Speech-to-Speech Voice Translator Coming To IPhone, Blackberry
Sakhr is a translation company with big clients like the U.S. Department of defence and Homeland Security. They specialise in English/Arabic translation, and this demo of their iPhone/Blackberry app (not publicly available) looks like the Holy Grail of translation software.
You hold a button, say a phrase and the software captures the information through speech recognition. The text is then translated into either Arabic or English (in the cloud, we believe) and then read aloud so mispronunciation is not an issue.
Of course, voice recognition is one of those fabled computer advancements that’s parked in a perpetual spot “right around the corner,” but if this app works even with 85% accuracy, that’s close enough for most tourists—even if soldiers could find the mistakes a bit more costly.
It’s just too bad that Sakhr probably makes too much money off the US government to ever licence the tech for those of us who’d just want to trek through Europe without a pocket dictionary. So let’s go to war with France so I can visit the Eiffel Tower! [Fast Company and BusinessWire]
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Comments (AU Comments | US Comments)
@jchasse: actually... english is my second language. i am allowed to make mistakes... and make up new words
thegermandude517
@misterwho - according to my twitter feed, I'm still alive.: Never! Everything on TV is God's honest truth. Didn't you know that?
Rustabout
@Brenton Poke: That's a stretch, but good for you for working that into this discussion where it didn't belong. Why do I say that? Because I highly doubt the less than 60 translators who were let go were handling the day to day real time translation of the boots on the ground.
This is great and all, but they might not need this if they hadn't kicked out some of their real translators for being gay...
Brenton Poke
let s hope it works for other languages
Ken Benoit
@Skeetz: Christ! I don't have an "understand" option either and I've been married 13 years.
jchasse
@thegermandude517: Trying to parse your post, left me with the distinct feeling that you have started to forget one already.
jchasse
Star Trek universal translator...
I can see it now, "Negotiations broke down when the electronic translator mis-translate. wages war.
thebear91
Wow that is very impressive. The translations were spot on.
Coolmodo
"You can travel by plane or by train."
That line gave me the heebie jeebies.
Considering the terrorist attacks that used planes and trains on the US and Spain, I'd be wary of an Arabic guy recommending any particular choice of travel for me.
I'm just saying.
@SeniorPonzologist_GitEmSteveDave: Alas, the definitive source of information for all things Arabic.
@Skeetz: Tell the truth. You were going to do that anyway, weren't you?
@Xeno: Wait a minute, on 24 don't they use Nextel phones? Could it be possible that some parts of that show are embellished?
coooool
Yandelvayasna grldenwi stravenka.
jchabotte
Mah pencil is yellow...
I know 6 different product agencies that would pay through the nose for this for the work they do in China.... But I agree, it's probably still "just around the corner"....
Great stuff. I know it may be asking a lot, but it appears that it still is unable to discern whether a phrase is a question/exclamation/etc. so the inflection that many languages utilize to a great degree may or may not come out, since it treats every phrase/sentence as a statement, more or less.
But hopefully we'll get there!
districtdon19
@DonLuc:
Mind it only translates but does not overcome cultural bariers...
kingshrimp
I'm waiting patiently for my Babel Fish . . .
@Xeno: Yeah I kinda knew that. I was actually more surprised that any official would be using an iPhone
Purple Monkey Dishwasher
Cool! A universal translator!
VideoVampire
I hate to be "that guy," but there's been an app in the Android App market that does this for a couple months: [www.cyrket.com]
Transdroid uses Google speech-to-text, Google translations, and then a multilingual text-to-speech library to achieve it.
It's probably susceptible to the usual Google mistranslations, but it can handle like 12 languages for output, but can only input in English, I think.
Anthony Sarkees
@RedEye: Welsh longbowmen FTW!
@SeniorPonzologist_GitEmSteveDave:
Just added it to my netflix. That scene is hilarious!
This app is amazing. It makes me think that someday in the near future there could be an instantaneous voice translator that takes the words you speak and converts them into whatever language you please right away. This would completely bridge the language gap.
rick.rick
Whoa. This just means that DADT will go into OVERDRIVE. Just hand out iPhones to soldiers then round up ALL of your gay military Arabic translators and get rid of them.
