Ectaco
Encyclopedia
ECTACO Inc. is a US-based developer and manufacturer of hardware and software products for speech recognition
and electronic translation. They also make JetBook eBook readers.
are used by such international organizations as NATO, United Nations
and Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE), such state institutions of the USA as United States Army
, FBI, United States Department of Homeland Security
, Social Security Administration
, United States Secret Service
, Department of Health Services
, United States Postal Service
, New York Hospitals etc. The cooperation with US institutions was especially active in 2004-2006 . ECTACO devices were also used in the War in Iraq.
The speech recognition system developed by ECTACO allowed troops as well as other US governmental institutions to communicate with non-English-speaking communities, especially in conflict regions. The technology made it possible to translate not only the outgoing message but the incoming one as well, with no dependence of the quality of the translation on the speech particularities of an individual speaker – a service not provided by other companies in the segment of the time .
. The company was functioning at that time mainly as a reseller of electronic dictionaries of other manufacturers. In 1990 ECTACO started to develop its own hardware and software. Russian- and Polish-speaking immigrants in the USA became the primary commercial target group for the products of the company. The first electronic dictionaries of ECTACO supported translation between Russian ↔ English, Polish ↔ English and later German ↔ English language pairs.
The hardware developing center of ECTACO is located in Hong-Kong.
(London), the Czech Republic
(Prague), Canada
(Toronto), Poland
(Warsaw) and Ukraine
(Kiev). In 2000 a second US office was opened in Chicago
.
s which it uses to break its products into categories.
Speech recognition
Speech recognition converts spoken words to text. The term "voice recognition" is sometimes used to refer to recognition systems that must be trained to a particular speaker—as is the case for most desktop recognition software...
and electronic translation. They also make JetBook eBook readers.
Speech recognition technologies
ECTACO is one of the first developers of speech recognition technologies in the field of electronic translation . The speech recognition technologies developed by ECTACO in cooperation with the Defense Advanced Research Projects AgencyDefense Advanced Research Projects Agency
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of new technology for use by the military...
are used by such international organizations as NATO, United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
and Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe is the world's largest security-oriented intergovernmental organization. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, human rights, freedom of the press and fair elections...
(OSCE), such state institutions of the USA as United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, FBI, United States Department of Homeland Security
United States Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security is a cabinet department of the United States federal government, created in response to the September 11 attacks, and with the primary responsibilities of protecting the territory of the United States and protectorates from and responding to...
, Social Security Administration
Social Security Administration
The United States Social Security Administration is an independent agency of the United States federal government that administers Social Security, a social insurance program consisting of retirement, disability, and survivors' benefits...
, United States Secret Service
United States Secret Service
The United States Secret Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency that is part of the United States Department of Homeland Security. The sworn members are divided among the Special Agents and the Uniformed Division. Until March 1, 2003, the Service was part of the United States...
, Department of Health Services
Department of Health Services
Department of Health Services may refer to:* Los Angeles County Department of Health Services* The California Department of Health Services, a California state agency superseded by the California Health and Human Services Agency...
, United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
, New York Hospitals etc. The cooperation with US institutions was especially active in 2004-2006 . ECTACO devices were also used in the War in Iraq.
The speech recognition system developed by ECTACO allowed troops as well as other US governmental institutions to communicate with non-English-speaking communities, especially in conflict regions. The technology made it possible to translate not only the outgoing message but the incoming one as well, with no dependence of the quality of the translation on the speech particularities of an individual speaker – a service not provided by other companies in the segment of the time .
Founding
ECTACO was founded in autumn of 1989 in New York, USA, by David Lubaynitsky, who was born in Saint PetersburgSaint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
. The company was functioning at that time mainly as a reseller of electronic dictionaries of other manufacturers. In 1990 ECTACO started to develop its own hardware and software. Russian- and Polish-speaking immigrants in the USA became the primary commercial target group for the products of the company. The first electronic dictionaries of ECTACO supported translation between Russian ↔ English, Polish ↔ English and later German ↔ English language pairs.
Developing centers
In 1998 a software developing center of ECTACO was opened in Saint Petersburg, Russia, headed by Anton Epifanov, the vice president of the company. The center developed software for app. 300 models with support of 47 languages and started to develop speech recognition software in 2000. The first commercial device of ECTACO with speech recognition appeared on the market in 2002. With cooperation with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency the company launched production of the first multi-lingual translation device with ASR (Advanced Speech Recognition).The hardware developing center of ECTACO is located in Hong-Kong.
World presence
The head quarters of ECTACO are located in Long Island City, NY. In 1993 ECTACO opened a local representation in Russia (Saint Petersburg and Moscow). Within the next 2 years offices were opened in Germany (Berlin), Great BritainGreat Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
(London), the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
(Prague), Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
(Toronto), Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
(Warsaw) and Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
(Kiev). In 2000 a second US office was opened in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
Brands
Ectaco has several brandBrand
The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "Name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."...
s which it uses to break its products into categories.
- iTravl - is aimed at travelers and features multiple languages and speech recognition.
- LingvosoftLingvosoftLingvoSoft is the software division of Ectaco, Inc., a New York-based company that designs and manufactures handheld translation devices. Using various machine assisted translation technologies, the company has released software for more than 40 languages and for most major operating systems and...
- encompasses all the translation software available from Ectaco and is available for multiple platforms including WindowsMicrosoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, Palm OSPalm OSPalm OS is a mobile operating system initially developed by Palm, Inc., for personal digital assistants in 1996. Palm OS is designed for ease of use with a touchscreen-based graphical user interface. It is provided with a suite of basic applications for personal information management...
, and Pocket PCPocket PCA Pocket PC is also known by Microsoft as a 'Windows Mobile Classic device'. It is a hardware specification for a handheld-sized computer, personal digital assistant , that runs the Microsoft 'Windows Mobile Classic' operating system...
. - Partner - this brand houses a general purpose translation dictionary which targets business users and language learners.
- SpeechGuard - is the brand used to market devices to militaryMilitaryA military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
, police and other government agencies. - JetBookECTACO jetBookECTACO jetBook is an electronic-book reader developed by Ectaco, based on a Linux platform. The device was announced in the United States in October 2008...
- a range of eBook readers.
External links
- ECTACO Inc. – Global Headquarters
- JetBooks on the ECTACO Website
- JetBook Website
- Lowering the Language Barrier Forbes.com
- Russia Takes Advantage of Brain Power at Home International Herald Tribune
- Palm Reading Goes Educational Wired.com
- Handheld Translator Also Sends E-Mail Pcworld.com
- CES blitz: Work and playthings CNN
- Speech-to-speech translation system with user-modifiable paraphrasing grammars Patent Storm
- ECTACO clients
- SpeechGuard Handheld Language Translation Law & Order Magazine
- Air Force Dual-Use Science & Technology Two-Way Voice-to-Voice Translator Air Force Research Laboratory (PDF-Datei; 524 kB)