DIALOG APPARATUS, DIALOG METHOD, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM

• US 20080082692A1
• Filed: 09/18/2007
• Published: 04/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: YANO, Takehide
• Granted Patent: US 8,041,574 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events

Abstract

A dialog apparatus includes a dialog unit configured to perform a dialog with a user and to collect a plurality of items to be referred to in accordance with the dialog as the dialog continues, a dividing unit configured to divide the items into normal items related to any usable application and unusable items related to any usable application deleted, a managing unit configured to manage the items which the dialog unit refers to during the dialog with the user, in the normal items and the unusable items, an applying unit configured to apply a plurality of changes in the items to managing of the normal items and the unusable items, and a referring unit configured to refer to the managing unit in accordance with the items collected by the dialog unit and to determine to output a use-disapproval notice when the collected items include at least one unusable item.

Claims

1. A dialog apparatus comprising:

a dialog unit configured to perform a dialog with a user and to collect a plurality of items to be referred to in accordance with the dialog as the dialog continues;

a dividing unit configured to divide the items into normal items related to any usable application and unusable items related to any usable application deleted;

a managing unit configured to manage the items which the dialog unit refers to during the dialog with the user, in the normal items and the unusable items;

an applying unit configured to apply a plurality of changes in the items to managing of the normal items and the unusable items; and

a referring unit configured to refer to the managing unit in accordance with the items collected by the dialog unit and to determine to output a use-disapproval notice when the collected items include at least one unusable item.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the referring unit manages a configuration of an application designated during the dialog with the user, and applies the changes in the items to the managing of the normal items and the unusable items, the changes in the items having resulted from a change in the configuration of the application.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the referring unit selects an item for which the use-disapproval notice be output, the referring unit causing a data amount of the use-disapproval notice to fall below a value.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the referring unit selects an item for which the use-disapproval notice be output, in accordance with a state in which the item has been used.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the referring unit determines to output the use-disapproval notice when the items collected by the dialog unit and referred to in accordance with the dialog as the dialog continues are exclusively unusable items.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the applying unit deletes, from the managing unit, an item for which the use-disapproval notice has been output.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the dialog unit refers to a plurality of states in which the unusable items have been used and designates an item in accordance with the states, and the applying unit deletes the designated item from the managing unit.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the dialog unit further comprises a receiving unit configured to receive an oral input from the user, the managing unit stores speech-recognition grammars in association with the items, respectively, the dialog unit speech-recognizes the oral input from the user in accordance with the speech-recognition grammars, and the referring unit outputs the use-disapproval notice on the basis of the speech-recognized inputs.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the applying unit deletes a part of the speech-recognition grammars from the managing unit.

10. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the applying unit deletes a part of the speech-recognition grammars form the managing unit, the part being associated with an item for which the use-disapproval notice has been output.

11. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the dialog unit refers to a plurality of states in which the unusable items have been used and designates, in accordance with the states, an item which is associated with a part of the speech-recognition grammars, and the applying unit deletes the part from the managing unit.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a formulating unit configured to formulate a plurality of use-histories of users, each use-history being a use-history of each of the items, to extract an unusable item unusable at present in accordance with the formulated use-histories, and to transfers the extracted unusable item into the managing unit, the unusable item being managed in the managing unit.

13. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the managing unit classifies the items into categories, and the referring unit outputs the use-disapproval notice for the items of a category when all items of the category are unusable.

14. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the managing unit further stores a plurality of substitute items managed in association with the items, respectively, and the referring unit outputs a substitute item associated with an item when a use-disapproval notice is output for the item, the substitute item being included in the substitute items.

15. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the items are topics.

16. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the items are values.

17. A dialog method comprising:

preparing a dialog apparatus including an managing unit configured to manage a plurality of items which are referred to during the dialog with a user and which are divided into normal items related to any usable application and unusable items related to any usable application deleted, and an applying unit configured to apply a plurality of changes in the items to managing of the normal items and the unusable items;

achieving a plurality of aims concerning the items referred to in accordance with the dialog as the dialog continues;

collecting items to be referred to in accordance with the dialog as the dialog continues;

referring to the managing unit in accordance with the collected items; and

determining to output a use-disapproval notice when the collected items include an unusable item.

18. A computer readable storage medium storing instructions of a computer program for controlling a dialog apparatus including an managing unit configured to manage a plurality of items which are referred to during the dialog with a user and which are divided into normal items related to any usable application and unusable items related to any usable application deleted, and an applying unit configured to apply a plurality of changes in the items to managing of the normal items and the unusable items, the computer program which when executed by a computer results in performance of steps comprising:

achieving a plurality of aims concerning the items referred to in accordance with the dialog as the dialog continues;

collecting items to be referred to in accordance with the dialog as the dialog continues;

referring to the managing unit in accordance with the collected items; and

determining to output a use-disapproval notice when the collected items include an unusable item.