Culturally-aware cognitive system for human interactions

• US 10,073,842 B2
• Filed: 06/15/2016
• Issued: 09/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2016
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Abrahams, Faried, Dhondse, Amol A., Harishankar, Raman, Pikle, Anand, Sivakumar, Gandhi
• Primary Examiner(s): Neway, Samuel G
• Application Number:
  US15/182,873
• Publication Number:
  US 20170364508A1
• Time in Patent Office: 818 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/243 Natural language query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3329 Natural language query formulation or dialogue systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/10 Text processing natural language analysis G06F40/20; semantic analysis G06F40/30; processing or translation of natural language G06F40/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/20 Natural language analysis semantic analysis of natural language G06F40/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/253 Grammatical analysis; Style critique
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/30 Semantic analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/58 Use of machine translation, e.g. for multi-lingual retrieval, for server-side translation for client devices or for real-time translation
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/022 Knowledge engineering; Knowledge acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/041 Abduction
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 7/01 Probabilistic graphical models, e.g. probabilistic networks
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/02 Methods for producing synthetic speech; Speech synthesisers
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue

Abstract

A mapping is constructed between a node of a cultural hierarchy and a node of an organizational hierarchy. The cultural hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different social levels relative to one another in a culture. The organizational hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different roles of people relative to one another in a group. A set of cultural attributes is constructed to represent a persona of a human user according to mapping. Using a cultural attribute, an adjustment rule is selected from a library. A machine output is modified according to the adjustment rule. The machine output is in response to a dialog between a data processing system and human user in a machine-human interaction. The adjusted output is transformed and presented as a response to the human user in the machine-human interaction.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

constructing a mapping, using a processor and a memory, of a node of a cultural hierarchy to a node of an organizational hierarchy, wherein the cultural hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different social levels relative to one another in a culture, and wherein the organizational hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different roles of people relative to one another in a group;

producing a machine output data from a data processing system, the machine output being in response to a dialog between a data processing system and a human user in a machine-human interaction;

creating, using the processor and the memory, a new data-representation of a persona of the human user in the form of a set of cultural attributes, the set of cultural attributes representing the persona of the human user according to the mapping;

selecting from a library, using an attribute from the set of cultural attributes, an adjustment rule;

creating a new data output by changing a grammatical choice in the machine output data, the creating the new data output comprising;

applying the adjustment rule to the machine output data in a cognitive model of a cognitive system, the new data output forming an adjusted output, wherein the changing the grammatical choice increases a correspondence between the machine output data and a persona of the human user;

transforming the adjusted output to form a transformed output, the transforming comprising assigning a behavior characteristic to an animation and constructing the animation from the adjusted output such that an animated avatar is caused to exhibit a distinct behaviour characteristic specific to a culture of the human user; and

causing the data processing system to perform a culturally-appropriate manner of articulation using the transformed output as a response to the human user in the machine-human interaction, wherein the culturally-appropriate manner of articulation is consistent with the culture of the human user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

assigning, as a part of the transforming, a behavior characteristic to a video representation, wherein the transforming constructs the video representation from the adjusted output.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

assigning, as a part of the transforming, a behavior characteristic to a speech representation, wherein the transforming constructs the speech representation from the adjusted output.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the creating the new data output changes an informally stated phrase having a meaning in the machine output to a formal statement of the meaning in the adjusted output.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the creating the new data output changes a formally stated phrase having a meaning in the machine output to an informal statement of the meaning in the adjusted output.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the creating the new data output changes a first grammatical structure of a phrase having a meaning in the machine output to a second grammatical structure of the phrase the meaning in the adjusted output, wherein the first grammatical structure and the second grammatical structure are both correct in a given language.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the creating the new data output changes a first sentiment of a phrase having a meaning in the machine output to a second sentiment of the phrase having the meaning in the adjusted output.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the creating the new data output changes a first tone of a phrase in the machine output to a second tone of the phrase in the adjusted output.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the creating the new data output changes a repetition of a phrase in the machine output to a concise phrase in the adjusted output.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the creating the new data output changes a first voice of a phrase in the machine output to a second voice of the phrase in the adjusted output.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting from an action library, an action corresponding to the machine output; and

causing, as a part of the articulating, an apparatus to perform the action in the adjusted output.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

deriving the data structure of the cultural hierarchy by inheriting from a data structure of a country cultural hierarchy, wherein the data structure of the country cultural hierarchy is constructed according to a culture of a country.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

