ECC Co., Ltd.
[First in the language service industry*] Acquired a patent for speech recognition technology that distinguishes English pronunciation unique to Japanese people
Installed in the interactive English conversation app “Welcome to Omotena City (R)!”
The ICT Education Technology Research Institute, operated by ECC Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Kita-ku, Osaka City, President: Masahiro Hanabusa), a comprehensive education and lifelong learning
institution, will hold a patent on voice recognition technology on December 16, 2022 (Friday). I got
[Overview of the patent]
By developing speech recognition technology that can distinguish English pronunciation unique to Japanese people (native speakers of Japanese) and artificial intelligence (AI) that can build dialogue based on that technology, the voice of language learners who are still in the process of learning can be accurately reproduced. Perceptible language learning devices and programs.
[Table 2: https://prtimes.jp/data/corp/16929/table/103_1_5d4c4c0d62154df54dccead0d8c312c2.jpg ]
[Video 2: https://prtimes.jp/api/movieim.php?url=www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDEbDx3ipQU]
[Video] Speech recognition in the app “Welcome to the Omotena City(R)!” https://youtu.be/kDEbDx3ipQU
[Development background]
One of the reasons why Japanese people are not good at English is that they can’t speak English because they don’t speak it.
Embarrassment that “I might be wrong”, “I can’t pronounce like a native speaker”, and anxiety that “I can’t express my thoughts properly in an unfamiliar language” can be considered as “not speaking”. And above all, the inability to acquire the experience of “speaking” is also a factor that hinders the progress of English conversation.
Against this background, by developing an English conversation simulator (app) with elements such as “I’m not embarrassed even if I make a mistake”, “I can learn in actual usage situations”, and “I can practice utterances that are close to what I want to say”, many people will be able to We started this development with the aim of realizing an environment where you can easily learn English conversation. -Issues and Development Points of Spoken Dialogue Systems-
Speech recognition and voice dialogue technologies are evolving day by day, and by using these technologies, it is possible to build a system that simulates conversations in English. However, since the
conventional technology is mainly intended for use in the mother tongue, there is the problem that it is difficult to recognize the intended utterances of language learners whose pronunciation is not accurate. If you can’t engage in basic conversation without correct pronunciation, the speaker’s motivation for conversation and learning will drop significantly.
In order to create an environment where many language learners can easily learn, it is important to “talk a lot” and “maintain
motivation”. Rather than correct pronunciation, we believe that it is important to “experience talking about a wide range of content in a sufficient amount, even if it is incomplete,” and establish a conversation while grasping the intentions of language learners even with imperfect pronunciation. This led to the development of voice recognition technology that can
What is “Welcome to Omotena City (R)!”? https://omotena.city/
[Image
 equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) that uses the voice recognition technology of this case to distinguish English pronunciations unique to Japanese people and construct dialogues. From beginners to advanced learners of English, you can have a simulated experience of )
https://omotena.city/education/In order to be able to speak English, the amount of conversation practice, that is, sufficient speaking time for each person is important. However, at present, it is said that each student spends about one minute practicing speaking during one class.
In order to solve this problem, ECC will support schools to realize “ICT learning” and “individual optimization” from September 2021 against the backdrop of the “GIGA School Concept” promoted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. , We are promoting the introduction of this application to schools with the aim of improving the English conversation skills of children and students.
The learning content complies with the course of study, making it a learning tool that is easy to use in elementary and junior high school classes. Incorporating game elements into this app, it is possible to learn while maintaining motivation, which is important for learning English. In addition to “conversation”, you can also learn the three elements of “vocabulary” and “grammar” in a fun way. Teachers will also be able to grasp the learning status and learning results of children and students on the management screen, and will be able to respond appropriately to children and students.
[Can also be used by companies and organizations] https://omotena.city/business/ ・It is possible to build a learning program according to the business of each company. Professional business English is also available. ・Since it contains English words that conform to TOEIC (R) L & R TEST and Eiken (R), it is also effective for exam preparation.
★PDF version news release:
https://prtimes.jp/a/?f=d16929-20230207-4ce5bfb5369f82aaec28985e1b60d64d.pdf ■ ECC Co., Ltd. https://www.ecc.co.jp/
Since its establishment in 1962, ECC has developed various educational activities for more than 60 years. We have introduced unique curricula and teaching materials to achieve the goals of each age group, from infants to seniors, and are producing solid results. Through language education, ECC’s mission is to nurture human resources who possess the qualities of a “true global citizen” that meets the needs of the times.
Details about this release:
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000103.000016929.html