Designing Effective Speech Interfaces

Interactive Voice Response

The earliest uses of speech technology in business were interactive voice response systems (IVRs). We have all been talking to computers via the telephone. In some cases we have gotten used to it (requests for our credit card number when we call to check our balance owed), and in other cases, such as directory assistance, we may not even yet realize that we are speaking with a computer. Although many IVR systems are still recorded messages, more and more use speech technology to interpret what you are saying as well as synthesizing speech back to you. A lot of the research on speech technology, menus, and prompting comes from this work on IVRs. As the synthesized voices become more human-like, the acceptance of IVR increases.