Title:
Speech generation for Indigenous language education
Agreement Number:
1002592
Agreement Value:
$308,017.00
Agreement Date:
Jan 15, 2023 - Mar 31, 2026
Description:
This proposed research contributes to the wider Small Teams project, which aims to develop text-to-speech synthesis voices to support learning of Indigenous languages in Canada. It will be made possible to hear words and phrases pronounced authentically and in a variety of voices on demand, so enriching language learners’ self-study. Educators will have a tool to author speech passages such as stories or dialogues for students. Furthermore, this collaboration aims to adapt synthesis to better suit language learning in two ways: i) to enable a user to hear synthesized words in a carefully spoken form, so helping beginners learn pronunciation and vocabulary; ii) allow to influence and manipulate the synthesis in a maximally intuitive way, so to ensure speech samples sound exactly as a educator-user intends. Finally, the project will also aim to improve ways both of evaluating synthetic speech automatically and to streamline listening tests to reduce demands on human listeners.
Organization:
National Research Council Canada
Expected Results:
In the short term, anticipated outcomes will be strengthened collaborations across industry, academia, and government to support research excellence. In the medium term, anticipated outcomes will be the development of new and potentially disruptive technologies with collaborators. In the long term, find collaborative solutions to public policy challenges and create stronger innovation systems.
Reference Number:
172-2022-2023-Q4-1002592
Report Type:
Grants and Contributions
Additional Information:
This agreement has been amended 1 time(s). The end date of this agreement has been modified by 136 days.
Amendment Date
Feb 24, 2026
Recipient's Legal Name:
University Court of the University of Edinburgh
Program:
Collaborative Science, Technology and Innovation Program – Ideation Fund
Program Purpose:
The Ideation Fund is intended to encourage, test and validate transformative research ideas generated by teams of NRC scientific personnel and external collaborators with complementary capabilities, acting as a demonstration phase for a continually-evolving suite of research and development (R&D) deliverables at the NRC. The fund supports exploratory research through two mechanisms: the New Beginnings Initiative and the Small Teams Initiative.
NAICS Code:
541710 - R&D in the physical, engineering and life sciences