Selective Teleconference Interruption

• US 20130021950A1
• Filed: 08/08/2012
• Published: 01/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Chen, Yen-Fu, Walker, Keith Raymond, Bosma, John H., Focazio, Robyn Lee
• Granted Patent: US 8,989,057 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/260
• 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 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: 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 3/566 relating to a participants right to speak arrangements for multi-party communication with floor control, e.g. for conferences, H04L65/4038, H04L65/4046, H04L65/4053
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0063 where the network is a peer-to-peer network

Abstract

A system and method for controlling a peer-to-peer, unmoderated conference call, which allows a non-talking conferee to send an in-band interrupt request signal which is detected by the conference bridge, which automatically determines which conferee is currently talking, and continuously sends an alert signal to the talking conferee, but prevents transmission of alert signal and interrupt request signal to all other, non-speaking conferees. When the talking conferee quits talking, or acknowledges the interrupt request, or a timeout occurs, alert signal is discontinued, and the request conferee (or another conferee) may speak. Optionally, after a timeout occurs, the voice of the currently speaking conferee is removed from the conference summation, effectively muting the non-yielding conferee.

Claims

1. A method of controlling a conference call comprising:

during an unmoderated conference call, receiving by a conference call controller an in-band acknowledgment signal from a speaking conferee terminal indicating acknowledgment of an in-band interrupt request signal, wherein the in-band acknowledgment signal is independent of rejection or acceptance by a currently speaking conferee of the interrupt request signal;

transmitting by the conference call controller an in-band acknowledgment signal to a non-speaking conferee terminal without sending the in-band acknowledgment signal to other conferee terminals in the unmoderated conference call, and without changing muting states of the non-speaking conferee terminal and of the speaking conferee terminal;

sending by the conference call controller an in-band alert signal to the speaking conferee terminal until detecting that the currently speaking conferee has taken a predetermined action via the speaking conferee terminal, wherein the in-band alert signal indicates a continuing request to speak and is independent of a muting state of the non-speaking conferee terminal; and

responsive to detecting by the conference call controller that the currently speaking conferee has taken the predetermined action, discontinuing sending by conference call controller the in-band alert signal;

wherein the conference call controller comprises a computer system, or an electronic circuit for performing call conference control, or a combination of the computer system and the electronic circuit.

2. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein the sending of the alert signal comprises sending the alert signal until relative silence is detected on a microphone signal received from said currently speaking conferee.

3. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein the sending of the alert signal comprises sending the alert signal until at least one event is detected selected from the group consisting of detecting an acknowledgment signal on a microphone signal received from the currently speaking conferee, and elapse of a maximum time from a time of beginning to send the alert signal.

4. The method as set forth in claim 3 wherein the acknowledgment signal on the microphone signal comprises one or more dual-tone multi-frequency signals.

5. The method as set forth in claim 3 further comprising, in response to the maximum time elapsing, removing a microphone signal component associated with the speaking conferee terminal from summations of signals provided to other conferee terminals in order to mute the speaking conferee terminal.

6. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein the in-band interrupt request signal comprises a signal selected from the group consisting of a dual-tone multi-frequency signal and a spoken command detected by a voice recognition resource.

7. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein the alert signal comprises a signal selected from the group consisting of an audible tone, and an audible voice recording.

8. A computer program product for controlling a conference call, the computer program product comprising a tangible, computer-readable storage memory device having program code embodied therewith, the program code comprising:

program code for, during an unmoderated conference call, receiving by a conference call controller an in-band acknowledgment signal from a speaking conferee terminal indicating acknowledgment of an in-band interrupt request signal, wherein the in-band acknowledgment signal is independent of rejection or acceptance by a currently speaking conferee of the interrupt request signal;

program code for transmitting by the conference call controller an in-band acknowledgment signal to a non-speaking conferee terminal without sending the in-band acknowledgment signal to other conferee terminals in the unmoderated conference call, and without changing muting states of the non-speaking conferee terminal and of the speaking conferee terminal;

program code for sending by the conference call controller an in-band alert signal to the speaking conferee terminal until detecting that the currently speaking conferee has taken a predetermined action, wherein the in-band alert signal indicates a continuing request to speak and is independent of a muting state of the non-speaking conferee terminal; and

program code for, responsive to detecting by the conference call controller that the currently speaking conferee has taken the predetermined action, discontinuing sending by the conference call controller the in-band alert signal;

wherein the conference call controller comprises a computer having a processor for executing program code, or an electronic circuit for performing a logical process, or a combination of the processor, the program code, and the electronic circuit.

