Voice Agent User Identification via Sound Localization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing voice-controlled home agent devices struggle to reliably identify users, as speaker recognition alone may not distinguish between users with high probability, especially in situations where multiple users are present or in noisy environments.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that determine a user's location based on sound data and combine it with user identification information from a mobile device, using techniques such as sound localization, beamforming, and machine learning to accurately identify the user, ensuring secure identification even when speaker recognition is imperfect.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If speaker recognition alone is used for user identification, then the system remains simple, but identification reliability deteriorates in noisy environments or when multiple users are present
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines speaker recognition with sound localization technology to create a hybrid identification system. The agent device determines both the speaker's voice characteristics and spatial position, then correlates this with location data from mobile devices to achieve more reliable user identification than speaker recognition alone could provide.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces location information from mobile devices as an intermediary element to enhance user identification. By using the mobile device's GPS or location data as a mediator between the speaker recognition system and the final identification decision, the system achieves higher reliability without directly increasing the complexity of the core recognition algorithm.
2Measurement precision
If sound localization and mobile device correlation are added to speaker recognition, then user identification accuracy improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the user identification process into distinct functional modules: speaker recognition module, sound localization module, and mobile device correlation module. Each module handles a specific aspect of the identification process, allowing the system to achieve high accuracy through coordinated operation of specialized components rather than a single complex system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the agent device multi-functional by integrating voice processing, acoustic spatial analysis, and location data correlation capabilities into a single system. This universal approach allows the device to perform multiple functions (identification, localization, verification) that collectively improve measurement precision while sharing common hardware resources.
3Reliability
If multiple identification methods are combined, then reliability in multi-user scenarios improves, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by continuously tracking and storing the correlation between mobile device locations and registered users before identification is needed. When a user speaks, the system can quickly retrieve pre-computed location-user mappings rather than performing full correlation analysis in real-time, reducing processing time while maintaining high reliability in multi-user scenarios.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for accurate user identification by correlating sound data with location information from mobile devices, enhancing reliability and security in voice-controlled systems, especially in scenarios where multiple users are present.
Implementation Method 1
determine a location of a user, based on sound data representing speech of the user
Data Source
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AI summary
An apparatus has circuitry which determines a location of a user, based on sound data representing speech of the user, and identifies the user based on the determined location of the user and user identification information and location information received from a mobile device.