Speech recognition enhancement using beamforming and a genetic algorithm

This paper proposes a genetic algorithm (GA) based beamformer to optimize speech recognition accuracy for a pretrained speech recognizer. The proposed beamformer is designed to tackle the non-differentiable and non-linear natures of speech recognition by employing the GA algorithm to search for the optimal beamformer weights. Specifically, a population of beamformer weights is reproduced by crossover and mutation until the optimal beamformer weights are obtained. Results show that the speech recognition accuracies can be greatly improved even in noisy environments

A Location-based Approach for Distributed Kiosk Design

Electronic kiosk interface design and implementation metrics have been well established. The problem arises when more than one kiosk is utilized in a different location within the same geographic proximity using the same basic informational parameters. This manuscript describes the design implications of a distributed kiosk environment from the standpoint of a field experiment. The log files from 2 kiosks deployed in the same building are analyzed for correlations among kiosk location and information required. The results show that while kiosk systems deployed in “primary entrances” should have a broad view of pertinent information, kiosks deployed in more remote locations should have information pertinent to that area initially presented to the individual. This research provides both confirmatory evidence and a checklist of implementation decision points for those who wish to implement a distributed kiosk architecture

Improving Direction-Giving Through Utilization of an RFID-Enabled Kiosk

This paper presents an RFID-enabled module for an electronic kiosk physical user interface which provides personalized information retrieval. The system builds on research in direction-giving by streamlining the process of the direction-giving phase and minimizing the introduction and closure phases, thereby providing the user with a quicker transaction for personalized information. The RFID technology also provides potential for greater security and privacy for the user of the kiosk system as compared to traditional magnetic strip methods. The developed RFID-enabled system is built on top of a current production informational kiosk utilized for a building directory, which was used for initial testing and evaluation