Fonix Speech FAQ
Games
Fonix VoiceIn® Game Edition is our voice command software available for cross-platform game developers who want to employ speech interfaces in games.
Now creators of cross-platform games can use the same voice command software on multiple platforms:
- Nintendo Wii™
- Xbox®
- Xbox 360®
- PlayStation® 2
- PlayStation® 3
- PC
Fonix VoiceIn software is optimized for game development where memory and processing power are at a premium. Product editions include VoiceIn Standard Edition, VoiceIn Game Edition, VoiceIn Karaoke Edition, and VoiceIn Phonetic Edition.
Fonix VoiceIn voice command software is also available to game developers in multiple languages:
- US and UK English
- German
- French
- Spanish
- Italian
- Korean
- Japanese
Assistive market
Fonix speech solutions make everyday life a lot easier for people who are blind or have visual, vocal or mobility impairments. FonixTalk is the assistive industry's premier TTS engine, offering nine highly intelligible voices and multiple languages. Many users rely on FonixTalk to read their email, the daily news or other documents, or to function as their voice to the outside world. In addition, we have expanded our solutions for the assistive market to incorporate the full line of Fonix TTS offerings, including high-quality concatenated TTS and high-recognition-rate ASR. These offerings meet assistive users' needs whether someone has a learning disability requiring a more natural voice or a disabled user who requires voice-activated input methods.
Language learning
Fonix speech solutions are particularly useful for non-English speakers who are learning the language. In the speech-enabled language learning market, we have capitalized on FonixTalk's small memory footprint and high intelligibility and Fonix VoiceIn's high-recognition-rate capabilities. Speech-enabled language learning is an emerging market, especially in Asia. Manufacturers are selling handheld electronic dictionaries that allow individuals to speak a word in their native language (like Korean) and have the text read back to them in English. Educational electronic dictionary devices are growing in popularity in China and are expected to exceed a market volume of over 500,000 units per quarter. These channels expand our ability to serve millions of individuals while generating revenue on already existing technologies that can be diverse in their final application. Our goal is to become the primary supplier of speech solutions for OEMs providing language learning devices and systems.
PDA, PC and electronic devices
Fonix speech solutions apply the intuitive use of voice interfaces to tasks that users perform everyday. Many of these solutions are appropriate for multiple markets -- assistive, mobile and wireless, and business and home users. Fonix technologies enable users to interact naturally with electronic devices. With Fonix speech solutions, users may listen to documents of any length, have email read aloud, access programs and launch applications by speaking.
Fonix VoiceDial is a totally interactive, hands-free software application for Windows Mobile Pocket PC Phone Edition devices and Smartphones, which enables users to place calls by number or by contact. Users simply speak the number or name to call, and VoiceDial does the rest.
Fonix VoiceCentral packages the convenience of VoiceDial with additional voice-enabled capabilities. Users may launch or close applications; listen to email; reply to messages; access calendar, tasks and Internet; and dial contacts with VoiceDial's superior interface.
Fonix ConnectMe is a speech recognition telephone attendant/operator that provides an efficient, professional means of routing incoming, outgoing and internal calls. Customers and employees dial one number, speak the name of the person or department they wish to reach, and are instantly connected.
With Fonix speech SDKs, developers can quickly and easily integrate robust speech interfaces into embedded products such as:
- Medical instruments
- Translators
- Language learning devices
- Mobile phones and PDAs
- Data collection devices
- Entertainment systems
- Appliances
- Games, toys and education devices
Fonix VoiceIn™ ASR
Integrating Fonix VoiceIn into applications and devices allows developers to add command-and-control functions that respond to continuous speech, enabling users to speak naturally to devices. Fonix proprietary neural network technology does not require the user to train the system to recognize his or her speech (a.k.a. speaker independent). Because of the nature of the technology, noisy environments have less impact on Fonix ASR, providing a higher degree of accuracy and a wider array of applications and device usage. Unlike other speech interfaces that are "shrunk-to-fit" embedded devices, Fonix ASR was specifically designed for use limited-memory devices --- "built-to-fit" when developers have memory and MIPs constraints.
FonixTalk™ TTS
FonixTalk is the smallest footprint, full-featured, multi-language TTS engine on the market. No other TTS solution can provide the same flexibility, feature set and voice quality. FonixTalk is the best TTS solution for limited-memory devices or applications, making the user's experience more functional, convenient and enjoyable. FonixTalk adds a high degree of intelligibility to provide the best overall set of TTS voices available. FonixTalk uses a vocal tract model based on a new High Level Synthesis (HL Syn) technology to create a more natural voice -- one that includes inflections, intonations, pauses and changes in pitch, speed and emphasis. The result is speech that's easier to understand. FonixTalk is today's most intelligible TTS technology on the market
We provide telephony and server-based solutions for automated phone directory and database information systems. We believe that traditional operator systems and other means of accessing information are becoming antiquated. Significant employee and personal time is lost trying to access information through keypad directories or because calls are blocked after hours. Also, information stored or transferred through servers, PBX or databases may not easily be accessed through non-integrated platforms. Voice-automated systems are capable of integrating these markets and meeting customer expectations of competitive costs and easy installation with minimal change to their existing infrastructure and a simple user interface.
Fonix speech solutions for telephony and server systems include:
Fonix ConnectMeTM
Fonix ConnectMe is a unique voice-automated telephone operator that provides an efficient, professional means of routing incoming, outgoing and internal calls. Customers and employees dial one number, speak the name of a person or department and are quickly connected to the person or department they want to reach. Whether during peak business hours or late at night, ConnectMe's 24-hour high-tech customer service capabilities ensure that all calls reach their intended destinations. By deploying ConnectMe, businesses increase employee efficiency and decrease the amount of time receptionists and office managers spend answering phones. ConnectMe handles all incoming calls simultaneously, so callers are never put on hold. It eliminates the annoyance of remembering and dialing extension numbers or looking up extensions in a phone directory. Employees can create, maintain and access their own phone lists, and can customize the delivery of calls. For example, while at lunch, employees can route calls to their cell phones or pre-define ConnectMe for weekends and holidays by creating a weekday schedule. To our knowledge, no other company in this niche has emerged with a competitive product with our unique features, functionality and price.
511 Traffic Information System
In July 2000, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) assigned "511" as the number for nationwide access to traveler information. 511 was designated as a free service and when fully implemented will cover the majority of roads in the U.S., helping travelers avoid congested routes and safety hazards. By dialing 5-1-1, callers can access information about route-specific weather and road conditions. Fonix and partner Meridian Environmental Technology, Inc., a leading provider of weather forecasting and analysis services in the Midwest, provide a speech interface 511 system in North Dakota. The system uses Fonix ASR technology to give callers the easiest and safest interface to getting road condition and weather information. The caller just asks for information on a specific section of highway, and the application using Fonix's speech interface queries a database for that highway and speaks the information from the database to the caller. Current markets in development include Nebraska, Montana and South Dakota, with other states scheduled to deploy the system in the near future.