Control apparatus and method for sharing information in a collaborative workspace

• US 9,339,106 B2
• Filed: 06/02/2014
• Issued: 05/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Barco NV
• Original Assignee: Steelcase Incorporated
• Inventors: Epstein, Lewis, Kincaid, Brett, Yoo, Hyun, Stage, Suzanne, Scherrer, Lukas, Cheng, Larry
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, QUOC DUC
• Application Number:
  US14/293,135
• Publication Number:
  US 20140285614A1
• Time in Patent Office: 715 Days
• Field of Search: 348/14.01, 348/14.07, 348/14.18, 348/14.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 13/08 Table tops; Rims therefor not restricted to table tops A47B95/04
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 2021/066 with power or communication connection interface
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 2083/003 Table combination having a central power access component
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 2083/006 having an incorporated display screen
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 21/00 Tables or desks for office equipment, e.g. typewriters, keyboards
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 21/06 characterised by means for holding, fastening or concealing cables
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 37/00 Tables adapted for other particular purposes glass cutting tables C03B33/03
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 83/001 Office desks or work-stations combined with other pieces of furniture, e.g. work space management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1647 including at least an additional display G06F1/1692 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1423 controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1446 display composed of modules, e.g. video walls
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/147 using display panels
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/268 Signal distribution or switching
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/64 Constructional details of receivers, e.g. cabinets or dust covers furniture aspects of television cabinets A47B81/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/66 Transforming electric information into light information scanning details H04N3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/104 Switchers or splitters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/147 Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals selecting H04Q
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 : Conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 : for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

A method of selecting information from a video source to be displayed on a single common display screen in a collaborative workspace, the method for use with a plurality of video source devices, each video source device including a device display screen and a wireless transmitter and presenting content on the device display screen, the method comprising the steps of dividing the common display screen into a plurality of presentation spaces, providing a separate control interface on each of the plurality of device display screens, each control interface including a selectable control for each of the plurality of presentation spaces and for each of the control interfaces, when a selectable control is selected, replicating the content from the device display screen on the presentation space associated with the selected control.

Claims

1. A method of selecting information from a video source to be displayed on a single common display screen in a collaborative workspace, the method for use with a plurality of video source devices, each video source device including a device display screen and a wireless transmitter and presenting content on the device display screen, the method comprising the steps of:

dividing the common display screen into a plurality of presentation spaces;

providing a separate control interface on each of the plurality of device display screens, each control interface including a selectable control for each of the plurality of presentation spaces; and

for each of the control interfaces, when a selectable control is selected, replicating the content from the device display screen on the presentation space associated with the selected control.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the common display screen is divided into a pattern of presentation spaces and wherein each control interface mirrors the pattern of presentation spaces on the common display screen.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the pattern of presentation spaces on the common display screen includes four presentation spaces arranged in two rows and two columns.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein each of the presentation spaces is rectangular.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein each of the selectable controls indicates two states including a first state when the content from the device display screen of the source device presenting the interface is not replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control and a second state when the content from the device display screen of the video source device presenting the interface is replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein each selectable control indicates the first and second states by changing the color of the selectable control.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein two or more of the selectable controls on one of the control interfaces can be selected to replicate the content from the device display screen presenting the selected control on two or more associated presentation spaces simultaneously.

8. The method of claim 6 further including associating a switching device with the common display screen and wirelessly transmitting a selection signal from one of the video source devices to the switching device when one of the selectable controls is selected.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of replicating includes transmitting the content on the source device display used to select the selectable control to the switching device and controlling the switching device to present the transmitted content via the presentation space.

10. The method of claim 5 wherein each control interface further includes a selectable control for removing content from the presentation spaces that replicates the content presented via the source display device that presents the interface such that when the selectable control for removing content is selected, the content from the source device display that is replicated on one of the presentation spaces is removed.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the selectable control for replicating content and the selectable control for removing replicated content include different screen selectable icons.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the selectable control for replicating content and the selectable control for removing replicated content are the same on screen selectable icon where the function of the icon toggles between replicating content and removing content.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein each of the control interfaces also includes a selectable off control that, when selected, also removes content from the presentation spaces that replicates the content presented via the source display device that presents the interface.

