Phraselator

The Phraselator is a weatherproof handheld language translation device developed by VoxTec, a former division of the military contractor Marine Acoustics, located in Annapolis, MD.

The device

The Phraselator is a small PDA-sized device designed to aid in interpretation. The device does not produce synthesized speech like that utilized by Stephen Hawking; instead, it plays pre-recorded foreign language MP3 files. Users can select the phrase they wish to convey from an English list on the screen or speak into the device. It then uses speech recognition technology called DynaSpeak, developed by SRI International, to play the proper sound file.cite news|url=http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2003/04/07/phraselator/index_np.html?pn=1 |title=How do you say "regime change" in Arabic? |accessdate=2006-08-24 |last=Mieszkowski |first=Katharine |date=2003-04-07 |publisher=Salon |pages=2] The accuracy of the speech recognition software is over 70 percent according to software developer Jack Buchanan. The device can also record replies for translation later.cite news|url=http://www.wired.com/news/technology/1,66816-0.html |title=Machines Not Lost in Translation |accessdate=2006-08-24 |last=Harrison |first=Ann |date=2005-03-09 |publisher=Wired |pages=2]

Pre-recorded phrases are stored on Secure Digital flash memory cards. A 128 MB card can hold up to 12,000 phrases in 4 or 5 languages. Users can download phrase modules from the official website, which contained over 300,000 phrases as of March 2005. Users can also construct their own custom phrase modules.

Earlier devices were known to have run on an SA-1110 Strong Arm 206 MHz CPU with 32MB SDRAM and 32MB onboard Flash RAM.cite web|url=http://www.i4u.com/article314.html |title=The Amazing Phraselator |accessdate=2006-08-24 |publisher=I4U News]

A newer model, the P2, was released in 2004 and developed according to feedback from U.S. soldiers. It translates one way from English to approximately 60 other languages. It has a directional microphone, a larger library of phrases and a longer battery life. The 2004 release was created by and utilizes a computer board manufactured by InHand Electronics, Inc. [VoxTec's Phraselator P2– Empowering Communication - source: http://www.inhand.com/voxtec.asp]

In the future, the device will be able to display pictures so users can ask questions such as "Have you seen this person?"

Developer Ace Sarich notes that the device is inferior to human interrogators.

Origin

The original idea for the device came from Lee Morin, a Navy doctor in Operation Desert Storm. In order to communicate with patients, he would play Arabic audio files from his laptop. He informed Ace Sarich, the vice president of VoxTec, about the idea. VoxTec won a DARPA Small Business Innovation Research grant in early 2001 to develop a military-grade handheld phrase translator.

The device was first field tested in Afghanistan in 2001.

SRI International has further developed two-way translation software for use in Iraq called IraqComm which contains a vocabulary of 40,000 English words and 50,000 words in Iraqi Arabic.cite web|url=http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=17350&ch=infotech |title=How to Talk Like an Iraqi |accessdate=2006-08-24 |last=Greene |first=Kate |date=2006-08-23 |publisher=MIT Technology Review |pages=2]

Notable users

The handheld translator was recently used by U.S. troops while providing relief to tsunami victims in early 2005. About 500 prototypes of the device were provided to U.S. military forces in Operation Enduring Freedom. Units loaded with Haitan dialects have been provided to U.S. troops in Haiti.cite news|url=http://www.slate.com/id/2096973/ |title=Tomorrow's Soldier Today |accessdate=2006-08-24 |last=Carter |first=Phillip |date=2004-03-11 |publisher=Slate] Army military police have used it in Kandahar to communicate with POWs. In late 2004, the U.S. Navy began to augment some ships with a version of the device attached to large speakers in order to broadcast clear voice instructions up to convert|400|yd away. Corrections officers and law enforcement in Oneida County, New York have tested the device. Hospital emergency rooms and health departments have also evaluated it. Several Native American tribes such as the Choctaw Nation, the Ponca, and the Comanche Nation have also used the device in order to preserve their dying languages.cite news|url=http://www.kten.com/Global/story.asp?S=5319101 |title=Technology helps to preserve Indian languages |accessdate=2006-08-24 |author=Associated Press |publisher=KTEN]

Awards

In March 2004, DARPA director Dr. Tony Tether presented the Small Business Innovative Research Award to the VoxTec division of Marine Acoustics at DARPATech 2004 in Anaheim, CA.cite web|url=http://www.marineacoustics.com/PDFs/dt04_awards_final.pdf |title=DARPA RECOGNIZES OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AGENTS AND CONTRACTORS |accessdate=2006-08-24 |date=2004-03-11 |format=PDF |pages=2] . The device was recently listed as one of "Ten Emerging Technologies That Will Change Your World" in [http://www.technologyreview.com/ MIT's Technology Review] .

Pop culture

Software developer Jack Buchanan believes that building a device similar to the fictional universal translator seen in Star Trek would be harder than building the Enterprise.

The device was mentioned in a list of "Top 10 Star Trek Tech" on Space.com. [cite web|url=http://www.space.com/technology/top10-star-trek-tech-8.html |title=Top 10 Star Trek Tech #8 - Translators |accessdate=2008-03-03 |date=Bill Christensen |publisher=Space.com]

References

External links

* [http://www.phraselator.com/ Phraselator official site]
* [http://www.voxtec.com/ Voxtec official site]
* [http://www.marineacoustics.com/ Marine Acoustics official site]
* [http://www.sri.com/ SRI International official site]
* [http://www.iraqcomm.com IraqComm official site]
* [http://www.speechatsri.com/products/dynaspeak.shtml SRI DynaSpeak web page]
* [http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Apr2003/n04252003_200304254.html DARPA-Developed Device Bridges Language Divides]
* [http://www.military.com/soldiertech/0,14632,Soldiertech_Phraselator,,00.html Helping Troops in Iraq & Afghanistan Connect with Locals]