Patent ID: 7430510

Claim:
A method of switching contexts within a spoken dialog between a user and a spoken dialog system, the spoken dialog system having a dialog manager with a first flow controller and a second flow controller, each of the first flow controller and second flow controller being a finite state model, the method comprising: while the spoken dialog is being controlled by the first flow controller, receiving context-changing input associated with speech from a user that changes a dialog context; comparing the context-changing input to a table of context shifts; if any of the context shifts are activated by the comparing step, then passing control to an invoked second flow controller indicated by the context shift; if no context shift is activated by comparing step, then maintaining control of the spoken dialog with the first flow controller; and storing a local context associated with each of the first and second flow controllers, the local context maintaining a state of the flow controller that is independent of implemented subdialogs; wherein the second flow controller receives data values stored in the local context of the first flow controller.