14. The method of claim 5 wherein, after a first selection of one of the selectable controls that results in replicating the content from a video source display screen in one of the presentation spaces, a second selection of the one of the selectable controls while the content from the video source display screen is replicated in the one of the presentation spaces results in removing the content from the one of the presentation spaces.

15. The method of claim 5 wherein, regardless of which video source device display screen content is presented in any of the presentation spaces, any one of the control interfaces can be used to replace the presented content and replicate content from the source device display associated with the interface on an associated presentation space.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein each control interface includes a small window hovering over video source content on the device display screen and wherein the control interface is not replicated on the presentation spaces.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein, regardless of which video source device display screen content is presented in any of the presentation spaces, any one of the control interfaces can be used to replicate content from the video source display screen presenting the interface on any one of the presentation spaces.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein each of the selectable controls indicates two states including a first state when the content from the device display screen of the video source device presenting the interface is not replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control and a second state when the content from the device display screen of the video source device presenting the interface is replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control.

19. The method of claim 1 wherein the display screen includes at least one projector projecting content into at least a subset of the presentation spaces including at least two of the presentation spaces.

20. The method of claim 1 further including associating a switching device with the common display screen and wirelessly transmitting a selection signal from one of the video source devices to the switching device when one of the selectable controls is selected.

21. The method of claim 20 further including providing a table top adjacent the common display screen wherein the switching device is mounted a support structure of the table top.

22. A method of selecting information from a video source to be displayed on a single common display screen, the method for use with a plurality of video source devices, each video source device including a device display screen and a wireless transmitter and presenting content on the device display screen, the method comprising the steps of:

dividing the common display screen into four presentation spaces;

providing a separate control interface on each of the plurality of device display screens, each control interface including a selectable control for each of the four presentation spaces wherein the selectable control can indicate at least two states including a first state wherein content on the device display screen presenting the interface is not replicated on an associated presentation space and a second state wherein content on the device display screen presenting the interface is replicated on an associated presentation space; and

for each of the control interfaces, when a selectable control is selected while content from the display screen presenting the interface is not replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control, replicating the content from the device display screen on the presentation space associated with the selected control and causing the selected control to indicate the second state.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the common display screen is divided into a pattern of presentation spaces and wherein the control interface mimics the pattern of presentation spaces on the common display screen.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the pattern of presentation spaces on the common display screen includes the four presentation spaces arranged in two rows and two columns and wherein each of the control interfaces likewise includes a pattern of two rows and two columns of four selectable icons.

25. The method of claim 22 wherein each selectable control indicates the first and second states by changing the color of the selectable control.

26. The method of claim 22 wherein two or more of the selectable controls on one of the control interfaces can be selected to simultaneously replicate the content from the device display screen presenting the selected controls on two or more associated presentation spaces.

27. The method of claim 22 further including associating a switching device with the common display screen and wirelessly transmitting a selection signal from one of the video source devices to the switching device when one of the selectable controls is selected.

28. The method of claim 22 wherein, after a first selection of one of the selectable controls that results in replicating the content from a video source display screen in one of the presentation spaces, a second selection of the one of the selectable controls while the content from the video source display screen is replicated in the one of the presentation spaces results in removing the content from the one of the presentation spaces.

