Sharing electromagnetic-signal measurements for providing feedback about transmit-path signal quality

• US 9,326,160 B2
• Filed: 07/09/2013
• Issued: 04/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Meloche, Jean, Stiles, Jay M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Elhag, Magdi
• Application Number:
  US13/937,644
• Publication Number:
  US 20130295917A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,022 Days
• Field of Search: 455423-425, 370/252, 370/529
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/23 Indication means, e.g. displays, alarms, audible means
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/309 Measuring or estimating channel quality parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements

Abstract

A technique is discloses that enables a first telecommunications terminal, wireless or otherwise, to report to its user whether a second, wireless telecommunications terminal is receiving the first terminal'"'"'s packet stream transmissions at a satisfactory quality level. The second terminal receives the packet stream that conveys the media waveform transmitted by the first terminal. The media waveform can be that of the speech signal of the first terminal'"'"'s user. The second terminal measures a trait of the received signal and encodes the measurement data into the packet stream that the second terminal is already transmitting to the first terminal. The first terminal then decodes the measurement data from the received second stream and presents, to its user, a quality indication that is based on the measurement data. In doing so, the first terminal provides its user with a better idea of whether the second terminal has reliably received the user'"'"'s communication.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

transmitting a packet stream that conveys a media waveform to a wireless terminal;

receiving, from the wireless terminal, a text message comprising a measurement of a trait of a signal received by the wireless terminal, the signal representing at least a portion of the media waveform, wherein the trait is at least one of a temporal difference of each pair of multipath components of signals, or a round-trip time of signals, wherein the text message further comprises a text string generated by the wireless terminal via speech-to-text conversion of the signal, wherein the measurement is encoded into the text message based on a measurement value of the measurement;

decoding, via a processor, the measurement from the text message and adjusting a value of a quality indication based on the measurement;

presenting a status that is based on the value of the quality indication; and

presenting the text string to a user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising;

receiving a second packet stream conveying a second media waveform; and

converting the second media waveform into a second text string, wherein the second media waveform represents a speech.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the signal comprises a speech waveform.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the text string comprises characters converted from a more recently-received portion of the signal.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising transmitting a text-based message that conveys the second text string to the wireless terminal.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising generating a second measurement of a second trait of a second signal that conveys the second packet stream, wherein transmitting the text-based message that conveys the text string is based on a value of the second measurement.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the second measurement is encoded into the packet stream based on a measurement value of the second measurement.

8. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a computer-readable storage medium having stored therein instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

transmitting a packet stream that conveys a media waveform to a wireless terminal;

receiving, from the wireless terminal, a text message comprising a measurement of a trait of a signal received by the wireless terminal, the signal representing at least a portion of the media wave form, wherein the trait is at least one of a temporal difference of each pair of multipath components of signals, or a round-trip time of signals, wherein the text message further comprises a text string generated by the wireless terminal via speech-to-text conversion of the signal, wherein the measurement is encoded into the text message based on a measurement value of the measurement;

decoding the measurement from the text message and adjusting a value of a quality indication based on the measurement;

presenting a status that is based on the value of the quality indication; and

presenting the text string to a user.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the signal comprises a speech waveform.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the signal is converted into the text string based on a value of the measurement.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the signal is transmitted based on a value of the measurement.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the text string comprises characters converted from a more recently-received portion of the signal.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the computer-readable storage media stores additional instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations further comprising:

receiving a second packet stream conveying a second media waveform; and

converting the second media waveform into a second text string, wherein the second media waveform represents a speech.

14. A computer-readable storage device having stored therein instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

transmitting a packet stream that conveys a media waveform to a wireless terminal;

receiving, from the wireless terminal, a text message comprising a measurement of a trait of a signal received by the wireless terminal, the signal representing at least a portion of the media wave form, wherein the trait is at least one of a temporal difference of each pair of multipath components of signals, or a round-trip time of signals, wherein the text message further comprises a text string generated by the wireless terminal via speech-to-text conversion of the signal, wherein the measurement is encoded into the text message based on a measurement value of the measurement;

decoding the measurement from the text message and adjusting a value of a quality indication based on the measurement;

presenting a status that is based on the value of the quality indication; and

presenting the text string to a user.

15. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein the signal comprises a speech waveform.

16. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein the signal is converted into the text string based on the measurement.

17. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein the signal is transmitted based on the measurement.

18. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein the text string comprises characters converted from a more recently-received portion of the signal.