Voice Control.md

Voice Control

Voice control is the core feature of Ava, allowing you to control smart home devices by speaking.

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How It Works

┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐
│  You speak  │ -> │ Ava records │ -> │Home Assistant│ -> │ Ava plays   │
│ wake word + │    │ sends audio │    │   speech    │    │   voice     │
│   command   │    │             │    │ recognition │    │   reply     │
└─────────────┘    └─────────────┘    └─────────────┘    └─────────────┘

Detailed Flow:

1. Standby: Ava continuously listens for wake word (local processing, no internet)
2. Wake Detection: When wake word detected, plays prompt sound, starts recording
3. Audio Transmission: Recording sent to Home Assistant via ESPHome protocol
4. Speech Recognition: Home Assistant's voice assistant performs speech-to-text
5. Intent Processing: Home Assistant understands intent and executes action
6. Speech Synthesis: Home Assistant generates voice response
7. Playback: Ava receives and plays voice response

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Wake Words

Wake words trigger voice recognition. Ava uses local wake word detection, no internet required.

Supported Wake Words

Wake Word	Description
Hey Jarvis	Default, Iron Man style
Alexa	Amazon style
Hey Google	Google style
OK Google	Google style
Hey Mycroft	Mycroft style
Hey Siri	Apple style (testing only)

How to Change Wake Word

1. Open Ava app
2. Go to Settings → Voice Satellite
3. Find Wake Word option
4. Select your preferred wake word
5. New wake word takes effect immediately

Wake Word Detection Technology

Ava uses microWakeWord for local wake word detection:

• Based on TensorFlow Lite models
• 16kHz sample rate, 16-bit audio
• Sliding window probability calculation
• Fully local processing, privacy protected

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Stop Words

Stop words interrupt the current conversation or stop Ava's response.

Supported Stop Words

Stop Word	Description
Stop	Default
Never mind	Cancel
Cancel	Cancel

Use Cases

• Ava is playing a long response, you want to interrupt
• You made a mistake, want to start over
• You changed your mind, don't want to execute command

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Wake Sound

Wake sound is played when Ava starts recording, letting you know you can start speaking.

Settings

Option	Description
On	Play prompt sound
Off	Silent recording start
Custom	Choose your own sound file

How to Set

1. Go to Settings → Voice Satellite
2. Find Wake Sound option
3. Choose on/off, or select custom audio file

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Mute Mode

Mute mode turns off the microphone, Ava won't respond to any wake words.

Use Cases

• In meetings, don't want interruptions
• Watching movies, avoid false triggers
• Temporarily disable voice features

How to Enable

Method 1: In Settings

1. Go to Settings → Voice Satellite
2. Turn on Mute switch

Method 2: Home Assistant Control

service: switch.turn_on
target:
  entity_id: switch.your_device_name_mute

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Continuous Conversation

Continuous conversation lets you issue multiple commands without saying the wake word each time.

How It Works

1. Say wake word + first command
2. After Ava responds, automatically enters listening mode
3. Say next command directly (no wake word needed)
4. After a few seconds of silence, exits continuous conversation mode

How to Enable

1. Go to Settings → Interaction
2. Turn on Continuous Conversation switch

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Conversation Subtitles

Conversation subtitles display what you said and Ava's response on screen.

Display Content

• Your speech: Displayed at top of screen
• Ava's response: Displayed at bottom of screen

How to Enable

1. Go to Settings → Interaction
2. Turn on Conversation Subtitles switch

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Settings Summary

Setting	Location	Description	Default
Device Name	Voice Satellite	Name shown in HA	device_model_voice_assistant
Port	Voice Satellite	ESPHome communication port	6053
Wake Word	Voice Satellite	Word that triggers recognition	Hey Jarvis
Stop Word	Voice Satellite	Word that interrupts conversation	Stop
Wake Sound	Voice Satellite	Prompt sound when recording starts	On
Mute	Voice Satellite	Turn off microphone	Off
Continuous Conversation	Interaction	Issue commands continuously	Off
Conversation Subtitles	Interaction	Display conversation text	Off
Volume	Interaction	Response volume	80%

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Home Assistant Services

Manually Trigger Wake

service: esphome.your_device_name_trigger_wake
data: {}

Control Mute

# Enable mute
service: switch.turn_on
target:
  entity_id: switch.your_device_name_mute

# Disable mute
service: switch.turn_off
target:
  entity_id: switch.your_device_name_mute

Set Volume

service: media_player.volume_set
target:
  entity_id: media_player.your_device_name
data:
  volume_level: 0.8  # 0.0 - 1.0

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FAQ

Ava can't hear me?

1. Check if microphone permission is granted
2. Check if mute mode is enabled
3. Make sure device volume isn't muted
4. Try speaking closer to device

Wake word recognition inaccurate?

1. Try a different wake word
2. Make sure environment isn't too noisy
3. Speak at moderate speed, pronounce clearly

Speech recognition results wrong?

This is usually a Home Assistant issue:

1. Check HA voice assistant configuration
2. Make sure Whisper etc. components are working
3. Check network latency
4. Try speaking more clearly

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