9. The computer program product as set forth in claim 8 wherein the program code for sending of the alert signal comprises program code for sending until relative silence is detected on a microphone signal received from said currently speaking conferee.

10. The computer program product as set forth in claim 8 wherein the program code for sending of the alert signal comprises program code for sending until at least one event is detected selected from the group consisting of detecting an acknowledgment signal on a microphone signal received from the currently speaking conferee, and elapse of a maximum time from a time of beginning to send the alert signal.

11. The computer program product as set forth in claim 10 wherein the acknowledgment signal on the microphone signal comprises one or more dual-tone multi-frequency signals.

12. The computer program product as set forth in claim 10 further comprising program code embodied with the tangible, computer-readable storage memory device for, in response to the maximum time elapsing, removing a microphone signal component associated with the speaking conferee terminal from summations of signals provided to other conferee terminals in order to mute the speaking conferee terminal.

13. The computer program product as set forth in claim 8 wherein the in-band interrupt request signal comprises a signal selected from the group consisting of a dual-tone multi-frequency signal and a spoken command detected by a voice recognition resource.

14. The computer program product as set forth in claim 8 wherein the alert signal comprises a signal selected from the group consisting of an audible tone, and an audible voice recording.

15. A system for controlling a conference call comprising:

a first receiver portion of a conference call controller for, during an unmoderated conference call, receiving an in-band acknowledgment signal from a speaking conferee terminal indicating acknowledgment of an in-band interrupt request signal, wherein the in-band acknowledgment signal is independent of rejection or acceptance by a currently speaking conferee of the interrupt request signal;

a first transmitter portion of a conference call controller for transmitting an in-band acknowledgment signal to a non-speaking conferee terminal without sending the in-band acknowledgment signal to other conferee terminals in the unmoderated conference call, and without changing muting states of the non-speaking conferee terminal and of the speaking conferee terminal; and

a first sender portion of the conference call controller for sending by the conference call controller an in-band alert signal to the speaking conferee terminal until detecting that the currently speaking conferee has taken a predetermined action, wherein the in-band alert signal indicates a continuing request to speak and is independent of a muting state of the non-speaking conferee terminal, and for, responsive to detecting by the conference call controller that the currently speaking conferee has taken the predetermined action, discontinuing sending by the conference call controller the in-band alert signal;

wherein the conference call controller comprises a computer having a processor for executing program code, or an electronic circuit for performing a logical process, or a combination of the processor, the program code, and the electronic circuit.

16. The system as set forth in claim 15 wherein the sending of the alert signal comprises sending until relative silence is detected on a microphone signal received from said currently speaking conferee.

17. The system as set forth in claim 15 wherein the sending of the alert signal comprises sending until at least one event is detected selected from the group consisting of detecting an acknowledgment signal on a microphone signal received from the currently speaking conferee, and elapse of a maximum time from a time of beginning to send the alert signal.

18. The system as set forth in claim 17 wherein the acknowledgment signal comprises one or more dual-tone multi-frequency signals.

19. The system as set forth in claim 17 further comprising, in response to the maximum time elapsing, removing a microphone signal component associated with the speaking conferee terminal from summations of signals provided to other conferee terminals in order to mute the speaking conferee terminal.

20. The system as set forth in claim 15 wherein the in-band interrupt request signal comprises a signal selected from the group consisting of a dual-tone multi-frequency signal and a spoken command detected by a voice recognition resource.

21. The system as set forth in claim 15 wherein the alert signal comprises a signal selected from the group consisting of an audible tone, and an audible voice recording.