how to perform complex, repetitive tasks that the user usually would perform using the device's graphical user interface (GUI) often but not limited to being a web browser. The system includes software running on a user's computational device. The user “teaches” task steps by inputting natural language and demonstrating actions with the GUI. The system uses a semantic ontology and natural language processing to create an explicit representation of the task that is stored on the computer. After a complete task has been taught, the system is able to automatically execute the task in new situations. Because the task is represented in terms of the ontology and user's intentions, the system is able to adapt to changes in the computer code while still pursuing the objectives taught by the user.

A method of disambiguating user intent in conversational interactions for information retrieval is disclosed. The method includes providing access to a set of content items with metadata describing the content items and providing access to structural knowledge showing semantic relationships and links among the content items. The method further includes providing a user preference signature, receiving a first input from the user that is intended by the user to identify at least one desired content item, and determining an ambiguity index of the first input. If the ambiguity index is high, the method determines a query input based on the first input and at least one of the structural knowledge, the user preference signature, a location of the user, and the time of the first input and selects a content item based on comparing the query input and the metadata associated with the content item.

Systems and processes for operating a digital assistant are provided. In one example, a method includes receiving a first speech input from a user. The method further includes identifying context information and determining a user intent based on the first speech input and the context information. The method further includes determining whether the user intent is to perform a task using a searching process or an object managing process. The searching process is configured to search data, and the object managing process is configured to manage objects. The method further includes, in accordance with a determination the user intent is to perform the task using the searching process, performing the task using the searching process; and in accordance with the determination that the user intent is to perform the task using the object managing process, performing the task using the object managing process.

A spelling system derives a language model for a particular domain of structured data, the language model enabling determinations of alternative spellings of queries or other strings of text from that domain. More specifically, the spelling system calculates (a) probabilities that the various query entity types—such as STREET, CITY, or STATE for queries in the geographical domain—are arranged in each of the various possible orders, and (b) probabilities that an arbitrary query references given particular ones of the entities, such as the street “El Camino Real.” Based on the calculated probabilities, the spelling system generates a language model that has associated scores (e.g., probabilities) for each of a set of probable entity name orderings, where the total number of entity name orderings is substantially less than the number of all possible orderings. The language model can be applied to determine probabilities of arbitrary queries, and thus to suggest alternative queries more likely to represent what a user intended.

Context, or user intent, is used for improving targeting of advertisements and for generating competition among advertisers for valuable ad space. Advertisers can bid for placement on search results pages based on combinations of keywords and context categories, or keywords and contexts. Such bids are compared to one another so that appropriate ads can be selected and displayed. By taking context into account, improved ad targeting is accomplished.

A speaker intent analysis system and method for validating the truthfulness and intent of a plurality of participants' responses to questions. A computer stores, retrieves, and transmits a series of questions to be answered audibly by participants. The participants' answers are received by a data processor. The data processor analyzes and records the participants' speech parameters for determining the likelihood of dishonesty. In addition to analyzing participants' speech parameters for distinguishing stress or other abnormality, the processor may be equipped with voice recognition software to screen responses that while not dishonest, are indicative of possible malfeasance on the part of the participants. Once the responses are analyzed, the processor produces an output that is indicative of the participant's credibility. The output may be sent to proper parties and / or devices such as a web page, computer, e-mail, PDA, pager, database, report, etc. for appropriate action.

Systems and processes for operating an automated assistant are disclosed. In one example process, an electronic device provides an audio output via a speaker of the electronic device. While providing the audio output, the electronic device receives, via a microphone of the electronic device, a natural language speech input. The electronic device derives a representation of user intent based on the natural language speech input and the audio output, identifies a task based on the derived user intent; and performs the identified task.

a system 100 that facilitates determining a user's intent given a user search query comprises a search engine that is employed to search over a collection of objects within a data store to retrieve a user search result set. The objects within the result set are associated with queries that were previously utilized to locate such objects. A level of relatedness between the previous queries and the user search query is determined, and previous queries that are associated with a result set that is novel and related to the user search result set are returned to the user.

An apparatus and a concomitant method for speech recognition. In one embodiment, a distributed speech recognition system provides speech-driven control and remote service access. The distributed speech recognition system comprises a client device and a central server, where the client device is equipped with two speech recognition modules: a foreground speech recognizer and a background speech recognizer. The foreground speech recognizer is implementing a particular spoken language application (SLA) to handle a particular task, whereas the background speech recognizer is monitoring a change in the topic and / or a change in the intent of the user. Upon detection of a change in topic or intent of the user, the background speech recognizer will effect the routing to a new SLA to address the new topic or intent.

