Managing drop-ins on focal points of activities

• US 10,244,013 B2
• Filed: 12/08/2017
• Issued: 03/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bellamy, Rachel K. E., Connell, II, Jonathan H., Farrell, Robert G., Gaucher, Brian P., Lenchner, Jonathan, Melville, David O. S., Salapura, Valentina
• Primary Examiner(s): Serrou, Abdelali
• Application Number:
  US15/835,750
• Publication Number:
  US 20180109571A1
• Time in Patent Office: 473 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/00 Speech recognition G10L17/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/00 Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers subscriber services or facilities provided at exchanges H04M3/00; prepayment telephone coin boxes H04M17/00; current supply arrangements H04M19/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/62 user interface aspects of conference calls

Abstract

A computer-implemented method manages remote electronic drop-ins on local conversations. A local audio sensor transmits a captured conversation from a local cluster of persons to a remote communication device where members of the local cluster of persons are within a predefined distance of one another, and where the remote communication device is at a location that is beyond a human hearing range from the local audio sensor. One or more processors determine that the captured conversation is about a particular topic. A request from a remote user is received from the remote communication device to electronically drop in on a particular remote cluster of persons who are having a conversation about the particular topic. In response to receiving the request from the remote user, one or more processors selectively connect a local communication device proximate to the cluster of persons to the remote communication device.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of managing remote electronic drop-ins on local conversations, the computer-implemented method comprising:

transmitting, from a local audio sensor to a remote communication device, a captured conversation from a local cluster of persons, wherein members of the local cluster of persons are within a predefined distance of one another, and wherein the remote communication device is at a location that is beyond a human hearing range from the local audio sensor;

determining, by one or more processors, that the captured conversation is about a particular topic;

receiving, from the remote communication device, a request from a remote user to electronically drop in on a particular remote cluster of persons who are having a conversation about the particular topic;

in response to receiving the request from the remote user, selectively connecting, by one or more processors, a local communication device proximate to the particular remote cluster of persons to the remote communication device;

receiving, by the remote communication device, a chemical sensor reading from a local chemical sensor near the particular remote cluster of persons, wherein the chemical sensor reading identifies a chemical that is emanating from members of the particular remote cluster of persons;

in response to receiving, by the remote communication device, the chemical sensor reading from the local chemical sensor, determining, by one or more processors, that members of the particular remote cluster of persons work in a specific location in which the chemical is produced; and

in response to determining that the particular remote cluster of persons work in the specific location in which the chemical is produced, further enabling, by one or more processors, the remote communication device to allow the user to electronically and remotely drop in on the conversation about the particular topic by establishing a communication link between the local communication device and the remote communication device.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying, by one or more processors, particular spoken words in the captured conversation in order to characterize the captured conversation.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

evaluating, by one or more processors, a definition of one or more spoken words in the captured conversation in order to characterize the captured conversation.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

evaluating, by one or more processors, one or more of a timbre, pitch, and intensity of spoken words in the captured conversation in order to characterize the captured conversation.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by one or more processors, a video image of the local cluster of persons; and

characterizing, by one or more processors, the captured conversation based on the video image of the local cluster of persons.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by one or more processors, motion detector data that describes a movement of members of the local cluster of persons relative to one another; and

characterizing, by one or more processors, the captured conversation based on the movement of the members of the local cluster of persons relative to one another.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by one or more processors, location detector data that describes a relative position between a first person and a second person in the local cluster of persons; and

characterizing, by one or more processors, the conversation based on the relative position between the first person and the second person in the local cluster of persons.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by one or more processors, biometric state data that describes a biometric state of one or more persons from the local cluster of persons; and

characterizing, by one or more processors, the captured conversation based on the biometric state of the one or more persons from the local cluster of persons.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the local communication device comprises a local display proximate to the local cluster of persons, and wherein the computer-implemented method further comprises:

displaying, by one or more processors, the particular topic on the local display.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, from the remote communication device to a mobile robotic device positioned near the particular remote cluster of persons, instructions that cause the mobile robotic device to adjust a position of the mobile robotic device within the particular remote cluster of persons and that cause a content on a screen mounted on the mobile robotic device to be modified.

