Resolvable semantic type and resolvable semantic type resolution

• US 20050273771A1
• Filed: 09/15/2004
• Published: 12/08/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/23/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Parkinson, David J., Cipollone, Domenic J., Calcagno, Michael V., Chang, Su Chin, Shahani, Ravi C., Olsen, Mari J.B.
• Granted Patent: US 7,681,186 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/136
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/30 Semantic analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/20 Software design
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/315 Object-oriented languages
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/18 using natural language modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/1815 Semantic context, e.g. disambiguation of the recognition hypotheses based on word meaning
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure

Abstract

A system for developing natural language enabled software applications is described. Resolvable types define abstract representations of linguistic elements and interrelationships between linguistic elements of a natural language input. Resolution semantics define procedural rules for resolving validity of the resolvable types in a natural language enabled software application.

Claims

1. A system for developing natural language enabled software applications comprising:

resolvable types comprising abstract representations of linguistic elements and interrelationships between linguistic elements of a natural language input; and

resolution semantics defining procedural rules for resolving validity of instances of the resolvable types in a natural language enabled software application.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the validity of instances of the resolvable types is resolved at runtime according to the resolution semantics.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the resolvable types comprising:

a Command type for modeling natural language enabled tasks supported by a client application.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the resolvable types comprising:

a restriction host type adapted to accept constraints.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the resolvable types further comprising:

an Entity type for modeling semantics of noun phrases and adjective phrases;

wherein the Entity type inherits from the Restriction host type.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein the resolvable types further comprising:

a Restriction type for modeling properties of semantic elements;

wherein the Restriction type inherits from the Restriction host type.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the resolvable types further comprising:

a Frame type for modeling a semantic event that can be expressed either as verbs or nouns;

wherein the Frame type inherits from the Restriction host type.

8. The system of claim 1 further comprising:

a Denoter type for modeling user-defined categories of input strings.

9. A method for determining validity of an instantiation of a resolvable type in a natural language enabled software program comprising:

assembling a proposed interpretation list comprising proposed interpretations of a natural language input, each proposed interpretation comprising one or more commands and optionally non-command elements mapped to resolvable types; and

determining validity of an instantiation associated with each proposed interpretation in the natural language enabled software application.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the step of assembling comprises:

receiving a list of potential interpretations of the natural language input comprising linguistic objects assembled by one or more natural language analysis engines associating elements of the natural language input to resolvable types of a linguistic object model;

resolving a Command associated with each potential interpretation from the list; and

adding each potential interpretation associated with a successfully resolved Command to the resolved interpretation list.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the resolvable types comprise:

command types adapted to model commands in a natural language input; and

restriction host types adapted to model non-command elements of the natural language input, the restriction host type adapted to link to selected command types based on the natural language input and to host constraints of the selected command types at runtime.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein each proposed interpretation comprises a hierarchically linked object comprising a command type at a top level and restriction host types below the top level and linked to the command type, wherein the method of determining comprises:

invoking the hierarchically linked object in hierarchical order from a top level down; and

determining validity of an instantiation of the hierarchically linked object in reverse order.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein the resolvable types further comprise:

resolution semantics in part defined by program code within the resolvable types.

14. A set of resolvable types adapted to model semantics of a natural language for natural language programming, the set of resolvable types comprising:

a command type adapted to model commands in a natural language input; and

a restriction host type adapted to represent non-command elements of the natural language input, the restriction host type adapted to associate to selected command types or to other restriction host types that are transitively associated with a selected command type based on the natural language input, the restriction host type adapted to host constraints of the selected command types at runtime.

15. The set of resolvable types of claim 14 wherein instantiations of types mapped to the natural language input inherit from the command type or the restriction host type.

16. The set of resolvable types of claim 14 wherein the non-command elements comprise linguistic elements and interrelationships between linguistic elements of the natural language input.

17. The set of resolvable types of claim 14 further comprising:

resolution semantics in part defined by the set of resolvable types, the resolution semantics defining procedural rules for resolving validity of an instance of a selected type of the set of resolvable types at runtime.

18. The set of resolvable types of claim 14 wherein the restriction host type comprises:

a Frame type for modeling a semantic event that can be expressed either as verbs or nouns;

an Entity type adapted to model semantics of noun phrases and adjective phrases; and

a Restriction type adapted to model properties of semantic elements.

19. The set of resolvable types of claim 14 wherein the resolvable types further comprise:

procedural code associated with selected types of the set of resolvable types adapted to influence resolution of objects.

20. The set of resolvable types of claim 19 wherein the resolvable types further comprise:

constraints adapted to be placed on the objects of those selected types

21. The set of resolvable types of claim 14 wherein a potential interpretation of a natural language input comprises:

a Command type optionally associated with one or more Restriction host types.

22. The set of resolvable types of claim 21 wherein resolution of the potential interpretation comprises invocation of the Command type and the one or more Restriction host types in an order determined by interrelationships between the Restriction host types and resolution semantics.

23. The set of resolvable types of claim 22 wherein successful resolution is completed in reverse hierarchical order.

24. The set of resolvable types of claim 14 wherein a potential interpretation of a natural language input comprises:

a Command type optionally associated with one or more non-resolvable types.

25. A set of resolvable types adapted to model semantics of a natural language for natural language programming, the set of resolvable types comprising:

a command type adapted to model commands in a natural language input; and

a restriction host type adapted to represent non-command elements of the natural language input, the restriction host type adapted to host constraints of the selected command types at runtime.

26. The set of claim 25 wherein each instance of a resolvable type inherits properties of the resolvable type from which it derives and inherits relationships between the resolvable type and other resolvable types.

27. The set of claim 25 wherein the restriction host type is adapted to associate to selected command types or to other restriction host types that are transitively associated with a selected command type based on the natural language input.

28. The set of claim 25 wherein the restriction host type comprises:

Entities adapted to model semantic objects;

Frames adapted to model events and associated relationships between one or more objects; and

Restrictions adapted to model properties of and relationships between other entities, Frames or restrictions.

29. The set of claim 25 wherein multiple inheritance is not permitted for types derived from the restriction host type.

30. The set of claim 25 further comprising:

resolution semantics defining procedural rules for resolving validity of the resolvable types in a natural language enabled software application.

31. The set of claim 26 further comprising:

resolution semantics defining procedural rules for resolving validity of the resolvable types in a natural language enabled software application;

wherein the resolution semantics are inherited by types derived from restriction host types and command types.

32. The set of claim 25 wherein the restriction host type comprises:

computer readable program code adapted to resolve validity of the restriction host type at runtime.

33. The set of claim 32 wherein the computer readable program code comprises:

procedures for execution upon completion of resolution of constraints on an object, the procedures adapted to control resolution semantics for the resolvable type.

34. The system of claim 33 wherein the procedures are optionally inserted by a programmer and adapted to define a relationship between a host type and another type to control resolution semantics for the host type.

35. The system of claim 33 wherein a particular procedure triggers a call back to a client application.

36. The system of claim 33 wherein the procedures are adapted to disambiguate elements of the natural language input.

37. The system of claim 25 wherein the restriction host type comprises:

a declarative element adapted to define a relationship between a type derived from the restriction host type and one or more other types.