deriving the data structure of the cultural hierarchy by inheriting from a data structure of a region cultural hierarchy, wherein the data structure of the region cultural hierarchy is constructed according to a culture of a region in a country;

deriving the data structure of the region cultural hierarchy by inheriting from a data structure of a country cultural hierarchy, wherein the data structure of the country cultural hierarchy is constructed according to a culture of the country.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the organization is a business enterprise, and wherein the data structure of the organizational hierarchy comprises a hierarchy of business roles in the business enterprise.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting from a set of cultural hierarchies, responsive to detecting an occurrence of the dialog in the machine-human interaction with the human user, the data structure of the cultural hierarchy, wherein the data structure of the cultural hierarchy corresponds to a culture identified in a profile of the human user.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting from a set of organizational hierarchies, responsive to detecting an occurrence of the dialog in the machine-human interaction with the human user, the data structure of the organizational hierarchy, wherein the group is an organization, and wherein the data structure of the organizational hierarchy corresponds to a role in the organization identified in a profile of the human user.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is embodied in a computer system comprising one or more processors, one or more computer-readable memories, one or more computer-readable storage devices and program instructions which are stored on the one or more computer-readable storage devices for execution by the one or more processors via the one or more memories and executed by the one or more processors.

18. A computer usable program product comprising one or more computer-readable storage devices, and program instructions stored on at least one of the one or more storage devices, the stored program instructions comprising:

program instructions to construct a mapping, using a processor and a memory, of a node of a cultural hierarchy to a node of an organizational hierarchy, wherein the cultural hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different social levels relative to one another in a culture, and wherein the organizational hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different roles of people relative to one another in a group;

program instructions to produce a machine output data from a data processing system, the machine output being in response to a dialog between a data processing system and a human user in a machine-human interaction;

program instructions to create, using the processor and the memory, a new data-representation of a persona of the human user in the form of a set of cultural attributes, the set of cultural attributes representing the persona of the human user according to the mapping;

program instructions to select from a library, using an attribute from the set of cultural attributes, an adjustment rule;

program instructions to create a new data output by changing a grammatical choice in the machine output data, the program instructions to create the new data output comprising;

program instructions to apply the adjustment rule to the machine output data in a cognitive model of a cognitive system, the new data output forming an adjusted output, wherein the changing the grammatical choice increases a correspondence between the machine output data and a persona of the human user;

program instructions to transform the adjusted output to form a transformed output, the transforming comprising assigning a behavior characteristic to an animation and constructing the animation from the adjusted output such that an animated avatar is caused to exhibit a distinct behaviour characteristic specific to a culture of the human user; and

program instructions to cause the data processing system to perform a culturally-appropriate manner of articulation using the transformed output as a response to the human user in the machine-human interaction, wherein the culturally-appropriate manner of articulation is consistent with the culture of the human user.

19. A computer system comprising one or more processors, one or more computer-readable memories, and one or more computer-readable storage devices, and program instructions stored on at least one of the one or more storage devices for execution by at least one of the one or more processors via at least one of the one or more memories, the stored program instructions comprising:

program instructions to construct a mapping, using a processor and a memory, of a node of a cultural hierarchy to a node of an organizational hierarchy, wherein the cultural hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different social levels relative to one another in a culture, and wherein the organizational hierarchy is a data structure representing an arrangement of characteristics of different roles of people relative to one another in a group;

program instructions to produce a machine output data from a data processing system, the machine output being in response to a dialog between a data processing system and a human user in a machine-human interaction;

program instructions to create, using the processor and the memory, a new data-representation of a persona of the human user in the form of a set of cultural attributes, the set of cultural attributes representing the persona of the human user according to the mapping;

program instructions to select from a library, using an attribute from the set of cultural attributes, an adjustment rule;

program instructions to create a new data output by changing a grammatical choice in the machine output data, the program instructions to create the new data output comprising;

program instructions to apply the adjustment rule to the machine output data in a cognitive model of a cognitive system, the new data output forming an adjusted output, wherein the changing the grammatical choice increases a correspondence between the machine output data and a persona of the human user;

program instructions to transform the adjusted output to form a transformed output, the transforming comprising assigning a behavior characteristic to an animation and constructing the animation from the adjusted output such that an animated avatar is caused to exhibit a distinct behaviour characteristic specific to a culture of the human user; and

program instructions to cause the data processing system to perform a culturally-appropriate manner of articulation using the transformed output as a response to the human user in the machine-human interaction, wherein the culturally-appropriate manner of articulation is consistent with the culture of the human user.