[EAS] Lexicon Customization, (was: Why we need Text-To-Speech)

[Skinner, Jim]

Harold & Ed:

Thank you for helping me (us) understand TTS better.  If each
manufacturer has lexicon customization information available, that is
almost as good as one standard.  

When the FCC allows Text-to-Speech (TTS) at the local level (speaking in
faith) it would be good for each of the manufacturers to have
information and/or training available to customize pronunciations.  That
way SECC/LECCs could develop guidelines for broadcast and cable in each
of our areas.  

Is the EAS-CAP Industry Group (ECIG) encouraging Lexicon training?  Is
there anyway one class could cover all the brands?  No doubt such a move
would help the FCC be more comfortable with TTS. 

Good Discussion

  -- 
Jim Skinner CPBE CBNT
Neb EAS SECC Chair
 

-----Original Message-----
From: eas-bounces at radiolists.net [mailto:eas-bounces at radiolists.net] On
Behalf Of Ed Czarnecki

Similarly, the DASDEC and R189 OneNet provide a standard TTS voice, and
two optional additional voices (male and female).  Each specific voice
has a lexicon record that allows some customization of word and
abbreviation pronunciation,  But, as was previously stated, lexicon
guidelines (maybe not even files, but guidelines) would be at a state,
regional or national level.

This is all to say, there are some broad approaches and standards that
may already be in place in the CAP EAS manufacturer community, even if
it is organic or coincidental.  Identifying these commonalities may be
something that a group (ECIG? FCC CSRIC?  Other?) could do to give
comfort to the FCC about quality and reliability of TTS in CAP EAS
devices.  Not that TTS is perfect, of course.  But, as ECIG noted in our
ex parte filing with the FCC, it is at a minimum a necessary fallback
should the human/synthetic voice audio file be absent or unusable.

-----Original Message-----
From: eas-bounces at radiolists.net [mailto:eas-bounces at radiolists.net] On
Behalf Of Harold Price

At 04:59 PM 3/19/2012, Alex Hartman wrote:

>But i'm sure that 1 year old box can be updated to allow user lexicons,

>right Harold? ;)

Yes.  I know you are kidding, but here's as good a place as any to say:

Click Cap Settings on the ENDEC's home page, then retrieve or restore
lexicon.  You'd add things like:
"9-1-1" = "nine one one"
"911" = "nine one one"

There is a second internal lexicon that Sage sets, where global
corrections are placed, such as "endec" = "\fE-n-d-`E-kh"

This is not to say that each and every radio station is responsible for
setting these. The lexicon files should be developed at the country or
state level, and made available for downloading.  Exactly how this gets
done, and who will do it will be different for each area.

Harold