Voice converting apparatus and method for converting user voice thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9564119-B2
Application number	US-201314051836-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 11, 2013
Priority date	Oct 12, 2012
Publication date	Feb 7, 2017
Grant date	Feb 7, 2017

Abstract

A voice converting apparatus and a voice converting method are provided. The method of converting a voice using a voice converting apparatus including receiving a voice from a counterpart, analyzing the voice and determining whether the voice abnormal, converting the voice into a normal voice by adjusting a harmonic signal of the voice in response to determining that the voice is abnormal, and transmitting the normal voice.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of converting a voice using a voice converting apparatus, the method comprising:
receiving a voice from a counterpart, by the voice converting apparatus;
extracting at least one pitch element from the voice by a parameter extractor of the voice converting apparatus;
analyzing, by a parameter analyzer of the voice converting apparatus, the at least one pitch element to determine whether a sub-harmonic element exists between a first harmonic element and a second harmonic element of the voice;
in response to determining that the sub-harmonic element exists, determining whether the voice is abnormal by the parameter analyzer by comparing a value of the sub-harmonic element with a predetermined value; and
in response to the voice determined to be abnormal, adjusting a conversion intensity of the voice by emphasizing the first harmonic element and the second harmonic element of the voice and reducing the sub-harmonic element, by the voice converting apparatus, so as to convert the voice determined as being abnormal into a normal voice.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
determining that the voice is abnormal in response to a Harmonic-to-Noise Ratio (HNR) of the voice being greater than a predetermined noise threshold.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the adjusting comprises:
removing the sub-harmonic element from the voice.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the adjusting comprises:
adjusting the voice by generating a harmonic signal in a high frequency band of the voice.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the adjusting is triggered on or off according to a user input.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
displaying a user interface configured to receive a user input for adjusting the conversion intensity of the voice; and
setting the conversion intensity according to the user input received through the user interface,
wherein the adjusting comprises adjusting the voice based on the set conversion intensity.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
storing information indicating that the voice is abnormal in response to determining that the voice is abnormal.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the adjusting comprises:
adjusting the voice in response to receiving information indicating that the voice is abnormal.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
determining the voice is normal by the parameter analyzer in response to determining that the sub-harmonic element does not exist, or in response to determining that the sub-harmonic element exists and the value of the sub-harmonic element being lesser than and equal to the predetermined value; and
outputting the voice immediately in response to determining that the voice is normal.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
determining that the voice is abnormal in response to a ratio of a first energy level of the first harmonic element to a second energy level of the second harmonic element being out of a predetermined range.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
determining that the voice is abnormal in response to a combination of a grade score, a roughness score, a breathiness score, an asthenia score, and a strain score of the voice being out of a predetermined range.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the determining comprises:
determining that the received voice is abnormal in response to a value of the extracted at least one pitch element is more than twice as high as a predetermined pitch value of a normal voice.

13. A voice converting apparatus, comprising:
a receiver configured to receive a voice from a counterpart;
a parameter extractor configured to extract at least one pitch element from the voice; and
a parameter analyzer configured to analyze the at least one pitch element to determine whether a sub-harmonic element exists between a first harmonic element and a second harmonic element of the voice, and in response to determining that the sub-harmonic element exists, determine whether the voice is abnormal by comparing a value of the sub-harmonic element with a predetermined value; and
a normal voice converter configured, in response to the voice determined to be abnormal, to adjust a conversion intensity of the voice by emphasizing the first harmonic element and the second harmonic element of the voice and reducing the sub-harmonic element so as to convert the voice determined as being abnormal into a normal voice.

14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the parameter analyzer is further configured to determine that the voice is abnormal in response to a Harmonic-to-Noise Ratio (HNR) of the voice being greater than a predetermined noise threshold.

15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the normal voice converter is further configured to remove the sub-harmonic element from the voice.

16. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the normal voice converter is configured to adjust the voice by generating a harmonic signal in a high frequency band of the voice.

17. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , further comprising:
an input unit configured to receive a user input,
wherein the user input triggers the normal voice converter to adjust the voice.

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , further comprising:
a display configured to display a user interface configured to receive a user input for adjusting the conversion intensity of the voice,
wherein the normal voice converter is further configured to adjust the voice based on the conversion intensity that is set according to the user input.

19. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , further comprising:
a storage configured to store information indicating that the voice is abnormal in response to determining that the voice is abnormal.

20. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19 , wherein the normal voice converter is further configured to adjust the voice in response to receiving information indicating that the voice is abnormal.

21. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the parameter analyzer is further configured to determine that the voice is normal in response to determining that the sub-harmonic element does not exist, or in response to determining the sub-harmonic element exists and the value of the sub-harmonic element being lesser than and equal to the predetermined value, and
wherein the apparatus further comprises a voice output unit configured to output the voice immediately in response to the voice being determined to be normal.

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Ryu Jong-Youb
• Lee Yoon-Jae
• Kim Seoung-Hun
• Kim Young-Tae

Classifications

• G10L21/0364 Primary

  for improving intelligibility · CPC title

• G10L2021/02165

  Two microphones, one receiving mainly the noise signal and the other one mainly the speech signal · CPC title

• G10L13/02 Primary

  Methods for producing synthetic speech; Speech synthesisers · CPC title

• G10L21/0232

  Processing in the frequency domain · CPC title

• G10L25/90

  Pitch determination of speech signals · CPC title