tutorial-car-dashboard.md

copyright	lastupdated	subcollection
years 2015, 2019	2019-04-12	assistant

{:shortdesc: .shortdesc} {:new_window: target="_blank"} {:deprecated: .deprecated} {:important: .important} {:note: .note} {:tip: .tip} {:pre: .pre} {:codeblock: .codeblock} {:screen: .screen} {:javascript: .ph data-hd-programlang='javascript'} {:java: .ph data-hd-programlang='java'} {:python: .ph data-hd-programlang='python'} {:swift: .ph data-hd-programlang='swift'} {:gif: data-image-type='gif'}

Tutorial: Building a car dashboard dialog

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard}

In this tutorial, you will use the {{site.data.keyword.conversationshort}} service to create a dialog that helps users interact with a cognitive car dashboard. {: shortdesc}

Learning objectives

{: #car-dashboard-objectives}

By the time you finish the tutorial, you will understand how to:

• Define entities
• Plan a dialog
• Use node and response conditions in a dialog

Duration

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-duration}

This tutorial will take approximately 2 to 3 hours to complete.

Prerequisite

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-prereqs}

Before you begin, complete the Getting Started tutorial.

You will use the {{site.data.keyword.conversationshort}} tutorial skill that you created, and add nodes to the simple dialog that you built as part of the getting started exercise.

Step 1: Add intents and examples

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-add-intents}

Add an intent on the Intents tab. An intent is the purpose or goal expressed in user input.

1. From the Intents page of the {{site.data.keyword.conversationshort}} tutorial skill, click Add intent.

2. Add the following intent name, and then click Create intent:

   turn_on
   

   {: codeblock}

   A # is prepended to the intent name you specify. The #turn_on intent indicates that the user wants to turn on an appliance such as the radio, windshield wipers, or headlights.

3. In the Add user example field, type the following utterance, and then click Add example:

   I need lights
   

   {: codeblock}

4. Add these 5 more examples to help Watson recognize the #turn_on intent.

   Play some tunes
   Turn on the radio
   turn on
   Air on please
   Crank up the AC
   Turn on the headlights
   

   {: codeblock}

5. Click the Close icon to finish adding the #turn_on intent.

You now have three intents, the #turn_on intent that you just added, and the #hello and #goodbye intents that were added in the Getting started tutorial that you completed as a prerequisite step. Each intent has a set of example utterances that help train Watson to recognize the intents in user input.

Step 2: Add entities

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-add-entities}

An entity definition includes a set of entity values that can be used to trigger different responses. Each entity value can have multiple synonyms, which define different ways that the same value might be specified in user input.

Create entities that might occur in user input that has the #turn_on intent to represent what the user wants to turn on.

1. Click the Entities tab to open the Entities page.

2. Click Add entity.

3. Add the following entity name, and then press Enter:

   appliance
   

   {: codeblock}

   A @ is prepended to the entity name you specify. The @appliance entity represents an appliance in the car that a user might want to turn on.

4. Add the following value to the Value name field:

   radio
   

   {: codeblock}

   The value represents a specific appliance that users might want to turn on.

5. Add other ways to specify the radio appliance entity in the Synonyms field. Press Tab to give the the field focus, and then enter the following synonyms. Press Enter after each synonym.

   music
   tunes
   

   {: codeblock}

6. Click Add value to finish defining the radio value for the @appliance entity.

7. Add other types of appliances.

   • Value: headlights. Synonym: lights.
   • Value: air conditioning. Synonyms: air and AC.

8. Click the toggle to turn fuzzy matching On for the @appliance entity. This setting helps your assistant recognize references to entities in user input even when the entity is specified in a way that does not exactly match the syntax you use here.

9. Click the Close icon to finish adding the @appliance entity.

10. Repeat Steps 2-8 to create the @genre entity with fuzzy matching on, and these values and synonyms:

    • Value: classical. Synonym: symphonic.
    • Value: rhythm and blues Synonym: r&b.
    • Value: rock. Synonym: rock & roll, rock and roll, and pop.

You defined two entities: @appliance (representing an appliance the assistant can turn on) and @genre (representing a genre of music the user can choose to listen to).

When the user's input is received, the {{site.data.keyword.conversationshort}} service identifies both the intents and entities. You can now define a dialog that uses intents and entities to choose the correct response.

Step 3: Create a complex dialog

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-complex-dialog}

In this complex dialog, you will create dialog branches that handle the #turn_on intent you defined earlier.

Add a root node for #turn_on

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-add-turn-on}

Create a dialog branch to respond to the #turn_on intent. Start by creating the root node:

1. Click the More icon on the #hello node, and then select Add node below.
2. Start typing #turn_on in the condition field, and then select it from the list. This condition is triggered by any input that matches the #turn_on intent.
3. Do not enter a response in this node. Click to close the node edit view.

Scenarios

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-scenarios}

The dialog needs to determine which appliance the user wants to turn on. To handle this, create multiple responses based on additional conditions.

There are three possible scenarios, based on the intents and entities that you defined:

Scenario 1: The user wants to turn on the music, in which case the assistant must ask for the genre.

Scenario 2: The user wants to turn on any other valid appliance, in which case the assistant echos the name of the requested appliance in a message that indicates it is being turned on.

