Voice Assistant Third-Party Resource Discovery

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Solution Overview

Problem

Users face difficulties in discovering and utilizing the capabilities of third-party voice-enabled applications and resources with speech-controlled digital personal assistants, as they often require manual exploration of numerous applications to find specific tasks or features, which is time-consuming and inefficient.

Innovation Solution

A voice-controlled digital personal assistant that allows users to discover and manage third-party voice-enabled resources by receiving voice or text inputs to identify capable applications and tasks, practicing voice commands, and configuring options, thereby extending support beyond built-in resources through registration and data structures like XML.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of information

If users manually explore numerous applications to discover voice-enabled resources and their capabilities, then they can find specific tasks or features, but this process is time-consuming and inefficient

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveDiscovery efficiency of voice-enabled resourcesVSAvoidTime required to explore applications
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a digital personal assistant as an intermediary between the user and the vast ecosystem of third-party voice-enabled applications. The assistant maintains structured knowledge about available applications, their capabilities, and voice commands, allowing users to query and discover resources through natural language rather than manually exploring each application. This mediator consolidates information from multiple sources and presents it in an accessible format.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary actions by pre-processing and organizing information about third-party applications, their capabilities, and voice commands into structured data formats. This preparation work is done in advance, so when users have questions, the information is already organized and ready for quick retrieval and presentation, eliminating the need for users to perform time-consuming manual exploration.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Adaptability or versatility

If the digital personal assistant supports only built-in resources, then the system remains simple to manage, but it cannot provide comprehensive voice-enabled capabilities from third-party applications

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveSupport for third-party voice-enabled applicationsVSAvoidSystem management complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies segmentation by separating the management of built-in and third-party voice-enabled applications. The system uses distinct data structures and processing paths for different application sources, allowing independent management and configuration of each category. This modular approach enables the system to handle third-party applications without complicating the core architecture.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The digital personal assistant implements a universal interface and standardized data structures that can accommodate both built-in and third-party applications. By creating a common framework that works with multiple application sources, the system achieves multi-functionality without proportionally increasing complexity. The same core mechanisms handle diverse application types through standardized interactions.

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

3Ease of operation

If users try to learn and remember voice commands for various third-party applications, then they can use the applications effectively, but this requires significant effort and practice time

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveEase of using voice commandsVSAvoidTime required to practice voice commands
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the digital personal assistant provides users with information about available voice commands, their syntax, and usage examples. The system can query and retrieve command information on-demand, presenting it to users in an accessible format. This feedback loop allows users to learn commands through inquiry rather than memorization, reducing practice time while maintaining ease of operation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP3671731B1Discovering capabilities of third-party voice-enabled resources
Publication Date: 2024.03.06 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC
  • EP3671731B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3671731B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3671731B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Techniques are described for discovering capabilities of voice-enabled resources. A voice-controlled digital personal assistant can respond to user requests to list available voice-enabled resources that are capable of performing a specific task using voice input. The voice-controlled digital personal assistant can also respond to user requests to list the tasks that a particular voice-enabled resource can perform using voice input. The voice-controlled digital personal assistant can also support a practice mode in which users practice voice commands for performing tasks supported by voice-enabled resources.