Flexible multi-layer spoken dialogue corpora

This paper describes the construction of deeply annotated spoken dialogue corpora. To ensure a maximum of flexibility - in the degree of normalization, the types and formats of annotations, the possibilities for modifying and extending the corpus, or the use for research questions not originally anticipated - we propose a flexible multi-layer standoff architecture. We also take a closer look at the interoperability of tools and formats compatible with such an architecture. Free access to the corpus data through corpus queries, visualizations, and downloads - including documentation, metadata, and the original recordings - enables transparency, verifiability, and reproducibility of every step of interpretation throughout corpus construction and of any research findings obtained from this data.