METHOD AND DEVICE FOR OUTPUTTING AN AUDIBLE VOICE MESSAGE IN AN ELEVATOR SYSTEM

Abstract

A method and a device for outputting an audible voice message in an elevator system includes at least the following steps: transmitting the content of the voice message as a text file to be output via the Internet to a web-based text-to-speech service provider; receiving an audio file from the service provider via the Internet, the audio file having been created based upon the transmitted text file to be output; and outputting the audio file in the elevator system as the audible voice message. If necessary, the text file to be output can be obtained by translating a source language text file into a target language beforehand with the aid of a translation service provider. The targeted use of online service providers allows the outlay needed to realize voice announcements in an elevator system at different use locations with different languages to be greatly reduced.

Claims

1-11. (canceled)

12. A method for outputting an audible voice message in an elevator system, the method comprising the steps: storing a plurality of different voice message text files in a component of the elevator system; selecting one of the text files as a voice message to be output; transmitting a content of the selected text file via an Internet connection to a web-based text-to-speech service provider; receiving an audio file from the text-to-speech service provider via the Internet connection, the audio file having been created by the text-to-speech service provider based upon the transmitted selected text file content; and outputting the audio file, when received from the text-to-speech service provider, in the elevator system as an audible voice message.

13. The method according to claim 12 including, prior to performing the step of transmitting to the text-to-speech service provider, transmitting the content of the selected text file as a source language text file via the Internet connection to a web-based translation service provider with information related to a target language, receiving a translated text file from the translation service provider via the Internet connection, the translated text file having been created by the translation service provider by a machine translation of the transmitted source language text file into the target language, and using a content of the translated text file as the content of the selected text file transmitted to the text-to-speech service provider.

14. The method according to claim 12 wherein the plurality of different voice message text files is stored in the elevator system component and contents of the stored text files are transmitted to the text-to-speech service provider before the elevator system is put into operation, and an audio file associated with each of the text files received from the text-to-speech service provider is temporarily stored in the component or in a different component of the elevator system before being output in the elevator system as an audible voice message.

15. The method according to claim 14 including updating the stored audio files at regular time intervals by retransmitting the contents of the text files to the text-to-speech service provider and receiving updated audio files from the text-to-speech service provider.

16. A computer program product comprising non-transitory computer-readable instructions that, when executed on a computer-controlled device, instruct the device to execute or control the method according to claim 12.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having a computer program product according to claim 16 stored thereon.

18. A device for outputting an audible voice message in an elevator system, the device being adapted to carry out or control the method according to claim 12 using an output device.

19. A device for outputting an audible voice message in an elevator system, the device comprising: a first data interface transmitting via an Internet connection to a web-based text-to-speech service provider a content of a text file representing a voice message to be output; a second data interface receiving an audio file from the text-to-speech service provider via the Internet connection, the audio file having been created by the text-to-speech service provider based upon the transmitted text file content; and an output device outputting the received audio file in the elevator system as an audible voice message.

20. The device according to claim 19 including a third data interface transmitting via the Internet connection the content of the text file as a source language text file to a web-based translation service provider with information relating to a target language, and a fourth data interface receiving a translated text file from the translation service provider via the Internet connection, the translated text file having been created by the translation service provider by machine translation of the transmitted source language text file content into the specified target language, wherein a content of the translated text file is the text file content transmitted by the first data interface.

21. The device according to claim 19 including a gateway server adapted for digital transmission of files via the Internet connection, an emergency call device adapted to set up voice communication between a person in the elevator system and a control center in an emergency situation, the emergency call device being adapted to transmit analog audio signals to the output device, and a digital-to-analog signal converter adapted to convert a digital audio file received via the gateway server into an analog audio signal and forward the analog audio signal to the output device.

22. The device according to claim 19 including a gateway server adapted for digital transmission of files via the Internet connection, an elevator controller adapted to control functions of components of the elevator system and digitally transmit files to the output device, wherein the output device is part of a control panel and the control panel includes a digital-to-analog signal converter adapted to convert a digital audio file that was received via the gateway server and forwarded to the control panel via the elevator controller into an analog audio signal to be forwarded to the output device.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0060] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates components of a device for outputting audible voice messages in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0061] The figure is merely schematic and is not to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0062] FIG. 1 shows an elevator system 1 with a device 3 for outputting audible voice messages in the elevator system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0063] The elevator system 1 has an elevator car 5 and a counterweight 7, which are connected to one another via a common suspension element 9 and can be moved by a drive machine 11 by moving the suspension element 9 within an elevator shaft 13. In the elevator car 5, a car control panel 15 is provided which, among other things, has control buttons 17 and a loudspeaker 19. By actuating one of the control buttons 17, a passenger can enter a desired destination floor and this information can be transmitted to an elevator controller 21, which can then control the drive machine 11 in a suitable manner in order to move the elevator car 5 to the destination floor.

[0064] In addition to visual information which is usually to be provided about the current state of the elevator system 1 and in particular about a current or desired position of the elevator car 5, provision can also be made to communicate the current status of the elevator car 1 to a passenger in an audibly perceptible manner.

[0065] Traditionally, voice announcements in different languages had to be recorded with the help of specialized translators in each country in which the elevator system was to be used. The translated announcements then had to be checked and integrated into the product structure of the elevator system. The audio files had to be numbered according to a specific overview structure. During an order process, the correct set of audio files had to be ordered and then stored in a storage medium. The storage medium was then inserted into the hardware of the elevator system during the installation and customer-specific adaptation of the elevator system. Based on the numbered audio files, an audio player in the elevator system could then play the corresponding audio files. The entire process described was very complex, both in terms of the work that was necessary to prepare and translate the voice messages and in terms of keeping the hardware available for this purpose.

