System and method for performing distributed multipoint video conferencing

• US 8,614,732 B2
• Filed: 08/24/2005
• Issued: 12/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Baird, Randall B., Firestone, Scott S., Surazski, Luke K., Wu, Duanpei
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramakrishnaiah, Melur
• Application Number:
  US11/210,325
• Publication Number:
  US 20070064901A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,044 Days
• Field of Search: 348 1401- 1416, 348/420.1, 375/240.12, 375/240.2, 370/260, 370/261
• US Class Current: 348/14.08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/152 Multipoint control units therefor

Abstract

According to an embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus for performing video conferencing is provided that includes an I-frame injector element operable to intercept I-frame requests from one or more end points and to attempt to service the I-frame requests such that at least a portion of the requests are prevented from propagating back to an originating sender. In more specific embodiments, when a receiver endpoint sends a fast video update (FVU) request upstream, it is intercepted by the I-frame injector element and rather than passing the FVU request to the sender the I-frame injector element replaces a next P-frame from the sender with an I-frame, whereby the I-frame is constructed so that when decoded, it matches the P-frame that it replaced. In still more detailed embodiments, the I-frame injector element operates in one of three modes that are associated with bandwidth parameters.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a memory configured to store computer executable code; and

one or more processors coupled to the memory, the processors configured, when executing the code, to;

send a stream from a sender to a receiver, a plurality of endpoints comprising the sender and the receiver;

intercept an I-frame request from the receiver;

establish a destination bandwidth capacity associated with the receiver;

operate in a high bandwidth mode selected from a plurality of modes according to the destination bandwidth capacity;

encode one or more frames according to the selected mode, the frames comprising an I-frame that matches a decoded video frame from the sender; and

resume sending the stream from the sender to the receiver at a next frame.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, the one or more processors further configured to:

operate in a low bandwidth mode;

encode a new stream over a plurality of frames comprising a lower bit-rate I-frame;

sending a plurality of P-frames until the new stream is synched with the stream from the sender; and

switch from the new stream back to the stream from the sender when the new stream is synched with the stream.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, the one or more processors further configured to:

operate in a dumb mode;

pass the I-frame request to the sender; and

receive an I-frame from the sender;

re-encode the stream from the sender until an I-frame is received from the sender; and

switch to the stream from the sender when the I-frame is received from the sender.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, the destination bandwidth capacity comprising a bandwidth capacity of the receiver.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, the destination bandwidth capacity comprising a bandwidth capacity of a network of the receiver.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, the one or more processors further configured to:

determine if the sender corresponds to an active speaker;

continue the stream from the sender if the sender corresponds to an active speaker; and

suppress the stream from the sender if the sender does not correspond to an active speaker.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, the one or more processors further configured to:

continue the stream from the sender if the stream comprising an audio stream; and

suppress the stream from the sender if the stream comprising a video stream.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, the one or more processors further configured to:

replicate the sender stream for more than one endpoint.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, the I-frame request comprising a fast video update (FVU) request.

10. A method comprising:

performing the following by an endpoint of a plurality of endpoints comprising a sender and a receiver;

sending a stream from the sender to the receiver;

intercepting an I-frame request from the receiver;

establishing a destination bandwidth capacity associated with the receiver;

operating in a high bandwidth mode selected from a plurality of modes according to the destination bandwidth capacity;

encoding one or more frames according to the selected mode, the frames comprising an I-frame that matches a decoded video frame from the sender; and

resuming sending the stream from the sender to the receiver at a next frame.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

operating in a low bandwidth mode;

encoding a new stream over a plurality of frames comprising a lower bit-rate I-frame;

sending a plurality of P-frames until the new stream is synched with the stream from the sender; and

switching from the new stream back to the stream from the sender when the new stream is synched with the stream.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

operating in a dumb mode;

passing the I-frame request to the sender; and

receiving an I-frame from the sender;

re-encoding the stream from the sender until an I-frame is received from the sender; and

switching to the stream from the sender when the I-frame is received from the sender.

13. The method of claim 10, the destination bandwidth capacity comprising a bandwidth capacity of the receiver.

14. The method of claim 10, the destination bandwidth capacity comprising a bandwidth capacity of a network of the receiver.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

determining if the sender corresponds to an active speaker;

continuing the stream from the sender if the sender corresponds to an active speaker; and

suppressing the stream from the sender if the sender does not correspond to an active speaker.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

continuing the stream from the sender if the stream comprising an audio stream; and

suppressing the stream from the sender if the stream comprising a video stream.

17. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

replicating the sender stream for more than one endpoint.

18. The method of claim 10, the I-frame request comprising a fast video update (FVU) request.