Connected Home Voice Routing for Multi-User Privacy

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Solution Overview

Problem

In a connected home environment, existing technologies face challenges in managing multiple user devices and voice profiles securely, leading to difficulties in personalized content delivery and maintaining user privacy when multiple users interact with shared devices.

Innovation Solution

A multi-user device system that allows authorized users to share their voice profiles, enabling the system to determine the correct user account and output device for voice requests based on vocal characteristics and configuration settings, while maintaining privacy through secure containers and different request domains.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If multiple users share a connected home environment with voice profiles, then personalized content delivery is improved, but user privacy and security are compromised

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepersonalized content deliveryVSAvoiduser privacy exposure
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments voice profile data into separate secure containers, each associated with a specific user account. The multi-user device accesses only the relevant user's voice profile through their unique identifier, preventing exposure of other users' private voice data while enabling personalized responses for each user.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intermediary authentication mechanism that verifies user identity through voice biometrics before granting access to personalized content. This intermediary layer (voice verification system) mediates between the user and the content delivery system, ensuring that only authorized users access their own personalized content while maintaining security.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Ease of operation

If voice profiles are shared across multiple devices, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevoice profile sharingVSAvoidsecure container management
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system creates lightweight references (copies) of user identifiers rather than duplicating entire voice profiles across devices. Each multi-user device stores a reference to the user's secure container location, allowing quick access to voice profiles without the complexity of managing full profile copies, thus maintaining ease of operation while reducing device complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The patent moves voice profile storage to a cloud-based secure container system, transitioning from local device storage to a remote dimensional space. This allows multiple devices to access voice profiles without storing them locally, reducing device complexity while maintaining ease of operation through cloud-based centralized management.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Data Source

PatentEP3956761B1Multi-user devices in a connected home environment
Publication Date: 2024.02.07 APPLE INC
  • EP3956761B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3956761B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3956761B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A device implementing a system for providing content in response to a request includes a processor configured to receive a voice request for content associated with a home environment, the voice request corresponding to a user account, and determine, based on the voice request, not to provide the content via the device. The processor is further configured to select, in response to the determining, a second device from among multiple devices associated with the home environment, wherein the selecting is based at least in part on configuration settings associated with the home environment, and provide for the second device to output the content based on a profile of the user account.