USER MANUAL Spirit Portable Text-to-Speech Synthesizer Models 600, 600B Artic Technologies International Inc. (248) 588-1425 Technical Support help@artictech.com www.artictech.com INTRODUCTION Artic hardware speech synthesizer products have been a popular choice for use with screen reading programs since the first model was introduced in 1984. Since then many changes and new models have been developed for different needs and a variety of computer interfaces. Artic speech has become well known for it's crisp and highly responsive sound. Performance demanding users often prefer Artic speech even over much more expensive devices. SPIRIT was developed primarily for the needs of people using computers with screen reader programs. It was the evolution of Artic's popular Text-to-Speech translators that resulted in low cost SPIRIT. Unlike some low cost synthesizers which use coarse sounding snapshots of sampled human speech, SPIRIT has a TRUE phoneme speech synthesis chip which can blend phonemes into millions of smooth flowing vocal sounds that would be impractical with a snapshot approach. FEATURES * Performance Advantage of Artic Hardware Synthesizer Responsiveness. * Priced like a Software Synthesizer. * Sturdy Aluminum Case is more durable than plastic. * Smooth Phoneme Chip Blending without warble & chop. * TransPort & Accent SA command compatible. * Supports all brands of Screen Access Products. * Speech Indexing for reading programs. Large input buffer avoids bog downs. * Removable Data Cable with standard DB9 connector. * NiCad battery option saves hundreds of dollars vs disposable 9V batteries. * 1 pound without NiCad battery, 1.25 pounds with battery. * 5.8 inches wide by 5.3 inches deep by 1.3 inches high. SET UP Place SPIRIT in a comfortable position near your computer. Plug the supplied AC power adapter into the wall and then the jack located on the back of SPIRIT. Also on the back of SPIRIT you will notice two data connectors. The larger 25 pin connector is for factory programming only. The smaller DB9 connector is the RS-232 COM port. Plug the data cable into the SPIRIT DB9 connector and your computer COM port on the other side. POWER UP AND VOLUME Rotate the thumb wheel volume control on the front of SPIRIT to turn it on. Adjust the volume to about the half level. In a couple of seconds you will hear the SPIRIT power up message. You are now ready for a screen reader or other speech application programs. OPTIONAL BATTERY OPERATION (Model 600B only) The SPIRIT 600B includes rechargeable NiCad batteries which over time will save you hundreds of dollars over the disposable alkaline batteries used by other synthesizers. The NiCad batteries will automatically charge when the AC adapter is plugged in. Please allow the batteries to charge overnight for the next day. NOTE: NiCads can develop a memory effect if left charging all of the time over a long period. This reduces run time. Let your batteries run down on a regular basis for the best efficiency. POWER-UP COM PORT SETTINGS When SPIRIT is first turned on it's COM port is set to the industry standard: BAUD RATE: 9600 DATA BITS: 8 PARITY: NONE STOP BITs: 1 All Artic Screen Reading programs automatically detect SPIRIT and set the PC COM port to match these settings. CHANGING COM PORT SETTINGS If your particular screen reader requires a port setting different from the SPIRIT default and it does not have the ability to automatically change the port setting, then you can use the Artic TPSET command (found on the SPIRIT disk) described below. TPSET COMMAND LINE OPTIONS: /D = Default, 9600 BAUD, No PARITY, 8 DATA , 1 STOP bit. /Bn sets the BAUD rate, where n = a number from 0 to 8 representing a specific baud rate as follows. 0 = 110 1 = 150 2 = 300 3 = 600 4 = 1200 5 = 2400 6 = 4800 7 = 9600 (DEFAULT) 8 = 19200 /Pn sets the PARITY mode where n is a number from 0 - 2 as follows: 0 = no parity 1 = odd parity 2 = even parity /Ln sets the character LENGTH where n is the number of bits (7 or 8). /Sn sets the number of STOP bits where n is 1 or 2. ACCENT SA DEFAULT EXAMPLE: The TPSET command below sets SPIRIT to match the factory settings for the ACCENT SA of 9600 baud, no parity, 7 data bits, and 1 stop bit. TPSET /B7 /P0 /L7 /S1 TPSET ONLINE HELP: Typing TPSET followed by a return displays a help screen that lists the parameters. AUTOEXEC.BAT FOR CHANGING COM PORT AT POWER-UP: If you wish to change the SPIRIT port setting on every time you turn your computer on then you can add then TPSET commands above to your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. AUTOMATIC POWER SAVING MODE: After a few seconds of not speaking SPIRIT will automatically enter a power reduction mode. You will hear a faint click from the audio amplifier when this happens. This mode is ended once you start to speak again SPIRIT (TRANSPORT) COMMAND STRINGS: This information is for program developers that need to control the synthesizer. NOTE: All text that is not embedded in a command string will be spoken when followed by a space or control code. Both TransPort and Accent SA command strings are supported. Speech Characteristic Commands. CONTROL-E R ? = Set Speech Rate, where ? is a number from 0 to 9. CONTROL-E P ? = Set Speech Pitch, where ? is a number from 0 to 9. CONTROL-E V ? = Set Speech Volume, where ? is a the number from 0 to 9. CONTROL-E T ? = Set Speech Tone, where ? is a letter from A to Z. CONTROL-E N ? = Set Number Processor, OFF (? = 0), ON (? = 1). CONTROL-E F ? = Set Flat Pitch. OFF (? = 0), ON (? = 1). CONTROL-E S ? = Set Spelling. OFF (? = 0), ON (? = 1). Speech Flow Controls. CONTROL-X = Abort speech and be quiet (Instant Flush). CONTROL-E H ? = Set Host Timeout, where ? is a number from 0 to 9. CONTROL-E I ? = Set Speech Index Marker, where ? is a letter from A to Z. CONTROL-E Q = Query Speech Index Marker. CONTROL-E W = Wait for Speech to complete. NOTE: To get a response when a certain point in the text string is reached, use a WAIT followed by a QUERY. For example, the string <"hello": CONTROL-E W CONTROL-E Q> sends back an index marker after "hello" speaks. Miscellaneous Controls. CONTROL-E $ = Reset TransPort. CONTROL-A P = Read Turbo Port. Auxiliary Commands. SPIRIT is compatible with Accent SA commands. However, Accent SA defaults are slightly different. Programs should send an Accent Reset command to get those defaults. OTHER ARTIC SYNTHESIZER PRODUCTS Artic has a broad family of portable serial port synthesizers called TransPort as well as a family of combination synthesizer notetakers for BRAILLE and QWERTY. Artic Technologies International Inc. 1000 John R. Road, Suite 108, Troy Michigan 48083 (248) 588-7370 www.artictech.com