Aggregation of Multiple Information Flows with Index Processing

• US 20110072067A1
• Filed: 09/24/2009
• Published: 03/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arlington Technologies, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Gartner, Jeffrey G., Smyth, Colm
• Granted Patent: US 8,935,312 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/201
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1063 Application servers providing network services systems providing special services to telephonic subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4015 where at least one of the additional parallel sessions is real time or time sensitive, e.g. white board sharing, collaboration or spawning of a subconference

Abstract

A method is disclosed that enables the monitoring of a diverse set of both real-time and non-real-time communication streams, as well as the aggregation of information related to those streams into a collective dialog. A server of the illustrative embodiment continually performs an aggregation of events that are related to media streams, applications, and presenter and participant actions, into a particular scope of communication. Index entries, which are indicia to events, are created by things that presenters and participants are doing already, such as posting a meeting agenda inviting participants, posting a presentation or document, transitioning from one slide or page to another, participants speaking alternately during a meeting or presentation, and so forth. The server uses the indicia to then perform processing across information flows associated with the communication streams.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a data-processing system, i) a first series of indicia to events occurring as part of a first information flow that is represented by a first source, ii) a second series of indicia to events occurring as part of a second information flow that is represented by a second source, and iii) a specified value of a specified characteristic from a third source;

finding a first indicium from the first series and a second indicium from the second series, based on the specified value being the same for both the first indicium and the second indicium; and

synchronizing temporally the first information flow and the second information flow with each other, based on the finding of the first indicium and the second indicium.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the first information flow is an audio feed of a teleconference, and wherein the first source is a teleconference bridge that handles the teleconference.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the second information flow is non-audio.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the second information flow is textual.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the second source is an electronic document.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the specified characteristic is based on a designation of a person.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the specified characteristic is based on calendrical time.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the specified characteristic is based on participants of a specified teleconference.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising presenting at least one synchronized information flow to the third source, wherein the at least one synchronized information flow results from the synchronizing of the first and second information flow.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising converting at least a portion of the first information flow to the same type of media as that of the second information flow, wherein the at least one synchronized information flow is based on the converting.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the events occurring as part of the first information flow comprise a first event that is known before the first event is scheduled to occur.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the events occurring as part of the first information flow comprise a first event that is based on a failure to do something expected.

13. The method of claim 1 further comprising combining the first information flow with metadata that describe the second information flow, based on the finding of the first indicium and the second indicium.

14. A method comprising:

receiving, at a data-processing system, i) a first series of indicia to events occurring as part of a first information flow that is represented by a first source, ii) a second series of indicia to events occurring as part of a second information flow that is represented by a second source, and iii) a specified value of a specified characteristic from a third source;

finding a first indicium in the first series and a second indicium in the second series, based on the specified value being the same for both the first indicium and the second indicium; and

combining the first information flow with metadata that describe the second information flow, based on the finding of the first indicium and the second indicium.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the first information flow is an audio feed of a teleconference, and wherein the first source is a teleconference bridge that handles the teleconference.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the second information flow is textual.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the metadata comprises information about messages transmitted either to or from at least one participant in the teleconference, and wherein the combining comprises adding, into the audio feed, a commentary related to the messages transmitted.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein the events occurring as part of the first information flow comprise a first event that is known before the first event is scheduled to occur.

19. The method of claim 14 wherein the events occurring as part of the first information flow comprise a first event that is based on a failure to do something expected.

20. The method of claim 14 further comprising combining the first information flow with metadata that describe the second information flow, based on the finding of the first indicium and the second indicium.

21. A method comprising:

receiving, at a data-processing system, i) a first series of indicia to events scheduled to occur as part of a meeting agenda that is contained within a first electronic document, the meeting agenda pertaining to a teleconference, and ii) a second series of indicia to events occurring as part of a raw information flow that is represented by a media feed of the teleconference;

modifying the first series of indicia with the second series of indicia, resulting in a modified series; and

presenting a modified information flow to a user, wherein the modified information flow is based on the modified series.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the media feed is based on an audio feed of the teleconference.

23. The method of claim 21 further comprising presenting at least a portion of the media feed to the user, such that at least one indicium of the raw information flow is synchronized temporally with at least one indicium of the modified series.