Standardized Voice User Interface for Server-Mediated NLU

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Solution Overview

Problem

Businesses lack the infrastructure and resources to create customized speechlets for voice-based services, making it difficult for them to offer advanced voice interactions without extensive programming or existing infrastructure.

Innovation Solution

A standardized voice user interface (VUI) is introduced, allowing businesses to create voice-enabled services without requiring customized programming or existing infrastructure, enabling voice-to-voice interactions between users and businesses through a server-mediated system that translates and processes voice commands into actionable data.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If businesses create customized speechlets for voice-based services, then voice interaction capability is improved, but device complexity and infrastructure requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevoice interaction capabilityVSAvoidinfrastructure requirements
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a standardized voice user interface framework that can be universally applied across different businesses and services. Instead of requiring each business to develop custom speech recognition systems, the framework provides a universal platform that handles voice processing, natural language understanding, and speechlet execution, thereby reducing infrastructure complexity while maintaining voice interaction capability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs an intermediary server-based system that mediates between the user's voice input and the business's service logic. The standardized VUI framework acts as this intermediary, handling the complex voice processing and translation tasks centrally, while businesses only need to implement simple speechlets that respond to standardized voice commands, thus reducing their infrastructure requirements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If businesses implement customized programming for voice services, then service functionality is improved, but ease of manufacture and implementation deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveservice functionalityVSAvoidimplementation simplicity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the voice service system into distinct components: a standardized voice user interface framework that handles voice processing and natural language understanding, and separate speechlets that contain business-specific logic. This segmentation allows businesses to implement services by simply creating small, isolated speechlet functions rather than programming entire voice systems, dramatically improving ease of manufacture and implementation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The standardized VUI framework provides universal functionality for voice processing, natural language understanding, and speechlet execution. Businesses can leverage this universal framework to implement various voice services without needing to recreate the same infrastructure for each service, thereby improving ease of implementation while maintaining service functionality.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Productivity

If businesses lack infrastructure and resources, then cost efficiency is improved, but voice interaction capability deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecost efficiencyVSAvoidvoice interaction capability
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses an intermediary server-based framework that provides voice processing and natural language understanding capabilities as a shared resource. Businesses can access these sophisticated voice interaction capabilities through the standardized VUI framework without needing to invest in their own infrastructure, thereby maintaining cost efficiency while improving voice interaction capability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The standardized VUI framework provides universal voice processing capabilities that can be accessed by businesses of any size. Small businesses can leverage the same powerful voice interaction infrastructure that larger businesses use, enabling cost-efficient deployment of advanced voice services without requiring substantial infrastructure investments.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS20240153501A1Voice to voice natural language understanding processing
Publication Date: 2024.05.09 AMAZON TECH INC
  • US20240153501A1 patent drawing
  • US20240153501A1 patent drawing
  • US20240153501A1 patent drawing

AI summary

Techniques for providing a standardized voice user interface (VUI) that enables voice to voice natural language understanding (NLU) processing are described. The standardized VUI may be added to speechlets to enable a customer to interact with a business via server(s) using NLU processing. For example, a first user may initiate a first voice interaction using NLU processing with the server(s) and the system may initiate a second voice interaction using NLU processing between the server(s) and a second user. This enables a customer to initiate a transaction (e.g., request information, place an order, make a reservation, etc.) with the business using the speechlet. Thus, the business may use the speechlet to offer services without requiring additional infrastructure or complicated programming to implement.