VIDEO CONFERENCE CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD

• US 20120320141A1
• Filed: 06/16/2011
• Published: 12/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VTEL Products Corporation, Inc.
• Original Assignee: VTEL Products Corporation, Inc.
• Inventors: Clayton, William Todd, Bowen, Jonathan D.
• Granted Patent: US 8,970,653 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/14.02
• 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 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

A local video conference system executing a video conference application, that lacks an ability or functionality to control a remote camera of a remote video conference system, can display video from the remote video conference system. The local video conference system can also execute a controller application that can provide the local video conference system control of the remote camera. The controller application can receive user input that selects a region of multiple regions of a display window of the video conference application indicating a camera action for the remote camera, can determine a camera action based on the user input and the selected region, and can provide the camera action to the remote video conference system via a network. The remote video conference system can pan, tilt, and/or zoom the remote camera based on the camera action received from the controller application of the local video conference system.

Claims

1. A system at a first location, comprising:

a display that displays video of a first application that lacks a functionality to control a remote camera of a remote video conference system at a second location, different from the first location;

a memory that includes the first application and a second application;

a processor coupled to the display and the memory; and

a network interface, coupled to the processor and configured to be coupled to a network, that receives video data from the remote video conference system, provides the video data to the first application via the processor, and provides a first camera command to the remote video conference system via the network;

wherein the processor is configured with the first application such that the processor displays the video based on the video data via the display, wherein the video includes images of a first video conference participant at the second location; and

wherein the processor is further configured with the second application such that the processor receives first user input that selects a first region of a plurality of regions associated with the video of the first application and that indicates a first camera action for the remote camera at the second location, determines the first camera command based on the first user input and the first region, and provides the first camera command to the remote video conference system via the network interface.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the network includes at least one of an Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, a mobile telephone network, a wireless network, and a public switched telephone network.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein when the processor provides the first camera command to the remote video conference system via the network interface, the processor further provides the first camera command to the remote video conference system via a data path independent of another data path utilized by the first application.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the second application further configures the processor such that the processor determines a first cursor position within the video of the first application and determines that the first cursor position is within the first region.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the second application further configures the processor such that the processor determines a second cursor position within the video of the first application;

determines that the second cursor position is within a second region of the plurality of regions of the video of the first application;

receives second user input indicating a second remote camera action;

determines, based on the second user input and the second region, a second remote camera command; and

provides the second camera command to the remote video conference system via the network.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the second application is a plug-in to the first application.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising a mobile telephone that includes the display, the memory, the processor, and the network interface.

8. A computer readable memory device comprising a first set of instructions, which when executed by a processor of a first video conference system at a first location, cause the first video conference system to perform:

interfacing with a device driver that provides a video stream of a first video camera of the first video conference system to a video conference application, wherein each of the device driver and the video conference application is executable by the processor;

receiving, from the device driver, the video stream of the first video camera;

providing the video stream to the video conference application;

receiving data that indicates first user input that selects a first region of a plurality of regions of video of the video conference application and that indicates a first camera action for a remote camera of a second video conference system at a second location, different from the first location;

determining the first camera command based on the data that indicates the first user input and the first region; and

providing the first camera command to the second video conference system via a network interface of the first video conference system.

9. The computer readable memory device of claim 8,

wherein the device driver provides a first application interface;

wherein said interfacing with the device driver includes interfacing with the device driver via the first application interface; and

wherein the first set of instructions, which when executed by the processor of the first video conference system, cause the first video conference system to further perform;

providing a second application interface, that is at least one of compatible and compliant with the first application interface, for the video conference application to utilize.

10. The computer readable memory device of claim 9, wherein the first set of instructions, which when executed by the processor of the first video conference system, cause the first video conference system to further perform:

providing a third application interface for said receiving the data that indicates the first user input that selects the first region of the plurality of regions of the video of the video conference application and that indicates the first camera action for the remote camera of the second video conference system at the second location.

11. The computer readable memory device of claim 10, further comprising a second set of instructions, which when executed by the processor of the first video conference system, cause the first video conference system to perform:

receiving the first user input that selects the first region of the plurality of regions of the video of the video conference application and that indicates the first camera action for the remote camera of the second video conference system; and

providing, to the first set of instructions via the third application interface, the data that indicates the first user input that selects the first region of the plurality of regions of the video of the video conference application and that indicates the first camera action for the remote camera of the second video conference system.

12. The computer readable memory device of claim 10, further comprising a second set of instructions, which when executed by the processor of the first video conference system, cause the first video conference system to perform:

receiving the first user input that selects the first region of the plurality of regions of the video of the video conference application and that indicates the first camera action for the remote camera of the second video conference system; and

providing, to the first set of instructions, the data that indicates the first user input that selects the first region of the plurality of regions of the video of the video conference application and that indicates the first camera action for the remote camera of the second video conference system.

13. The computer readable memory device of claim 8,

wherein the video conference application lacks a first functionality to receive the video stream via a first protocol and includes a second functionality to receive the video stream via a second protocol, different from the first protocol;

wherein said receiving, from the device driver, the video stream of the first video camera includes receiving, from the device driver, the video stream of the first video camera via the first protocol;

wherein the first set of instructions, which when executed by the processor of the first video conference system, cause the first video conference system to further perform;

transforming the video stream from the first protocol to the second protocol; and

wherein said providing the video stream to the video conference application includes providing the video stream to the video conference application via the second protocol.

14. The computer readable memory device of claim 8, wherein the first set of instructions, which when executed by the processor of the first video conference system, cause the first video conference system to further perform:

receiving data indicating second user input that indicates configuration information.

15. The computer readable memory device of claim 8, wherein the computer readable memory device includes a loadable kernel module that includes the first set of instructions.

16. A method, comprising:

interfacing with a device driver that provides a video stream of a first video camera of a first video conference system to a video conference application that is executable by a processor of a first video conference system at a first location;

receiving, from the device driver, the video stream of the first video camera;

providing the video stream to the video conference application;

receiving data that indicates first user input that selects a first region of a plurality of regions of video of the video conference application and that indicates a first camera action for a remote camera of a second video conference system at a second location, different from the first location;

determining the first camera command based on the data that indicates the first user input and the first region; and

providing the first camera command to the second video conference system via a network interface of the first video conference system.

17. The method of claim 16,

wherein the device driver provides a first application interface;

and

wherein said interfacing with the device driver includes interfacing with the device driver via the first application interface;

the method further comprising;

providing a second application interface, that is at least one of compatible and compliant with the first application interface, for the video conference application to utilize.

18. The method of claim 16,

wherein the video conference application lacks a first functionality to receive the video stream via a first protocol and includes a second functionality to receive the video stream via a second protocol, different from the first protocol;

wherein said receiving, from the device driver, the video stream of the first video camera includes receiving, from the device driver, the video stream of the first video camera via the first protocol;

the method further comprising;

transforming the video stream from the first protocol to the second protocol;

wherein said providing the video stream to the video conference application includes providing the video stream to the video conference application via the second protocol.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

receiving data indicating second user input that indicates configuration information.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the first video conference system is a mobile telephone.