[0066] In addition, it could happen again and again that users of the elevator system requested that some words of voice messages should be changed or that entire announcements which were, for example, incorrectly pronounced, should be modified. The process described above for this is labor-intensive and takes a lot of time.

[0067] In order to remedy the said disadvantages, therefore, a new approach is described in which audible voice messages can be generated and output in an elevator system in a largely automated manner.

[0068] For example, in this case the elevator controller 21 may be able to recognize situations in which certain voice messages should be output. Furthermore, when planning or manufacturing the elevator system 1, it can already be determined which contents of voice messages should be output in which situations.

[0069] The voice messages can initially be transmitted as a text file 35 to be output via the Internet 23 to a web-based text-to-speech service provider 25. For this purpose, the elevator system 1 can use a gateway server 29, for example, which can communicate with the elevator controller 21, for example. The gateway server 29 can also be used to implement other functions. For example, the elevator system can communicate with a monitoring center 41 via the gateway server 29. With the aid of the gateway server 29, the elevator system 1 can transmit a text file 35 to be output to the text-to-speech service provider via the Internet 23. For this purpose, the gateway server 29 has, for example, one or more data interfaces 33 for connection with the Internet 23.

[0070] A text file can already be held in the elevator system 1 as a text file 35 to be output, i.e., for example, as text in a language that is customary at the location where the elevator system 1 is installed.

[0071] Alternatively, the text file can also reproduce the content of the voice message to be output in another way. In particular, the text file can be formulated as a source language text file 39 in another language.

[0072] In this case, the text file 35 to be output can be generated in advance in that the source language text file 39 is also transmitted via the Internet 23 to a special web-based translation service provider 27 by which, after translation of the source language text file 39, transmits the text file 35 to be output back to the elevator system 1 in a specified target language via the Internet 23. The gateway server 29 with its interfaces 33 can also be used for this function if necessary.

[0073] The text-to-speech service provider 25 can then, based on the received text file 35 to be output, generate an audio file 37 which, when played, reproduces the content of the voice message contained in the text file 35 in an audible, i.e. aurally perceptible manner. This audio file 37 can be transmitted back to the elevator system 1 via the Internet 23 and the gateway server 29.

[0074] There, the audio file 37 can be passed, for example via the elevator controller 21, to a digital-to-analog signal converter 31 contained in the car control panel 15 and converted there into an analog signal. Such an analog signal can then be output, for example, via the loudspeaker 19 in the car control panel 15, which thus serves as output device 20.

[0075] Alternatively, the audio file 37 can be output with the aid of an emergency call device 43. The emergency call device 43 usually serves to be able to establish communication with a control center 45. A digital-to-analog signal converter 47, in which the digital audio file 37 can be converted into an analog signal so that it can then be output via the loudspeaker 19 as an output device 20, can be provided in the emergency call device 43 or separately therefrom.

[0076] In other words, an idea on which the method described here and the device provided for its implementation are based can be seen in the use of a permanent online connection, which can be provided by a gateway server 29 of the elevator system 1 and enables a connection to the Internet and various services offered there in order, if necessary, to download previously translated voice announcements as audio files in a locally customary language using a text-to-speech service provider. Such a text-to-speech service provider 25 is also sometimes referred to as a web speech API. For example, Google, IBM and others offer a text-to-speech API (see e.g. https://cloud. google. com/text-to-speech/docs/basics and https://www.ibm.com/watson/developercloud/text-to-speech/api/v1/curl.html?curl; as of October 2018). Text-to-speech service providers 25 typically offer speech recognition (speech to text) as well as speech synthesis (text to speech).

[0077] For embodiments of the method described herein, the contents of voice messages can be stored as text files, for example in the elevator controller 21 or the car control panel 15, in a common language, for example English. They can then be translated into a local language by being transmitted to a translation service provider 27 and having them translated there. Such a translation service provider 27 is offered on the Internet, for example by Google (see e.g. https://translate.google.com/; as at October 2018). The result of the translation can be synthesized into speech using the Web Speech API and then stored as an audio file 37 in a local storage medium in the elevator system 1.

[0078] The method presented enables a large number of translated voice announcements with the correct local language and possibly even with the use of a correct accent (for example British English or American English).

[0079] Furthermore, an update mechanism with regular updates can be implemented, which makes it possible to replace the voice announcements, for example in the event that the pronunciation of some words has improved over time.

[0080] The presented method for outputting audible voice messages can considerably simplify the effort involved in implementing voice announcements in an elevator system, enabling both the amount of work to be reduced and the amount of time to be shortened.

[0081] In other words, through the targeted use of online service providers, the effort required to be able to implement voice announcements in an elevator system at different locations with different languages can be significantly reduced.

[0082] Finally, it should be noted that terms such as “have,” “comprising,” etc. do not exclude any other elements or steps, and terms such as “an” or “a” do not exclude a multiplicity. Furthermore, it should be noted that features or steps that have been described with reference to one of the above embodiments may also be used in combination with other features or steps of other embodiments described above.

[0083] In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, the present invention has been described in what is considered to represent its preferred embodiment. However, it should be noted that the invention can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described without departing from its spirit or scope.