Euphonia (speech machine)
Euphonia was a machine for generating human language that Joseph Faber introduced in Vienna in 1840. As the first speaking machine , it had a tongue and a changeable pharynx and was also suitable for the synthesis of vocals (including " God Save the Queen "). The bellows was driven by a pedal , and it was operated using a 16-key keyboard . An artificial head was attached to the machine, which apparently produced the language.
The audience to whom Faber presented the first version of his machine in Vienna was not impressed, whereupon Faber destroyed the machine out of frustration. A little later, the physicist Joseph Henry took part in a private demonstration of the replica Euphonia and was impressed by the capabilities of the machine. Encouraged by this success, Faber exhibited the machine in London in 1846, where it attracted more attention. Financially, Faber did not have any success with his invention.
Long after Faber's death (1850 or 1866, the sources differ here), replicas continued to appear, such as a greatly improved version for the Komische Oper in Vienna. It is not known whether it was ever used.
The first attempts to generate human language by machine were made in the second half of the 18th century . Ch. G. Kratzenstein , professor of physiology in Copenhagen , succeeded in 1773 in producing vowels with resonance tubes connected to organ pipes .
literature
- Andrea Harrandt: Euphonia. In: Oesterreichisches Musiklexikon . Online edition, Vienna 2002 ff., ISBN 3-7001-3077-5 ; Print edition: Volume 1, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 2002, ISBN 3-7001-3043-0 .
Web links
- The unit of Joseph Faber (Engl.)
- History of Euphonia (Engl.)
- Joseph Faber's biography
Individual evidence
- ↑ Innsbrucker Tagblatt of May 29, 1876