Lucent Technologies INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0 Guide

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-15 Digit Input 
4
Connected- Versus Tone-Paced Digit Entry
WholeWord  speec h rec og nition sup p orts the entry of c onnec ted -d ig it 
seq uenc es, in all availab le lang uag es.  That is, c allers c an say a series of d ig its 
in one long breath, without intentional p auses in b etween.  Many c allers find  this 
the most natural way to enter a series of d ig its.
You may have had  exp erienc e with voic e resp onse systems that d o not sup p ort 
c onnec ted -d ig it entry.  In ord er to simulate c onnec ted  d ig it inp ut, other systems 
use p ac er tones.  When an ap p lic ation uses p ac er tones, c allers are p romp ted  to 
sp eak the first dig it, then wait for another tone b efore sp eaking  the next d ig it.  
The tones then c ontinue until all dig its have b een sp oken.
If you p refer tone-p ac ed  method  of d ig it entry, you c an write your ap p lic ations 
that use p ac er tones.  However, this typ e of d ata entry has not b een p roven to 
inc rease rec ognition ac c urac y rate for d igit seq uenc e.  Pac er tones may even 
result in lower ac c urac y, sinc e c allers may b ec ome c onfused  b y the entry 
method .  Connec ted-d igit entry remains the rec ommend ed  d ig it entry method  for 
use with the I
NTUITY C O N VERSAN T sy s t e m .
Use Examples Within a Digit Entry Prompt
You may need  to p romp t c allers to enter information that is not usually exp ressed  
in d ig it format.  For example, dates are usually sp oken “ June eighteenth”  or “ six 
eig hteen.”   However, WholeWord  sp eec h rec og nition only rec og nizes sing le 
d ig its.  June eighteenth must b e sp oken “ six, one, eig ht”  or “ zero, six, one, eig ht.”   
This format is awkward  for many c allers.  In ord er to make this easier, inc lud e an 
example in the prompt.  For example:
“ Next, enter the month and  day of the month you were b orn.  Use two d ig its for 
the month, and  two d ig its for the d ay.  For examp le, for June eig hteenth, you 
would say ‘oh six, one eig ht.’  Please enter the month and  d ay now.”
Use an examp le whenever you think that inexp erienc ed  c allers will b e less 
c onfused  if you g ive them some help . 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-16 Digit Input 
4
Validate a Digit Sequence Entry
When you know that a c ertain g roup  of d ig it seq uenc es are valid , use whatever 
tec hniq ues you c an to valid ate c allers’ inp uts.  This is esp ec ially imp ortant with 
sp oken inp ut and dial p ulses, but c an also b e d one for touc h-tone inp ut.  These 
valid ation method s help  you inc rease the rec og nition ac c urac y for 
c onnec ted -d ig it seq uenc es.  The following  sec tions d esc rib e three ways to 
valid ate an entry.
Custom Grammars
You c an limit the results of the rec og nizer to valid  seq uenc es by using  a c ustom 
g rammar obtained  from Luc ent Tec hnologies.  A g rammar is the set of rules the 
rec ognizer uses to und erstand  d ata.
A numb er of g rammars are alread y p rovid ed  with Sc rip t Build er (a list c an be 
seen in the Choic es menu for the Recognition Type
 field on the Promp t & 
Collec t sc reen).  Custom g rammars are sp ec ial add itions to this stand ard  set, 
d esig ned  for your sp ec ific  need s.  For example, if you know that all valid  c allers 
will have telep hone numb ers from only a few telep hone area c od es, req uest a 
c ustom g rammar that only allows the area c od es you want.  This help s the 
rec ognizer make ac c urate judg ments ab out c aller sp eec h.
Checksums
Another way to valid ate an entry is to use a c hec ksum.  Some numb ers (like 
c red it c ard  numb ers) have a c hec ksum b uilt in to the struc ture of the numb er, so 
that the numb er c an be c hec ked  with formula to d etermine if it is valid .
If the d ig it series you are ac c ep ting  has a b uilt-in c hec ksum, use a d ata interfac e 
process (DIP), Script Builder Evaluate
 statement, or external func tion to 
evaluate the c hec ksum.  Onc e the system d etermines that the entry is valid , it 
c an sp eak the entry b ac k for c onfirmation, if nec essary.  See ‘‘Confirmation 
Announc ements’’ for more information.
Database Lookups
You c an also valid ate an entry b y looking  for it in a datab ase of valid  numb ers.  
