Miss-Delectable
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Ibm could help deaf communicate with the world - The Inquirer
THE DEAF COULD COMMUNICATE with the hearing using a speech to signing translator developed by IBM.
Called ‘Say it Sign it', it uses a speech recognition module that converts the spoken word into text. That text is then analysed using grammar and syntax rules to create a word order suitable for a translation engine to convert the sentence into on-screen hand-avatar movements that 'speak' in British Sign Language (BSL).
What it doesn't do, yet, is take a signed gesture and convert it into the spoken word. But hand gesture gloves with coloured segments, based on the sections of your hand, which a camera could recognise are being investigated.
Meanwhile the existing system could be used for automatically signing TV broadcasts, just as today you can watch automatic subtitles. Radio broadcasts could also be translated and automated voicemail transcription is another possibility.
Helen Bowyer, an IBM technology services manager, chatted to The INQUIRER about its translation system. In research for three years it could soon be ready to be picked up by a business to help the 55,000 people in the UK whose first language is BSL.
Bowyer said, "The idea is to provide some interpretation for a deaf user for automatic translation into BSL, when an interpreter is not available. There are 250,000 people in the UK who use it."
"They obviously want to communicate in their own language. Interpreters are a limited resource, and sometimes if you bump into somebody in a corridor you won't have arranged for an interpreter to be there."
At the moment Bowyer’s job is working with the deaf community, generating interest, getting feedback and finding out whether it is the right answer and where it could be used best.
THE DEAF COULD COMMUNICATE with the hearing using a speech to signing translator developed by IBM.
Called ‘Say it Sign it', it uses a speech recognition module that converts the spoken word into text. That text is then analysed using grammar and syntax rules to create a word order suitable for a translation engine to convert the sentence into on-screen hand-avatar movements that 'speak' in British Sign Language (BSL).
What it doesn't do, yet, is take a signed gesture and convert it into the spoken word. But hand gesture gloves with coloured segments, based on the sections of your hand, which a camera could recognise are being investigated.
Meanwhile the existing system could be used for automatically signing TV broadcasts, just as today you can watch automatic subtitles. Radio broadcasts could also be translated and automated voicemail transcription is another possibility.
Helen Bowyer, an IBM technology services manager, chatted to The INQUIRER about its translation system. In research for three years it could soon be ready to be picked up by a business to help the 55,000 people in the UK whose first language is BSL.
Bowyer said, "The idea is to provide some interpretation for a deaf user for automatic translation into BSL, when an interpreter is not available. There are 250,000 people in the UK who use it."
"They obviously want to communicate in their own language. Interpreters are a limited resource, and sometimes if you bump into somebody in a corridor you won't have arranged for an interpreter to be there."
At the moment Bowyer’s job is working with the deaf community, generating interest, getting feedback and finding out whether it is the right answer and where it could be used best.