METHOD, APPARATUS, AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM FOR TRANSFERRING A COLLABORATION SESSION

• US 20120023167A1
• Filed: 07/25/2011
• Published: 01/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: KRISTIANSEN, Ivan Marius, HOVDAL, Gaute
• Granted Patent: US 8,738,699 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9554 by using bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1095 the scanner comprising adaptations for scanning a record carrier that is displayed on a display-screen or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1083 In-session procedures
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/20 Scanners
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2094 Proximity
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42263 where the same subscriber uses different terminals, i.e. nomadism
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/56 Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities video conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/58 Arrangements for transferring received calls from one subscriber to another; Arrangements affording interim conversations between either the calling or the called party and a third party substation line holding circuits H04M1/80

Abstract

A method for transferring a collaboration session from a handheld device to a multimedia endpoint by encoding session data for the collaboration session and/or instructions into an optically machine-readable representation of data, displaying the data on a display of the handheld device, and optically providing the data to a multimedia endpoint the collaboration session is to be transferred to. The multimedia endpoint may send a message to a server upon detecting the data, causing the server to transfer the collaboration session, based on the session data in the message. Alternatively, the multimedia endpoint establishes a session with another multimedia endpoint based on the instructions and/or session data.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a collaboration server, a session request from a first multimedia endpoint addressed to a user;

establishing a first session between said first multimedia endpoint and a handheld device associated with said user in a user database;

providing session data associated with the first session to a second multimedia endpoint by

encoding the session data into a barcode image,

displaying the barcode image on a display of the handheld device, and

retrieving and decoding the barcode image at the second multimedia endpoint using a camera associated with the second multimedia endpoint;

receiving, at the collaboration server, a barcode image detection message from the second multimedia endpoint; and

in response to said receiving of the barcode image detection message, transferring the first session to the second multimedia endpoint, based on the session data associated with the first session and an address of the second multimedia endpoint included in the barcode image detection message.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

storing the session data in a session database in response to the first session being established, the session data including one or more of a session ID, a user ID of the user, an address or dial-up number of one or more of devices participating in the first session, and a session status, wherein

the session data encoded in to the barcode image detection message includes at least said user ID.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the providing said session data to the second multimedia endpoint further comprises:

at predefined events, distributing the barcode image to the handheld device.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the distributing the barcode image further comprises:

sending a multimedia message to the handheld device in response to establishing the first session,

wherein said multimedia message includes a multimedia messaging service (MMS) communication, an email, or a v-card.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein the distributing the barcode image further comprises:

automatically displaying the barcode image on the handheld device when a session request is received from a gateway used to communicate with the handheld device.

6. The method according to claim 3, wherein the distributing the barcode image further comprises:

distributing the barcode image and a gateway address to the handheld device; and

associatively storing said barcode image and said gateway address in a phone book of the handheld device.

7. The method according to claims 5, wherein the providing said session data to the second multimedia endpoint further comprises:

distributing an application to the handheld device,

wherein said application is configured to automatically display the barcode image on the handheld device when the session request is received from the gateway used to communicate with the handheld device.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the establishing the first session between the first multimedia endpoint and the handheld device further comprises:

establishing the first session between said first multimedia endpoint and a third multimedia endpoint, where the third multimedia endpoint is associated with said user in the user database;

receiving a transfer call message from said third multimedia endpoint; and

in response to the receiving the transfer call message, transferring the first session from the third multimedia endpoint to the handheld device associated with the user in the user database.

9. A method comprising:

receiving, at a collaboration server, a session request from a first multimedia endpoint addressed to a user;

establishing a first session between said first multimedia endpoint and a handheld device associated with said user in a user database;

providing, to a second multimedia endpoint, one or more of session data associated with the first session or at least one computer executable instruction, said providing including

encoding the one or more of session data associated with the first session or the at least one computer executable instruction into a barcode image,

displaying the barcode image on a display of the handheld device,

retrieving and decoding the barcode image at a second multimedia endpoint using a camera associated with the second multimedia endpoint; and

sending a session request from the second multimedia endpoint to the first multimedia endpoint based on the decoded one or more of the session data associated with the first session or the at least one computer executable instruction.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein said barcode image comprises at least an address of the first multimedia endpoint and the computer executable instruction, which when executed, causes the second multimedia endpoint to establish a session with the first multimedia endpoint.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the providing said session data to the second multimedia endpoint further comprises:

at predefined events, distributing the barcode image to the handheld device.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the distributing the barcode image comprises sending a multimedia message to the handheld device in response to establishing the first session, and said multimedia message includes a multimedia messaging service (MMS) communication, an email, or a v-card.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the providing said session data to the second multimedia endpoint further comprises:

automatically displaying the barcode image on the handheld device when a session request is received from a gateway used to communicate with the handheld device.

14. The method according to claim 9, wherein the step of establishing the session between the first multimedia endpoint and the handheld device further comprises:

establishing the session between said first multimedia endpoint and a third multimedia endpoint, where the third multimedia endpoint is associated with said user in the user database;

receiving a transfer call message from said third multimedia endpoint; and

in response to the receiving the transfer call message, transferring the first session from the third multimedia endpoint to the handheld device associated with the user in the user database.

15. A collaboration server comprising:

a memory that stores a user database;

a processor;

a session management module configured to receive, in conjunction with the processor, a session request, addressed to a user, from a first multimedia endpoint and establish a first session between the first multimedia endpoint and a handheld device associated with the user based on the user database; and

a barcode management module configured to encode, in conjunction with the processor, at least one of session data associated with the first session or at least one computer executable instruction into a barcode image, and distribute said barcode image to the handheld device on an occurrence of a predefined event.

16. The collaboration server according to claim 15, wherein the session management module is further configured to receive a barcode image detection message from a second multimedia endpoint, and to establish a session between the first multimedia endpoint and the second multimedia endpoint based on the session data associated with the first session and an address of the second multimedia endpoint embedded in the barcode image detection message in response to receiving the barcode image detection message.

17. The collaboration server according to claim 16, wherein the session management module is configured to transfer the first session from the handheld device to the second multimedia endpoint, without disconnecting the fist multimedia endpoint.

18. The collaboration server according to one of claim 16, wherein the collaboration server further comprises:

a session database, included in the memory, that stores session data for a collaboration session between two or more endpoints, said session data including one or more of a session ID, a user ID of the user, an address or dial-up number of one or more of the endpoints in the session, a session status, wherein

the session data in the barcode image detection message includes at least said user ID or session ID, and

said session between the first and second multimedia endpoints is established based on said user ID or session ID and parameters in the session database.

19. The collaboration server according to claim 15, wherein the barcode image comprises at least an address of the first multimedia endpoint and the computer executable instruction, which when executed causes a second multimedia endpoint to establish a session with the first multimedia endpoint.

21. The multimedia endpoint according to claim 19, wherein said barcode reader unit is further configured to instruct the control unit to enable a one-time auto answer setting if an auto answer instruction is detected when decoding the barcode image.

20. A multimedia endpoint comprising:

a processor;

at least one camera; and

a barcode reader unit configured to;

analyze images from said camera to detect a barcode image displayed on a handheld device, and decode said barcode image to extract at least one of session data or an instruction, and

send a barcode image detection message to a collaboration server when a barcode image is detected and decoded, said barcode image detection message including at least parts of the barcode data and the address of the multimedia endpoint, wherein

if an establish session instruction is detected in the barcode image, barcode reader unit instructs the processor to establish a session with another multimedia endpoint identified in said session data.