10. A computer program product for managing remote electronic drop-ins on local conversations, wherein the computer program product comprises a non-transitory computer readable storage device having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions readable and executable by a computer to perform a method comprising:

transmitting, from a local audio sensor to a remote communication device, a captured conversation from a local cluster of persons, wherein members of the local cluster of persons are within a predefined distance of one another, and wherein the remote communication device is at a location that is beyond a human hearing range from the local audio sensor;

determining that the captured conversation is about a particular topic;

receiving, from the remote communication device, a request from a remote user to electronically drop in on a particular remote cluster of persons who are having a conversation about the particular topic;

in response to receiving the request from the remote user, selectively connecting a local communication device proximate to the particular remote cluster of persons to the remote communication device;

receiving, by the remote communication device, a chemical sensor reading from a local chemical sensor near the particular remote cluster of persons, wherein the chemical sensor reading identifies a chemical that is emanating from members of the particular remote cluster of persons;

in response to receiving, by the remote communication device, the chemical sensor reading from the local chemical sensor, determining that members of the particular remote cluster of persons work in a specific location in which the chemical is produced; and

in response to determining that the particular remote cluster of persons work in the specific location in which the chemical is produced, further enabling the remote communication device to allow the user to electronically and remotely drop in on the conversation about the particular topic by establishing a communication link between the local communication device and the remote communication device.

11. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

identifying particular spoken words in the captured conversation in order to characterize the captured conversation.

12. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

evaluating a definition of one or more spoken words in the captured conversation in order to characterize the captured conversation.

13. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

evaluating one or more of a timbre, pitch, and intensity of spoken words in the captured conversation in order to characterize the captured conversation.

14. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving a video image of the local cluster of persons; and

characterizing the captured conversation based on the video image of the local cluster of persons.

15. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving motion detector data that describes a movement of members of the local cluster of persons relative to one another; and

characterizing the captured conversation based on the movement of the members of the local cluster of persons relative to one another.

16. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving location detector data that describes a relative position between a first person and a second person in the local cluster of persons; and

characterizing the conversation based on the relative position between the first person and the second person in the local cluster of persons.

17. A computer system comprising one or more processors, one or more computer readable memories, and one or more computer readable non-transitory storage mediums, and program instructions stored on at least one of the one or more computer readable non-transitory storage mediums for execution by at least one of the one or more processors via at least one of the one or more computer readable memories, the stored program instructions comprising:

program instructions to transmit, from a local audio sensor to a remote communication device, a captured conversation from a local cluster of persons, wherein members of the local cluster of persons are within a predefined distance of one another, and wherein the remote communication device is at a location that is beyond a human hearing range from the local audio sensor;

program instructions to determine that the captured conversation is about a particular topic;

program instructions to receive, from the remote communication device, a request from a remote user to electronically drop in on a particular remote cluster of persons who are having a conversation about the particular topic;

program instructions to, in response to receiving the request from the remote user, selectively connect a local communication device proximate to the particular remote cluster of persons to the remote communication device;

program instructions to direct the remote communication device to receive a chemical sensor reading from a local chemical sensor near the particular remote cluster of persons, wherein the chemical sensor reading identifies a chemical that is emanating from members of the particular remote cluster of persons;

program instructions to, in response to receiving, by the remote communication device, the chemical sensor reading from the local chemical sensor, determine that members of the particular remote cluster of persons work in a specific location in which the chemical is produced; and

program instructions to, in response to determining that the particular remote cluster of persons work in the specific location in which the chemical is produced, further enable the remote communication device to allow the user to electronically and remotely drop in on the conversation about the particular topic by establishing a communication link between the local communication device and the remote communication device.