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Audio formatting — presenting structured information aurally

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Abstract

We have developed a computing system that takes a LATEX source as input and speaks it. The system is interactive in that the user can browse the document to listen to the parts that most interest him. Special attention has been given to the speaking of mathematical formulas; in this realm, the system outperforms humans. The system is designed primarily for the sight-impaired, but it has a much broader potential. AFL, the audio analogue of PostScript (Adobe Systems), for paper output is smaller than PostScript and consists of a simple block-structured language in which one writes commands that cause words to be spoken and sounds to be played. AFL is used to vary output parameters such as the speed of the spoken word, the pitch of the voice, and the length of pauses. AFL also synchronizes various sound components. The presence of AFL has allowed us to experiment extensively with various ways of speaking mathematics to arrive at effective audio renderings. The design of AFL is the focus of this paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cambridge Research Lab, Digital Equipment Corporation, One Kendall Square, Building 650, 02139, Cambridge, MA, USA

    T. V. Raman

  2. Department of Computer Science, Cornell University, 4115 Upson Hall, 14853, Ithaca, NY, USA

    David Gries

Authors
  1. T. V. Raman
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  2. David Gries
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Correspondence to T. V. Raman.

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Raman, T.V., Gries, D. Audio formatting — presenting structured information aurally. Multimedia Systems 3, 116–125 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01542863

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01542863

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