Text-to-speech algorithms sometimes attempt to pronounce callsigns in strange and distracting ways.
It would be pretty easy to improve on this by translating callsigns into speakable syllables before passing them to the TTS algorithm, complying with over-the-air conventions.
W5NYV could be expressed as "W 5 N Y V" and that works ok on macOS. But if you express KB5MU as "K B 5 M U" you get something that sounds like "kay bee five meters you", where TTS has decided that the M means meters.
The solution is to just translate everything into syllables with predictable pronunciations. If you send "kay bee 5 emm you, slash 11" to just about any (English) TTS algorithm, you'll get the right sounds.
It also helps to include these pronounceable renderings inline with the other words of the message. The macOS TTS, for instance, sounds much more natural with "from kay bee 5 emm you, slash 11".
This could be extended, at user option, to use standard phonetics. For example, KB9MU/2 as "kilo bravo niner mike uniform slant 2".
User customization would be possible. Sky's the limit.
Text-to-speech algorithms sometimes attempt to pronounce callsigns in strange and distracting ways.
It would be pretty easy to improve on this by translating callsigns into speakable syllables before passing them to the TTS algorithm, complying with over-the-air conventions.
W5NYV could be expressed as "W 5 N Y V" and that works ok on macOS. But if you express KB5MU as "K B 5 M U" you get something that sounds like "kay bee five meters you", where TTS has decided that the M means meters.
The solution is to just translate everything into syllables with predictable pronunciations. If you send "kay bee 5 emm you, slash 11" to just about any (English) TTS algorithm, you'll get the right sounds.
It also helps to include these pronounceable renderings inline with the other words of the message. The macOS TTS, for instance, sounds much more natural with "from kay bee 5 emm you, slash 11".
This could be extended, at user option, to use standard phonetics. For example, KB9MU/2 as "kilo bravo niner mike uniform slant 2".
User customization would be possible. Sky's the limit.