Method, system, and computer program product for displaying images of conference call participants

• US 7,792,263 B2
• Filed: 02/15/2006
• Issued: 09/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Activision Publishing Incorporated (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: D'Amora, Bruce D., Johns, Charles R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Quynh H
• Application Number:
  US11/354,426
• Publication Number:
  US 20070200919A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,665 Days
• Field of Search: 379/202.01, 370/261, 709/204
• US Class Current: 379/202.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/152 Multipoint control units therefor

Abstract

The present invention provides a method, system, and computer program product for displaying images of conference call participants. A method in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention includes receiving a call from a user to join a conference call, obtaining a phone number of the user, matching the phone number to a stored graphical representation, and distributing and displaying the matching graphical representation to a predetermined set of users. A voice identification/recognition process can also be used to match the user to a stored graphical representation.

Claims

1. A method for displaying images of conference call participants implementing in a conference call system, comprising:

receiving a call from a user to join a conference call, wherein a plurality of users are participating in the conference call;

verifying, using a computer system, an identity of the user who is joining the conference call using a voice key, the verifying comprising;

querying the user to speak the voice key in response to receiving the call from the user to join the conference call;

comparing the spoken voice key against a plurality of stored voice keys to find a matching voice key, wherein each of the plurality of stored voice keys is associated with a different user; and

if a matching voice key is found, identifying the user as the user associated with the matching voice key;

obtaining a phone number of each of the plurality of users participating in the conference call using a caller identification system;

matching at least one stored graphical representation to the phone number of each of the plurality of users wherein, in the case that the phone number of a user corresponds to a group of users, the matching further comprises matching a stored graphical representation of each user in the group of users with the phone number;

distributing and displaying all matching graphical representations to all of the plurality of users that are participating in the conference call;

monitoring the plurality of users participating in the conference call;

updating the distributed graphical representations for all of the plurality of users that are participating in the conference call when a user enters or exits the conference call;

tracking at least one of;

an identity of each of the plurality of users participating in the conference call, a location from which each of the plurality of users participating in the conference call is calling from, and a time of participation of each of the plurality of users participating in the conference call;

logging results of the tracking; and

notifying a moderator of the conference call that an unidentified user is attempting to join the conference call if the matching step is unable to match the phone number to a stored graphical representation.

2. The method for displaying images of conference call participants according to claim 1, the verifying further comprising:

associating a stored graphical representation with the matching voice key of the user;

comparing the graphical representation associated with the matching voice key of the user with the graphical representation matched to the phone number of the user; and

allowing the user to join the conference call if the graphical representation associated with the matching voice key of the user is the same as the graphical representation matched to the phone number of the user.