Synchronized Sign Language in Online Conferences
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional online conference systems lack adequate accessibility options for participants with hearing impairments, leading to missed content during real-time online conferences due to misalignment of sign language transcriptions with other presentation content.
Innovation Solution
A conferencing system that generates sign language content by converting audio to sign language and synchronizes it with presentation content using time stamps, aligning durations of sign language segments with corresponding segments of presentation content, and outputs this synchronized content to viewer devices in real-time or for later access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If sign language content is generated in real-time from audio, then accessibility for hearing-impaired participants is improved, but synchronization with presentation content deteriorates due to duration differences
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by segmenting the presentation content into discrete units and pre-calculating corresponding sign language segments with their duration characteristics. Time stamps are assigned in advance to both presentation segments and sign language segments, enabling the synchronization system to anticipate and compensate for duration differences before they occur during real-time playback, thus maintaining alignment while providing real-time accessibility
Solution Approach 2:
The synchronization mechanism dynamically adjusts the timing and presentation of sign language segments based on the actual duration of corresponding presentation content. The system continuously monitors duration differences and modifies the playback timing of sign language segments in real-time, allowing flexible adaptation to varying content lengths while maintaining precise synchronization with the presentation
2Manufacturing precision
If sign language content is synchronized with presentation content, then content alignment is improved, but system complexity increases due to duration matching requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides both the presentation content and sign language content into discrete, manageable segments with assigned time stamps. By segmenting the content, the synchronization task is broken down into simpler unit-level operations rather than requiring complex full-content timing management. Each segment can be independently timed and aligned, reducing overall system complexity while achieving precise content alignment
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces time stamps as an intermediary element that mediates between the presentation content and sign language content. These time stamps serve as a common reference framework that simplifies the synchronization process by providing explicit timing markers that both content types can align to, reducing the complexity of direct duration matching while ensuring accurate content alignment
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques and systems for synchronized accessibility for client devices in an online conference are described. For example, a conferencing system receives presentation content and audio content as part of the online conference from a client device. The conferencing system generates sign language content by converting audio in the audio content to sign language. The conferencing system then synchronizes display of the sign language content with the presentation content in a user interface based on differences in durations of segments of the audio content from durations of corresponding segments of the sign language content. Then, the conferencing system outputs the sign language content as synchronized with the presentation content, such as to a viewer client device that requested the sign language content, or to storage for later access by viewers that request sign language content.