A system and method for automatic question answering is provided. Wherein the system includes: a user inputting module configured to receive question information; a question analyzing module configured to analyze the question information, and determine a set of keywords, a question type and a user intention type corresponding to the question information; a syntax retrieving and ranking module configured to retrieve, in a question and answer library and a category tree, answer candidates based on the question information, the set of keywords, the question type and the user intention type, determine a retrieval relevance between each of the answer candidates and the question information and rank the answer candidates according to the retrieval relevance, each of the answer candidates having a sequence number; and an outputting module configured to output an answer candidate ranked a specified sequence number. By using the application, lower costs for collection and improve successful rate of answers are provided by the system for automatic question answering.

Methods and systems for integrating images with the associated text-based content signals and data about users' preferences to determine an image or user intent. Methods and implementations for monetizing these images is also described.

Systems and processes for operating a digital assistant are provided. In one example process, a speech input is received from a user. A user intent is determined based on the speech input. Determining the user intent includes generating text based on the speech input, performing natural language processing of the text, and determining the user intent based on a result of the natural language processing. In accordance with the user intent, status information associated with at least one of the one or more electronic devices is requested. The status information associated with the at least one of the one or more electronic devices is received. A spoken output is generated and represents the status information associated with the at least one of the one or more electronic devices. The spoken output is caused to be provided to the user.

A voice recognizer 3 generates plural voice recognition results from one input speech 2. For each of the voice recognition results, an intent understanding processor 7 estimates an intent to thereby output one or more candidates of intent understanding results and scores of them. A weight calculator 11 calculates standby weights using setting information 9 of a control target apparatus. An intent understanding corrector 12 corrects the scores of the candidates of intent understanding result, using the standby weights, to thereby calculate their final scores, and then selects one from among the candidates of intent understanding result, as an intent understanding result 13, on the basis of the final scores.

A method of disambiguating user intent in conversational interactions for information retrieval is disclosed. The method includes providing access to a set of content items with metadata describing the content items and providing access to structural knowledge showing semantic relationships and links among the content items. The method further includes providing a user preference signature, receiving a first input from the user that is intended by the user to identify at least one desired content item, and determining an ambiguity index of the first input. If the ambiguity index is high, the method determines a query input based on the first input and at least one of the structural knowledge, the user preference signature, a location of the user, and the time of the first input and selects a content item based on comparing the query input and the metadata associated with the content item.

Methods and apparatus for a new approach to the problem of matching relevant content to user queries. Instead of looking for the exact keyword, the invention expands it into groupings of concepts and phrases, where each such group represents one possible user intention (as implied by the query phrase or keyword). Each such grouping is analyzed to provide relevant content, including but not limited to, unstructured data like world wide web, categorized data and paid listings. The provided method can better capture user intentions even for cases where there is no click-through information.

Methods and systems for extracting intents and intent profiles of users, as inferred from the different activities they execute and data they share on social media sites, and then (i) monetization of such intents via targeted advertisements, and (ii) enhancement of user experience via organization of their contact lists and conversations and posts based on their content and conceptual context.

A computer implemented method and a content determination and targeting system (CDTS) dynamically target time, event and inventory based, location-specific, and behavior relevant content and services to users in an omnichannel environment. The CDTS identifies target users using user characteristic information, item information, and event information received from information sources. The CDTS determines a target item based on each item's item relevancy score and item relevancy priority generated based on an analysis of the user characteristic information, the item information, the event information, user intent dimensions, user interest dimensions, and global interest dimensions. The CDTS generates and targets relevant content associated with the target item and service information to the identified target users based on recommendations dynamically generated based on a content relevancy score, a content relevancy priority, targeting triggers, and the analysis of the user characteristic information, the item information, and the event information using content selection parameters.

Systems and processes for operating a digital assistant are provided. In one example, a method includes receiving a first speech input from a user. The method further includes identifying context information and determining a user intent based on the first speech input and the context information. The method further includes determining whether the user intent is to perform a task using a searching process or an object managing process. The searching process is configured to search data, and the object managing process is configured to manage objects. The method further includes, in accordance with a determination the user intent is to perform the task using the searching process, performing the task using the searching process; and in accordance with the determination that the user intent is to perform the task using the object managing process, performing the task using the object managing process.