Method and system for handling audio signals of conference

• US 20060026002A1
• Filed: 08/02/2004
• Published: 02/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Polycom Incorporated (Plantronics, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Polycom Incorporated (Plantronics, Inc.)
• Inventors: Potekhin, Sergey, Brachel, Nir, Leviav, Eyal, Eran, Knaz
• Granted Patent: US 8,170,191 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/275
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

A new system and method particularly useful in handling the audio of a “large” conference is disclosed. The system and method initially defines certain conferees as panel members, which can provide audio to and receive audio from the conference, and audience members, which only passively receive audio from the conference. In one aspect, an audience member can request to participate in the conference. By making an appropriate request, the audience member can, if system resources are adequate, participate fully as a panel member and may supply audio to the conference for at least some portion of time. Alternatively, the audience member can supply information other than audio data to the conference, such as voting data or other data allowing the audience member to participate in the conference as more than a merely passive listening participant.

Claims

1. A method of conducting a conference between a plurality of terminals with a conferencing control unit, the method comprising:

designating at the control unit at least one terminal as a panel terminal;

designating at the control unit at least one terminal as an audience terminal;

receiving at the control unit voice signals for the conference only from the at least one panel terminal;

mixing the received voice signals at the control unit for sending to the at least one panel terminal and audience terminal; and

receiving at the control unit a request from the at least one audience terminal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the conference is an audio conference, an audio/video conference, or a multimedia conference.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein designating the terminals is performed when reserving the conference, starting the conference, or connecting one of said terminals.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein designating a panel terminal includes allocating an audio port of the control unit for the terminal.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a request to change the requesting terminal from an audience terminal to a panel terminal.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein changing the requesting terminal comprises allocating an audio port to the requesting terminal.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining at the control unit whether the request from the audience terminal can be implemented.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein determining whether the request from the audience terminal can be implemented comprises determining whether an audio port on the control unit is available.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein determining whether the request from the audience terminal can be implemented comprises determining whether an audio port on the control unit can be released.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a request to speak during the conference.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a vote.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received as an audio in-band signal.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received as a DTMF signal.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received as a signal of a voice.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received as a signal over one or more out-of-band channels.

16. A method of conducting a conference between a plurality of terminals with a conferencing control unit, the method comprising:

initially designating at the control unit at least one terminal as a panel terminal, wherein the panel terminal transmits a voice signal from conferee to the control unit and receives a mixed voice signal from the control unit;

initially designating at the control unit at least one terminal as an audience terminal, wherein the audience terminal receives a mixed voice signal from the control unit;

receiving at the control unit a request from at least one audience terminal.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the conference is an audio conference, an audio/video conference, or a multimedia conference.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein designating the terminals is performed when reserving the conference, starting the conference, or connecting one of said terminals.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein designating a panel terminal includes allocating an audio port of the control unit for the terminal.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the request comprises a request to change the requesting terminal from an audience terminal to a panel terminal.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein changing the requesting terminal comprises allocating an audio port to the requesting terminal.

22. The method of claim 16, further comprising if the request can be implemented by the control unit, thereafter receiving information from the requesting audience terminal.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the request comprises a request to speak during the conference, and wherein the information comprises audio data from the requesting terminal.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the information comprises a vote.

25. The method of claim 16, wherein the request is received as an audio in-band signal.

26. The method of claim 16, wherein the request is received as a DTMF signal.

27. The method of claim 16, wherein the request is received as a signal of a voice.

28. The method of claim 16, wherein the request is received as a signal over one or more out-of-band channels.

29. A system for conducting a conference over a network and between a plurality of terminals, the system comprising:

a control unit in communication with the terminals via the network, each terminal being designatable by the control unit as a panel terminal or an audience terminal, wherein the control unit receives voice signals only from the panel terminals and sends mixed versions of the voice signals to the panel terminals and to the audience terminals, wherein the control unit receives and responds to electronic signals from the audience terminals.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the conference is an audio conference, an audio/video conference, or a multimedia conference.

31. The system of claim 29, wherein the control unit allocates one or more audio ports of the control unit to the panel terminals.

32. The system of claim 29, wherein the electronic signal comprises a request from the audience terminal.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein the control unit changes the designation of an audience terminal to a panel terminal in response to the request.

34. The system of claim 32, wherein the control unit allocates an audio port to the requesting terminal.

35. The system of claim 32, wherein the control unit determines whether an audio port of the control unit is available for the requesting terminal.

36. The system of claim 32, wherein the control unit releases an audio port of an inactive panel terminal and allocates the released audio port to the requesting terminal.

37. The system of claim 29, wherein the electronic signals comprise a vote, a response, or a message for the conference.

38. The system of claim 29, wherein the electronic signals comprise a command from the audience terminal.

39. The system of claim 29, wherein the electronic signals comprise in-band signals, out-of-band signals, DTMF symbols, or voice signals.

40. A control unit for conducting a conference between a plurality of terminals, the control unit comprising:

at least one panel module, the panel module allocated for one or more panel terminals of the plurality of terminals, the panel module receiving voice signals to be heard by the conference only from the panel terminals and sending voice signals to be heard by the conference to the plurality of terminals; and

at least one audience module, the audience module allocated for one or more audience terminals of the plurality of terminals, the audience module receiving audience signals from the audience terminals.

41. The control unit of claim 40, wherein the panel module includes a plurality audio ports for each of the panel terminals, and one or more broadcast/multicast ports for each group of audience terminals having a same compression protocol.

42. The control unit of claim 40, wherein the audience module includes a decoder/parser for decoding/parsing the audience data, and an analyzer for analyzing the decoded/parsed data.

43. The control unit of claim 40, wherein the modules are permanent or temporary logic modules.

44. The control unit of claim 40, wherein the audience signal includes a request for the control unit to designate the sending audience terminal as a panel terminal.

45. The control unit of claim 44, wherein the control unit determines whether the panel module has a free audio port for the requesting terminal.

46. The control unit of claim 44, wherein the control unit allocates the free audio port of the panel module to the requesting terminal.

47. The control unit of claim 44, wherein the control unit releases an audio port of an inactive panel terminal and allocates the released audio port to the requesting terminal.

48. The control unit of claim 47, wherein the control unit designates the inactive terminal as an audience terminal.

49. The control unit of claim 40, wherein the audience signal includes a vote, a response, or a message for the conference.

50. The control unit of claim 40, wherein the audience signal is sent by the audience terminal to the control unit using in-band signals, out-of-band signals, DTMF signals, or voice signals.

51. The control unit of claim 40, wherein the audience signal is sent over one or more out-of-band channels.