Apparatus And Method For Controlling Output Format Of Information

• US 20080243513A1
• Filed: 03/30/2007
• Published: 10/02/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Laboratories Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Schmidt, Albert L., Bucchieri, Vittorio
• Granted Patent: US 8,874,445 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/270
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 21/009 Teaching or communicating with deaf persons G09B21/04 takes precedence; deaf and dumb persons G09B21/00

Abstract

An apparatus for controlling the output format of information is provided. The apparatus includes a communications unit configured to receive information intended for at least one recipient. The apparatus also includes a selection unit, which is configured to automatically detect, based on the at least one recipient, an externally-specified indication of a preferred form of output selected from amongst a plurality of available forms of output. The selection unit causes the information to be outputted in the preferred form of output. A method and a computer program product are also provided for controlling the output format of information.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a communications unit configured to receive information intended for at least one recipient; and

a selection unit configured to automatically detect, based on the at least one recipient, an externally-specified indication of a preferred form of output selected from amongst a plurality of available forms of output and to cause the information to be outputted in the preferred form of output.

2. An apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said selection unit is configured to receive the indication of a preferred form of output from at least one recipient of the information.

3. An apparatus as recited in claim 2, wherein the at least one recipient of the information includes a mobile terminal having an audio output device and a visual output device and wherein the mobile terminal also comprises said communications unit and said selection unit, said communications unit being configured to connect to and receive the information from a network and said selection unit being configured to cause the information to be outputted via a respective one of the audio output device or the visual output device based on the detected indication of the preferred form of output.

4. An apparatus as recited in claim 3, wherein said communications unit further includes a user input device for inputting at least some of the information.

5. An apparatus as recited in claim 4, wherein said user input device includes a video recording device.

6. An apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of available forms of output includes video for signed information, textual for text information, and audio for verbal information.

7. An apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said communications unit is configured to receive information in a form selected from the group consisting of:

a video file including signed information, a data file including text information, and an audio file including verbal information.

8. An apparatus as recited in claim 1, further comprising a processor configured to detect the indication of the preferred form of output and to automatically produce a representation of the information in a form consistent with the indication of the preferred form of output.

9. An apparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said processor is configured to automatically produce a sign language video representation of the information in response to the indication of the preferred form of output indicating a preference for sign language video representation.

10. An apparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said processor is configured to automatically transmit the sign language video representation so as to exclude audio data and to employ reduced quality images.

11. An apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said selection unit is configured to cause the information to be communicated to a preferred translation service selected from a plurality of translation services based on the indication of the preferred form of output.

12. An apparatus as recited in claim 11, wherein the plurality of translation services includes a text telephone service and a sign language translation service.

13. An apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said selection unit is configured to detect the indication of the preferred form of output respectively specified by each of a plurality of recipients and to cause the information to be outputted substantially simultaneously to each of the plurality of recipients in the respectively specified preferred form of output.

14. An apparatus as recited in claim 1, further comprising a memory configured to store the information received by said communications unit.

15. An apparatus as recited in claim 14, wherein said memory is further configured to store the indication of the preferred form of output.

16. A method comprising:

receiving information intended for at least one recipient;

automatically detecting, based on the at least one recipient, an externally-specified indication of a preferred form of output selected from amongst a plurality of available forms of output; and

directing output of the information in the preferred form of output.

17. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein said detecting the externally-specified indication of the preferred form of output includes detecting the externally-specified indication of the preferred form of output from amongst output forms selected from the group consisting of video for signed information, textual for text information, and audio for verbal information.

18. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein said receiving information includes receiving information in at least one form selected from the group consisting of:

a video file including signed information, a data file including text information, and an audio file including verbal information.

19. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein said receiving information includes receiving information via a wireless network from a first mobile terminal and wherein said causing the information to be outputted includes causing the information to be outputted via a wireless network to at least a second mobile terminal.

20. A method as recited in claim 16, further comprising receiving the indication of the preferred form of output from at least one recipient of the information.

21. A method as recited in claim 16, further comprising automatically producing a representation of the information in a form consistent with the indication of the preferred form of output.

22. A method as recited in claim 21, wherein said automatically producing a representation of the information in a form consistent with the indication of the preferred form of output includes automatically producing a sign language video representation of the information that excludes audio data and has reduced quality images in response to the preferred output indication indicating a preference for sign language video representation.

23. A method as recited in claim 16, further comprising selecting a translation service from a plurality of available translation services based on the indication of the preferred form of output and communicating the information to the selected translation service.

24. A method as recited in claim 23, wherein said selecting a translation service includes selecting a translation service from the group of translation services consisting of a text telephone service and a sign language translation service.

25. A method as recited in claim 16, further comprising storing the indication of the preferred form of output.

26. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code portions stored therein, the computer-readable program code portions comprising:

a first executable code portion for receiving information intended for at least one recipient;

a second executable code portion for automatically detecting, based on the at least one recipient, an externally-specified indication of a preferred form of output selected from amongst a plurality of available forms of output; and

a third executable code portion for directing output of the information in the preferred form of output.

27. An apparatus comprising:

a communications unit configured to send and receive information via a wireless network;

a video recording device; and

a display device configured to simultaneously display visual data received by said communications unit via the wireless network and visual data obtained from said video recording device.

28. An apparatus according to claim 27, further comprising a selection unit in communication with said communications unit and configured to detect an externally-specified indication of a preferred form of output selected from amongst a plurality of available forms of output and to cause the information to be outputted in the preferred form of output.

29. An apparatus comprising:

a communications unit configured to transmit information via a wireless network;

a data acquisition device configured to acquire input data including audio component data and visual component data;

a user input device; and

a processing device configured to selectively cause only one of the audio component data and the visual component data be transmitted by said communications unit as output data based on an indication received from said user input device.

30. An apparatus according to claim 29, further comprising a selection unit in communication with said communications unit and said processing device and configured to detect an externally-specified indication of a preferred form of output selected from amongst a plurality of available forms of output, and wherein said processing device is configured to selectively cause only one of the audio component data and the visual component data be transmitted by said communications unit as output data based on the externally-specified indication of a preferred form of output and to cause the information to be outputted in the preferred form of output.

31. An apparatus comprising:

a communications unit configured to receive information; and

a selection unit configured to automatically detect an indication of a preferred form of output selected from amongst a plurality of available forms of output and to cause the information to be outputted in the preferred form of output, the available forms including at least sign language.

32. An apparatus as recited in claim 31, wherein said selection unit is configured to receive the indication of a preferred form of output from at least one recipient of the information.

33. An apparatus as recited in claim 31, further comprising a processor configured to detect the indication of the preferred form of output and to automatically produce a representation of the information in a form consistent with the indication of the preferred form of output.