A framework of conversational recommender system based on user functional requirements

Specifying requirements based on technical features of the product are frequently difficult for most customers in purchasing a multi-function and multi-feature products. A more natural way to identify customers' needs is by asking what they really want to use with the product they are looking for. To address this issue, we propose a framework of conversational recommender system that is based on user functional requirement. This framework covers ontology structure and interaction mechanism that can explore user's preference from their functional requirements. The ontology is composed of three different interacting hierarchical classes: functionality requirement class, component class and product class. Interaction in this system is performed through question-answering dialogue, product recommendation and explanation, similar to the interaction between customer and professional sales support.