ELECTRONIC CONFERENCE MONITORING SYSTEM

• US 3,750,137 A
• Filed: 09/02/1971
• Issued: 07/31/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 09/02/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Alfred Y. Wong, James M. Nuding, Zalton J. Lucky
• Original Assignee: Alfred Y. Wong, James M. Nuding, Zalton J. Lucky
• Inventors: Nuding, James M., Lucky, Zalton J., Wong, Alfred Y.
• Primary Examiner(s): Caldwell, John W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Curtis, Marshall M.
• Application Number:
  US05/177,387
• Time in Patent Office: 698 Days
• Field of Search: 340/330,213Q,336,324R,378R
• US Class Current: 340/330
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 5/36 using visible light sources

Abstract

An electronic meeting monitoring system for monitoring and displaying information regarding the progress of meetings in a number of meeting rooms. The system is comprised of a slave unit for each conference room and a master unit for placement in a central area such as a lobby. Each slave unit and the master unit is adapted to identify the conference going on in each conference room by conference number and to indicate the approximate length of time each of the conferences has been in session. When a new conference starts in any of the conference rooms, the speaker pushes a button which advances the numeral indicating the conference number currently in session in that room by one digit and, further, resets the time indication for that room, on the master unit and all slave units. The signals transmitted between the master unit and the slave units are generally multiplexed and periodically updated to minimize the cabling between units and to minimize the effects of electrical transients introduced in the system. A color coding system is used to identify the various conference rooms by predetermined color for ease of association of data with the corresponding room.

Claims

1. A conference monitoring system for monitoring and displaying information at a plurality of locations regarding the status of a plurality of conferences comprised of:

a master display unit having a plurality of different colored display panels thereon, and a plurality of slave display units equal in number to said plurality of display panels on said master display unit, each of said slave display units having a plurality of colored display panels thereon equal in number to the number of said display panels on said master display unit and each having the same color as respective ones of said display panels on said master display unit, means for providing a start signal associated with each of said slave display units, said last named means being coupled to said master display unit, each of said display panels having means for displaying a character and a means for indicating the passage of a plurality of time intervals, said master display unit having a means coupLed to said start means for counting start signals provided by each means for providing start signals, said means for counting being coupled to said display panels so as to display on all of said display panels having the same color a number indicative of the cumulative number of start signals for that one of said means for providing a start start signal, said master display unit further having timing means coupled to each means for providing a start signal and to said display panels, said timing means being a means for determining the passage of a plurality of pre-set time intervals from start signals provided by each said start means and for causing said display means to display for each of said start means an indication of the passage of each of said plurality of time intervals on said display panels adjacent said character indicative of the count of said start signals from that one of said start means.

2. The monitoring system of claim 1 wherein said means for displaying a character is comprised of a series of illuminable segments arranged to form a seven segment character preceded by the digit one.

3. The monitoring system of claim 2 wherein said means for counting is coupled to said display panels on said slave display units through a multiplexer in said master display unit and a decoder in each of said slave display units.

4. The monitoring system of claim 3 wherein said multiplexer combines the output signals for said means for counting so as to create a periodic pulse train representative of, in serial digital form, the signals for illuminating said segments in each of said display panels on each of said slave display units in appropriate combinations to display characters on said panels indicative of the cumulative number of start signals for the respective ones of said means for providing a start signal.

5. The monitoring system of claim 4 wherein said pulse train is periodically repeated.

6. The monitoring system of claim 4 wherein said means for indicating the passage of a plurality of time intervals comprises a plurality of illuminable areas on each said display panel, said timing means also being coupled to said display panels on said slave display units through a multiplexer in said master display unit and a decoder in each said slave display unit.

7. The monitoring system of claim 6 wherein the last named said multiplexer combines the output signals for said timing means so as to create a pulse train representative of, in serial digital form, the signals for illuminating said illuminable areas on each of said display panels in appropriate combinations to indicate the passage of said time intervals from the last start signal for the respective ones of said means for providing a start signal.

8. The monitoring system of claim 1 wherein said start means comprises a pushbutton switch associated with each of said slave display units.

9. The monitoring system of claim 1 further comprised of a color coded means for indicating location of various events wherein said means are adapted to include indica for compiling data regarding the attendance at said events.

10. The monitoring system of claim 1 further comprised of a color coded means for indicating location of various events wherein said color coded means is a color coded card having said colors keyed to the colors of said display panels.

11. A conference monitoring system for monitoring and displaying information at a plurality of locations regarding the status of a plurality of conferences comprised of:

a master display unit having a plurality of display panels thereon, and a plurality of slave display units equal in number to said plurality of display panels on said master display unit, each of said slave display units having a plurality of display panels thereon equal in number to the number of said display panels on said master display unit, a switch for providing a start signal associated with each of said slave display units, each said switch being electrically coupled to said master display unit, each of said display panels having at least one seven segment character for displaying a number, and a plurality of illuminable devices for indicating the passage of a plurality of time intervals, said master display unit having a multiplexing means electrically coupled to each of said slave display units, through a cable, said master display unit further having a means coupled to said start means for counting start signals provided by each said switch, said means for counting being coupled to said display panels on said master display unit and to said multiplexing means so as to display on one of said display panels on each slave display unit and on said master display unit a number indicative of the cumulative number of start signals for the one said switch associated with the respective display panels, said master display unit further having timing means coupled to each said switch and to said display panels on said master display unit and to said multiplexer, said timing means being a means for determining the passage of a plurality of pre-set time intervals from start signals provided by each said switch and for causing said display panels associated with each said switch to display by said illuminable devices an indication of the passage of each of said plurality of time intervals on said display panels adjacent said character indicative of the count of said start signals from that one of said switches.