Voicemail Visual Prompting via Embedded Audio Features
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional IVR voicemail system interactions are cumbersome and error-prone, requiring users to constantly switch between listening to audio prompts and interacting with their device, leading to discontinuities in visual focus and potential mistakes due to reliance on hearing audio information in noisy environments.
Innovation Solution
Facilitating voicemail interactions by displaying visual information on user devices based on recognized features in audio segments from IVR voicemail systems, including human-perceptible and imperceptible information, to provide visual cues and confirmations, reducing the need for repeated audio-listening and improving user interaction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If users interact with IVR voicemail systems using only audio prompts, then the system can be kept simple and compatible with basic telephony, but users must constantly switch between listening and device interaction, causing discontinuities in visual focus and potential errors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent adds a visual dimension to the traditional audio-only IVR interaction by displaying visual representations of audio prompts and embedded information on the user's device screen. This allows users to see both the audio prompt content and the embedded control information simultaneously, eliminating the need to switch between listening and looking at the device, thereby improving interaction continuity without significantly increasing system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary component that processes audio segments from the IVR system, extracts embedded information, and presents it visually to the user. This intermediary layer translates the audio-based interaction into a dual audio-visual interface, enabling continuous visual focus while maintaining compatibility with existing audio-only IVR systems
2Reliability
If users rely on audio prompts in noisy environments, then the system remains simple to implement, but users experience confusion and errors due to inability to clearly hear audio information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a visual copy of the audio prompt information and embedded control data, displaying it on the user's device screen. This visual copy serves as a backup representation that is independent of audio quality, allowing users to accurately perceive information even when audio is obscured by environmental noise, thereby improving reliability without adding complexity to the core IVR system
Solution Approach 2:
By adding visual display of prompt and control information, the system provides an alternative information channel that is not affected by acoustic environmental factors. Users can read visual information regardless of noise levels, eliminating the harmful effect of environmental noise on information reception accuracy
3Loss of information
If the system provides detailed audio prompts and confirmations, then users can understand the interaction steps, but users must repeatedly move the device between their ear and visual field, causing discontinuities and increasing interaction time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the audio prompt delivery and visual information display into a simultaneous presentation. The user's device displays visual representations of both the audio prompt content and the embedded control information at the same time the audio is played, allowing users to process both auditory and visual information concurrently without needing to move the device back and forth, thereby reducing interaction time while maintaining complete information delivery
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables continuous visual engagement during audio interaction by displaying information that remains visible throughout the audio prompt playback. Users can maintain continuous visual focus on the screen while hearing the audio, eliminating the discontinuities caused by repeated device movement and reducing overall interaction time
4Extent of automation
If the system embeds control information in audio segments, then the system can operate with basic telephony infrastructure, but users cannot perceive this information without specialized processing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing layer that automatically extracts embedded control information from audio segments and presents it visually to the user. This intermediary component handles the complex task of detecting and interpreting embedded information, making it perceptible to users without requiring them to perform specialized detection, thereby maintaining automation while improving information accessibility
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the need for users to manually detect and interpret embedded audio information with automated speech recognition and text-to-speech conversion systems. These automated systems process the embedded control information and present it in visually perceptible form, substituting user cognitive effort with automated processing while maintaining compatibility with basic telephony infrastructure
Data Source
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AI summary
Methods and apparatus to facilitate voicemail interaction by providing visual cues so as to be able to control a voicemail system even without hearing the audio prompts. A method involves a mobile telephone, during a call session with a voicemail system, receiving an audio segment comprising human-inperceptible information from the voicemail system. The human-inperceptible information is affixed to the voice message and the mobile phone performs feature recognition on the voice message and extracts the human-inperceptible information to control what is output on a display to a user, based on a recognized feature in the audio segment. Thus allowing control of a voicemail system even in noisy environments and without having to move the device from the ear simply to press a key.