A new restaurant guide conversational system: issues in rapid prototyping for specialized domains

We are developing a new restaurant guide domain, DINEX, which utilizes all of the same core technology as our other GALAXY conversational systems. The domain server has been adapted from our CityGuide domain within our GALAXY framework, using the same mechanisms to locate places on the map or to give directions. The system has information on several features for restaurants, such as hours, cuisine, parking availability, and an online menu. DINEX knows over 450 restaurants in the Boston area, and can also provide directions from subway stops or well-known landmarks. DINEX makes use of a relational database derived from several online sources, including a nationally known travel guide. This paper particularly emphasizes the language tools we have developed to construct the relational database semi-automatically and to derive from user queries the appropriate SQL queries for accessing the database.