Method, system, and computer-readable storage medium for remote control of a video conferencing device

• US 9,184,926 B2
• Filed: 01/07/2011
• Issued: 11/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Dahl, Axel
• Primary Examiner(s): Laekemariam, Yosef K
• Application Number:
  US12/986,740
• Publication Number:
  US 20110175977A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,768 Days
• Field of Search: 348/14.01, 348/14.08, 348/14.12, 348/14.09, 348/E7.083, 348/423.1, 348/429.1, 348/211.12, 379/88.13, 379/93.25, 379/93.21, 379/158, 379/202.01, 379/205.01
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1094 Inter-user-equipment sessions transfer or sharing
• 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 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/1016 Telecontrol
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

A method, system, and computer-readable storage medium for remotely controlling a video conferencing device registered with a video conferencing management server. The method includes establishing a connection to the video conferencing management server via a local access network (LAN), receiving a list of video conferencing devices registered with the video conferencing management server, selecting a video conferencing device from the list of video conferencing devices registered with the video conferencing management server, downloading a remote control application from the video conferencing management server, receiving registration information for the selected video conferencing device from the video conferencing management server, the registration information including at least an internal LAN address of the selected video conferencing device, establishing, using the registration information, a connection directly with the selected video conferencing device, and controlling the selected video conferencing device using the remote control application.

Claims

1. A method for a computer device remotely controlling a video conferencing device registered with a video conferencing management server, the method comprising:

establishing a connection to the video conferencing management server via a local access network (LAN);

receiving a list of video conferencing devices registered with the video conferencing management server;

selecting a video conferencing device from the list of video conferencing devices registered with the video conferencing management server;

determining that a remote control application has not been installed on the computer device;

downloading the remote control application from the video conferencing management server in response to the remote control application not being installed on the computer device;

receiving, at the computer device, an access code displayed by the selected video conferencing device;

receiving registration information for the selected video conferencing device from the video conferencing management server, the registration information including at least an internal LAN address of the selected video conferencing device;

establishing, using the registration information and in response to the access code being entered into the remote control application, a connection directly with the selected video conferencing device;

controlling the selected video conferencing device using the remote control application; and

accepting, by the computer device using the remote control application, an incoming call to the video conferencing device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the computer device, the video conferencing management server, and the selected video conferencing device are connected to the same LAN.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the internal LAN address is a local Internet Protocol (IP) network address.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the registration information further includes a username and a password of the selected video conferencing device.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

establishing a call from the selected video conferencing device by dialing a number to at least one of a different user and a different video conferencing device.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

establishing a call to at least one of a user and a video conferencing device based on a phonebook lookup at the video conferencing management server.

7. A system for remotely controlling a video conferencing device, the system comprising:

a computer device configured to communicate over a local area network (LAN);

a video conferencing management server configured to communicate over the LAN; and

at least one video conferencing device registered with the video conferencing management server, wherein

the computer device is further configured to

establish a connection to the video conferencing management server via the LAN,

receive a list of the video conferencing devices registered with the video conferencing management server,

select a video conferencing device from the list of registered video conferencing devices,

determine that a remote control application has not been installed on the computer device;

download the remote control application from the video conferencing

management server in response to the remote control application not being installed on the computer device,

receive registration information for the selected video conferencing device from the video conferencing management server, the registration information including at least an internal LAN address of the selected video conferencing device,

receive entry of an access number displayed by the selected video conferencing device,

establish, using the registration information and in response to the access number being entered in the remote control application, a connection directly with the selected video conferencing device,

control the selected video conferencing device using the remote control application, and

accept, using the remote control application, an incoming call to the video conferencing device.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the computer device, the video conferencing management server, and the selected video conferencing device are connected to the same LAN.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein the internal LAN address is a local Internet Protocol (IP) network address.

10. The system according to claim 7, wherein the registration information further includes a username and a password of the selected video conferencing device.

11. The system according to claim 7, wherein

the selected video conferencing device is further configured to display a confirmation number on a screen of the selected video conferencing device in response to the computer device connecting directly with the selected video conferencing device, and

the computer device is further configured to allow the remote control application access to the selected video conferencing device in response to the confirmation number being entered into the remote control application.

12. The system according to claim 7, wherein the remote control application is configured to establish a call from the selected video conferencing device by dialing a number to at least one of a different user and a different video conferencing device.

13. The system according to claim 7, wherein the remote control application is configured to establish a call to at least one of a user and a video conferencing device based on a phonebook lookup at the video conferencing management server.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including computer executable instructions, wherein the instructions, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method for remotely controlling a video conferencing device registered with a video conferencing management server, the method comprising:

establishing a connection to the video conferencing management server via a local access network (LAN);

receiving a list of video conferencing devices registered with the video conferencing management server;

selecting a video conferencing device from the list of video conferencing devices registered with the video conferencing management server;

determining that a remote control application has not been installed on the computer device;

downloading the remote control application from the video conferencing management server in response to the remote control application not being installed on the computer device;

receiving registration information for the selected video conferencing device from the video conferencing management server, the registration information including at least an internal LAN address of the selected video conferencing device;

receiving, at the computer device, an access number displayed by the selected video conferencing device;

establishing, using the registration information and in response to the access number being entered in the remote control application, a connection directly with the selected video conferencing device;

controlling the selected video conferencing device using the remote control application; and

accepting, by the computer using the remote control application, an incoming call to the video conferencing device.