System and method for two-way radio and telephone conferencing and collaboration

• US 8,150,450 B1
• Filed: 04/11/2007
• Issued: 04/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sound View Innovations, LLC (Sound View Innovation Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Wengrovitz, Michael S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelin, Jean
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Michael
• Application Number:
  US11/733,982
• Time in Patent Office: 1,819 Days
• Field of Search: 455512-521, 455/3.05, 455/3.06, 455/416, 455/127.4, 455/95, 455/550.1, 455/553.1
• US Class Current: 455/550.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4061 Push-to services, e.g. push-to-talk or push-to-video
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/62 user interface aspects of conference calls

Abstract

Conferencing between two-way radio devices and telephone devices is achieved using a conference server that has a radio interface coupled to a radio network including one or more two-way radio devices and a telephone interface coupled to a telephone network including one or more telephone devices. A conference room within the conference server manages a conference call between the two-way radio devices and telephone devices by receiving voice streams originated by the two-way radio devices and telephone devices during the conference call and transmitting the received voice streams originated by the two-way radio devices and telephone devices to the remaining devices involved in the conference call.

Claims

1. A conference server, comprising:

a first interface communicatively coupled to a first external radio adapter within a first radio network including a first group of two or more two-way radio devices, the first external radio adapter being physically connected to a first coupled two-way radio device of the two-way radio devices within the first group;

a second interface communicatively coupled to a second external radio adapter within a second radio network including a second group of two or more two-way radio devices, the second external radio adapter being physically connected to a second coupled two-way radio device of the two-way radio devices within the second group;

a conference room operable to manage a conference call between said two-way radio devices of said first group and said second group by receiving, at any given time, voice streams originated by one of said two-way radio devices of said first group via said first external radio adapter and said first interface and one of said two-way radio devices of said second group via said second external radio adapter and said second interface and transmitting said voice streams received from said first external radio adapter via said first interface to said second external radio adapter via said second interface for transmission by said second external radio adapter to said two-way radio devices within said second group via said second coupled two-way radio device and said voice streams received from said second external radio adapter via said second interface to said first external radio adapter via said first interface for transmission by said first external radio adapter to said two-way radio devices within said first group via said first coupled two-way radio device;

processing circuitry operable to create said conference room for said conference call and communicatively coupled to said conference room, said first interface and said second interface to transmit, receive and process said voice streams managed by said conference room during said conference call; and

an application program interface communicatively coupled to receive an instruction to create said conference room.

2. The conference server of claim 1, wherein said first external radio adapter is configured to convert said voice streams between a first format associated with said first radio network and a second format associated with said conference server.

3. The conference server of claim 2, wherein said second external radio adapter is configured to convert said voice streams between a third format associated with said second radio network and said second format.

4. The conference server of claim 1, further comprising:

a conferencing software module executable by said processing circuitry to create and manage said conference room; and

a memory device within which said conference room is created.

5. The conference server of claim 4, wherein said conferencing software module is further operable to create and manage said conference rooms in parallel.

6. The conference server of claim 5, wherein said processing circuitry is further operable to process and transmit different types of media for each of said conference rooms, wherein said different types of media include said voice streams and data.

7. The conference server of claim 6, wherein said data includes text and multi-media that enables data collaboration between voice participants associated with said other devices, said data collaboration providing one or more of instant messaging, presentation sharing, desktop sharing and video.

8. The conference server of claim 1, further comprising:

a third interface communicatively coupled to a telephone network including one or more telephone devices, said conference room managing said conference call between said first group, said second group and said one or more telephone devices.

9. The conference server of claim 8, wherein said third interface provides an interface to one or more circuit-switched networks and one or more packet-switched networks.

10. The conference server of claim 9, wherein said telephone network includes one or more of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), a private Local Area Network (LAN) and a public Internet Protocol (IP) network.

11. The conference server of claim 8, wherein said one or more telephone devices include one or more of a PSTN telephone, a cellular telephone, an IP telephone, a computer and a personal digital assistant.

12. The conference server of claim 1, wherein said application program interface is communicatively coupled to receive said instruction to create said conference room in response to a triggering of an alarm as a result of the occurrence of an external event.

13. The conference server of claim 1, further comprising:

a conference policy maintaining parameters for one or more of creating said conference room, establishing said conference call and managing said conference room.

