Dialog system, dialog system execution method, and computer memory product

• US 20050256717A1
• Filed: 09/30/2004
• Published: 11/17/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Kitagawa, Eiji, Miyata, Ryosuke, Fukuoka, Toshiyuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,742,924 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/270
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/30 Semantic analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/1822 Parsing for meaning understanding

Abstract

The present invention provides a dialog system, a dialog execution method and a computer program which are capable of easily updating input information and output information of a dialog scenario and easily changing a plurality of modalities by using a general-purpose dialog scenario. In a dialog system that receives information from outside, controls the pursuit of dialog along the stored dialog scenario and outputs information along the dialog scenario to the outside, a dialog scenario written by using information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases used in the input information and the output information is stored, one or a plurality of words/phrases are stored in association with information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases, input information is analyzed, a corresponding word/phrase is extracted based on the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases, and output information along a dialog scenario stored, based on the extracted word/phrase is outputted.

Claims

1. A dialog system including

an information receiving section for receiving input information from outside;

a dialog scenario storage section for storing a dialog scenario for pursuing a dialog;

a dialog control section for controlling the pursuit of dialog along the stored dialog scenario; and

an information output section for outputting output information along the dialog scenario to the outside,

wherein said dialog scenario storage section stores a dialog scenario written by using information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases used in the input information and the output information,

said dialog system comprises;

means for storing one or a plurality of words/phrases in association with information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases;

means for analyzing the input information and deriving information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases; and

means for extracting a corresponding word/phrase based on the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases, and

said information output section outputs output information along the dialog scenario stored, based on the extracted word/phrase by the means.

2. The dialog system of claim 1, wherein

templates specifying fixed portions of output information to be outputted to the outside and changeable portions specified by information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases are stored in association with information for identifying the templates, and

said information output section inserts words/phrases corresponding to the changeable portions of the templates based on the information for identifying the template and the information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases, and outputs output information along the dialog scenario.

3. The dialog system of claim 1, wherein

history information about a history of a word/phrase selected from the plurality of words/phrases corresponding to the information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases is stored, in case that a plurality of words/phrases are stored in association with information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases, and

a word/phrase corresponding to the information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases is selected based on the history information.

4. The dialog system of claim 3, wherein

a word/phrase that is selected most recently is to be selected based on the history information.

5. The dialog system of claim 3, wherein

a word/phrase that is selected the greatest number of times is to be selected based on the history information.

6. The dialog system of claim 1, further comprising

means for determining a type of modality based on an analysis result of the received input information,

wherein the means for extracting a word/phrase extracts a corresponding word/phrase based on the determined type of modality in addition to the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases.

7. The dialog system of claim 2, further comprising

means for determining a type of modality based on an analysis result of the received input information,

wherein the means for extracting a word/phrase extracts a corresponding word/phrase based on the determined type of modality in addition to the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases.

8. The dialog system of claim 3, further comprising

means for determining a type of modality based on an analysis result of the received input information,

wherein the means for extracting a word/phrase extracts a corresponding word/phrase based on the determined type of modality in addition to the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases.

9. The dialog system of claim 4, further comprising

means for determining a type of modality based on an analysis result of the received input information,

wherein the means for extracting a word/phrase extracts a corresponding word/phrase based on the determined type of modality in addition to the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases.

10. The dialog system of claim 5, further comprising

means for determining a type of modality based on an analysis result of the received input information,

wherein the means for extracting a word/phrase extracts a corresponding word/phrase based on the determined type of modality in addition to the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases.

11. A dialog execution method for allowing a computer to receive input information from outside,

store a dialog scenario for pursuing a dialog;

control the pursuit of dialog along the stored scenario, and

output output information along the dialog scenario to the outside,

wherein the computer stores a dialog scenario written by using information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases used in the input information and the output information, and

said method comprises the steps of

storing one or a plurality of words/phrases in association with information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases;

analyzing the input information and deriving information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases;

extracting a corresponding word/phrase based on the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases; and

outputting output information along the dialog scenario stored, based on the extracted word/phrase.

12. A computer memory product recording a computer program for causing a computer to

receive input information from outside,

store a dialog scenario for pursuing a dialog;

control the pursuit of dialog along the stored scenario, and

output output information along the dialog scenario to outside,

wherein a dialog scenario written by using information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases used in the input information and the output information is stored, and said computer program comprises the steps of;

storing one or a plurality of words/phrases in association with information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases;

analyzing the input information and deriving information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases;

extracting a corresponding word/phrase based on the derived information for identifying the meaning of words/phrases; and

outputting output information along the dialog scenario stored, based on the extracted word/phrase.