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Training Voice Instructions


Unlike conventional remote controls, Accenda may be used “hands-free” to control your TV, VCR etc. without lifting a finger!

The powerful voice recognition capability of Accenda is user-trained for language and accent independence. If you wish to use voice instructions, you will need to teach Accenda to recognize your voice commands before use.
Use of the charging cradle is recommended for hands-free operation to maximize battery life. However, you may find it convenient to hold Accenda in your hand while “training” Accenda to recognize your voice instructions. It is strongly recommended that you hold Accenda the same distance from your mouth while training voice instructions as you expect it to be in actual use.

Keywords

Accenda offers a powerful new voice recognition technology called Word Spotting, in which voice instructions are preceded with a special “keyword.” This allows Accenda to recognize instructions even in the middle of a sentence. Word Spotting prevents Accenda from responding to background conversation or television sound.

If you saw the classic movie 2001, you might remember the computer HAL would only respond to instructions preceded by the word, 'HAL.' Similarly, in the Star Trek series, verbal instructions such as 'Lights On' would only be recognized if preceded by “Computer.” These are examples of Word Spotting operation.

Some suggested Word Spotting keywords are “Accenda,” “Remote Control,” and “Abracadabra.”

Setting up Word Spotting Keywords

To train the Accenda to recognize your keyword:
  1. Be sure the room is reasonably quiet.
  2. Press and release the [SHIFT] button then press the [TRAIN] button
  3. Accenda will prompt you by saying "Say a keyword"
  4. Wait for the Listen button to light up green before you speak.
  5. Say the keyword, for example, "Accenda."
  6. The Accenda will ask you to repeat the instruction.
  7. Say the keyword again.
  8. If the two words match, Accenda will say "keyword assigned."
When Accenda “wakes up” as described in “Using Voice Instructions” the Listen button will light orange to let you know that it is listening for a keyword. Once it recognizes the keyword the button will turn green indicating it is now listening for a instruction. (Note: the Listen button will not light green until you have trained at least one voice instruction).

Training Voice Instructions

You may use a single instruction to initiate either a single button press (for example [V+] to turn up the volume) or a complete sequence of button presses. Some common examples are:

Train Accenda to Turn on the TV

  1. Press the [TRAIN] button
  2. Accenda will say, "Say a word." When the Accenda is ready to listen, [LISTEN] button will light green.
  3. Say a one or two-word voice instruction. For example, "TV Power."
  4. Accenda will ask you to repeat the instruction.
  5. Say the same word again
  6. If the two words match, Accenda will say "Push a button."
  7. Press the first button of the voice instruction ([TV] in this example) within 15 seconds.
  8. Accenda will respond with, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  9. Press the next button in the sequence (in this example, [Power]).
  10. Accenda will say, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  11. Since you have now completed the sequence, press the [TRAIN] button.
  12. Since you have created a sequence of more than one button, Accenda will say, "command assigned."
The voice-instruction TV Power is now assigned to the sequence [TV] [Power], and is equivalent to pressing the [TV] button, then the [Power] button.
To program Accenda to turn your cable box on and off, follow the above procedure, but substitute the [CBL/SAT] button.

Train Accenda to Make the Volume Louder
  1. Press the [TRAIN] button
  2. Accenda will say, "Say a word." The Listen button will light green.
  3. Say "Louder." Accenda will say “repeat.”
  4. Say “Louder” again. Accenda will say "Push a button."
  5. Press [Vol+]. Accenda will say "Button accepted. Push another button."
  6. Press the [TRAIN] button. Accenda will say "Command assigned."

Using this procedure, you can set up both simple or complex sequences. For example, let us now set up a simple sequence to turn the TV to channel 33 to watch Nickelodeon (you will need to substitute the correct channel number for your location):

Train Accenda to Tune to a Specific Channel
  1. Press [TRAIN]. Accenda will say, "Say a word." The Listen button will light green.
  2. Say "Nickelodeon." Accenda will say, "Repeat"
  3. Say "Nickelodeon"again. Accenda will say, "Push a button."
  4. Press [3]. Accenda will say, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  5. Press [3]. Accenda will say, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  6. Press [TRAIN]. Accenda will say, "Command assigned."
You'll never have to remember what the channel number for Nickelodeon is again! Using the same sequence, you may train Accenda to respond to your other favorite channel choices. Remember, you don't have to set up all of your channels — you can still change channels with "Next Channel," and "Previous Channel." Just set up your favorite channels.

