CONFERENCE SUPPORT APPARATUS, INFORMATION PROCESSOR, TELECONFERENCE SYSTEM AND COMPUTER PRODUCT

• US 20070198638A1
• Filed: 05/01/2007
• Published: 08/23/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Katsuyuki Omura, Soichiro Iga, Tadashi Honda
• Original Assignee: Katsuyuki Omura, Soichiro Iga, Tadashi Honda
• Inventors: Honda, Tadashi, Iga, Soichiro, Omura, Katsuyuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,430,579 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance

Abstract

An information sharing area, employed by all conferees for sharing information (object) or personal knowledge transmitted via information processors from conferees, and an editing display area, employed for editing a structure of the information (object) or shared knowledge, can be definitely distinguished from each other and displayed in a large display device commonly visible from all conferees. When the areas are displayed in the large display device and one of the objects displayed in the information sharing area is designated, the designated object is displayed at a desired location in the editing display area and can be edited through cooperative works by all conferees centering around a conference chairman.

Claims

1. An information processor connected via a network to a conference support apparatus that supports a teleconference, the processor comprising:

a transmission information determining unit that determines transmission of predetermined information to be processed; and

an information transmitting unit that transmits the predetermined information to the conference support apparatus after the determination by the transmission information determining unit of the transmission of the predetermined information.

2. A teleconference system, which comprises information processors used by conferees and a conference support apparatus shared by the conferees and connected via a network to the information processors, the information processors each including:

a transmission information determining unit that determines transmission of predetermined information to be processed; and

an information transmitting unit that transmits the predetermined information to the conference support apparatus after the determination by the transmission information determining unit of the transmission of the predetermined information, the conference support apparatus including;

a display device which is visible to the conferees;

an information receiving unit that receives information transmitted from the information processors;

an area display unit that allows the display device to display an information sharing area for listing predetermined objects and an editing display area for displaying the predetermined objects listed in the information sharing area;

an object listing unit that employs the information sharing area to display the predetermined objects according to the information received by the information receiving unit;

an object designating unit that designates a predetermined object among the predetermined objects displayed in the information sharing area;

a designated object moving unit that displays the predetermined object designated by the object designating unit at a desired location in the editing display area; and

an object editing unit that edits the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area by the designated object moving unit.

3. The teleconference system according to claim 2, wherein the object editing unit includes:

an attribute storage unit that stores an attribute of the predetermined object;

an attribute giving unit that displays the attribute stored in the attribute storage unit and selects the displayed attribute to give the attribute to the predetermined object; and

an object storage unit that stores the attribute-given predetermined object together with the given attribute in the storage unit.

4. The teleconference system according to claim 2, wherein the object editing unit includes:

a storage unit that separately stores attribute values associated with at least two attributes related to the predetermined object;

an attribute value selecting unit that selects a desired attribute value from the attributes stored in the storage unit;

an attribute generating unit that combines attribute values of the attributes selected by the attribute value selecting unit to generate an attribute to be given to the predetermined object; and

an attribute giving unit that gives the attribute generated by the attribute generating unit to the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area by the designated object moving unit.

5. The teleconference system according to claim 2, wherein the object editing unit includes:

an attribute giving unit that gives an attribute to the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area;

an object extracting unit that extracts an object given a predetermined attribute among the attributes given by the attribute giving unit; and

an extracted object display unit that displays the object extracted by the object extracting unit in a predetermined format in the editing display area.

6. The teleconference system according to claim 2, wherein the object editing unit includes:

a hierarchical structure edit-directing unit that instructs an edit direction on a hierarchical structure of the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area; and

a hierarchical structure drawing control unit that draws the hierarchical structure of the predetermined object edit-directed by the hierarchical structure edit-directing unit based on a predetermined rule.

7. A conference support apparatus, comprising:

a display device which is visible to the conferees;

an information receiving unit that receives information transmitted from information processors;

an area display unit that allows the display device to display an information sharing area for listing predetermined objects and an editing display area for displaying the predetermined objects listed in the information sharing area;

an object listing unit that employs the information sharing area to display the predetermined objects according to the information received by the information receiving unit;

an object designating unit that designates a predetermined object among the predetermined objects displayed in the information sharing area;

a designated object moving unit that displays the predetermined object designated by the object designating unit at a desired location in the editing display area; and

an object editing unit that edits the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area by the designated object moving unit.

8. The conference support apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the object editing unit includes:

an attribute storage unit that stores an attribute of the predetermined object;

an attribute giving unit that displays the attribute stored in the attribute storage unit and selects the displayed attribute to give the attribute to the predetermined object; and

an object storage unit that stores the attribute-given predetermined object together with the given attribute in the storage unit.

9. The conference support apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the object editing unit includes:

a storage unit that separately stores attribute values associated with at least two attributes related to the predetermined object;

an attribute value selecting unit that selects a desired attribute value from the attributes stored in the storage unit;

an attribute generating unit that combines attribute values of the attributes selected by the attribute value selecting unit to generate an attribute to be given to the predetermined object; and

an attribute giving unit that gives the attribute generated by the attribute generating unit to the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area by the designated object moving unit.

10. The conference support apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the object editing unit includes:

an attribute giving unit that gives an attribute to the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area;

an object extracting unit that extracts an object given a predetermined attribute among the attributes given by the attribute giving unit; and

an extracted object display unit that displays the object extracted by the object extracting unit in a predetermined format in the editing display area.

11. The conference support apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the object editing unit includes:

a hierarchical structure edit-directing unit that instructs an edit direction on a hierarchical structure of the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area; and

a hierarchical structure drawing control unit that draws the hierarchical structure of the predetermined object edit-directed by the hierarchical structure edit-directing unit based on a predetermined rule.

12. A method of teleconferencing, comprising:

determining a transmission of predetermined information to be processed;

transmitting the predetermined information to a conference support apparatus after the determining the transmission of the predetermined information;

receiving the transmitted predetermined information from the information processors;

displaying an information sharing area for listing predetermined objects and an editing display area for displaying the predetermined objects listed in the information sharing area;

employing the information sharing area to display the predetermined objects according to the received transmitted predetermined information;

designating a predetermined object among the predetermined objects displayed in the information sharing area;

displaying the predetermined object designated by the designating step at a desired location in the editing display area; and

editing the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area.

13. The method of teleconferencing according to claim 12, wherein the editing the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area includes:

storing an attribute of the predetermined object;

displaying the attribute stored and selecting the displayed attribute to give the attribute to the predetermined object; and

storing the attribute-given predetermined object together with the given attribute in the storage unit.

14. The method of teleconferencing according to claim 12, wherein the editing the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area includes:

separately storing attribute values associated with at least two attributes related to the predetermined object;

selecting a desired attribute value from the stored attributes;

combining attribute values of the selected attributes to generate an attribute to be given to the predetermined object; and

giving the generated attribute to the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area.

15. The method of teleconferencing according to claim 12, wherein the editing the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area includes:

giving an attribute to the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area;

extracting an object given a predetermined attribute among the given attributes; and

displaying the object extracted by the object extracting unit in a predetermined fornat in the editing display area.

16. The method of teleconferencing according to claim 12, wherein the editing the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area includes:

instructing an edit direction on a hierarchical structure of the predetermined object displayed in the editing display area; and

drawing the hierarchical structure of the predetermined object edit-directed by the hierarchical structure edit-directing unit based on a predetermined rule.

17. An method of transmitting, comprising:

determining a transmission of predetermined information to be processed; and

transmitting the predetermined information to a conference support apparatus after the determining the transmission of the predetermined information.