Mark Kendrick
@Killjoy:
Hence your name.. KillJoy
Yadah
@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: Many, many many government people have Blackberries.
Xeno
Awesome!
Now we can travel to unique foreign lands, meet interesting exotic people, "have a little conversation" then kill them!
God I love America and Technology!
David Artz
@Skeetz: Remember the scene in The Last Starfighter where he forgot to wear his translator? That was awesome!
@David Mascarenhas Watkins: You don't want to go to war with Wales....
At first glance at the headline, I thought this was the most pointless app ever.
Speech-to-speech? What the....?
Oh.
@Guymann: I don't think technology can translate dork to cool quite yet. We can dream.
If you say "durkka, durkka, durkka" does it explode?
Xeno
"It's just too bad that Sakhr probably makes too much money off the US government to ever license the tech for those of us who'd just want to trek through Europe without a pocket dictionary."
Yeah, but the Government also bankrolled the RnD to get this tech to this point sooner that it might have otherwise. It will get into your hands soon enough I wager. You know, like the Velcro scenario.
@Hello Mister Walrus: You haven't learned, "Yes dear" yet. You will.
@Hello Mister Walrus: Yeah, but then you get "Are you coming to bed any time soon?" ... "No, you don't look fat"
@Guymann: That would be an incredibly simple program to write. You only need two phrases - "You're right" and "No, you don't look fat".
Hello Mister Walrus
"We have invaded your country under the pretense of liberating you."
IBM has had similar software for years - they demoed it at my alma mater about 8 years ago while I was a sophomore. It was faster, had something like 90 languages on it, and had voice commands so you didn't need to touch the PDA to operate the translation software.
It's possible IBM sold that software off to this company, or perhaps this was the original company working on it and IBM swiped it. Either way, color me unimpressed.
angelzero
Isn't this what they have in Star Trek to explain why the crew can talk to aliens?
Hello Mister Walrus
@Guymann: I don't think it has an "understand" option. Oh sure it can translate the language but whatever language they're speaking it's still not what they really mean.
when you ask "what's wrong" and they say "nothing"" that really could mean anything and everything.. so the machine really could only translate that into "run for your life" eh.. well i guess that's good enough.
Skeetz
@Guymann: Maybe you can set it up to auto-reply to questions. That way when your wife/gf is talking to you you can just ignore her and go to sleep.
Purple Monkey Dishwasher
Aw man, meeting Japanese chicks is about to get exponentially easier.
DonLuc
@Skeetz:
What about the toe shoes?
You guys all know they are already using this in the field right?
Not on the iPod Touch mind you, but the same company sells a dedicated device that does the same thing. So your comment of "fabled achievement" is really kind of misplaced because its already been achieved and in use. It doesnt always work 100% but its working well enough to help our troops.
Jim Topoleski
War with france. LOL
John Eaton
I want to find a room. Not I want your house to go boom.
The most common problem with translation software is the different grammar rules used around the world. If it can address this issue, this could be a huge breakthrough.
Purple Monkey Dishwasher
@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: Not all of them do. If you're high enough up the chain, you can get one issued to you.
Since I don't speak Arabic, I'm going to have to just trust that it's accurate.
I think this would be a godsend for so many travelers. And it would be good for learning languages too. From what I understand the system they use in Iraq is really good, and I can't wait to see what they make for a consumer application. It will probably cost $399 though...
A great tool for a short-term solution, but in the long run nothing beats upgrading your own language support firmware.
Well, from what I have gathered from watching the documentary "Team America:World Police", Arabic only consists of the words Durkha, Jihad, and Muhammad, spoken in different combinations.
I wonder if I can use this to talk to women...
We're one step closer to Star Trek. I'm off to get fitted in my leotard!
Skeetz
The potential is great. But as you say this kind of stuff is perpetually around the corner.
stryder100
Does this mean all DoD personnel have Blackberries/iPhones?
Purple Monkey Dishwasher
I would immediately forget all five languages I have learned over the years and let do my phone the talking... i think the app should be available for less than tuition paid for foreign language classes...
thegermandude517
Lol'd. Wales also please.
David Mascarenhas Watkins