The system allows the user to listen to, learn from, translate, and search for verses of the Quran in English and Arabic. The voice portal operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and can be accessed from any phone.
A Novel Application of Voice Portal Technology
Modern voice recognition technology allows anyone to access the Web without the need for traditional Web browsing. The user can navigate the Internet by using a landline phone or even a mobile phone.
Existing voice portals also provide access - through the phone - to news, weather, traffic, stock quotes, restaurant information and driving directions.
The capstone team at the College of Information Systems at Zayed University has taken an original and exciting approach to this technology by using it to automatically translate verses from the Quran. The service is fast, easy, and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
How does it work?
The user dials up the phone number and the program asks the server to choose one of the following options: listen, learn, translate, or search.
In the listening sub-menu, the user chooses either English or Arabic, the two available languages. By saying the chapter name, the user can listen to whichever portion of the Quran they so desire.
In the learning sub-menu, the user once again says which chapter they are interested in. The corresponding audio file is read by the pre-recorded voice of a specialist reader. The user attempts to follow the exact pronunciation of the reader.
If that is correct, the reader continues on to the next verse; if that is incorrect, the user is asked to repeat the verse again. In the third sub-menu, translation, the user chooses the specific chapter and verse.
After that, he/she will hear the chosen verse translation from the pre-recorded voice. Finally, in the searching sub-menu, the user can search the Quran by chapter name and specific page number, or chapter number.
What is the underlying technology?
Voice portals can now be developed using VoiceXML, a markup language (language for writing Web applications) created for writing telephone-based speech applications.
It allows a user to interact with a computer system using close to a natural language. VoiceXML also enables interactions with other Web technologies for database access.
Conclusion
Voice portals are powerful tools for making information available to a wider audience through the use of portable devices such as mobile phones.
Using VoiceXML, this new voice portal allows users to learn and listen to the Quran in both English and Arabic instantaneously over the telephone.
A voice portal for the translation of Quranic verses
Voice portals are gaining in popularity as the underlying speech recognition technology continues to improve. An application of voice portals has been developed at the College of Information Systems at Zayed University for the automated translation of Quranic verses.
- Monday, March 07 - 2005 at 16:30
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Notes and media contacts
Raisa Rahim Abdul Karim Alzarooni (pictured above) graduated in January 2004 from Zayed University with a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems.Fatima Saeed graduated in January 2004 from Zayed University with a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems.
Awatif Ibrahim Abdalla Ahmed Mohamed graduated in January 2004 from Zayed University with a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems.
Rushiza Mariam Jehan Bakhsh Akbari graduated in January 2004 from Zayed University with a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems
Dr. Habib Talhami is the Acting Head and Senior Lecturer, Institute of Informatics at the British University in Dubai.
On the leading edge of speech recognition and Natural Language Processing technologies, Dr. Talhami has been responsible for the submission of several patents in recent years.
In the field of digital signal and image processing, he has demonstrated his experience in authoring or contributing to more than 40 related publications.
A member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering since 1985 and the Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers, Australia since 1998, he also is a recipient of the Arab British Chamber of Commerce Award and the NatWest/BP Award for Technology for his innovative design work.
He received his Ph.D. in Digital Signal Processing from Imperial College at the University of London and speaks English, Arabic, French, Spanish and German
Dr. Abdullah Abonamah, Director of the ITI at Zayed UniversityMonday, March 07 - 2005 at 16:30 UAE local time (GMT+4)
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This Article was updated on Saturday, May 26 - 2007
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