For example, when ac c ep ting  a telephone numb er, loc ate the numb er in the 
d atab ase of all c ustomer telep hone numb ers.  If the numb er is found , sp eak it 
b ac k to the c aller for c onfirmation, if nec essary.  If it is not found , the system c an 
searc h the datab ase for a telep hone numb er that matc hes the sec ond -b est 
rec ognition result.  If the sec ond  c hoic e is found , the system assumes that this is 
what the c aller entered , and c an sp eak it b ac k for c onfirmation. 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-17 Digit Input 
4
Confirming Digit Entries with Callers
As with many of the examp les in this sec tion, it is imp ortant to c onfirm d ig it 
entries with c allers.
Confirming Single Digit Entries
In order for the system to sp eak b ac k d ig its for c onfirmation, you must ensure 
that there is a rec ord ed  p hrase assoc iated  with eac h d ig it.  Sc rip t Build er will 
sup p ly the p hrase tag s for these d ig its, and allow you to rec ord  them.  You c an 
also use enhanc ed  b asic  sp eec h in the lang uag e of your c hoic e to sp eak b ac k 
digits.
Confirming Digit Sequences
With non-US English lang uag es, the only reliab le way to sp eak c aller numeric  
entries b ac k to them is as a series of d ig its, rather than a natural number.  For 
examp le, a c aller that sp eaks “ one-hund red , twenty-three”  will hear their inp ut 
read  b ac k as “ one two three.”   This should  b e ad eq uate for most ap p lic ations.
As d iscussed  ab ove in “ Confirmation Announc ements,”
 the rec og nition Confirm 
with the Promp t & Collec t ac tions works only when you are using  US Eng lish 
WholeWord  speec h rec og nition.  WholeWord  sp eec h rec og nition in other 
lang uag es must use a sep arate Promp t & Collec t ac tion to c onfirm c aller entries. 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-18 Yes/No Questions 
4
Yes/No Questions
Use the g uid elines in this sec tion as you desig n your ap plic ations with q uestions 
that req uire a “ yes”  or “ no”  resp onse, also known as 
yes/no questions.
Touch-Tone Input for Yes/No Questions
In situations where you want c allers to respond  with touc h-tone inp ut for “ yes”  or 
“ no,”  ask them to p ress   for yes or   for no.  For example:
“ If this is c orrec t, p ress 1.  If not, p ress 2.”
It is b est to instruc t c allers to p ress   and   , althoug h you may want to use   
and   .   Even if you promp t c allers to press only   and   , you c an set up  your 
ap plic ation to ac c ep t ad d itional numb ers.  For examp le,   for yes and    and    
for no. Whatever numb ers you use to rep resent yes and  no, use the same 
numb ers throug hout the app lic ation.  Do not c onfuse c allers b y using   for no in 
one p lac e and   for no in another.
Spoken Input for Yes/No Questions
In situations where you want c allers to resp ond  with spoken inp ut, instruc t them 
to say “ yes”  or “ no,”  rather than a numb er.  Callers find  this natural, and  make 
fewer mistakes than if you ask them to say a numb er meaning  yes or no.  For 
example:
Write your yes/no q uestions similarly throug hout the ap p lic ation, so that c allers 
will know what to exp ec t.
Recognizing “yes” and “no” is best done with WholeWord speech recognition.  If 
you d o not p lan to p urc hase the WholeWord  sp eec h rec og nition software, you 
c an use FlexWord speech rec ognition with a wordlist including “yes” and “no.”   
Be aware that the ac c urac y for the FlexWord  sp eec h rec og nition version may b e 
lower than the WholeWord  sp eec h rec og nition version. Instead of prompting... prompt...
“ If this is c orrec t, say 1. If it is not c orrec t, 
say 2.”“ Is this c orrect?  Please say yes or no, 
now.
12
121
012
120
2
0 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-19 Yes/No Questions 
4
Yes/No Questions with Barge-in
(WholeWord Speech Recognition)
After asking  a yes/no q uestion, pause to g ive the c aller time to resp ond , then 
p resent the p ossib le answers.  The p rompt will stop  p laying  as soon as the 
rec ognizer d etec ts a sp oken “ yes”  or “ no”  or a touc h-tone sig nal.  For examp le:
“ You said  64587.  Is this c orrec t?”
{a 1.5 sec ond  p ause}
“ Please say yes or no.”
Use the Promp t & Collec t ac tion to ask the q uestion, p lay a series of silenc e 
p hrases, then p resent the op tions.  Fig ure 4-1
 shows an example of how part of 
your Sc rip t Build er c od e will look if you ask the c aller for five dig its, then c onfirm 
the entry within the Promp t & Collec t ac tion.
