Interactive communication system having an integrated key drive system

• US 9,027,015 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2008
• Issued: 05/05/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Steelcase Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Steelcase Incorporated
• Inventors: Hildebrandt, Peter W., Hutchinson, Ian G., Watson, James D., Dunn, Michael H., Hofmann, Neal A., Wilson, Scott E., Anderson, Brent W., Ashford, Louis, Meissner, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Thuy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Luu, Cuong V
• Application Number:
  US12/191,648
• Publication Number:
  US 20090146965A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,455 Days
• US Class Current: 717/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2370/16 Use of wireless transmission of display information
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/006 Details of the interface to the display terminal specific for a display terminal using a CRT G09G1/167; using a flat panel G09G3/2096; circuits for interfacing with colour displays G09G5/04

Abstract

A device and method of connecting an interactive communication system to a processing device. The device is a cable system that includes first and second ends. The first end of the cable system has a leg connector, while the second end of the connector system has first and second arm connectors. The method implements the cable system to load or run software onto the processing device, and includes connecting the leg connector to an interactive communication system; connecting the first arm connector having a memory device to the processing device, wherein the memory device includes predetermined software; loading/running the software on the processing device; disconnecting the first arm connector having the memory device from the processing device; and connecting a second arm connector to the processing device.

Claims

1. A method of connecting an interactive communication system comprising an electronic whiteboard to a processing device using a cable system, the cable system comprising a cable having a leg connector at a first end, and having first and second arm connectors at a second end, the first and second arm connectors not electrically connected to each other even when the cable system carries electrical signal, the method comprising:

initiating playback, by the processing device, of instructional media software for operating the interactive communication system, including one or more audio/video files stored in a memory device integrated into one of the first and second arm connectors;

responsive to determining that driver software adapted to control the interactive communication system is not already loaded onto the processing device, loading the driver software stored in the memory device onto the processing device, wherein;

the leg connector is connected to the interactive communication system;

the one of the first and second arm connectors having the integrated memory device is connected to the processing device; and

automatically running the loaded driver software by the processing device, wherein;

the one of the first and second arm connectors having the integrated memory device is disconnected from the processing device; and

the other of the first and second arm connectors is connected to the processing device.

2. The method of claim 1, the one of the first and second arm connectors comprising the memory device and not being electrically connected to the leg connector.

3. The method of claim 2, the leg connector and the first and second arm connectors each comprising a universal serial bus (USB) connector.