Question about Voice Recognition module compatibility with Arduino?

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1

Hello all,

I am trying to build a voice-activated home automation system. Right now I have control over lights, thermostat, etc. with an infrared remote control. I am thinking about purchasing the following module:

robotshop.com/easyvr-speech-voice-recognition-module.html

Would this be able to relay back commands to Arduino?

I appreciate everyone’s help.

Paul

2

Great thank you so much for that info. Just to confirm one last thing, the shield for aarduino and the CR module must be purchased separately, correct? And is the shield only compatible with a regular arduino? I have a Mega.

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********** DISREGARD… I FIGURED IT OUT!!! ****************

(In case anyone was following this)- I got the application I described below to work. As it turns out I was on the right track originally, using only one trigger word to start, then building the hierarchy of command menus in the application code. The original code was good all along, only it was not responding because I did not account for the half second or so it was taking for the application to play the response chirp when I commanded the sub-menus. The chirp was therefore still playing when the application started listening for the next command, and that was causing it not to recognize it. I placed a one-second delay just before the T2SI command, and bingo- it recognized the sub-command on the first try… whew… I thought I would never get past that.

While I am waiting for my EasyVR, I am continuing work on my SmartVR Project. I have a nice trigger and command menu routine working very well, but it is just a simple trigger word and a long monolithic response menu, which is programmed to trigger an MP3 player for a given response. It is all going well as a single list of commands, but I am having trouble figuring out how to start splitting this into sub-menus. I basically want the tree as such:

main trigger–>command 1
-----------------command 2
-----------------command 3
-----------------command 4 (or trigger?)------------->Sub Command 1
-----------------------------------------------------------Sub Command 2, etc.
-----------------command 5 (or trigger?)------------->Sub Command 1
---------------------------------------------------------->Sub Command 2 etc.

I am trying to emulate a popular interactive toy. The trigger word is the robot’s name, then there are a half dozen commands you could give it. Two of those commands should lead to their own separate list of commands, say “game mode” then the list of games, and “command mode” and then a list of actions.

I am working with three acoustic models which I split into the main menu, the game mode menu, and the command mode menu. I used the acoustic model combiner to combine all of these in Quick T2SI. This is where I am lost. When we want to get into sub-menus and such, do we create separate trigger words for each? If so, how do we use the _T2SI((long) &nn_combotest, (long)&gsearch_trig_test1, T2SI_DEFAULT_KNOB, T2SI_DEFAULT_TIMEOUT, T2SI_DEFAULT_TRAILING, &results) dialogue to search for more than one trigger? or to search for a trigger for a second list while at the same time listening for commands from the current list?

Is there only one “official” trigger phrase allowed in a given application, with the other sub-menus being created in the source code? I really wish there were an example out there. I found one example of a routine that used the acoustic model combiner (for the T2SIMath example) but it does not really deal with multiple levels of menus, so I could not find an answer there.

I hope someone out there is familiar enough with SmartVR that they can help, or at least point me to a tutorial or example or something. Any help is much appreciated.

Rob

5

I have been working on a SmartVR T2SI project which is working very well, but the module’s capabilities are a bit of overkill for my project. I now see that the latest version of the EasyVR 2.0 module, as of November 2013, can now accept 26 SI commands as built in the Quick T2SI toolkit. If I were to purchase an EasyVR Module from Robotshop, as listed, can I be sure I am getting the new version 2.0 which I could develop with my existing Quick T2SI license?

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Thanks for your fast reply! I just need to be clear before I place the order, though. I sent a query to Veear as well but have not heard back. I can see that the firmware can be upgraded, but are we sure the V2.0 is just a firmware upgrade and that the module itself is not different? I ask because there are other new features to the V2.0 that might imply that it is a new hardware version as well.

Thanks again for your help.- Rob

7

Thanks again. It is confirmed. After one more attempt to find the answer at veear.eu, I came across this statement on their News page:

What if I already have a first generation EasyVR Module? … No worries – you can easily get all of these new features up and running on your EasyVR Module with a simple Firmware Upgrade.

I do hope they get that posted to the main FAQ page, and perhaps on the product info page as well. At least now we know for sure! Time to go order my EasyVR and Development Board.

Rob

8

The shield includes the module (but not the Arduino of course). With so many versions of the MEGA out there, we suggest you see which pins are used by the shield and ensure they correspond to the pins on the MEGA you have (page 11 in the user manual).

9

Yes, and there’s even a module designed specifically for the Arduino as well:
Tigal EasyVR Shield for Arduino
Just to confirm, the unit you chose is not “stand alone” and needs to be connected to a microcontroller.

10

Reply from the manufacturer:

11

We currently have the EasyVR original version not the V2, though you can easily upgrade the board to the latest firmware.

Here’s the procedure: youtube.com/watch?v=gYazYD0Ia2Q

EasyVR
robotshop.com/en/easyvr-speech-voice-recognition-module.html
EasyVR Development Board (Needed to upload the new firmware)
robotshop.com/en/easyvr-development-board.html

12

That’s the information that we have at this time - we don’t have any V2 in stock to check, and usually have the latest products. If you receive a different reply from the manufacturer, feel free to post it here.