Enabling a real-time translation provider for chatbots

By default, BMC Helix Virtual Agent supports English. Administrators can localize chatbot conversations so that end users can interact with the chatbot and the support agent in one of the supported locales.

Administrators can localize chatbot conversations in the following ways:

By enabling real-time translation. For more information about the scenario and benefits of this method, see Localizing chatbot conversations by using real-time translation. Follow the instructions in this topic to localize chatbot conversations by enabling real-time translation.
By creating multiple IBM Watson Assistant Skill for each locale. For more information about the scenario and the workflow for creating multiple localized Skill, see Localizing chatbot conversations by using localized Chatbot Skills for each language.

Supported and unsupported scenarios for real-time translation

Real-time translation providers—Google Cloud Translation Services version 2 and Microsoft Translator API version 3

Note

You can use the Google Translation API service for both—real-time translation and live chat translation.
Chatbot channels—Real-time translation is supported by BMC Helix Virtual Agent, Skype for Business on-premises, Microsoft Teams, and Slack.
Note

When using SMS to interact with BMC Helix Virtual Agent, end users can interact only in English.
To learn about unsupported scenarios in real-time translation, see What are the unsupported scenarios and limitations of real-time translation?

Before you begin

Product	Task
Google Cloud Translation Services	If you want to use Google Cloud Translation Services, ensure that you have a Google Cloud account and an appropriate subscription plan. For more information, see Quotas and Limits in Google Cloud documentation.
Microsoft Translator API	If you want to use Microsoft Translator API, ensure that you have an Azure account and an appropriate subscription plan. Note: Multi-service subscription plan is not supported. Review the Request limits for Translator Text in Microsoft documentation.
BMC Helix Digital Workplace Advanced	If you want BMC Helix Innovation Studio to create localized service requests in BMC Helix Digital Workplace Advanced, ensure that you have completed the following tasks: Localizing catalog items Imported chat-enabled services from BMC Helix Digital Workplace Advanced

Workflow to enable real-time translation in chatbots

The following table describes the tasks to be performed in the process of enabling real-time translation in chatbot conversations:

Task	Product	Action	Reference
1	Real-time translation provider (Google Cloud or Microsoft Azure)	Enable the translation service.	To enable a real-time translation provider
2	BMC Helix Innovation Studio	In the centralized tenant configuration settings, configure the translation service provider.	To specify the translation provider in Centralized Configuration Settings
3	BMC Helix Innovation Studio	Configure the translation provider credentials.	To configure the translation provider credentials
4	(Optional) IBM Watson Assistant	If you want to customize the real-time translation message in the Dialog.	To customize the real-time translation message displayed in the chatbot
5	BMC Helix Innovation Suite	(If you want to test real-time translation) Test whether the real-time translation works correctly.	Testing real-time translation for chatbots
6	BMC Helix Virtual Agent	In each chatbot, enable real-time translation and set the default language for translation.	Setting up chatbots for your line of business
7	(Optional) Live Chat	(If you want to configure localization for live chat) Configure automatic translation in a live chat so that the support agent's messages are automatically translated to the user's locale. Best practice If you enable real time translation in BMC Helix Virtual Agent, you must enable the automatic language translation setting in Live Chat for a seamless experience of handling language translation.	Setting language options and translation in Live Chat documentation

Task 1: To enable a real-time translation provider

You can enable one of the following real-time translation providers:

Google Cloud Translation Service
Microsoft Translator API

Google Cloud Translation Service

You can use Google Cloud Translation Services version 2 as a real-time translation provider. You must enable the Google Cloud Translation API, create a service account with appropriate permissions and then generate the Google Translation Service API key. If you are using BMC Native (Google) classification, you can use the same Google Cloud Platform account to enable Google Cloud Translation Service.

To complete the tasks to enable the Google Cloud Translation Service, see To set up the Google Cloud Platform account manually .

Microsoft Translator API

To enable Microsoft Translator API, perform the following steps:

Log in to Microsoft Azure .
If you have not enabled the Microsoft Translator Text service, perform the following steps:
1. On the home page, search for Translator Text and select the service as shown in the following image:
2. On the Cognitive Services page, click Add.
3. Select Translator Text.
4. On the Translator Text page, click Create and fill out the required fields.
5. In Subscription Tier, select your subscription plan.
6. In Resource Group Location, specify the appropriate location.
7. Click Save.
On the Home page, click All resources > Name of the Translator Text resource.
In the left pane, click Resource Management > Keys.
Copy the value in the Key 1 field for future reference.
Copy the URL from the Endpoint URL field for future reference.

The Microsoft Translator API credentials are created.

Task 2: To specify the translation provider in Centralized Configuration Settings

In Action Request System, specify the value for Translation-Service-Provider setting:

Log in to mid tier.
On the IT Home page, from the Applications list, select AR System Administration > AR System Administration Console.
Select System > General > Centralized Configuration.
From the Component Name list, select com.bmc.arsys.server.shared > *
To specify the translation service provider value, click Add to set the Translation-Service-Provider parameter and specify one of the following values:
- MICROSOFT—Microsoft Translator API
- GOOGLE—Google Cloud Translation Services

Task 3: To configure the translation provider credentials

In BMC Helix Innovation Studio, enter the Google Translation Service API key or Microsoft Translator API key.

Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio and navigate to the Administration tab.
Select Cognitive and Chatbot > Cognitive Service.
On the Cognitive Service page, from the Configure list, select Cognitive Service Connections.
Perform one of the following steps:

If you are using Google Cloud Translation Services for real-time translation, click Google Translation for real-time translation.

1. In Google Cloud Service Key, enter the key in JSON format that you received when you Created a service account .
2. Test and save the settings.

If you are using Microsoft Translator API, click Microsoft Translator Text for real-time translation.
1. In Microsoft Azure API Key, enter the value you received earlier.
2. In Service URL, enter the appropriate Azure base URL .
3. In OAuth URL, enter the endpoint URL.
4. Test and save the settings.

Task 4: To customize the real-time translation message displayed in the chatbot

If the user initiates a conversation in a language that is not supported by real-time translation, by default, the following message is displayed:

I have not been trained in your language but am able to translate on the fly. This may impact the quality of my responses.

If you want to change this message, complete the following steps:

Log in to the IBM Cloud account.
Navigate to the IBM Watson Assistant Skill that is configured for BMC Helix Virtual Agent.
Click Dialog.
Click the dialog node for the welcome message, and the click Add node. A new dialog node is added after the welcome message.
In the right pane, type a name for the new dialog node.
Example: BMC Real-time translation message.
In Enter condition, set the following condition:
```
$bmc_converse_using_translation_message==null
```
In Value corresponds to the $bmc_converse_using_translation_message variable, type the custom message.
Example: "I translate messages for you in real time."
Note

If the value of the $bmc_converse_using_translation_message variable is "" (empty string), the message is not displayed.
In the Then Jump To section, select the node after the real-time translation node.
Example: If BMC-Start Over is the node after BMC Real-time translation message, specify BMC Start Over.

The following image shows an example of the conditions required for the new dialog node:
Save the dialog node.

If the value of the $bmc_converse_using_translation_message context variable is null, the message is not displayed.

Return to the Workflow to enable real-time translation in chatbots for further tasks to complete the process of enabling real-time translation in chatbot.