29. A method of selecting information from a video source to be displayed on a single common display screen, the method for use with a plurality of video source devices, each video source device including a device display screen and a wireless transmitter and presenting content on the device display screen, the method comprising the steps of:

dividing the common display screen into a plurality of presentation spaces;

providing a separate control interface on each of the plurality of device display screens, each control interface including a plurality of selectable controls including at least a separate selectable control for each of the plurality of presentation spaces;

providing a switching device linked to the common display screen; and

for each of the control interfaces, when a selectable control is selected;

(i) wirelessly transmitting a signal to the switching device indicating which of the plurality of selectable controls has been selected; and

(ii) wirelessly transmitting the content from the device display screen presenting the selected selectable control to the switching device;

upon receiving the signal and the content, the switching device using the content to drive the presentation space associated with the selected selectable control.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein the common display screen is divided into a pattern of presentation spaces and wherein each control interface mirrors the pattern of presentation spaces on the common display screen.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein the pattern of presentation spaces on the common display screen includes four presentation spaces arranged in two rows and two columns.

32. The method of claim 31 wherein each of the selectable controls indicates two states including a first state when the content from the device display screen of the source device presenting the interface is not replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control and a second state when the content from the device display screen of the video source device presenting the interface is replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control.

33. The method of claim 32 wherein each selectable control indicates the first and second states by changing the appearance of the selectable control.

34. The method of claim 33 wherein each control interface further includes a selectable control for removing content from the presentation spaces that replicates the content presented via the source display device that presents the interface such that when the selectable control for removing content is selected, the content from the source device display that is replicated on one of the presentation spaces is removed.

35. The method of claim 34 wherein, regardless of which video source device display screen content is presented in any of the presentation spaces, any one of the control interfaces can be used to replace the presented content and replicate content from the source device display associated with the interface on any one of the presentation spaces.

36. The method of claim 29 wherein the display screen includes at least one projector projecting content into at least a subset of the presentation spaces including at least two of the presentation spaces.

37. The method of claim 29 wherein each of the selectable controls indicates two states including a first state when the content from the device display screen of the source device presenting the interface is not replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control and a second state when the content from the device display screen of the video source device presenting the interface is replicated on the presentation space associated with the selected control.

38. The method of claim 37 wherein, regardless of which video source device display screen content is presented in any of the presentation spaces, any one of the control interfaces can be used to replace the presented content and replicate content from the source device display associated with the interface on any one of the presentation spaces.

39. The method of claim 37 further including the step of, when a control interface on a second video source device is used to replace content presented in a presentation space by a first video source device, causing the selectable control that is associated with the presentation space on the first video source device to indicate the first state.

40. The method of claim 39 wherein the step of causing the selectable control to indicate the first state includes transmitting a wireless signal to the first video source device indicating that the first video source device no longer drives the presentation space associated with the selectable control.

41. A method of selecting information from a video source to be displayed in a plurality of display presentation spaces, the method for use with a plurality of video source devices, each video source device including a device display screen and a wireless transmitter and presenting content on the device display screen, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a separate control interface on each of the plurality of device display screens, each control interface including a plurality of selectable controls including at least a separate selectable control for each of the plurality of presentation spaces, each control interface also including an indicator capable of indicating two states including a first state when the content from the device display screen of the source device presenting the interface is not replicated on a presentation space associated with a selectable control and a second state when the content from the device display screen of the video source device presenting the interface is replicated on the presentation space associated with the selectable control;

with content from a first video source device presented on a first presentation space associated with a first selectable control, indicating the second state;

when a control interface on a second video source device is used to replicate content from the screen of the second video source device on the first presentation space, transmitting a wireless signal to the first video source device causing the first video source device to indicate the first state.

42. A system for selecting information from a video source to be displayed on a single common display screen in a collaborative workspace, the system comprising:

a server linked to the common display screen, the server dividing the common display screen into a plurality of presentation spaces;

a plurality of video source devices, each video source device including a device display screen and a wireless transmitter and presenting content on the device display screen, each source device providing a separate control interface on the device display screen, each control interface including a selectable control for each of the plurality of presentation spaces;

wherein, for each of the control interfaces, when a selectable control is selected, the server replicates the content from the device display screen on the presentation space associated with the selected control.