4. A speech recognition system for controlling a machine, said system receiving words, said words being classified in a reduced plurality of three through twelve phoneme classes, said system including: a. input means for receiving said words; b. first means responsive to said words indicating short-time energy values of said words, said first means producing a first output signal representing rising temporal energy flanks, nearly constant energy levels and zero levels of said words; c. second means responsive to said words and producing a second output signal representing a steepness of said rising temporal energy flanks exceeding a determined limit value; d. third means responsive to said words producing at least three output signals representing said short-time energy values distributed in at least three frequency ranges; e. first logic means i. responsive to said first output signal segmenting said words into phonetic elements, indicated by both the rising temporal energy flanks and the ends of the nearly constant energy levels, and indicating an end of each word only by a zero level which exceeds a determined value of time duration producing a third output signal, ii. responsive to said second output signal separating a class of the plosive phonetic elements from the class of the fricative phonetic elements and producing a fourth output signal, iii. responsive to said three output signals for detecting the plosive class, the fricative class and at least one vowel class and producing a fifth, sixth and seventh output signal; f. second logic means detecting a sequence of the occurrence of said phonetic elements within one word; and g. output means for controlling a machine as result of the detected words.
4. A speech recognition system for controlling a machine, said system receiving words, said words being classified in a reduced plurality of three through twelve phoneme classes, said system including: a. input means for receiving said words; b. first means responsive to said words indicating short-time energy values of said words, said first means producing a first output signal representing rising temporal energy flanks, nearly constant energy levels and zero levels of said words; c. second means responsive to said words and producing a second output signal representing a steepness of said rising temporal energy flanks exceeding a determined limit value; d. third means responsive to said words producing at least three output signals representing said short-time energy values distributed in at least three frequency ranges; e. first logic means i. responsive to said first output signal segmenting said words into phonetic elements, indicated by both the rising temporal energy flanks and the ends of the nearly constant energy levels, and indicating an end of each word only by a zero level which exceeds a determined value of time duration producing a third output signal, ii. responsive to said second output signal separating a class of the plosive phonetic elements from the class of the fricative phonetic elements and producing a fourth output signal, iii. responsive to said three output signals for detecting the plosive class, the fricative class and at least one vowel class and producing a fifth, sixth and seventh output signal; f. second logic means detecting a sequence of the occurrence of said phonetic elements within one word; and g. output means for controlling a machine as result of the detected words. 14. A speech recognition apparatus as defined in claim 4, wherein said first logic means includes a third matrix for recognizing subclasses of consonants and vowels.