Converting data into natural language form

• US 9,251,143 B2
• Filed: 01/13/2012
• Issued: 02/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kyndryl Incorporated (Kyndryl Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bird, John J., McCoy, Doyle J.
• Primary Examiner(s): YEN, ERIC L
• Application Number:
  US13/350,107
• Publication Number:
  US 20130185050A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,481 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3329 Natural language query formulation or dialogue systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/56 Natural language generation

Abstract

Converting technical data from field oriented electronic data sources into natural language form is disclosed. An approach includes obtaining document data from an input document, wherein the document data is in a non-natural language form. The approach includes determining a data type of the document data from one of a plurality of data types defined in a detection and conversion database. The approach includes translating the document data to a natural language form based on the determined data type. The approach additionally includes outputting the translated document data in natural language form to an output data stream.

Claims

1. A method implemented in a computer infrastructure, comprising:

obtaining document data from an input document, wherein the document data is in a non-natural language form;

determining, from one of a plurality of data types, a data type of the document data via communication with a detection and conversion database;

translating, based on the determined data type, the document data to a natural language form; and

outputting, in natural language form, the translated document data to an output data stream;

wherein the plurality of data types comprises;

document header data;

document field data;

table header data;

table detail data; and

signature data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining comprises obtaining, from an input data stream of the input document, the document data.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising applying a first keyword translation to the document data prior to the translating the document data to the natural language form.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising applying a second keyword translation to the translated document data after the translating the document data to the natural language form.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first and second keyword translations are applied using a keyword translation database.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing the output data stream to a question-answering system.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising saving the output data stream as an output document.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the document data comprises plural different portions of data; and

the determining, the translating, and the outputting are respectively performed for each respective one of the plural different portions of data.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the plural different portions of data are arranged in an order in the input document; and

the output translated document data comprises translated portions of data in the same order as the input document.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising storing metadata associated with each one of the plural different portions of data.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the detection and conversion database comprises records defining the plurality of data types; and

the determining the data type of the document data comprises comparing the document data to the records defining the plurality of data types.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein:

each one of the records is associated with a respective one of the plurality of data types; and

each one of the records further comprises at least one conversion rule that defines how to translate the data type to the natural language form.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein a service provider at least one of creates, maintains, deploys and supports the computer infrastructure.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein steps of claim 1 are provided by a service provider on a subscription, advertising, and/or fee basis.

15. A system implemented in hardware, comprising:

a processor executing a translation engine that is configured to;

obtain document data from an input document, wherein the document data is in a form other than a natural language form;

determine, via communication with a detection and conversion database comprising records defining a plurality of data types, a data type of the document data;

translate, based on the determined data type, the document data to natural language form; and

output, in natural language form, the translated document data to an output data stream;

wherein the plurality of data types comprises;

document header data;

document field data;

table header data;

table detail data; and

signature data.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein:

each one of the records is associated with a respective one of the plurality of data types;

each one of the records comprises data used in comparisons against the document data during the determining;

each one of the records further comprises at least one conversion rule applied to the document data during the translating.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein:

the translation engine is further operable to apply a keyword translation at least one of prior to and after the translating the document data to natural language form; and

the keyword translation is a separate translation from the translating the document data to the natural language form.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the translation engine is further operable to provide the output data stream to a question-answering system.

19. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer usable tangible storage medium having readable program code embodied in the tangible storage medium, the computer program product includes at least one component configured to:

obtain plural portions of document data from an input document, wherein the plural portions of document data are in a non-natural language form; and

for each one of the plural portions of document data, perform the steps of;

determine, via communication with a detection and conversion database comprising records defining a plurality of data types, a data type of the one of the plural portions of document data;

translate, based on the determined data type, the one of the plural portions of document data to a natural language form; and

output, in natural language form, the translated one of the plural portions of document data to an output data stream;

wherein the plurality of data types comprises;

document header data;

document field data;

table header data;

table detail data; and

signature data.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein:

each one of the records is associated with a respective one of the plurality of data types;

each one of the records comprises data used in comparisons against the document data during the determining;

each one of the records further comprises at least one conversion rule applied to the document data during the translating.

21. A computer system for translating an input document to a natural language form, the system comprising:

a CPU, a computer readable memory, and a computer readable storage media;

first program instructions configured to obtain document data from an input document, wherein the document data is in a form other than a natural language form;

second program instructions configured to determine, via communication with a detection and conversion database comprising records defining a plurality of data types, a data type of the document data;

third program instructions configured to translate, based on the determined data type, the document data to natural language form;

fourth program instructions configured to output, in natural language form, the translated document data to an output data stream; and

fifth program instructions configured to apply a keyword translation to the document data before the translating the document data to natural language form, and apply a keyword translation to the translated document data after the translating the document data to natural language form;

wherein the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth program instructions are stored on the computer readable storage media for execution by the CPU via the computer readable memory;

each one of the records in the detection and conversion database is associated with a respective one of the plurality of data types;

each one of the records comprises data used in comparisons against the document data during the determining;

each one of the records further comprises at least one conversion rule applied to the document data during the translating; and

the plurality of data types comprises;

document header data;

document field data;

table header data;

table detail data; and

signature data.

22. A method of deploying a system for translating documents to natural language form, comprising:

providing a computer infrastructure configured to;

obtain, from an input document, document data wherein the document data is in a non-natural language form;

determine, via communication with a detection and conversion database comprising records defining a plurality of data types, a data type of the document data;

translate, based on the determine data type, the document data to a natural language form; and

output, in natural language form, the translated document data in natural language form to an output data stream;

wherein the plurality of data types comprises;

document header data;

document field data;

table header data;

table detail data; and

signature data.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein:

the document data comprises plural different portions of data;

the determining, the translating, and the outputting are respectively performed for each respective one of the plural different portions of data;

the plural different portions of data are arranged in an order in the input document;

the output translated document data comprises translated portions of data in the same order as the input document.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising storing metadata associated with each one of the plural different portions of data.