You can also set up more complex instructions. For example, with just the single instruction "Play Tape," you can set up the Accenda to switch the television to channel three, turn on the VCR, then press the [play] button on the VCR. The sequence is: [TV] -[0] -[3] - [VCR] - [POWER] - [PLAY].

Teach Accenda A Sequence To Play A Video Tape

  1. Press [TRAIN]. Accenda will say, "Say a word." The Listen button will light green.
  2. Say "Play Tape." Accenda will say "Repeat."
  3. Say "Play Tape"again. Accenda will say "Push a button."
  4. Press [TV] Accenda will respond with, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  5. Press [0] Accenda will respond with, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  6. Press [3] Accenda will respond with, "Button accepted. Push another button."
The above instructions switch the TV to channel three. Now we need to turn on the VCR power and press Play.
  1. Press [VCR]. Accenda will respond with, "Button accepted. Push another button."Press [POWER]. Accenda will respond with, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  2. Press [Play]. Accenda will respond with, "Button accepted. Push another button."
  3. Press [TRAIN]. Accenda will say, "Command assigned."

Using the above procedure, you should train Accenda to respond to your choice of instructions for the different components of your entertainment system.

When you are programming a new voice instruction or keyword, Accenda will ask you to say a word. You must choose a voice instruction that is easy for you to remember and is distinct from any other voice instruction. Accenda will warn you if you speak to soon, or too softly. Accenda will always ask you to repeat the instruction. This is to insure that the instruction was correctly recorded. For example, a background noise that you did not notice may have been recorded as part of the instruction. You may be asked to repeat the instruction several times before Accenda is convinced that it has a good sample. If the instruction or keyword is similar to one already recorded, Accenda will ask you to "Choose a different word."

Following are some guidelines for selecting instructions.

Choosing Voice Instructions

Accenda allows you to associate any voice instruction with any button. While it might be tempting to program a voice instruction for every button, this does not take full advantage of Accenda’s unique capabilities. It is much more useful to program a voice instruction to a complete sequence of buttons which are triggered by one instruction. For example you can use the instruction "HBO" to set your cable box to channel 17 (button sequence : [TV] - [1] - [7] or whatever channel HBO is on your neighborhood). Use instructions that are easy to remember!

Try to choose voice instructions that are distinct from one another. Multi-syllable or two-word instructions work better than short words because Accenda has more information to work with and can better understand the instruction. For example "Quiet," "Silent," and “Muting” are better word choices than "Mute" because they contain more sound information. Also, having instructions of different length will make it easier for Accenda to distinguish them.

“Volume Up” and “Volume Down” are usually better than "Louder" and "Softer" (for many people "louder" sounds a lot like "power." "TV Power" or "power on" are better than just “power.” "Next Channel" and "Previous Channel" will often provide better results than "channel up" and "channel down." See "Suggested Vocabulary" for suggestions.

Also, remember if you make the TV too loud, Accenda may have a hard time hearing your instructions over the sound of the TV.

Changing and Deleting Voice Instructions

From time to time you may wish to delete or change a voice instruction or keyword. For example, you may decide you would prefer a different instruction that is easier to say or remember. Sometimes, if a instruction is not working well, there may have been some background noise when you recorded the instruction, and performance will be improved if you erase, then re-record it.

To delete a voice instruction
  1. Press and release the [ALT] button, then press [TRAIN].
  2. Accenda will respond with “Beep. Say a word.”
  3. Say the instruction you wish to erase.
  4. Accenda will respond with "command cleared."

Canceling A Training Operation

You may elect not to train a instruction after you have pressed the [TRAIN] button, or after beginning to erase a personality. If you do not speak after pressing the [TRAIN] button, Accenda will respond three times with the words "too soft." You have the choice of waiting for Accenda to repeat this phrase or you may simply press any button to cancel the operation.

To erase a keyword
  1. Press and release the [ALT] button, then press [LISTEN].
  2. Accenda will respond with “Beep. Say a keyword.”
  3. Say the keyword you wish to erase.
  4. Accenda will respond with “keyword cleared.”
 


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