Communication terminal, supervisory system and communication method

• US 5,751,959 A
• Filed: 04/18/1996
• Issued: 05/12/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Canon Ayutthaya Limited (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Ayutthaya Limited (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Sato, Hiroaki, Okazaki, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramirez, Ellis B.
• Application Number:
  US08/634,631
• Time in Patent Office: 754 Days
• Field of Search: 395/200.01, 395/188.01, 395/200.04, 395/200.12, 395/330, 395/332, 395/349, 395/200.35, 348/13, 348/15, 370/265, 345/179
• US Class Current: 709/205
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/14 Inert intermediate or cover layers for charge-receiving layers G03G5/04 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/033 Pointing devices displaced or positioned by the user , e.g. mice, trackballs, pens or joysticks; Accessories therefor digitisers characterised by the transducing means G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/38 Displays
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/42 Graphical user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/563 User guidance or feature selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/147 Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals selecting H04Q

Abstract

A display of a video received from a plurality of communication terminals or video input terminals is effected satisfactorily in accordance with a state at a transmission terminal side. A communication terminal connected to other communication terminals via a network, characterized by comprising receiving unit for receiving a video from the plurality of communication terminals, display unit for displaying the received video on a multi-window, command receiving unit for receiving a change indication command to change a display state of the video received from the plurality of communication terminals, and control unit for changing a display state of window displaying the video received from the communication terminals which have issued the change indication command, upon receiving the change indication command from the command receiving unit.

Claims

1. A communication apparatus comprising:

input means for inputting a video signal;

discriminating means for discriminating that a video represented by the video signal is not active for a predetermined time; and

control means for causing an icon to be displayed in place of the video signal input by said input means in accordance with a discrimination by said discriminating means.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said icon is represented by a signal obtained by reducing the video signal.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said icon is an icon registered by user.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said discriminating means discriminates that the video represented by the video signal is not moved for a predetermined time period.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said input means is a video camera.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising display means for displaying the video represented by said video signal, and wherein said control means is means for causing an icon to be displayed in place of the video displayed on said display means.

7. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting means for transmitting the video signal input by said input means.

8. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said control means causes said icon to be transmitted in place of the video signal transmitting by said transmitting means.

9. A transmission apparatus comprising:

generating means for generating a video signal to be transmitted;

discriminating means for discriminating that the video signal generated by said generating means is not active; and

transmitting means for transmitting said video signal generated by said generating means, and transmitting a predetermined icon in place of the video signal in accordance with a discrimination by said discriminating means.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said icon is represented by a signal obtained by reducing the video signal.

11. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said icon is an icon registered by user.

12. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said discriminating means discriminates that the video represented by said video signal is not moved for a predetermined time period.

13. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said generating means is a video camera.

14. A receiving apparatus comprising:

first receiving means for receiving a video signal;

second receiving means for receiving a command regarding a display form of the video signal; and

control means for causing a predetermined icon to be displayed in place of the video signal received by said first receiving means in accordance with the command received by said second receiving means.

15. An apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said icon is represented by a signal obtained by reducing the video signal.

16. An apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said icon is an icon registered by user.

17. An apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising display means for displaying the video represented by the video signal, wherein said control means is means for causing an icon to be displayed in place of the video displayed on said display means.

18. A communication method comprising steps of:

inputting a video signal;

discriminating that the video represented by the video signal is not active for a predetermined time period; and

causing an iron to be displayed in place of the video signal input in accordance with a discrimination in said discriminating step.

19. A method according to claim 18, wherein said icon is represented by a signal obtained by reducing the video signal.

20. A method according to claim 18, wherein said icon is an icon registered by user.

21. A method according to claim 18, wherein said discriminating step discriminates that the video represented by the video signal is not moved for a predetermined time period.

22. A method according to claim 18, wherein the video signal is input from a video camera.

23. A method according to claim 18, further comprising steps of displaying the video represented by the video signal on display means, and causing an icon to be displayed in place of the video displayed on the display means.

24. A method according to claim 18, further comprising a step of transmitting an input video signal.

25. A method according to claim 24, further comprising a step of causing said icon to be transmitted in place of the video signal to be transmitted.

26. A transmission method comprising steps of:

generating a video signal to be transmitted;

discriminating that the generated video signal is not active; and

causing a predetermined icon to be transmitted in place of the video signal in accordance with a discrimination in said discriminating step when transmitting the generated video signal generated.

27. A method according to claim 26, wherein said icon is represented by a signal obtained by reducing the video signal.

28. A method according to claim 26, wherein said icon is an icon registered by user.

29. A method according to claim 26, wherein said discriminating step discriminates that the video represented by the video signal is not moved for a predetermined time period.

30. A method according to claim 26, wherein the video signal is generated by a video camera.

31. A receiving method comprising steps of:

receiving a video signal;

receiving a command regarding a display form of the video signal; and

causing a predetermined icon to be displayed in place of the video signal received in accordance with the received command.

32. A method according to claim 31, wherein said icon is represented by a signal obtained by reducing the video signal.

33. A method according to claim 31, wherein said icon is an icon registered by user.

34. A method according to claim 31, further comprising a step of displaying the video represented by said video signal, and wherein said causing step is a step of causing an icon to be displayed in place of the video displayed in said displaying step.