Abstract: In this paper, we describe a task-independent dialog platform which is called CHARLATAN. It is a Java application that can work in stand-alone mode and as an applet added in a website. This dialog platform integrates dialog management, natural language generation, user simulation, and a parameterization of the task-dependent issues. Currently, it allows us to develop dialogs in two domains: a train services information system, and a sport booking system. However, due to the task-independence of CHARLATAN, new domains can be easily incorporated. Dialogs are automatically generated by means of a user simulation technique, or interacting with real users through the graphical interface.
Index Terms: stochastic dialog management, user simulation, task independence, synthetic acquisition.