Joint Norwegian Swedish project to develop Norwegian voice command control as an assistive device

MediaLT, in collaboration with the Swedish company Veridict, has received funding to develop a Norwegian voice command system. Both the project and the new system have been given the name VOMOTE.

Story by: Magne Lunde - 12.08.2009

The background for this Norwegian-Swedish project is work done during the SMUDI project when a prototype for Norwegian voice control was developed in Spring 2009. This will now be the basis for a Norwegian voice command system for people with disabilities.

Promising

In the fall of 2008 MediaLT initiated a collaboration with the Swedish company Veridict and IBM to develop Norwegian voice technology. This cooperation led to the development of a new Norwegian voice engine. The first tests of the prototype were so promising that it quickly became a desire to develop the prototype into a finished product.  Veridict and MediaLT then applied to Innovation Norway, and Tilvekstverket in Sweden, for funding for a joint Norwegian Swedish business cooperation. In competition with many other projects the application for support for VOMOTE was successful.

Unique Assistive Device

VOMOTE, the current name for the system, is an English acronym and stands for Voice Remote. When VOMOTE is connected to the PC, it will be possible for the user to control the PC using voice commands. The objective is that VOMOTE will expand, simplify and streamline the use of technology for different groups of disabled users. The product, which will be unique in its kind, utilizes advanced speech recognition software that interprets and understands the user's voice commands and translates them into commands to the PC. The user will be able to speak naturally and continuously without pauses between words. VOMOTE gives continuous response and feedback to the user, using synthetic speech.

Right at the heart

The project is due to run until 31 March 2010, when the system will be complete. User tests will be conducted during autumn 2009, in combination with the SMUDI project to achieve the best possible result. VOMOTE is right at the heart of MediaLT's vision to create new technological opportunities for the disabled.

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