Scenario 3: The user does not specify a recognizable appliance name, in which case the assistant must ask for clarification.

Add nodes that check these scenario conditions in this order so the dialog evaluates the most specific condition first.

Address Scenario 1

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-address-scenario1}

Add nodes that address scenario 1, which is that the user wants to turn on the music. In response, the assistant must ask for the music genre.

Add a child node that checks whether the appliance type is music

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-add-music-check}

1. Click the More icon on the #turn_on node, and select Add child node.
2. In the condition field, enter @appliance:radio. This condition is true if the value of the @appliance entity is radio or one of its synonyms, as defined on the Entities tab.
3. In the response field, enter What kind of music would you like to hear?
4. Name the node Music.
5. Click to close the node edit view.

Add a jump from the #turn_on node to the Music node

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-add-jump-to-music}

Jump directly from the #turn on node to the Music node without asking for any more user input. To do this, you can use a Jump to action.

1. Click the More icon on the #turn_on node, and select Jump to.
2. Select the Music child node, and then select If bot recognizes (condition) to indicate that you want to process the condition of the Music node.

Note that you had to create the target node (the node to which you want to jump) before you added the Jump to action.

After you create the Jump to relationship, you see a new entry in the tree:

Add a child node that checks the music genre

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-check-genre}

Now add a node to process the type of music that the user requests.

1. Click the More icon on the Music node, and select Add child node. This child node is evaluated only after the user has responded to the question about the type of music they want to hear. Because we need a user input before this node, there is no need to use a Jump to action.
2. Add @genre to the condition field. This condition is true whenever a valid value for the @genre entity is detected.
3. Enter OK! Playing @genre. as the response. This response reiterates the genre value that the user provides.

Add a node that handles unrecognized genre types in user responses

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-catch-genre}

Add a node to respond when the user does not specify a recognized value for @genre.

1. Click the More icon on the @genre node, and select Add node below to create a peer node.
2. Enter true in the condition field. The true condition is a special condition. It specifies that if the dialog flow reaches this node, it should always evaluate as true. (If the user specifies a valid @genre value, this node will never be reached.)
3. Enter I'm sorry, I don't understand. I can play classical, rhythm and blues, or rock music. as the response.

That takes care of all the cases where the user asks to turn on the music.

Test the dialog for music

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-test-music}

1. Select the icon to open the chat pane.

2. Type Play music. The assistant recognizes the #turn_on intent and the @appliance:music entity, and it responds by asking for a musical genre.

3. Type a valid @genre value (for example, rock). The assistant recognizes the @genre entity and responds appropriately.

   

4. Type Play music again, but this time specify an invalid response for the genre. The assistant responds that it does not understand.

Address Scenario 2

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-address-scenario2}

We will add nodes that address scenario 2, which is that the user wants to turn on another valid appliance. In this case, the assistant echos the name of the requested appliance in a message that indicates it is being turned on.

Add a child node that checks for any appliance

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-check-applicance}

Add a node that is triggered when any other valid value for @appliance is provided by the user. For the other values of @appliance, the assistant doesn't need to ask for any more input. It just returns a positive response.

1. Click the More icon on the Music node, and then select Add node below to create a peer node that is evaluated after the @appliance:music condition is evaluated.
2. Enter @appliance as the node condition. This condition is triggered if the user input includes any recognized value for the @appliance entity besides music.
3. Enter OK! Turning on the @appliance. as the response. This response reiterates the appliance value that the user provided.

Test the dialog with other appliances

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-test-other-appliances}

1. Select the icon to open the chat pane.

2. Type lights on.

   The assistant recognizes the #turn_on intent and the @appliance:headlights entity, and it responds with OK, turning on the headlights.

   

3. Type turn on the air.

   The assistant recognizes the #turn_on intent and the @appliance:(air conditioning) entity, and it responds with OK, turning on the air conditioning.

4. Try variations on all of the supported commands based on the example utterances and entity synonyms you defined.

Address Scenario 3

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-address-scenario3}

Now add a peer node that is triggered if the user does not specify a valid appliance type.

1. Click the More icon on the @appliance node, and then select Add node below to create a peer node that is evaluated after the @appliance condition is evaluated.
2. Enter true in the condition field. (If the user specifies a valid @appliance value, this node will never be reached.)
3. Enter I'm sorry, I'm not sure I understood you. I can turn on music, headlights, or air conditioning. as the response.

Test some more

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-test-more}

1. Try more utterance variations to test the dialog.

   If the assistant fails to recognize the correct intent, you can retrain it directly from the chat window. Select the arrow next to the incorrect intent and choose the correct one from the list.

   {: gif}

Optionally, you can review the Customer Service - Sample skill to see this same use case fleshed out even more with a longer dialog and additional functionality.

1. Click the Back to skills button from the navigation menu.

2. Click Add a sample.

   The sample skill is added to your list of skills. It is not associated with any assistants.

Next steps

{: #tutorial-car-dashboard-deploy}

Now that you have built and tested your dialog skill, you can share it with customers. Deploy your skill by first connecting it to an assistant, and then deploying the assistant. There are several ways you can do this. See Adding integrations for more details.

You can access the source code for a full car dashboard sample application from GitHub .