14. The conference server of claim 13, wherein said conference policy includes leg state information identifying a respective leg state of each conference leg of said conference call, each conference leg being associated with one of said first group or said second group.

15. A communications system providing conferencing services, comprising:

a first radio adapter within a first radio network including a first group of two or more two-way radio devices for converting voice between a first format associated with said first radio network and a second format associated with a second network, said first radio adapter being physically connected to a first coupled two-way radio device of the two-way radio devices within the first group;

a second radio adapter within a second radio network including a second group of two or more two-way radio devices for converting voice between a third format associated with said second radio network and said second format, said second radio adapter being physically connected to a second coupled two-way radio device of the two-way radio devices within the second group; and

a conference server within said second network and communicatively externally coupled to said first radio adapter and said second radio adapter, said conference server being operable to create a conference room for managing a conference call involving said first group and said second group;

wherein said conference room is operable to receive, at any given time, voice streams originated by one of said two-way radio devices of said first group and one of said two-way radio devices of said second group during said conference call and to transmit said voice streams received from said first radio adapter to said second radio adapter for transmission by said second radio adapter to said two-way radio devices within said second group via said second coupled two-way radio device and said voice streams received from said second radio adapter to said first radio adapter for transmission by said first radio adapter to said two-way radio devices within said first group via said first coupled two-way radio device.

16. The communications system of claim 15, wherein said conference server includes a conferencing software module operating to create multiple conference rooms in software.

17. The communications system of claim 16, wherein said conference server manages said conference call between said first group, said second group and one or more telephone devices communicatively coupled to said conference server via a telephone network;

and wherein said conference server is further operable to process and transmit different types of media for each of said conference rooms, wherein said different types of media include said voice streams and data that enables data collaboration between voice participants associated with said telephone devices.

18. The communications system of claim 15, wherein said first radio adapter and said second radio adapter are physically located within a single hardware chassis.

19. The communications system of claim 15, further comprising:

an additional conference server including an additional conference room that is communicatively coupled to both additional communications devices and to said conference room within said conference server for said conference call.

27. The communications system of claim 15, wherein said first radio adapter is configured to simultaneously receive said voice streams originated from one of said two-way radio devices within said first group via said first coupled two-way radio device and transmit said voice streams originated from one of said two-way radio devices within said second group to said two-way radio devices within said first group via said first coupled two-way radio device, such that said voice streams originated from said first group and said second group are simultaneously received at said remaining ones of said two-way radio devices within said first group.

20. A method for conferencing two-way radio and telephone devices, comprising the steps of:

receiving an instruction to establish a conference call involving a first group of two-way radio participants and a second group of two-way radio participants;

creating a conference room for said conference call;

establishing a connection between said conference room and a respective external radio adapter within a respective radio network, each containing two or more two-way radio devices associated with one of said first and second groups of said two-way radio participants, each said external radio adapter being physically connected to a respective coupled two-way radio device of the two-way radio devices associated with the respective one of the first and second groups;

receiving, at any given time, voice streams originated by one of said two-way radio devices of said first group and one of said two-way radio devices of said second group via said respective radio adapters during said conference call;

transmitting said received voice streams originated by said first group to said radio adapter associated with said second group for transmission to said two-way radio devices of said second group via said conference room and said respective coupled two-way radio device; and

transmitting said received voice streams originated by said second group to said radio adapter associated with said first group for transmission to said two-way radio devices of said second group via said conference room and said respective coupled two-way radio device.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein each said radio adapter operates to convert said voice streams between a respective format associated with said respective radio network and a second format associated with said conference room.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein said creating said conference room further comprises:

executing a conferencing software module to create and manage said conference room.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein said step of executing said conferencing software module further comprises the step of:

executing said conferencing software module to create and manage multiple conference rooms in parallel.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

establishing a connection between said conference room and telephone devices associated with telephone participants, said telephone devices being coupled to said conference room via a telephone network; and

wherein said step of transmitting said voice streams further comprises the step of;

processing and transmitting one or more types of media for each of said conference rooms, wherein said types of media include said voice streams and data that enables data collaboration between said respective telephone participants.

25. The method of claim 20, wherein said step of receiving said instruction further comprises the step of:

receiving said instruction to create said conference room in response to a triggering of an alarm as a result of the occurrence of an external event.

26. The method of claim 20, further comprising the step of:

controlling respective conference leg states of said two-way radio devices of said first group and said second group.