Method and apparatus for establishing a distributed conference bridge
First Claim
1. A method for establishing a distributed conference bridge for communications between a plurality of user devices, comprising:
- using a processor for;
determining, for each of a plurality of pairs of said user devices, a weighting factor associated with a communication path between said user devices of said pair of user devices;
determining a configuration for said distributed conference bridge using said weighting factors, wherein said configuration comprises a plurality of communication paths between a respective plurality of pairs of said user devices, wherein at least one of said communication paths of said configuration comprises a communication path between a first combining user device and one of a second combining user device and a non-combining user device; and
initiating establishment of said distributed conference bridge according to said configuration, comprising;
for each combining user device;
generating a sub-bridge establishment message for configuring the combining user device according to said configuration, and transmitting said sub-bridge establishment message toward said combining user device.
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Abstract
The invention comprises a method and apparatus for establishing a conference bridge. Specifically, the method comprises obtaining at least one request for establishing the conference bridge where the conference bridge is operable for enabling communications between a plurality of user devices, and determining a configuration for establishing the conference bridge, the configuration comprising at least one sub-bridge wherein each of the at least one sub-bridge comprises a communication path between a first combining user device and one of a second combining user device and a non-combining user device, wherein the configuration tends to minimize a bandwidth required for supporting communications between the plurality of user devices.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. A method for establishing a distributed conference bridge for communications between a plurality of user devices, comprising:
using a processor for; determining, for each of a plurality of pairs of said user devices, a weighting factor associated with a communication path between said user devices of said pair of user devices; determining a configuration for said distributed conference bridge using said weighting factors, wherein said configuration comprises a plurality of communication paths between a respective plurality of pairs of said user devices, wherein at least one of said communication paths of said configuration comprises a communication path between a first combining user device and one of a second combining user device and a non-combining user device; and initiating establishment of said distributed conference bridge according to said configuration, comprising; for each combining user device;
generating a sub-bridge establishment message for configuring the combining user device according to said configuration, and transmitting said sub-bridge establishment message toward said combining user device.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a software program, that, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to perform a method for establishing a distributed conference bridge for communications between a plurality of user devices, the method comprising:
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determining, for each of a plurality of pairs of said user devices, a weighting factor associated with a communication path between said user devices of said pair of user devices; determining a configuration for said distributed conference bridge using said weighting factors, wherein said configuration comprises a plurality of communication paths between a respective plurality of pairs of said user devices, wherein at least one of said communication paths of said configuration comprises a communication path between a first combining user device and one of a second combining user device and a non-combining user device; and initiating establishment of said distributed conference bridge according to said configuration, comprising; for each combining user device;
generating a sub-bridge establishment message for configuring the combining user device according to said configuration, and transmitting said sub-bridge establishment message toward said combining user device. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8)
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9. An apparatus for establishing a distributed conference bridge for communications between a plurality of user devices, comprising:
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means for determining, for each of a plurality of pairs of said user devices, a weighting factor associated with a communication path between said user devices of said pair of user devices; means for determining a configuration for said distributed conference bridge using said weighting factors, wherein said configuration comprises a plurality of communication paths between a respective plurality of pairs of said user devices, wherein at least one of said communication paths of said configuration comprises a communication path between a first combining user device and one of a second combining user device and a non-combining user device; and means for initiating establishment of said distributed conference bridge according to said configuration, wherein initiating establishment of said distributed conference bridge comprises; for each combining user device;
generating a sub-bridge establishment message for configuring the combining user device according to said configuration, and transmitting said sub-bridge establishment message toward said combining user device. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for determining a distributed configuration for a conference bridge for supporting communications between a plurality of user devices, comprising:
using a processor for; determining, for each of a plurality of pairs of said user devices, a distance between user devices of the pair of user devices; determining a configuration for the distributed conference bridge using the determined distances, wherein the configuration comprises a plurality of communication paths between a respective plurality of pairs of said user devices, wherein at least one of said communication paths of said configuration comprises a communication path between a first combining user device and one of a second combining user device and a non-combining user device; and initiating establishment of said distributed conference bridge according to said configuration, comprising; for each combining user device;
generating a sub-bridge establishment message for configuring the combining user device according to said configuration, and transmitting said sub-bridge establishment message toward said combining user device.
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14. An apparatus for determining a distributed configuration for a conference bridge for supporting communications between a plurality of user devices, comprising:
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means for determining, for each of a plurality of pairs of said user devices, a distance between user devices of the pair of user devices; means for determining a configuration for the distributed conference bridge using the determined distances, wherein the configuration comprises a plurality of communication paths between a respective plurality of pairs of said user devices, wherein at least one of said communication paths of said configuration comprises a communication path between a first combining user device and one of a second combining user device and a non-combining user device; and means for initiating establishment of said distributed conference bridge according to said configuration, comprising; for each combining user device;
generating a sub-bridge establishment message for configuring the combining user device according to said configuration, and transmitting said sub-bridge establishment message toward said combining user device.
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Specification