The LIMSI ARISE system for train travel information

In the context of the LE-3 ARISE (Automatic Railway Information Systems for Europe) project we have been developing a dialog system for vocal access to rail travel information. The system provides schedule information for the main French intercity connections, as well as, simulated fares and reservations, reductions and services. The goal is to obtain high dialog success rates with a very open dialog structure, where the user is free to ask any question or to provide any information at any point in time. In order to improve the performance with such an open dialog strategy, we make use of implicit confirmation using the callers wording (when possible), and change to a more constrained dialog level, when the dialog is not going well. In addition to own assessment, the prototype system undergoes periodic user evaluations carried out by the our partners at the French Railways