Prompt & Collect
Prompt
Speak with Interrupt
Phrase: 
“Please enter your 5-digit customer
number.
”
Input
Mode: US_DIG
Min Number of Digits: 05
Max Number of Digits: 05
Checklist
Case: 
“Input Ok”
Speak with Interrupt
Phrase: 
“You said”
Field: $CI_VALUE As C
Phrase: 
“Is this correct?”
Phrase: “sil.500”
Phrase: “sil.500”
Phrase: “sil.500”
Phrase: “Please say yes or no.”
Confirm
Case: 
“Initial Timeout”
Reprompt
Case: 
“Too Few Digits”
Reprompt
Case: 
“No More Tries”
Quit
End Prompt & Collect
Figure 4-1. Script Builder Code for Yes/No Questions with Barge-in 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-20 Yes/No Questions 
4
Yes/No Question Without Barge-in
If b arg e-in is not allowed , you have two op tions:
nAsk the q uestion, b ut do not list the op tions.  For examp le:
“ You said  645987.  Is this c orrec t?”
This method  is very suc c essful for exp erienc ed  c allers.  If c allers are 
c onfused , try the sec ond  method .
nList the op tions, b ut d o not leave an extend ed  p ause b etween the 
q uestion and the op tions.  For examp le:
“ Would  you like to plac e another ord er?  Please say yes or no.” 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-21 Pace the Application 
4
Pace the Application
Use the guid elines in this sec tion to d esig n the p ac e and  sp eed  of your 
ap plic ations.
When Callers Must Wait
If you know c allers will have to wait, it is a g ood  id ea to let them know.  For 
example, the application could say:
“ Please wait while your req uest is p roc essed .”
If you know that the c aller may have to wait for longer than a few sec ond s for the 
ap plic ation to c ontinue (b ec ause of a d atab ase c all or host c onnec tion, for 
example), it is a good idea to fill the gap during the wait.  You c ould record a long 
p hrase, p erhap s music , and  p lay it to the c aller while the information is being 
loc ated .  Or, p lay a d ifferent p hrase every seven to ten sec onds to let c allers 
know that work is b eing  done.  To d o this, you must use an external func tion.  For 
an examp le of the TFLUSH external func tion in 
INTUITY™ C O N VERSAN T®  
System Version 6.0 Ap p lic ation Develop ment with Ad vanc ed  Methods
, 
585-310-761.  Pay sp ec ial attention to the d esc rip tion of the wait ind ic ator.
Allow Time for Caller Responses
Pac e the interac tion so that c allers have time to enter the req uired  information 
and  listen to the p romp ts and  announc ements.  You c an d etermine how 
c omfortable c allers are with the p ac e of the interac tion b y testing  it as d esc rib ed  
in Chap ter 5, ‘‘Testing  and  Using  a Voic e Response Ap p lic ation Desig n.’’
Do not let the ap p lic ation resp ond  to c aller ac tions too q uic kly.  After c allers are 
asked  to make an entry, p lay a sp eec h p hrase c onsisting  of about a half sec ond  
of silenc e b efore the next p romp t or error messag e.  Sinc e many telep hones 
have the keyp ad  built into the rec eiver, this p ause leaves time for c allers to lift the 
rec eiver b ac k to their ears after p ressing  the keys.  If your c alling  p op ulation 
inc lud es senior c itizens, this p ause c an g ive them more time to reac t. 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-22 Pace the Application 
4
Adjustable Pacing
Write your ap p lic ation to allow pauses to b e ad justed  easily.  You c an inc lud e a 
p ause as mentioned  earlier, b ut you c an also tune the leng th of the p ause during  
your ap p lic ation testing .  In the beg inning of your ap p lic ation, d efine a field  
called entry_pause
.  Assig n to entry_pause
 the sp eec h phrase numb er 
assoc iated  with one of the silenc e p hrases.  For examp le:
Set Field Value
Field: entry_pause = 1074
Then, throug hout the app lic ation, sp eak the field  entry_pause
 b efore the 
p romp ts that follow c aller entries.  For example:
Announce
Speak without Interrupt
Field: entry_pause As NX
Phrase: 
“Next, please enter your 5-digit PIN.
