Videoconferencing arrangement having multi-purpose digital still camera

• US 8,174,556 B1
• Filed: 02/19/2008
• Issued: 05/08/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: 8X8, Inc.
• Original Assignee: 8X8, Inc.
• Inventors: Barraclough, Keith, Martin, Bryan R., Deierling, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramakrishnaiah, Melur
• Application Number:
  US12/033,734
• Time in Patent Office: 1,540 Days
• Field of Search: 348 1401- 1416, 370260-261
• US Class Current: 348/14.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display

Abstract

A videoconferencing system uses a modular terminal that includes a conventional digital still camera coupled to the input port of the videocommunicator, such as a set top box. There are various features provided by this arrangement, including using the digital still camera to present video information to the videocommunicator with a split screen image representing the still image, a receiver arrangement permitting the digital still camera to fit securely and adjacent to the videocommunicator, and pan/tilt/zoom camera features provided electronically.

Claims

1. An interactive videoconferencing device, comprising:

a telephonic input configured and arranged to receive control signals from a touch-tone telephone;

a video input configured and arranged to receive local video images from a camera;

a communications port configured and arranged to establish bidirectional video communications with a remote videoconferencing device, the bidirectional video communications including transmittal of the local video images and receipt of remote video images captured by a remote videoconferencing device;

processing circuitry configured and arranged to respond to the control signals from the telephonic input by generating a composite image of the target images captured by a remote videoconferencing device and of at least one image from the video images from the camera; and

a monitor configured and arranged to display the composite image, wherein the composite image includes a local video portion for displaying live video images captured by the camera, a stored snapshot portion for displaying a still snap-shot image captured by the camera and a remote video portion for displaying image sequences received over the communications port.