TVs that answer back....

+01: UK's First Inbuilt Text-To-Speech TVs Hit The Shelves.

Electronics manufacturer Panasonic has built text-to-speech

functionality into 30 of its television models, designed

specifically to help blind and visually impaired users, making

them the first such TVs to become available on the UK general

market.

After switching on the function during installation, text-to-

speech will be present over a wide range of tasks in the

televisions, including speaking the channel number and name

of a programme when switching channels; the time that a

programme begins and ends; and whether other accessibility

features such as audio description are available for a

programme.

Text-to-speech assistance is provided on connecting to a Wi-Fi

network through the TV, and users can also to scroll through a

TV's electronic programme guide and listen to the list of

programmes, timing information and a synopsis of each

programme.

Speaking to E-Access Bulletin, Nigel Prankard, IPTV and

digital TV solutions centre manager at Panasonic, said a lower

implementation cost of text-to-speech in recent times had

enabled the company to offer the functionality.

"If you asked us to introduce text-to-speech [into our

televisions] two years ago, the extra cost would have been

significant, but with the onset of activity in the IT world, the

implementation costs of text-to-speech have come down,

enabling us to put it into the TVs without passing on the cost to

customers", Prankard said.

Panasonic worked with the Royal National Institute of Blind

People to build the text-to-speech function, undertaking user-

testing with a prototype before gathering feedback and making

improvements to the final design.

Prankard said he hopes to further improve the functionality

and add more features if there is positive feedback from the

initial models, possibly looking at how text-to-speech could

work for internet-connected TVs. "The W3C [World Wide

Web Consortium] are trying to make more regulatory

requirements for web accessibility, so we may have to think

how TVs could handle [web accessibility requirements] if we

give them the full ability to go to websites", he said.

Brian


--
Brian Gaff -
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On 31/03/2012 09:05, Brian Gaff wrote:
+01: UK's First Inbuilt Text-To-Speech TVs Hit The Shelves.

Electronics manufacturer Panasonic has built text-to-speech

functionality into 30 of its television models,

I wonder how many Apple patents they had to pay for?

--
Adrian C

Adrian C wrote:

I wonder how many Apple patents they had to pay for?

Mind you, text-to-speech goes back donkey's years. I remember
listening to it 20 years ago at BT's R&D place and it was really good.
Already they were using a real human voice which had been processed in
some way to extract the phonemes and then reconstruct the new words.

And of course synthesised voices like Stephen Hawkins uses go back even
further.

--
SteveT

None, after all the goodmans box has been around for some years now, and
ththey probably bought the rights or the rights were owned by rnib.
Personally I'm a bit orried by the first part of the surname of the
Panasonic bloke. It is after all nearly April 1.
Hope its true though

Brian

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Brian Gaff -
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"Adrian C" wrote in message
...
On 31/03/2012 09:05, Brian Gaff wrote:
+01: UK's First Inbuilt Text-To-Speech TVs Hit The Shelves.

Electronics manufacturer Panasonic has built text-to-speech

functionality into 30 of its television models,

I wonder how many Apple patents they had to pay for?

--
Adrian C

Yes, Back in the 80s I had an add on for the ZX Spectrum which spoke.
This is what makes it all so ridiculous that it is not an option on all
devices. It would be particularly useful on washing machines I feel.

The current crop are totally unusable by anyone with eyesight problems

Of course talking Videos and clock radios were made by Sharp in the 80s, but
never caught on as the voices were rather naff and sounded like lecturers
whos first language was Japanese.

Many talking watches now are around in places like Argos as well.
Incidentally, the male voice in that daft apple advert is actually called
Daniel and was used for some years as the voice of engineering announcements
on London Underground. I have him on my pc.
Brian

--
Brian Gaff -
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in the display name may be lost.
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"Steve Thackery" wrote in message
...
Adrian C wrote:

I wonder how many Apple patents they had to pay for?

Mind you, text-to-speech goes back donkey's years. I remember listening
to it 20 years ago at BT's R&D place and it was really good. Already they
were using a real human voice which had been processed in some way to
extract the phonemes and then reconstruct the new words.

And of course synthesised voices like Stephen Hawkins uses go back even
further.

--
SteveT

Brian Gaff wrote:

It is after all nearly April 1.

True, but the description is very credible, and utterly
uncontroversial. As I said, text-to-speech is an ancient technology
and well sorted. Technically it would be trivial to apply it to a TV -
it's presumably just the need to shave every cent of the costs that
they haven't done it years ago. (Also, presumably, because there was
no real demand for it.)

--
SteveT

On Sat, 31 Mar 2012 09:26:01 +0100, Adrian C
wrote:

On 31/03/2012 09:05, Brian Gaff wrote:
+01: UK's First Inbuilt Text-To-Speech TVs Hit The Shelves.

Electronics manufacturer Panasonic has built text-to-speech

functionality into 30 of its television models,

I wonder how many Apple patents they had to pay for?

Text to speech predates Apple by decades. I had a text to speech
program on paper tape that ran on a Leo 3 in 1970. I've no idea who
wrote it.

Steve

--
Neural Network Software. http://www.npsl1.com
EasyNN-plus. Neural Networks plus. http://www.easynn.com
SwingNN. Forecast with Neural Networks. http://www.swingnn.com
JustNN. Just Neural Networks. http://www.justnn.com

Yes if you want to hear it, listen to BBC In Touch for Tuesday on I player.
The voice is I think called Serena.
Brian

--
Brian Gaff -
Note:- In order to reduce spam, any email without 'Brian Gaff'
in the display name may be lost.
Blind user, so no pictures please!
"Steve Thackery" wrote in message
...
Brian Gaff wrote:

It is after all nearly April 1.

True, but the description is very credible, and utterly uncontroversial.
As I said, text-to-speech is an ancient technology and well sorted.
Technically it would be trivial to apply it to a TV - it's presumably just
the need to shave every cent of the costs that they haven't done it years
ago. (Also, presumably, because there was no real demand for it.)

--
SteveT

no real demand for it.)

But with ageing populations in so many countries there may now be a
demand for it which will grow and grow - to be followed perhaps by
demand for:

(i) voice recognition so eg I don't have to try to diagnose over the
phone why there's no sound from the TV, there's no signal etc etc (all -
so far - mistakes with the remotes); and then
(ii) simple AI software so the TV will respond back when I shout at it
and agree that the BBC is a biased........
--
Robin
reply to address is (meant to be) valid

Chuckle, a bit like that so called inteligent interface for Iphones on
adverts at the moment. The voice on that is from the same stable as the one
Panasonic are using.
I wonder if any of the sets with inbuilt freesat have the voice.that would
be the only game in town if they have.
Brian

--
Brian Gaff -
Note:- In order to reduce spam, any email without 'Brian Gaff'
in the display name may be lost.
Blind user, so no pictures please!
"Robin" wrote in message
...
no real demand for it.)

But with ageing populations in so many countries there may now be a demand
for it which will grow and grow - to be followed perhaps by demand for:

(i) voice recognition so eg I don't have to try to diagnose over the phone
why there's no sound from the TV, there's no signal etc etc (all - so
far - mistakes with the remotes); and then
(ii) simple AI software so the TV will respond back when I shout at it and
agree that the BBC is a biased........
--
Robin
reply to address is (meant to be) valid