Accents can be difficult to understand sometimes, especially if it’s an accent that you’ve never heard before. However Amazon thinks that they might have the solution in the form of a real-time accent translator which was revealed in a recently discovered patent by Patent Yogi (via TechCrunch).
Now the concept of real-time translation isn’t new as companies such as Microsoft have baked such features into apps like Skype. Even Google Translate can be considered real-time, and this is also a functionality that is offered by Google’s Pixel Buds earphones. However this would be the first time that we’re seeing accent translators which could come in handy more than you think.
Given that we live in a melting pot of cultures, English is sometimes not the first language for some, which means that when they do speak English it could be heavily accented and difficult to understand. How this system works based on the patent is that it analyzes the audio and tries to match it with a variety of stored accents, and based on that it will “translate” it into your accent, or at least an accent that you’re familiar with.
This could come in handy for use at places like a country’s immigration where people from around the world are visiting, and being able to understand them will help make the process smoother. It could also be used for support staff, many of whom are outsourced. Of course given that this is a patent there’s no telling if Amazon has plans to make it a reality.