NUANCE COMMUNICATIONS, INC. (Burlington, MA)

Method, computer program product, or computer system that calculates the time delay between first and second audio signals that are received by first and second audio detection systems. In a monitored area, the first and second audio detection system are located. The first audio detection system is situated with respect to the second audio detection system within the monitored space.

In the field medical documentation, it is the creation of medical records and other documentation that outlines the medical history of patients. As one would expect, the traditional medical documentation is comprised of various types of data, which include but not be only limited to paper-based documents or transcripts, in addition to various images and diagrams.

As the world moved from paper-based content to digital content, clinical documentation also moved in that direction, where medical records and documentation were gradually transitioned from stacks of paper geographically-dispersed acrossmultiple locations/institutions to consolidated and readily accessible digital content.

Automated Speaker Position

In one instance the method is implemented by a computer, and it involves determining a time delay between a first audio signal that is received by the first audio detection system, and a second audio signal received by a second audiodetection system. The first and second audio detection systems are placed within a space monitored. The first system for audio detection is situated with respect to the second audio detection system inside the monitored space.

One or one or more of the following features can be provided. The distance that is linear between the two audio detection systems within the space being monitored can be defined based on the time delay. The second audio detector system may be utilized to identify the first audio system. A angular position of the first audio system relative to the second may be utilized. The first audio detection system might include a body-worn audio detection system located inside the space that is monitored. The second system of audio detection could consist of a fixed-location sound detection system that is positioned inside the space being monitored. A microphone array can be included in the fixed-location audio detection system. Defining an angular location for the audio detection system first with respectto the second audio detection system may include: forming at least one recording beam via the microphone array in the fixed-location audio detection system, directing at least one audio recording beam to the first audio detection system and determining the angle of the at-least one recording beam relative to the fixed location audio detection system.

A computer program is stored on a computer-readable media. It also includes several instructions. The instructions are executed by a processor and cause the processor to perform actions like determining the delay between a first sound signal that is received from an audio detector and the second sound signal that is received from another. The monitored space includes the first and second audio-detection systems.

One or one or more of the following features could be included. Locating the first audio detection system in relation to the second audio detection system within the monitored space may include defining a linear distance between the audiodetection device and the second audio detection system, based on, at a minimum, upon the time delay. Locating the first audio detection system with respect to the second audio detection system within the monitored space may further involve defining an angular location of the first audio detection system in relation to the second audio detection system. A body-worn audio detection system may be the initial audio detection system. The second audio detectionsystem may comprise a fixed-location audio detection system that is positioned inside the space being monitored. A microphone array can be part of the fixed-location audio detector system. The steps below can be used to determine the direction of the first audio detector system relative to the second system: Forming at least one audio recording beam using the microphone array of fixed-location audio detection system; directing the beam of audio recording towards the first audio detect system and then determining the angle of at least one of the audio recording beams in relation to the fixed-location audio detection system.

A different type of computing system comprises a processor and memory. The system can perform operations such as determining the time delay between first audio signals received by first audio detection systems and second audio signals received by a second sound detection system. Both audio detection systems are located in the space that is monitored. The monitoredspace houses both the audio detection system.

One or more of the following features could be included. The process of locating the first audio detection system in relation to the second audio detection system within the monitored space may include the definition of a linear distance between the first audiodetection unit and the second audio detection system based at least partially, upon the duration of time. The process of locating the first audio detection system in relation to the second audio detection system in the monitored space could be a matter of defining an angle of the first audio detection system relative to the second system for audio detection. The initial audio detection system might comprise a body-worn sound detection system that is located within the monitored space. A fixed-location audio detector could be employed to identify the other audio detection system in the space being monitored. The fixed-location audio detection system could comprise a microphone array. The following steps could be utilized to determine the angle of the audio detector system relative to the second audio detector system: Establishing at minimum one audio recording beam with the microphone array of the fixed-location audio detection systems, steering at least one recording beacon toward the sound detection system that is first; and determining the angle of at most one of the audio recording beams with respect to the fixed-location sound detection system.

The accompanying drawings and description below provide details about one or more methods. Other benefits and features will become apparent through the description, drawings, and the claims.

Click here to view the patent on USPTO website.

 

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