TECHNIQUES TO GENERATE A VISUAL COMPOSITION FOR A MULTIMEDIA CONFERENCE EVENT

• US 20090210789A1
• Filed: 02/14/2008
• Published: 08/20/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: IX, Singh, Noor-E-Gagan, Bhattacharjee, Avronil, Thakkar, Pulin, Jain, Stuti
• Application Number:
  US12/030,872
• Publication Number:
  US 20090210789A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/719
• 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 12/1827 Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation
• 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: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5072 Multiple active speakers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/233 Processing of audio elementary streams monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234363 by altering the spatial resolution, e.g. for clients with a lower screen resolution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234381 by altering the temporal resolution, e.g. decreasing the frame rate by frame skipping
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42203 sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4223 Cameras H04N23/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/147 Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals selecting H04Q
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

Techniques to generate a visual composition for a multimedia conference event are described. An apparatus may comprise a visual composition component operative to generate a visual composition for a multimedia conference event. The visual composition component may comprise a video decoder module operative to decode multiple media streams for a multimedia conference event, an active speaker detector module operative to detect a participant in a decoded media stream as an active speaker, a media stream manager module operative to map the decoded media stream with the active speaker to an active display frame and the other decoded media streams to non-active display frames, and a visual composition generator module operative to generate a visual composition with a participant roster having the active and non-active display frames positioned in a predetermined order. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

decoding multiple media streams for a multimedia conference event;

detecting a participant in a decoded media stream as an active speaker;

mapping the decoded media stream with the active speaker to an active display frame and the other decoded media streams to non-active display frames; and

generating a visual composition with a participant roster having the active and non-active display frames positioned in a predetermined order.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising receiving an operator command to annotate a participant in an active or non-active display frame with identifying information.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising determining an identifying location to position identifying information for a participant in an active or non-active display frame.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising annotating a participant in an active or non-active display frame with identifying information at an identifying location.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising generating a menu having an option to open a separate graphical user interface view with identifying information for a selected participant.

6. The method of claim 1, comprising generating the visual composition with the participant roster having the active display frame in a first position of the predetermined order.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising generating the visual composition with the participant roster having a non-active display frame in a second position of the predetermined order, the non-active display frame having video content for a participant corresponding to a meeting console generating the visual composition.

8. The method of claim 1, comprising moving a non-active display frame from a current position in the predetermined order to a new position in the predetermined order in response to an operator command.

9. The method of claim 1, comprising fixing a non-active display frame at a current position in the predetermined order in response to an operator command.

10. An article comprising a storage medium containing instructions that if executed enable a system to:

decode multiple media streams for a multimedia conference event;

detect a participant in a decoded media stream as an active speaker;

map the decoded media stream with the active speaker to an active display frame and the other decoded media streams to non-active display frames; and

generate a visual composition with a participant roster having the active and non-active display frames positioned in a predetermined order.

11. The article of claim 10, further comprising instructions that if executed enable the system to annotate a participant in an active or non-active display frame with identifying information.

12. The article of claim 10, further comprising instructions that if executed enable the system to generate the visual composition with the participant roster having the active display frame in a first position of the predetermined order.

13. The article of claim 10, further comprising instructions that if executed enable the system to generate the visual composition with the participant roster having a non-active display frame in a second position of the predetermined order, the non-active display frame having video content for a participant corresponding to a meeting console generating the visual composition.

14. The article of claim 10, further comprising instructions that if executed enable the system to move a non-active display frame from a current position in the predetermined order to a new position in the predetermined order in response to an operator command.

15. An apparatus, comprising:

a visual composition component operative to generate a visual composition for a multimedia conference event, the visual composition component comprising;

a video decoder module operative to decode multiple media streams for a multimedia conference event;

an active speaker detector module communicatively coupled to the video decoder module, the active speaker detector module operative to detect a participant in a decoded media stream as an active speaker;

a media stream manager module communicatively coupled to the active speaker detector module, the media stream manager module operative to map the decoded media stream with the active speaker to an active display frame and the other decoded media streams to non-active display frames; and

a visual composition generator module communicatively coupled to the media stream manager module, the visual composition generator module operative to generate a visual composition with a participant roster having the active and non-active display frames positioned in a predetermined order.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, comprising an annotation module communicatively coupled to the visual composition generator module, the annotation module operative to receive an operator command to annotate a participant in an active or non-active display frame with identifying information, determine an identifying location to position the identifying information, and annotate the participant with identifying information at the identifying location.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, comprising the visual composition generator module operative to generate the visual composition with the participant roster having the active display frame in a first position of the predetermined order.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, comprising the visual composition generator module operative to generate the visual composition with the participant roster having a non-active display frame in a second position of the predetermined order, the non-active display frame having video content for a participant corresponding to a meeting console generating the visual composition.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, comprising the visual composition generator module operative to receive an operator command to move a non-active display frame from a current position in the predetermined order to a new position in the predetermined order, and move the non-active display frame to the new position in response to the operator command.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, comprising a meeting console having a display and the visual composition component, the visual composition component to render the visual composition on the display.