Meetings near me

• US 20070011233A1
• Filed: 07/06/2005
• Published: 01/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Singhal, Sandeep, Rao, Ravi, Flannery, Eliot, Cunningham, Aaron, Manion, Todd
• Granted Patent: US 7,660,851 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• 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 12/189 in combination with wireless systems selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1046 Joining mechanisms

Abstract

A method for creating, discovering, and joining meetings over a peer-to-peer network involves creation of a graph of meetings on a local subnet. When a meeting is created a meeting record is added to the graph where it may be discovered by other potential meeting attendees. A user may select from a list of meetings displayed in a meeting management window and send requested showing the selected meaning. Credentials, such as a password, may be supplied with the request. When the request is validated, information is sent to the requester for use in joining the meeting. When an ad hoc wireless session is used to hold a meeting the discovery process may further include analyzing data traffic to determine which wireless sessions are meetings.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for discovering and joining a computer-based meeting on a peer-to-peer network:

publishing a meeting record corresponding to a meeting;

publishing an identity and an address for the meeting;

receiving a request for access to the meeting from a requesting party; and

joining the requesting party to the meeting.

2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein publishing a meeting record comprises at least one of use of a meeting graph or a discovery protocol, and wherein discovering the meeting record comprises at least one of a query of the meeting graph or use of the discovery protocol.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein joining the requesting party to the meeting further comprises receiving a password from the requesting party and issuing an invitation to the meeting to the requesting party when the password meets a criterion.

4. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein adding a record to the meeting graph further comprises adding a record to the meeting graph wherein the record comprises at least one of an IP address or a network endpoint, and at least one of a meeting name, a sponsor identity, a start time, a password, or a password hash.

5. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein receiving a request to join the meeting further comprises receiving requests at a meeting organizer application instance associated with the meeting.

6. The computer-readable medium of claim 2, further comprising creating the meeting graph for the subnet prior to adding the record corresponding to the meeting.

7. The computer-readable medium of claim 2, further comprising joining an existing meeting graph for the subnet prior to adding the record corresponding to the meeting.

8. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein joining the requesting party to the meeting further comprises processing the request for access by a meeting organizer application instance independent from an interaction with either a meeting participant or a meeting organizer.

9. A computer adapted for a operation in a peer-to-peer network, the computer comprising:

a processing unit for executing instructions;

a networking device coupled to processing unit for coupling data transmitted between the computer and a network; and

a memory for storing computer executable instructions, coupled to the processing unit, the computer executable instructions for executing a method comprising;

discovering records corresponding to meetings on a peer-to-peer subnet;

reading the records;

displaying information corresponding to the meetings;

receiving a selection of one the meetings;

sending a request to join the one of the meetings; and

joining the meeting when the request is approved.

10. The computer of claim 9, wherein discovering the records comprises obtaining a record for each of a plurality of meetings active on the subnet using at least one of a graph or applying a discovery protocol.

11. The computer of claim 9, wherein discovering the records further comprises:

cataloging observable wireless sessions;

monitoring data from each of the observable wireless sessions;

determining which of the observable wireless sessions are meetings; and

obtaining the meeting record from data published in at least one of the observable wireless sessions determined to be a meeting.

12. The computer of claim 11, wherein determining which of the observable wireless sessions are meetings further comprises analyzing the observable wireless sessions for a multicast data stream.

13. The computer of claim 9, wherein the memory for storing computer executable instructions for executing the method further comprises:

receiving a password; and

sending the password with the request to join the one of the meetings.

14. The computer of claim 9, the memory for storing computer executable instructions for executing the method wherein displaying information corresponding to the meetings further comprises displaying at least one of an icon associated with each meeting organizer, a description of each meeting, and the start time for each meeting.

15. The computer of claim 9, the memory for storing computer executable instructions for executing the method further comprising receiving an invitation to join the meeting responsive to approval of the request to join the meeting.

16. A method of adding attendees to a meeting held over a peer-to-peer network comprising:

starting the meeting;

creating a meeting record corresponding to the meeting;

sending the meeting record to at least one of a meeting graph of a subnet or a discovery protocol, the meeting record comprising at least one of an Internet protocol address or network endpoint;

receiving a request to join the meeting from a requesting party, the request comprising data from the meeting record; and

sending an invitation to the requesting party when the request to join the meeting meets a criterion.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising joining the requested party to the meeting via a meeting organizer application instance.

18. The method claim 16, further comprising:

sending a password and an invitation for the meeting to a meeting invitee, wherein receiving the request to join the meeting further comprises receiving the password and the criterion comprises validation of the password.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

enumerating current wireless sessions;

monitoring data traffic associated with each enumerated wireless session;

determining which of the enumerated wireless sessions represent online meetings; and

obtaining a meeting record from data published in each of the enumerated

wireless sessions determined to be a meeting.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising displaying meeting information for at least one of the meeting record or each enumerated wireless session determined to be a meeting.