Glossaries for AI-Powered Asynchronous Translation

To further enhance the capabilities of AI-powered asynchronous translations in STEP, users may configure and link glossaries to their async translation configurations.

Glossaries are .csv files that can help ensure greater accuracy for AI translation outputs. Through a glossary, users can direct an AI to handle key translation elements in a manner specified in the glossary. Elements like:

  • key terms

  • brand names

  • industry terminology

Glossaries provide users with more control over AI-powered translations by removing some of the variability of AI outputs. Over time, glossaries can increase trust in AI translation as vital text displays in completed translations just as the customer intended.

For example, if a company name included in the translation is 'Acme Industries,' and the customer wants the company name to remain untranslated wherever it appears in translated text, an entry dictating this can be added to a glossary. When the target language translations complete, 'Acme Industries' will display correctly in spite of the potential for unpredictability in AI translation output.

Creating a Glossary

On a properly licensed system, admin users with the 'Setup entity maintain' privilege assigned to their user group can follow the steps described below to create and implement a glossary:

  1. Glossary creation - Create a spreadsheet document using the program of your choice. Be sure to save it as a .csv file.

  2. Format - The spreadsheet format is a minimum of three columns, each consisting of a header and values. The first column contains the source language values, the second contains the description (described below), and the third (and any additional columns) contains the target language values. Each column has a header. The header of the first column is the source language's 'Name' value as defined in STEP. The second column (Description) does not need a header, and can be left blank. The third (and any additional) column is the target language's 'Name' value as defined in STEP (e.g., 'French' or 'FR_FR'). Additional detail on these columns is provided below.

    • Source language value column - In this first column, add the values you want the AI translation service to handle differently when translating.

      For the column header, use the source language's 'Name' value as it appears in STEP. For example, 'English' or 'US_EN.' For the column values, add the source language value that will be defined in the 'Description' and 'Target language' columns. For example, if the term being contextualized for the AI translation service is 'Acme Corporation,''Acme Corporation' would be added as a value to this column.

    • Description column - In this cell, add textual guidance to the translating AI about when the target values should be used in lieu of the source values, or if the AI should translate the source value without referencing the values listed in the target language value column in the glossary. It should be noted that descriptions cannot be used to alter wording defined in the target language value columns.

    • Target language value column(s) - Add a target language value column for each language you are translating into. There must be at least one target language value column for the glossary to be considered correctly formatted. For each target language, include the value that should be used in lieu of how the AI translation would translate the source language value. There can be only one column for every target language you are creating an AI translation for. For the column header, use the target language's 'Name' value as it appears in STEP (e.g., 'French' or 'FR_FR').

  3. Creating the glossary object - In the STEP workbench, on the System Setup tab, find the 'Glossaries' node, and right-click on it. Select 'New Glossary' from the dropdown that displays.

  4. Describing the glossary object - In the 'Create New Glossary' dialog, populate the three fields shown.

    • Name - Add a name for the glossary that is descriptive enough to be easily located in a potentially long list of glossaries.

    • Description - Add a short description of the glossary's purpose.

    • Glossary File - Click the hierarchy button to the right of the field to open a Windows Explorer window. Locate the glossary on your machine, select it, and click 'OK.'

Adding a Glossary to an Asynchronous Service Configuration

To add a glossary to your AI-powered asynchronous translation service configuration, follow the instructions outlined below. For more information on configuring an AI-powered asynchronous translation, refer to the Configuring an Asynchronous Translation Service topic.

  1. Navigate to your service configuration in the STEP Workbench on the System Setup tab.

  1. On the 'Asynchronous Service Configuration Type tab, find the 'Glossary' parameter at the bottom of the second block of parameters. Click 'Edit Configuration.'

  1. In the 'Asynchronous Service Configuration Wizard' window that displays, find the 'Glossary' parameter, and click the field.

  1. This opens a dropdown. From the list of glossaries displayed, select the glossary you created previously to be linked to the Async service configuration type.

  1. Click 'Finish.'

Using the Glossary

When an asynchronous translation is run using the AI service to which the glossary has been attached, the glossary information will be a part of the information the AI consumes prior to creating the translation. All items listed in the glossary will be honored by the AI, resulting in consistent and trustworthy AI-generated translations.

Key Points

Included below are a few important points to consider when working with glossaries.

  • The glossary must be in a .csv file.

  • The glossary must be in the format described above.

  • Validation is minimal; it is important to confirm the glossary content is correct before initiating an AI-service asynchronous translation job.