Renesas and Cyberon Partner to Deliver Integrated Voice User Interface Solutions for Renesas RA MCUs Supporting Over 40 Global Languages

Customers to Quickly Add Voice Recognition Technology for Endpoint Applications Within Home Appliances, Building Automation, Industrial Automation and Many More

TOKYO, Japan, and Taipei, TAIWAN, June 29, 2022 ― Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE:6723), a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions, and Cyberon Corporation, a leading embedded speech solution provider, today announced that they have partnered to deliver voice user interface (VUI) solutions for customers using Renesas’ entire RA MCU line. Renesas RA customers will now have complimentary access to Cyberon’s industry-leading continuous command-based VUI toolchain, enabling them to add voice-recognition to a variety of endpoint applications in home appliances, building automation, industrial automation, wearables, and many more.

Voice recognition is growing rapidly worldwide, driven by the explosion of IoT applications and the COVID-19 pandemic. Cyberon’s proven voice-recognition technology has been adopted in millions of devices worldwide.

Renesas is making a Voice Reference Hardware Platform available to enable rapid prototyping and development of voice interfaces. The new hardware platform enables local voice recognition without a network connection using Cyberon’s DSpotter solution. DSpotter’s phoneme-based modelling approach allows quick command customization with only text input, eliminating the need for massive voice data collection and thereby reducing development costs and time. DSpotter supports over 40 global languages, empowering customers to adopt voice technology on embedded applications worldwide. This Voice User Interface (VUI) solution demonstrates how easy it is to control a system with a simple voice command interface without extensive coding experience or in-house expertise.

“Customers in multiple segments are looking for help to quickly add reliable voice user commands to their products,” said Mohammed Dogar, Vice President of Global Business Development and Ecosystem in Renesas’ IoT and Infrastructure Business Unit. “Our partnership with Cyberon gives them access to proven voice technology across our entire line of RA MCUs, from entry-line to full-featured devices.”

“We are honored to collaborate with Renesas to simplify the development of embedded voice recognition functions,” said Alex Liou, Vice President of Cyberon’s Embedded Solution BU. “Cyberon’s DSpotter algorithm meets the market’s diverse requirements for both costs and performance. The combination of DSpotter and Renesas’s leading MCU technology enables customers to develop high-performance, reliable and cost-efficient products in a timely manner.”

Key Features of the Renesas Voice User Interface Reference Solution

• Complimentary access to the DSpotter Toolchain
• Voice Activity Detection (VAD) to reduce power consumption by more than 30%, allowing power-constrained IoT end-point applications to run in always-on mode
• Voice Audio Playback (VAP) to enable voice input and voice responses
• Support for up to two digital microphones and two analog microphones
• External QSPI flash provides the ability to store voice samples and library data
• Multiple communications interfaces including a Pmod interface (type-2A/3A/6A), USB type-C and micro-B, and on-board j-link Segger debugger/programmer

Availability

A recent blog on Renesas.Com offers an excellent overview of voice user interface design. More information on Renesas’s VUI solutions, including a link for qualified customers to request the new kit and the VUI solution package, is available at www.renesas.com/voice-recognition.