Multiple site interactive response system
DCFirst Claim
1. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
- a central control host system;
at least one wireless remote system geographically separated from said host system and interconnected with said host system through a communication network;
said remote system including a base unit and a plurality of response units coupled with said base unit through at least one wireless communication link;
each of said response units including a microphone, a user input device and a control, said response units communicate audio signals entered through said microphone over said wireless communication link to said base unit and over said communication network to said host system, said control communicating any inputs entered on said input device over said wireless communication link to said base unit.
1 Assignment
Litigations
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An interactive response system includes a central control host system and one or more wireless remote systems geographically separated from the host system and interconnected with the host system through a communication network. Each remote system includes a base unit and a plurality of response units coupled with the base units through a wireless communication link. Each of the response units includes a microphone, a user input device and a control. Audio signals entered through the microphone are communicated over the wireless communication channel to the base unit and over the communication network to the host system. Any inputs entered on the input device are communicated over the wireless communication channel to the base unit. The host system includes an instructor selection device and a display. At least one call list is displayed on the display. The instructor may select characteristics of individuals for inclusion on the call list. Individuals requesting to have an audio link with the instructor are placed on the call list if a characteristic of theirs from a database roster matches the characteristic set up by the instructor for that call list.
-
Citations
60 Claims
-
1. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a central control host system; at least one wireless remote system geographically separated from said host system and interconnected with said host system through a communication network; said remote system including a base unit and a plurality of response units coupled with said base unit through at least one wireless communication link; each of said response units including a microphone, a user input device and a control, said response units communicate audio signals entered through said microphone over said wireless communication link to said base unit and over said communication network to said host system, said control communicating any inputs entered on said input device over said wireless communication link to said base unit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
-
-
11. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a central control host system; at least one wireless remote system geographically separated from said host system and interconnected with said host system through a communication network, said remote system including a base unit and a plurality of response units; each of said response units includes a microphone and a wireless audio transmitter which is responsive to a talk command from the base unit to transmit audio signals received in said microphone to an audio receiver, each of said response units further including a first wireless data transmitter to transmit a call request and a first data receiver; and said base unit including said audio receiver for receiving an audio signal from one of said response units, a second data receiver to receive call requests from said response units and a second data transmitter for transmitting a talk command to a selectable one of said response units.
-
-
12. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a central control host system and at least one remote system geographically separated from said host system and interconnected with said host system through a communication network; said at least one remote system including a base unit and a plurality of response units coupled with said base unit through a communication link, each said response unit including a microphone and a user input device wherein a user enters a call request for an audio connection with said host system using said user input device and said base unit establishes said audio connection between said microphone of one of said response units and said host system in response to a talk instruction from said host system; said host system including a computer, an instructor selection device and a display, said computer defining a roster database of individuals including at least one characteristic of each individual, said computer generating at least one call list displayed on said display and receiving a selection of characteristics of individuals entered by said instructor selection device for inclusion on said at least one call list, wherein said computer retrieves individuals from said roster database who have entered a call request and also match the at least one characteristic entered by the instructor and displays the retrieved individuals on the at least one call list. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
-
-
23. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a central control host system and at least one remote system geographically separated from said host system and interconnected with said host system through a communication network; said at least one remote system including a base unit and a plurality of response units coupled with said base unit through a communication link, each said response units including a microphone and a user input device wherein a user enters a call request for an audio connection with said host system using said user input device and said base unit establishes an audio connection between said microphone of one of said response units and said host system in response to a talk instruction from said host system; and said host system including a computer, an instructor selection device and a display, said computer generating a list displayed on said display of individuals who have entered a call request and including a status indicator on said display which produces a first indication if individuals listed on said list are fewer than a first level, a second indication if individuals listed on said list are more than said first level and fewer than a second level and a third indication if the individuals listed on said list are more than a second level, said second level being greater than said first level. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25)
-
-
26. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a central control host system and at least one remote system geographically separated from said host system and interconnected with said host system through a communication network; said at least one remote system including a base unit and a plurality of response units coupled with said base unit through a communication link, each said response unit including a microphone and a user input device wherein a user enters a call request for an audio connection with said host system using said user input device and said base unit establishes said audio connection between said microphone of one of said response units and said host system in response to a talk instruction from said host system; said host system including a computer, an instructor selection device and a display, said computer generating at least one call list displayed on said display of individuals who have entered a call request and said selection device provides for the selection of at least one individual on said at least one call list, wherein said host system provides a talk instruction to the one of said response units associated with the selected individual in order to establish said audio connection between the one of said response units associated with the selected individual and the host system; and an echo suppression system which suppresses an audio signal from said host system when an audio signal from the one of said response units associated with the selected individual is present and suppresses said audio signal from the one of said response units associated with the selected individual when said audio signal from the host system is present, said echo suppression system including a manual override for the instructor to suppress said audio signal from the one of said response units associated with the selected individual. - View Dependent Claims (27)
-
-
28. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a central control host system including an instructor console adapted to producing instructions for establishing audio connections; at least one wireless remote system geographically separated from said host system and including a base unit, a plurality of response units and a wireless communication link between said base unit and said response units, each of said response units including a user input selection device and a microphone;
said wireless communication link including a data communication channel for communicating data signals between said base unit and said response units and an audio communication channel for communicating audio signals between said base unit and said microphone of each of said response units; anda data link and an audio link between said host system and said base unit; wherein said base unit selectively communicates over said data communication channel to said response units an instruction for activating the microphone of one of said response units and said one of said response units responds to said instruction for activating the microphone of that response unit by opening said audio communication channel between the microphone of that response unit and said base station, and wherein each of said response units communicates over said data communication channel to said base unit any user input selection entered with said user input selection device of a request for an audio connection with said host system; wherein said base unit communicates over said data link to said host system any requests for said audio connection with said host system, said host system communicates over said data link to said base unit an instruction for establishing an audio connection between said host system and any response unit and said base unit responds to said instruction for establishing said audio connection by activating the microphone of one of said response units and by opening said audio connection between said audio communication channel and said host system over said audio link. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47)
-
-
48. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a central control host system; at least one remote system geographically separated from said host system and including a base unit, a plurality of response units and a communication link between said base unit and said response units, each of said response units including a user input selection device and a microphone;
said communication link for communicating data signals between said base unit and said response units and for communicating audio signals between said base unit and said microphone of each of said response units;a data link and an audio link between said host system and said base unit; wherein each of said response units communicates to said base unit any user input selection entered with said user input selection device of a request for an audio connection with said host system and wherein said base unit communicates over said data link to said host system any requests for said audio connection with said host system, said host system communicates over said data link to said base unit an instruction for establishing said audio connection between said host system and any response unit and said base unit responds to said instruction for establishing said audio connection by activating the microphone of one of said response units and by opening said audio connection between said audio communication channel and said host system over said audio link; wherein said host system includes a display which displays at least one call list to said instructor and a computer which receives said instructor'"'"'s selection of a characteristic of individuals for inclusion on said at least one call list, defines a roster of individual files and at least one characteristic of each individual in that individual'"'"'s file and retrieves from said roster and display on said at least one call list only individuals requesting said audio connection with said host system who have the selected characteristic in their roster file. - View Dependent Claims (49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55)
-
-
56. An interactive response system for retrieving at a central location responses from a plurality of users located at at least one geographically separated site and providing interaction between an instructor at the central location and said users, comprising:
-
a plurality of response units, each response unit having a microphone, a response input, a display, a controller and at least a first wireless transceiver; a base unit having a controller, at least a second wireless transceiver and a telephone interface port; and an instructor unit located geographically distant from said base unit; wherein said at least a first transceiver transfers responses entered by a user with said response input and an audio signal from said microphone wirelessly to said at least a second wireless transceiver and said telephone interface port transfers said audio signal to an instructor at said instructor unit over a telephone link. - View Dependent Claims (57, 58, 59, 60)
-
Specification