Dialog component re-use in recognition systems

• US 7,552,055 B2
• Filed: 01/10/2004
• Issued: 06/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Lecoeuche, Renaud J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lerner; Martin
• Application Number:
  US10/755,618
• Publication Number:
  US 20050203747A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,991 Days
• Field of Search: 704/255, 704/257, 704/270, 704/270.1, 704/275
• US Class Current: 704/270.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/36 Creation of semantic tools, e.g. ontology or thesauri
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/19 Grammatical context, e.g. disambiguation of the recognition hypotheses based on word sequence rules
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/39 using speech synthesis speech synthesis per se G10L13/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/303 Marking
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4938 comprising a voice browser which renders and interprets, e.g. VoiceXML

Abstract

Controls are provided for a web server to generate client side markups that include recognition and/or audible prompting. The controls comprise elements of a dialog such as a question, answer, confirmation, command or statement. A module forms a dialog by making use of the information carried in the controls. The dialog follows a selected order of prompting and receiving input from a user as related to the order of the controls, and departs from the selected order as a function of responses from the user. The speech controls are adapted such that elements of the speech controls can be combined or re-used.

Claims

1. A computer readable storage medium having instructions, which when executed on a computer generate client side markup for a client in a client/server system, the instructions comprising:

a set of controls for defining a dialog defined in an authoring page for a website, the controls comprising at least a control for generating client side markup related to audible prompting of a question and for generating client side markup related to a grammar for recognition, said controls having properties to refer to another control of the same type in order to duplicate at least a portion of the dialog of said another control, wherein said control includes an extra answer property defining processing of responses by the user which were unsolicited in a prompt, and wherein said properties to refer another control includes an imported extra answer property for identifying said another control; and

a module operable on a server, the module being configured to generate client side markup executable by a client browser to create a dialog as a function of the controls in the authoring page.

2. The computer readable storage medium of claim 1 wherein said control includes a prompt property for defining a prompt, an answer property defining the processing of responses by the user to the prompt, and wherein said properties to refer another control includes an imported answer property for identifying said another control.

3. The computer readable storage medium of claim 2 wherein said control is adapted to combine the processing of responses in the answer property with the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property.

4. The computer readable storage medium of claim 3 wherein said control adapted to combine the processing of responses in the answer property with the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property includes being adapted to associate a grammar for the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property, said grammar being differentiated from a grammar for processing other responses associated with the answer property.

5. The computer readable storage medium of claim 4 wherein said control is adapted to combine the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property or the imported extra answer property.

6. The computer readable storage medium of claim 5 wherein being adapted to associate the grammar for the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property or the imported extra answer property includes using a unique identifier for each of the answers.

7. The computer readable storage medium of claim 4 wherein said control adapted to combine the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property includes being adapted to associate a grammar for the processing of responses m the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property, said grammar being differentiated from a grammar for processing other responses associated with the extra answer property.

8. The computer readable storage medium of claim 7 wherein being adapted to associate the grammar for the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property includes using a unique identifier for each of the extra answers.

9. The computer readable storage medium of claim 1 wherein the set of controls includes a reference to specify re-use of a grammar.

10. The computer readable storage medium of claim 9 wherein the set of controls includes a reference to specify re-use of only a portion of a grammar.

11. The computer readable storage medium of claim 10 wherein the set of controls includes a reference to specify re-use of only a portion of a grammar without carrier phrases.

12. A computer readable storage medium having instructions, which when executed on a computer generate client side markup for a client in a client/server system, the instructions comprising:

a set of controls for defining a dialog, the controls comprising at least a control for generating client side markup related to audible prompting of a question and for generating client side markup related to a grammar for recognition, said controls having means for referring to another control of the same type in order to duplicate at least a portion of the dialog of said another control,

wherein said control includes a prompt property for defining a prompt, an answer property defining the processing of responses by the user to the prompt, and wherein said means for referring to another control includes an imported answer property for identifying said another control

wherein said control is adapted to combine the processing of responses in the answer property with the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property;

wherein said control includes an extra answer property defining processing of responses by the user which were unsolicited in the prompt, and wherein said means for referring to another control includes an imported extra answer property for identifying said another control; and

a module operable on a server, the module being configured to generate client side markup executable by a client browser to create a dialog as a function of the controls.

13. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12 wherein said control is adapted to combine the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property.

14. The computer readable storage medium of claim 13 wherein said control is adapted to combine the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses m the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property.

15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 14 wherein said control is adapted to combine the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property.

16. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12 and further comprising a second set of controls for generating markup related to visual rendering on a client, wherein at least one of the first-mentioned set of controls is associated with at least one of the controls of the second set of controls.

17. A computer-implemented method for generating client side markup for a client in a client/server system comprising:

specifying a website application from a set of controls for defining a dialog, the controls comprising at least a control for generating markup related to audible prompting of a question and for generating markup related to a grammar for recognition, said control having means for referring to another control of the same type in order to duplicate at least a portion of the dialog of said another control,

wherein said control includes a prompt property for defining a prompt, an answer property defining the processing of responses by the user to the prompt, and wherein said means for referring to another control includes an imported answer property for identifying said another control,

wherein said control includes an extra answer property defining processing of responses by the user which were unsolicited in the prompt, and wherein said means for referring to another control includes an imported extra answer property for identifying said another control; and

generating client side markup from the specified website application and sending the client side markup to a client, wherein generating client side markup includes combining the processing of responses in the answer property with the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17 wherein generating client side markup includes combining the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 18 wherein generating client side markup includes combining the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 19 wherein generating client side markup includes combining the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses m the answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 18 wherein combining the processing of responses in the extra answer property with the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property includes associating a grammar for the processing of responses in the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property, said grammar being differentiated from a grammar for processing other responses associated with the extra answer property.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 21 wherein associating a grammar for the processing of responses m the extra answer property of said another control identified in the imported extra answer property includes using a unique identifier for each of the extra answers.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 17 wherein combining the processing of responses in the answer property with the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property includes associating a grammar for the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property, said grammar being differentiated from a grammar for processing other responses associated with the answer property.

24. The computer-implemented method of claim 23 wherein associating a grammar for the processing of responses in the answer property of said another control identified in the imported answer property includes using a unique identifier for each of the answers.

25. The computer-implemented method of claim 17 wherein specifying an application includes specifying re-use of a grammar by reference to a control.