Quality Management of Multilingual Translation Using Tools - Practical Edition

In the previous article, we introduced the check points for multilingual translation that can be confirmed using tools even for non-native speakers.
This time, we will introduce the check methods for each point that we actually perform at our company, along with screen captures.

How to check the tool for multilingual translation ① ~ Style ~

Numeric/Alphabetic

Check if the numbers (alphanumeric) in the original text and the translated text match.
Here, we will use the "HSXChecker" check tool developed by our company.
When you import the sdlxliff file (a bilingual file where the original text and the translated text are paired) completed by Trados (a paid translation support tool developed by RWS) and start the query (check)...

 

 

The check process is completed in a few seconds, and a numerical error has been detected.
Looking at the highlighted yellow part, the original date is "November", but in the translated text, it becomes "December".
With this tool, even with a large document, you can quickly identify errors.
The highlighted yellow area makes it easy to understand and prevents overlooking.

 

Also, in the case of languages with 2-byte characters, you can check alphanumeric characters in the same way.
As shown in the figure below, it seems that in this document, "DEG457" was mistakenly used instead of "DEF456".
This check is useful for verifying things like model numbers that combine alphanumeric characters.
However, this function checks whether the original alphanumeric characters (=1-byte characters) are present in the translated text.
Therefore, if the original text is in a language with 1-byte characters such as English, the entire sentence will be flagged as an error if it is not a perfect match (not translated).
If you want to check model numbers even in languages with 1-byte characters, it is important to include the model numbers in the glossary and consider the appropriate checking method according to your purpose using the terminology check function mentioned later.

 

 

Quotation marks

As mentioned in the previous article, the shape of quotation marks varies depending on the language.

　Example:
English "Sample"
French "Sample"
German "Sample"

 

By registering the correct combination of opening and closing quotation marks in the tool, we are able to detect errors in quotation marks (such as incorrect symbol types or incorrect number of quotation marks) through tool checks.

 

This time, we will introduce an example of checking using the free tool QA Distiller (Yamagata Europe). QA Distiller is a checking tool that reads bilingual files, similar to HS XChecker, but it has rich features for checking multiple languages. We not only check the content, but also select the checking tool according to the language.
The following is the correct language for checking using the "xxx" format.
It has been detected that the opening and closing quotation marks are not used in pairs.
Looking at the red part displayed as an error, it can be seen that only the phrase "„“" in this sentence requires quotation marks, but it is understood that an extra opening quotation mark is mixed in after "„i".

 

 

This example was found to have extra quotation marks, but if the shape of the quotation marks being used is incorrect in the first place, it will of course be detected as an error.

　Example: Instead of the correct form in the above language, "xxx" is being used just like in English.

 

Unit notation (with or without spaces)

The necessity of spaces before units such as "%" and "cm" also varies depending on the language. Additionally, these are small details that can easily be overlooked during translation.

If a translator accidentally forgets to input spaces in a language that requires spaces, it will be detected as shown in the capture below.

 

 

Space

Unnecessary spaces in the translation can be detected using tools such as Trados QA Checker, which is integrated into Trados, and QA Distiller, which we have already introduced.
First, let's take a look at an example detected by QA Distiller.
If you look at the text following "Target" at the bottom of the screen, you will see that the highlighted section [0020][0020] appears in the translation. [0020] represents a space, so an error has been detected here where two spaces are appearing consecutively.

 

 

On the other hand, Trados QA Checker detects as follows:
In the figure below, we registered the item "Display an error when there is a space in a string of 2-byte characters" in Trados QA Checker and detected unnecessary spaces in Chinese sentences.
If you look at the bottom of the screen, you can see that there are unnecessary spaces in the Chinese translation on line 1215 where an error occurred, so we will delete them and make the necessary corrections.

 

 

Unnecessary spaces are also a point that translators are prone to mistyping or making mistakes when inputting or modifying translations. In order to check errors that cannot be reduced to zero with just "being careful" and to check them without unnecessary effort, checking with tools is useful.

Presence of Period

You can detect discrepancies between the original text and the translated text regarding the presence or absence of punctuation marks such as periods and question marks.
In the example below, there is a period in the original text but not in the translated text.
However, in incomplete sentences without a subject and verb like this, periods may be intentionally omitted. If there is no certainty, accurate corrections are made after consulting with the translator regarding the correction policy.

 

 

Format with digit separators

The symbol used to separate thousands digits may vary depending on the language, such as comma, period, or space.

For example, even with the same "thousand" character, the style differs depending on the language:
1,000 (English, etc.)
1.000 (Danish, etc.)
1 000 (French, etc.)
In the following example, it is a Danish text, so you should use a period "." as a digit separator, and input "1.422" or "1.512". However, the translator has detected instances where the period digit separator was mistakenly omitted.

 

 

How to check the translation tool for multilingual translation ② ~ Terminology ~

The system mechanically checks whether the terms specified in the prepared glossary are used in the translated text.
By loading the glossary into the tool, it verifies whether the corresponding translation is used when the terms registered in the glossary appear in the source text.

 

As mentioned in the previous article, by including UI, proper nouns, and technical terms in the glossary and checking and unifying the translation terms, you can expect a high improvement in translation quality.

 

Term checks can be performed using multiple tools such as Trados QA Checker and QA Distiller, but this time we will introduce a practical example using QA Distiller.

 

The following is the result of performing a tool check specified in the glossary to use the term "帧" as the translation for "フレーム".
It is observed that "帧" is not used in the translation.

 

 

However, modifying terminology is different from the examples we introduced earlier, such as spaces and periods, where the correct answer is clear even if you don't understand the language. With simple modifications, there is a possibility of making further mistakes.

Translators need to make judgments depending on the context of the time, intentionally using different terms or changing the word form even if the terms in the glossary are available.

It is important to properly confirm and make accurate corrections to errors detected mechanically as necessary, as shown here, to the translator.

How to check the tool for multilingual translation ③ ~ Inconsistency ~

Inconsistent checking can be done using multiple tools such as Trados QA Checker, QA Distiller, and Xbench (ApSIC). Xbench, like QA Distiller, can load bilingual files and perform checks from various perspectives, and it is also a useful tool for searching translation memories. There are both paid and free versions available, with differences in supported file formats and functionality.

This time, we will introduce an example of inconsistent check using Xbench.

The following is an example of using Xbench to detect inconsistencies in the translated document from English to Maltese. It was found that two different Maltese sentences were used for the same English sentence.

If the detected difference is in the presence or absence of numbers or simple symbols, non-native speakers may be able to correct it as it is. However, if the expression is different like this, the translator will confirm and unify the translation to one of them.

 

 

Summary

In this blog post, we have introduced specific examples of the tool check for multilingual translation that we actually perform at our company, divided into three categories: style, terminology, and inconsistency.

Spaces and periods are easy for translators to overlook. Of course, it is important to provide feedback and encourage attention to reduce these mistakes, but it is difficult to eliminate them completely.

Not only relying on translators, but also utilizing tools allows non-native speakers to perform thorough checks and manage translation quality.

Related Articles

"Quality Management of Multilingual Translation Using Tools"

"What is a CAT tool? Explanation of benefits and drawbacks"

"Multilingual Typesetting Note: Quotation Marks"

"Multilingual Typesetting Note: Punctuation"