obzbit/pxt-speech

Make micro:bit talk!

pxt-speech (Billy)

This is a MakeCode extension based on a port of SAM by Sebastian Macke.

Original version of Billy is by Adam Granger: https://github.com/adamish/pxt-billy

SAM "Software Automatic Mouth" itself is a legendary text to speech algorithm from 1982 for the Commodore C64

Add to a MakeCode Project

This repository can be added as an extension in MakeCode.

• Open https://makecode.microbit.org
• Click on New Project
• Click on Extensions under the gearwheel menu
• Search for https://github.com/obzbit/pxt-speech and import it

Examples

Basic usage

input.onButtonPressed(Button.A, function () {
    billy.say("Hello World")
})
input.onButtonPressed(Button.B, function () {
    billy.voicePreset(VoicePreset.DALEK)
    billy.say("I am a DALEK - EXTERMINATE")
})

The voice can be configured with individual values for speed, pitch, throat and mouth Each value is in the range of 0 to 255

• speed - how quickly the voice talks - low value slow, high value fast
• pitch - how high or low the voice sounds
• throat - how relaxed or tense is the tone of voice
• mouth - how tight-lipped the voice sounds

input.onButtonPressed(Button.A, function () {
    billy.configureVoice(92, 60, 190, 190);
    billy.say("I am a robot")
})

Advanced pronounciation can be achieved with direct use of phonemes

See original SAM manual for full details of the syntax

input.onButtonPressed(Button.A, function () {
    billy.pronounce("/HEHLOW WERLD")
})

Supported targets

• for PXT/microbit

(The metadata above is needed for package search, update it with the targets you support)

Acknowledgements

• Icon from Text to speech icons created by Freepik - Flaticon
• Sebastian Macke - author of the C port of SAM
• Authors of BBC micro:bit MicroPython speech module for inspiration

License

MIT

Links

• BBC micro:bit MicroPython - docs
• BBC micro:bit MicroPython - SAM port
• BBC micro:bit MicroPython - wrapper
• Original C port
• SpeakerTest.cpp
• Original SAM manual