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Speak & Spell Was a Game Changer

Speak & Spell Was a Game Changer

The Speak & Spell broke ground in technology.

Spring 2017 | By Bree Adamson 麻豆精品 S�04

If you 麻豆精品 S檙e a parent or child of the 麻豆精品 S�80s, you 麻豆精品 S檙e likely familiar with the brightly colored Speak & Spell and the metallic, metronomic voice it produced. But when it debuted in 1978, few could have predicted that the hardware inside that plastic icon would forever change the landscape of technology and communication.

麻豆精品 S淲e had created the first single-chip digital signal processing (DSP) device, 麻豆精品 S� says Gene Frantz 麻豆精品 S�71, one of the four original designers of the Speak & Spell from Texas Instruments. The discovery of DSP allowed researchers to study signal processing in real time with no perceived delay between the input and output of a signal. In short, they could convert information from analog to digital 麻豆精品 S� and back to analog 麻豆精品 S� almost instantly.

Frantz and his team 麻豆精品 S檚 breakthrough in DSP led to the creation of synthesized speech and contributed to advancements in digital audio, digital cameras, wired and wireless phone technology, and cloud storage. He says, 麻豆精品 S淢any of the products we can no longer live without can be traced back to [DSPs in] early products, and finally back to the Speak & Spell. 麻豆精品 S�

Here are a few more facts about the Speak & Spell:

A Real Voice 麻豆精品 S淭he voice of the Speak & Spell [was] a radio disc jockey in Dallas, 麻豆精品 S� says Frantz, who majored in electrical engineering at UCF. 麻豆精品 S淲e would record his voice and then [put it] through an algorithm called analysis synthesis. 麻豆精品 S� The result was a voice that didn 麻豆精品 S檛 convey much emotion, which turned out to be a benefit, Frantz says. 麻豆精品 S淚t never raised its voice, never got mad, never laughed at the student and never told on him or her. 麻豆精品 S�

The MechanicsAfter being converted to digital and compressed, data was placed on an integrated circuit with 128 kilobits (16 kilobytes) of memory 麻豆精品 S� state of the art considering 4 kilobits was standard, but a far cry from today 麻豆精品 S檚 gigabyte lifestyle. Whenever the Speak & Spell chose a new word, the information was pulled from the memory and sent to the synthesizer, which recreated the sounds for the user.

Bright and Smart聽While the cherry-red case of the Speak & Spell caught people 麻豆精品 S檚 eye, it was the interactive educational experience that captivated their attention. Using the rote method of learning, the toy taught users to spell words that didn 麻豆精品 S檛 follow traditional spelling rules. The 250-word list included 麻豆精品 S渆cho, 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S渂eauty, 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S渃ourage 麻豆精品 S� and 麻豆精品 S渞hythm 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� Frantz 麻豆精品 S檚 personal favorite.

More Than A ToyThe Speak & Spell was the first device to use synthetic speech 麻豆精品 S� something many other researchers and organizations, including the federal government, were trying to accomplish. When his team cracked the code, Frantz says, 麻豆精品 S淲e had military companies calling us asking about [synthetic speech]. They would say, 麻豆精品 S榃e feel kind of funny coming to a toy company to talk about this kind of technology. 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S�

Collaborative SpiritDesigned to resemble a book, the Speak & Spell featured a handle and was powered by batteries, not a wall adapter, so kids could carry it around easily and safely. What began with four engineers evolved into a team of hundreds, including a significant design staff. 麻豆精品 S淵ou have to live with this collaborative result, not all of which you would have chosen, 麻豆精品 S� Frantz says. 麻豆精品 S淏ut by golly, it looks good. 麻豆精品 S