Original story
Report on patent testing EU/ASCO/JT/2011/11/21
TRANSCAP Translation Helmet Patent Application No. FIN-2019-01-14-M-4497
Patent application no. : FIN 2019-01-14-M-4497
Manufacturer/Applicant: Micronokia Ltd
Tester: EU Testing Authority/Simulation Dept./Jack Tree
Outside referral agency/agencies: University of London, Faculty of Applied Linguistics
1. Description of the device
TRANSCAP combines four functions in a single unit:
- a speech recognition program featuring a fractal transformer,
- a delay-transmit-receive module (DTR module),
- a translation module with vocabulary and context files,
- a voice simulator to convert the translated text back into speech in the second language.
2. Use of the device
The Transcap unit is placed on the head like a cap or helmet. Both parties to the conversation to be translated must be wearing similar devices, or loudspeakers will be required, causing possible disturbance to people in the immediate area. The use of two Transcap units guarantees undisturbed two-way communication, even with relatively high levels of background noise (Factory-floor Benchtest @ 65dB).
Subjects A and B speak different languages. Subject A’s speech - for example Mandarin Chinese - is picked up by the speech recognition programme, and passed through the DTR module, which contains a loop memory with filters for all installed languages and dialects. The delay process is necessary since delivery rates and syntax can vary dramatically between languages. The DTR module transmits in digital form the ready-slowed message in Chinese to the DTR module of Subject B, which translates it into B’s own language, for instance German. Subject B hears the German translation of the message, converted into analog form, through his headset.
According to the licence (EU-RFD-RLP-2019-11-11-ASO-Y) granted to this device on the basis of the EU Radio Frequency Directive, the transmitter signal is permitted a maximum range of 10 metres, but for example at natural meetings and conferences (but not, however, in virtual environments), the signal may be amplified by up to five times using a fixed P.A. system.
Test results
In technical terms, the device corresponds fully to the requirements of the Radio Frequency Licence. A maximum transmission range of 9.87 metres was recorded. When the Transcap headset is being worn, other sounds from the environment become inaudible. We recommend for this reason that the device may not be employed under such conditions where use might constitute a danger to the wearer - for example in traffic, or in working environments where the work is directed by oral commands. The manufacturer has notified us of an improved model that allows for 2-track listening, and this will be released next year.
The translation function of the device was basically satisfactory between all languages installed in the hologram memory. The translations were often somewhat rough and ready, but all were perfectly understandable. A greater problem was encountered in the uncomfortably long waiting-times required for delivery. For example, in the process of translating German into Chinese, the pauses between translated sentences were almost as long as the sentences themselves. On the other hand, in field tests when Subject A was speaking Chinese for translation into German, the speaker periodically had to wait, as the loop memory reported that it had not been able to translate the sentence quickly enough into the receiver’s language. Also the speed of delivery of the speaker has an impact on the length of waiting-times.
Certain expressions containing regional dialect or new coinages of words were not translated in an understandable manner. A further problem is that of translating nuances, and the cross-cultural issue of gauging the strength of certain expletives in translation. The translation module did not, for example, provide sufficiently colourful or powerful translations in numerous languages for the Anglo-Saxon expletive “fuck” in all its forms as noun, verb, adjective, or as part of a complex phrasal verb such as “Is it you that’s been fucking around with my camera?”. The manufacturer defended the charge by commenting that the term in question - whilst still taboo in certain cultures - has become familiar worldwide and it was thus not necessary to give a comprehensive translation.
Recommendations
We recommend that the patent application be approved, subject to the following conditions:
The device may not be used by the driver of a moving vehicle, in orally-directed work, or under any similar such conditions where the limits on hearing background sounds may represent a danger to the wearer. This warning must be printed - in the relevant language - on the right-hand earpiece of the device.
The device is not suited for precise translations, for example in official simultaneous interpretation of important virtual or natural meetings and conferences. This condition must be displayed prominently in the Transcap Help Files.
Jack Tree
Head of Department /EU-ASCO-1984-06-18-SSO
Testing Authority, Simulation Dept.
Appendices
Two models of the Transcap 1.0
3-D program of module structure
Matrix of available languages and delay-relationships
Copy of Radio Frequency Licence
Toteuma-arvio 2026
Toteuma lyhyesti
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