”
If you find  d uring  testing  that the ap p lic ation resp ond s too q uic kly, all you need  to 
d o is g o to where you set the field  value and  use a long er silenc e phrase.  With 
this method, you c an make many c hang es in the ap p lic ation b y c hang ing  only 
one line.  You c an d o the same thing  for other p auses in your ap p lic ation, suc h as 
p auses b etween menu items. 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-23 Application Errors 
4
Application Errors
Use the guid elines in this sec tion when d esig ning  your ap p lic ations to p roc ess 
errors.
When Caller Errors Occur
Caller errors oc c ur when c allers enter information that the ap p lic ation c onsid ers 
inc orrec t, or when c allers enter nothing  at all.  When c allers make errors, p rovid e 
them with an informative error messag e; tell them what went wrong  and  how to 
c orrec t it.  To assure that c allers hear error messag es, d o not allow barge-in or 
d ial throug h d uring  at least the first p art of error messag es.
Allow c allers no more than two or three tries to enter information.  After the first 
error (and  sec ond , if allowing  three), the ap p lic ation should  sp eak out a promp t 
that c ontains more information, so that c allers c an g et a b etter id ea of what is 
req uired .  After the last try, tell c allers to hold  for an attend ant, then transfer the 
call.
When Speech Recognition Errors Occur
Sp eec h rec og nition errors oc c ur when the rec og nizer c annot matc h the c aller’s 
sp eec h to a p hrase it is p rep ared  to rec og nize.
Use the following  g uid elines for p roc essing  sp eec h rec og nition errors:
nChoose one c onc ise p hrase and  use it c onsistently within a single 
applic ation.  For example:
nWhen using  a FlexWord word list of five or fewer items, rep romp t with a  
“ sorry”  p hrase, then g ive a list of the valid  op tions.  For examp le:
“ Sorry.  Please say c hec king , savings, interest rates, loan rates, or 
op erator, now.”
nWhen using  a larg e word list, inc lud e some help ful information in the 
rep romp t.  For examp le:
“ Dep artment, p lease.”

“ Sorry.  Please say the name of the dep artment you want, or hold  to sp eak 
with an attend ant.” Instead of phrases such as... Use phrases such as...
“ We’re sorry, b ut your sp eec h c annot 
be understood.  Please repeat the 
c ateg ory you want.”“ Sorry.  Please rep eat.” 
						

							INTUITY CONVERSANT System Version 6.0
Application Design Guidelines  
585-310-670  Issue 1.0
December 1996
Designing a Voice Response Application 
Page 4-24 Application Errors 
4
How to Word Error Messages
To speak out an informative error messag e using  the Sc rip t Build er Promp t & 
Collec t ac tion, use either the Try Ag ain or Rep romp t ac tion.  Be sure to sp ec ify 
the informative error messag e in the assoc iated  Voic e Resp onse field .  Sp ec ify 
an appropriate error message for each type of error that can oc cur (Initial 
Timeout, Too Few Dig its, or Not on List), as shown in the following  examp les:
nWith touc h-tone or d ial p ulse inp ut:
— If the first p romp t is:
“ What time would  you like your wake-up  c all?”
and  the c aller d oes nothing  (Initial Timeout error)
A more informative prompt could be:
“ Please enter the time you would  like your wake-up  c all.  Use the 
telep hone keypad  to enter two d igits for the hour and two d ig its for 
the minutes.”
— If the first p romp t is:
“ Enter the d ate of the lottery.”
and  the c aller p resses some touc h tones, b ut not enoug h (Too Few 
Dig its error)
A more informative prompt could be:
“ Please enter the d ate of the lottery for whic h you want to hear 
winning  numb ers.  Use the telep hone keyp ad  to enter two d ig its for 
the month, and  two dig its for the day.  If a month or d ay has only 
one d ig it, use a zero b efore the dig it.”
nWith FlexWord  sp eec h rec ognition:
If the first p romp t is:
“ What c atalog  will you b e ord ering  from.”
and  the c aller makes an invalid  entry or the rec ognizer d oes not rec og nize 
a sp oken entry as valid  (Not On List error)
A more informative prompt could be:
“ Sorry.  You c an ord er from the Furniture or the Linen c atalog s.  Please 
sp eak the name of the c atalog .”
Avoid  using  neg ative or ac c using  word s when ind ic ating  an error.  Word s suc h 
as “ invalid,” “ bad,” “ wrong,” or “incorrect”  can make callers feel threatened.  
“ Sorry”  is a b rief way to say that the inp ut was not rec og nized or was inc orrec t, 
and  “ Please rep eat”  or “ Please enter ag ain”  are b rief ways to ask c allers to ac t 
again.