Multi-language phrase editor and method thereof

• US 20030135358A1
• Filed: 09/04/2002
• Published: 07/17/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Citicorp Credit Services Incorporated (Citigroup Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Citicorp Development Center Incorporated (Citigroup Incorporated)
• Inventors: Kwong, Victor Che, Lissauer, George, Hsiung, Jack, Parekh, Dilip, Kneeland, Reid
• Granted Patent: US 7,165,020 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/45 Example-based machine translation; Alignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/55 Rule-based translation

Abstract

A method and system is provided for making a database stored upon a computer readable medium for use as a computerized multilingual phrase database in a runtime application environment. A database of all application phrases is created in one language with variable place holders reserved in the application phrases for each variable in the phrases. Translations of the created application phrases are created and stored in at least a second phrase database. The first and second phrase databases are exported in a form that can be used in a runtime environment by an application for which the first database and the second database were created.

Claims

1. A method for making a database stored upon a computer readable medium used with a computer for use as a computerized multilingual phrase database in a runtime application environment, for translating words, phrases and variables into words, phrases and variables in at least a second language, comprising:

creating all application phrases in one language, reserving a variable placeholder in the application phrase for each variable in the phrases, and storing the application phrases in one language which is supported by the Windows®

2000 operating system, in a first phrase database;

creating translations of the created application phrases in the one language into at least another language which is supported by the Windows®

2000 operating system and storing the translated phrases in at least a second phrase database;

creating the first phrase database and the at least a second phrase database of phrases as common phrase databases of phrases common to all applications with which the phrases are to be used;

creating at least a first application specific phrase database and at least a second application specific database made up of translations of the at least a first application specific phrase database only for applications which will use the phrases in the at least a first application specific phrase database and at least a second application specific database; and

exporting the created first common phrase database, at least a second common phrase database, the first application specific phrase database, and at least a second application specific phrase database in a form that can be used in a runtime environment by an application for which the databases were created.

2. The method as in claim 1, wherein the application phrases for all different languages are stored in a universal format.

3. The method as in claim 2, wherein said universal format is UTF-7.

4. The method as in claim 1, wherein said exporting step further comprises converting the format of the phrases stored into native format or UTF-8 format.

5. The method as in claim 3, wherein said exporting step further comprises converting the UTF-7 format stored phrases into native format or UTF-8 format.

6. A method as in claim 1, further comprising merging the common phrase databases and the application specific databases for runtime use with an application.

7. A method as in claim 1, further comprising reserving spaces for variables in stored phrases in the databases.

8. A method as in claim 1, further comprising creating said at least a first database in a first dialect of a first language, and creating said at least a second database in a second dialect of the first language to be comprised only of those phrases in the second dialect which differ from the first dialect.

9. A method as in claim 1 wherein said first phrase database is created in English.

10. A method as in claim 1 wherein said second phrase database comprises a plurality of databases created respectively in each of the languages supported by the Windows®

2000 operating system.

11. A method as in claim 10 wherein said second phrase database comprises a plurality of databases created respectively in Chinese, Dutch, German, Greek, French, Italian, Korean, Catalan, Spanish and Japanese.

12. A method as in claim 1 further comprising creating a graphical user interface for displaying the phrases.

13. A method as in claim 1 further comprising exporting the databases in batch mode for use in a runtime environment by an application.

14. A method as in claim 1 further comprising periodically updating the databases with additional phrases to be used by applications in a runtime environment.

15. A method as in claim 1, wherein the phrases in the first phrase databases and in the at least a second phrase database are stored in RTF/UTF-7 format and in plain (code page) text, and further comprising rendering the text of phrases from the RTF/UTF-7 format.

16. A method as in claim 1, wherein the phrases in the first phrase database and in the at least a second phrase database are stored in RTF/UTF-7 format and in plain (code page) text.

17. A method as in claim 1, wherein said phrases are multimedia phrases comprised of graphic-image files, and further comprising defining the phrase medium/format of said graphic-image files as one of Graphics/GIF and Graphics/JPG.

18. A method as in claim 17, wherein the path and file name of the graphic-image file are stored for access and displaying the graphic-image files.

19. A database system for use with a computer as a multilingual phrase database in a runtime application environment, for translating words, phrases and variables into words, phrases and variables in at least a second language comprising:

a first database created and stored which comprises all application phrases in one language which is supported by the Windows®

2000 operating system, and variable place holder in each phrase that includes a variable;

at least a second database created and stored which comprises translations of the application phrases in the first database into at least one other language which is supported by the Windows®

2000 operating system; and

said first database and said at least a second database comprise common phrase databases of phrases common to all applications with which the database system is to be used;

at least a first application specific phrase database and at least a second application specific database made up of translations of the at least a first application specific phrase database only for applications which will use the phrases in the at least a first application specific database and the at least a second application specific database; and

said first common phrase database, said at least a second common phrase database, said first application specific phrase database, and at least a second application specific phrase database having been exported and stored in a form in which the databases can be used in a runtime environment by an application for which the databases were created.

20. A database system as in claim 19, wherein the phrases stored in the first and at least a second database are stored in a universal format.

21. A database system as in claim 20, wherein said universal format is UTF-7.

22. A database system as in claim 19, wherein the first application specific phrase database and at least a second specific phrase database are stored in native format or UTF-8 format after having been exported.

23. A database system as in claim 21, wherein the first application specific phrase database and at least a second specific phrase database are stored in native format or UTF-8 format after having been exported.

24. A database system as in claim 19 wherein the common phrase databases and the application specific databases are merged for runtime use with an application.

25. A database system as in claim 19 wherein the stored phrases in the databases further comprise reserved spaces for variables in stored phrases in the databases.

26. A database system as in claim 19 wherein the first database comprises phrases in a first dialect of a first language, and the at least a second database comprises only phrases in a second dialect of the first language which differ from the first dialect.

27. A database system as in claim 19, wherein said second phrase database comprises a plurality of databases created respectively in each of the languages supported by the Windows®

2000 operating system.

28. A database system as in claim 19 wherein said first phrase database is in English, and said at least a second phrase database comprises a plurality of databases, each one respectively in Chinese, Dutch, German, Greek, French, Italian, Korean, Catalan, Spanish and Japanese.

29. A database system as in claim 19 further comprising mean for generating a graphical user interface for displaying the phrases.

30. A database system as in claim 19 wherein said database have been exported in batch mode for use in a runtime environment.

31. A database system as in claim 19 further comprising means for periodically updating the databases with additional phrases.

32. A database system as in claim 19 further comprising means for creating user defined languages.

33. A database system as in claim 19 further comprising means for presenting the translated phrases in at least one of graphic images, audio and other multi-media.

34. A database system as in claim 19 further comprising means for creating the translations in the same language as the first in a manner configured for supporting display devices with different display capabilities.

35. A database system as in claim 19, wherein the phrases in the first phrase database and/or the at least a second phrase database are stored in RTF/UTF-7 format and in plain (code page) text, and the database register being further configured for rendering the text of phrases from the RTF/UTF-7 format.

36. The database system as in claim 19, wherein the phrases in the first phrase database and in the at least a second phrase database are stored in RTF/UTF-7 format and in plain (code page) text.

37. The database system as in claim 19, wherein said phrases are multimedia phrases comprised of graphic-image files, and wherein the phrase medium/format of said graphic-image files have been defined as one of Graphics/GIF and Graphics/JPG.

38. The database system as in claim 37, wherein the path and file name of the graphic-image file have been stored for allowing accessing and displaying of the graphic-image files.