Speech is one of the most powerful communication tools available. Still, we are only just beginning to understand the actual possibilities offered by spoken language. Especially if we use it in combination with modern speech technology. Then it suddenly becomes possible to discard our keyboard and to dictate a text that will immediately appear on the PC screen. The text may even be corrected through voice communication alone. It will also be possible to ‘write’ and send e-mails while being held up in traffic. In short: speech communication has the potential to make work more efficient and to save a lot of time and money. TNO not only applies this technology, but also helps to develop it further. Speech technology – i.e. speech, speaker, emotion and language recognition – will bring about profound changes in our lives.

Pioneering research

It sounds appealing, operating a PC through voice communication. But from our own experience we know that actually developing an automatic speech recognition tool – like the TNO Speechmill – is a highly complex matter. Speaker recognition is about the automatic identification of a speaker. In the near future this will be a hot item in vital building security. TNO leads the way, as it does in language recognition. This may actually help to save lives if someone calls the alarm number 112 but is not able to address the operator in Dutch. The system will then automatically relay the caller to someone who does speak the language. There are only a few research institutes boasting their own language recognition system. TNO is of of them. All of the above examples are useful applications of speech technology, and we are helping to develop them.