Navigating by Voice
The only safe car navigation systems are those that allow the driver to control the software by voice. This allows you to keep your eyes on the the road while navigating, but using a speech program can be frustrating unless you take the time to do the training and use a good microphone. Here my experience with using the voice navigation features of DeLorme Street Atlas.
Initial Voice Recognition "training" at home:
(I put "training in quotes because the first time I sat down to do the voice recognition training, it was not clear to me whether I was teaching the speech recognition software my voice, or whether the software was teaching me how speak.)
I tested the voice navigation feature of DeLorme Street Atlas with Microsoft Speech Recognition Engine, running on a Gateway Solo (Pentium III). I initially used the laptops internal microphone.
The most difficult part of the training was getting 10 minutes without interruption from my two boys. Thank goodness the software provided a pause button or I would have never gotten through it.
I made progress only when I spoke directly into the microphone with flawless pronunciation. I got nowhere when I sat back and talked to my computer using my southern draw (I do hope no one was watching me when I was doing this.)
More Training (in the car) with external microphone, headset
A little frustrated with the results using the laptop's internal microphone,I purchased a Plantronics Audio 50 Monaural PC Headset.
What a difference!
Driving back from the in-laws, the kids were about to fall asleep in the back of the van. I asked my wife to drive so that I could try out my new headset and do some voice training on the computer. What a difference.
The voice training session went much faster than when I used the laptop's internal microphone. The program picked up on each and every word I read from the script, as fast as I could read them. Although I must admit that I wasn't reading very fast because the script I read was passage from Edgar Allan Poe's House of Usher (wife's choice).
The noise-canceling feature of the Plantronics headset is a real bonus. Once during the session, the baby woke up screaming, but the program didn't flinch. I kept training until the fussing subsided and I did not have to repeat any words.
Actual Driving Experience:
Recently, I had the kids in the van driving to a pumpkin patch in the middle of nowhere. I had some of their goofy kids music playing over the stereo while I was voice navigating with my laptop running DeLorme Street Atlas 2003 and Earthmate GPS USB receiver. I didn't need to look at the computer screen because the voice prompts were right on the money. I did glance over to see the mic sound level indicator was registering the kids music in the background, but it was not causing any false commands. I got a big kick out of saying, "Where am I?" (For some reason I get a kick out of asking "Where am I?"), "What's the next turn? Center on endpoint." and "Zoom in."
Each voice command I tried returned the correct response - 100% accurate. My only regret is that I didn't print out a little list of all things I could say to control the software. The list is on screen under the voice tab but there is no way I could read it while driving and I didn't want to stop.
Notes:
You should use proper mounting so that your computer does not become a projectile and keep the cables out of the way of your diving.
Calculate the route before you get underway so that you are not trying to do anything on the keyboard while driving.
Check the local laws concerning the use of headsets while driving. The Plantronic's headset covers only one ear.
* * *I hope this helps!
Contact me if you have questions.
- Doug
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Read more about my experience with DeLorme Street Atlas Software in these articles:
DeLorem Street Atlas 2007 Car Navigation Software
Mouse-type GPS Receivers for Laptops
DeLorm's Blue Logger Bluetooth wireless GPS receiver
