System for predicting speech recognition accuracy and development for a dialog system

A process for predicting in-grammar speech recognition accuracy of a dialog system, including comparing phonetic similarities of phrases allowed by a grammar for said dialog system and example phrases.

A process for use in developing a dialog system, including:

• generating a grammar for said dialog system on the basis of example input phrases for said dialog system;
• and
• generating an estimate of speech recognition accuracy achievable when using said dialog system on the basis of probabilities of confusing phonemes of input phrases with phonemes of said grammar to allow a developer of said dialog system to determine development of said dialog system.

A process for use in developing a dialog system, including generating estimate data representative of the number of example phrases required to achieve a predetermined speech recognition accuracy when using said dialog system.

A process for use in developing a dialog system, including:

• generating first function data, representing the respective probabilities that a phrase provided to said dialog system is predicted by grammars of said dialog system as a function of the number of example phrases used to generate said grammars;
• generating second function data, representing the probability that an in-grammar phrase provided to said dialog system is correctly recognised as a function of the number of example phrases used to generate said grammars;
• generating a third function on the basis of said first function and said second function, said third function representing the probability that a spoken phrase provided to said system is correctly recognised as a function of the number of examples used to generate said grammars.

A system for developing a dialog system, including:

• a grammatical inference engine for generating a grammar for said dialog system on the basis of example input phrases for said dialog system;
• and
• an in-grammar speech recognition accuracy estimator for generating an estimate of speech recognition accuracy achievable when using said dialog system on the basis of probabilities of confusing phonemes of input phrases with phonemes of said grammar to allow a developer of said dialog system to determine development of said dialog system.